18519162
submission
Megaport writes:
After the banning of direct-to-consumer genetic testing in Australia last July, new rules were imposed to require a physician to be involved in the process. Now a new Australian start-up, Lumigenix, has launched a genome decoding service for Australian (and global) consumers that meets the new regulatory requirements. Their products include genetic testing for health and ancestry information. The Australian government is planning to revisit the issue later this year and further regulation is anticipated in response to the emergence of direct-to-consumer genetic services.
11771986
submission
Megaport writes:
Promoting his new series on Discovery channel, Stephen Hawking has given an interview to the Times where "he has suggested that extraterrestrials are almost certain to exist but that instead of seeking them out, humanity should be doing all it that can to avoid any contact." He says, "If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn't turn out very well for the Native Americans."
Personally, I've always thought that the indigenous people of the world really had no chance to avoid contact here on such a small planet, but is hiding under our collective bed an option for humanity in the wider galaxy?
479624
submission
Megaport writes:
Finally, the news that every slashdot-meme poster have been waiting for. A rat-eating vine called "Tenax" has been discovered in the rainforests of the Cape York region in Queensland, Australia.
Get ready everyone... Post away!
