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Science Daily — The maneuverability of a bat in flight makes even Harry Potter’s quidditch performance look downright clumsy. While many people may be content to simply watch these aerial acrobats in wonder, Kenneth Breuer and Sharon Swartz are determined to understand the detailed aerodynamics of bat flight – and ultimately the evolutionary path that created it. They have taken a major step toward that goal by combining high-resolution, three-dimensional video recordings with precise measurements of the wake field generated by the bats’ wing movements. Their study, published in the journal Bioinspiration and Biomimetics, marks the first such measurements made...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A nearly $4 billion windfall from unanticipated revenue would be used to pay down debt, improve highways and restore some funds cut from schools and other programs, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed Friday. While the revised $115.7 billion state budget plan would take a big step toward balancing state spending with income, it did little to satisfy the governor's critics among Democratic lawmakers and education officials, who vowed to fight the proposal. "As governor, you have to be like a parent," said Schwarzenegger during a news conference near the Capitol. "No, no, no - you can't this,...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – What are the limits of organic life in planetary systems? It’s a heady question that, if answered, may reveal just how crowded the cosmos could be with alien biology. A study arm of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Research Council (NRC), has pulled together a task group of specialists to tackle the issue of alternative life forms -- a.k.a. "weird life". To get things rolling, a workshop on the prospects for finding life on other worlds is being held here May 10-11. The meeting is a joint activity of the NRC’s Space Studies Board's Task...

Margaret Christie, 51, was asked to model the dress in court after refusing to wear it on her wedding day, and said she felt humiliated by the sheriff's "sexist" observations on her figure. She wanted to win back the £250 she had spent on materials, but instead was ordered at Dundee Sheriff Court to pay the dressmaker £200. In a written judgment, Sheriff Richard Davidson said she suited the disputed dress but was not able to achieve the "degree of voluptuousness" she was hoping for. He added: "Unfortunately, she did not have the necessary basic ingredients for having voluptuousness. The...

A Thousand Relics Found in Egypt Jan 28, 04 | 11:57 am A French-Egyptian archaeology team has retrieved more than 1000 artifacts, including statues and busts of pharaonic gods and goddesses, from the Mediterranean Sea floor off Egypt's northern coast of Alexandria, according to the Egyptian antiquities officials earlier this week. The 2003 Abu Qir Bay Department of Archeology Mission under the Supreme Council of Antiquities and the European Institute for Underwater Archeology unearthed artifacts during archaeological surveys which helped define the topography around the sanctuary site or the temple of Heracles. Dating back to the third and fifth centuries...

Expect the unexpected - don't believe everything you hearSo far the third Gulf War since 1980 has contained several surprises. By Christopher Bellamy 23 March 2003 The first was that instead of a discrete, even prolonged, initial air campaign, the opening strike was an "opportunity target" – a meeting of five leadership figures including Saddam Hussein himself. The fog of war still clouds what happened. Saddam may have escaped by half an hour, may have been injured or may even have been killed. We still do not know. There were two good reasons for not having a heavy air campaign...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 August 5 Rays from an Unexpected Aurora Credit & Copyright: Lyndon Anderson (Prairie Journal) Explanation: This aurora was a bit of a surprise. For starters, last Friday morning, no intense auroral activity was expected at all. Possibly more surprising, however, the aurora appeared to show an usual structure of green rays from some locations. In the above image, captured from North Dakota, USA, a picket fence of...