Hobbits are cretins
Comparison of Homo floresiensis fossil bones with modern ones suggests that 鈥渉obbits鈥� from the Indonesian island of Flores were actually H. sapiens, say researchers. They think dwarf cretinism triggered by severe iodine deficiency accounts for the creatures鈥� small stature (Proceedings of the Royal Society B, ).
Yellow fever alert
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The world鈥檚 supply of yellow fever vaccine is running out and more is urgently needed, the World Health Organization said last week. Recent outbreaks in Paraguay and Brazil have depleted the stockpile supplying the mass vaccination campaigns in African countries.
Fair鈥檚 fair
An analysis of rice varieties shows that crops bred conventionally have greater 鈥渦nintentional鈥� changes 鈥� changes in genes not targeted during breeding 鈥� than crops made by genetic modification. This means, the researchers suggest, that conventional plants should be treated no differently to GM crops when it comes to safety assessment (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ).
Sorry Galileo
The Vatican鈥檚 penitence over its treatment of Galileo is to be set in stone. A statue of the physicist will be erected in the Vatican gardens, near the apartment where he was held while awaiting trial for heresy in 1633. The pope ignited controversy in January after apparently defending the Inquisition鈥檚 treatment of Galileo.
Lights, camera, avalanche
The first ever action shots of dust and ice avalanches on Mars were released by NASA this week. The avalanches cascaded from a 700-metre cliff near the planet鈥檚 north pole. High winds, a nearby 鈥淢ars-quake鈥� or a meteorite impact may have been the trigger, according to NASA.