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Danger with Sports Shoes
Athletes wearing expensive 'air cell' trainers are four times more likely to suffer ankle injuries, say researchers Basketball players wearing expensive 'air cell' shoes are four times more likely to suffer ankle injuries than players wearing standard trainers, says an Australian team. Ankle injuries are among the most common and severe suffered by basketball players and account for more than half the playing time missed due to injury. Sharp twisting and turning, as well as landing on other players' feet, are to blame. Trainers with air cells are designed to increase shock absorption and reduce hamstring injuries. But the new study of elite and recreational players indicates that the cushioning makes the ankle much more vulnerable. Sport scientist Roger Bartlett of Sheffield Hallam University says: "Air soles supposedly give you better absorption of shock. But they can make the heel rotate more when it hits the ground."

Coral Reefs Return
Scientists have found evidence that coral reefs in the Caribbean are starting to regenerate, following decades of decline. Reefs off the north coast of Jamaica have begun to grow again after sea urchins returned to the area, grazing on harmful seaweed. The team that made the discovery say the two factors could hold the key to reversing damage caused to Caribbean coral reefs by natural and manmade factors.

Swarming Locusts
Scientists say they have identified the biological trigger that causes locusts to swarm. The discovery could lead to new insecticides capable of stopping the vast "clouds" of insects that can devastate crops. Previous research has shown that solitary locusts change their behaviour when in company, grouping together and eventually swarming. For the first time, zoologists at the University of Oxford, UK, have pinpointed touch-sensitive hairs on the insects' hind legs which activate swarming. Locusts are normally shy, solitary creatures. But in a swarm they become a menace, capable of stripping fields of crops in a matter of hours. The discovery is important because it could lead to new insecticides capable of stopping insects from swarming.

Eighth-Grader Gets Science Grant
An eighth-grader frustrated with his little brother's reading difficulties was awarded an $87,000 grant to screen kindergartners for dyslexia. In the fall of 1999, Matt Miller, 13, was asked to write a mock grant proposal for a scientific study in English class. He chose dyslexia, a subject close to home. His younger brother, Andrew, suffers from dyslexia, but wasn't diagnosed for years. Matt logged onto the Internet, learned the finer points of phonemes, digraphs and consonant blends, sought out researchers and eventually wrote his own three-year plan. In it, he proposed to screen kindergartners at risk for signs of reading problems and similar learning disabilities. After more research, this time on philanthropic foundations, Matt applied to the David and Lucile Packard Foundation in Los Altos, Calif., which last December awarded him $87,300.

Preventing Cavities
Cavities have been reduced sharply over the last 30 years and new preventive treatments using the latest technologies are on the way according to a panel of the National Institutes of Health. The panel didn't pinpoint how quickly, though, saying more research funding is required. Tooth decay is actually an infection that can begin years before the cavity appears and dentists need a way to interrupt this process. Current methods, such as X-rays, are not good at detecting the earliest stages. But once dentists are able to develop new methods to locate suspect areas, they can then remove the bacterial film that causes the damage and strengthen the damaged teeth, he said. Dentists are looking at technologies like fiber optics, lasers and digital imaging systems as possible ways to locate the trouble spots.

Fighting Food Allergies
A type of immune system cell that treats certain foods as germs rather than nourishment is the culprit behind many food allergies, researchers said on Wednesday, in a finding that could lead to better treatment for millions of people who suffer bad reactions to what they eat. The researchers used experiments involving mice to pin the blame on white blood cells called eosinophils, which are packed with powerful proteins that, when released, destroy surrounding tissues and help rally other immune cells to infection sites. Doctors long had known that this type of immune cell appeared in large numbers at sites of allergic inflammations of the digestive tract. But the study, led by Dr. Marc Rothenberg of Children's Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, is the first to show the cells causing disease rather than acting as innocent bystanders. In most people, the immune system ignores foods that are eaten. But if the body's natural defenses against viruses, bacteria and the like stop ignoring these foods, immune cells can rush to the digestive tract and launch an attack, leading to allergies, the researchers said. Rothenberg said the identification of eosinophils as a major cause of digestive inflammation means that drugs that counteract these cells could be effective in treating some food allergies and related diseases. He said he was hopeful such drugs would be on the market "within the next several years."

Is Robocop Real?
Scientists have developed an armed robotic security guard. "Roboguard", devised in Thailand, can shoot at will or wait for the order to fire from its human masters via the internet. At present the machine, consisting of a handgun and a small video camera, is statically mounted on a directional platform. But its inventor hopes to develop the device into a robot that can pursue a target on foot. Pitikhate Sooraksa, of King Mongkut's Institute of Technology in Ladkrabang, Bangkok, told New Scientist magazine: "You could make it mobile, it could be designed as a walking system. We have the technology."

Musical Jacket
One of Hans Christian Andersen's most compelling tales was of a little girl who was driven to dance whenever she wore her special red shoes. Today, the stuff of fairy tales has come to Massachusetts. Every time Teresa Marrin Nakra at MIT's Media Lab puts on her Lycra jacket, the sound of music suddenly fills the air. Nakra's jacket is designed to teach orchestral conducting. To make it hundreds of hours' worth of action by conductors such as Benjamin Zander of the Boston Philharmonic and Keith Lockhart of the Boston Pops Orchestra were analysed. It is stuffed with sensors that pick up the wearer's heartbeat and muscle activity, and is connected by wires to a PC and music synthesiser. When a student dons the garment, the synthesiser's "cyber-orchestra" automatically replays a piece for them to conduct, while the computer interprets their movements to alter the music's volume and tempo to give it emotional highs and lows. The system helps would-be conductors associate certain muscle movements with the desired musical sounds and is designed to turn a novice into a maestro "prestissimo".

Sea Coral used to Mend Broken Bones
Ocean coral may be able to help mend broken bones, say researchers. Scientists have successfully used coral to help heal severe bone fractures which the body could not repair naturally. Orthopaedic surgeons use a technique called bone grafting to repair fractured or defective bones. The procedure usually involves removing bone from one part of the patient's body and transferring it to another. This is often painful and can lead to complications. Large bone defects in particular can be difficult to treat because scarring, rather than healing, occurs when fractures are large. A team from Laboratoire de Recherches Orthopediques in Paris attempted to treat such defects using grafts of sea coral implanted with bone cells.

Near-miss from Asteroid
A half-kilometre-wide (546 yard) space rock hurtled past Earth on Friday, just 12 times further from our planet than the Moon. In cosmic terms, that's a near miss. Scientists said there was no danger of a collision. Instead, the close encounter gives astronomers an opportunity to study a bright near-Earth asteroid from close range. The asteroid, which has the catchy name 2000 QW7, was discovered on 26 August using the Near Earth Asteroid Tracking system (Neat), which is run by Nasa' s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. QW7 caught the attention of Neat project scientists because it was fast moving and unusually bright.

First Success with Anti-aging Drugs
For the first time, scientists have succeeded in boosting an animal's life span with drugs. Microscopic worms given the therapy lived nearly 50% longer than normal. The researchers say the experiments are the first real indication that ageing can be treated. They believe the drugs might be useful for combating human diseases that strike in later life. Clinical trials for disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's could take place in the near future.

Are Polar Bears Starving?
The beautiful and beloved polar bear is threatened with starvation due to global warming. It now appears that global warming is shortening the bears' hunting season. The study of the bears in Western Hudson Bay also draws attention to the increasing numbers of hungry bears wandering into the northern Canadian community of Churchill, Manitoba. Executive Director of the Churchill Northern Study Center, Harvey Lemelin said: "Bears now have to be moved away from property using everything from dogs to vehicles to cracker shells. In the last three years we've gone from 20 encounters to 36 and we're not done with the season yet." The study, by Ian Stirling and colleagues is published in the journal Arctic. It finds that the bears' main food source, ringed seals, are becoming less accessible. The seals live on the ice of Hudson Bay but this ice is breaking up earlier and earlier. The polar bears therefore have less time to hunt and are returning to land in poorer condition. Weight for both male and female polar bears is declining and female bears are having fewer cubs. However, significant population decline has not yet begun. The study says that the sea ice season in western Hudson Bay has been reduced by about three weeks over the last 20 years. The scientists say the shorter season could be caused by a long-term warming trend.

Geckos Cling to Walls
A new scientific discovery about geckos has led to the conclusion that the lizards utilize subatomic molecular attraction to shimmy their way up vertical surfaces. The key to geckos' cling lies in millions of microscopic hairs, called setae, that line their feet. A single hair can support the weight of an ant, thanks to forces of attraction resulting from interactions between the positive and negative charges of protons and electrons. Cameras took 1,000 pictures a minute to help analyze the motion of geckos' feet. It was discovered that the geckos uncurl their toes slightly, which allows them to unstick the hairs on their feet - in much same the way that one peels tape off a surface.

Roaches have Electronic Wind Sensor
Researchers have discovered an organ in roaches that detects even the slightest changes in wind. This organ apparently helps the roach sense a human about to hit it and helps the roach determine in which direction to hide. It's an organ that most other creatures, including humans, lack, according to scientists at NEC Research Institute whose study appears in Thursday's editions of the journal Nature. Hanan Davidowitz, a physicist and lead author of the study, said scientists found the organ by pinning roaches in wax, attaching electrodes to their neurons and sticking them in a wind tunnel. After analyzing nerve impulse patterns, researchers learned that the microscopic hairs covering the organ, which sticks out their back end, could sense minute changes in wind patterns from an approaching predator - or an armed human. The hairs, called cerci, typically allow the roach to determine the direction of the danger soon enough to escape. Even with wind blowing around them, the insects can detect the particular gust created by an approaching animal, the study said.

Protein Important for Hearing
Scientists believe they have unlocked the biological secrets of a cell which plays a key role in human hearing. The cell protein they have identified could have a host of applications even in other parts of the body. What researchers at Northwestern University in the US have found is a chemical which facilitates a dramatic and swift change of shape in the "hair cells". It is these which help "amplify" the sounds travelling into the ear so they can be passed on to the brain. It is thought understanding the way these cells work may help develop therapies for tinnitus.

Wash-and-Wear Keyboard
The next laptop you buy could be closer to your lap then you'd imagine. A keyboard made out of a smart fabric could be sewn into your trousers or skirt. To use it, you would just sit down and start tapping away on your lap. Made by the British company Electrotextiles as a demonstrator for its Elektex material, it consists of conductive fibres woven into nylon. The keyboard will be washable, ironable and shockproof. For its next trick, Electrotextiles is planning a necktie that functions as a mouse.

Science Fiction Used in Planning Space Explorations
The European Space Agency (ESA) is studying science fiction for ideas and technologies that could be used in future missions. A panel of readers is currently combing sci-fi novels and short stories published in the early decades of the last century to see if technology has caught up with ideas that were futuristic when first put into print. Ideas often run ahead of available technology Any good ideas turned up in the search will be assessed by scientists to see if they can help the agency in its ongoing mission to explore space. Knowledgeable fans of science fiction are also being encouraged to send in suggestions to help Esa spot sources of good ideas. While technologies such as warp drives remain in the realm of fiction, many of the technologies authors employed in stories are now commonplace.

Visible DNA
Yoiling in MIT's labs, two students created a dye that makes DNA visible to the naked eye. And last night they took a step onto center stage, winning the sought-after $50k MIT Entrepreneurship Competition. Held by MIT's Sloan School of Management, the contest teaches students about creating a successful business. In the process, it also has helped launch several hot start-ups. This year's winners were two Massachusetts Institute of Technology biochemistry students, Zoran Zdraveski and Susan Bevers, and an entrepreneur, Kiril Alexandrov. Their team, called EyeGen, was among 206 groups competing for the award. EyeGen's product, EyeGenRad, is described as a safer, less costly means of viewing DNA for scientific analysis. EyeGen estimates its market at more than $15 billion annually. Since DNA manipulation is at the core of most genomic, medical, and biotech research, EyeGenRad has broad application,'' the team said in a description. EyeGen will pocket $30,000, and the two runners-up will each receive cash prizes of $10,000. Participants know how crucial the recognition is to their business plans. The MIT awards have become known as one of the best campus-generated launching pads for businesses, and venture capitalists watch it closely. At a time when start-ups are desperate for attention, the contest's winners can bask in the the spotlight.

Eight New Planets Discovered
Eight new "planets" have been discovered by Swiss astronomers. Their detection brings to about 40 the number of known planets outside our Solar System. The discoveries were made using a 1.2-metre telescope at the European Southern Observatory's La Silla complex in South America.

Wolves Make Comeback in Italy
The European wolf is making a comeback in Italy, where numbers are growing at about 7% annually. Centuries of persecution have wiped out the animals across much of western Europe, and Italy nearly went the same way. By the 1970s, only about 100 wolves survived in ten isolated areas of the Apennine mountains. But the advent of protection in 1976 changed everything, and Italy's wolves are now estimated to number about 400. If they continue to thrive, researchers believe, the wolves could recolonise the Alps and extend their range into neighbouring countries.

Computers Give On-the-Street Justice
An artificial-intelligence program called the Electronic Judge is dispensing justice on the mean streets of Brazilian cities. The program is installed on a laptop carried by a roaming human judge and helps to assess swiftly and methodically witness reports and forensic evidence at the scene of an incident. It then issues on-the-spot fines and can even recommend jail sentences. The software is being tested by three judges in the state of Espirito Santo. It is part of a scheme called Justice-on-Wheels, which is designed to speed up Brazil's overloaded legal system by dealing immediately with straightforward cases. Most people are happy to have the matters sorted out on the spot, says the program's creator, Judge Pedro Valls Feu Rosa, who sits in the state's Supreme Court of Appeals. He adds that the idea is not to replace judges but to make them more efficient. The program, written in the Visual Basic language, presents the judge with multiple choice questions, such as "Did the driver stop at the red light?" or "Had the driver been drinking alcohol above the acceptable limit of the law?" The program may be put to use in the US, where Judge Feu Rosa says he is in discussion with insurance companies to set up a mobile system to resolve disputes over traffic accidents.

Gene Therapy Helps Bubble Kids
Two children forced to live inside protective sterile bubbles are leading normal lives a year after being treated with a controversial genetic therapy. Doctors report that if the children stay well they will be the first to be definitively cured by gene therapy, an approach that gives people new genes to treat diseases. Although the children have restored immune systems, Marina Cavazzana-Calvo of Necker Hospital in Paris, a leader of the research team, says: "The word "cure" is hard to use because we don't know how long these results will last. But the follow-up of one year is very encouraging." The team has also recorded successes with two other children who appear to be making full recoveries. All the children had a rare and possibly fatal disease called SCID-X1, which kills cells crucial to the body's immune system. It can be treated by bone marrow transplants but full genetic matches are not usually available. The French team gave the children genetically modified healthy copies of the gene they needed. The Washington Post claims that the medical breakthrough is causing a lot of excitement in the United States. It is hoped it will improve the case for gene therapy, which has come under public scrutiny since it was first used to treat a four year old girl ten years ago. "We're not talking about treatments for lots of diseases in the next few years. But this is certainly good news for patients, because until now we had essentially zero success," says W French Anderson, who led the first gene therapy experiment in 1990.

Wildlife Crime Ring
The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW-www.ifaw.org) released dramatic video showing criminals in Russia caught recently in the act of illegally trading in endangered tiger pelts, following an intensive investigation by Russian authorities. Two corrupt Russian police officers and a foreign crime boss led the smuggling ring, which netted millions of dollars a year. Most of the profits came from the sale of rare wildlife derivatives, including tiger skins and bones, bear paws and gallbladders, and wild ginseng. The ring was also involved in the trafficking of drugs, alcohol and women from Russia's Far East. The investigation was led by Russian police in cooperation with a specialized government wildlife protection brigade, Inspection Tiger, the Federal Security Service (former KGB), Russian Customs, and two environmental organizations -- WildAid (USA) and Phoenix (Russia). The sting operation was announced by IFAW as environmental officials from around the world convene in Nairobi, Kenya at the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Among other issues, CITES delegates will debate the need to increase trans-national wildlife enforcement efforts. "Trafficking in wild animals and their parts has become as dangerous and as profitable as international drug trafficking," said Karen Steuer, IFAW Director of Commercial Exploitation and Trade of Endangered Wild Animals. "Clearly there is an immediate need to increase enforcement and investigative capacities of local national authorities to combat these powerful crime syndicates. Russia should be commended for taking the action it did in this case, but more needs to be done on an international level."

Water Pollution Continues in US
Three-fourths of the states are failing to address water pollution caused by runoff from farms and forests, ignoring a provision in the federal Clean Water Act, a leading conservation group charged Wednesday. The National Wildlife Federation said a survey it conducted shows that 38 states have done little to address non-point pollution under the federal law. "States have not stepped forward to systematically deal with polluted runoff and contaminated rain,'' the group said. Michael Murray, the report's co-author, attributed the states' reluctance to "a combination of political intimidation ... and bureaucratic inertia'' and said "our lakes, streams and coasts are paying the price.'' The group evaluated compliance with a provision of the Clean Water Act aimed at protecting watersheds from pollution -- pesticides, excessive nutrients and other chemicals -- that come primarily from agriculture and forests as opposed to a specific smokestack or discharge pipe. States are required to designate waterways impaired by such pollution, prioritize the severity of the problems and develop a plan to curtail the pollution. Murray said most states have done little beyond compiling lists.

Turtles in Danger of Extinction
Almost every species of marine turtle is in danger of extinction, according to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF). The group says that, despite decades of attempts to save them, six of the world's seven turtle species could disappear. And even stable populations can never be considered completely safe, it says, because of over-exploitation and other threats. WWF is opposing attempts at the Nairobi meeting of the UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) to reopen the trade in tortoiseshell. This comes almost exclusively from the hawksbill turtle, which the World Conservation Union describes as critically endangered. The countries urging a trade resumption are Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Elizabeth Kemf, of WWF, said: "We shouldn't be reopening the trade because controls in the main importing country, Japan, are inadequate." Turtles around the world are sought for their shells, which are used in making jewellery, and for their skins to make leather. WWF says: "There are recent reports of turtle leather cowboy boots being freely available in Tijuana, Mexico, and of rooms full of confiscated boots on the US border. Though trade in turtles is banned under Cites, they are still stuffed, varnished, mounted and sold openly as tourist curios in Vietnam, Cambodia, Mexico and parts of the Caribbean."

Large Wormholes for Interstellar Travel
New calculations suggest that wormholes large and stable enough to allow intergalactic travel really can exist. The possibility that the cosmos is peppered with wormholes, short cuts through space and time, has long intrigued scientists. Current models, based on Einstein's general theory of relativity, suggest that only tiny quantum-sized wormholes may exist. A type of negative-energy filling, known as "exotic matter", keeps them open. However, the difficulty of producing exotic matter limits the size of wormholes to the sub-atomic scale. Now, says New Scientist magazine, a Russian theorist has come up with a calculation for a large, stable wormhole that is compatible with the known laws of physics. According to Sergei Krasnikov of the Pulkovo Observatory in St Petersburg, the new wormhole can create its own abundant supply of exotic matter. This way, the wormhole would be big enough and could stay open long enough for people to use. Other theorists admit to being intrigued by the new work, but remain cautious. "It's worth taking seriously right now," Ian Moss, a relativity expert at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, told BBC News Online. "But I suspect it will fall down on some technical detail." Krasnikov accepts that testing his claims by building a wormhole is far beyond present technology. Even so, such wormholes may have been left over from the Big Bang, he says, and finding one would have a dramatic effect on interstellar travel.

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