Recently, a lot of attention has gone to epigenetics, or heritable changes in gene expression caused by mechanisms other than changes in DNA sequence. An example of such a mechanism is DNA methylation, where a methyl group (CH₃) binds to cytosine or adenine. Epigenetic changes might explain the discrepancies that are being discovered between what the genetic code dictates and how an organism actually looks and functions, ranging from flower shape to the tendency for obesity.

2012 is coming and, with it, kooky end-of-the-world fables.  If the Asgardian calendar and its earthquakes doesn't get us, maybe the Mayans will.  Some people even like to combine Doomsday prophecies - the LHC might bring the end of the world by opening a black hole and out pop Mayans armed with strangelet-powered weapons.

Many people exercise to improve the health of their hearts. Now, researchers have found a link between your heart rate just before and during exercise and your chances of a future heart attack.

Just the thought of exercise raises your heart rate. The new study shows that how much it goes up is related to the odds of you eventually dying of a heart attack.

More than 300,000 people die each year from sudden cardiac arrest in the U.S., often with no known risk factors. Being able to find early warning signs has been the goal of researchers like Professor Xavier Jouven, of the Hopital Européen Georges Pompidou in Paris.

While America debates moving to a health care system more like the UK, the majority of Brits want to try an American approach. According to Simplyhealth's latest survey, 59% of people would consider paying to be seen privately due to concerns about access to diagnosis and treatment. 

 Simplyhealth's report 'Are we an instant health generation?' carried out by YouGov suggests that concerns about cost, waiting times and access to healthcare are driving people to seek private alternatives to the NHS. Just over half believe that they will need to wait longer for treatment than ever before and 45% agree that government changes may mean that they are denied treatment altogether by the NHS. 

What is life? As tough questions come, this is a good one. It seems simple at first, but even after great advances in biology and a sizeable increase in understanding how life works, there appears to be no real consensus on life. To quote Carl Sagan:

Ask around what fundamental physics is, where the cutting edge of profound, foundational science is investigated, and you will most likely hear the Large Hadron Collider being mentioned, also referred to as Large Hype Constructor (LHC), which tries to find the so called “God particle” and super-symmetry. String theory will also be mentioned. Very few will tell you about comparatively dirt cheap laser labs that explore quantum entanglement.

Xiao-Gang Wen, a condensed matter theoretical physicist, has joined the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics as the new BMO Financial Group Isaac Newton Chair.   Yes, their Isaac Newton Chair has a corporate sponsor.

 Xiao-Gang Wen is moving from MIT to Perimeter Institute as the inaugural holder of the BMO Financial Group Isaac Newton Chair in Theoretical Physics. At MIT, he held the Cecil and Ida Green Professorship in Physics.  The position was funded by a CDN$4 million gift from the BMO Financial Group, matched by another CDN$4 million from Perimeter's existing endowment. 

Every night I have certain rituals that must be executed, or else. Not sure what else really, but I fear that it involves my hospitalization. Let us say that in order to avoid nervous breakdowns, I visit a handful of science sites, particularly looking for the latest satellite images, winding down in controlled forms and then I hit the hay.

Far be it from me to consider anything designated by Oprah Winfrey as, perhaps, maybe, not always evidence-based, but I had always hoped some skepticism was in order yet consistently instead found Oprah viewers were not only ready to believe, they were willing to migrate to other shows and believe there also.

The fury of Hurricane Irene was out-categorized by a second hurricane that occurred at the same time: the media windstorm covering the event — a newspaper and broadcast blitz pummeling the public sphere with the unrelenting force of a tsunami.