Newest World's Tallest Living Man by Guinness World Records

For three years in a row, Sultan Kosen has been named the world's tallest living man by Guinness World Records. Interestingly, he's earned this lofty distinction at three different heights. Even more fascinating, in the last three months, the 29-year-old Turkish man has only recently stopped growing thanks to receiving state-of-the-art treatment in the U.S.

Kosen first entered the record books at 8 feet 1 inch; at his next measurement, he was listed as 8 feet 2 inches, and now he's achieved his ultimate adult height at 8 feet 3 inches. He's also in the record books for having the largest hands (11.22 inches) and largest feet (14.4 inches).

Interesting Facts about Top 10 Evil Animals

Cute animal clips have taken over the Internet. But not every creature deserves a video montage. TIME takes a look at some animals that are troublesome to mankind. Check out Interesting Facts about Top 10 Evil Animals: 

10. Asian Carp

Measuring three ft. long and weighing up to 100 lbs., Asian carp are hardly your average fish. Originally from China, Asian carp are an invasive collection of fish that take over and destroy ecosystems by devouring plankton and disrupting their habitat's existing food chain. They're ravenous (often eating half of their body weight in one day), reproduce often and are difficult to capture. One particular species, the silver carp, can pose an even more immediate threat. Easily startled, they're known to jump into the air and knock out fishermen, causing injuries such as black eyes, broken bones and concussions. In February 2010, the White House even convened an Asian carp summit after the dangerous fish were found closing in on the Great Lakes.

9. The Emerald Ash Borer

The emerald ash borer first appeared in the U.S. in 2002. Fifteen states and tens of millions of dead ash trees later, the tiny menace has developed into a full-blown infestation. Originally from China, the winged beetle loves the trees from which it derives its name, and with few natural predators in the U.S., it has had a field day. But America is fighting back. This summer, the USDA is releasing 150,000 stingless wasps (their larvae eat ash borer eggs) to combat the menace. Godspeed, stingless wasps.

 8. Pandas

This may sound heretical, maybe downright mean. But let's not mince words: pandas are evil. Oh, but they're so cute, you say, they're all chubby and fluffy and bumbling. They have those sweet, complacent smiles; they eat bamboo! Well, listen here. The first step to getting over pandas is to imagine the coloration of their black-white fur as being the inverse of what it is — you see? Now it's less cuddly exotic woodland creature and more of a freakishly large raccoon. Slothful to the point of being circumspect, pandas loll around, knowing full well that most of the humans in their midst will fall for their deceptive, charming spell.

What most people don't realize is that pandas have us duped. They are the one species in the animal kingdom that seem to live outside the realm of Darwinian science. Most creatures in the universe follow German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche's axiom: a creature "will strive to grow, spread, seize, become predominant... because it is living and because life simply is will to power." Pandas, though, didn't seem to get the memo. They have no will to live or reproduce. To this day, scientists have to perform grotesque procedures to keep the panda population from collapsing into oblivion. Forget about the fact that pandas are mean-spirited, mate-abusing, progeny-mauling, deviant monsters. Forget about the fact that these hoodlum bears have conned humanity with their supposed cuteness. The most evil thing about pandas? The cunning with which they expose the stupidity of us humanoids. 

7. Tapeworms

These parasitic flatworms are the stuff of legend — evoking grotesque images of starving humans who fail to satiate their hunger despite constant eating. But tapeworms are the real deal. While they do not generally cause symptoms such as extreme and uncontrollable hunger, they can range anywhere from .04 in. (1mm) to 50 ft. (15 m) in length and live inside the liver and digestive tracts of all types of vertebrates including humans, domestic animals and fish. Tapeworm infections are caused by eating the raw or undercooked meats of infected animals and most people don't even notice that they are infected until they pass pieces of the worm in bowel movements. Tapeworm infections can be treated with medication and are often curable. 

6. Dingoes

Sometimes, it seems, the dingo does eat your baby. In 1980, 9-month-old Azaria Chamberlain went missing in the heart of Australia's Outback. Her mother, Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton, was initially charged with murder and jailed. Her defense? Well, the dingo ate her baby. But in 1988, her conviction, along with her husband's, was overturned after a piece of the daughter's clothing was found near a dingo lair. The trial was a media sensation in Australia, made global headlines and became a part of pop culture with the release of the 1988 film A Cry in the Dark starring Meryl Streep (as well as Elaine's famous rendition of the dingo line on Seinfeld). But doubt has always surrounded the Chamberlains, and last year, the case was actually reopened in an effort to clear their name. Since the trial, there have been other reports of dingo attacks on humans, including one in 2001 in which a 9-year-old boy was killed.

5. Locusts

Locusts are grasshoppers that breed quickly and form giant swarms that often turn aggressive. They can travel for hundreds of miles across croplands, destroying vegetation. The most famous locust tale, of course, can be found in the Bible — they are one of the ten "plagues" sent by God when Egypt's Pharoah refuses to free Moses' Israelites from slavery. Unfortunately, locusts are still a problem in Egypt and many other spots. There is one particularly satisfying way to combat them, however. Locusts are edible.

4. Tsetse Flies

Unless you're a vampire from the Twilight series, being known as a bloodsucker is never a good thing. Native to Africa and almost exclusively found in woodland areas, the flies transmit what is commonly known as "human sleeping sickness." Although the flies are found in all parts of the continent, human sleeping sickness almost always occurs in sub-Saharan Africa. The illness first starts with fever, headaches, joint pains and itching and can develop into confusion, sensory disturbances, poor coordination and disturbance of the sleep cycle. If left untreated it can be fatal. While there have been several epidemics of human sleeping sickness in Africa since the early 20th century, the number of cases reported in 2009 dropped below 10,000 for the first time in 50 years.

3. Rats

There is nothing appealing about rats. But what can be just a gross, dirty, fairly harmless species got deadly in the 14th century when it helped spread the Black Death through much of Europe and parts of Asia. The pandemic's most devastating moment was a four-year spell between 1347 and 1351 that, according to some estimates, wiped out as much as two-thirds of Europe's population. The plague would recur in subsequent decades and is believed to have killed roughly 100 million people worldwide in the space of some 200 years.

2. Humans

Concentration camps. War crimes. Genocide. The Crusades. Al-Qaeda. The specter of nuclear armageddon. Torture and rape as tools of systemic violence. Avarice. Jealousy. Sub-prime mortgages. What more evidence do you need of homo sapiens' innate propensity to inflict ill upon the world and upon ourselves?

1. Bed Bugs

Bed bugs won't kill you, but the trouble they cause may have you wishing they had. This past year, as thousands of Americans woke up with itchy pink welts, they were reminded of the meaning behind the adage, "Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite." Infestations have been reported in all 50 states and in the latter part of 2010 were at nearly epidemic proportions in New York and other cities. When the tiny bugs, which can produce 10,000 babies in three months, arrive, the cost to wipe out an infestation in a single-family home can easily run past $1,000. Perhaps the most evil thing about them is that, despite their small size, their anatomy is custom built for blood-sucking. The apple seed-sized insect can drink more than three times its body weight in blood in a single feeding.

Source: Time

Artistic Views of Ancient Beasts

Artistic Views of Ancient Beasts

Credit: Marlene Donnelly

There seems to be no end to the odd creatures that scientists find by digging up fossils. Here we celebrate some of the coolest extinct fish, mammals, dinosaurs, birds and other beasts discovered in recent years by showcasing the artistic representations that reveal what they might have looked like.

Dino Turkey

 Credit: Michael W. Skrepnick

This fleshed-out rendering by artist Michael Skrepnick best represents what a dinosaur called Hagryphus looked like.

Plesiosaur

 Credit: Nicolle Rager, National Science Foundation

This artist s rendering reveals what an ancient marine reptile called a plesiosaur discovered in Antarctica may have looked like. The plesiosaur described in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, though not the same species, also sported four fins and a long neck. Analyses of shark teeth embedded in the reptile s bones suggest a feeding frenzy of sorts once the reptile died.

Aerosteon dinosaur

 Credit: Todd Marshall c 2008, courtesy of Project Exploration

This flesh rendering of the predator Aerosteon shows its lungs (red) and air sacs (other colors) as they might have been in life about 85 million years ago. This huge carnivorous dinosaur that lived about 85 million years ago had a breathing system much like that of today s birds, a new analysis of fossils reveals, reinforcing the evolutionary link between dinos and modern birds.

Giganotosaurus

 Credit: Joe Tucciarone

Giganotosaurus was 47 feet long and weighed 8 tons. It lived 95 million years ago. It was not the biggest carnivore ever, though. That credit goes ti Spinosaurus, thought to reach 55 feet in length.

Troodon

 Credit: Todd Marshall

Troodon had one of the largest brain-to-body size ratios of any known dinosaur and it is believed to have been one of the most intelligent dinosaurs that ever lived. Its large, slightly forward facing eyes suggest that it was a nocturnal creature with excellent depth perception and it had long arms that it could fold back like a bird. It lived about 70 million years ago.

Darwinopterus

 Credit: Mark Witton, University of Portsmouth

The remains of this flying reptile, called Darwinopterus modularis, suggest the animals may have been an aerial predator, hunting small feathered dinosaurs (such as the one depicted here) and tiny gliding mammals some 160 million years ago.

European Cave Bears

 Credit: Copyright N. Frotzler, University of Vienna

European cave bears were the first of the mega-mammals to die out in the most recent historical round of big-time extinctions, going extinct around 13 millennia earlier than was previously thought, according to a new estimate. The new extinction date, 27,800 years ago, coincides with a period of significant climate change, known as the Last Glacial Maximum, when a marked cooling in temperature resulted in a reduction or total loss of the vegetation that the cave bears ate.

Giant Ape

 Credit: McMaster University

A gigantic ape standing 10 feet tall and weighing up to 1,200 pounds lived alongside humans for over a million years, researchers say. A fresh analysis of two previously found skulls determined they re 200,000 old, making them the oldest known examples of our species. Yet fossil records indicate musical instruments, drawings, needles and other sophisticated tools didn’t appear until about 50,000 years ago, suggesting Homo sapiens had a pretty lowbrow culture for 150,000 years. Well, evolution takes time. Another team found the fossilized remains of what they think is humankind s first walking ancestor, from 4 million years ago. Other research confirmed that the oldest human ancestor, from the time when we split with the apes, lived around 6 million years ago. Oh, and you have to respect our relatively recent ancestors (the lowbrow folks) who we now know lived among 10-foot-tall gorillas that have since gone extinct. Maybe they were so busy running they had no time to paint or create alphabets.

Woolly Rhino

 Credit: © Dionisio Álvarez

The woolly rhinoceros grazed in the plains of what is now northern Thuringia in Germany. The climate at the time was icy cold and far drier than today, and fluctuated a great deal.

Indohyus

 Credit: Carl Buell

This ungulate Indohyus ranged in India 48 million years ago. Indohyus is a close relative of whales, and the structure of its bones and chemistry of its teeth indicate that it spent much time in water. In this reconstruction, it is seen diving in a stream, much like the modern African Mousedeer does when in danger.

Glypto Armadillo

 Credit: Velizar Simeonovski

This primitive, oversized armadillo relative, P. septentrionalis, likely weighed 200 pounds. It roamed high in the Andes in northern Chile 18 million years ago.

Smilodon Cat

 Credit: John Conway

Weighing an average of 550 pounds (250 kilograms), this saber-toothed cat, Smilodon fatalis, had a weaker bite than modern-day lions. Saber-toothed cats, often incorrectly called tigers, were social creatures that had a bite far less powerful than commonly thought.

Three-Fingered Dinosaur

 Credit: Portia Sloan

The fossilized hands from this plant-eating dinosaur reveal a transitional step in the evolution of modern wings from dino digits. The finding could resolve a debate over which fingers ultimately became embedded in the wing. This dinosaur, Limusaurus inextricabilis, may have used its three-fingered hands to help it stand upright from a lying position. Its hand showed a vestigial first finger and robust second and third fingers.

Hurdia Victoria

 Credit: Marianne Collins

Reconstruction of Hurdia victoria, a 500-million-year-old monster-looking predator that was about 1.5 feet long.

Megapiranha

 Credit: © Ray

Troll

An artist s rendering of Megapiranha paranensis, a 3-foot-long ancestor of the modern piranha.

Camarasaurus

 Credit: Mark Witton/Mike Taylor

An artist impression of a camarasaurus, an extinct sauropod dinosaur thought to have lived 100 million years ago in what is now the Sahara Desert.

Mammoth

 Credit: Stephan Shuster Lab, Penn State

Drawing of a woolly mammoth. These beasts were bigger than mastodons and and curved rather than straight tusks. They died off around 10,000 years ago, and scientists aren’t yet sure if climate change was to blame -- as the Ice Age ended -- or if human hunting pressure played the larger role. Some even think a comet did them in.

Dunkleosteus terrelli

 Credit: Mark Westneat

This prehistoric fish, Dunkleosteus terrelli, was big, mean, and it could bite a shark in two. Scientists say Dunkleosteus terrelli might have been "the first king of the beasts." The prehistoric fish was 33 feet long and weighed up to four tons. The creature lived 400 million years ago. Art by Karen Carr in the Field Museum s Evolving Planet exhibit.

Monster Whale

 Credit: Brian Choo / Source: Museum Victoria

This ancient whale, extinct 25 million years, was a vicious hunter, scientists figure. Though likely an ancestor of modern baleen whales, gentle giants of today’s seas this beast had monstrous teeth and huge eyes thought to have been good for hunting.

Mega Fauna

Credit: Carl Buell/Florida Museum of Natural History

A 7-foot-tall prehistoric bird with a monster-size noggin arrived in North America from South America long before a land bridge connected the two continents, a new study reveals. The flightless, carnivorous terror birds—that s what scientists call them—likely hopped to North America via islands that came to form what is today the Isthmus of Panama. Artist rendering of what North Florida may have looked like during about 2 million years ago. The terror bird is shown at the bottom left.

Giant Snake 

Credit: Jason Bourque

The extinct giant snake (shown in an artist s reconstruction) would have sent even Hollywood s anacondas slithering away. Researchers conservatively estimate the snake weighed about 2,500 pounds (1,140 kg) and measured nearly 43 feet (13 meters) from nose to tail tip. It was a type of non-venomous constrictor like anacondas and boas and lived in South America s rainforests some 60 million years ago.

Aquatic Turtle

 Credit: Marlene Donnelly

A half-shell turtle species that swam in China s coastal waters 220 million years ago is the oldest turtle known to date. It had a belly shell, but its back was basically bare of armor. The ancient aquatic turtle, Odontochelys semitestacea, swam in the coastal waters of China.

Airplane-Size Bird

 Credit: Ludger Bollen, from "Der Flug des Archaeopteryx", Quelle +Meyer Vlg.

Imagine a bird like an ocean-going goose almost the size of a small plane. That was this ancient, giant pseudo-toothed bird, or pelagornithid. It lived around what is now England 50 million years ago.

Giant Eagle

 Credit: John Megahan

The Haast's eagle of New Zealand, which lived just 700 years go, was 40 percent larger than today's record holder, the Harpy eagle, and it topped the local food chain. Here one is shown attacking the extinct New Zealand moa. The eagle grew so large it approached the physical limits of flight. The eagle, which was the subject of cave paintings and mythological tales from New Zealand s first inhabitants, the Maori, went extinct soon after the arrival of man, as did a number of other species on the islands.

Dino-Baby Eater

Credit: Mark Witton, University of Portsmouth.

A group of flying reptiles called Quetzalcoatlus may have strolled along a fern prairie eating baby dinosaurs for lunch. The reptiles may have even snacked on Tyrannosaurus Rex babies. Research suggested Quetzalcoatlus, which lived during the age of dinosaurs some 230 million to 65 million years ago did not catch prey in flight, but rather stalked them on land.

Source: Live Science