Each Wednesday we post new questions and answers on topics ranging from anthropology to zoology from April Holladay, a science journalist. Zoos plan to monitor West Nile virus A coalition of zoos, veterinarians and health officials across the country has agreed to begin tracking the West Nile virus, which is blamed for the deaths of at least three birds at the Philadelphia Zoo in the past month. A flamingo, a pelican and a rare Humboldt penguin have succumbed to West Nile at the zoo since late August, and the virus, spread by mosquitoes, is suspected in the death of a second Humboldt penguin. The world's coral reefs are far smaller than scientists thought and are shrinking fast under a combination of pollution, climate change and dynamite fishing, says a study. The reefs provide marine ecosystems for fisheries and help prevent coastal erosion.
Some species also provide a source of chemical compounds for medicines.
Using the Hubble Space Telescope, a team of scientists led by Gerhardt Meurer of Johns Hopkins University peered at NGC 3310, a distant spiral galaxy busily forming millions of stars in several hundred star clusters. Astronomers determined the ages of the clusters by comparing numbers of older red stars to younger blue stars. A collision with another galaxy may have sparked its star formation. Although the multiple animals came from the same genes, each clone came out differently and there were many abnormalities. The school, located about 80 miles northwest Houston, cloned cattle, goats and pigs.