NEW SCIENTIST PRESS RELEASEEMBARGO: NOT FOR PUBLICATION BEFORE:-14:00 HRS EST (19:00 HRS BST) WEDNESDAY, 28 MARCH 2001
NEWS THIS WEEK:
FOOT AND MOUTH Special ReportIs the mass slaughter of animals based on sound science or do governments have a hidden agenda? The no-vaccination policy may now be more an excuse to bar cheap meat imports than it is sound science. Pages 16-17
LIKE LAMBS TO THE SLAUGHTERScientists in France have stumbled across new evidence that adds weight to the fear that sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease could be caused by eating meat from a sheep infected with scrapie. Page 4
HEART-BREAKING BUGSA wide variety of microbes can trigger heart attacks. Researchers in Austria now think they know why the more chronic infections you have, the more likely you are to have atherosclerosis. Page 18
NUMB TO MUMUsing painkillers during labour can prevent newborns from breastfeeding normally. Swedish researchers go on to say that painkillers may damp down the release of a maternal hormone that helps mother and baby bond shortly after birth. Page 12
GOING COMMANDOWhat every SEAL needs is a dual-purpose suit to wear comfortably in and out of the water. A US military lab has designed amphibious clothing that divers won't need to change out of when they get out of the water ready for action. Page 22
CRACKED IT?Researchers from Croatia claim to have found a superconductor that is said to have zero electrical resistance at room temperature, which would revolutionise power production. However, experts contacted by New Scientist were reluctant to start popping corks. Page 7
WHEN THE WIND BLOWSBeware tumbleweeds or migrating ducks - they may have been contaminated with radiation. Researchers have found that tumbleweeds are able to blow into ponds of waste water at a nuclear facility in the US, and blow out again. Page 6
SYMPHONY IN LYCRAA hypersensitive lycra jacket could help budding conductors direct an orchestra. As the student conducts a piece, sensors in the jacket are linked to a PC and music synthesiser, which only plays music well if it is conducted properly. Page 21
SPIDERS FOR MARSPlanetary robots will be able to see better using a trick borrowed from jumping spiders. Californian researchers could give the next generation of Mars rovers much sharper eyesight by vibrating the image sensors - imitating how spiders vibrate their retinas. Page 20
GOTTA CATCH THEM ALLEurope is pushing for big increases in the amount of fish its trawlers are allowed to catch in one of the world's last great fisheries. Conservationists are appalled by the proposals and say the waters off West Africa are already seriously overfished.Page 19
SCRUB THE PLANET CLEANGiant chemical ponds could absorb C02 as fast as people can produce it. US researchers suggest building a huge artificial superforest, essentially a collection of calcium hydroxide ponds - the size of Minnesota - which would suck up C02 as we produce it. Page 14
FEATURES:
INTO THE ABYSSHow deep can a diver go on just one breath of air - and live. For as long as there are divers out there willing to push their bodies to the absolute limits of endurance, scientists have been watching, trying to figure out how the body copes with such pressures. Pages 30-33
THE FIRST SPLIT SECONDWould you like to see back to the beginning of time? Astronomers now believe there is a way to look back further than anyone thought possible - back to the birth of the Universe. Pages 27-29
E-MMUNE FROM ATTACKWith new computer viruses spreading like wildfire, what we need is a digital vaccine. Using human immunology as their guide, American researchers hope to revolutionise computer security - warding off attacks from both viruses and hackers. Pages 35-37
THE BRIDGE OF SWAYSThe saga of London's wobbling Millennium Bridge seems to be the tip of a pretty wobbly iceberg. Is it time for civil engineers to reassess the way they work, before someone is injured? Pages 38-41
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ISSUE DATE: 31 MARCH 2001
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