Lab notes: Bones and clones made this week's science headlines

There were lots of exciting scientific tidbits this week, but two stories really stood out. The news of thefirst primates born using the same cloning method used to create Dolly the sheep opens many possibilities – although scientists are adamant that human clones are not among them. Also potentially rewriting theHomo sapiensstory is thediscovery of a 200,000-year-old jawbone in Israel– the oldest human fossil ever found outside Africa – which suggests human ancestors left Africa far earlier than previously thought. Some potential good news too, as a Parkinson’s trial discovered evidence thatflushing out ‘zombie cells’ in the brain could help stave off the disease– and might offer a new approach to treating the effects of other neurodegenerative diseases and even ageing. Researchers seemed to be looking to science fiction for inspiration as they revealed the first ever“floating 3D printing”– technology that projects graphics into the air, where they are visible from all angles, like a real-life version of the Princess Leia projection in Star Wars. And finally, something that sounds cool, but actually, when you think about it, is not so great: Rocket Lab, a New Zealand startup, has s ecretivelyput a satellite likened to a giant disco ball into orbit. It is expected to become the brightest object in the night sky for nine months until it re-enters Earth ’s atmosphere, and astronomers are furious, dubbing it “space graffiti”.Continue reading...

Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - January 26, 2018 Category: Science Authors: Tash Reith-Banks Tags: Science Source Type: news