For daily news stories, visit newscientist.
com/news
Perhaps no longer. Phil Lester
and colleagues at the Victoria
University of Wellington say that
alien ant colonies in 60 locations
are collapsing on their own
(Biology Letters, DOI: 10.1098/
rsbl20111014). Lester thinks low
genetic diversity, which is
associated with reduced disease
resistance, is the most likely
reason for the ants demise.
Lori Lach at the University of
Western Australia, Perth, warns
that other alien species wont
be so easily dealt with. For
thousands of other invasive
species around the world weve
seen no such collapse, she says.
Some dark secrets
DESPITE making up 80 per cent
of the universe, dark matter is
maddeningly elusive. Now it is
giving up a few secrets although
not its full identity.
Dark matter provides the gravity
that stops galaxies from flying
apart, but interacts so weakly with 213-metre megadam on one of the
ordinary matter that it is unclear
what it is. Now two separate
analyses of gamma rays in space,
some of which formed in dark-
matter collisions, give a clue. They 40 years, and its fifth tallest, just
suggest that if dark matter is
made up of particles, as leading
theories suggest, these must be at
least 44 times as heavy as protons. nations main constructor of dams,
This is the strongest limit to the
mass that we have so far, says
Savvas Koushiappas of Brown
University in Providence, Rhode
Island, part of one of the teams.
The studies, due to appear in
Physical Review Letters, contradict
three earlier findings that dark
matter particles have less than a
quarter of that mass, but are not
the final word. For instance, Dan
Hooper of Fermilab in Batavia,
Illinois, who was behind one of
those findings, says the new work
assumes a certain decay path for
dark matter but the particles
could be lighter if the true path is
different. Theyre ruling out
certain kinds of particles, but
theyre not ruling out mine.
Nano killer future
FORGET antibiotics, lets try
nanoparticles. Thats according to adaptable nanoparticles that can
DARPA, the US militarys research
arm, which says that rather than
spend money on new antibiotics,
which only work until bacterial
strains grow resistant, readily
adaptable nanotherapeutics
can fight infection instead.
The agency has called for
proposals to find ways to use
small interfering RNA (siRNA)
to fight bacteria. These scraps of internet, this innovation might
genetic code seek out their mirror benefit the military initially, but
image within cells, such as
bacteria, and silence them. This
The giant dam and the tiny shrew
IT READS like a fairy tale from the
brothers Grimm: a giant US state is
planning a giant hydroelectric dam
that could flood a tiny shrew out of
its idyllic home.
Next month, Alaskan authorities
will file plans in Washington DC for a
countrys last remaining wild rivers:
the Susitna (pictured below). If
approved, it would be the countrys
first hydroelectric megadam for
8 metres shy of the Hoover dam.
In 1995, Daniel Beard, head of
the US Bureau of Reclamation, the
declared the US dam-building era
over. He cited growing environmental
concerns. Dozens of dams have
Aurora/alamy
May not be idyllic for long
stops protein production and
leads to cell death.
DARPA is seeking ideas for
be reprogrammed on the fly by
loading up specific siRNA to deal
with outbreaks among troops.
The US military is seeking
adaptable nanoparticles
that can be reprogrammed
on the fly to fight bacteria
As with GPS systems and the
eventually become a model for
mainstream medication.
since been torn down to revive
fisheries and reinstate river habitats.
But after years in the environmental
doghouse, large dams are being
promoted as a source of low-carbon
energy, and the 600-megawatt
Susitna project looks like it could
be the first to get the green light.
Opponents say the project is a
$4.5 billion boondoggle, and the
state should tap its abundant tidal,
geothermal and wind power instead.
But the icon for protest against it may
turn out to be the countrys most
secretive shrew. Weighing in at just
1.5 grams, Sorex yukonicus lives on
a bank 10 kilometres downstream
of the proposed site for the dam.
Extensive searches have turned
up just 38 individuals so far.
60 Seconds
Rover en route to Mars
Im feeeeelin good, tweeted
NASAs Mars rover Curiosity after its
launch on Saturday. After a planned
landing in August, it is set to search
for signs of life. Meanwhile, Russian
ground control have been unable to
establish a link to their stalled Mars
probe Phobos-Grunt.
Climatic irony
The tiny, super-rich gulf state of
Qatar will host UN climate
negotiations COP 18 in 2012. Qatar
has the worlds highest per capita
carbon emissions. At more than
50tonnes a head, emissions are
seven times those of the UK and
more than triple those of the US.
Eat less to save forests
Growing demand for vegetable
oil is destroying tropical forests by
driving the expansion of oilseed
plantations. If everyone in Europe
and the US cut their daily
consumption of the oil by 25 grams
equivalent to one large helping of
fries 70 per cent less forest would
be lost (Biological Conservation, DOI:
10.1016/j.biocon.2011.10.029).
Land gone to seed
We have trashed a quarter of the
Earths land surface, according to the
first global survey of land resources,
by the UN Food and Agriculture
Organization, which blames the
damage on unsustainable farming.
Food production grew 150 per cent
between 1961 and 2009 through
intensive farming that damaged soil
and depleted water supplies.
Killer insane
Anders Breivik, the Norwegian
gunman who killed 77 people, was
insane when he committed the acts
in July, says a psychiatric report.
Norways state prosecutor says the
report concludes that Breivik was
psychotic during the attacks, and
had paranoid schizophrenia. If the
Oslo district court backs the reports
findings, Breivik may escape
criminal accountability.
3 December 2011| NewScientist | 5