Indholdsfortegnelse for October 2018 i BBC Science Focus Magazine

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“It’s hard to overstate the importance of finding Denny. A decade ago we had no clue that her father’s people even existed, much less that children like her existed. In May 2010 the first Neanderthal genome was published, proving that rather than usurping them, early Homo sapiens made babies with them. But just the month before, samples from a tiny finger bone in Denisova Cave, Siberia revealed an entirely new hominin species. “Now known as D3, this bone was at least 10,000 years younger than Denny. Thanks to ancient DNA, today we’ve identified five Denisovans. But we know more about their history as a species than we do about their technology or even their appearance. Some of them had genes for dark hair, skin and eyes, but how tall they…

30 The number of remaining South African coelacanths, a fish species that is 420 million years old. The fish, which pre-date dinosaurs, are now under threat from proposed oil drilling close to their habitat. 6.5 The percentage of adults over the age of 40 who experience ‘phantom odour perception’ – smelling things that aren’t there – according to the first large-scale US study of the phenomenon. Its causes are not yet understood. 3,300 The age in years of the oldest cheese ever discovered. It was unearthed in an Egyptian tomb in 2013, but has only just been identified. It was made of goat, sheep and buffalo milk – and contained the Brucella melitensisbacteria, which can cause a nasty infection.…

SQUABBLING SPOUSES Married couples who often get into rows could be making themselves ill. Researchers at Ohio State University found that bickering couples are more likely to suffer from leaky guts – a condition that releases bacteria into the blood and can lead to health conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome and multiple sclerosis. It is thought to be due to the stress associated with arguing SMUTTY COMEDIANS Well £$*% me! Men who tell dirty jokes on first dates are deemed to be less attractive partners when it comes to both short-term and long-term relationships, a study carried out at the University of Southern Mississippi has found.…

“WE SHOULD BE ENCOURAGING GIRLS TO TAKE UP STEM SUBJECTS, AND THAT SHOULD THEN TRANSLATE INTO INDUSTRY.” Thisyear marks 100years since British multinational companyJohnson Matthey UHFUXLWHG›LWV›ˋUVW›5 '›VFLHQWLVW››DQG›WRGD\›LW› isstilljustascommittedtosupportingthe nextgenerationofbuddingscientists.Aleaderinits ˋHOG›IRU›PRUH›WKDQ›››››\HDUV››-RKQVRQ›0DWWKH\›XVHV› science to solve complexproblems for its customers, DQG›DSSOLHV›XQULYDOOHG›VFLHQWLˋF›H[SHUWLVH›WR›HQDEOH› FOHDQHU›DLU››LPSURYHG›KHDOWK›DQG›WKH›PRUH›HIˋFLHQW use of the Earth’s natural resources. A key part of supporting scientists is addressing the long-term lack of women in STEM. Jen Bhantoo, who worked in product development at Johnson Matthey for six years before becoming a technical sales executive for the company, says: “The preconception that STEM is very male-dominated is changing but we still need to dispel that myth, especially at school level. We should be encouraging girls to take up STEM subjects, and that should then translate into industry.” Johnson Matthey invites schools to visit the company, where…

In 2004, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov used sticky tape to shave graphite down to a one-atom-thick sample, called graphene. It’s the lightest, strongest and most conductive material ever discovered. It’s difficult to work with and expensive to produce, but that hasn’t stopped high-tech sportswear company Vollebak from turning it into a jacket. One side of this reversible jacket is coated with gunmetal grey graphene, and the other is matt black nylon. It’s a wearable science experiment: depending on how you wear it, the jacket will interact with your body and the environment in different ways – test on one side, control on the other. And the designers want to know what you find out. Vollebak says that if you wear the jacket in the sunshine with the graphene side…

You’ll soon be able to get cuddles from loved ones overseas, even if they are a little cold and pointy. Researchers from Keio University and the University of Tokyo have developed a robot that can be worn as a backpack and operated by someone else who is wearing a virtual reality headset and handheld controllers. The arms could give you a hug or a high five. Alternatively, you could attach the robot’s wrists to your own, allowing the person wearing the VR headset and handheld controllers to manipulate your arms, a feature that could be used for instruction or physical therapy. Although this isn’t the only time researchers have given people extra arms, these are the first to be controlled by a remote operator using VR. The robot is linked…

Location: The Moon Distance from Earth: 384,400 km (average) Pros: Could evacuate back to Earth in an emergency. A great testing ground for new technology. No communications delay to speak of. Cons: Nights that last two weeks. No atmosphere or magnetic field for protection. Wildly fluctuating temperatures. Location: Mars Distance from Earth: 225 million km (average) Pros: The only planet in our Solar System that’s not either too hot or made of gas. Plenty of water ice. Relatively close. Cons: No magnetic field to protect against radiation. Vicious dust storms the size of continents. Communications with Earth delayed by 20 minutes. Location: Europa (moon of Jupiter) Distance from Earth: 628 million km (average) Pros: More liquid water than all of Earth’s oceans, lakes, rivers and seas combined. Cons: In the…

“ASTRONAUTS SPEND TWO HOURS EACH DAY EXERCISING TO STAVE OFF MUSCLE AND BONE LOSS” Our bodies don’t react well to the low-gravity environment of space. Our muscles don’t have to work as hard, so they start to waste away. Our bones get weaker and our heart pumps blood slower. To counter this, astronauts spend two hours each day exercising to stave off muscle and bone loss. For a long-duration mission, we’ll need to follow a strict exercise plan, unless we can invent a spacecraft with its own artificial gravity so that the body behaves as it does on Earth. Past space missions have given us plenty of insight into the physical effects of space, but there’s one major aspect that has, until recently, been neglected – the microbiome. Over the…

Can it be ethical to raise a child in space? Philosophers call this concept ‘consent to risk’. Is it morally acceptable to subject somebody to risk without their consent? In this case, I think it is. Compare it to the people of ancient Polynesia. Three thousand years ago, they set out across the sea looking for new islands. Often entire families went together and were never heard from again. But eventually they colonised the entire Pacific Ocean. Would we call that unacceptable? I don’t think so – they were explorers. What are the potential risks? The challenges are both biological and cultural. There’ll be a period when the earliest settlers in space will have higher infant mortality, because we won’t know how to adapt to all the conditions right away.…

“A month’s saffron treatment gave a boost to sexual function in women who had been treated for depression” Saffron Perhaps best known as the world’s most expensive spice, saffron has an alluring yellow colour and a subtly floral, slightly bitter taste. The golden strands are the dried stigmata (part of the female reproductive system) of Crocus sativus flowers. With a health-boosting reputation to match its price tag, saffron is packed full of antioxidants and many studies point to its cancer-fighting properties. It’s also said to be good for the brain. Some human studies suggest that taking 30mg per day may help to ease mild depression; others show that a daily dose may improve cognitive function in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. And that’s before we get to saffron’s famed…

1 Mental health problems Around 90 per cent of those who take their own lives have experienced a mental illness, most commonly depression. However, the overwhelming majority of people with depression don’t kill themselves. 2 Physical health problems Nearly all physical health problems are associated with increased suicide risk. Suicide is twice as prevalent among those who have cancer as those in the general population, and men with cancers that affect the genitourinary system, such as prostate cancer, may be five times more likely to take their own lives. 3 Unhappy relationships Research shows a link between relationship breakdown and suicide risk. According to Samaritans, divorce is more likely to lead men, rather than women, to suicide. But research at the Medical University of Vienna suggests those in unhappy relationships…

1 The original formula for 7 Up was created in 1929 by Charles Leiper Grigg. It was initially marketed as a patent medicine, like many soft drinks during the Great Depression. 2 The ‘lemon-lime soda’ contained lithium citrate, and although Grigg never confirmed the origin of the name ‘7 Up’, one theory is that the number 7 refers to the atomic mass of lithium. 3 Lithium citrate was known to be a mood-stabilising drug (lithium tablets are shown on the left), and the drink was as a pick-me-up and hangover cure. An early version of Coca-Cola also contained lithium citrate. 4 The drug was removed from 7 Up in 1948, but lithium compounds are still used today to treat bipolar disorder (image of bipolar brain can be seen on the…

Eye in the sky Around the size of a grapefruit, this very cute-looking drone is called the JEM Internal Ball Camera, or Int-ball for short. Int-ball lives on the Japanese Kibo module of the International Space Station, and propels itself around using internal fans – either autonomously or under remote control. Its ‘eye’ is actually a single camera between the two blue rings (which are just for show), and its job is to take pictures of various activities and equipment and relay them to Ground Control – saving the Japanese astronauts a job that previously took up around 10 per cent of their time.…

“PART OF MY JOB IS TO BE SOMEONE THAT THE WRITERS CAN FORWARD HATE MAIL ON TO!” How did you get involved in The Big Bang Theory? Back in 2006, a friend of a friend of a friend who was a producer was putting the pilot together, and wanted advice from a local scientist. I read the script and corrected a piece of physics about Special Relativity. Then, when the show was commissioned, I became their science consultant. I had no idea that would last for 12 years. Do you watch the show being filmed? Yes, but it’s very rare they need me. Once Leonard dropped a bottle down an elevator shaft and the sound effects guy needed to know how long to wait before you hear the crash. I…

SIMON CROMPTON Simon, a former health editor for The Times and The Daily Telegraph, has been attempting to get to grips with the alarming male suicide rate. p70 EMMA DAVIES With a PhD in food chemistry, Emma was the ideal person to look at the surprising health benefits of one of Britain’s favourite meals: curry. p63 COLIN STUART Astronomer and science author Colin looks at the challenges humanity will face – and how we might overcome them – if we ever need to leave Earth. p40…

It seems that the idea of free love started a lot earlier than the 1960s. An international team of researchers has found a tiny bone fragment belonging to an ancient hominin, named ‘Denny’ by the team, that had a Neanderthal for a mother and a Denisovan for a father – two of the closest extinct relatives of currently living humans. Up until around 40,000 years ago, the two groups are known to have lived on the combined continent of Eurasia – Neanderthals in the west of the continent, Denisovans in the east. Previous genetic studies of ancient hominin remains have shown that they sometimes interbred, but Denny is the only known example of a first-generation child with equal parts Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA. The bone fragment was found in 2012…

Interstellar explorers of the future might want to pack a pair of fins and a snorkel, because a new analysis of data from the Kepler Space Telescope and ESA’s Gaia mission suggests that many exoplanets may be mostly made of water. To date, astronomers have confirmed the existence of 3,815 exoplanets, which can be broken down into five types: ‘hot Jupiters’; cold gas giants; water worlds; rocky planets; and lava worlds. Until recently, exoplanets measuring 1.5x or 2.5x the radius of Earth were thought to be rocky planets, while larger exoplanets at least 4x the radius of Earth identified as water worlds. But now, research led by Harvard University’s Dr Li Zeng suggests that exoplanets with 2.5x Earth’s radius may actually be up to 50 per cent water, compared to…

“THEY END UP CONFORMING EVEN MORE TO GENDER STEREOTYPES” Back in about 1999, I watched a programme about women’s body hair. The premise was simple: take four women – two with a typical Western relationship with body hair and two with extreme body hair phobias – and ask them to stop shaving/plucking/waxing/bleaching for three weeks. The four women fell apart, just because they couldn’t use a razor. This really got up my nose, and not because the scent of passionate, idealistic feminism was still clinging to me like stale patchouli after years at an ardently liberal undergraduate university. No, I was annoyed because I am irritated by most coverage of women’s bodies in the mass media. I’m at peak pop culture despair right now because we’ve just been bombarded with…

BEGGING BOTS In a new study, a robot begged participants not to turn him off because he was scared he wouldn’t be turned on again. The robot’s pleas convinced a third of the participants to leave him on, and most laboured over the choice, taking longer to decide than those who hadn’t heard the robot’s message. BARTENDING BOTS Finally, after decades of progress, Microsoft has developed a robot that can fetch you a beer from the fridge. Designed to help receptionists with daily tasks, the robot can sense when a human needs help, answer questions, and fetch specified objects. BUDDY BOTS University of Luxembourg researchers have developed QTrobot to help autistic children interact with human therapists and decrease discomfort during sessions. Children directed their gaze towards the robot twice as…

Solar sails We might one day sail around the Solar System. Huge canopies could catch the solar wind – the stream of charged particles blowing from the Sun. The technology has been demonstrated in miniature, and The Planetary Society’s LightSail 2 mission, with 32m2 of sails, is due for launch this November. Antimatter rockets When a particle meets its antimatter equivalent, they annihilate into energy, which could power a rocket. Just 10g of antimatter could get you to Mars in four weeks! But it’s not cheap to make: if CERN’s particle accelerators exclusively made antimatter for a year, they’d create just a billionth of a gram. Alcubierre drive Move over Star Trek, this is a warp drive for the real world. NASA is looking at manipulating space itself, so that…

Good communications If we go to Mars, we’ll face a satellite communications delay with Earth of WR›VQ›››|OKPWVGU›› Alongside the physical challenges, this presents a OGPVCN›QPG››+P›VJG› Mars-500 mission – a 17-month simulated Mars mission based in Moscow – the crew had five times as many conflicts with Mission Control as they did among VJGOUGNXGU››+H›YGoTG› going to leave Earth, we’ll need to get used to a laggy connection with those still back CV›JQOG› Artificial light Leaving planet Earth, and losing the 24-hour day/night cycle, could play havoc with our body ENQEMU››+P›/CTU›››››› four out of six crew members suffered sleep disorders, with one becoming chronically sleep-deprived, and another shifting their sleep schedule out of sync with everyone GNUG››1P›C›URCEGUJKR›› this could be overcome with artificial light that mimics natural FC[NKIJV›QP›'CTVJ››1P› an alien planet, it…

If you are concerned about someone, talk to them and gently ask them if they’re feeling suicidal. “It sounds scary, but there’s no evidence that asking about suicide plants the idea in someone’s head,” says psychologist Rory O’Connor. “Indeed, there’s some evidence that it protects people. Often the person who’s suicidal feels relieved that someone has actually asked them the question.” Talk to someone Samaritans is a safe place for anyone to talk about difficult feelings, 24 hours a day. Phone free (UK/ROI) on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org The CALM helpline is for men in the UK who need to talk or find information and support. Open 5pm-midnight. Phone free on 0800 58 58 58…

1. OIL PRICES SKYROCKET Half the world’s oil is transported by sea. With the shipping lanes frozen over, the international oil market would see drastically restricted supply, just when oil is needed more than ever for heating. This would trigger global economic collapse, leading to martial law in many countries. 2. FOOD CHAIN COLLAPSE The layer of ice over the oceans would block out most of the light in the surface water. This would kill off marine algae, and the effects would ripple up the food chain until the oceans were almost sterile. Only deep-sea organisms living around hydrothermal vents would survive. 3. PLANTS DIE Ice reflects more sunlight than water, so the global climate would cool drastically, freezing the land as well. Plants would die from lack of water,…

EXCEPTIONAL BEINGS ADAM RUTHERFORD OUT NOW (£18.99, WEIDENFELD & NICOLSON) Turns out we’re not the only species that makes tools or uses fire – so what does that mean for humanity? Adam Rutherford takes us on a myth-busting tour of human history, exploring whether we really are as exceptional as we think. HEART: A HISTORY SANDEEP JAUHAR OUT 27 SEPTEMBER (£14.99, ONEWORLD) Cardiologist Sandeep Jauhar tells the story of the human heart, weaving in gripping scenes from operating theatres, his family’s history of heart problems, and the issues our most important organ might face in the future. THE SKY AT NIGHT BOOK OF THE MOON DR MAGGIE ADERIN-POCOCK OUT NOW (£9.99, BBC BOOKS) The Moon influences Earth’s tides, dictates the length of the day and potentially played a role in…

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The silvery slime or mucus secreted by slugs and snails (July, p84) has many more advantages, and sometimes disadvantages, than just helping the molluscs to move around easily. In the marine world, it has been found that some snails add nutrients – particularly nitrogen – to their slime as a fertiliser that stimulates the growth of the algal spores which get stuck to the mucus, thus enriching the habitat for future grazing. Slime can also be used for navigation, a prime example being limpets, who use their own mucus trails to find their way back to their home spot on the rocks after feeding. They then seal themselves down with mucus to combat desiccation as the tide recedes. Terrestrial snails can also seal themselves into their shells during hot, dry…

GENERATION INKED A study at the University of Miami and the University of Western Australia has found that tattooed job candidates now face minimal negative preconceptions from employers, and suffer no wage disadvantage compared to non-tattooed peers. WILD CATS Plans to reintroduce wild lynx to Northumberland’s Kielder Forest look likely to go ahead after 20 landowners declared their support for the scheme. A decision from Natural England, which manages the forest, is expected soon.…

What did they do? A team of cognitive scientists from Denmark’s Aarhus University and University of Southern Denmark, and Germany’s Bielefeld University, attended a conference for Ouija board users and invited participants, in pairs, to take part in a ‘séance’. Why did they do that? Previous research has shown that when a Ouija board is used, one or more individuals is physically causing the ‘planchette’ (or more commonly, glass) to move – but that those individuals are often unaware they are doing so. The team wanted to use eye-tracking equipment to find out what’s going on. What did they find out? When subjects were asked to deliberately spell out a given word, tracking either individual’s eye movements would predict the next letter accurately. In a so-called ‘séance’, no one individual’s…

“A much larger proportion of people now have ‘morbid’ obesity – a very high body mass index (BMI) that comes with a host of associated health problems” There’s been much talk in the media lately about processed foods and the perils of eating too much sugar, with some suggesting this is the cause of the current obesity crisis. The desire to identify the cause of weight gain is not a new one – in the 80s it was dietary fat that got all the blame. But in reality, the causes of weight gain are many and complex. Obesity rates have risen sharply in recent decades, for which many blame the ‘obesogenic’ environment we live in. Processed foods – high in calories which tend to come mostly from sugar – are…

“GLOBALLY, A BILLION PEOPLE SPEND AROUND £500BN A YEAR ON CIGARETTES” One of the most encouraging statistics I’ve seen recently has been the fall in smoking rates, down to an all-time low of 14.9 per cent of the population. There are many reasons for this, but among the most significant has been the rise in vaping. Vaping has taken off thanks to an approach by the UK government which has kept taxes low and allowed a market in vaping devices to flourish. There are rumours that taxes on vaping could be increased in the autumn. Health-wise, that could prove unfortunate. I first came across e-cigarettes when I was asked to make a programme for Horizon. As part of the documentary, I took up heavy vaping. I have never smoked anything…

“IN APRIL THIS YEAR, THE MICRO-11 PROJECT SENT HUMAN SPERM TO THE ISS FOR THE FIRST TIME” If we’re going to successfully leave Earth, we’ll need to figure out how to conceive in space. One potential hurdle is the effects of weightlessness on sperm – something that’s currently being investigated by NASA. In April this year, the Micro-11 project sent human sperm to the ISS for the first time. Researchers are still awaiting the results, but previous work from the same team has shown that bull and sea urchin sperm fare pretty well in space. The bull sperm move faster in microgravity (a trait that’s generally associated with higher fertility), while, in sea urchin sperm, the chemicals that get the sperm cells to start swimming also kick in faster. “Given…

WOMEN’S ENGINEERING SOCIETY Supports and inspires women in engineering and science. wes.org.uk HOUR OF CODE One-hour coding activities to encourage people of any ability to get involved in computer science. hourofcode.com 1752 GROUP Research and lobby group working to end sexual misconduct in higher education. 1752group.com LET TOYS BE TOYS Campaign to stop toys being promoted as only suitable for girls or boys. lettoysbetoys.org.uk…

Among men aged 20-34, suicides account for 23.9 per cent of deaths (England and Wales) Among men aged 35-49, suicides account for 11.3 per cent of deaths (England and Wales) Suicide accounts for 20.5 per cent of deaths in the 20-49 age group for men and women (England and Wales) 4,508 male suicides in 2016 1,457 female suicides in 2016 (UK) Divorced men are almost three times as likely to end their lives as men who are married or in civil partnerships (England and Wales) 770 THOUSAND people expressed suicidal feelings to Samaritans in 2016 (UK and ROI) 12 MEN kill themselves every day (UK) 45% of trans young people have tried to take their lives (UK) 878 male students took their lives between 2001 and 2017 (England and Wales)…

DR ALASTAIR GUNN Astronomer, astrophysicist ALEX FRANKLINCHEUNG Environment/ climate expert DR PETER J BENTLEY Computer scientist, author PROF ALICE GREGORY Psychologist, sleep expert DR ZOE WILLIAMS GP, fitness expert CHARLOTTE CORNEY Zoo director, conservationist DR HELEN SCALES Oceans expert, science writer DR CHRISTIAN JARRETT Neuroscientist, science writer EMMA DAVIES Chemistry expert, science writer LUIS VILLAZON Science/tech writer DR GILES YEO Geneticist, food expert PROF ROBERT MATTHEWS Physicist, science writer If life on Earth is constantly evolving, why do we still have life forms such as amoebas? TOM HAMPTON, TOWNSVILLE, AUSTRALIA Evolution is not a ladder, with every organism steadily climbing its way to the top. It’s a cacophony of random mutations where natural selection favours the ones that are slightly better adapted to their local environment. Amoebas are simpler organisms…

In 1964, physicists Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson at the Bell Telephone Laboratories in New Jersey were investigating interference that was affecting a horn-shaped antenna built for satellite communications. Their analysis suggested it was emanating from an incredibly feeble source of heat, amounting to just a few degrees above absolute zero (-273°C) – and bizarrely, it seemed to be coming from everywhere in the sky at once. When the pair described their findings to astrophysicists at nearby Princeton University, the truth emerged: Penzias and Wilson had detected the heat left over from the Big Bang. The momentous discovery garnered the pair a share of the Nobel Prize for physics in 1978. But by then, it was clear they weren’t the first to detect this primordial heat. In 1940, Canadian astronomer…

BAT DETECTIVE Help scientists identify the recorded calls of 40+ European bat species, so they can develop a new program that extracts information from their calls. ANTI-SLAVERY MANUSCRIPTS The Boston Public Library team needs your help transcribing handwritten correspondence exchanged by anti-slavery activists in the 19th Century. BASH THE BUG Antibiotic resistance is rising, but with new sequencing techniques and your help, researchers can work out which changes in the genome lead to resistance.…