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Astronaut Edgar Mitchell Claims Alien Cover-up

Dr. Edgar Mitchell is a veteran of the Apollo 14 mission and he was the sixth man to walk on the Moon. Dr. Mitchell also insists that aliens have visited Earth and that governments are actively covering it up. "I happen to have been privileged enough to be in on the fact that we've been visited on this planet and the UFO phenomena is real," Dr Mitchell said. "It's been well covered up by all our governments for the last 60 years or so, but slowly it's leaked out and some of us have been privileged to have been briefed on some of it. "I've been in military and intelligence circles, who know that beneath the surface of what has been public knowledge, yes - we have been visited. Reading the papers recently, it's been happening quite a bit." Dr Mitchell, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a Doctor of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics claimed Roswell was real and similar alien visits continue to be investigated. He told the astonished Kerrang! radio host Nick Margerrison: "This is really starting to open up. I think we're headed for real disclosure and some serious organisations are moving in that direction." NASA issued a quick denial. In a statement, a spokesman said: "NASA does not track UFOs. NASA is not involved in any sort of cover up about alien life on this planet or anywhere in the universe. "Dr Mitchell is a great American, but we do not share his opinions on this issue." If Dr. Mitchell is correct about a cover-up than this is exactly the type of denial one would expect NASA to make. You can listen to the interview with Dr. Mitchell where he discusses the UFO phenomena here. Permalink | Recent Headlines | News Feeds Read more…

Genetics Has Key Role In Obesity

16.10.2007 08:21 Science - Source: ScienceDaily Headlines

Science Daily — New evidence that genetics plays a key role in obesity is published in the International Journal of Bioinformatics Research and Applications. The findings relate to the genetics of modern Pima Indians who have an unusually high rate of obesity but the finding could be extrapolated to all people. Their obesity is thought to be linked to a thrifty metabolism that allowed them to metabolize food more efficiently in times when little was available but causes problems when food is in abundance.

Mark Rowe, David McClellan, and colleagues at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, USA, have studied the effect of evolutionary selection on Pima Indians, a people indigenous to the present-day Sonora desert of Arizona and New Mexico. The researchers anticipated an effect consistent with higher metabolic efficiency among these people and focused specifically on recently discovered variations in their mitochondrial DNA, so-called SNPs, or single nucleotide polymorphisms.

The metabolic rates of 200 obese Pima individuals were measured and revealed that two of the three known SNPs influence metabolic efficiency. The researchers then used the genetics software TreeSAAP, to analyze the biochemical changes caused by these SNPs and then tracked the evolutionary selection of these genetic variations in 107 different types of mammals. This allowed them to propose a mechanism by which these SNPs affect the mitochondrial respiratory chain and consequently increase metabolic efficiency in the Pima people.

The team suggests that an increased metabolic efficiency could have been an evolutionary advantage. The SNPs may have persisted because they helped the Pima survive the harsh dietary environment of the Sonora desert throughout the history of the people. In the current environment of caloric over-consumption an increased efficiency is unfavorable and may contribute to the high rates of obesity among the Pimas.

While the Pima Indians are an extreme case, the entire human population may also have evolved in a restricted caloric environment, say the researchers. Many populations may exhibit similar SNPs that were advantageous to our ancestors but may now be detrimental. The presence of these SNPs may thus provide one explanation as to why obesity is so rife in the 21st century.

Note: This story has been adapted from material provided by Inderscience Publishers.