Minerva

Australians have taken on board messages from the anticancer lobby about the dangers of relying on a fake tan to prevent sunburn (Medical Journal of Australia2001;174:75-8). People who get their tan from a bottle—mainly young affluent women—use more real sunscreen than other Australians, according to a recent survey. Paradoxically, though, they are still more likely to get repeated sunburn.

Minerva learnt today that tuna fish can be farmed, just like salmon. Tuna farms, however, have to employ divers to maintain the cages and remove debris such as dead fish or the occasional shark. Alarmed by escalating claims for industrial injury by divers who were poorly trained and used substandard equipment, the authorities in South Australia introduced new regulations. They seem to have worked. Fewer divers are being treated for decompression sickness, and the outcome is better for those that are affected (Occupational and Environmental Medicine2001;58:124-8)

Many things separate human beings from monkeys. A monkey, for example, cannot recognise its own face in a mirror. Only higher apes and humans know their own image, an ability that probably comes from neural networks in the right hemisphere, scientists have found (Nature 2001;409:305). They tested five patients with epilepsy whose hemispheres were selectively anaesthetised to assess their suitability for …