Exercise may keep cancer patients healthier during, after treatment

Breast and prostate cancer patients who regularly exercise during and after cancer treatment report having a better quality of life and being less fatigued, according to researchers.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Invention regulates nerve cells electronically

A major step toward being able to regulate nerve cells externally with the help of electronics has been taken by researchers in Sweden. The breakthrough is based on an ion transistor of plastic that can transport ions and charged biomolecules and thereby address and regulate cells.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Meaner than fiction: Reality TV high on aggression, study shows

Researchers looked at five reality shows and five non-reality shows and found 52 acts of aggression per hour on reality TV compared to 33 per hour for the non-reality programs.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Gesture-based computing on the cheap: Multicolored gloves making Minority Report-style interfaces more accessible

Ever since Steven Spielberg's 2002 sci-fi movie Minority Report, in which a black-clad Tom Cruise stands in front of a transparent screen manipulating a host of video images simply by waving his hands, the idea of gesture-based computer interfaces has captured the imagination of technophiles. Researchers have now developed a system that could make gestural interfaces much more practical. Aside from a standard webcam, like those found in many new computers, the system uses only a single piece of hardware: a multicolored Lycra glove that could be manufactured for about a dollar.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Breaking the logjam: Improving data download from outer space

Space satellites that detect nuclear events and environmental gasses face a data logjam because their increasingly powerful sensors produce more information than their bandwidth can easily transmit. Experiments at the International Space Station indicate that sending more complex computer chips into space to pre-reduce the large data stream sent Earthbound could be the answer. But how well would the latest, most sensitive computing electronics fare in the harsh environment of outer space?
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Prenatal exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals linked to breast cancer

A study in mice reveals that prenatal exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, like bisphenol-A (BPA) and diethylstilbestrol (DES), may program a fetus for life. Therefore, adult women who were exposed prenatally to BPA or DES could be at increased risk of breast cancer, according to a new study.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:00 pm

Cassini heading to Saturn's Titan after tagging Enceladus

NASA's Cassini spacecraft is on its way to a flyby of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, after capturing some stunning images of Enceladus. One view shows the hazy outline of Titan behind Saturn's rings, with the dark curve of Enceladus at the bottom.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 9:00 am

Increased cancer risk of people with type 2 diabetes, large study finds

Scientists in Germany have published the largest study worldwide on the combined risk of diabetes and cancer. People affected by type 2 diabetes have an elevated risk of 24 of the types of cancer studied. The effect is most evident for liver cancer and pancreatic cancer. By contrast, people with diabetes have a significantly lower rate of prostate cancer.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 9:00 am

Kidney weight matters when it comes to transplantation

Receiving an organ low in weight in relation to the recipient's body weight increases kidney transplant recipients risk of complications and transplant failure, according to a new study. The results suggest that compatibility between a donated kidney's weight and the weight of the recipient could improve the success of transplantation.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 9:00 am

Better way to detect food allergies

A chemical engineer believes he has a better way to diagnose such allergies. His new technology can analyze individual immune cells taken from patients, allowing for precise measurement of the cells' response to allergens such as milk and peanuts.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 22 May 2010 | 9:00 am

The nation's weather (AP)

AP - Active weather was expected to persist on Saturday as multiple weather features affected the nation.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 3:13 am

Ariane 5 rocket makes 50th flight

Europe's Ariane 5 launch vehicle carries out its 50th mission, putting two large telecommunications satellites in orbit.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 22 May 2010 | 1:31 am

Anger, frustration over oil mounts along the Gulf (AP)

AP - Anger grew along the Gulf Coast as an ooze of oil washed into delicate coastal wetlands in Lousiana, with residents questioning the federal government and others wondering how to clean up the monthlong mess that worsens with each day.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 1:10 am

Atlantis crew relaxes after wrapping up spacewalks (AP)

AP - The crew of Atlantis is getting a little down time up in orbit.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 1:07 am

American boy, 13, youngest to climb Everest: website (AFP)

AFP - A 13-year-old American boy on Saturday became the youngest person ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest, a statement on his website said.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 1:06 am

BP struggles to curb oil spill; criticism mounts (Reuters)

Reuters - Energy giant BP Plc scrambled to contain a month-old seabed well leak billowing crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday as anger mounted among affected residents and political leaders in Washington.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 1:01 am

Drug treatment policy needs a dose of evidence

Grand promises from governments mean little without decent analysis

So all good citizens this week are poring over the Programme for Government, and it's true that there is much to be pleased with. Labour wasn't all about unbridled credit and fun public sector spending sprees: they kept all your emails, kept records of the websites you visited, used "anti-terrorism" legislation on people who plainly weren't terrorists, and so on.

But most interesting are the noises being made about crime and evidence. "We will conduct a full review of sentencing policy," they say, "to ensure that it is effective in deterring crime, protecting the public, punishing offenders and cutting reoffending. In particular, we will ensure that sentencing for drug use helps offenders come off drugs."

These are grand promises. Compulsory addiction rehabilitation with drug testing and treatment orders was introduced 10 years ago as an alternative to custodial sentences or probation for drug-related crimes. Their implementation without adequate analysis is one graphic example of our ineptitude at running simple trials of social policy.

A judge making a decision on a criminal's sentence is in the same position as a doctor making a decision on a patient's treatment: they are choosing an intervention for an individual with the intention of producing a particular set of positive outcomes (reduced crime, and reduced drug use). They both get through a large number of individuals in a month; and in many important situations they don't yet know what works.

If you randomly assign a fairly large number of criminals, or patients, to one of two interventions and measure how well they're doing a year or so later, you discover which intervention is best. Add in the cost and you know which is most cost effective.

Before being rolled out nationally in October 2000, drug orders were extensively piloted in three cities by the criminal policy research unit of London South Bank University.

What insights did this generate? There was no randomisation, and no control group of identical criminals given traditional sentences for comparison, so the only new knowledge generated was the revelation that it is possible to set up a DTTO service and run it in some buildings in some cities.

When they did follow up the people who had passed through the service, they hadn't done particularly well. But the chosen study design means we have no idea how these participants would have turned out if given a custodial sentence.

This is a tragedy, and not just because drug use is estimated – with the usual caveats on estimating nebulous notions – to cause 85% of shoplifting, 80% of domestic burglaries, over half of all robberies, and so on. This is a tragedy because it speaks to motives that will never go away.

It takes a brave politician to say "I want to introduce a new policy, but I don't know if it will work", to try it out on half of a group of people, and measure their outcomes years later, perhaps after the politician has moved on.

This would revolutionise social policy and if Cameron and Clegg were really young and visionary, they would step up to the plate.

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 22 May 2010 | 1:00 am

As US beach closes, BP denies botched oil clean-up (AFP)

AFP - A popular tourist beach in Louisiana remained closed due to oil contamination Saturday as BP officials denied botching the month-long clean-up and deliberately hiding the true extent of the spill.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 22 May 2010 | 12:55 am

IV Treatment May Thwart Advanced Cancers (HealthDay)

HealthDay - FRIDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- New preliminary research suggests that intravenous delivery of a cancer-destroying virus -- a form of gene therapy -- can destroy tumor cells throughout the body.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 9:48 pm

Gene Therapy Shows Promise for Muscular Dystrophy (HealthDay)

HealthDay - FRIDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists have succeeded in using gene therapy to restore some muscle function in patients with a certain type of muscular dystrophy.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 9:48 pm

Oil spill commission takes shape

Two political veterans will head a US commission investigating a huge oil spill, reports say, amid criticism of the response.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 9:32 pm

Day of discovery for UK wildlife

A wide range of activities take place across the UK to celebrate International Day for Biological Diversity.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 6:35 pm

Humanity will thank heaven that this creator of synthetic life is playing God

Spare us the parade of ethicists and clerics. This is a moment in evolution, as radical an invention as agriculture or industry

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 21 May 2010 | 6:28 pm

Looks Sway Court Decisions (LiveScience.com)

LiveScience.com - Although justice is supposed to be "blind," a new study finds that attractiveness influences conviction and sentence length.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 6:20 pm

Ariane rocket launches two satellites

CAYENNE, French Guiana (Reuters) - An Ariane rocket has orbited two telecommunications satellites after a launch from French Guiana on Friday, space officials said.
Source: Reuters: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 5:33 pm

Japan despatches probe to Venus

Japan sends a sophisticated probe - Akatsuki - to Venus to study its atmosphere in unprecedented detail.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 5:11 pm

White-Light Solar Flares Finally Explained

The flashes of white light accompanying some solar flares are caused by the sun’s acceleration of electrons to speeds greater than half the speed of light.

The phenomenon’s new explanation derives from data recorded from a 2006 solar flare. The presence of high-energy X-rays in the same spot that scientists saw visible light tipped them off that some kind of non-thermal process was generating the light.

“These explosions are particle accelerators,” said Säm Krucker, of the Space Science Laboratories at the University of California, Berkeley. “The whole surprising thing with these flares’ light is that it could simply be heat. But that’s not the case.”

Solar flares occur when the sun’s magnetic field lines rearrange and reconnect, releasing tremendous amounts of energy. There are different types of flares, which can generate geomagnetic storms of Earth, and only some of them are accompanied by the white light flares. These were first observed in 1859 by astronomer Richard Carrington, but no one really knew how they were produced until the new observations by the Japanese satellite Hinode and the NASA SMEX mission RHESSI.

Now, it looks as if the extremely powerful electromagnetic fields somehow deliver enormous amounts of energy into particles in the sun’s photosphere. It’s not unlike what humans do at a much, much smaller scale in particle accelerators like the Large Hadron Collider.

“As opposed to the LHC where you accelerate a few particles, it would be like accelerating the whole building basically,” said Hugh Hudson, also of Berkeley’s Space Science Laboratories, who worked with Krucker.

Astronomers haven’t figured out how exactly the sun works as a particle accelerator just yet. “It’s being done by electromagnetic effects that are not really understood,” Hudson admitted.

It’s possible that as the sun eases into a more active state over the next year, scientists will have more opportunities to study the flares.

A paper on the new work, with Kyoko Watanabe of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency as lead author, appeared May 20 in The Astrophysical Journal.

Images: NASA/JAXA

Citation: “G-band and Hard X-ray Emissions of the 2006 December 14 Flare Observed by Hinode/SOT and RHESSI,” by Kyoko Watanabe, Säm Krucker, Hugh Hudson, Toshifumi Shimizu, Satoshi Masuda, Kiyoshi Ichimoto. The Astrophysical Journal, No.715, pp. 651-655, 2010.

See Also:

• Big Solar Flare Portends Sun's Return to Normal
• Audio: DIY Recordings of Awakening Sun
• New Space Telescope Delivers First Mind-Blowing Video of the Sun
• The 2012 Apocalypse — And How to Stop It
• Telegraphs Ran on Electric Air in Crazy 1859 Magnetic Storm

WiSci 2.0: Alexis Madrigal’s Twitter, Tumblr, and forthcoming book on the history of green technology; Wired Science on Twitter and Facebook.

Source: Wired: Wired Science | 21 May 2010 | 4:49 pm

3D Can Make You Puke: It's Cyber-Sickness

3D movies, games, television and immersive simulators can produce neurological and visual conditions that cause some people to experience nausea. When our sense of motion does not match our sense of vision our brains to think we are being poisoned.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 4:48 pm

Could Kevin Costner's Machine Work on the Oil Spill?

Over the last couple of days, I've seen a number of stories about the actor Kevin Costner promoting an oil-separating machine that could be used to help clean up the oil in the Gulf of Mexico. It works by sucking ...
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 4:37 pm

At worst, oil spewed already could fill 102 gyms (AP)

AP - Day by day, the oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico is adding up to mind-boggling numbers.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 4:22 pm

Editors' Picks: Planet-Killers, Demoted Dinosaurs and More

If you didn't get a chance to stop by Discovery News recently, then take a look at these top five must-read stories of the week.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 3:52 pm

Growing up With Books Boosts Child's Education Attainment

Children from families with vast book libraries at home go further in school than those without books, a new study finds.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 2:45 pm

Rare black rhinos relocated to Africa's Serengeti

SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK, Tanzania (Reuters) - Conservationists flew the first five of 32 critically endangered East African black rhinos from South Africa back to their habitat in Tanzania's Serengeti park Friday.
Source: Reuters: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 2:44 pm

Ancient origin for monkey version of HIV

Long history of SIV suggests HIV won't quickly become benign.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/news/rss/today/~4/nqwS_OpWTac" height="1" width="1"/>
Source: NatureNews - All articles published today - nature.com science feeds | 21 May 2010 | 2:42 pm

Happy 30th Birthday, Pac-Man

The little yellow guy with the gigantic mouth, a bunch of ghostly enemies and an insatiable appetite for small white dots is turning the big 3-0. The arcade game was developed by Japanese video game developer Namco. First released in ...
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 2:16 pm

Top 7 Diet Tricks That Really Work

Here are the top seven diet tricks that scientists say really work.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 1:46 pm

Congress Opens Investigation Into Genetic Testing Companies

A Congressional committee opened an investigation of three direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies this week.

The House’s Committee on Energy and Commerce sent requests to the CEOs of 23andme, Navigenics and Pathway Genomics for a wide array of information about the companies’ services.

The letters, co-signed by Henry Waxman (D-California), Joe Barton (R-Texas), Bart Stupak (D-Michigan), and Michael Burgess (R-Texas), ask for all documents dating from January 1, 2007 to the present.

First, the committee wants “a chart listing the conditions, diseases, consumer drug responses, and adverse reactions” for which the companies’ test and “all policy documents, training manuals, or written guidance” about their counseling policies. They also requested all documents related to how the companies identify the risk to consumers based on their genomic profiles, and how they process and use individual DNA samples.

Add it all up and the documents could be the starting point for a wide-ranging investigation, if the committee decides to go down that road.

The companies have until June 4 to return all the requested documents to the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, chaired by Stupak.

The moves appear to be a response to media reports that Pathway Genomics hoped to sell its genetic testing kits in retail locations like Walgreens, “despite concern from the scientific community regarding the accuracy of the test results.” The House committee letter cited two New York Times stories about the plans.

Requests for comment from 23andme, Navigenics, Pathway Genomics and the House committee were not answered. Personal genomics company 23andme released a short statement but would not answer questions.

“We will comply with the Committee on Energy and Commerce’s request for information,” the statement reads. “We look forward to sharing information detailing what individuals can learn about their own bodies through personal genetic testing and how our company is facilitating important scientific research in the field.”

The direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies briefly found themselves in hot water with state regulators in New York and California in the summer of 2008. After they resolved those situations, they’ve had a relatively free ride from regulators, which appears to be ending.

Beyond the Congressional inquiry, the Food and Drug Administration recently went after Pathway for its retail plan. That spooked the would-be retailers, who decided offering genetic tests on their shelves was not such a good idea.

“We think this would be an illegally marketed device if they proceed,” Alberto Gutierrez, director of the FDA’s office of in-vitro diagnostics told the Washington Post. “They are making medical claims. We don’t know whether the test works and whether patients are taking actions that could put them in jeopardy based on the test.”

While many industry watchers have long suspected regulators would eventually pay more attention to the industry, but so far, it’s unclear what Congress or the FDA have in store for the genetic testing companies.

Image: flickr/Drew Olanoff

See Also:

• Thomas Goetz on Why the Debate Over Personal Genomics Is a False One
• 23AndMe Will Decode Your DNA for $1,000. Welcome to the Age of Genomics
• Genetic-Testing Company Details Regulatory Defense Plan
• Should Medicare Pay for Genetic Testing?
• Regulators, Genetic Testing Companies Begin Face Off
• Are Internet Genetic Testing Services Really Illegal?
• Meeting Reveals California’s Hardline Stance on DNA Testing
• Top 10 Reasons that Regulators Should Not Hinder Genetic Testing

WiSci 2.0: Alexis Madrigal’s Twitter, Tumblr, and forthcoming book on the history of green technology; Wired Science on Twitter and Facebook.

Source: Wired: Wired Science | 21 May 2010 | 1:43 pm

Scientists make 'artificial life'

Scientists in the US succeed in developing the first living bacterial cell to be controlled entirely by synthetic DNA.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 12:47 pm

Mars Rover Update

This just in from the Red Planet: Mars rover Opportunity has set a longevity record as it attempts a marathon trek across dangerous terrain; meanwhile, Spirit is in peril from the advancing Martian winter. Despite their troubles, both rovers remain in the hunt for new discoveries. Details are provided in today's story from Science@NASA.
Source: Science@NASA Headline News | 21 May 2010 | 12:42 pm

Looks Sway Court Decisions

Unattractive defendants are 22 percent more likely to be convicted, and tend to get hit with longer, harsher sentences than attractive defendants.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 12:34 pm

First Hints of Comets Circling Other Stars

A flying observatory has taken the first ultrasharp images of rings of cold debris around sunlike stars. The doughnut-shaped rings appear to be extrasolar analogues of the Kuiper belt, the outer solar system’s reservoir of comets and other frozen bodies.

The newly observed rings are either left over from the planet-making process or were generated when planets collided. Astronomers used the European Space Agency’s infrared Herschel Space Observatory, which sports the largest light-collecting mirror in space and is exquisitely sensitive to cold, sand-grain-sized dust, to photograph the belts.

”The Herschel images are the highest resolution far-infrared measurements ever made for debris disks” like the Kuiper belt, says infrared astronomer George Rieke of the University of Arizona in Tucson, who was not involved in the study.

René Liseau of the Chalmers Institute of Technology in Sweden, Carlos Eiroa of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in Spain and their colleagues posted their findings on debris belts surrounding two sunlike stars online May 19 and reported evidence of belts around more stars May 20. Some of their findings will also appear in an upcoming Astronomy & Astrophysics.

One of the sunlike stars, called q1Eridani or HD 10647, lies 57 light-years from Earth and has a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting it at about twice Earth’s distance from the sun. The bright ring surrounding the star is a frigid 30 kelvins, lies an average of 85 astronomical units from the star (1 AU is the Earth-sun distance) and is about 40 AU wide. In comparison, the solar system’s Kuiper belt, which lies beyond the orbit of Neptune, resides about 30 to 55 AU from the sun.

Strong infrared emissions from q1Eridani, recorded as far back as 1983 with the Infrared Astronomical Satellite, had already indicated the presence of an infrared-emitting belt of debris. Although expected, “it’s nonetheless lovely to see” an actual belt, says Alycia Weinberger of the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C. “Herschel is the first telescope to have the spatial resolution and sensitivity” at an infrared wavelength of 100 micrometers to resolve infrared emissions into bona fide belts or disks, she adds.

A much fainter belt appears to surround the star Zeta2 Reticuli, about 39 light-years from Earth, Liseau and his colleagues report. The belt lies at an average distance of 100 AU from the star, which is not known to harbor a planet.

Weinberger says the existence of this second belt is on shakier ground. “The high level of asymmetry [of the imaged belt], very cold temperature of the dust and possibility of confusion with a background object all give me an uneasy feeling,” she says.

Nonetheless, the Herschel images provide the best estimate of the amount of mass in a debris disk and the size of the grains that populate it, says Weinberger. The observatory also has the best chance of glimpsing a tenuous, far-away Kuiper belt similar to the solar system’s, Weinberger adds.

Astronomers believe the solar system’s Kuiper belt formed several billion years ago, when some of the outer planets, then packed tightly together, were suddenly hurled into the path of existing planetary debris, pushing the debris outward and sculpting it into a ring-shaped reservoir. By comparing the many examples of Kuiper belts that Herschel is expected to find with the locations of massive outer planets around sunlike stars, astronomers may learn if a similarly violent story unfolded in other planetary systems, Weinberger says.

Image: Liseau et al. Portrait of a ring of debris around the sunlike star q1Eridani was taken at an infrared wavelength of 160 micrometers by the Herschel Space Observatory.

Citation: “Resolving the cold debris disc around a planet-hosting star: PACS photometric imaging observations of q1 Eri (HD10647, HR506)” Posted on Arxiv.

See Also:

• Comet's 10 Million-Mile Tail Lights Up in Infrared
• Pieces of Infant Solar System Found in Comet's Wake
• Rare Comet Close-Up Coming to a Sky Near You
• Earth's Atmosphere May Have Alien Origin

Source: Wired: Wired Science | 21 May 2010 | 11:40 am

Jupiter's Cloud Band Vanishes from View

One of these things is not like the other. Can you see the difference between these two photos of Jupiter? Jupiter has lost one of its trademark "stripes." Scientists are monitoring the planet, but don’t yet fully understand what’s going ...
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 11:16 am

Researchers Hunt Down Antarctic Microbes

Scientists from Louisiana State University travel to Antarctica to study to look for hardy microbes living in ice sheets.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 11:11 am

Africa revives hardy, local rice vs Asian cousin

OSLO (Reuters) - Scientists are reviving long-ignored African rice to cut dependence on Asian varieties that may be less able to withstand the impact of climate change on the poorest continent, a report said on Friday.
Source: Reuters: Science News | 21 May 2010 | 11:03 am

Toyota-Tesla Deal Adds Spark to Electric Car Industry

Toyota is teaming up with Tesla Motors Inc, the makers of the only highway-legal all-electric car.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 10:25 am

Urban trees 'aid migrating birds'

Even small clusters of urban trees are used by migrating birds for food and shelter, a study shows.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 10:23 am

Spaceman

The small satellites which keep up a Gulf oil watch
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 10:22 am

Earth Watch

Synthetic bugs raise stakes for climate regulation
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 10:19 am

Analyst: Apple Selling More iPads Than Macs

Apple's iPad is outselling Mac computers and even vying with sales of the prolific iPhone.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 10:18 am

Lunar Craters May Be Electrified

Future moon explorers will have more to reckon with more than dust and frigid temperatures.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 10:00 am

Get Ready for More Proto-Humans

The latest new human, Homo gautengensis, may be the earliest recognized species in our genus, but remains of even older humans and proto-humans await analysis.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 9:57 am

Best iPad Health Care Apps

With the right apps, your iPad can become a helpful tool for helping you live a better, healthier life.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 9:25 am

Lion Cub Birth Celebration Turns Tragic

The Smithsonian's National Zoo is mourning the loss of a lion cub, which died after breathing in straw bedding that resulted in pneumonia.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 8:57 am

Torrential Rains of Cyclone Laila Measured from Space

NASA satellite measures rainfall over India as Cyclone Laila makes landfall.
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 8:53 am

Nottingham Caves Brought to You in 3-D

Scientists in England are bringing old caves to life with 3-D imaging.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 8:41 am

Why all the fuss?

It's already being hailed as one of the most significant scientific breakthroughs since the splitting of the atom: the creation of an artificial life form. We ask, is it really?

The US geneticist Craig Venter has built the genome of a bacterium from scratch. He's often known as the bad boy of science, but is he actually a genius deserving of a Nobel prize? Is he really set to make over a trillion dollars from his invention?

The show includes key extracts from the press conference where Venter revealed his creature to the world. You can listen to the conference in its entirety here.

We have a top team in the studio to analyse the developments and discuss their ethical implications, including Michael Moseley, award-winning journalist and TV presenter, and Gos Micklem a geneticist from the University of Cambridge.

Our science correspondent Ian Sample, who interviewed Venter for the Guardian, is on hand.

Also on the programme we talk about Michael's The Story of Science, the BBC's grand project to chart the history of this podcast's favourite topic.

WARNING: contains strong language.

Feel free to post your thoughts below.

For more information about our first ever recording in front of an audience, check out the website of London's Science Museum. The recording will take place at its Lates event on Wednesday 26 May and admission is free. We begin at 9pm until 10pm. Our special guest will be psychologist Dr Kevin Dutton.

Email science@guardian.co.uk if you would like to come along. Please put "Museum podcast" in the subject line.

Join our Facebook group.

Listen back through our archive.

Follow the podcast on our Science Weekly Twitter feed and receive updates on all breaking science news stories from Guardian Science.

Subscribe free via iTunes to ensure every episode gets delivered. (Here is the non-iTunes URL feed).

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 21 May 2010 | 8:40 am

UN warning on fisheries loss

The UN's top environment official echoes warnings that commercial fishing could be destroyed within 50 years.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 8:32 am

Belly Fat Linked to Dementia

Belly fat might increase the risk of dementia, a new study suggests
Source: Livescience.com | 21 May 2010 | 8:27 am

Life questions

What issues are raised by synthetic cell creation?
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 21 May 2010 | 8:16 am

Could A Criminal Hack Your Car's Computer?

Computer criminals are now able to hack into a car's computer network through wireless connections like satellite radio.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 7:03 am

Toothy Tree-Swinger May Be Earliest Human

The 3-foot tall Homo gautengensis had large teeth for chomping plants and spent a lot of time in trees, but likely had no language skills.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 21 May 2010 | 6:43 am

Hippopotamus on menu at Beijing zoo

Don't feed the animals, but feel free to feed on them in the restaurant, visitors to Chinese capital's zoo are told

• Student activists try to change Chinese appetites
• A peek inside China's live animals markets

Visitors to Beijing zoo are warned not to feed the animals, but they are encouraged to eat them at a restaurant that offers crocodile and scorpion on its exotic menu.

After watching the beasts in their cages, diners at the zoo's restaurant can gnaw on the webbed toes of a hippopotamus, chew a kangaroo tail, nibble a deer's penis or slurp down a bowl of ant soup.

The sale of the dishes has caused outrage since it was reported by the Legal Daily newspaper earlier this week, with conservationists condemning the practice.

"It is utterly inappropriate for a zoo to sell such items," said Ge Rui of the International Fund for Animal Welfare. "One of the zoo's missions is to foster love of animals and a desire to protect them. But by selling the meat of caged beasts, this zoo stimulates consumption and increases pressure on the animals in the wild. It is socially irresponsible."

Chang Jiwen, a legal expert at the China Academy of Social Sciences who is trying to draft an animal protection law, said: "Although it is legal, I don't think it is humanitarian. It is very inappropriate and immoral of them to sell such products. It is against the aim of the zoo."

Online comment was also predominantly critical. "Watching animals imprisoned in a limited space while eating their siblings, how would you feel?" wrote Zheng Yuanjie, a famous Chinese writer, in his microblog.

The owners of the Bin Feng Tang restaurant were unwilling to comment to the Guardian, but they have told domestic media that the meat was from exotic animal farms and its sale had been going on for several years with the full approval of the authorities.

In the wake of the negative coverage, however, staff said they would be revising the menu, which also includes set dishes of scorpion, peacock, ostrich egg, shark fin soup and other delicacies for between 100 and 1,000 yuan (£10-£100).

The criticism is a sign of changing times. In the past, notices on each of the zoo's animal cages included information about which parts were the tastiest and most useful according to traditional Chinese medicine. Those details have now been omitted.

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 21 May 2010 | 4:35 am

Bovine TB found in wild boar in UK

Scientists discover TB in wild boar, raising fears among farmers that boars and badgers could be contributing to disease in cattle

Scientists have found bovine TB in a feral wild boar for the first time in the UK. The discovery may raise fears among farmers that boars, along with badgers, could be contributing to bovine TB in cattle – but the researchers say the porcine species poses a low risk of spreading the disease to livestock or humans.

Tests on a 60kg female boar believed to be 7-9 months old revealed tissue lesions consistent with the disease.

The wild boar joins the growing list of wildlife hosts for TB. The threat from badgers is now judged so great that the new coalition government is preparing for England to follow Wales in culling the animals, despite conflicting scientific advice on whether the measure would be effective.

The boar died while under anaesthesia as part of an ongoing study of the animals in Herefordshire, an area where there is a high prevalence of TB on farms.

The study is being conducted for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) by the Food and Environment Research Agency.

Boar in the wild probably became extinct in England about 300 years ago but a series of escapes and deliberate releases from farms since the 1980s have meant small feral populations have become re-established.

A letter in today's Veterinary Record says any potential role wild boar may have in spreading bovine TB in the UK remains unclear, although the disease has been found in farmed wild boar twice.

In parts of Spain and Portugal the disease in boar is already at a level that is self-sustaining but in Italy they are "spillover" hosts.

The government already encourages landowners to increase routine culling of wild deer when there are high levels of TB and confirmation of the disease in cats, dogs, pigs and camelids, although still very low, appears to be increasing.

Fewer than 1% of human TB cases are thought to be linked to bovine TB infections.

Defra said last night: "'This finding does not change our risk assessment of the roles of other wildlife at present and we continue to monitor confirmed cases of TB in all animals, including wildlife, as part of our ongoing TB surveillance."

The spokesman added: "The main risk of human M. bovis [bovine TB] infection arising from wild boar is probably occupational, for those handling live infected animals or their carcasses in the field.

"We continue to advise basic personal hygiene practices, including wearing protective equipment to prevent cuts in the skin and to prevent exposure to infectious aerosols."

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 21 May 2010 | 2:40 am