GEN-ERIC News

Scientists overnight announced they had uncovered the first gene that helps explain common differences in height among humans. Just a single change in the gene’s DNA code determines whether people will be taller or shorter by up to one centimetre, they said, adding that hundreds of other genes are also likely to play a role in height. Genetic heritage has long been known as the driver of height - everyone knows that a child whose parents are both tall is also likely to grow up tall, too. Unlike obesity, where genes and environmental factors (nutrition and exercise, for example) play a joint role, around 90 per cent of the determinants for height are genetic.

When Hurricane Frances ripped through Gainesville, Fla., in 2004, Christopher Swinney, an anesthesiologist, was without electricity for a week. A few weeks ago, Dr. Swinney lost power again, but this time he was ready. He plugged his Toyota Prius into the backup uninterruptible power supply unit in his house and soon the refrigerator was humming and the lights were back on. “It was running everything in the house except the central air-conditioning,” Dr. Swinney said. Without the Prius, the batteries in the U.P.S. unit would have run out of power in about an hour. The battery pack in the car kept the U.P.S. online and was itself recharged by the gasoline engine, which cycled on and off as needed. The U.P.S. has an inverter, which converts the direct current electricity from the batteries to household alternating current and regulates the voltage. As long as it has fuel, the Prius can produce at least three kilowatts of continuous power, which is adequate to maintain a home’s basic functions. This form of vehicle-to-grid technology, often called V2G, has attracted hobbyists, university researchers and companies like Pacific Gas & Electric and Google. Although there is some skepticism among experts about the feasibility of V2G, the big players see a future in which fleets of hybrid cars, recharged at night when demand is lower, can relieve the grid and help avert serious blackouts.

In the not-too-distant-future, you’ll be able to have your sagging breasts lifted on your lunch hour! Well, just about…. An Israeli company, MIM (Minimally Invasive Mastopexy) has developed a two-hole breast lift procedure to insert what amounts to a permanent push-up bra under your breasts. How clever and how considerate! The new technique, called the “Cup&Up” involves the insertion of a silicone implant through two small incisions and its attachment to the ribs and connective tissue with a few small screws and some surgical thread. Doesn’t sound too bad, does it?

Using a scientific device to analyse da Vinci’s Madonna of the Yarnwinder painting, researchers at the University of Florence said they were able to pinpoint virtually every stroke made by the famous Italian artist on the oil masterpiece. Researcher Cecilia Frosinini said the device showed that da Vinci avoided mixing colours on a painter’s palette like his contemporaries did. Instead, he applied thin layers of paint directly onto the canvas in different colours, one on top of the other, to create a rich texture. “That Leonardo used the ‘velature’ technique is already known, he himself wrote that in a treaty, but for the first time we have managed to reconstruct his work step by step, like as if watching him while he painted,” she said. “We have been able to understand what type of painting materials he used, how many layers of colours were applied and in what thickness and sequence.”

Yes, someone is really marketing this: chocolate bars designed to relieve the symptoms of PMS, officially dubbed “PMS Support Bars.” The instructions suggest consuming three bars a day for up to five days, citing these benefits: “Satisfies chocolate cravings while easing the symptoms of mild to moderate PMS. This formula relieves menstrual pain, bloating and irritability and helps to reduce feelings of stress and anxiety.” How does it work? Lots of herbal remedies, apparently, here more detailed information on what makes the bars “work": “premium rice crisp chocolate bar that is fused with natural botanicals to help relieve both the physical and the emotional symptoms of PMS. White willow bark is often referred to as “herbal aspirin”, and it can help to ease menstrual cramps by reducing levels of hormone-like compounds that cause pain and inflammation in the body. LactiumTM is an innovative and patented milk protein. It has “soothing” properties that have been clinically proven to reduce moderate levels of stress and anxiety, and helps to promote a feeling of calmness and relaxation in the body. In addition, artichoke leaf acts as a diuretic to ease bloating while chasteberry also helps to reduce irritability, depression and bloating.”

“The funny thing is that everything is science fiction at one time or another.”