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Monday, June 15, 2015

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White House: ethics of human genome editing needs further review

The White House said on Tuesday the ethical issues associated with gene-editing on the human genome need further study by the scientific community and should not be pursued until issues are resolved. "The administration believes that altering the human germline for clinical purposes is a line that should not be crossed at this time," John Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, said in a statement. "Research along these lines raises serious and urgent questions about the potential implications for clinical applications that could lead to genetically altered humans," Holdren said in the statement on the White House website.

Can a Transplanted Penis Work Like the Original?

A man in South Africa who underwent a penis transplant has impregnated his girlfriend, according to news reports. But it's not clear whether the man's transplanted penis works the same way an undamaged penis would, said Dr. Andrew Kramer, a urologist at the University of Maryland Medical Center who wasn't involved in the transplant. "Maybe ejaculate just dripped out," and he got the woman pregnant, Kramer told Live Science.

Snacking on Peanuts May Extend Your Life

People who regularly eat peanuts may live longer, a new study from the Netherlands finds. The biggest reductions in deaths among the nut-lovers were for deaths from respiratory diseases, neurodegenerative diseases and diabetes, followed by cancer and cardiovascular diseases, the researchers said. Eating peanut butter, however, despite its high content of peanuts, was not associated with a lower mortality risk.

Yes, You Can Drown on Dry Land — Here's How

Drowning kills about 10 people per day in the United States, and children younger than 5 are at the highest risk. Events that nonexperts sometimes call "dry drowning" or "secondary drowning," (these are not actual medical terms) can occur up to a day after the person had trouble in the water. This type of drowning is quite rare, making up just 1 to 2 percent of all drowning incidents, said Dr. Mark Zonfrillo, a pediatric emergency and injury researcher at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Why no MERS vaccine? Lack of foresight frustrates scientists

By Kate Kelland and Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - Three years after the mysterious MERS virus first emerged in humans, scientists and drugmakers say there is no excuse for not having a vaccine that could have protected those now falling sick and dying in South Korea. The facts behind the coronavirus that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) have been slow to emerge, partly due to a secretive response in Saudi Arabia, which has suffered an outbreak stretching back to 2012.

Why no MERS vaccine? Lack of foresight frustrates scientists

One Month from Pluto, NASA Probe Sees Dwarf Planet's Many Faces

The many "faces" of Pluto are visible in new images by NASA's New Horizon's probe, which is only one month away from the first-ever close encounter with the dwarf planet. This week, NASA released what it called "the best views ever obtained of the Pluto system" taken by New Horizons, which will make its closest approach of the dwarf planet starting July 14. A video of the Pluto new images reveals the many "faces" of this petite planetary object — that is, the photos show a complete 360 degree panorama of the dwarf planet's surface.

Why no MERS vaccine? Lack of foresight frustrates scientists

Molecules Reach Coldest Temperature Ever

Physicists have chilled molecules to just a smidgen above absolute zero — colder than the afterglow of the Big Bang.

Exclusive: Russia, U.S. competing for space partnership with Brazil

By Anthony Boadle and Brian Winter BRASILIA/SAO PAULO (Reuters) - The United States and Russia are competing for a strategic role in Brazil's plan to launch commercial satellites from its base near the equator, opening up a new theater in their rivalry for allies and influence. Brazil's government expects to choose a partner to help provide technology in the coming months, three sources with knowledge of the deliberations told Reuters. Brazil partnered with Ukraine over the past decade to develop a launch vehicle at the Alcantara base on its northern Atlantic coast.

Origin of Mysterious 'Cannon Earthquakes' in Red Sea Found

Mysterious earthquakes that sound like cannon blasts have been puzzling people for decades, and now their origin has been traced way back to a giant block of volcanic rock hundreds of millions of years old, researchers say. For generations, Bedouin nomads living in the region of the Egyptian coastal resort Abu Dabbab, by the Red Sea, have heard noises that sound like cannon blasts accompanying small quakes in the area. "The name of Abu Dabbab are Arabic words that mean 'the Father of Knocks,' which is related to the sound heard in this area," Sami El Khrepy, a seismologist at King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, told Live Science.

Stretchy 'Origami Batteries' Could Power Smart Clothing

Stretchy batteries inspired by origami could power smartwatches and other wearable electronics, researchers say. Increasingly, scientists worldwide are developing flexible electronics, such as video displays and solar panels, that could one day make their way into clothing and even human bodies. Hanqing Jiang, an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Arizona State University in Tempe, came up with the new device after "talking with an origami artist who showed me some famous origami patterns," he said.

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Sunday, June 14, 2015

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Scientists emerge from isolated dome on Hawaii volcano slope

HONOLULU (AP) — Six scientists who were living under a dome on the slopes of a dormant Hawaii volcano for eight months to simulate life on Mars have emerged from isolation.

Polar Bears Now Eat Dolphins, Thanks to Global Warming

Faced with a rapidly changing habitat, polar bears are adapting with a new entrée: For the first time, a polar bear was seen preying on a white-beaked dolphin carcass that had been trapped in the ice in Svalbard, a group of Norwegian islands in the Arctic Ocean. In April 2014, a male polar bear with a full belly was spotted near a recently devoured white-beaked dolphin, which could have weighed 120 to 680 lbs. (54 to 308 kilograms) and measured 5 to 9 feet long (1.5 to 2.7 meters), the researchers said in an article published online June 1 in the journal Polar Research. The bear was also seen with another white-beaked dolphin's thawing carcass, which he was likely saving for a later meal.

Simpsons in Splitsville: Experts Discuss Homer & Marge's Marital Woes

Marge and Homer Simpson's marriage has survived countless calamities, but the couple is set to separate (at least for an episode) this fall, according to news sources. In a recent interview, Al Jean, "The Simpsons" executive producer, shared a few details about the show's 27th season premiere, scheduled to air Sept. 27: "It's discovered after all the years Homer has narcolepsy and it's an incredible strain on the marriage," Jean told Variety. The Simpson's marriage isn't so different from those in the real world, especially now that the two are dealing with medical conditions on top of Homer's shenanigans, two sociologists told Live Science.

European space chief suggests making room for China, India on station

The incoming head of the European Space Agency said in a published interview that the International Space Station should be opened up to astronauts from India and China. The $100 billion space station, visible from Earth to the naked eye, is a habitable research outpost backed by 15 countries including the United States, Russia and Germany. China and India are not part of the group.

Philae space probe thought lost wakes in comet's shadows

The Philae lander space probe thought lost has woken up some seven months after officials thought it marooned in the shadows on a comet, the European Space Agency said on Sunday. ESA said it had received signals from the lander late on Thursday, which began "speaking" with its team on the ground for the first time since it went into hibernation following a botched landing on the comet in November. "Philae is doing very well," said project manager Stephan Ulamec in a statement on ESA's website.

Nobel Prize-winning scientist says he was forced to resign

LONDON (AP) — A Nobel Prize-winning British scientist says he was forced to resign after sexist comments drew widespread condemnation.

Aiden Gillen, Littlefinger on 'Game of Thrones,' Stars in Comet Video

As the hit HBO series "Game of Thrones" wraps up its fifth season tonight (June 14), remember that you can see Aiden Gillen (who plays the weaselly Littlefinger) in a short science fiction film about the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft. The comet short film "Ambition," which ESA released last October ahead of Rosetta's release of its Philae lander, takes place in a strange and distant future and features two characters who can apparently manipulate matter with their minds (or some unseen technology). The interaction between a teacher (Gillen) and his student (played by Aisling Franciosi) is used to explain how the Rosetta spacecraft, which is currently orbiting comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, will help scientists learn about the history of the Earth and the solar system.

It's Alive! Comet Lander Philae Phones Home After Months of Silence

The European Space Agency's Philae comet lander, which dropped onto Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from the Rosetta spacecraft last November, beamed an 85-second wake-up message to Earth via Rosetta yesterday (June 13), ESA officials announced today. "Philae is doing very well," Philae project manager Stephan Ulamec of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), said in a statement.

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Saturday, June 13, 2015

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Bluebird Bio's sickle cell gene therapy working for French boy

By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - A pioneering gene therapy for sickle cell disease is working well so far for a 13-year-old French boy with the hereditary blood disorder, researchers said on Saturday, in a boost for the technology to fix faulty genes. SCD is caused by a mutated gene, resulting in abnormal red blood cell function. Patients suffer anemia, painful obstruction of blood vessels and, in some cases, early death.

New Photo Book Presents Rare 'Snapshots' from NASA's Early 'Spaceshots'

J.L. Pickering usually doesn't take kindly to books claiming "never before seen" NASA photographs. A space historian and one half of the team behind the new title, "Spaceshots and Snapshots of Projects Mercury and Gemini: A Rare Photographic History," now available from University of New Mexico Press, he has almost assuredly already seen the photos. "When we would go into any bookstore, we would naturally check out the space books," John Bisney, Pickering's co-author, said about the catalyst that led to their new book, which presents some of the truly seldom reproduced shots from NASA's first piloted space programs.

These Astronaut Photos of the Great Pyramids & Earth Are Simply Breathtaking

Astronaut Terry Virts knows how to spend his last day in space: gazing at planet Earth from afar and posting photos of that jaw-dropping view online for all to see. Before a Soyuz space capsule returned Virts to Earth Thursday (June 11), the NASA astronaut took time out in space to photograph the Earth below, capturing spectacular vistas of the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, our home planet at night and what looked to be a stunning sunrise. "It took me to until my last day in space to get a good picture of these," Virts wrote on Twitter, where he posted photos, Vine videos and mission updates as @AstroTerry.

Robots Face Off in $1.5 Million NASA Sample Return Challenge

Robot-toting teams faced off in a NASA contest this week to see which automaton has the right stuff for working on Mars or other locations in the solar system.

How Dangerous Was 'High 5' With Great White Shark?

"Coming out of the cage like that is not as risky as it might seem," Carl Meyer of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology told Live Science. In the video, Joel Ibarra, a dive master on an expedition filmed for the Discovery Channel, appears to exit a shark cage and touch the pectoral fin of a female great white nicknamed Deep Blue. Ibarra was not really purposely slapping the female great white shark on the fin.

Nobel Scientist's Claim Examined: Do Women Actually Cry More?

Although the general consensus is that Hunt was completely out of line, studies show that overall, women do cry more than men — though not, as Hunt claimed, because they can't take criticism, but because of various biological, social and environmental factors. Hunt, who won the 2001 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, shared his sentiments on Monday (June 8) at the World Conferences of Science Journalists in South Korea. And Steve Diggle, a microbiologist at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, created a yellow caution sign that said, "Mixed gender lab! No falling in love or crying permitted," and posted it on Twitter.

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