21 September 2019 | New Scientist | 27Folding@home effort to
elucidate protein structures
(8 November 2008, p 36).
Neanderthals’ ears could
indicate an aquatic past
24 August, p 17
From Malcolm Knight,
Frizington, Cumbria, UK
Neanderthals’ ears show signs of
time in the water, as Ruby Prosser
Scully reports. This seems to lend
credence to the idea that humans
led a semi-aquatic lifestyle,
possibly before the split between
Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.
Wading for fish and shellfish
could have driven development
of long hind limbs and an upright
stance, with buoyancy giving
support during the transition.
These changes could have given
us the posture required to carry
a large, heavy head.
A seafood diet provides high-
quality protein and lecithin for
the development of a large brain.
Add to this the characteristics we
share with sea mammals: salt
tears, a diving reflex and blubber.
I would love to see this possible
evolutionary path explored more.
Why can’t we use seawater
to make hydrogen?
Letters, 20 July
From Albert Lightfoot,
Albury, New South Wales, Australia
As Chris deSilva says, exporting
hydrogen produced by electrolysis
is like exporting water. But why
use fresh water? Pure water is
essentially a non-conductor,
while seawater conducts electricity,
aiding electrolysis. It may also
have useful by-products, such
as industrially useful rare earth
metals, cobalt and lithium. If
some desalination is necessary,
use the same photovoltaic or
wind-generated electricity that
would be used for the electrolysis.
Lord make me admit my
ignorance, but not yet
17 August, p 42
From Mark Tester,
Burtonsville, Maryland, US
According to Anna Ijjas, Saint
Augustine is said to have quipped
that prior to creating the universe,
God was preparing hell for those
who pry into mysteries. What he
in fact wrote in Confessions is:
“I answer the man who says, ‘What
did God do before he made heaven
and earth?’ I do not give the
answer that someone is said to
have given, evading by a joke the
force of the objection: ‘He was
preparing hell for those prying
into such deep subjects’... I would
rather respond ‘I do not know’,
concerning what I do not know,
rather than say something for
which a man inquiring about such
profound matters is laughed at,
while the one giving false answer
is praised.”And the award for most
complex object goes to...
Letters, 10 August
From Hillary Shaw,
Newport, Shropshire, UK
Guy Cox discusses whether
our brains are the most complex
objects in the universe, as they
are parts of bodies, which are parts
of societies... This implies some
complexity metric: perhaps the
bytes needed to describe an object
divided by its volume. Otherwise,
the universe must be the most
complex object in the universe.For the record
❚ The photo illustrating our note
about the kakapo population
hitting 200 was of a different
parrot (31 August, p 21).
❚ We loathe vans (and other
vehicles) spitting out nitrogen
oxides (7 September, p 42).40 years ago, New Scientist
highlighted research suggesting
new uses for a familiar drugWE HAVE known for a while
there was something about
the willow tree. Hippocrates,
the “father of medicine”,
recommended chewing willow
bark as a remedy for pain and
fever in the 5th century BC, as
well as drinking tea brewed with
it to relieve pain in childbirth.
In 1763, the clergyman
Edward Stone from Chipping Norton, UK, wrote
a letter to the president of the Royal Society
describing his experiments, which showed that
powdered willow bark helped treat the “agues”,
or fevers, of people living in damp areas.
Willow bark, it turns out, is a rich source of
salicylates, the class of compounds to which aspirin
(acetylsalicylic acid) belongs. For more than a century,
people have been taking aspirin in tablet form, and it
is now one of the world’s most popped pills.
In our 20 September 1979 issue, we reported on
some surprising new benefits of the drug. “The humble
aspirin,” we wrote, “may turn out to be an important
therapeutic tool in preventing blood clots in
particularly sensitive people”.
The result came from a “large team of researchers
from St Louis, Missouri. They gave the drug to a group
of 19 patients undergoing blood dialysis over a period
of five months”, we reported – more than halving the
incidence of blood clots.
The team was careful not to claim too much,
saying “aspirin may not necessarily prevent coronary
thromboses”. But time has vindicated their work. Today,
aspirin is routinely prescribed in low doses to people
who have had a heart attack or stroke to protect them
from having another.
More recently, aspirin has acquired yet another use.
Thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties, it seems it
can help prevent some cancers. In 2014, a review led
by Jack Cuzick at Queen Mary University of London
found that in the UK, more than 130,000 deaths from
cancer would be avoided if all people aged 50 to 64
took a low-dose aspirin daily. The effects were greatest
for bowel, stomach and oesophageal cancer, with
smaller effects for prostate, breast and lung cancer.
“The second most important thing you can do to
prevent cancer, after not smoking, is to take a low-dose
aspirin,” Cuzick told New Scientist’s Chloe Lambert in
May 2015. A wonder drug indeed – although as ever,
check with your doctor first. Simon IngsTo find more from the archives, visit
newscientist.com/old-scientistViews From the archives
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