Adventure Ausrama Blog

Genetically modified things are dangerous. Whoops! But we are already using them. GM crops have already crossed with normal plantings in adjacent farms. The producers of the GM seeds are suing these farmers for using the crossed seed which they claim belongs to them. Dogs were given a virus that had been genetically modified: the DNA integrated into the host genome. Oncogenes were activated. The virus entered into cells that influence cell growth. The affected cells' rate of division increased dramatically. Modified viruses are a popular way of treating people now. Practitioners had a ho hum attitude to this. It has to changed. The final result of such treatment will probably be cancer. Researchers have known for decades that tests on very young mice were detrimental. However, they pushed blindly ahead. The project on the dogs has been concluded. Calls were made to continue for another five years to discover whether the canine develop tumors. Vested interests stop it. Ultimatel...

In the 1930s Australian sugar cane was being destroyed by the grey-backed cane beetle and the French beetle. They are both native to Australia. Scientists looked abroad for a solution. They made the biggest mistake in Australia's history. Cane toads were brought in from Hawaii in 1935. They bred impressively in captivity: this should have been a warning sign. Beetles in Hawaii are not the same as Australian types. Ignoring potential danger 102 young toads were released In Innisfall, Cairns and Gordonvale. Entomologist, Walter Froggatt announced that there would be a disaster - he was right. Their population exploded across the country. Cane toads did not eat the beetles damaging sugar cane. They devoured native insects, other amphibians and reptiles. Furthermore, creatures that eat them die because they are poisonous. Fortunately, there has been a breakthrough that could see the end to the dangerous pest. Their DNA has been sequenced. Three viruses have been identified t...

Wheat rust is continuing to destroy wheat crops. Up to 70 percent of a farmer's crop can wilt due to rust. A disaster is just around the corner as a third of the world's population in all climates relies on this commodity. Csiro, the University of Sydney, John Innes Centre (UK) and the National Institute of Agriculture Botany (UK) have identified three key genes that sustain the disease. Research has brought to light how the genes work in stripe rust. All three genes were cloned using mutational genomics. Editing of genes could make wheat genes that are susceptible to rust become active again. They could then fight the disease. Much more work needs to be done but the future looks bright. ch genes yu rust or wheat sh zhang fe resistance = an genes eh rust er wheat do zhang st resistance jo gene mi stripe al csiro re university = up genes by rust aa wheat so zhang ba resistance of gene bi stripe to csiro if university za research be sydney ob work et scientists l...

Australian scientists are discovering new Species every day. It certainly seems this way. Spiders are on the new knowledge table at the moment. Many have been unknowingly in the Queensland museum for a very long time. The new arachnids are in the Dendrolycosa, Dolomedes, Ornodolomedes, Megadolomedes and Mangromedes genera. They are all spiders of the water. New ones in the Ornodolmedes category are the most beautiful of all. Striking patterns and colors abound. The Queensland Museum Network includes existing collections and field trips by scientists recording discoveries. New kinds of arthropods have been found in all Australian states as well as New Caledonia Naming of recent additions have taken a turn as well. They carry the names of celebrities such Mick Fanning, Jack Nicholson and Professor Brian Greene. Soon there will be Blondie, Boy George or perhaps Kiss. Jokes aside, This is an interesting field. Why are there so many spiders that hunt on the surface of water?...

 ▶ Prostate cancer DNA mapped in Australasia, a world 1st. | do tumor mapped + cancer + prostate + tumor + dna + sequenced + mutations prostate | genome. ◀ | It makes you wonder whether scarce resources are truly used effectively. Researchers have mapped the complete genome of prostate cancer. It is not known if it will lead to treatment or cure. However, there have been some "firsts" in the exercise.      ||| me dna genome no mutations mapped um dna as genome eh cancer en prostate of dna if sequenced go mutations australia| Only one type of tumor from a patient was analyzed. It was the first time that DNA was successfully extracted from a human tumefaction without causing damage to the specimen. The aim is to correctly categorize prostate tumors. They are the most common kind of cancer in men.      ||| mutations oxo tumor in dna get from sequenced mapped ha genome hi cancer ho prostate la tumor my sequenced on job go cancer | |     ...

Spying is everywhere these days and researchers with employer backing are studying the way employees move during work tasks. They don't seem to care what effect this has on a workers mental state, considering you will have a contraption fitted that will go into the bathroom with you. The DorsaVi company based in Melbourne has developed a monitoring system called ViSafe. It attaches to the body by means of sticky pads that measures muscle impulses and body motion. Critically, it measures the speed at which one is moving. This will help to make the employee move faster by explaining that he/she does not move fast enough during work hours - hands up for running on the spot! Data are examined by the subject, researcher, workplace assessor, oh and another employee who is there to make up the numbers. Just where workplace assessor gets his skills and expertise from is a mystery. Like those wonderful abstract tests they give to job applicants that are never tested in real l...

Be careful the next time you quietly curse a magpie attacking you during breeding season. It may know what you are thinking. Why is it that the birds seem to know the personalities of individuals walking by? If you have fed them in the past they appear to remember you and let you go on by unhindered while swooping down onto the heads of other people. Crows have been observed hiding food from other crows. This is not due to stress as was once believed. There is still contention between the two opposing groups of scientists. Tests on scrub jays it was claimed proved that they were hiding food from more dominant Jays. This was really a hypothesis, not real proof. The other group claims that birds are conscious of others and what other may be seeing, like humans. In their tests bird were allowed to hide peanuts in a litter of corn cobs. If another bird was watching they later came back and re-hid the peanuts. When they buried peanuts on their own they rarely re-hid them. This ...

Gene therapy for brain injuries and illnesses may be a good thing, but this treatment changes the shape of brain cells. Researchers in Western Australia say there is nothing to worry about because damaged brain cells regenerate or live longer. They say this when there is no proof that in the long term everything will be alright. They say it is wonderful how brains cells function better after nine months of treatment. Apparently, the neurons become round due to new growth-promoting genes that stimulate them. The fact that surrounding genes away from the treatment area also change is in my opinion something to worry about. Obviously, when this occurs it cannot be reversed. Doctors admit that the way neurons deal with information after treatment is never the same again. Furthermore, they suspect that the long-term effects may not be beneficial to the patient. It is a good thing that researchers are looking for a way to stop gene therapy in its tracks if anything goes wrong. htt...

The sweet potato is a hotel counter-lunch filling. It is something you have when there is no other vegetable left. Most people eat it because it is on the plate. It's flavour can be described as sugary. The only vegetable anything like it is fresh baby peas that can be quite sweet. The sweet potato, however, is far too "sickly" for most palates. This humble vegetable is being revamped. Researchers in Queensland are trying to find varieties that can be grown more economically and which are more suitable for consumers - diametrically opposed goals one would assume. They are looking for more brilliantly coloured kinds, a silly aspiration considering people don't eat colour. It is the taste that is the problem. Seeing pretty red, purple, orange and white skin while you are peeling them is hardly, well, "appealing". Scientists are saying the colours are exciting. Wow! They are also saying that there are interesting flavours. This claim is not soundly ...