Man-made life
The biggest story in science last week had to be the announcement of the ‘creation of the first synthetic life form’.
Mobile phones: should we be worried?
A story that has appeared a lot in British press this week is the report on findings of a major study into the link between mobile phone use and brain cancer.
Cement gets a green makeover
Global cement production accounts for about 2 billion tonnes of CO2 every year – that’s 5% of all CO2 emissions and more than the entire aviation industry. Now a company has come up with a way of producing cement actually reduces carbon dioxide emissions.
Brown rat tops the charts
No, this is not a post about the return of Roland rat to the music industry but a look at the impact of invasive species.
A shining use of smart materials
Smart materials are those that respond to external stimuli such as changes in temperature, pressure and movement. Getting celebrities involved is sure to give momentum to the use of the technology, and the recent appearance of the singer Katy Perry in a light-up dress at a recent awards ceremony will do wonders for the sale […]
Want to stay young and happy? Read this!
It seems that the key is to not eat chocolate or drink fizzy drinks. Well, that is if you believe two recent news reports.
Artificial organs for sale
Repo Men is a film playing in UK cinemas at the moment. The film is set in the future, where you can buy an expensive replacement artificial organ if yours pack up. The only downside to this is if you can’t keep up the repayments, the company that supply the organs, The Union, send round […]
Amazing biodiversity in Borneo
A couple of weeks ago, I posted about a new species of lizard being discovered in the Philippines. It seems that this was just a minor find, as scientists in Borneo have recently discovered an amazing 123 new species, including the world’s largest insect – a stick insect 22 inches in length.
Spinning around
I’m always on the lookout for new toys and gadgets that can demonstrate science in a fun way. The latest one to catch my eye is the Firewinder. The helical structure catches the wind, and the turning affect creates electricity which is used to light the LED bulbs embedded in its surface. It’s a bit […]
My two Mums
Researchers at Newcastle University have successfully created embryos that contain the DNA of three people. It is hoped that within the next three years, this technique will be used to help women who have mutations in the DNA in the mitochondria,