People with conditions such as HIV, TB and malaria should not rely on homeopathic treatments, the World Health Organisation has warned. It was responding to calls from young researchers who fear the promotion of homeopathy in the developing world could put people’s lives at risk. The group Voice of Young Science Network has written to health ministers to set out the WHO view
Faced with global warming and potential oil shortages, the US navy is experimenting with making jet fuel from seawater. Navy chemists have processed seawater into unsaturated short-chain hydrocarbons that with further refining could be made into kerosene-based jet fuel. But they will have to find a clean energy source to power the reactions if the end product is to be carbon neutral
Scientists in Israel have demonstrated that it is possible to fabricate DNA evidence, undermining the credibility of what has been considered the gold standard of proof in criminal cases. The scientists fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. They also showed that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they could construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without obtaining any tissue from that person
IBM is looking to the building blocks of our bodies — DNA — to be the structure of next-generation microchips. As chipmakers compete to develop ever-smaller chips at cheaper prices, designers are struggling to cut costs. Artificial DNA nanostructures, or DNA origami
may provide a cheap framework on which to build tiny microchips
At the Chongqing Children’s Palace, experts are hoping to revolutionise child-rearing with the help of science. About 30 children aged 3 to 12 years old and their parents are participating in a new program that uses DNA testing to identify genetic gifts and predict the future
It is possible to successfully fend off a zombie attack, according to Canadian mathematicians. The key is to hit hard and hit often
. Oh yes, somebody actually did a study on mathematics of a hypothetical zombie attack, and published it in a book on infectious disease. So, while we still don’t know what to do if a deadly asteroid takes aim at Earth, an unlikely but technically possible situation, we now know what to do in case of a zombie attack
A team of Yale University researchers has discovered a repulsive
light force that can be used to control components on silicon microchips, meaning future nanodevices could be controlled by light rather than electricity. The team previously discovered an attractive
force of light and showed how it could be manipulated to move components in semiconducting micro- and nano-electrical systems–tiny mechanical switches on a chip. The scientists have now uncovered a complementary repulsive force
A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines. The pitcher plant is among the largest of all pitchers and is so big that it can catch rats as well as insects in its leafy trap. The botanists have named the pitcher plant Nepenthes attenboroughii, after British natural history broadcaster David Attenborough
By slamming materials together, scientists have made a mineral that is found naturally only in meteorites and the deep layers of Earth’s mantle. Their successful shock
experiment reveals new clues about the formation of our early Solar System
A new procedure to turn blocks of wood into artificial bones has been developed by Italian scientists, who plan to implant them into large animals, and eventually humans. Wood-derived bone substitute should allow live bones to heal faster and more securely after a break than currently available metal and ceramic implants. The researchers chose wood because it closely resemble the physical structure of natural bone, which is impossible to reproduce with conventional processing technology
Medical abortion is about to become more widely available across Australia, after not-for-profit sexual health organisation Marie Stopes International won the right to use the so-called abortion pill
RU486 in its clinics. From today the drug, also known as mifepristone, will be offered as an alternative to surgical abortion by 14 doctors at MSI’s nine centres in Victoria, NSW, the ACT, Western Australia and Queensland. It will be used only at less than nine weeks’ gestation, under prescribing and import rights granted by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Marie Stopes said the TGA had relaxed rules compared with previous prescribing rights
In the latest phase of the nanotechnology revolution, scientists have built a collection of minuscule objects from DNA, including toothed gears, curved tubes, and a wireframe beach ball five millionths of a centimetre in diameter. As well as being able to hold vast amounts of information, DNA is tough and flexible, making it an attractive candidate for use as a nanomaterial. Advances in molecular biology in recent decades have meant that scientists are well equipped to work with DNA and program it to do whatever they want
Nicotine enhances attention and memory in schizophrenics, says a study that supports the development of new treatments which could relieve symptoms and prevent smoking-related deaths. A strong link between schizophrenia and smoking — with over three times as many schizophrenics smoking (70 to 90%) as the population at large — prompted scientists to investigate the link
Professor Declan Murphy and colleagues Dr Michael Craig and Dr Marco Catani from the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London have found differences in the brain which may provide a biological explanation for psychopathy. The research investigated the brain biology of psychopaths with convictions that included attempted murder, manslaughter, multiple rape with strangulation and false imprisonment. Using a powerful imaging technique (DT-MRI) the researchers have highlighted biological differences in the brain which may underpin these types of behaviour and provide a more comprehensive understanding of criminal psychopathy
Scientists have discovered that the spleen, long consigned to the B-list of abdominal organs and known as much for its metaphoric as its physiological value, plays a more important role in the body’s defense system than anyone suspected. Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School describe studies showing that the spleen is a reservoir for huge numbers of immune cells called monocytes, and that in the event of a serious trauma to the body like a heart attack, gashing wound or microbial invasion, the spleen will disgorge those monocyte multitudes into the bloodstream to tackle the crisis
Human skin is a phenomenon — small scratches and cuts heal quickly, leaving no trace of a scar after just a few days. It’s a different matter with materials, such as metals — if the electroplated layer protecting the metals from corrosion is scratched, rust protection is lost. Engineers are working on transferring the self-healing effect of skin to materials. The idea behind this is to introduce evenly distributed fluid-filled capsules into the electroplated layer — rather like raisins in a cake. If the layer is damaged, the pellets at the point of damage burst, the fluid runs out and repairs
the scratch. Until now, these plans have failed due to the size of the capsules — at 10 to 15 micrometers they were too large for the electroplated layer, which is around 20 micrometers thick. The capsules altered the mechanical properties of the layer
In their most recent experiments with Geobacter, the sediment-loving microbe whose hairlike filaments help it to produce electric current from mud and wastewater, Derek Lovley and colleagues at the University of Massachusetts Amherst supervised the evolution of a new strain that dramatically increases power output per cell and overall bulk power. It also works with a thinner biofilm than earlier strains, cutting the time to reach electricity-producing concentrations on the electrode
Spanish researchers claim to have discovered evidence of a type of giant worm that lived 475 million years ago and was up to one metre in length. The fossilised tracks of the marine worms were found in the Cabaneros National Park in central Spain in an area that was a seabed during the Lower Ordovician period, the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) said. It said the creatures lived in horizontal galleries of five metres in length and 15-20 centimetres in diameter under the seabed
Gorillas have been found, for the first time, to be a source of HIV. Previous research had shown the HIV-1 strain, the main source of human infections, with 33m cases worldwide, originated from a virus in chimpanzees. But researchers have now discovered an HIV infection in a Cameroonian woman which is clearly linked to a gorilla strain
Fifteen senior Australian climate scientists have hit back at the resurgence of climate scepticism among the nation’s politicians and the media, warning that the threat from climate change is real, urgent and approaching a series of tipping points
where it will feed on itself. New findings suggest that the situation is, if anything, more serious than the assessment of just a few years ago
, say the scientists, who include the CSIRO’s Dr Michael Raupach and Dr John Church, along with the Australian National University’s Professor Will Steffen, who recently completed a report on climate change science for the Federal Government
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