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Exclusive: Galileo’s long-lost heretical letter found
The original letter — long thought lost — in which Galileo Galilei first set down his arguments against the church’s doctrine that the Sun orbits Earth has been discovered. Many copies of the letter were made, and two differing versions exist — one that was sent to the Inquisition in Rome and another with less inflammatory language. The original shows that Galileo himself toned down the language and then claimed that incensed clergymen had doctored the letter to strengthen their case for heresy. The document has been in the Royal Society’s library in London for at least 250 years, but was filed incorrectly. “I thought, ‘I can’t believe that I have discovered the letter that virtually all Galileo scholars thought to be hopelessly lost,’” says science historian Salvatore Ricciardo.
World’s first animal was pancake-shaped
A chemical analysis has answered a 560-million-year old question about the origins of life. A group of organisms known as Dickinsonia left imprints up to 1.4 metres long on the fossil record, millions of years before the Cambrian explosion that led to most major types of modern animals. Scientists have long debated whether Dickinsonia were primitive animals, giant single-celled organisms called protists, bacterial colonies or something else entirely. The faint remnants of certain sterols — ring-like fat molecules found in the membrane that surrounds the cell — suggest that Dickinsonia were indeed ancient animals.
Tiny bone fragments reveal ancient human remains
Researchers have used a new technique to identify tiny, crumbled fragments of bone from the cave where ancient Denisovans were discovered. The method uses mass spectrometry to differentiate the proteins of a hominin from those of, for example, a bear or mammoth. One such fragment belonged to the offspring of a Neanderthal mother and a Denisovan father, the first ancient-human hybrid ever found, which was announced last month. Archaeologists hope to eventually use the technique to examine the countless bone fragments that have been left to gather dust in warehouses belonging to museums and research institutes.
Reference: Nature paper
Embattled food scientist Brian Wansink resigns
The day after JAMA journals retracted six of his papers, the leader of the controversial Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University has resigned. Brian Wansink achieved widespread success for his findings that simple nudges, such as smaller bowls or playful logos, could positively influence healthy-eating habits. But a Cornell investigation found he had “committed academic misconduct in his research and scholarship, including misreporting of research data, problematic statistical techniques, failure to properly document and preserve research results, and inappropriate authorship”. Wansink denies any fraud and says the majority of his work remains sound.
We found Vulcan
Astronomers have discovered a planet twice the size of Earth orbiting the nearby star 40 Eridani — precisely where Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry said Spock’s home planet supposedly lies. 40 Eridani is a triple star system, and the newfound planet orbits the system’s primary star, just as Vulcan purportedly does. At 5 parsecs (about 16 light years) from Earth, the star is bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
Nature Research Highlights | 1 min read
Reference: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society paper
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FEATURES & OPINION
The United States’ cruel and futile war on fat
The obesity epidemic in the United States has spawned “one of the largest gaps between science and practice in our own time”, on par with historical blindness to the risks of asbestos and the benefits of seatbelts, writes journalist Michael Hobbes. He explores the causes of obesity embedded in the food system, the failures of the medical establishment in treating it, and the impact on the well-being of the people affected. The article is accompanied by thought-provoking portraits of the interviewees, who had full creative control of their images.
In Canada, one group of scientists is still muzzled
In Canada’s national parks, the muzzling of scientists that occurred under former prime minister Stephen Harper lives on, in spite of what Justin Trudeau’s government has said about liberating scientists from the gag order. “We have so many great stories to tell — hopeful and inspiring stories — but the risk management prevents us from sharing many of them. It’s tragic,” says an anonymous Parks Canada biologist.
The ethics of sucking up carbon
Ways of mitigating climate change have a cost. For example, growing biomass fuel instead of food, seeding the oceans with iron or covering vast tracts of land with crushed silicate stones to enhance weathering would affect communities, agriculture and ecosystems. In this week’s Nature podcast, we look at the human toll of dedicating vast swathes of land to removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Plus: how honeybee swarms keep it together and the ‘water footprint’ of a balanced diet.
Nature Podcast | 30 min listen
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INFOGRAPHIC OF THE WEEK
SCIENTIFIC LIFE
Stop wasting everyone’s time with filled job ads
Job postings that only exist to comply with immigration laws waste everyone’s time, argue two researchers. Either the laws need to be changed or we need to commit to better ethics in hiring. If a position has already been awarded to someone, search committees must be as straight with applicants as possible.
Forging links with classrooms through Skype
Squid biologist Sarah McAnulty launched Skype a Scientist in 2017, and the programme has linked more than 9,600 classrooms with 4,600 scientists from 43 countries. Teachers have told her it has increased their students’ attentiveness and scientists say that it’s a highlight of their day.