Sorry, I'm not going to post news for a week. Personal reasons. California considers DNA privacy lawAcademic researchers fear measures would prohibit work with genetic databases.California lawmakers are weighing a bill aimed at protecting their state's citizens from surreptitious genetic testing but scientists are voicing their growing concerns that, if passed, such a law would have a costly and damaging effect on research.The bill, dubbed the Genetic Information Privacy Act, would require an individuals written consent for the collection, analysis, retention, and sharing of his or her genetic informationincluding DNA, genetic test results, and even family disease history.The use and ownership of genetic information are the subjects of proposed laws considered in at least five US states within the past year. ISTOCKPHOTOIts becoming easier and quicker and cheaper for people to obtain their genetic profile or genetic information, says the bills author, California state Senator Alex Padilla. Its such sensitive and personal information that it ought to be protected, he says. Padilla also authored an earlier bill, enacted in January, which extended federal protections against genetic discrimination.Under the newly proposed bill, a persons genetic information may only be accessed by individuals specifically named on a consent form, and only for purposes written on the form. Genetic information along with the original samples must be destroyed once their specified purposes are fulfilled.Such requirements could seriously hinder genomic research, says geneticist David Segal, associate director of genomics at the University of California, Davis. He points out that scientists typically sequence DNA from thousands of people to discover genes associated with particular diseases. Under the proposed legislation, a large genomic dataset could not be re-used to study a different disease. Researchers would either need to destroy the data after each study, or track down thousands of former subjects for new authorisationsan infeasible task, he says.Its just an incredible proposition that the money and effort that would be spent to obtain those large datasets would be just thrown away, Segal adds. California would be shut out of doing that kind of genetic research.The University of California has submitted a formal letter objecting to the bill, estimating that the measure could increase administrative costs by up to $594,000 annuallymoney which would come out of the cash-strapped states General Fund. The university has also expressed concern that its researchers would suffer competitive losses in obtaining research grants. Mind-controlled robot arms show promisePeople with tetraplegia use their thoughts to control robotic aids.Using a robot arm, 'Cathy' was able to lift a bottle and drink for the first time in 15 years.Two people who are unable to move their limbs have been able to guide a robot arm to reach and grasp objects using only their brain activity, a paper in Naturereports today.The study participants known as Cathy and Bob had had strokes that damaged their brain stems and left them with tetraplegia and unable to speak. Neurosurgeons implanted tiny recording devices containing almost 100 hair-thin electrodes in the motor cortex of their brains, to record the neuronal signals associated with intention to move.In a trial filmed in April last