Mesothelioma (Asbestos) Cleanups Finally Happening

Even though it has been widely accepted and recorded for over two years that asbestos cause lung cancer, towns are only now starting to remove contaminated parts of buildings. For those of you that don't know:

"Mesothelioma is a disease that is almost 100% preventable; the only known cause is via exposure to the deadly mineral Asbestos. It comes from inhaling the particles of dust as the asbestos degrades; eating away at the lining of your lungs and developing into a deadly cancer."

I just thought of this the other day because any building with tiles or popcorn ceilings dating from before 1980 have a likelihood of containing asbestos. After surviving Mexico City for eight years I am not about to get lung cancer from some random dust.

Women Impervious to IQ-Lowering Gene

There is a new gene, discovered by scientists in North Carolina, that directly affects the IQ of males with the gene activated. The gene seems to not affect women. The IQ readings are an average of a group and some males with the gene active had widely differing scores, but the fact remains: males with this gene active have on average 20 points less in their IQ scores. Women are not affected, leading weight to the theory that they are a whole different species. From the article in the Dallas Morning News:

Jirtle's research centers on a gene identified as IGF2R, for type 2 insulinlike growth factor receptor. The gene governs the production of a protein that, among other jobs, affects cell growth. All people carry the gene, but some have a version with a slightly different code, Jirtle said. This variation, he and his colleagues found, correlates with a lower IQ.