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A tiny pale deer mouse living on a sand dune in Nebraska looks set to become an icon of biology.

Within just a few thousand years, generations of the mice have evolved a sandy-coloured coat camouflaging themselves from predators.

Most striking is that these mice acquired the mutation for pale fur naturally, then rapidly passed it on.

That makes the fast-evolving deer mouse one of the best examples yet studied of "true" natural selection in action.

Deer mice are one of the most abundant and widespread mammals in North America.

Usually the mice have a dark coat, which enables them to blend in with dark soils and avoid being seen by predators such as owls and hawks.

But at Sand Hills in Nebraska, pale-coated mice abound.

"We decided to investigate the striking contrast between mice living on the pale Sand Hills and mice living on darker soils just a few miles outside," says Dr Catherine Linnen of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US.

"We were also intrigued by the fact that Sand Hills had formed within the last 8,000 to 15,000 years, which implies the light colour of the Sand Hills mice became advantageous only recently."

Linnen and colleagues at Harvard and the University of California at Berkeley have now worked out exactly how the mice evolved so quickly.

They have published the details in the journal Science.

They discovered that the light coat colour is coded by a single gene, dubbed Agouti. This is expressed at a higher amount, and for longer, than the genes that code for dark hair.

Most animals known to quickly evolve new features do so by expressing a variation of a gene that already exists, rather than evolving a new type of gene altogether.

But the researchers found that the Agouti gene only appeared among wild deer mice in Sand Hills around 4,000 years ago, just a few thousand years after dark mice colonised their new home. That means it first evolved 8000 generations of mice ago.

They also ascertained that this new gene has since become very common among the Sand Hills mice.

"The light gene wasn't in existence, so the mice had to "wait" until a particular mutation occurred and then selection had to act on that new mutation," says team member Professor Hopi Hoekstra, also of Harvard University.

"It's a two part process. First the mutation has to occur and second, selection has to increase its frequency."

The researchers say it is the first time that it has been possible to document the appearance of a gene, its selection and subsequent spread through a population of wild animals.

And that has allowed them to estimate the "strength" of the natural selection pressure.

Having light coloured fur gives the paler Sand Hills mice a 0.5% survival advantage.

"It doesn't seem that much, but multiplied over thousands of individuals over hundreds of years, it makes a huge difference," says Prof Hoekstra.

"Ours is a very complete story," adds Dr Linnen.

"We've been able to connect changes at DNA level to the ability of deer mice to survive in nature."

In some respects, the dune-living deer mice are similar to the famous peppered moths of northern England.

For decades, the peppered moths (Biston betularia) have been heralded as one of the best-examples known of a wild animal adapting to its environment due to natural selection.

Originally, most peppered moths were lightly coloured, to blend with the lightly coloured bark of trees.

Due to widespread pollution caused by the Industrial Revolution, soot blackened the trees and newly conspicuous lightly coloured moths were picked off by predators, a selection pressure that triggered the rise of more dark coloured moths.

"In both species, changes in colour evolve rapidly due to selection by visually-hunting predators," says Prof Hoekstra.

But the study by Dr Linnen and Prof Hoekstra's team takes our undertaking of natural selection to a much deeper level.

The selection pressure on the moths was technically artificial, caused by pollution produced by people. Whereas the selection causing the pale mice is truly natural.

What is more, the scientists have found the gene responsible, and worked out exactly how long it took to evolve and take hold in the population.

"Despite the fact that the peppered has been an icon of 'evolution in action', we do yet know the genetic changes involved," says Prof Hoekstra.

"Once researchers find the pigmentation gene responsible for moth colour change, they can do the same types of analyses we have done. It will be really interesting to compare these estimates between mice and men."

House prices in England and Wales rose by 1.7% in July compared with June - the biggest monthly leap in value since July 2004, the Land Registry said.

Every region recorded a monthly rise in prices, with the average home valued at £155,885, the analysis found.

But prices were still 11.7% lower in July than they were in the same month a year earlier and sales were also down.

The annual drop in prices was sharpest in the North East of England but at its most shallow in Wales.

The Land Registry, which records all completed property sales in England and Wales, is widely regarded as producing one of the most authoritative house price reports, although it does lag behind data from lenders.

It compares the price of properties sold now with the price paid when they were sold previously. However, repossessions and property transfers following a divorce are excluded from the sample.

Why can't we buy condoms? I never thought I'd be asking this question. But I have been compelled to after a particularly appalling incident and several more narrated by my gal pals.

I walked myself to the "most popular" chemist in my area to buy a pack of condoms! And yes it was the first time I had ventured to do the same… Considerate that I am, I thought I'd let my partner off the hook and take responsibility this time around.

Considered one of the most advanced and biggest medical shops in the area, I was hoping to flit in and flit out in a breeze. Boy, was I wrong!

After I managed to catch the attention of a female shop assistant and asked her for my partner's choice of brand [I was getting the male condom!], the fiasco began.

Apparently flabbergasted by what I wanted to buy, she asked me to repeat my request. I nonchalantly did the same - only to be told to wait. She scurried off to a corner and whispered something in the ear of a fellow shop assistant and both the girls giggled and glared at me!

Pretending to be busy, the twosome then sent another assistant to ask me what I wanted. This one deserved the Oscar for playing the "I'm-hard-of-hearing-nitwit-shop-assistant" and asked me to repeat my request for the third time.

Enraged by the petty arrogance of these excuses-for-chemists, I repeated loudly the brand for the last and final time (or so I thought!). All the shop assistants - and there were around 7 of them - froze. I was "exhibit A" and all eyes were on me, including those of the other patrons. The young boy who had come for cough medicine blushed, the aunty cursed me under her breath and an uncouth looking man gave me a dirty smile.

The news that I was there for the "rubber" spread like wild fire!

I was finally handed very reluctantly the pack by the male shop assistant who was waiting for an explanation or an excuse. They weren't going to get any.

The fact that I was getting it for my husband was none of their business. And this very regressive attitude is what has stopped many others like me from doing the right thing - protecting ourselves.

In a recent survey, one out of 10 men said they have had unprotected sex because they were too embarrassed to buy condoms from a pharmacy. What's more, the results confirmed that the high street pharmacy was a 'humiliation hot-spot' for people.

So if the men were toe-curlingly embarrassed by the same, women obviously couldn't be left behind! What's worse was that almost 50 per cent of the population had suffered a health problem like thrush in silence rather than facing the embarrassment of seeking medical attention according to the online pharmacy mastersdirect.com.

Most simply walked out of a pharmacies because they were too embarrassed to ask for a particular health product, revealed the survey.

Most women depend on their male partners and trust them blindly to protect them against any sexually transmitted disease. A friend of mine got her partner to get a year's supply of condoms just so that he doesn't make excuses and she is not forced to go to a chemist.

While there are a handful few who do take the initiative like 30-year-old Priyasha Seth who always carries a pack and makes a point to buy it herself, even she has had to contend with embarrassing situations at the chemist.

Most male friends of mine don't have any qualms walking up to a chemist and picking a condom. In fact, one of them "feels proud doing it, and especially likes discussing the different flavours, sizes, types at the chemist.... it freaks the shop assistants out completely".

29 year old Ad executive says, "All you need to do is head to a supermarket and dunk a pack or two with your groceries. Who's to know?!"

Sociologist Nandini Sardesai says, "NGOs and the government have done enough. It's the attitude of the people that needs to change." "There is a need to introduce new and novel ways of making condoms more accessible. For eg: Thailand's 'Condom King', Mechai Viravaidya - so-called due to his extensive work promoting accessible contraceptives - introduced the concept of giving condoms out instead of candy when you pay your bills."

All said and done, wouldn't you rather be safe than sorry? So, don't let chemists make you regret doing the right thing.

Have you been through embarrassing situations at the chemist? Leave us a comment and let us know.

Source: idiva

There is uncertainty surrounding the purchase of file-sharing website The Pirate Bay (TPB) by Swedish-based Global Gaming Factory (GGF).

Trading in GGF shares has been suspended and there are reports that the firm's chairman - Magnus Bergman - has resigned.

GGF paid 60m kronor (£4.7m) to take over TPB in June this year.

The Swedish stock market is investigating whether GGF has sufficient funds to complete the sale.

In an exclusive interview with BBC News, GGF's chief, Hans Pandeya, said that the acquisition of The Pirate Bay would go ahead on 27 August as planed.

"The Aktietorget - the Swedish stock market - said they wanted more information on investors, which we said we would release after the acquisition," he said. "There are risks and possible lawsuits, and this makes people nervous.

"None [of the investors] wants to give out their details, otherwise the media will attack them," he added.

Mr Pandeya said he had no knowledge of Mr Bergman's resignation, as reported in the Swedish media, but he added that the company knew he was going to leave soon. "We are going to have a shareholder meeting to get a new board and we were doing that because Magnus was going to leave," he said. "I have not had any information that he had already left and I met him on Friday and he didn't say anything."

Business model

The deal, which was announced on 1 July, would see the new Pirate Bay host legal content, paying copyright holders for their work, and also paying file sharers for making their files available. The company is also looking at harnessing the storage capacity and processing power of the file-sharing community, creating a powerful grid of peer-to-peer linked computers to share legitimate files.

Mr Pandeya said the unusual nature of The Pirate Bay did not sit comfortably with some Swedish bankers. "You are not supposed to buy an illegal site," he said. "This is out-of-the-box thinking. "Because it is unconventional it is viewed with uncertainty by Swedish culture, even if I don't view it that way. "Because of that, they want details and 100% assurances, but in business that is not always something you can get," he said. Mr Pandeya said that despite this he was hopeful the Aktietorget would let GGF resume trading. "Why stop trading when, in three days, we will find out if [the acquisition] is real?" he asked.

By Daniel Emery

Technology reporter, BBC News

At least 200 children have died in an outbreak of Japanese encephalitis in northern India, health officials say.

So far, 900 affected children have been admitted to hospitals in Uttar Pradesh state. Some patients have come from neighbouring Bihar state and Nepal.

There is no specific cure for the mosquito-borne disease which has killed thousands in India since 1978.

Health experts complain that red tape has prevented development of an effective vaccination programme.

The disease occurs regularly during India's monsoon.

Doctors say children between the age of six months to 15 years are worst affected and most of the victims are poor people from rural areas.

Breeding ground

"The attack of the encephalitis virus is extremely ferocious this year," says Dr Rashmi Kumar, an expert on Japanese encephalitis at Lucknow Medical College hospital.

"Children are developing a serious condition within a day or two of getting infected," she says.

Health officials in the state capital, Lucknow, say cases of acute encephalitis are being reported mostly from 14 districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh in the foothills of the Himalayas.

The low-lying areas are prone to annual floods, and severe water-logging and a lack of sanitation provide a breeding ground for mosquitoes.Doctors say Gorakhpur town is the epicentre of the disease.Last year, the government said it would spend 60 million rupees ($1.24m) to upgrade facilities at Gorakhpur Medical College hospital.

But, doctors say, the hospital does not have adequate numbers of medical staff to deal with the large numbers of patients.

Doctors say the children who survive will have to face lifelong problems as the disease has a crippling effect.

'Preventable'

While there is no specific cure for the disease after it has been contracted, three vaccines are in use worldwide that have reportedly been successful in preventing the disease.But India has so far failed to develop an effective vaccination programme.

After the disease killed 1,500 children in 2005, a public outcry forced the government to import vaccines from China and a mass vaccination project was started.

However, doctors say the vaccine coverage has not been satisfactory this year, with many parents of affected children saying no vaccination was done in their areas.Japanese encephalitis, which causes high fever, vomiting and can leave patients comatose, usually hits Uttar Pradesh state in July-August.The disease has recurred annually in eastern regions of the state since 1978.

Asian shares have risen sharply, boosted by comments made by Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke that the US economy is approaching recovery.

Japan's main Nikkei 225 index rose 342.9 points, or 3.4%, to 10,581.1, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.9%.

Other regional markets also performed well, while European shares moved higher in morning trading.

Mr Bernanke's comments, made on Friday, along with record US housing data, have boosted investor confidence.

Markets in Thailand and South Korea advanced by 1.8%, in Taiwan and Australia by 2.8%, and in India by 2%.

Thailand was also buoyed by official figures showing the country has emerged from recession, with the economy growing 2.3% between April and June compared with the previous quarter.

The UK's FTSE index was up 1.1%, France's Cac 40 climbed 0.8% and Germany's Dax rose 0.9%.

The Fed boss told a conference in Wyoming last week that the prospects for a return to growth in the near term appeared "good". Separately, figures released in the US on Friday showed existing home sales rose by 7.2% in July.

'Too excited'

"The rally reflects the changes in external environments for Japan - that is mounting expectations that the US economy will recover," said Ryuta Otsuka at Toyo Securities.

However, he cast doubt on how long shares would keep rising, given the uncertainty of the forthcoming general election in Japan.

Such caution was reflected by some European analysts.

"Markets have been reflecting the government stimulus around the world and getting far too excited. We have to be extremely careful of the market getting too carried away and investors losing track of valuations," said Justin Urquhart Stewart at Seven Investment Management.

Last week, the Dow Jones index in the US finished 156 points higher at 9,506, its highest level in nine months.

Eight people have been arrested for hijacking the cargo ship Arctic Sea, Russia's defence minister says.

Anatoly Serdyukov said the group of suspects included Russian, Estonian and Latvian nationals.

The Finnish-owned Arctic Sea went off radar after passing through the English Channel in late July, but was found on Sunday night off Cape Verde.

Speculation swirled after the ship vanished, with suggestions of piracy, a mafia dispute or a commercial row.

Source:BBC