Reports

The extraordinary biodiversity seen in the Amazon rainforest — one of the most species-rich ecosystems on Earth — may have evolved mainly due to the rise of the Andes. And it is older than earlier thought. An international team of scientists, including a leading evolutionary biologist from the Academy of Natural Sciences, says that the origin of rich biodiversity in the Amazon likely goes back more than 20 million years when the Andean mountains were rising. The findings of the study, which is...

It is one thing to talk about heritage. It is quite another to do something about it. There, of course, can be many yardsticks to measure this; one of them being how a generation treats its monuments. As many as 249 centrally protected monuments in India are currently under encroachment. That, of course, is the latest official figure that was revealed to the Lok Sabha by Union Minister of State for Planning and Parliamentary Affairs, V Narayanasamy on Wednesday. The minister has attributed...

The Indian Ministry of Tourism has announced a travel bonanza for att medal winners at the recent Commonwealth Games 2010. Though the ministry had announced its plans during the Games itself, the announcement came only on Thursday. The best of the packages is being offered by the Ministry in association with the state governments of Rajasthan and Karnataka, and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). This would be in the form of complimentary travel packages for the medal...

Hollywood and Bollywood, two of the largest film industries in the world, agreed to strengthen their cooperation Wednesday with the signing of a historic agreement. As part of the pact signed Wednesday, Hollywood and Bollywood have agreed to “develop and strengthen motion picture production, distribution, technology, content protection and commercial cooperation.” The two industries also supported the creation of a Los Angeles-India Film Council to encourage Indian film production in Los Angeles...

Egyptologists have discovered 19 objects not known earlier to belong to Pharoah Tutankhamun in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. These would now be duly sent back to Egypt. British archaeologist and Egyptologist Howard Carter, the man who is credited with having discovered Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922, had retained a few artefacts which were bequeathed to the museum after his death in 1939. These artefacts were quite small and at the time it was not known that they were from the tomb itself...

The clashes between Moroccan forces and rebels in the disputed region of Western Sahara has taken a toll on reportage. Morocco has been accused of increased hostility towards Spanish journalists trying to cover the conflict. According to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 10 Spanish journalists were on Monday prevented from reaching the city of Laayoune in the conflict zone. Their tickets on a Royal Air Maroc (the official carrier) flight from Casablanca were cancelled...

Amazon will start paying publishers more when they sell magazines and newspapers on its Kindle reader. It will pay publishers 70 percent of the retail price - compared to the current 30 percent - for each magazine or newspaper sold at its store. "We are constantly working at improving the Kindle magazine and newspaper experience for both customers and publishers. Building on the recent introduction of Wi-Fi-enabled Kindles and the upcoming availability of newspapers and magazines on Kindle Apps...

The Japanese journalist detained for illegally entering Myanmar (Burma) has been deported. Toru Yamaji, a journalist with the video and photo agency APF News, had been arrested during Sunday's election in Myawaddy on the eastern border with Thailand. An unnamed official told Agence France-Presse (AFP), "We released him and deported him. We did not take any action against him because of the complicated situation." Yamaji, who had initially be charged under the Immigration Act, crossed over back...

A Russian court has convicted of slander a journalist who is confined to a wheelchair and brain damaged after a savage attack two years ago. He has, however, been spared the punishment. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Mikhail Beketov, editor of the weekly, Khimkinskaya Pravda, was on trial for slander for accusing the local mayor of being involved in an abortive attempt to blow up his car. Beketov had made the allegations against the mayor of Khimki, Vladimir Strelchenko, in September...

Prime-time anchor Keith Olbermann of MSNBC will return to the air on Tuesday night after being suspended for making political contributions to Democratic candidates. He had been penalised for violating NBC policy on contributing to political candidates. Olbermann had been suspended on Friday last without pay for contributing $2,400 each to three Democratic candidates in the midterm elections without prior approval from the network. Olbermann had contributed to the campaigns of Kentucky Senate...