THAMNO

Eyak, a language of the original inhabitants of Alaska, is now officially extinct. Marie-Smith Jones, the last fluent Eyak speaker on earth, has died. She was 89 years old. This was announced by her daughter Bernice Galloway.

A nationwide study of the effect of probiotics in people with a severe acute infection of the pancreas in The Netherlands, has shown that people who receive the treatment have a higher chance of dying than people who don’t receive the treatment.

Europe is struggling with the question whether meat and milk of cloned animals should be admitted or not. The American authorities declared them safe last week, but there is a lot of protest against this decision in Europe.

We have all heard what is needed to create good wines: good weather, good sun exposure, perfect slopes, as little fertilization as possible, cellars with stable temperatures, wood barrels, good corks… And now, a new element has been added: high prices.

Madonna wants to deactivate radioactive waste by treating it with miracle water from the Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical philosophy she has made hip. This is a good reason for a campaign against irresponsible scientific claims by celebrities.

The American biologist Richard Borokowski discovered that eyeless cavefish sometimes get eyes when fish from different caves are mated together, i.e. while the eyes have disappeared, the genetic information needed to make them, has not.

In the American state of Texas, an enthusiastic dog has shot and killed his boss. The accident happened when the enthusiastic dog jumped on the gun. It was loaded and it went off, killing the dog’s owner.

From now on, thanks to Europe, young women will pay more for their car insurance, while young men will pay less. Discrimination? Not exactly. Just the opposite, in fact. At least, that is the claim.

Tata, a giant industrial group in India, is planning to launch the world’s cheapest car, or “People’s Car” on January 10. The car will have a list price of 100,000 rupees, approximately $2,500.