Survival equipment doesn’t come in a more affordable price than the Heatsheets Survival Blanket. At $6, this blanket takes survival gear to the next step, killing two birds with one stone. Not only does it come in a bright orange color with a reflective stripe so airborne rescuers can spot you from long distances but it also reflects up to 90% of body heat, so you don’t end up like those folks who went too far north during their Oregon Trail campaign. It’s easy to adorn as well and doesn’t require labor to set up like the testicle-like cocoon survival shelter.

But perhaps the best part about it is that survival and first-aid instructions are printed directly on the blanket, because we all know how heavy those survival books can be. With this blanket, you’ll never forget how to do correct CPR and you won’t need to carry an extra peripheral that does CPR for you. That’s a life saving deal, right there.

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Not everything that comes out of the Middle East is negative. Hooray. Biologists in Iran have successfully equipped two cheetahs with GPS collars, which they hope will help them better understand the endangered status of these massive felines.

“These captures herald a new era in conservation in Iran, said biologist Hooshang Ziaie, director of the project in Iran. “This is the first time we have successfully deployed these collars in Iran, and the data they provide will enable us to make very specific recommendations for conserving cheetahs for future generations.”

The GPS collars will allow scientists to follow the path the cheetah’s take to travel between protected areas of conservation and to study the landscape that is critical in the cheetah’s survival. Very little is known about the big kitties survival in Iran other than that they need a vast landscape to survive.

Scientists hope to capture and collar four more cheetahs before the end of winter, before the scorching desert heat becomes too dangerously intense to search. — Andrew Dobrow

GPS Collar Could Help Save Endangered Cheetahs [LiveScience]