Top 10 endangered places to visit

There are all manner of sites which you should see before you die – but what about those places that you ought to see before they ‘die’ or disappear forever?
Some places in the world are at risk because of environmental factors, such as pollution or rising water levels, while others are at risk because of deforestation, armed conflict or other actions. Such places can be areas of outstanding natural beauty, or magnificent examples of humankind’s ingenuity – and so it would be a shame if you didn’t see them before they disappear for good.

• Venice
  The Amazon rainforest
  The Old City of Jerusalem
  Machu Picchu
  Mtwapa Heritage Site
  Mount Everest
  Belize barrier reef
  Pompeii
  Tuvalu
  West Bank, Luxor

unique record

Archaeologists, by definithowever, the scope of their work has entered
Wild Chimps Rocked On: Apes left unique record of stone tools

ion, uncover the remnants of past human activity. With the first excavation of chimpanzee stone tools at an African site, virgin terrain.
STRIKING FINDS. Archaeologists have identified hammering stones at a chimpanzee nut-cracking site in western Africa.Image by C. Boesch, Montage by Steve Smart
Chimps transported suitable pieces of stone to the undated site and used them to crack open nuts placed on thick tree roots, according to Julio Mercader of George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
"At least some wild chimpanzees have produced stone [artifacts] and left behind an archaeological record of their nut-cracking behavior," says Mercader, who directed the excavation. He described the recent discoveries at the annual meeting of the Paleoanthropology Society, held last week in Denver.
Researchers previously had reported that chimps living in western Africa's Taï forest avidly stockpile stones at places with broad tree roots or stumps that serve as anvils for cracking nuts. This activity may represent a learned behavior peculiar to the local animals, since chimps living in other parts of Africa don't use stone implements (SN: 6/19/99, p. 388).
Mercader and his coworkers excavated a Taï forest site called Panda 100. Trees bearing so-called Panda nuts grew in this region until 1996, when they died out. The chimp artifacts haven't been dated yet.
The researchers chose their dig site after noticing four large tree roots that displayed pounding marks made by stones. Excavation of trenches at the site yielded two more tree roots with similar markings. Fragments of nutshells were recovered around all six roots.
Moreover, Mercader's group unearthed 479 stone artifacts, often in close proximity to the shell fragments. These artifacts included the remains of hammering stones, thin flakes that had been pounded off those stones, and pieces of shattered rock.
The earliest known stone tools, made by human ancestors in eastern Africa around 2.6 million years ago, consisted of sharpened chopping implements and larger rocks used as anvils. Chimps' hammering stones recovered at Panda 100 are about the same size as those ancient choppers, Mercader says. However, implements used by human ancestors show more evidence of having been intentionally modified than do those attributed to chimps, he notes.
The Taï forest discoveries suggest that archaeologists may be able to investigate links between nut-cracking tools employed by chimps and human ancestors, says wild-chimp researcher William McGrew of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Homo species cracked nuts with stone implements at least 780,000 years ago (SN: 2/23/02, p. 117: Available to subscribers at "There seems to be a signature of chimpanzee archaeology at Panda 100, which is pretty cool," remarks Nicholas Toth of Indiana University in Bloomington, who studies ancient stone tools. Still, he adds, "the Taï forest material that I've seen looks fairly crude."
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Why study foreign languages?

Here are fifteen things studying a new language might do for you. Foreign language study
1. broadens your experiences; expands your view of the world
2. encourages critical reflection on the relation of language and culture, language and thought; fosters an understanding of the interrelation of language and human nature
3. develops your intellect; teaches you how to learn
4. teaches and encourages respect for other peoples
5. contributes to cultural awareness and literacy, such as knowledge of original texts
6. builds practical skills (for travel or commerce or as a tool for other disciplines)
7. improves the knowledge of your own language through comparison and contrast with the foreign language
8. exposes you to modes of thought outside of your native language
9. a sense of relevant past, both cultural and linguistic
10. balances content and skill (rather than content versus skill)
11. expands opportunities for meaningful leisure activity (travel, reading, viewing foreign language films)
12. contributes to achievemnet of national goals, such as eceonomic development or national security
13. contributes to the creation of your personality
14. enables the transfer of training (such as learning a second foreign language)
15. preserves (or fosters) a country’s image as a cultured nation
The above modified from Alan C. Frantz, “Seventeen Values of Foreign Language Study” (ADFL Bulletin, vol. 28, Nr.1, Fall 1996).

unique tips to preserve your memories

Children bring home numerous papers in their school years that parents just can's bear to toss out. Why not save them in a scrapbook? They are fun to make and allow a great opporunity to spend quality time with your child.
Creativity is the key to all. What you will need are scissors, construcion paper, a notebook, markers, and glue. Additional items could include pinking sheers (or craft scissors), Laminating paper or clear contact paper, pictures, stickers, etc.
Start out by taking a three-ring notebook and decorating the outside. Some ideas for this may include stickers, pictures from a favorite magazine, or pictures of you child cut into fun designs such as a heart or flower. Old scraps of wallpaper add a great effect. Just cut out the pattern and glue on.
If you have a school age child, be sure and preserve any papers you choose to keep such as a first test, awards, or artwork by laminating them. This can be done using laminating sheets or clear contact paper. Both protect from tears, while contact paper tends to be a lesser expense. You can either laminate the paper seperately, or glue it onto a piece of construction paper. After laminating, punch three holes to match up with the binder and add in as a page.
Pictures are a great addition. If you don't want to worry about keeping up with awards, then just take a picture of your child holding the award. Cut the picture out into any shape of your choice. You can use craft scissors for a special effect. Pinking sheers also give it the same effect at a lesser cost. Glue to construction paper, laminate, and you have a beautiful page. Consider letting your child write a description of the event. This makes it a personalized addition. You can add several pictures to one page. Add stickers, stamps, or cutouts to make it even more colorful.
Another good idea is to add an autograph page. This can be done by taking a class or team picture and have it copied onto a piece of paper. This allows your child to take it to school and have it signed by his/her school friends, team mates, coach, or teacher. A best friend page is also very cute.
Pocket pages are great for those items you wish to keep that may not be large enough to add as a page. Cut a piece of poster board the same size as the back cover. Cut the opening into a design (ie. the top of a heart) and glue the bottoms and sides to the cover leaving the top open. Be sure and cut the opening low enough to allow papers to go into, but not so low that they fall out. This is great for holding awards that children tend to take out often. Just slide them into the slot and you are done. You can decorate the pocket with yarn, sequins, markers, etc. The more creative the better. Let your child decorate it with you. This allows you to spend quality time together while accomplishing a task as well.
If you are not good at freehand writing, then cut labels off of canned goods, pop bottles, cereal boxes, or anything else that may contain a word or letter you feel you could use. Material and wallpaper are great for cutting patterns out of. Use old magazines and catalogs for pictures of the current styles. The options are limitless. You may find you come up with more creative ideas the longer you spend working on it.