>Tsunami Victim: Dog Rescued After 3 Weeks Adrift [VIDEO]

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Check out this little tsunami victim, a dog that somehow stayed alive on a floating pile of rubble with a roof on top for three weeks before the Japanese Coast Guard rescued him.

If a dog can stay alive under these conditions, couldn’t a human? That’s an important question, because there are still 18,000 tsunami and earthquake victims missing in Japan, with little hope for their survival.

How did this dog stay alive? While dogs and humans can survive for three weeks without food, they can’t go longer than a couple of days without water. Floating in the ocean off the coast of Japan, the dog was surrounded by salt water, but like a human in the same situation, that wouldn’t have kept him alive — according to the Department of Energy’s Ask a Scientist website:

Humans can’t drink salt water because the kidneys can only make urine that is less salty than salt water. Therefore, to get rid of all the excess salt taken in by drinking salt water, you have to urinate more water than you drank, so you die of dehydration.

It must have been a rainy three weeks aboard this ragtag vessel, where small collected pools of fresh water must have kept the dog alive.

It’s probably too late for more survivors to be found, but it’s not too late for you to help earthquake and tsunami victims in Japan. Here’s how.

>Tsunami hits north-eastern Japan after massive quake

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A massive earthquake has hit the northeast of Japan triggering a tsunami that has caused extensive damage. Japan’s TV showed cars, ships and even buildings being swept away the Fukushima prefecture, after the 8.8 magnitude earthquake. Officials said a wave as high as 6m (20ft) could strike the coast. The quake struck about 250 miles (400km) from Tokyo at a depth of 20 miles, shaking building in the capital for several minutes.The tremor at 1446 local time (0546 GMT) was followed by a series of powerful aftershocks.

>China’s stance on East China Sea, Diaoyu Island consistent: FM

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China’s stance on the East China Sea and Diaoyu Island remains clear and consistent, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Monday.

 China and Japan have encountered some twists and turns in reaching a common ground on the East China Sea issue. The two sides should properly handle this sensitive issue based on strategic mutual benefits and create sound condition and environment to sort out the issue, Yang told a press conference.

“We have every reason to believe that the East China Sea should be a sea of peace, cooperation and friendship. China has no change in stance in this regard,” he said.

He also maintained China’s position on the Diaoyu Island is clear and consistent.

“Diaoyu Island is a sensitive issue, which should be handled carefully. We have told the Japan side that last year’s accident should not repeat,” he noted.

China believes the China-Japan relations are one of the most important bilateral relations for both countries. Maintaining sound ties is a wise choice for both. We hope the two sides could keep the relations in the right direction, he said.

China-Japan relations have been strained since a collision between two Japanese Coast Guard patrol ships and a Chinese trawler on Sept. 7 last year in waters off the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

Japan detained the trawler’s captain despite China’s protests. In response, China halted bilateral exchanges at and above provincial and ministerial levels and suspended talks on expanding aviation services between the two countries.