METRO Friday, November 20, 2009 D Ice cores from east Antarctica con- tain the oldest drilled ice on Earth, and provide a unique record of past climate, the study said. Lead author Louise Sime said: We analysed Antarctic ice cores to look at climate during past warm periods and were surprised to find relatively high Antarctic temperatures. We dont yet know what caused these peaks, but we would like to be sure we havent missed anything im- portant about how Antarctica is set to change in a warming world. Analysis of the ice cores has revolu- tionised our understanding of how Antarctic climate has varied in the past, the study added. Antarctic has been six degrees warmer in pastBy Jamie Grierson TEMPERATURES in Antarctica dur- ing warm periods between ice ages soared to up to six degrees warmer than the present day, a new study has found. The findings could help us under- stand more about rapid climate changes, scientists said. Until now, temperatures during the warm periods between ice ages known as interglacials were thought to be only slightly warmer than those of the present day, British Antarctic Survey (BAS) scientists explained. But the findings show brief spikes in temperature, which recur roughly every 100,000 years and last a few thousand years, seem to have been a lot warmer. The new findings could help scien- tists predict how any melting of ice in the future could affect sea levels. BAS Ice core scientist Eric Wolff, a world-leading expert on past climate, said: During the last warm period, about 125,000 years ago, sea level was around five metres higher than today. If we can pin down how much warmer temperatures were in Antarc- tica and Greenland at this time, then we can test predictions of how melt- ing of the large ice sheets will con- tribute to sea level rise. i want to break free: russian icebreaker Kapitan Khlebnikov, which was trapped in antarctic ice for a week, is finally on the move again This giant fossil was top of the crocsFIVE exotic crocodile fossils, including one with boar-like tusks and another with a duck-bill snout, have been discovered in the Sahara. The ancient crocodilians who lived alongside the dinosaurs 100million years ago were, unlike their modern cousins, as agile on land as they were in water. The crocs once ran and swam across present-day Niger and Morocco. Scientists found the newly identified fossils in a remote stretch of dunes in the desert. They were given nicknames such as SuperCroc and DuckCroc by the scientists, based on their unusual physical features. Describing the finds in National Geographic magazine, Prof Paul Sereno wrote: Their amphibious talents may be the key to understanding how they flourished in, and survived, the dinosaur era. Unlike dinosaurs, the crocs belonged to a separate lineage that continues to this day. Jaws: Paul sereno with superCroc WAshington sued over kAtrinA fAilures THE US federal government could be vulnerable to billions of dollars in claims after a judge ruled the Army Corps of Engineers failure to properly maintain a navigation channel led to devastating flooding in Hurricane Katrina. A judge has awarded seven plaintiffs $720,000 (480,000), but the government could eventually be forced to pay much more. The ruling should give more than 100,000 other individuals, businesses and government entities a better shot at claiming damages. Judge Stanwood Duval said he was utterly convinced that the Corps failure to shore up the channel doomed the channel to grow to two to three times its design width and that created a more forceful frontal wave attack on the levee. Government experts argued the levees and floodwalls would have failed regardless. The lawsuit was the first major case against the federal government over Katrina flooding to go to trial.army failure: Blamed for flood If you have a story for MiniCosm please e-mail us at news@metroireland.ie MINICOSMSCIENCE & DISCOVERY IN BRIEF Plastic jug scoops up 10,000 IT MAY look like a scoop from a packet of washing powder, but this jug is apparently the next big thing in kitchen utensils. Not only that, but the Scrudle yes, Scrudle has netted its inventor 10,000. The device to scoop up and serve casseroles has won a challenge to find the best kitchen invention. Housewife Margaret OCallaghan, 64, from Kent, in the UK, was judged to have filled a kitchen niche and her creation could go on to be sold on the high street. The Scrudle, which looks like a flat- sided cup with a handle, gets its name from a combination of the words scoop, ladle and scraper, and will seamlessly scoop up equal amounts of meat, gravy and vegetables without spilling a drop. Mrs OCallaghan said she designed it because she was fed up with making a mess when transferring stews from pots to plates. The Scrudle beat 600 other designs to be crowned winner of a challenge judged by among others Michelin- starred chef Heston Blumenthal. Best gadget: mrs oCallaghan with her invention Ant gArdening: Every green-fingered gardener knows you need nitrogen-fixing bacteria to grow your veggies. But it seems humans arent alone... Leaf-cutter ants also use the same fungus to cultivate their food, a US study has found. The study provides an insight into how the ants have come to dominate the American tropics and subtropics, the report in Science journal said. Termites also use the fungus to survive. BrAke proBlem: Emissions from vehicle brake pads harm our lungs and should be seen in the same way as exhaust fumes, experts claim. Particles released under braking contain iron, copper and carbon, which cause oxidative stress and inflammation in lung cells, Swiss researchers found. Tackling them in the same way as exhaust fumes could improve air quality and thus protect human health, they said. look of love: People prefer to marry those with similar ancestry but their decisions are not necessarily based on hair, eye or skin colour. Mexicans mate according to proportions of Native American to European ancestry, while Puerto Ricans are likely to settle down with someone carrying a similar mix of African and European genes, scientists from the University of California found. index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html