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The National Institutes of Health's plan for obesity research is undermined by the refusal of the Bush administration to commit to regulation. More attention needs to be paid to public health and less to the interests of the food industry.
Mounting criticism of the way the Bush administration handles scientific advice has put John Marburger, the US president's science adviser, in the hot seat. Geoff Brumfiel takes the temperature.
The dieting industry is a massive money-spinner. Yet across the developed world, waistlines continue to expand. Declan Butler examines the sparse scientific evidence behind the claims made for leading diet plans.
Is there no end to the versatility of RNA? The latest feat to be revealed is RNA's ability to switch off genes through a neatly straightforward mechanism. So it isn't only proteins that can repress gene activity.
The mystery of the diffuse γ-ray glow that pervades the Milky Way has been solved, thanks to a space telescope with the power to resolve compact γ-ray sources in the Galaxy.
Prions are remarkable infectious agents associated with certain brain diseases. But they also occur in fungi, experiments with which now provide plausible answers to some critical questions about prion biology.
Conventional chemotherapeutic approaches to treating tumours can be hit-and-miss. One way to ensure successful treatment may be to go for the jugular of cancer-cell survival signalling as well.
Transistors that have active components based on thin films, rather than silicon, are attractive for many applications. The latest thin-film fabrication technique has the potential for industrial-scale production.
The cells of multicellular organisms are highly communicative and so can strongly influence one another's behaviour. One line of communication is particularly important in keeping cell growth in check.
Why, when the human race shows comparatively little genetic variation, are cultural differences so widespread and enduring? Thinking about cultures in terms of biological species provides some provocative answers.
