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Pauline C. Ng, Sarah S. Murray, Samuel Levy and J. Craig Venter find differences in results from two direct-toconsumer genetics-testing companies. They therefore give nine recommendations to improve predictions.
The acquisition of scientific and technological secrets was at the heart of East Germany's foreign espionage operations before the fall of the Berlin Wall, reveals Kristie Macrakis.
Adding iron to the ocean is not an effective way to fight climate change, and we don't need further research to establish that, say Aaron Strong, Sallie Chisholm, Charles Miller and John Cullen.
Fifty years ago this week, a Nature paper legitimized the idea that there could be civilizations elsewhere, able to communicate and wanting to contact us. Fred Kaplan reflects on its origins, impacts and legacy.
In 11 days the curtain will rise in Bangkok for the penultimate round of negotiations before the climate change conference in Copenhagen. David Victor warns of the dangers of a rushed, stapled-together deal.
Despite existing guidelines on access to data and bioresources, good practice is not widespread. A meeting of mouse researchers in Rome proposes ways to promote a culture of sharing.
Rapid release of prepublication data has served the field of genomics well. Attendees at a workshop in Toronto recommend extending the practice to other biological data sets.
In 2002, Pakistan began an ambitious overhaul of its higher-education system. The successes and failures of the experience hold lessons for other countries, say Athar Osama and co-authors.
The costs — both in animal lives and euros — of the European REACH legislation on chemical testing are escalating. Thomas Hartung and Costanza Rovida argue for a suspension of certain toxicity tests.
As researchers discover more agents that alter mental states, the Chemical Weapons Convention needs modification to help ensure that the life sciences are not used for hostile purposes, says Malcolm Dando.
One hundred years after Charles Doolittle Walcott found a wealth of Cambrian fossils in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Desmond Collins reflects on the bumpy road of their classification.
The leaders of the world are flying the economy by the seat of their pants, say J. Doyne Farmer and Duncan Foley. There is, however, a better way to help guide financial policies.
Agent-based computational models can capture irrational behaviour, complex social networks and global scale — all essential in confronting H1N1, says Joshua M. Epstein.
Our understanding of the likely ecological impact of genetically modified crops is incomplete. But these holes in our knowledge are symptomatic of a wider failure adequately to address the science of sustainable agriculture.
The loss of the space shuttle Columbia and its seven astronauts has cast a shadow over America's space agency. But it also presents an opportunity to redirect the US space programme towards the lofty goal of exploration.
George W. Bush's administration stands accused of biasing the process by which the US government obtains scientific advice. There is a strong case to answer, but the situation is not as unusual as it might at first seem.
Given recent rumblings from opinion-formers, researchers working on the science of the incredibly small should exert more effort on putting the risks posed by their work into the proper perspective.
