Science Stuff

I've been collecting some interesting links to articles on science for a while, so it's time again to purge the collection and get it posted. Here goes...

Possible Blood Test for Ovarian Cancer

This is from May 9th MSNBC, by Robert Bazell. Ovarian cancer has "one of the highest death rates for any cancer and the primary reason is that there is no effective method for early detection."

Now that may be changing. Dr. David Ward of the Nevada Cancer Institute "found that a blood test for four proteins can find early ovarian cancer in 95 percent of cases."

I'm a little confused by the article, because it went on to say, "While that may sound like a high number, a screening test to be used on the entire population needs to be almost 100 percent accurate. Otherwise, thousands of women would be told they had cancer, when in fact they did not."

When they say that it can find early cancer in 95 percent of cases, that sounds to me as though it misses five percent of the actual cancer cases. But my quote of the article (which is not specifically quoting the researcher) says that thousands of women would be told they had cancer when they didn't.

If they're getting false positives, then a positive blood test should trigger further diagnostics--whatever they're using now on the women who have their ovarian cancer detected early.

If they're getting false negatives, then it might indicate that the protein levels haven't built up enough to be detected. They'd either have to retest after a certain period of time, or else we can't use the blood test until it's more accurate.

Biometric ID at Orlando Airport

Here's how it works (full story here): You pay $80, give your fingerprints and iris scan, and submit to a background check by the Dept of Homeland Security. Once you've been cleared, you get to show your fingerprints and eyes at the airport and go through a special security line to a metal-detector reserved especially for you. Plus, they promise you won't be subjected to the random secondary pat-down.

Would you pay? I think I might, if they brought it to the airports near me, once I start doing tour directing on a regular basis.

Brain Cells Grown from Adult Stem Cells

Once again, adult stem cells do the job. CNN reports on June 16 (full story here) that University of Florida's McKnight Brain Insititute has been able to develop large quantities of mice brain cells from the stem cells of each of the mice.

Researchers are hopeful that the technique will be able to be used in humans, allowing Parkinson's and epilepsy patients to donate their own cells for their treatment. This will mean they would not need immune-suppressing drugs.

For more adult stem-cell progress, see my previous post here.

Two-Faced Kitten

Eeeww! This is worse than the two-faced sheep, which at least had whole mouths. I think the mouth is what makes the kitten too icky-looking. Needless to say, this kitten didn't quite become twins.