Beijing, China | AFP | A Chinese court on Monday sentenced the doctor who claimed to be behind the world’s first gene-edited babies to three years in prison for illegal medical practice, state media reported. He Jiankui, who shocked the scientific community last year by announcing the birth of twins …
Read More »World’s fastest ant clocks nearly a metre per second
Paris, France | AFP | It’s official: The Saharan silver ant is the fastest of the world’s 12,000 known ant species, clocking a blistering 855 millimetres — nearly a metre — per second, researchers said Thursday. Measured another way, the six-legged sprinter covers 108 times its own body length per …
Read More »Study shows North American bird population fell by quarter over 50 years
Washington, United States | AFP | The number of birds in the United States and Canada has fallen by an astonishing 29 percent, or almost three billion, since 1970, scientists reported Thursday, saying their findings signaled a widespread ecological crisis. Grassland birds are the most affected, because of the disappearance …
Read More »Why does breast cancer recur? New study finds clues
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | For breast cancer survivors, the risk of tumours returning casts a long shadow, with recurrence possible up to two decades after a diagnosis. But new research could help identify and treat those most in danger. Doctors have traditionally relied on factors such as the size …
Read More »‘Hip hop music changes cheese taste’
Cheesy listening: study says tunes change Emmental’s taste Bergdorf, Switzerland | AFP | It may be grating for some, but hip-hop is music to the ears of Switzerland’s most famous cheese. According to research on the musical tastes of Emmental, the holey cheese changes flavour depending on the melodies played …
Read More »S.Africa medics use 3-D printer for middle ear transplant
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African surgeons have successfully performed the world’s first transplant of middle-ear bones that uses 3-D printed components, a research university said. The technique “may be the answer to conductive hearing loss — a middle ear problem caused by congenital birth defects, infection, trauma …
Read More »More asteroids strike Earth since age of dinosaurs: study
From @IFLScience: Would @NASA Tell Us If An #Asteroid Was About To Hit The #Earth? https://t.co/gEFeVV9ggN #spacenews #space pic.twitter.com/G56MzTabiV — Perth Observatory (@perthobs) January 18, 2019 Tampa, United States | AFP | Between two and three times as many asteroids have struck the Earth and the Moon since the age …
Read More »COMMENT: Nature vs. infrastructure
Environmentally reckless growth is not preordained; it is possible to make smart, sustainable choices COMMENT | MAXWELL GOMERA | In November 2017, scientists working in Sumatra, Indonesia, made an exciting announcement: they had discovered a new species of orangutan, bringing to seven the number of great ape species globally. But one year later, …
Read More »‘Zebra’ tribal bodypaint cuts fly bites 10-fold: study
Paris, France | AFP | Traditional white-striped bodypainting practiced by ndigenousi communities mimics zebra stripes to reduce the number of potentially harmful horsefly bites a person receives by up to 10-fold, according to new research published Wednesday. Tribes in Africa, Australia and southeast Asia have practiced bodypainting in cultural ceremonies for …
Read More »Your brain dictates how many friends you have
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Think about your closest friends—the people you call daily, share your secrets with, and text at 2 a.m. when you need a favour or some emotional support. How many people are you picturing? One? Three? Eight? If you’re like most people, you probably answered between …
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