MAGAZINE ISSUE DATE: 10 JUNE 2006 (Vol. 190 No. 2555)
IN NEWS THIS WEEK:
WHO WILL PAY FOR A NUCLEAR FUTURE?As the world gears up to build new nuclear reactors, the hazards of uranium mining are forgotten. Digging uranium out of the ground is messy and dangerous and once extracted leaves behind a toxic sludge, which remains radioactive for thousands of years. A new study in an old mining village in Kyrgyzstan has shown that villagers are unwittingly eating radioactive waste in their chickens, milk, potatoes and pears - at doses 40 times the recommended safe limit. What's more, if the uranium waste dumps were dislodged by landslides or earthquakes, thousands more could be in danger. Pages 8-9
TRIALS FOR A DRUG THAT GETS TO HEART OF HIVA revolutionary drug that could help overcome HIV's growing resistance to existing antiviral drugs is about to undergo trials this month. The American company say their novel drug, called PA-457, will attack HIV on a new front. It works by stopping the virus from budding out from infected cells, by destroying the protein shield which protects the RNA at the heart of the HIV particles. The company warn that the drug will not be generally available for at least three years. Pages 16-17
KEEP OUT OF MYSPACEThe amount of information that people put online about themselves on social networking websites is growing. And it is about to become more advanced with the development of the "semantic web" , which combines previously incompatible data " such as bank records and property details " to build all embracing profiles of people. This has its advantages for the medical profession and scientists. But the downside is that the technology could become the latest target of the Pentagon's National Security Agency for mass harvesting of individual's details. Page 30-31
ARTIFICIAL CHROMOSOMES CORRECT A GENETIC DEFECTTake an artificial chromosome containing the gene to correct a serious disease, put it in a stem cell, and transplant it into the body. A team in Japan has proved that this concept works by correcting a genetic defect in mouse stem cells. Stem cells have great potential as a gene therapy tool because they can act as a vehicle for carrying the corrective gene and should also be able to divide and replace disease-ravaged tissue once transplanted in the body. Page 11
HOW NASA WILL AVOID DOUBLE HUBBLE TROUBLEWhen NASA had the embarrassment of launching the Hubble Space Telescope only to find it didn't focus properly, astronauts were able to fix the fault in space. But when the James Webb Space Telescope is launched in seven years time, it will be too far away for astronauts to rescue. Which is why, this time, the entire telescope will be fully assembled on the ground to avoid any similar mistakes. Page 21
OZONE MAY CHOKE OUR ARTERIES AS WELL AS OUR CITIESIn 2003, researchers in America discovered that ozone in the body reacts with cholesterol to produce substances called atheronals " which are found in the fatty "plaques" that lead to heart disease. Now the same team has found that these atheronals (and hence ozone) actually contribute to artery narrowing. And the researchers believe that it is possible for inhaled ozone to contribute to heart disease via the same mechanism. SHORT STORY Page 23
VOLCANOES WILL BLOW WHERE IT'S GREENESTLook for the tallest, greenest plants on the flanks of a rumbling volcano to find out where it is likely to spurt out magma. This is according to researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, who looked at satellite images before and after volcanoes had erupted. The reason for the pattern of growth could be that there is a better water supply in the cracks and more carbon dioxide seeping out for plant growth. SHORT STORY Page 22
FEATURES:
DO THE COSMIC TWISTAlmost everything in the sky is rotating: stars, planets, galaxies. But as long as Einstein's theory of general relativity rules, the universe itself does not move. Give the universe a little spin however, and it would make understanding the universe a whole lot simpler. It's a radical idea, but put an axis in the cosmos for the universe to revolve around, and many mysteries such as dark matter and inflation just disappear. Pages 34-36
RAIDERS OF THE LOST STORMSTo find out how climate change will affect cyclones in the future, we need to look to the past. A growing band of 'palaeotempestologists', who hunt traces of ancient cyclones, are throwing up some worrying results. For instance, research in eastern Australia suggests that after a major lull for 100 years, Queensland can expect a lot more super-cyclones like Cyclone Larry, which hit earlier this year. Pages 44-47
TOOLS YOU CAN TRUSTIt has been 30 years since researchers discovered how to "cut and paste" short pieces of DNA from one strand to another in a test tube. But back then, the pieces of DNA often landed in the wrong place " with the worst scenario being cancer. Now researchers are ushering in a new era in genetic engineering with new tools - to use in animals and plants " that can ensure precisely where the target DNA will end up. Pages 38-41
BRIDGING THE VOIDScientists are using computer graphics to help unlock the secrets behind the gravity-defying domes and arches in medieval cathedrals. The new knowledge from the master builders of old is being used to help design buildings made to last, and to help use local materials rather than polluting concrete. Pages 42-43
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