Science News

Spacecraft moved to launch pad ahead of ISS flight
AP - Friends and family of the world's next space tourist — including his astronaut father — watched Friday as the rocket for the voyage was placed on a launch pad in Kazakhstan for its weekend takeoff to the International Space Station.
Yahoo!  –  Oct 10, 2008 1:17 PM [GMT]  –  comment?

Second 'Virgin Birth' Documented in Shark
A female shark becomes pregnant without a male in a second documented case.
Discovery Channel  –  Oct 10, 2008 1:15 PM [GMT]  –  comment?

US trade gap shrinks to $59.1 billion
AFP - The US trade deficit fell 3.5 percent in August to 59.1 billion dollars amid a drop in imports and weaker oil prices, government data showed Friday.
Yahoo!  –  Oct 10, 2008 1:13 PM [GMT]  –  comment?

Pullman wins battle of Jericho boatyard
Author calls for rethink on development of historic Oxford boatyard after inspector rejects plans to build luxury flats
The Guardian  –  Oct 10, 2008 12:00 PM [GMT]  –  comment?

Powerful new microscope reveals first hours of a developing embryo
A new high-powered microscope has allowed scientists to watch a zebrafish develop from a single cell into an embryo with a beating heart, the first time this has been possible in vertebrates, researchers said.
Mail Online  –  Oct 10, 2008 11:47 AM [GMT]  –  comment?

U.S. space tourist confident ahead of blast-off
BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (Reuters) - Richard Garriott, a U.S. space tourist due to travel to space on a Russian spaceship on Sunday, said he was unfazed by the prospect of a bumpy ride back to Earth, saying he expected to land safely.
Reuters  –  Oct 10, 2008 11:31 AM [GMT]  –  comment?

Hydrogen centre 'first in the UK'
A hydrogen energy research centre, described as the first of its kind in the UK, opens near Swansea, Wales.
BBC News  –  Oct 10, 2008 11:22 AM [GMT]  –  comment?

Cloned animals shouldn't be used for food, survey for EU says
The majority of Europeans believe cloned animals should not be used for food, according to a new survey.
Telegraph.co.uk  –  Oct 10, 2008 11:00 AM [GMT]  –  comment?

The week in wildlife
From bear caterpillars to monarch butterflies, the pick of this week's images from the natural world
The Guardian  –  Oct 10, 2008 10:58 AM [GMT]  –  comment?

Blow-up balls could be key to scouting for life on Mars
Since the earliest days of space exploration scientists have been obsessed by Mars and the possibility that extraterrestrial life may exist there.
Mail Online  –  Oct 10, 2008 10:56 AM [GMT]  –  comment?