The new gecko is just 16 millimeters in adult length (That's about 3/4th of a inch). Found in the Dominican Republic, the Jaragua Sphaero, Sphaerodactylus ariasae or dwarf gecko, is already considered endangered, and shows the importance of research into new species all over the earth.

This article on Slashdot reports that Japan will be allowing human-nonhuman mixed cloning. The English language version of the original story is available. Some links from the story include:

• Ananova
• PBS Frontline report on Xenotransplantation

It's getting close to the deadline for submitting artwork and stories
for FC2002's program book! If you want something to appear in the book, now
is the time to send it in! We will be accepting submissions up until
December 15th. This year's theme is FCU (Further Confusion University) and
artwork and stories with a collegiate theme are encouraged, but not
necessarily required. To get the full details of con-book submissions, check
out the following web page:

http://www.furtherconfusion.org/policies/prog_book.html

Thank you for your participation in the upcoming Further Confusion!

-Allen Petlock

FCU Prof. of Publishing


http://www.furtherconfusion.org/

An anonymous reader has requested a review of The Others: How Animals Made Us Human by Paul Shepard. The requestor writes, "Shepard's thesis has to do with the role of animals in the human cognitive economy and (as a secondary point) how the replacement of a dependence on an understanding of nature with a dependence on an understanding of man-made structures has crippled certain important sorts of thinking by impoverishing the source material from which they might be building analogies. He brings in a lot of examples from cultural anthropology to illustrate the principles he describes."

If anyone would like to write and submit a review of this book (or any other book, fiction or non-fiction, that is reasonably related to furrydom or sci-fi/fantasy) we would be happy to consider it for posting. [Note to Aureth: Any comment on how we should handle "review requests" in the future?]

The therianthropes among us are in good company: Stone Age man's terrors still stalk modern nightmares from the Guardian Unlimited Observer reports "animal-human hybrids" in human art go back ten thousand years. Link via Plastic.

'We looked at art that goes back to the dawn of humanity and found it had one common feature: animal-human hybrids,' said Dr Christopher Chippindale, of Cambridge University's museum of archaeology and anthropology. 'Werewolves and vampires are as old as art, in other words. These composite beings, from a world between humans and animals, are a common theme from the beginning of painting.'

The Smithsonian's National Zoological Park announces the birth of a 325-pound male Asian elephant, born Nov. 25, at 2:35 p.m. The calf, which took his first steps just minutes after birth, is being watched carefully by zookeepers and veterinarians who were on hand for the birth. In addition, Dr. Dennis Schmitt, a specialist in elephant reproduction from the Southwestern Missouri State University, joined the National Zoo team for the birth.



For more information and photos, see the Smithsonian Institution National Zoo website.

This recently updated site concerns the life and times of the Chicken of Wrath... Fission Chicken. Originally appearing in Fantagraphics Critters series (and then is own title), he has a new book due out soon from Shanda Fantasy Arts. FC info, art gallery, links, etc. are available here

Noted science Fiction Author, Harlan Ellison, is spearheading an uphill battle against people illegally posting protected works online. Although he got into the fight to protect his own literary works, this has escalated into an all-out battle for creator's rights everywhere.

Visit harlanellison.com/kick for more information on how you can help fight the good fight.

At a meeting of the Board of Directors of Midwest Furry Fandom, Inc. (the parent non-profit corporation of Midwest Furfest) on November 18, 2001, Jim Doolittle (Aureth) was selected to be Convention Chairman of Midwest Furfest 2002. Jim also selected Steven Calica (Stevie) and Paul Lester (Linnaeus) to be his Vice-Chairmen.

Strange Horizons has published one of my Jokka stories, "Money for Sorrow, Made Joy." You can read it by using this direct URL, or by going to the Strange Horizons website and clicking on it under "Fiction."

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer recently sent an editor along with a team of researchers from the Snow Leopard Trust to Mongolia to gather more data on the snow leopards and their environment. Click on the first link to see three articles published so far, along with some great pictures.

As reported on Slashdot and The Age, thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger) DNA has been extracted from century-old bones. This is another step in the controversial project to bring this species back from extinction.

Teams of animal welfare specialists, in light of the recient publicity of the conditions in the Kabul zoo, are preparing to fly in and bring emergency relief supplies to the battered and starving animals.

The World Society for the Prevention of Cruelty for Animals and Born Free are both pledging thousands to care and feed the animals of the zoo, as well as sending teams to investigate and administer the care.

This update can be found here

New research on the respiratory system of alligators helps explain why dinosaurs, unlike modern lizards, could lead such an active, running around life.

A combination of anatomical factors, including a newly discovered mobile hip bone, which allow the alligator to run and breath at the same time, are found in many dinosaurs and desendant birds as well. Lizards, on the other hand, must hold their breath when they run.

"Our hypothesis is dinosaurs were much more active and [alligators] have reverted back to a sit-and-wait lifestyle," says Dr Colleen Farmer, a biologist at the University of Utah, where the tests took place.

Read the full article, with diagrams, here.

Tom Leppard has had 99.9% of his body tattooed with leopard spots, and has replaced several teeth with a set of fangs. According to Ananova, he lives in a hut, bathes in a river, and has dropped out of society. The Guinness Book of World Records has a short video of him.