The scale of the political and military task ahead is immense, but in a special news report this week's New Scientist looks at the immediate implications for building design and airline security. A quick injection in the back of the mouth can now silence snorers. Nobody looks forward to seeing you. Small children sometimes burst into tears at the mere sight of you. No wonder dentists are often said to have a high suicide rate.
Ugly individuals can sometimes do better than good-looking ones.
So says evolutionary biologist Rob Brooks who has evidence that rather than always chasing the best-looking members of the opposite sex, some animals prefer mates that the majority find decidedly unattractive. NASA's Mars Climate Orbiter came to grief when the craft's designers mixed up metric with imperial units. We're glad to announce that there'll be no such problem at Butlin's Holiday camp at Minehead in Somerset. Swimmers there are told the depths of water in the various pools. In one case the water level is a whole '0 m' deep.