• Chile: Four telescope link-up creates world's largest mirror
• Puerto Rico touts new plans for giant telescope
• Tiger tribe flourishes in Madhya Pradesh, India with rise in number of cubs

• Dr Travis presents neuroscience of Transcendental Meditation in Germany
• Brain mapping shows global EEG coherence during Transcendental Meditation
• Brain plasticity as a tool to create perfection in life

• Canada first nation to pull out of Kyoto protocol
• North Mexico wilts under worst drought on record
• US report: Arctic much worse since 2006

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Positive Trends
10 Short Summaries of Top Stories

Chile: Four telescope link-up creates world's largest mirror
4 February 2012 - Astronomers have created the world's largest virtual optical telescope linking four telescopes in Chile, so that they operate as a single device. Linking all four units will give scientists a much more detailed look at the universe than previous experiments using just two or three telescopes to create a virtual mirror. (more)

Puerto Rico touts new plans for giant telescope
4 February 2012 - Puerto Rico plans to build a hotel and a planetarium as part of a $50 million project to attract more visitors to the world's largest single-dish radio telescope, officials said Tuesday. Among the project's objectives is to create a doctoral programme in astronomy and space science and to attract more than 50,000 students a year, said Puerto Rico's Metropolitan University President. The observatory, located on the island's north coast, opened in 1963 and was operated by Cornell University until last year. (more)

Tiger tribe flourishes in Madhya Pradesh, India with rise in number of cubs
4 February 2012 - The Panna Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, which gained notoriety for mysterious disappearance of its big cats, is flourishing with tiger cubs again, rejoicing the success of its unique translocation experiment to revive their population. The number of tiger cubs in other reserves across the state is also looking up. (more)

Hubble snaps stunning barred spiral galaxy image
3 February 2012 - The Hubble space telescope has captured an image of a 'barred spiral' galaxy that could help us better understand our own Milky Way. The new picture continues the Hubble space telescope's long heritage of striking astronomical images. (more)

Solar-powered car, SolarWorld GT, sets out on US leg of first round-the-world journey
30 January 2012 - A solar-powered car sponsored by SolarWorld this week begins the US leg of its 21,000-mile quest to circle the globe, propelled only by sun's rays. The SolarWorld Gran Turismo (GT), a collaboration between SolarWorld and Bochum University of Applied Sciences in Germany, is a two-seat sports car powered by roof-integrated solar cells. The GT's circumnavigation of the planet, a first for a sustainable automobile, will set a 'Guinness Book of World Records' record for the longest distance covered by a solar car. (more)

Scottish communities could 'appraise' nature's services
27 January 2012 - Communities could be encouraged to make their own assessments of the direct benefits they get from nature. A toolkit has been developed as a guide to understanding the landscape and what are called ecosystem services and how they are affected by climate change. 'Services' include natural processes that provide food and fuel, purify air, enrich soils and prevent floods. (more)

Kepler telescope team finds 11 new solar systems
26 January 2012 - NASA's planet-hunting Kepler space telescope has found 11 new planetary systems, including one with five planets all orbiting closer to their parent star than Mercury circles the Sun, scientists said on Thursday. The discoveries boost the list of confirmed extra-solar planets to 729, including 60 credited to the Kepler team. (more)

Solar storm expected to fire up northern lights
24 January 2012 - Stargazers were out in force in northern Europe on Tuesday, hoping to be awed by a spectacular showing of northern lights after the most powerful solar storm in six years. Even before particles from that storm reached the Earth on Tuesday, the aurora borealis was dancing across the sky as far south as Ireland and England, where people rarely get a chance to catch the stunning light show. (more)

Solar storm lights up skies in northern Europe with intense display of northern lights
24 January 2012 - A storm from the broiling sun turned the chilly northernmost skies of Earth into an ever-changing and awe-provoking art show of northern lights on Tuesday. Even experienced stargazers were stunned by the intensity of the aurora borealis that swept across the night sky in northern Scandinavia after the biggest solar flare in six years. (more)

Suriname team find 46 new species in tropical forests
24 January 2012 - An expedition to a tiny South American country has revealed more than 40 species that scientists believe to be new to science. The expedition to the pristine tropical forests of Suriname was led by the charity Conservation International. The collaboration between scientists, indigenous people, and students recorded 1,300 species in total. (more)

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Success of Maharishi's Programmes
10 Short Summaries of Top Stories

Dr Travis presents neuroscience of Transcendental Meditation in Germany
23 December 2011 - Maharishi University of Management Professor Fred Travis has again taken the knowledge of the neuroscience of the Transcendental Meditation Technique to audiences abroad, most recently on a speaking tour of universities in Germany. (more)

Brain mapping shows global EEG coherence during Transcendental Meditation
3 December 2011 - Noted scientist and brain researcher Dr Alarik Arenander described the process of brain mapping by explaining that brain waves are nothing more than electrical impulses that are picked up on the scalp of the individual. The brain waves, he said, 'really reflect on a very fundamental level our consciousness and our mental activities. . . . We can put a person in a room and measure their brain waves and determine whether they're waking, whether they're in deep sleep, whether they're dreaming, whether they're transcending'--experiencing the deepest level of the mind, a state of restful alertness, during Transcendental Meditation. (more)

Brain plasticity as a tool to create perfection in life
3 December 2011 - The new Vedic Physiology course highlights the scientific principle of brain plasticity. 'If you change your brain, you can change your life,' explained Dr Arenander, who developed the course with his wife, Dr Cynthia Arenander. 'This in modern physiology is called brain plasticity. Your brain is plastic; it's moldable. . . . The possible permutations of your brain connectivity and dynamics are almost literally innumerable.' Because this change is always ongoing, he said, we can choose to increase the orderliness of our brain functioning through Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's technologies of consciousness. (more)

Dr John Hagelin gives keynote speech at unity conference
15 November 2011 - Dr John Hagelin, a world-renowned physicist and Director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy, has recently spoken at major conferences in the United States. Dr Hagelin was invited to be a keynote speaker for what is considered one of the most important conferences concerning unity. The conference speakers consisted of individuals, scientists, physicists, and philosophers who are interested in unity. (more)

Dr Norman Rosenthal addresses leading investment company on Transcendental Meditation research
15 November 2011 - Dr Norman Rosenthal has been touring the United States to promote his bestselling book, Transcendence. He recently spoke to a prestigious investment company in the Northeast region about the scientifically verified efficacy of the Transcendental Meditation Programme. (more)

Reduced violent crime in Washington, DC: Scientific research on the Brain-Based Approach to Peace
12 November 2011 - A National Demonstration Project conducted in Washington, DC tested the efficacy of group practice of the Transcendental Meditation Programme and its advanced techniques in reducing crime and social stress. Although violent crime had been steadily increasing, soon after the start of the study it began decreasing and continued to drop until the end of the experiment (maximum decrease 23.3%), after which it began to rise again. (more)

Scientifically validated programmes benefit Canada, world
4 November 2011 - Throughout 50 years and ten visits to Canada, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi offered scientifically validated programmes to improve the quality of life for individuals, the nation, and the world. (more)

First Maharishi Peace Palace in Europe to be built according to principles of sustainability
22 October 2011 - In Erfurt, Germany, construction has begun on a Maharishi Peace Palace which will be in accordance with the standards of Baubiologie. Baubiologie offers a valuable contribution from modern science that supports the principles of Maharishi Vastu architecture--building in harmony with Natural Law--on which the Peace Palace design is based. In this way the Peace Palace will be 'healthy from outside and healthy from inside, and supportive in all aspects for the inhabitants', an organizer commented. (more)

Albert Einstein - 'There is neither evolution nor destiny; only being'
9 October 2011 - A new essay analyzes beautiful passages from the writings of Albert Einstein--widely regarded as one of the greatest scientists who ever lived--drawing on the knowledge and experience of the transcendental field of life provided by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Transcendental Meditation Programme. The totality of Einstein's work converges into one supreme goal: to understand the unity underlying nature's diversity. (more)

Brain research expert Dr Fred Travis contributes chapter to major scientific book
30 August 2011 - Dr Fred Travis, director of the Center for Brain, Consciousness, and Cognition, is contributing a chapter to a new book called States of Consciousness: Experimental Insights into waking, dreaming, sleeping and meditation, one of a series by Springer, a major scientific, technical and professional publisher. His chapter reviews research that supports Transcendental Consciousness as a fourth state of consciousness, as well as empirical support for Cosmic Consciousness. (more)

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Flops
10 Short Summaries of Top Stories

Canada first nation to pull out of Kyoto protocol
12 December 2011 - Canada on Monday became the first country to announce it would withdraw from the Kyoto protocol on climate change, dealing a symbolic blow to the already troubled global treaty. Environment Minister Peter Kent broke the news on his return from talks in Durban, where countries agreed to extend Kyoto for five years and hammer out a new deal forcing all big polluters for the first time to limit greenhouse gas emissions. Canada, a major energy producer which critics complain is becoming a climate renegade, has long complained Kyoto is unworkable precisely because it excludes so many significant emitters. (more)

North Mexico wilts under worst drought on record
2 December 2011 - The sun-baked northern states of Mexico are suffering under the worst drought since the government began recording rainfall 70 years ago. Crops of corn, beans, and oats are withering in the fields. About 1.7 million cattle have died of starvation and thirst. Life isn't likely to get better soon. The next rainy season isn't due until June, and there's no guarantee normal rains will come then. The hardest blow has been to seasonal farmers and ranchers with non-irrigated pastures in Durango, Zacatecas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, and San Luis Potosi.'The situation for the people of Zacatecas is truly dramatic because farmers were not even able to produce the food they need for their own consumption,' said Zacatecas Gov. Miguel Alonso. The scarcity of rainfall also has dried up drinking water supplies for an estimated 2.5 million people in more than 1,500 small communities in northern Mexico. (more)

US report: Arctic much worse since 2006
1 December 2011 - US federal officials say the Arctic region has changed dramatically in the past five years -- for the worse. It's melting at a near record pace, and it's darkening and absorbing too much of the sun's heat. A new report card from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration rates the polar region with blazing red stop lights on three of five categories and yellow cautions for the other two. The Arctic acts as Earth's refrigerator, cooling the planet. What's happening, scientists said, is like someone pushing the fridge's thermostat much too high. The dramatic changes are from both man-made global warming and recent localized weather shifts, which were on top of the longer term warming trend, scientists said. The report, was written by 121 scientists from around the world. (more)

UN: Concentrations of greenhouse gases hit record
21 November 2011 - The UN weather agency says concentrations of global warming gases are at record levels from emissions that exceed scientists' worst-case scenarios. The World Meteorological Organization says heat-trapping carbon dioxide concentrations in the air have reached 389 parts per million -- the highest such concentrations since the start of the industrial era in 1750. WMO says that reflects a 20 per cent increase in nitrous oxide, 39 per cent rise in CO2 and 158 per cent jump in methane since then. Its report Monday cites fossil fuel-burning, loss of forests that absorb CO2, and use of fertilizer as main culprits. (more)

Study: Triple threat paints grim future for frogs
16 November 2011 - Frogs, salamanders, and other amphibians may eventually have no haven left on the globe because of a triple threat of worsening scourges, a new study predicts. Scientists have long known that amphibians are under attack from a killer fungus, climate change and shrinking habitat. In the study appearing online Wednesday in the journal Nature, computer models project that in about 70 years those three threats will spread, leaving no part of the world immune from one of the problems. Frogs seem to have the most worrisome outlook, said study lead author Christian Hof of the Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre in Frankfurt. The biggest threats are seen, mostly from climate change, to frogs and other amphibians in tropical Africa, northern South America, and the Andes Mountains, areas which Hof calls 'climate losers.' In the northern Andes, which have the largest number of frog species in the world, more than 160 frog species are at risk, he said. (more)

Rhino subspecies vanishing from the wild
10 November 2011 - The Western Black Rhino of Africa has been declared officially extinct, and two other subspecies of rhinoceros are close to meeting the same fate, a leading conservation group said Thursday. The International Union for Conservation of Nature said a recent reassessment of the Western Black Rhino had led it to declare the species extinct, adding that the Northern White Rhino of central Africa is now 'possibly extinct' in the wild and the Javan Rhino is 'probably extinct' in Vietnam, after poachers killed the last animal there in 2010. About a quarter of all mammals are at risk of extinction, IUCN said, adding that some species have been brought back from the brink with successful conservation programs. (more)

Biggest jump ever seen in global warming gases
3 November 2011 - The global output of heat-trapping carbon dioxide jumped by the biggest amount on record, the US Department of Energy calculated, a sign of how feeble the world's efforts are at slowing man-made global warming. The new figures for 2010 mean that levels of greenhouse gases are higher than the worst case scenario outlined by climate experts just four years ago. 'The more we talk about the need to control emissions, the more they are growing,' said John Reilly, co-director of MIT's Joint Programme on the Science and Policy of Global Change. The world pumped about 564 million more tonnes (512 million metric tonnes) of carbon into the air in 2010 than it did in 2009. That's an increase of 6 per cent. That amount of extra pollution eclipses the individual emissions of all but three countries -- China, the United States, and India, the world's top producers of greenhouse gases. (more)

Climate change spawns the incredible shrinking ant
17 October 2011 - Plants and animals are shrinking because of warmer temperatures and lack of water, researchers said on Monday, warning it could have profound implications for food production in years ahead. 'The worst-case scenarios ... are that food crops and animals will shrink enough to have real implications for food security,' Assistant Professor David Bickford, of the National University of Singapore's biological sciences department, said. They cited an experiment showing how shoots and fruit are 3 to 17 per cent smaller for every degree Celsius of warming in a variety of plants. Each degree of warming also reduces by 0.5 to 4 per cent the body size of marine invertebrates and 6 to 22 per cent of fish. (more)

Wildlife responds fast to climate change: study
18 August 2011 - Plants and animals are responding up to three times faster to climate change than previously estimated, as wildlife shifts to cooler altitudes and latitudes, researchers said Thursday. Scientists have reported this decade on individual species that moved towards the poles or uphill as their traditional habitats shifted due to global warming, but this study analyzed data on over 2,000 species to get a more comprehensive picture. Because of different species diverse reactions, Chris Thomas, a professor of conservation biology at the University of York in Britain, and the leader of the project, said, ''it's very hard to predict what an individual species is going to do ... and that means that if you want to manage the world in some way, save species or whatever, unfortunately it looks as though a lot of detailed information is going to be required ... in order to take practical action.'' (more)

Ocean life on the brink of mass extinctions: study
21 June 2011 - Life in the oceans is at imminent risk of the worst spate of extinctions in millions of years due to threats such as climate change and over-fishing, a study showed on Tuesday. Time was running short to counter hazards such as a collapse of coral reefs or a spread of low-oxygen 'dead zones', according to the study led by the International Programme on the State of the Ocean (IPSO). 'The findings are shocking,' Alex Rogers, scientific director of IPSO, wrote of the conclusions from a 2011 workshop of ocean experts. Jelle Bijma, of the Alfred Wegener Institute, said the seas faced a 'deadly trio' of threats of higher temperatures, acidification, and lack of oxygen, known as anoxia, that had featured in several past mass extinctions. 'From a geological point of view, mass extinctions happen overnight, but on human timescales we may not realize that we are in the middle of such an event,' Bijma wrote. (more)