|
 Monday, September 2, 2002
George Bernard Shaw. "The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it." [Quotes of the Day]
M. Cartmill. "As an adolescent I aspired to lasting fame, I craved factual certainty, and I thirsted for a meaningful vision of human life - so I became a scientist. This is like becoming an archbishop so you can meet girls." [Quotes of the Day]
Benny Hill. "The odds against there being a bomb on a plane are a million to one, and against two bombs a million times a million to one. Next time you fly, cut the odds and take a bomb." [Quotes of the Day]
It took me a little bit to get the last one. Remember it is Benny Hill. A little gallows humor ;-) 11:37:22 PM 
|
|
Light switch turns genes on and off [Nature Science Update]
Prettt nifty. Using light to turn on a gene. I wonder how well this could work in a high level expression scheme is bacteria? I will have to check out the literature. Of course, the tricky thing will be incorporating the promoter system into the cell type of choice. But then this is tricky no matter which system you use. 10:33:33 PM
|
|
Long-stalled appointment at FDA is crucial to biotech. San Francisco Chronicle Sep 2 2002 12:57PM ET [Moreover - moreover...]
How can we be almost 2 years into a presidential term without an FDA head? There does not seem to be any movement at all. This is an important position that can have huge ramifications on healthcare, yet, no one can be found. Hard to believe. 10:29:46 PM
|
|
Brain Disease Rises in Deer, Scaring Hunters. People in Wisconsin and the Rocky Mountain states are worried about chronic wasting disease, the variant of mad cow disease that afflicts deer and elk. By Sandra Blakeslee. [New York Times: Science]
This, more than anything else, could 'kill' hunting in the US. Although I do not believe that this wasting disease could be transmitted easily to humans, we just do not know. Most of these diseases, from kuru to mad cow disease, appear to proceed from the digestion of various sweetbreads of the animals. You need to ingest a fair amount of the altered prions, which are found mainly in the brain. But, the overall progression is just not easily defined. It takes a long time to develop the disease, making the actual progression hard to identify. Various models may not accurately define the actual disease. But, if you do not have to eat venison, why take the chance?
| |
