Two new symbionts living in the gut of termites have been discovered.   These single-cell protists, Cthulhu macrofasciculumque and Cthylla microfasciculumque, help termites digest wood. And now they have a name inspired by science fiction. 

The current situation and future prospects for biosimilars is similar to that of small molecule drugs, according to an analysis by Research and Markets: they get to benefit from patent expiry. On this basis, prospects for biosimilars might look good, with the vast majority of leading originator brands in the global biologics market expected to lose some degree of protection by 2019. 

There has been much activity in the news by those who have been promoting various ideas on paths to a manned presence on Mars. In some ways the approaches are all similar, except for one where volunteers are sought for a one-way trip to Mars with enough supplies for a sufficient amount of time to become self-sufficient ... or, well, that's too bad, but it was a good try.

The initiative is by a Dutch firm and is called Mars One, with the goal of people to Mars by 2022.

Health care is shifting to be more like traditional service industries and that means more value will (and must be) delivered through technology and lesser-trained clinical personnel. 

With increased government control of health care, a predicted shortage of 65,000 primary care physicians (PCPs) by 2025 will mean a greater need for leveraging technology solutions. The role of the primary care physician, though not eliminated, will certainly change. 

Alzheimer's research is always big news. The reason is simple: people are living longer and they also want to be living better. While progress in general health issues for seniors marches on, the brain remains trickier stuff. Instead of less Alzheimer's than in the past, we have more, thanks to better diagnosis and greater longevity. Once you reach a certain age, you are almost certain to have someone in your family with it. 

The term 'living fossil' is a topic for argument among scientists because it appears to suggest that some organisms have stopped evolving. Like 'missing link' or 'God particle' the concern is the colloquial meaning has overtaken the science one.

The number of Americans diagnosed with asthma is up to 26 million and a new paper says a majority, nearly two-thirds or more of all asthmatics, also have an allergy.  Asthma is frequently associated with children but 3 percent or more of adults 60 years and older also have it. The number may be higher, because older people did not grow up in a diagnosis culture, so asthma could be under-diagnosed in older adults. 

A team of astronomers led by the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) have succeeded in observing the death throws of a giant star in unprecedented detail.

In February of 1987 astronomers were observing the nearby dwarf galaxy known as the Large Magellanic Cloud when they discovered what looked like a new star.

It wasn't new, instead it was the end of one and it was the brightest supernova seen from Earth in the four centuries since the telescope was invented. By the next morning news of the discovery had spread across the globe and southern hemisphere stargazers began watching the aftermath of this enormous stellar explosion.

The mediatic effect of the Higgs boson discovery of last July is clear to everybody. And CERN has been very good at exploiting it, making fundamental physics a familiar topic and creating interest worldwide. Yet I think we can do more. The gap between basic research in physics and the public is wide, and we are doing still too little to fill it.

I recently watched a program on the Science Channel entitled "Human Nature: Born to Kill".  In this episode, part of the objective was to explore humans killing other humans.  Of course, the usual array of topics were raised, from evolutionary psychology to genes [i.e. the "warrior gene"] and even the "nature vs nurture debate".

However, there were a few points that I felt were muddled and confused.