NEW YORK, United States — Desperate to turn the tide in its war on rats, New York unveiled a new $32 million effort Wednesday to cull thousands of them with rodent-proof trash cans and tighter garbage rules. If successful, the $32 million initiative will be rolled out to other areas. Legend has it that there as many rats as humans — 8.4 million — but Columbia University statistician Jonathan Auerbach in 2014 debunked the myth, estimating the number of rats at two million. While officials say there is no scientifically accurate way to count the rat population, de Blasio promised “many thousands of rats” would be eradicated. In 2015, a New York rat shot to internet stardom when filmed walking down the stairs of a subway station with a slice of pizza in its mouth.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 13, 2017 01:41 UTC