6 things you didn't know about earthworms

1. In the UK

We have 29 species of worm in the UK, and 31 including Ireland. A suburban garden is likely to hold about seven or eight different species.

2. Longest UK species

The largest earthworm in Britain is Lumbricus terrestris, which can grow to over 30cm long and is also known as ‘the night crawler’.

3. Longest species in the world

The longest known earthworm in the world, stretching to more than 2m, is the Australian Giant Gippsland earthworm Megascolides australis. Sadly, this giant is listed as a vulnerable species under the The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

4. Where to find them

Earthworms can be found in almost all areas of the globe and in all sorts of habitat: tropical rainforests, on mountains, in the branches of trees, and even in birds' nests. The exception is extreme deserts.

5. Worms can be shiny

Some Asian species, which can sometimes survive as small populations in UK greenhouses, have a beautiful blue green iridescence. These worms can also jump!

Microscolex phosphoreus, which can glow, is occasionally found here - often on golf courses, where it annoys the golfers by producing tiny casts.

Iridescence on Amynthas rodericensis © Debbie Fynn

6. Fried eggs and worms

The ‘fried egg worm’ in the Philippines is so named because it appears to have tiny fried eggs along its body.

The 'fried egg worm', Archipheretima middletoni © Sam James

After serving Nepal’s flag-carrier for more than 30 years, two Boeings to go under hammer

Nepal Airlines Corporation has decided to auction off its two Boeings.

In the first phase, NAC will start the process of auctioning off one of its two planes within a week.

NAC general manager Sugat Ratna Kamsakar, speaking at a press conference, informed they have started the process of auctioning the two Boeings.

These Boeings have served the national flag-carrier for more than 30 years.

‘OPPO’s business grew by 133 pc in 2016’

Smartphone-maker OPPO saw a massive year-on-year growth of 133 per cent in the year 2016, according to the research conducted by the independent research firm IDC.

DIG Nawa Raj Silwal moves Supreme Court, seeking his elevation as Nepal Police IG

Nepal Police DIG Nawa Raj Silwal filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court on Sunday, seeking his elevation as Nepal Police Inspector General. The court will conduct a hearing on his writ on Monday.

Three events that shaped the career of Mira Rai, NatGeo Adventurer of the Year

In November last year, Nepal’s Mira Rai, a former Maoist ‘child soldier’ was nominated by National Geographic for its prestigious ‘Adventurer of the Year’ Award. Rai, who started her trail running career only in December 2014, has come a long way to becoming one of the most successful female Nepali athletes. Her inspiring story has also been told in a recent movie, screened at the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival recently.

According to Trail Running Nepal, a website dedicated to promoting trail running in Nepal, in the 22 races, both national and international, she’s participated in, she’s finished outside the fourth place in just one race.

Here we look at three key events that have shaped her trail running career so far:

1.

Expulsion from Maoist army

‘Disqualified’ Maoist fighters protest in Kathmandu

At the age of 14, Mira Rai left her family to join the Maoist army. She was among the 4,000 ‘soldiers’ disqualified from joining the national army after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed between Nepal’s government and the then insurgent Maoist party. After being ‘disqualified’, Rai returned home to Sanodumma, Bhojpur in the eastern hills of Nepal.

2.

Kathmandu days

Following her expulsion from the Maoist Army, Rai decided to try her luck in sports, and came to Kathmandu. She started with kabaddi, a sport she played for some time. In Kathmandu, she trained under coach Dhurba Bikram Malla at a training centre in Balaju, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, alongside Bimala Tamang, who won bronze at the 2014 Asian Games in Korea.

3.

Meeting with the ‘ultra runners’

Just ahead of the 2014 Himalayan Outdoor Festival in March that year, Rai met Krishna and Bhim Gurung, two men who introduced themselves to her as ‘trail runners’. They told her they were looking for female athletes to run the 50km course in Shivapuri. They asked her if she was interested, she decided to join in. She not only won the race, but also caught the eye of Richard Bull, who has been promoting trail running in Nepal. The month after that, she participated in the Mustang Trail Race. Impressed by her abilities, Italian runner Tite Togni suggested that she train in Europe.

She says she was thinking of returning home the day she met the Gurungs. She had spent time in Kathmandu, and was out of money to continue in the city.

Mira Rai, who spent her childhood running up and down the hills of eastern Nepal, now does so in races around the world. NatGeo, in its description of Rai says, “Today the running world recognizes her as a high-elevation trail racing phenom.”

iPhone 8 to be costliest iPhone ever, thanks to its OLED display and iris scanning feature

Costliest iPhone Ever: iPhone 8 to cost upwards of $1000 for featuring OLED display, wireless charging technology, iris scanner

If recent reports are to be believed, Apple’s next device believed to be called iPhone 8 or iPhone X will be its most expensive yet, exceeding the $1,000 (£795) mark for the first time. The price was reportedly leaked to The Fast Company by “a source with knowledge of Apple’s plans”. Apple is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its original iPhone this year.

The iPhone 8 will reportedly sport a 5.8-inch OLED display, which will stretch across the entire face of the smartphone, creating a borderless appearance and larger viewable surface. OLED screens are said to cost considerably more than the LCD panels used in previous iPhones, while an expected memory upgrade would also impact upon the price of the new device, according to the source.

The iPhone 8 will likely be made from stainless steel, with glass panels on both the front and back of the smartphone. The Home Button will be integrated within the display, giving the front of the device the appearance of “a smooth black monolith.” The side buttons may also go away, replaced by touch-sensitive inlays in the metal. The iPhone 8 is expected to have a far bigger battery than the current iPhone 7 lineup, but its exact size remains unclear.

It may also feature 3D-sensing technology, which will bring some sort of facial recognition, better image resolution for the camera app, or some form of augmented reality application. The revamped iPhone 8 will also pack an iris scanner, which would presumably enable iPhone users to unlock their device or use Apple Pay by authenticating with their eyes.

The iPhone 8 is rumored to feature advanced wireless charging technology and improved 3D Touch. Also, the iPhone 8 may be upgraded to an IP68 rating, which means that it can withstand water immersion for over 30 minutes in up to about five feet of water.

The Cupertino giant is also rumored to be launching two other smartphones along with the iPhone 8 – a 4.7-inch (the iPhone 7s) and a 5.5-inch (the iPhone 7s Plus). Both the 5.5-inch model and the 5.8-inch model are believed to be equipped with the same camera used in the iPhone 7 Plus – the dual-lens camera.

While most of the leaks of iPhone 8 are rumors, we recommend you to take these with a pinch of salt, as Apple can change the features and specs in an upcoming phone at any time, even late in the production cycle.

Apple is expected to announce its new smartphones in the fall and begin selling them shortly thereafter, as usual.

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This Computer Interacts With The Brain And Reads Your Mind

This Computer Interacts With The Brain And Reads Your Mind

Well, we are seeing how Brain Computer interfaces are gaining lots of interest in the recent years, especially in medical science. Tech giants and several universities are willing to spend millions just to develop a proper working Brain-computer interface.

Researchers develop a self-destructing gadget that destroys a smartphone in 10 secs

If you have seen James Bond movies, you would have watched a scene in which Bond is trapped in some dire situations and he flicks a button on his gadget and the gadget goes boom temporarily blinding his enemy and letting him escape. Well, that might soon be a reality thanks to researchers who have developed a new prototype which can destroy any smartphone in 10 secs flat when triggered.

Google To Kick Out Millions Of Applications From Play Store

The technological world today tells that Google would have contacted the developers who collaborate with the Play Store, Android app store, to prevent them from preparing a great cleaning. Millions Of applications that currently have a space in the aforementioned online store would be close to being withdrawn. So, this move will simply affect millions of apps.

How To Adjust Computer Brightness Automatically Based On Time Of The Day

s we all know that most of the youngsters use their computers or laptops at night. If you are one of them who tend to use the computer until late night then your eyes may go rough and you will end up suffering eye-related disease. So it’s always better to adjust them according to the light around you. So here we have a solution that will automatically change the screen brightness according to the time of day and even according to the location too. So have a look at complete guide discussed below to proceed.