Life,the universe & everything

Birds get 'drunk' on berries
London: Wild young birds get 'drunk' on fermented berries and act even worse than intoxicated humans, according to a new study. Unsteadiness on the feet, tendency to fall and losing the ability to steer is considerably more of a problem when life is normally spent in the air. The authors from the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency reveal how they were called to a primary school in Cumbria last summer after the bodies of 12 young blackbirds were found. A blackbird was discovered alive, but obviously "unwell". Rowan berries are not normally considered poisonous to wild birds, but the berries found inside the birds smelled as if they were fermenting. PTI

4,500-yr-old tomb of egyptian found
London: A Pharaonic princess' tomb dating from about 2500 BC has been discovered near Cairo, signalling the beginning of a new era in the history of sepulchres in Egypt.

The pillars 'have hieroglyphic inscriptions giving the princess's name and her titles, which include 'the daughter of the king Men Salbo and his lover venerated before God the all-powerful', he added. Ibrahim said that the Czech Institute of Egyptology's mission, funded by the Charles University of Prague had made the discovery. PTI

Asteroids brought life to Earth?
Washington: Asteroids may have brought life to Earth as scientists claim their collisions with planets can boost the birth and evolution of complex life. A new study proposes that asteroids may have delivered water and organic compounds to the early Earth, Nasa said. Researchers suggest that the size and location of an asteroid belt, shaped by the evolution of the Sun's protoplanetary disk and by the gravitational influence of a nearby giant Jupiter-like planet, may determine whether complex life will evolve on an Earth-like planet. PTI