Following is a summary of current science news briefs.
Ammonia used in many foods, not just ”pink slime”
New York (Reuters) – Surprise rippled across America last
month as a new wave of consumers discovered that hamburgers
often contained ammonia-treated beef, or what critics dub ”pink
slime.” What they may not have known is that ammonia – often
associated with cleaning products – was cleared by U.S. health
officials nearly 40 years ago and is used in making many foods,
including cheese. Related compounds have a role in baked goods
and chocolate products.
CERN revs up hopes for smashing year for physics
GENEVA (Reuters) – Scientists came closer than ever to
witnessing ”Big Bang”-style conditions on Thursday after
revving up the Large Hadron Collider at the CERN research
centre to smash sub-atomic particles together faster and harder
than ever before. Physicists in the control rooms punched the
air as multi-colored arcs flashed across their screens, debris
thrown up by the collisions of some of the millions of protons
flung around the vast underground circuit at close to the speed
of light.
Scientists pin down historic sea level rise
LONDON (Reuters) – The collapse of an ice sheet in
Antarctica up to 14,650 years ago might have caused sea levels
to rise between 14 and 18 meters (46-60 feet), a study showed
on Wednesday, data which could help make more accurate climate
change predictions. The melting of polar ice could contribute
to long-term sea level rise, threatening the lives of millions,
scientists say.
Gene studies begin to unravel autism puzzle
CHICAGO (Reuters) – A sweeping study of hundreds of
families with autism has found that spontaneous mutations can
occur in a parent’s sperm or egg cells that increase a child’s
risk for autism, and fathers are four times more likely than
mothers to pass these mutations on to their children,
researchers said on Wednesday. The results of three new
studies, published in the journal Nature, suggest mutations in
parts of genes that code for proteins – called the exome – play
a significant role in autism.
”Speed of light” experiment professor resigns
ROME (Reuters) – The Italian professor who led an
experiment which initially appeared to challenge one of the
fundaments of modern physics by showing particles moving faster
than the speed of light, has resigned after the finding was
overturned earlier this month. Italy’s national institute of
nuclear physics INFN said on Friday that Antonio Ereditato had
stepped down as coordinator of the so-called OPERA experiment
but had no comment beyond saying it ”took note” of his
decision.
Studies show how pesticides make bees lose their way
LONDON (Reuters) – Scientists have discovered ways in which
even low doses of widely used pesticides can harm bumblebees
and honeybees, interfering with their homing abilities and
making them lose their way. In two studies published in the
journal Science on Thursday, British and French researchers
looked at bees and neonicotinoid insecticides – a class
introduced in the 1990s now among the most commonly used crop
pesticides in the world.
Maths and Olympics: How fast could Usain Bolt run?
LONDON (Reuters) – Usain Bolt, already the world’s fastest
man, could lop another 0.18 seconds off his 100 meter sprint
world record even without running any faster. It’s just a
question of getting a few conditions right – and doing the
maths. Luckily for the top Jamaican sprinter, John Barrow, a
professor of mathematical sciences at Britain’s Cambridge
University, has done the calculations for him.
Japan bees cook enemy in ‘hot defensive bee ball’
TOKYO (Reuters) – Don’t mess with Japanese honeybees. Not
only do they cooperate to attack their enemies, researchers now
say their brains may actually be processing and responding to
the threat. When confronted with their arch-enemy, the
aggressive giant Asian hornet, the honeybees will attack it by
swarming en masse around the hornet and forming what scientists
call a ”hot defensive bee ball” – a move unique to their
species.
In cancer science, many ”discoveries” don’t hold up
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A former researcher at Amgen Inc
has found that many basic studies on cancer — a high
proportion of them from university labs — are unreliable, with
grim consequences for producing new medicines in the future.
During a decade as head of global cancer research at Amgen, C.
Glenn Begley identified 53 ”landmark” publications — papers in
top journals, from reputable labs — for his team to reproduce.
Begley sought to double-check the findings before trying to
build on them for drug development.
