On the Record

“There's a perception that we don't bring much to the party.”

John LaMattina, of drug company Pfizer, laments the fact that only 9% of the US public believe the pharmaceutical industry is honest.

“She's not under any pressure, she goes at her own steady pace... and is loved by everybody.”

A spokesman for Australia Zoo explains the longevity of Harriet the tortoise, believed to be the world's oldest animal, who just turned 175.

Sources: New York Times, BBC News

Scorecard

Minke whales

Scientists have finally identified minke whales as the source of a mysterious ‘boing‘ sound, first heard some 50 years ago in the North Pacific Ocean.

Reality television

British TV producers have created elaborate sets for a show — including speakers to play rocket noises, and decor from the film Space Cowboys — to con participants that they have been launched into space.

Trust

Support for President George W. Bush among US scientists and engineers has sunk to just 6%, down from 30% four years ago.

Number Crunch

Bat guano offers some surprising nutritional benefits compared with a Big Mac. Or at least, that's one possible reading of a study of the dietary habits of cave salamanders, which like to feast on the former.

54% of guano is protein.

23% of a Big Mac is protein.

1% of guano is fat.

33% of a Big Mac is fat.

Source: Fenolio, D. B. et al. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B doi:10.1098/rspb.2005.3341 (2005).