Science & Technology
Legal threat to Apple after toxic chemicals discovered in iPhone
Published: 21 October 2007
Apple's best-selling iPhone, due to be launched in Britain next month, may be forced to carry an official health warning after being found to contain toxic chemicals.
People with big heads have higher intelligence
Published: 21 October 2007
New scientific research proves that people with big heads have higher than average intelligence.
As he arrives in Britain, DNA pioneer breaks his silence on racism row
Published: 19 October 2007
James Watson, the Nobel laureate who shocked the world with his views on race and intelligence, has defended his position in an exclusive article for The Independent
Elephants never forget the smell of a tribesman
Published: 19 October 2007
Elephants mourn their dead and engage in long-distance communication using barely audible, low-frequency growls. Now they have been shown to be able to distinguish between different human tribes based on the smell and colour of their clothing.
Watson's words disowned by own institute
Published: 19 October 2007
James Watson was disavowed by his own research institute last night over the suggestion that Africans were less intelligent than white people. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island, which the DNA pioneer headed for more than 35 years, led a chorus of disapproval on the other side of the Atlantic saying it vehemently disagreed with his remarks and felt "bewildered and saddened".
Science Museum cancels talk by Watson after 'racist' comments
Published: 18 October 2007
A speaking tour by the DNA pioneer James Watson was thrown into chaos last night when one of Britain's most high-profile scientific institutions announced it was cancelling a planned sell-out appearance.
First humans 'lived at southern tip of Africa'
Published: 18 October 2007
Primitive humans who inhabited the coast of South Africa 165,000 years ago and lived on a diet rich in shellfish could be the original ancestors of everyone alive today, a study suggests.
Reunion beckons for Nobel winner and his long lost step-sister
Published: 18 October 2007
Another extraordinary chapter has been added to the amazing saga of Mario Capecchi, the genetic scientist who was last week awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine.
Fury at DNA pioneer's theory: Africans are less intelligent than Westerners
Published: 17 October 2007
Volcanoes: Ready, stead, blow
Published: 17 October 2007
Lift the lid on your PC
Published: 17 October 2007
Rhodri Marsden: Cyberclinic
Published: 17 October 2007
The controversy of intelligence theories
Published: 17 October 2007
Efforts to prove the superiority or inferiority of different races have a long and undistinguished history, from the justifications of slavery to the eugenic policies of Nazi Germany. Modern studies on race and intelligence have continued to create controversy.
Death & glory: A story of ants, ageing and altruism
Published: 12 October 2007
King Solomon is said to have told sluggards to look to the hard-working ant and be wise. Aesop, too, extolled the virtues of the humble ant in his fable explaining why the insect's constant toiling through the summer months would make for an easier winter compared with the fortunes of the lazy, singing grasshopper.
Common words 'less likely to change'
Published: 11 October 2007
Frequently spoken words are less likely to change over time, according to two studies of how languages evolve in response to how often a word is used in everyday situations.
The £50 gadget challenge: We test the best quality bargains
Published: 10 October 2007
Rhodri Marsden: Cyberclinic
Published: 10 October 2007
Mario Capecchi: Man who changed our world
Published: 09 October 2007
The breakthrough of 'gene targeting'
Published: 09 October 2007
Almost every human disease has a genetic component and the research that earned this year's Nobel Prize in medicine developed into a practical method of finding out which defective gene gives someone a particular disorder. It also lies at the heart of the international effort to use embryonic stem cells for regenerative medicine.
Art & science: Turner's message from the skies
Published: 07 October 2007
Drug derived from chillis is hailed as pain breakthrough
Published: 04 October 2007
A substance found in chilli peppers has been used to create a painkiller which prevents suffering without the usual side-effects of conventional anaesthetics, such as unconsciousness and paralysis. The new drug can be targeted against only those nerves involved in sending pain signals to the brain, making pain relief far more effective and safer than existing anaesthetics, researchers believe.
Mission incredible: The day the space age began
Published: 04 October 2007
Golf buggy: Next stop...the future!
Published: 03 October 2007
The DNA cracker: closing the book on Jack
Published: 03 October 2007