Space travelers likely to be bloated, bald
LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Future generations of humans living in space are likely to be fat, short, ugly, bloated and bald, researchers at London's University College said.
Traveling to earth's closest stars would require years, if not decades, in space, and such long-distance travel would take its toll on the human body, Dr. Lewis Dartnell, a university astrobiologist, told The Daily Telegraph in a story published Friday.
Near zero gravity would leave bodies stunted with underdeveloped muscles and bones, while fluid pooling in the skull would bloat faces and cause hair loss, Dartnell said.
"Future humans may be completely hairless," he said.
Long-distance space travelers also will have to fight weight gain because little energy is expended when moving in microgravity, he said.
Dartnell and his team are awaiting data from the Kepler space telescope, which launched earlier this year to find Earth-like planets orbiting stars.
'Warrior gene' linked to weapon use
TALLAHASSEE, Fla., June 5 (UPI) -- Boys born with a variation of the so-called "Warrior Gene" are more likely to use weapons and join gangs, a researcher at Florida State University said.
The study is the first confirm a link between violence in boys and the variation of the gene Monoamine oxidase A, said Kevin Beaver, a biosocial criminologist who led the research at the university's College of Criminology and Criminal Justice.
"We found that variants of this gene could distinguish (male) gang members who were markedly more likely to behave violently and use weapons from members who were less likely to do either," Beaver said in a release from the university.
The gene affects levels of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, which are related to mood and behavior, Beaver said, noting girls with the same variant of the gene seem resistant to its potentially violent effect.
Beaver and his colleagues examined DNA data and lifestyle information from more than 2,400 respondents to the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.
Wisconsin reports first swine flu death
MILWAUKEE, June 5 (UPI) -- State and local health officials in Wisconsin say the state has confirmed its first death as a result of swine flu.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said Friday that while specific details regarding the H1N1 influenza fatality were not released, officials confirmed the victim was a Milwaukee resident who also had a medical condition that intensified their illness.
"We express our condolences for the affected family here," Wisconsin health officer Seth Foldy said of the recent fatality.
"What is unusual today is not that there has been a death from influenza. Over 37,000 people die in the United States each year of seasonal influenza, and the rates of death and illness from this novel H1N1 strain does not appear to be radically different," said Foldy. "What is unusual this year is that influenza continues to be widely circulating in Wisconsin and many, many other states this late in the year."
Wisconsin currently tops all U.S. states with 2,071 confirmed cases of swine flu. The state also has three probable cases, the Journal Sentinel said.
The newspaper said the U.S. total for confirmed swine flu cases sat at 11,054 as of Wednesday.
Hadron collider to run year-round
GENEVA, Switzerland, June 5 (UPI) -- The atom-smashing Large Hadron Collider is to run year-round to make up for the year lost to a helium leak, researchers in Geneva said.
The collider was activated last Sept. 10 and shut down nine days later when a connection between two magnets failed, causing a helium leak in the cooling ring.
The collider should be back in business by October or November and operating full time in an attempt to win the international race to find the Higgs boson -- atomic evidence regarding the beginning of creation, project leader Lyn Evans told The Times of London in a story published Friday. The closest competitor in the race is the Tevatron collider, a less powerful accelerator at Fermilab in Illinois.
The Hadron collider's catastrophic breakdown will be forgotten once it begins transmitting new data, Evans said.
"The Hubble Space Telescope also hit a problem which was fixed and it's had a marvelous experience since then," Evans said. "We'll come back in October or November and then we'll be going for a long time."
