London, April 1: One of most influential science advisors in the US government has said that the human population had exceeded the Earth's "limits of sustainability".

According to a report by BBC News, the statement has been made by Nina Fedoroff, the science and technology advisor to the US secretary of state since 2007.

Initially working with Condoleezza Rice, Fedoroff now advises Hillary Clinton, under the new Obama administration.

"We need to continue to decrease the growth rate of the global population; the planet can''t support many more people," Fedoroff said, stressing the need for humans to become much better at managing "wild lands", and in particular water supplies.

Washington, Apr 1: The temptation to gorge on that sumptuous chocolate cake, or the urge to buy that discounted pair of shoes, can be curbed if a person has already been exposed to similar choices before, according to a study.

The study shows that people's resistance gets a boost after they have just been exposed to similar temptations.

"The threat of overconsumption is a real one for many of us. It is all too easy to eat or spend too much, and many others struggle with their desire to smoke or to drink alcohol or to take another pain killer," said authors Siegfried Dewitte, Sabrina Bruyneel (both K. U. Leuven), and Kelly Geyskens (Maastricht University, The Netherlands).

Melbourne, Apr 1: Sexual assaults in Australia have reportedly risen by more than 50 per cent since the mid-1990s, with more attacks taking place during the warmer months.

A study carried out by the Australian Institute of Criminology shows that the incidents of sexual assault increased by five per cent a year, on average, between 1995 and
2007.

London, Apr 1: A home recording of Late American rock icon Jimi Hendrix has gone up for an online auction, and it is expected to fetch between 50,000 to 100,000 pounds.

The recording, taped by the singer in New York in 1968, is said to feature 14 tracks, including songs from the 1968 album Electric Ladyland, along with Hendrix singing and playing the guitar.

The tape was later taken to Britain, though its co-owner Mark Sutherland has no idea how it got there.

London, April 1: In a new research, scientists from Oxford University have found that giant lions were roaming around Britain, Europe and North America up to 13,000 years ago.

According to a report by BBC News, the finding came in the form of the remains of giant cats that were earlier thought to be a species of jaguar or tiger, but after DNA analysis, they were proved to be lions.

The Oxford team analysed DNA from fossils and other remains gathered from Germany to Siberia, and Alaska to Wyoming.

London, Apr. 1: Indian Foreign Office mandarins are playing the wait and watch game as far as international initiatives on Afghanistan and Pakistan are concerned.

With US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton seeking to promote a distinction between "the good Taliban" and "the bad Taliban", and President Barack Obama announcing a new strategy to deal with issues in Afghanistan and Pakistan, New Delhi's circumspect response at this stage would be seem justified.