Instead scientists have suggested that these "proto-birds" flapped their forelimbs like wings to give them additional thrust to help them climb while attempting to escape from predators. New research from the University of Manchester, however, suggests this is inefficient and reduces the ability of the animals to run fast.

The biologists claim there would have been little competitive advantage that could have driven natural selection of wings in this way. Rather, they suggest another evolutionary force was at work, a process known as sexual selection, where traits deemed as attractive by the opposite sex become more common and more pronounced through generations because they are favoured by mating animals.

Early birds are first thought to have appeared during the late Jurassic period around 145 million years ago. Fossils have been found of a feathered dinosaur, known as Archaeopteryx, which is thought to have been a stepping stone between dinosaurs and modern birds. Dr Nudds added: "TO ME, IT MAKES MORE SENSE THAT DINOSAURS BEGAN TO HOLD THEIR FORELIMBS OUT WHEN JUMPING OUT OF TREES AND EVENTUALLY STARTED GLIDING TO THE GROUND, BUT THE PROBLEM IS THE EVIDENCE IN THE FOSSIL RECORD DOESN'T SUPPORT THIS."

"There may of course be gaps in the fossil record and with the ground dwelling species we have discovered so far, it seems that something other than simple natural selection drove the evolution of symmetrical forelimb posture." Dr Paul Barrett, a palaeontologist at the Natural History Museum where a specimen of Archaeopteryx is held, said: "THIS IS A CONTROVERSIAL TOPIC."

His return to the global stage would be a shock to his critics over the Iraq war and dismay many in Europe. But The Independent on Sunday has learnt that Mr Brown has accepted that his old rival should be in pole position for the appointment, on the basis that Britain needs to have a key figure in the architecture of the "NEW WORLD ORDER".

As the eyes of the world were on London's G20 summit last Wednesday, Mr Blair held private talks with the European Commission President José Manuel Barroso in Brussels. The talks focused on his work as Middle East envoy to the quartet of world powers, but it is almost certain that the two men discussed his candidacy. The former premier also visited Sweden last week, where he shared a platform with Bill Clinton at a climate change conference.

The presidency job is dependant on Ireland voting "yes" to the Lisbon Treaty, which creates the position. The Irish referendum will take place in the autumn. But Mr Blair's plans could still be scuppered if Angela Merkel loses the German general election in September. She is thought to have a strong desire for the job in the event of defeat.

North Korea said it was sending a satellite into orbit, but its neighbours suspect the launch was a cover for a long-range missile test. They strongly condemned the launch. The US president told Pyongyang to "refrain from further provocative actions". North Korea had "ignored its international obligations, rejected unequivocal calls for restraint, and further isolated itself from the community of nations", Barack Obama said in a written statement.

Japan called the move "extremely regrettable", while South Korea said it constituted a clear breach of a United Nations resolution. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said North Korea's actions were not conducive to regional stability, as did the European Union. China called on all sides to act with restraint. The UN Security Council has approved a Japanese request for an emergency session later in the day in New York.

North Korea says that the launch is part of what it calls peaceful space development. An unidentified South Korean official told Yonhap news agency that the rocket did appear to be carrying a satellite. It is not clear whether a satellite was successfully put into space. If it is confirmed, North Korea will see this as a major propaganda victory, says the BBC's John Sudworth in Seoul.

Police again used tear gas to try and bring the hordes under control but were pelted with rocks and sticks and even Molotov cocktails. Mr Obama's wife Michelle and the other 'First Ladies' were forced to abandon a trip to a cancer hospital due to fears for security. Some 1,000 demonstrators had been staked out by the hospital waiting for the wives to arrive, French officials said.

Witnesses saw protesters storm a nearby hotel, setting fires inside the building before pilfering alcohol from the bar. Stacks of old tires were also set ablaze, unleashing thick plumes of black smoke that could be seen across the river. Near the bonfire was a sign welcoming visitors to Strasbourg, where the US President, Gordon Brown and another 26 leaders are holding meetings.

Some of the protesters say they want an end to the war and branded Nato a tool of Western imperialism but others simply appeared bent on causing chaos. Police have been using tear gas in Strasbourg to quell protesters since Thursday night before the two-day Nato summit began.

Lord Hoffmann, the second most senior Law Lord, accused the Court of going beyond its jurisdiction and imposing "uniform rules" on states. He said rulings that had gone against domestic decisions were "teaching grandmothers to suck eggs".

The judge insisted he supported the European Convention on Human Rights but not the institution that applies the law. In a lecture to fellow judges, published this week, Lord Hoffmann said the European Court, in the French city of Strasbourg, was unable to resist the temptation to "aggrandise its jurisdiction" by laying down a "federal law of Europe".

Lord Hoffmann – who is due to retire shortly – said the court should not be allowed to intervene in the detail of domestic law. He added that this had led to the court being "overwhelmed" by a growing backlog of 100,000 cases. Set up in 1959 in Strasbourg, the court considers cases brought by individuals, organisations and states against the countries bound by the European Convention on Human Rights.

It is unclear whether US regulators will prevent banks receiving government aid from participating as buyers in the $1 trillion Public-Private Investment Program (PPIP) designed to unclog credit markets and bank balance sheets.

But the program, where the government provides much of the financing and shoulders much of the risk, leaves open the prospect that banks, as well as private investors, could buy the troubled securities and loans. This means recipients under the government's $700 billion bank bailout fund, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, might take part.

"WITHOUT VERY STRICT REGULATION YOU'RE POTENTIALLY CREATING BIG RISKS BY ALLOWING BANKS TO BUY TOXIC ASSETS WITH HOUSE MONEY," said Wayne Shaw, a professor at Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business. "IT'S A TERRIBLE RISK."

Investigators said they had yet to establish a motive for the massacre, which was at least the fifth deadly mass shooting in the US in the past month alone. The attack came just after 10 am at the American Civic Association, an organization that helps immigrants settle in this country. Police Chief Joseph Zikuski said the gunman parked his car against the back door, "making sure nobody could escape," then stormed through the front, shooting two receptionists, apparently without a word.

The killer, believed to be a Vietnamese immigrant, then entered a room just off the reception area and fired on a citizenship class. "The people were trying to better themselves, trying to become citizens," the police chief said. One receptionist was killed, while the other, shot in the abdomen, pretended to be dead and then crawled under a desk and called 911, he said.

A string of attacks in the US in the last month left 44 people dead in all. A gunman killed 10 people and himself in Samson, Alabama; shootings that began with a traffic stop in Oakland, California, left four police officers and the gunman dead; an apparent murder-suicide in Santa Clara, California, left six dead; and a gunman went on a rampage at a nursing home Sunday, killing seven elderly residents and a nurse who cared for them.

On Monday, the charity will launch a crisis grant scheme to help families. The government says it believes food prices have peaked and it is tackling child poverty through increased child benefits and child tax credits. Colette Marshall, of Save the Children, said: "We are facing a crisis. Benefits simply haven't been enough and with rising food costs it means that families cannot afford to give children proper decent food. We think we are heading towards malnutrition here in the UK."

Kate Green, of the Child Poverty Action Group, said that many families were buying less fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and fish, and consuming more affordable tinned and packet food that was often higher in sugar, salt and fat. Government efforts had lifted 600,000 children out of poverty in the last 10 years, but one in three still lived below the poverty line, she said. "Part of the problem is... many people have seen their prosperity improve over the last 10 years, so we have become a much more unequal country," she said.

"That is very damaging for the people who just haven't kept up, and it really is quite wrong morally, and it's economically very stupid actually, not to make sure that we share the resources more equally and protect those who have least."

The January figure marks the third time in five months that enrollment set a record. "A weakened economy means that many more individuals are turning to SNAP/Food Stamps," said the Food Research and Action Center, an anti-hunger group, using the acronym for the renamed food stamp program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

THE US UNEMPLOYMENT RATE WAS 8.1 PERCENT IN FEBRUARY, THE HIGHEST IN 25 YEARS. New claims for jobless benefits totaled 669,000 last week, the highest in 26 years, the government said on Thursday. Food stamp enrollment rose in 46 of the 50 states during January as the national total rose by 580,000 people, or 1.3 percent, from December, when the previous record was set, said Agriculture Department figures.

Vermont, Alaska and South Dakota had increases of more than 5 percent. Texas had the largest enrollment, 2.984 million, down 65,000, followed by California at 2.545 million, up 43,000, and New York with 2.211 million, up 37,000. Food stamp benefits get a temporary 13 percent increase, beginning with this month, under the economic stimulus law signed by President Barack Obama. The increase equals $80 a month for a household of four.

The grandfather, a sports coach in his 60s, said: 'The boys thought they were getting a new mummy and daddy, not a daddy and daddy. WE ARE NOT HOMOPHOBIC, BUT WE FEEL STRONGLY THIS ADOPTION IS AGAINST OUR FAMILY'S CHRISTIAN VALUES.' The grandmother, also in her 60s, added: 'Our grandsons are being forcibly taken from a family who want them dearly. WE ARE WORRIED THEY WILL BE INDOCTRINATED INTO A DIFFERENT LIFESTYLE. THIS IS SOCIAL ENGINEERING BY THE STATE.'

The case had to be heard in a closed court to prevent identification of the boys. It will fuel concern over the increase in gay adoptions, ACTIVELY PROMOTED BY LEFT-WING MINISTERS AND COUNCILS. The uncle said he had discussed the matter with gay friends. They are worried, too. THEY WARNED THAT MALE RELATIONSHIPS DO NOT ALWAYS LAST VERY LONG. 'They asked about the long-term future of the couple who want to adopt my nephews. Will they stay together? Are they in a civil partnership? What happens to the children if they split up?'

'Emotional harm' became part of the social workers' lexicon some years ago. It is now the catalyst for 27 per cent of all English adoptions, a far higher proportion than that triggered by sexual and physical abuse. Critics say it means children can be 'forcibly' adopted if there are parental rows or even a future likelihood of them while a child is under 18.

Germany, Spain, Portugal and Italy are among countries to have offered a temporary increase in troops at the alliance's summit in Strasbourg. US President Obama thanked Nato allies for backing his Afghan strategy. The summit also agreed to appoint Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen as Mr Scheffer's replacement.

Anti-Nato protesters have fought police and set buildings alight in Strasbourg. They set a hotel and a customs house on fire and three columns of smoke could be seen rising over the Europe Bridge area of the French city, across from the small town of Kehl in Germany, where part of the summit was held. French police again used tear gas against protesters and 25 people were arrested, adding to dozens detained in the run-up to the gathering.

Nato was also providing more trainers and mentors for the Afghan army and police, he said. "The bottom line is that when it comes to Afghanistan, this summit, and this alliance, have delivered," Mr Scheffer added. Speaking after Mr Scheffer, US President Barack Obama commended fellow Nato members for giving "strong and unanimous" support to his new strategy in Afghanistan. He said the US was determined to defeat al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Now they're celebrating again. An "historic compromise" had been reached, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said at the conclusion of the G-20 summit in London, while US President Barack Obama spoke of a "turning point" in the fight against the global downturn. Behind the two leaders, the summit's motto could clearly be seen: "stability, growth, jobs."

When the celebrations have died down, it will be easier to look at what actually happened in London with a cool eye. THE SUMMIT PARTICIPANTS TOOK THE EASY WAY OUT. Their decision to pump a further $5 trillion (€3.72 trillion) into the collapsing world economy within the foreseeable future, COULD INDEED PROVE TO BE A HISTORICAL TURNING POINT - BUT A TURNING POINT DOWNWARDS. In combating this crisis, the international community is in fact LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR THE NEXT CRISIS, WHICH WILL BE LARGER. It would probably have been more honest if the summit participants had written "debt, unemployment, inflation" on the wall.

The crucial questions went unanswered because they weren't even asked. Why are we in the current situation anyway? Who or what has got us into this mess?

Ostensibly, it's meant to "review progress on our commitments" but it's hard not to wonder whether some of the arguments aired in London this week may be set to continue for several months yet. Asked about the next G20 meeting, Gordon Brown declined to say when or where that meeting will take place, promising more details in the next few days. This coyness is quite intentional: the last thing the Prime Minister wants on his day of global glory is the world's attention shifting to the next big thing.

Update 1: Silvio Berlusconi is kindly offering to host the next circus.

Update 2: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Japan may host an additional Group of 20 meeting in September. Berlusconi spoke after a meeting of the G-20 in London today. He said that Japan had offered to host the summit and that President Barack Obama was in favor of holding it there

"THE ERA OF BANKING SECRECY IS OVER", the Prime Minister declared, as the Group of 20 leading nations agreed to impose a new range of regulations on banks and non-bank financial institutions as a punishment for contributing to the crisis. Harsh fines and sanctions will be levied on tax havens that refuse to publish details of their accounts; hedge funds will have to provide more detailed accounts in the future; and bankers will have their bonuses more heavily controlled and taxed throughout the world, the communique pledged.

The range of new regulations will be implemented by national governments in the coming months, officials said, after the G20 agreed on more significant and far-reaching reforms than had been expected. In what will be interpreted as a victory for the French and German factions, which had emphasised the importance of regulation over new fiscal giveaways, the G20 also ordered the creation of a new Financial Stability Board dedicated to monitoring leverage and inter-connectedness of international financial institutions.

US President Barack Obama, who personally helped broker the deal by acting as a mediator between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and the Chinese delegation, said: "We made enormous strides in committing ourselves to a comprehensive reform of a failed financial system. We must put an end to the bubble and bust economy that obstructed sustained growth."

However, critics pointed out Mr Brown had been unable to secure agreement on a new co-ordinated fiscal stimulus package that he and Mr Obama had been urging. The Prime Minister has staked his political future on securing a deal at the summit. Under the $1.1 trillion (£750 billion) agreement, which followed several days of intense negotiation, struggling economies will be offered money provided to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by wealthier nations.

The G20 leaders also agreed restrictions on bankers' pay, rules to target tax havens and hedge funds and a new financial early warning system to prevent a future economic meltdown. "Today's decisions, of course, will not immediately solve the crisis. But we have begun the process by which it will be solved," Mr Brown said. "I THINK A NEW WORLD ORDER IS EMERGING WITH THE FOUNDATION OF A NEW PROGRESSIVE ERA OF INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION,"