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Happy Friday! Have a great weekend.
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GOP Healthcare bill made public yesterday
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I know, not the usual top item in High Fidelity, but the healthcare bill being put before the Senate next week could potentially affect 20% of us, so I thought: let’s make sure everyone is aware of it. The U.S. Senate released late last night their reconciliation version of the GOP health care bill, with a plan to vote on it Tuesday if possible. Every news outlet has a story about it, and you should pick and choose the ones that matter to you – especially if you are part of the 23 million people likely to lose coverage or the 1% likely to get a nice tax break. If you are a supporter of or totally opposed to this, you should contact your representatives and let them know.
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It’s been a busy week in science, and the round-up theme seems to be working so let’s stick with it: First of all, turns out that the human genome wasn’t fully sequenced back in 2003 when it was originally published. A review of the HGP FAQ page answers the question yes, but notes that it is within the limits of 2003 technology. It seems that those segments that weren’t sequenced were thought – at the time – to not be too important. But now, it looks like some of these 341 gaps may play an important role in cancer or autism. In other news, scientific breakthroughs covered in the news are frequently overturned. Often, these nuance-free articles (wine is good or bad for you) are written to get people reading, but the interesting thing seems to be that the more hype, the more likely to be wrong. And lastly, any researcher in China thinking of committing research fraud beware: execution could be the punishment. After a fake peer review scandal that claimed 107 papers written by Chinese scholars, China announced a “no tolerance” policy that includes capital punishment. Perhaps researcher rehab is a better option.
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Do Conflict-of-Interest rules hold back medical breakthroughs? Former Merck CSO Michael Rosenblatt says “Yes” in an article for Harvard Business Review. Academic institutions, societies and practicing physicians all have ethical, legal or fiduciary duties that may prevent optimal collaborations. The authors argue that optimal “[c]onflict-of-interest policies must support principles of independence and objectivity and the right to advance science” but also recognize unscrupulous past behavior by industry suggests “continued vigilance is prudent.”
Communicating science has always been and continues to be a challenge, from the Earth isn’t flat and isn’t at the center of the universe to vaccines do not cause autism. Some attempts to make science better understood include “Present your PhD Thesis to a 12-Year-Old” and “Shadow a Scientist” for middle school kids. Creators of those programs published a study in PLOS showing the outreach was good and the costs were low.
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Nature truly is amazing, and using science to better understand it is pretty cool, too. In 2004, geologists discovered a strain of mussels that thrived near underwater asphalt-spitting dormant volcanos. More than mussels, tubeworms, corals, clams, and even crabs were thriving in this inhospitable environment. Upon further study, scientists found Cycloclasticus, an oil-eating bacteria, in the mussels’ gills. After sequencing the Cycloclasticus, they discovered that particular strain found at the volcano could no longer break down tough PHAs typically found in oil spills, but evolved to eat easier chemicals like ethane or propane. And the Mussels enjoyed them. Don’t worry, they are too deep to show up on your favorite seafood restaurant’s menu. Have a great weekend!
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