Poor Mojo's Newswire

Now, researchers are discovering that these unusual sinkholes are home to extraordinary communities of microscopic bacteria. The organisms are not new to science, but preliminary genetic analysis is showing that they are relatives of bacteria that live in the subglacial lakes of Antarctica. Others are functionally similar to the extremophile bacteria living on the black smokers of the deep ocean.

The sinkholes were discovered in 2001, when a sonar expedition searching for shipwrecks found deep pits, up to 100 metres across, in the lake floor. The underwater pits have formed in places where an ancient underlying seabed is dissolving.

The study showed that “the most significant predictor of vocabulary comprehension and production scores [among children aged 12 to 15 months] was the amount of time children were read to”.

The study was focused on examining the relationship between viewing an infant DVD and a child’s “expressive and receptive language outcomes”. It found that there was no increased growth on either outcome for children who had viewed a DVD aimed at infants compared to children in the control group, even after multiple exposures.

A single gene appears to be in charge, preventing additional tooth formation in species destined for a limited set. When the scientists bred mice that lacked that gene, the rodents developed extra teeth next to their first molars — backups like sharks and other non-mammals grow, University of Rochester scientists reported Thursday.

If wondering about shark teeth seems rather wonky, consider: Tooth loss from gum disease is a major problem, here and abroad, and dentures or dental implants are far from perfect treatments. If scientists knew exactly what triggers a new tooth to grow in the first place, it's possible they could switch that early-in-life process on again during adulthood to regenerate teeth.

So says a report by the US National Academy of Sciences, which calls for the establishment of an independent federal body to raise standards, and new research to assess the reliability of many forensic methods.

In recent years, a number of high-profile exonerations have illustrated the pitfalls of placing too much trust in forensics and expert testimony. For example, last month Steven Barnes was released from jail after serving 20 years for the rape and murder of a high-school student in New York State in 1985.

Smoking also all but eradicated the traditional advantage in longevity that women enjoy over men.

"In essence, neither affluence nor being female offers a defence against the toxicity of tobacco," said the researchers, who were led by Dr Laurence Gruer, director of public health science with NHS Health Scotland.

The roasting of peanuts is the only step that will kill the salmonella. If contamination occurs after the roasting process, the game is over and salmonella is going to survive. Studies have shown that salmonella can survive for many months in peanut butter once it's present. Fatty foods are also more protective of salmonella, so when it gets into the acid of the stomach — which is our first line of defense — it may not get destroyed. Peanut butter, being a highly fatty food, could survive better.