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LEADING EDGE
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Leading Edge brings you the latest news from the world of science. Geoff Watts celebrates discoveries as soon as they're being talked about - on the internet, in coffee rooms and bars; often before they're published in journals. And he gets to grips with not just the science, but with the controversies and conversation that surround it.
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"If what interests you are new and exciting ideas, it's science you should be turning to. And whether it's the Human Genome Project or the origins of the Universe, Leading Edge is the place to hear about them."
Geoff Watts |
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| A model of a termite mound |
The Age of the Sahara Desert
The Sahara Desert is currently thought to be around 15 to 25 thousand years old. However, in this week's Leading Edge, we discover that it could be significantly older than this. French researchers, writing in this week's Science journal, have discovered a geological deposit in Northern Chad that dates back 7 million years. It contains fossil records including 'Sahelanthropus tchadensis', the earliest known hominid. What does this mean for the evolution of humans?
How do we Decipher Sounds?
David McAlpine and his team of researchers at UCL have been trying to find out how the brain monitors the change in level of sounds played over headphones to guinea pigs. Their research was originally funded by the RNID in the hope they would find out how tinnitus and other such hearing problems could be treated. So far they've found that the brain is able to re-adjust in seconds to differing sound levels and also to reduce the numbers of nerve fibres needed to code those sounds as they get louder.听
Termite Mounds Influence Architects
Termites have been influencing architects for a few years. The air conditioning in the Saint John Innovation Centre in Cambridge is based on the engineering ideas of a termite mound. The termites build channels that allow air to flow through the mound thus replenishing stale air with fresh, and cooling down or heating up the area as needed. We visit Namibia to find out what else we can learn from these minute engineers.
Red Wine is Good For You
Yes, we've all heard this one before, and now comes yet more evidence to suggest that some of the ingredients in red wine could really make us live longer, and have superior brain power to those who don't partake of the 'juice'. The key ingredient is a natural anti-miotic (similar to an anti-biotic yet it fights fungus rather than bacteria) called Resveratrol. Italian scientists have found that it increases the lifespan of certain fish, helps them swim as fast as younger fish and keeps their brains working as well as younger fish that weren't fed the supplement. The drawback is that you would need a litre of red wine in order to get enough to have this effect - if it is confirmed to work in humans as well!听
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