NEW SCIENTIST PRESS RELEASE****
EMBARGO: NOT FOR PUBLICATION BEFORE THURSDAY, MARCH 20, 1997
ORDER #1: THIS IS NOT MY BEAUTIFUL WIFE... A bizarre disorder that makes patients believe that their parents are imposters is shedding light on how the brain works. Researchers in the US have been working with a patient who suffers from the rare condition known as Capgras syndrome, which occurs following accidents that cause damage to the brain, usually to the right side. New Scientist page 19.
ORDER #2: EARTHQUAKES DRAG THE NORTH POLE SOUTH The constant rumbling of earthquakes round the world is nudging the North Pole towards Japan. Researchers in Italy have now shown that this is because the largest quakes, most of which occur along the Pacific Rim, tend to tilt the pole towards their epicentres. New Scientist page 20.
ORDER #3: LAMB'S LIVER WITH CADMIUM GARNISH Abnormally high levels of the toxic metal cadmium accumulate in the kidneys and livers of sheep grazing on pasture fertilised with sewage sludge, according to disturbing new research. If the practice of spreading sewage sludge on pasture intensifies, people who eat lambs' livers or kidneys regularly might be at risk of chronic cadmium poisoning. Page 4
ORDER #4: SEABIRDS' DIRTY DIET SPREADS DISEASE Gulls that feed on sewage outfalls, rubbish tips and farm slurry could be fuelling the spread of the virulent food-poisoning bacterium E.coli O157. Page 11
ORDER #5: SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL FESTERS IN SERBIA Cannisters of corroding nuclear fuel at a research institute near Belgrade could explode and leak radioactivity. But no country appears willing to help the beleaguered Serbian regime by forking out the few hundred thousand dollars needed to make the fuel safe. Page 7
ORDER #6: DIGITAL TV SPARKS INTERFERENCE FEARS When digital television takes off in Britain next year it will cause widespread interference to other television services. Some homes may lose their TV programmes altogether, while some viewers in Wales will have to watch English instead of Welsh programmes. New Scientist page 22.
ORDER #7: NO WAY OUT Young Chinese women are committing suicide at a higher rate than anyone else in the world. Understanding why could upset Western beliefs about the causes of suicide. Pages 32-35
ORDER #8: ROBO ROACH IS BORN Japanese scientists have created bionic cockroaches that are part insect and part machine. Using a remote control, the researchers can make these creatures turn left or right and even dart forward on command. New Scientist pages 24-26
ORDER #9: STRIKING THE SOLAR SHOCK WAVE Next week, NASA bids farewell to its most remote explorer, Pioneer 10. Meanwhile, the Voyager spacecraft are still going strong and about to report on their most spectacular discovery yet--the shock wave at the edge of the Solar System. New Scientist pages 36-40
ORDER #10: WHO'S SUFFERING NOW? Animals cannot be assumed to suffer, no matter how nasty the situation may seem to us, argue two British biologists. But not everyone agrees. New Scientist pages 28-31
-ENDS-
March 19, 1997
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