No use without Russia
NASA will be forced to abandon the International Space Station for a 鈥渓engthy period鈥� after 2011 because of US-Russian tensions, says a leaked email by agency chief Mike Griffin. Shuttle flights could continue into 2011, but without an agreement for use of Russia鈥檚 Soyuz vehicles, US astronauts that stay on as station crew will have no way to return to Earth in an emergency.
Drug safety suspicions
People can now find out which drugs are under investigation by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) because of safety concerns. The first instalment of 20 drugs was posted online on 5 September. FDA officials stress that the drugs haven鈥檛 been shown to be dangerous and patients shouldn鈥檛 stop taking them unless their doctor says so.
Goat killer crosses desert
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A highly contagious disease that kills goats, sheep and other small ruminants has reached north Africa, prompting the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to launch an emergency containment plan on Tuesday. Originating in west Africa, peste des petits ruminants somehow crossed the Sahara desert to Morocco, causing 133 outbreaks so far.
Pretty asteroid
The asteroid Steins is an ancient diamond in the sky. On Friday, the European Space Agency spacecraft Rosetta came within 800 kilometres of Steins, located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The rock is diamond-shaped and seems to be brighter than most, reflecting 35 per cent of the sunlight that falls on it.
Of mates and men
When times are tough economically, single men are more likely to seek out stereotypically feminine women they view as 鈥渧ulnerable鈥� or 鈥減ure鈥�, finds a study of 36 men in Canada. The men showed this preference after reading gloomy rather than positive political news (Psychological Science, ).