Sunday roundup

Or Saturday roundup, belated. Some interesting stories I didn't have time to cover:

The HPV vaccine, aimed at reducing the incidence of cervical cancer, has moved a step closer to approval.

The Institute of Medicine calls for more research into and oversight of vitamin supplements.

Continuing debate over "The Hobbit."

New research might eventually bring breathalyzers to your doctor's office. Not necessarily for alcohol.

An interesting study of experimental evolution: selecting for heat-tolerant bacteria over 1500 generations.

Yet another use for bacteriophage: diagnosis of infectious bacteria.

Evolution of "altruism" in bacteria.

An interesting article on methane and the origin of life.

More like this

Oh, Discover. You're such a tease. You have Ed and Carl and Razib and Phil and Sean, an (all-male, ahem) cluster of science bloggy goodness. But then you also fawn over HIV deniers Lynn Margulis and Peter Duesberg. Why can't you just stick with the science and keep the denial out?* But no, now they…
Despite the diatribes that appear here on a regular basis bemoaning the unscientific and sometimes dangerous claims made for so-called "alternative medicine" modalities, I'll be among the first to admit that in some cases it's not always clear what is "alternative" about some therapies. Indeed,…
Yesterday's New York Times had an excellent story on the discovery of the human papilloma virus as the cause of cervical cancer, and ultimately, the development of a vaccine against it. It's also a good lesson in how, while solid evidence triumphs over anecdotes, even folk stories can be useful…
I'm not really happy to have to write this post, but a blogger's got to do what a blogger's got to do. The reason is that Katie Couric has done something requires—nay, demands—a heapin' helpin' of Orac's characteristic Respectful Insolence. Why should I give the proverbial rodent's posterior about…

Hey, the sage Nancy Hokkanen, paragon of scientific sophistication, has turned her attention to you:

"Tara C. Smith writes with a glib flipness that will ensure she always remains an assistant."

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EOHarm/message/27307

Thank goodness we have smart people like Nancy to tell us what's what. Obviously, she knows more than all those folks with fancy letters after their names.

By Kandiyohi (not verified) on 22 May 2006 #permalink

Interesting. I can't read it, as I'm not a member of that group. Wonder why she didn't make that comment here where I could read it?