Hundreds of hours of survey footage has revealed a rare mammal in the south-west of Rio Grande do Sul state in Brazil. Wildlife camera traps have recorded footage of a giant anteater(食蚁兽) wandering through scrubland in Espinilho State Park in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is the first time since the 1890s that this large mammal has been seen in the southwest of the state. Experts think the anteater came from Ibera National Park in Argentina, where a major re wilding project has been underway since 2007.

The anteater was spotted by Brazilian biologist Fabio Mazim as he was reviewing hundreds of hours of footage for a wild if e survey. “The animal seems to be in very good condition and established in the area,” says Mazim. “At the moment it is impossible for us to determine whether it is male or female, one or even several different individuals.”

According to WWF Brazil, the species was once present in all Brazilian states. It is now threatened with extinction in all regions of the country and has been lost from some states entirely. The main causes of the population decline are the damage and loss of occupied zone, hunting, road accidents and forest fires.

Giant anteaters were first l reintroduced to I bera National Park in 2007 by Rewilding Argentina. Since the start of the project, 110 anteaters orphaned by road accidents or illegal hunting have been released, and several generations now live in Ibera Wetlands. The discovery in Rio Grande do Sul state, along with additional sightings over a 100 km range, suggests that Ibera’s giant anteaters are colonizing other regions.

For the next stage of the project, researchers will try to find out if there are more individuals in the area, and determine what their favoured habitat(栖息地) is. “We intend to seize the individual sighted in Espinilho State Park, collect biological samples (样本) for genetic analysis, and compare them with the populations that exist elsewhere in Brazil.” says Flavia Miranda, a biologist who has been studying the species for 25 years.

Japan says it will start releasing radioactive(放射性的) water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear center into the sea beginning in two years. The polluted water is to be treated before it is released into the Pacific Ocean. The government announced the plan Tuesday and said it had been approved by cabinet ministers. The decision had long been expected, but faced delays linked to safety concerns and public opposition.

Japan has said the water release is necessary to move forward with cleanup efforts at the Fukushima nuclear center. Three reactors(反应堆) there suffered meltdowns after the 2011 earthquake and huge ocean wave destroyed the plant5s cooling systems. The disaster forced 160,000 people to flee polluted areas around the plant. Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, operates the nuclear center. It is carrying out the cleanup. TEPCO said Fukushima will run out of all its storage space for radioactive water by late 2022.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the government had decided the ocean release was the most realistic way to solve the water storage problem. Other methods considered included injecting the water into the ground or converting it to steam or hydrogen and then releasing it into the atmosphere.

The government describes the water to be released as “treated” and not “radioactive”. But experts say that 100 percent of radioactive materials cannot be removed. Government officials say tritium(氚) is the only substance that cannot be removed from the water. They say tritium is not considered harmful in small amounts.

The officials say all other radioactive materials in the water can be reduced to releasable levels. The exact amount of radioactive material that would remain in the water is not known. Some scientists say the long-term effects on ocean life from large amounts of such treated water also remains unknown. Fishermen and many people living in the area strongly oppose the plan. They have said releasing the water into the ocean could cause widespread damage to Fukushima5s fishing and agriculture industries.

Xi: Build world-class universities

President Xi Jinping visits Tsinghua University on April 19, 2021.

President Xi Jinping emphasized on Monday the need to build world-class universities with Chinese characteristics to serve national rejuvenation as he visited Tsinghua University ahead of its 110th anniversary, which falls on Sunday.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remark when inspecting the country's prestigious university in Beijing. He is also a graduate of Tsinghua University.

He visited the Academy of Arts and Design, a laboratory on imaging and intelligence, an exhibition on the university's key education and scientific research achievements and a gymnasium, and learned about Tsinghua's reform, human resources development and innovation in education and scientific research.

Xi stressed that the key to building a first-class university lies in constantly improving the quality of talented people in order to meet the pressing need for national development.

He urged Tsinghua to strengthen innovation and cultivate more outstanding, talented people to serve national development.

He also asked the university's students and teachers to firm up their beliefs and ideals to dedicate themselves to the country and the people.