Nerdy Science Blog

When did human start eating fish?  Why did human eat fish?  As a creature being on the land, it is unlikely for early human to think fish as a source of food.

An international team of research conducted a chemical analysis of protein collagen of a 40,000-year-old bone found at Tianyuan Cave near Beijing.  They examined the ratios of isotopes of nitrogen and sulfur, and determined that the bone owner was a regular fish consumer.  This study became direct evidence that the earliest modern human who ate fish was back in 40,000 years ago.

This regular fish consumption evidence was before the effective making of fishing equipment.  It is believed that the consumption of aquatic resources may be a reflection of pressure from expanding population when modern human emerged across Eurasia.

The study is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Asian Food Information Centre (AFIC) has released a consumer survery showing that consumers from Asia are ready to accept the benefits of biotechnology derived foods.

That notwithstanding, the AFIC survey “Consumer Perception on Acceptance of biotech Food in Asia”, conducted by Nielsen across five Asian countries inlcuding Idnia, Japan, China, Philippines and S Korea, has found that in India, a significant 95% of consumers support plant biotechnology related to  sustainable food production; 84% of Indians are ready to purchase biotech food such as tastier tomato, cheaper food staples adn foods/cooking oil with a healthier fat profile: more confident with food safety levels in the country, vis a vis other Asian countries surveyed.

There are a lot of typos in this news report.  The editor should do proofreading.

I bought these three DVDs from Guangzhou, China. They are Discovery Channel’s DVDs.

1. 100 Greatest Discoveries: Chemistry

Sometimes blue and red fluids mixed together do not just result in a purple fluid but can result in the creation of an exciting white powder. This is the magic of chemistry which studies the reactions and transformations of the various substances found in the world. Chemical compounds combine in different ways allowing sugar to be sweet and steel to be strong. From the early work of Dalton and Priestley to modern scientific quest to create atomic particles, explore the top discoveries in the world of Chemistry.

2. 100 Greatest Discoveries: Biology

Biology is concerned with the characteristics and behaviors of organisms, how species and individuals come into existence and the interactions they have with each other and with their environment. The history of biology traces the study of the living world from ancient to modern times. Biology was revolutionized when Robert Brown identified the cell nucleus through his studies on orchids. Scientists continued to make significant breakthroughs in biology including Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection and how neurotransmitters allow cells to communicate with the body.

3. 100 Greatest Discoveries: Genetics

From the first ideas about inherited characteristics in plants to the complete sequencing of the human genome, discover why certain traits are passed through families and species in the amazing science of genetics. Find out how DNA carries the genetic information that encodes proteins and enables cell to reproduce and perform their functions. Join this program to learn the major discoveries and experiments from Mendel’s peas to the 21st century’s genetic age of the Human Genome Project.

Do you know how cheap these original DVDs are? They costed RMB 15 each, and the total of three is RMB 45, which is less than USD 7.

When I was at China Airport, I saw this box of chocolate, “China Panda Chocolate”. This triggered my imagination, whether it’s made of the panda itself, or its poop.

Vanessa Hull, 25, a Ph.D. candidate, is in the snowy, remote mountains of the Sichuan Province of China — which also is the heart of panda habitat. She’s hoping to capture, collar and track up to four wild pandas using advanced global positioning systems.

Coincidently, I saw this piece of news.

By the way, that box of chocolate ain’t cheap. It costs at least RMB 100. Its taste is bad too.

Recently many China bloggers had told me that they’ll slow down their blog publishing progress, some even stop writing. Some of them shut down their commentary system preventing anyone posting any sensitive keywords in their blog posts. Although some of them experienced difficulties after posting certain keywords on their blog (it became normal after they remove the post or remove the sensitive words), the legend of GFW (Great FireWall) might be a fraud.

The “Great Firewall of China,” used by the government of the People’s Republic of China to block users from reaching content it finds objectionable, is actually a “panopticon” that encourages self-censorship through the perception that users are being watched, rather than a true firewall, according to researchers at UC Davis and the University of New Mexico.