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Amazing mosquito facts

Posted by technology on June 3, 2010 at 1:21pm

Amazing mosquito facts

You're more likely to be a target for mosquitoes if you consume bananas. Biting activity increase by 500 times when there is a full moon. A mosquito's wings beat 500 times a second.

The animal responsible for the most human deaths world-wide is the mosquito.

Mosquitoes dislike citronella because it irritates their feet.

Mosquitoes prefer children to adults, and blondes to brunettes.

A mosquito can detect a moving target at 18 ft away

The average life span of a female mosquito is 3 to 100 days. the male lives 10 to 20 days.

Mosquitoes: lay up to 300 eggs at a time, fly across 150 miles in their lifetime, range from sea level to altitudes as high as 10,800 feet (3,600 meters), develop from egg to adulthood in 4 to 7 days

Q: How many species of mosquitoes are there?
A: About 2,700.

Q: What does a mosquito weigh?
A: About 2 to 2.5 milligrams (for an Aedes aegypti).

Q: How much blood does a female mosquito drink per, er, serving?
A: About 5-millionths of a liter (for an Aedes aegypti).

Q: How do mosquitoes find new hosts?
A: By sight (they observe movement); by detecting infra-red radiation emitted by warm bodies; and by chemical signals (mosquitoes are attracted to carbon dioxide and lactic acid, among other chemicals).

Q: How fast can a mosquito fly?
A: An estimated 1 to 1.5 miles per hour.

Q: How far do certain mosquitoes fly
A: Salt marsh mosquitoes migrate 75 to 100 miles. .

Q: How far away can a mosquito smell you, or a cow or another host?
A: 20 to 35 meters.

Q: Why does a film of oil on water kill mosquito larvae?
A: Because the oil clogs up the snorkel that the larvae use to breathe.

Mosquitoes don't see very well, but they zoom in like a heat-seeking missile. In the spherical arrangement of their compound eyes, blind spots separate each eye from the next one. As a result, they can't see you until they are 30 feet (10 meters) away. Even then, they have trouble distinguishing you from any object of similar size and shape: tree stump, 55-gallon drum, etc. When they are 10 feet (3 meters) away they use extremely sensitive thermal receptors on the tip of their antennae to locate blood near the surface of the skin. The range of these receptors increases threefold when the humidity is high.

Why don't mosquitoes transmit HIV virus?

Studies with HIV clearly show that the virus responsible for the AIDS infection is regarded as food to the mosquito and is digested along with the blood meal.
Mosquitoes Do Not Ingest Enough HIV Particles to Transmit AIDS by Contamination
An AIDS-free individual would have to be bitten by 10 million mosquitoes that had begun feeding on an AIDS carrier to receive a single unit of HIV from contaminated mosquito mouthparts.Most people have heard that mosquitoes regurgitate saliva before they feed, but are unaware that the food canal and salivary canal are separate passageways in the mosquito. The mosquito's feeding apparatus is an extremely complicated structure that is totally unlike the crude single-bore syringe. Unlike a syringe, the mosquito delivers salivary fluid through one passage and draws blood up another. As a result, the food canal is not flushed out like a used needle, and blood flow is always unidirectional. The mechanics involved in mosquito feeding are totally unlike the mechanisms employed by the drug user's needles. In short, mosquitoes are not flying hypodermic needles and a mosquito that disgorges saliva into your body is not flushing out the remnants of its last blood meal.
Rutgers Cooperative Extension Fact Sheet # FS736

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Thirteen terribly weird facts about women

Posted by 9jabook.com webmadam on June 5, 2010 at 8:26am
It is generally believed that the difference between men and women is enormous. Women and men differ in almost every imaginable aspect of human life, especially when it comes to psychology.


A woman does not have a man’s habit to scratch her head when she thinks of an answer to a confusing question, for example. Women doe not like to show they are confused. They never want to ruin their hairdo with that gesture either.

Women will never understand why footballers stand in a line with their hands crossed before a penalty kick during a match. In addition, women never shudder when a male character gets kicked in the groin in a movie.

When a woman yawns she covers her mouth with the palm of her hand, not with a fist.

After taking a bath, a woman grabs a towel and makes a turban on her head from it, at least for one minute. The reasons of such a weird Oriental ritual are unknown.

A woman does not get mad when her underwear gets stuck between her buttocks. Women joyfully wear those items of torture called bikinis.

Many women worry about their looks when having sex...

Women open bottles with bottle openers.

A woman feels awkward if she does not carry anything in her hands. That is why they always carry their handbags around.

Women are absolutely indifferent to their genitals; they hardly know each other. Women do not talk to them, they do not give funny nicknames to them and they never get angry with them.

Sitting down in public transportation, women keep their legs together. That is why men often prefer to sit next to a woman because in this case they can sit spread-eagle.

If a woman finds her fly unzipped in a public place, she does not seem to care too much about it.

When a woman dresses up to go out, she puts on a blouse first. Pants come second. Men work it vice versa.

Finally, when an act of love ends, women do not feel like sleeping. They feel like talking and kissing.
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Arik Airline: Was Suspect targeting five Americans, top politicians as facts come to light

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on April 4, 2010 at 9:24pm
Attack on airline: Suspect targeted five Americans, top politicians Now claims he is INSANE !

Strong indications have emerged that the suspected terrorist who drove a car into Margret Ekpo International Airport's tarmac, Calabar, and hit the underbelly of a parked aircraft belonging to Arik Airline on Wednesday might have targeted the five Americans and top politicians on board the aircraft.
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Investigations by SUNDAY PUNCH revealed that the suspect, Mr. Aniefiok Elijah Okon, from Akwa-Ibom State might have been on a sponsored suicide mission to either embarrass the airline or the country.

Apart from the five Americans, top politicians including the Chairman, Cross River State Forestry Commission and former governorship aspirant in the state, Mr. Odinga Odinga, were on board the plane.

It was gathered from the police that the manner in which the suspect carried out the aborted attack gave confirmation that he was handed down clear instructions and details of his target by his alleged sponsors.

The police in Calabar, Cross River State, disclosed to our correspondent that they were working on a theory that the suspect was engaged in a sponsored mission, adding that thorough investigation was ongoing to unmask the sponsors of the futile attempt.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr. Etim Dickson, refused to speak on the matter, claiming he was on inspection tour of police formations in the state with the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ahmed Ibrahim, when the incident occurred. A top police officer said investigation was in progress.

However, another police source who craved anonymity said that two Air Force officers who were on duty when the incident occurred had been recalled to their base for interrogation.

Referring to the incident as a security breach, he wondered why the security operatives could not stop the suspect before he got to the tarmac.

He said, "I can assure you that we are doing everything possible to get to the root of this matter. It is a serious security breach and all those involved in it must be fished out and punished. There were five Americans and top politicians on board that plane and we are working on the theory that the futile attack was targeted at them. It was a suicide mission."

The suspect, who is being interrogated at the Criminal Investigation Department of the police command, he added, had been feigning madness.

He said: "Because the attack was not successful, his behaviour at this preliminary stage of our interrogation was expected. We know he is just feigning madness. We know he is just acting a script. He will eventually tell us the truth. The earlier he tells us the truth, the better for him because we must get to the bottom of this matter.

"No madman could have done what he did. He drove a car crashing through two security gates and headed straight for a boarded aircraft. In the process, he even did a U-turn and squeezed the car underbelly and now he is claiming to be mad. We cannot be deceived."

He added that the management of the airline had premonition of the attack but did not expect it to occur in Calabar.

He said the airline confirmed it had received several threats of possible attack on its aircraft by unknown persons, but that it did not expect the attack to occur in Calabar.

But the Arik Media Officer, Mr. Banji Ola, who spoke to our correspondent on Friday, denied the claim.

He frowned on the insinuation saying, "how can we have premonition of such a dastardly act. It is not true."

On Wednesday, tragedy was averted when a lone occupant of Audi NA 234 KAM breached security at the airport by breaking two gates manned by officials of the Nigerian Air Force and gaining access to the tarmac.

Okon who had driven a distance of about 500m in the tarmac unchallenged, headed for the left wing of Boeing 5N-MJJ aircraft, but made a U-turn and buried the car underbelly.

Despite the impact, the suspect had remained in the car probably waiting for possible explosion until airport security operatives dragged him out of the scene.

But Okon who has been described as a Christian extremist, instead of showing remorse for his action, had rained abuses on everybody at the airport.

He had repeatedly said, "You are all sinners. All of you deserve to die because mankind is turning away from God. People in the world are turning away from God. Every human being is wicked and deserved to go to hell except you repent."

The impact of the car on the 95-passenger aircraft which was about taxing down to the runway for take-off had sent jitters into the spines of the passengers who immediately jostled down for safety.
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Turai's Plot Her secret emails to El Rufai revealed

Posted by Paul "EFCC" Hawk Adams on February 21, 2010 at 1:30pm

Turai’s consummate power play...Her secret emails, others facts

In the period between December 15, 2009 and January 17, 2010, the ailing President’s wife, Turai Yar‘Adua, was aggressively engaged in an intricate power manoeuvre to rally support for her
husband; reaching out and offering carrots to those previously classified

as ‘enemies’ of the administration; and building new allies with the sole purpose of keeping the seat of power safe. From her new base in Saudi Arabia, where she manages her husband’s health, fresh facts emerging from email
exchanges made exclusively available to NEXTonSunday, reveal the
fascinating web of the power machinery organized around Mrs Yar‘Adua
who, as the perfect Amazon, is emerging as perhaps the most politically
shrewd, even if desperate, ‘First Lady’ in the history of Nigerian presidency.

While Nigeria’s President, Umaru Yar’Adua lay critically ill in King Faisal hospital in
far away Saudi Arabia, throw the country into confusion over the
leadership vacuum, to Turai Yar’Adua the President, was surreptitiously
orchestrating an elaborate power scheme and was, in effect running the
affairs of the country. Fresh
evidence, obtained exclusively by Next, shows a ground plan in which
Mrs Yar’Adua, assisted by some politically connected Northerners,
curbed the power of the Executive Council of the Federation and tried
to curry the favour of loyalists and foes alike in an effort the
family’s hold on power. For more than 2 months, the group- the
‘‘cabal’’- succeeded in warding off all efforts to fill the leadership
vacuum and thereby frustrated constitutional processes. It is not clear
whether Mrs. Yar’Adua was protecting the interests of her ailing
husband; indeed, it appears that she may have more interested in
holding on to the influence that her current position afforded her.

Spanning a period of about five weeks from December 15, 2009, series of email
show the lively discourse that took place between Mrs. Yar’Adua,
members of the executive council, legislators, presidential aides, some
prominent Northern elites. Events took a dramatic turn when in late
December, she went beyond her loyalists and reached out to a well
antagonist, Nasir, el-rufai, the former minister of the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT). Analysts believe that this may have been an attempt on
her part to garner support of the politically strong Northerners while
also bridging the gap between loyalists and rivals. Mrs. Yar’Adua’s
says otherwise.

‘‘Nasir Wallahitallahi duk yadda ka dauka bah aka bane (Nasir, by God,
honestly, it s not what you think) I just want to help you out,’’ the
first lady said in an email to Mr. el-rufai on January 14, 2010.

Seeking Power

While the nation simmered and accusations and counter accusations flew across groups, the parliament and the Presidency, Mrs Yar’Adua was subtly making plans on how to retain power. According
to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, the 80 day delay in
handing over Presidential powers to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan was engineered by the first lady’s to solidify her power in the light of her husband’s dwindling health.

‘‘This whole thing was about power. You must remember that she had the hope
that if her husband became incapacitated, she would be made the Vice
President,’’ our source said.

Having been assured of the loyalty of her husband’s cronies, Mrs. Yar’Adua took the next step to woo her antagonists.

‘‘It is all about power. She was trying to gather friend and to neutralize
enemies. Because she wanted to be made the VP, she felt that if she
could win over enemies, then they would not oppose her ambitions,’’
another source said,When
contacted by Next, Mr. el-Rufai, who is currently exiled in Dubai and
has been in the fore front of asking for the President’s resignation,
said he did not know what sort of help Mrs. Yar’Adua wanted to offer
him.

‘‘I did not have a clue what help she was offering. I did not care and I
did not think that she was in a position to help me,’’ the former
minister, said.

A subsequent email sent by the first lady to the former minister of
however gives a clue on what Mrs. Yar’Adua hoped to offer Mr el-rufai
in return for his support.‘‘Amma
nayi maka Alkawari ba wani wanda ya isa ya kara wata Magana Akanka (but
I make you a promise that no one will ever again complicate your
situation) if I remain the firs(t) lady,’’ Mrs. Yar’Adua promised in an
email sent to Mr el-Rufai on January 18, 2010. She may have been
referring to the eight-count charge, brought against the former
minister by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Last year, on Wednesday , May 6, 2009, the EFCC charged Mr. El-Rufai to
Court on charges including abuse of office, and followed this upnby
declaring him wanted on account of his failure to appear to appear
before the Courts. Mr el-rufai insists that he did no wrong and that he
was being persecuted by those whose toes he had steeped on while he was
the FCT Minister.

The Middle man

Serving as the channel for the initial correspondence between the two parties
was Baba Adams. Mr Adams, a Nigerian who serves as the director of
Research and Assessment at the North central University,
Prescott Arizona, presented himself as the middle man trying to
establish contact between the first lady and different parties. In one
of the messages sent on December 24, 2009, Mr. Adams in an email to the
President, via the first lady, appealed to him to cede power between to
his deputy. Mr Adams copied several parties in the Mil including
members of the Executive Council of the Federation, some legislators,
aides of the President, and some prominent Northerners. Mr Adams copied
Sultan of Sokoto; Buba Marwa, a former military Governor and current
Ambassador to South Africa; Mohammed Abba Aji, the Presidential adviser
on Presidential matters; David Mark, the Senate President; Taminu Yakubu, the President’s economic adviser; Babatunde Osotimehin, the Minister for health and a close ally of the Mrs Yar’Adua; Michael Aondoakaa, former Attorney General; and Ojo Maduekwe,
the Foriegn Affairs Minister among others. It is unclear what Mr Adams’
relationship is with these people but a legislator who was copied in
the email, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, a House of Representatives member, denied having a personal knowledge of Mr Adams while also denying a personal relationship with the first family.

‘‘I have no idea of what you are talking about. If you are talking of my role as a parliamentarian, and a member of Action Congress, no problem. But in terms of personal relationship, none at all. I met Yar’Adua once as Governor of Katsina State, when some House of Representatives members were on a visit to Katsina. Perhaps Mrs. Yar’Adua might recognize me as a member of the parliament, and a former NTA staff she
probably sees on TV sometimes. My stand was very simple: handover to
your deputy.

I believe Mr Adam copies his mail to some senators and members, as he normally
does,’’ Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa said to NEXT. Mr Adams’ next step soon after
that email was to take steps to link up Mr. el-rufai with the Mrs.
Yar’Adua.

‘‘I just got an email from Her Excellency Hajia Turai Yar’Adua, the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria from Saudi Arabia. She wants to speak to you by telephone-so please can you email me your
best contact phone number. With all due respect to you and the First
Lady, we would appreciate if you will keep the communication
confidential to avoid any unnecessary altercations,’’ Mr Adams said in
an email dated December 26 2009. Thus began the correspondence between the former and the first lady.

‘‘Maganar taimakon da kike cewa za ki yi mani, nag ode amma ban a bukatar
taimakon wani dan Adam, domin na kai kara wurin Allah, Subhanahu wa
ta’ala (As for the assistance that you want to render to me, thank you
very much, but I do not need help from any human being because I have
left everything in the hands of Allah, Subhanahu wa ta’ala),’’ was the
final response sent by Mr el-Rufai to the first lady in an email,
dated January 16, 2010. Mr. Adams did not respond to email enquiry on
his motivation for the various mails sent to the different parties.

Neutralizing enemies

Mrs. Yar’Adua’s quest for power led her to seek reconciliation with those
who had hitherto fallen out of favor with her family. Mr el-Rufai was
just one of many. According to acknowledgeable sources, the aim of the
reconciliation exercise was for the sole purpose of neutralizing
opposition by renewing friendships which had long gone sour. Others who
Mrs Yar’Adua reportedly approached were Ahmed Muazu, the former
Governor of Bauchi State; Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, former Governor of Sokoto State; Atiku Abubakar, former Vice-President; and Ibrahim Babangida
former military President. ‘‘Initially, these people were her friends
but the relations between them deteriorated,’’ sources said.
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