MAGAZINE ISSUE DATE: 19 JUNE 2004 (Vol. 181 No 2452)
STUN WEAPONS TO TARGET CROWDSA frightening new breed of wireless stun gun to use in crowd control is being readied for sale in the US and Europe. The weapons are designed to debilitate many people at once over long-range by sweeping a lightening-like beam of electricity across them. Human rights groups are appalled, saying the weapons could inflict pain on innocent bystanders or be used as a new instrument of torture. Page 24
THE TEST FOR TRUE CHAMPAGNEHow can you tell if your bubbly is cheap sparkling wine or the real thing? Spanish researchers have devised a new test that pinpoints characteristic trace metals in the wine which come from the soil where the grapes were grown. The test should help prevent fraudsters passing off sparking white wines as champagne or cava. Page 23
CONSPIRACY THREAT TO ANTI-NUKE TREATYExchanges of nuclear information between the UK and US governments are undermining global stability. The claim comes from a think tank, called BASIC, based in London and Washington DC, who has evidence of a large-scale collaboration between the two countries to develop their nuclear arsenals. They claim that the US and UK are in breach of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) to which both countries claim to be committed. Pages 6-7
CITIES WILL SWELTER ON SUMMER NIGHTSSummer nights are about to get stickier for Londoners and other city-dwellers. The UK Meteorological Office says that a doubling of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere could triple this "urban heat island" effect. The effects of global warming will be more intense in cities, where vehicles, buildings and concrete retain heat at night. Page 15
JUST ADD A CHROMOSOME"¦Genetic diseases might one day be treated by adding an entirely new chromosome to people's cells. Vast chunks of DNA can be added in the form of an artificial chromosome, rather than being limited to inserting just one or two genes, which could end up in the wrong place. A Canadian company has already shown the technique could be a feasible method of gene therapy. Page 10
MAY THE FITTEST CAR WIN THE RACEComputer scientists in London have used evolutionary theory to help Formula 1 teams shave seconds off their best time. They applied genetic algorithms " software that mimics evolution's drive for fitness " to breed the best variables governing a racing car's performance. The system could be used in trackside computers to fine-tune a car during pit stops. Page 22
METHOD OF SPERM SORTING APPEARS SAFEA sperm-sorting technique designed to increase the odds of having a child of the desired sex has a fairly good success rate and safety record, a fertility clinic says. Interim results of an ongoing trial were detailed earlier this month. The technique, called Microsort, relies on the X-chromosome being larger than the Y-chromosome, and is able to separate the two chromosomes in sperm using fluorescent DNA dye. Page 13
FEATURES:
THE CELL THAT MAKES US HUMANResearchers may have found the key to what makes us uniquely human - allowing us to judge and react in complex social environments. The discovery of a small group of brain cells, found only in humans and our closest relatives, could be very closely involved with those quick-fire emotions such as love, guilt and empathy, which set us apart from other mammals. Pages 32-35
FLYING SAUCERSWhat makes a frisbee fly straight out of the thrower's hand in a fast, flat line? Planetary scientist, Ralph Lorenz, goes outdoors to perfect his frisbee technique, hoping it will improve our understanding of space probes as they are hurled through the atmosphere of alien planets. Pages 40-41
COPY AND SAVEIf all conservation and breeding programmes fail to help endangered species " will cloning be rolled out as a last resort? Given cloning's terrible success rate in animals, experimenting on tens or possibly thousands of endangered species is out of the question. So a related species would have to serve as the egg donor and surrogate mother. And then there's the difficult issue of choosing which species to clone and save. Pages 36-39
GIVE IT SOME GASBatteries make lousy power sources. The race is on to work out how to make our mobile phones, laptops and other electrical devices completely free from the grip of the electricity grid. Researchers are hoping that a micro-scale combustion engine filled with liquefied fossil fuel could become the perfect power source, and make the battery obsolete. Pages 26-29
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