Archbishop of evolution
The head of the Anglican Church, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, has said that creationism, the Biblical explanation for the presence of life on Earth, should not be taught in schools. He said that it was a 鈥渃ategory mistake鈥� to treat creationism as a theory alongside other theories.
Asthma and eczema gene
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Mutations in the gene for the protein filaggrin have been linked to asthma and eczema. Filaggrin鈥檚 role is to keep allergens and toxic substances out of the skin. Individuals with the mutated gene 鈥� 9 per cent of people with European origins 鈥� don鈥檛 make enough filaggrin to protect their skin and so are susceptible to asthma and eczema.
Animal wrongs
Complaints about claims made by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the world鈥檚 largest animal rights organisation, have been upheld by the UK鈥檚 Advertising Standards Authority. PETA said that differences between animals and humans mean animal experiments can not be applied to humans 鈥� a claim the ASA calls 鈥渕isleading鈥�.
Beware of the pigeons
Pigeons could carry H5N1 bird flu into city centres, increasing the chances of humans being exposed to the virus. While pigeons normally resist flu, a cat that died in 2004 after eating dead pigeons in central Thailand was carrying the same strain of H5N1 as one of the pigeons. The UK鈥檚 Royal Pigeon Racing Association has cancelled races from continental Europe.
Cloning king dethroned
Seoul National University decided to sack Woo Suk Hwang, disgraced 鈥渒ing of cloning鈥� on Monday. Four faculty members involved in fabricating Hwang鈥檚 now-retracted papers were suspended, and two others had their salaries docked 鈥� less harsh disciplinary measures than promised. Hwang has been dismissed without benefits.