Life Tibetans adapted to high life at record-breaking rate Active at altitude Mountain-dwelling Tibetans have genetically adapted to life at altitude in the past 3000 years – the fastest genetic change known to have occurred in humans. Rasmus Nielsen at the University of California, Berkeley, and his colleagues looked at the DNA of people living in two villages at 4300 and 4600 metres above … 51¶¯Âþ
Earth Pioneer aquanaut: How not to clean up an oil spill Sylvia Earle gets down to some underwater science Marine biologist, seabed explorer and former top US government scientist Sylvia Earle tells Phil McKenna how she helped to change George W. Bush's mind – and why she is angry about the methods being used to clean up the Gulf oil spill LEANING towards me so as … Opinion
Life Alpha, beta, gamma: The language of brainwaves She can feel the beat I'VE just had a brainwave. Oh, and there's another. And another! In fact, you will have had thousands of them since you started reading this sentence. These waves of electricity flow around our brains every second of the day, allowing neurons to communicate while we walk, talk, think and feel. … Features
A backstage pass to the circus of super-long life In the longevity circus, it takes all kinds of performers to make a show THE field of ageing research is full of characters. We have hucksters claiming that cures for ageing can be bought and sold; prophetic seers, their hands extended for money, warning that immortality is nigh; and would-be Nobelists working methodically in laboratories … Books & Arts
Very deep multiply nested acronyms Very deep multiply nested acronyms SECS: no, this is not just a misspelling designed to get your attention, but one of a flock of responses to our request for nested acronyms or initialisms (5 June) . Dawn Bradford reports that it stands for SEMI (Semiconductor equipment manufacturing industries) equipment communication standard. Some machines she worked … Regulars