WASHINGTON, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- The Bush administration is calling for polar bears to be listed as a threatened species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

A U.S. Interior Department source, who did not want to be identified, told The Washington Post (NYSE:WPO) (NYSE:WPO) that the government would soon make the request public in the Federal Register, opening the door to hearings.

The filing will just meet a 2-year deadline in response to lawsuits from three environmental groups that claimed the government was dragging its feet on the animals' status, the Post said.

The filing acknowledges global warming is responsible for rapid loss of Arctic sea ice, which the bears use as a living and feeding platform. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials have warned polar bears could be endangered within 45 years as the Arctic ice recedes.

Scientists say there are 20,000 to 25,000 polar bears in 19 separate populations worldwide, about 4,700 of which live in Alaska. Canada, Russia, Denmark (Greenland) and Norway have the balance.

Hand transplant patient wiggles fingers

MADRID, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- A hand transplant patient in Spain is wiggling her fingers less than a month after receiving two new hands, El Pais newspaper reported Wednesday.

Colombian Alba Lucia is ahead of schedule in her recovery from the dual transplant procedure she underwent on Nov. 30 and has already left the hospital, the report said.

Lucia, 47, lost both hands in an explosion in a chemistry lab accident 28 years ago when she was a student.

She received her new hands from a person who had been declared brain dead after an accident.

Study shows jet lag may be harmful

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Dec. 27 (UPI) -- A study done on mice has shown that jet lag may not only be a nuisance to frequent fliers but it could be a health risk.

The University of Virginia released the study that showed that a majority of the elderly mice they were testing died while being subjected to the equivalent of a flight from Washington-to-Paris once a week for eight weeks, The Washington Post reported.

Jet lag is usually accompanied by grogginess, burning eyes, headaches, insomnia and fatigue. Experts said that the study is the first real scientific look into the effect of jet lag.

The study found that intense forms of jet lag sped up the death rate in mice. New attention has been focused on the problem and questions are being raised about whether severe jet lag can be harmful to frequent fliers' health.

Brain exercise gives mind a workout

NEW YORK, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- A surge of new brain exercise products is offering baby boomers the hope of sharper minds, The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) reported Wednesday.

The offerings, from software and online workouts to handheld video games, are popping up at assisted living facilities, where residents and their children hope they ward off dementia.

The scientific community isn't ready to back computer games that claim to keep your mind young with memory drills, Sudoko games or other exercises, The Times said.

Cardiovascular exercise, however, is probably good brain exercise, one expert said.

"What's good for your heart's probably good for your head," Dr. Lynda Anderson, chief of Health Care and Aging Studies at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Times.

Banner year for cybercrime

WASHINGTON, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- This was a year for the record books for computer crime with 2007 likely even more dire, Wednesday's Washington Post reported.

Computer security experts said next year could be worse than 2006 as computer criminals get better at sending spam and launching Internet attacks on consumers' personal information.

More than 90 percent of all e-mail sent in October was junk and there was a 73-percent increase in the computer-clogging junk in the last two months, officials at the e-mail security firm Postini told The Washington Post. Junk e-mail volume is considered a good indicator of computer crime.

Cybercriminals also grew more sophisticated in 2006 in their attacks on software and Web sites.

"Rustock.B" is a new malicious Trojan horse program designed to evade detection.

"This is about the nastiest piece of malware we've ever seen and we're going to be seeing more of it," Alex Eckelberry, president of the security vendor Sunbelt Software in Clearwater, Fla., told the Post. "The new threats that we saw in 2006 have shown us that the malware authors are ingenious and creative in their methods."