Researchers, including an Indian-origin scientist, have developed the world’s first lightweight patch that can make people “invisible” to pesky mosquitoes and could prove key in the battle against malaria.
The affordable patch is a colourful sticker, small enough to be worn virtually without notice. Once worn, it provides the user with up to 48 hours of protection from mosquitoes.
The technology hampers mosquitoes host-seeking behaviour, was identified at the University of Cali-fornia, Riverside in 2011, and has led to the development of the product that blocks mosquitoes’ ability to efficiently detect carbon dioxide, their primary method of tracking human blood meals.
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Archaeologist who led hobbit discovery dies
Sydney: The Australian archaeologist who rocked the science world with his discovery of a tiny new species of human known as the “hobbit” has died after a year-long battle with cancer, his university said on Wednesday. Mike Morwood, the professor who was instrumental in the discovery of Homo floresiensis in 2003, died on Tuesday, the University of Wollongong said. He was 62. “It was the adventure of a lifetime for Mike,” long-time colleague Bert Roberts said of the revelation on the Indonesian island of Flores which shook the scientific community and the world’s understanding of human evolution.
Roberts, who is director of the Centre for Archaeological Science at Wollongong,
said Morwood was an inspiration to many of the early-career researchers who worked on
the bizarre find in Flores.
— AFP