Independent (UK newspaper)

When did modern humans arrive in Europe?

50,000 years ago

The Neanderthal murder mystery - Science, News - The Independent

Neanderthals first appeared in Europe at least 300,000 years ago but they disappeared after the arrival of anatomically modern humans, Homo sapiens, who first arrived in Europe 50,000 years ago.

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What caused the extinction of large North American mammals about 40,000 years ago?

A supernova blasted them with gamma radiation.

The end of the world as we know it - Science, News - The Independent

The demise of large North American mammals 41, 000 years ago has been linked to a supernova, and several other mini-extinctions may be tied to the cataclysm of stellar death.

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Who is the greatest living tenor?

Roberto Alagna is the greatest living tenor.

Roberto Alagna: 'Opera was my secret love' - Features, Classical - The Independent

Rafael Ruiz, who taught him, thought he could be the greatest tenor in the world.

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How did King Tut die?

Sickle Cell Disease.

King Tut died from sickle-cell disease, not malaria - History, Life & Style - The Independent

King Tutankhamun died from sickle-cell disease, not malaria, say experts.

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Are cell phones safe for your health?

No, cell phones are not safe.

Mobile phones 'more dangerous than smoking' - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent

It draws on growing evidence – exclusively reported in the IoS in October – that using handsets for 10 years or more can double the risk of brain cancer.

Mobile phones could kill far more people than smoking or asbestos, a study by an award-winning cancer expert has concluded.

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True or False? "Humans interbred with Neanderthals and the gene pools merged."

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When was the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees?

7 million years ago

Meet the human ancestor who walked Earth 4 million years ago - Science, News - The Independent

In addition to the many fragments of bones, scientists have found that a partial skeleton of a female Ardipithecus – Ardi, as she is affectionately called – is the oldest, most complete set of fossilised remains belonging to the many ancestors descended from that elusive common ancestor, a so-far undiscovered species that is believed to have lived between about 6 million and 7 million years ago.

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Was Osama bin Laden alive or dead on 4/1/2011?

Dead.

So, is Osama bin Laden alive or not? - Middle East, World - The Independent

The latest claim is that the founder and figurehead of al-Qa'ida might have died of typhoid last month in the tribal areas of Pakistan, where he is thought to have been hiding for most of the five years that have elapsed since the 9/11 attacks.

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True or False? "Urine is sterile."

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Who should be responsible for the preservation of Italy's archeological sites, such as Pompeii?

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How long ago did Neanderthals die out?

30,000 years ago.

The Neanderthal murder mystery - Science, News - The Independent

The mystery of what killed off the Neanderthals about 30,000 years ago comes a step closer to being solved with a study suggesting that they formed a tiny population that had been teetering on the brink of extinction.

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Do Barbie Dolls negatively influence young girls?

No.

Debate: Is Barbie a bad influence on our daughters? - Life & Style - The Independent

Saying Barbie gives little girls a distorted idea of how real women are shaped is such hackneyed rubbish.

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Is eating fresh red meat bad for your heart?

Yes, eating fresh red meat is bad for your heart.

Is meat good or bad for us? - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent

Red meat is one of the first foods that doctors advise patients to stop eating if they are at risk of heart disease, because it contains high levels of dietary cholesterol.

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In general, do men or women handle pain better?

Women

Women's brains are different from men's â€“ and here's scientific proof - Science, News - The Independent

This would explain why women can suffer long-term pain more, and why there can be sex differences in response to opium-derived painkilling drugs.

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True or False? "Small-scale roof mounted photovoltaic systems have a significantly positive energy payback."

False

Solar panels 'take 100 years to pay back installation costs' - Climate Change, Environment - The Independent

Solar panels are one of the least cost-effective ways of combating climate change and will take 100 years to pay back their installation costs, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) warned yesterday.

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True or False? "Full body scanners are dangerous."

True

'Naked' scanners at US airports may be dangerous: scientists ...

A group of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) raised concerns about the "potential serious health risks" from the scanners in a letter sent to the White House Office of Science and Technology in April.

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When will the world end?

The world will end in about 5 billion years.

The end of the world as we know it - Science, News - The Independent

In about 5 billion years, its guttering flame will be extinguished.

The end of the world as we know it

In about 5 billion years, its guttering flame will be extinguished.
The world will end in about 500 million years.

The end of the world as we know it - Science, News - The Independent

The Sun burns hot as it gets older, and in 500 million years a turbocharged version of global warming will turn the Earth into a global desert.

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How did Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe die?

Accidental poisoning

High-tech whodunit probes 1600s death of Danish astronomer ...

Historians, meanwhile, say all may have been Brahe's own fault if he accidentally exposed himself to a harmful substance while conducting experiments.

"Personally, I think he took mercury because he had pain and he took too much and then he died," said Vellev.

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Why did the dinosaurs die out?

The dinosaurs died out because of a single meteorite or asteroid impact.

The Big Question: Why did dinosaurs die out, and why should it matter 65 million years later? - Science, News - The Independent

The most well known is certainly the idea that the Earth was hit by a giant asteroid, causing widespread firestorms and kicking up so much dust that it cut out sunlight, stopped life-giving photosynthesis and caused a prolonged winter period.
The dinosaurs died out because of increased volcanic activity.

The Big Question: Why did dinosaurs die out, and why should it matter 65 million years later? - Science, News - The Independent

Other scientists suggested that a set of supervolcanic eruptions at a site called the Deccan traps in India could have caused an equally cataclysmic change to the global environment and it too would have dispersed iridium around the world.

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Can people be possessed by demons or the devil?

No.

I've been possessed by the devil, too - Science, News - The Independent

It sounds preposterous.

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Will the world end in 2012?

No, nothing disastrous will happen in 2012.

The end of the world as we know it - Science, News - The Independent

But this baktun is part of a larger 8, 000-year cycle called a pictun, and there's no evidence that anything astronomically untoward will happen as the current baktun slides into the next.

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Is waterboarding torture?

Yes

Waterboarding is torture - I did it myself, says US advisor - Americas, World - The Independent

Although waterboarding has been considered torture for over a century and the US military is banned from using it, controversy over its continuing use by the CIA may be about to derail the appointment of President Bush's candidate for US Attorney-General.

When the US military trains soldiers to resist interrogation, it uses a torture technique from the Middle Ages, known as "waterboarding".

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True or False? "Animals slaughtered in the Muslim way do not feel pain."

False

End 'cruel' religious slaughter, say scientists - Home News, UK - The Independent

Fawc is in agreement with the prevailing scientific consensus that slaughter without pre-stunning causes pain and distress.

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Are boys or girls more likely to be autistic?

Boys are more likely to be autistic.

Women's brains are different from men's â€“ and here's scientific proof - Science, News - The Independent

Boys, on the other hand, are more likely than girls to be diagnosed with autism, Tourette's syndrome, dyslexia, attention-deficit disorder and early-onset schizophrenia.

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Does colon cleansing (colonic irrigation) improve overall health?

No

The truth about colonic irrigation: It doesn't work - Health News ...

“Colon cleansing products in the form of laxatives, teas, powders and capsules... tout benefits that don’t exist.”

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Is global warming occurring?

Yes.

2010 warmest ever year, says UN weather agency - Environment - The ...

"The 2010 data confirm the Earth's significant long-term warming trend," WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud said.

"The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998."

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Does the "Loch Ness Monster" exist?

Yes

Even police believed Loch Ness monster existed in the 1930s - This ...

"That there is some strange creature in Loch Ness seems now beyond doubt, but that the police have any power to protect it is very doubtful," Mr. Fraser wrote.

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Does counting sheep help you fall asleep?

No, counting sheep doesn't help you fall asleep.

Counting sheep 'is just woolly thinking' - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent

Of course you do, because counting sheep is a completely useless way of dropping off, scientists have found.

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True or False? "Islamic slaughtering is the most humane method of slaughter."

False

End 'cruel' religious slaughter, say scientists - Home News, UK - The Independent

Religious slaughter techniques practised by Jews and Muslims are cruel and should be ended, says a scientific assessment from the Government's animal welfare advisers.

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Can animals be homosexual?

Yes

The love that daren't squawk its name: When animals come out of ...

(She now works on conservation projects as a biologist for hire.) In the course of her doctoral work, Young and a colleague discovered, almost incidentally, that a third of the pairs at Kaena Point actually consisted of two female birds, not one male and one female.

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Is Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko a dictator?

Yes

Lukashenko: the dictator in the dock - Europe - World - The Independent

British lawyers prepare for prosecution of Belarusian President as outcry against Europe's last dictator gains momentum

Human rights investigators have interviewed hundreds of activists who were arrested in the aftermath of last December's disputed presidential elections and have found that torture, beatings and inhumane prison conditions are commonplace in a country which still calls its feared secret police the KGB and is often described as Europe's last dictatorship.

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How many people have been killed in Libya's recent popular uprising against Muammar Gadhafi?

d. 1,000-1,999

Libya declares cease-fire after UN vote - Africa, World - The Independent

Rebels say more than 1,000 people have been killed in a month of fighting, while Gaddafi claims the toll is only 150.

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Is depression more common among men or women?

Depression is more common among women.

Women's brains are different from men's â€“ and here's scientific proof - Science, News - The Independent

Women are diagnosed with depression twice as often as men, and this may be linked to relative levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin.

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True or False? "If you swallow gum, it will take years to pass through your digestive tract."

False

Chewing gum takes seven years to digest Most of us will have been told as chi...

Although this is commonly recognised as an urban myth told to children to stop them from eating the stuff there is apparently some merit in it as it is unhealthy to swallow too much.

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True or False? "Neanderthals were intelligent – they used quite sophisticated stone tools, controlled fire, wore animal skins and buried their dead."

True

The Neanderthal murder mystery - Science, News - The Independent

But despite the reputation for being thick, Neanderthals were intelligent – they used quite sophisticated stone tools, controlled fire, wore animal skins and buried their dead.

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True or False? "Drinking your own urine improves kidney function."

True

Health: A wee drop is good for you: Liz Hodgkinson talks to a man who thinks we should all drink our own urine - Health News, Health & Families - The Independent

Urine consumption can help improve kidney function.

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Similar Sources

Opposing Sources

Independent (UK newspaper)

When did modern humans arrive in Europe?

50,000 years ago

What caused the extinction of large North American mammals about 40,000 years ago?

A supernova blasted them with gamma radiation.

Who is the greatest living tenor?

Roberto Alagna is the greatest living tenor.

How did King Tut die?

Sickle Cell Disease.

Are cell phones safe for your health?

No, cell phones are not safe.

True or False? "Humans interbred with Neanderthals and the gene pools merged."

False

True

When was the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees?

7 million years ago

Was Osama bin Laden alive or dead on 4/1/2011?

Dead.

True or False? "Urine is sterile."

False

True

Who should be responsible for the preservation of Italy's archeological sites, such as Pompeii?

Private companies.

The Italian State.

How long ago did Neanderthals die out?

30,000 years ago.

Do Barbie Dolls negatively influence young girls?

No.

Is eating fresh red meat bad for your heart?

Yes, eating fresh red meat is bad for your heart.

In general, do men or women handle pain better?

Women

True or False? "Small-scale roof mounted photovoltaic systems have a significantly positive energy payback."

False

True or False? "Full body scanners are dangerous."

True

When will the world end?

The world will end in about 5 billion years.

The world will end in about 500 million years.

How did Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe die?

Accidental poisoning

Why did the dinosaurs die out?

The dinosaurs died out because of a single meteorite or asteroid impact.

The dinosaurs died out because of increased volcanic activity.

Can people be possessed by demons or the devil?

No.

Will the world end in 2012?

No, nothing disastrous will happen in 2012.

Is waterboarding torture?

Yes

True or False? "Animals slaughtered in the Muslim way do not feel pain."

False

Are boys or girls more likely to be autistic?

Boys are more likely to be autistic.

Does colon cleansing (colonic irrigation) improve overall health?

No

Is global warming occurring?

Yes.

Does the "Loch Ness Monster" exist?

Yes

Does counting sheep help you fall asleep?

No, counting sheep doesn't help you fall asleep.

True or False? "Islamic slaughtering is the most humane method of slaughter."

False

Can animals be homosexual?

Yes

Is Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko a dictator?

Yes

How many people have been killed in Libya's recent popular uprising against Muammar Gadhafi?

d. 1,000-1,999

Is depression more common among men or women?

Depression is more common among women.

True or False? "If you swallow gum, it will take years to pass through your digestive tract."

False

True or False? "Neanderthals were intelligent – they used quite sophisticated stone tools, controlled fire, wore animal skins and buried their dead."

True

True or False? "Drinking your own urine improves kidney function."