Nature (Vol. 430, No. 6999, 29 July 2004)

107 Pages·2004·10.686 MB·English

Vol 430 No 6999 pp489-592
Editorials
News
News Feature
Correspondence
Books and Arts
Essay
News and Views

Brief Communications
Brief Communications Arising
Progress
Articles
Letters to Nature
Naturejobs
29 July 2004
Editorials

Tribal culture versus genetics 489
A dispute between researchers and a small Native American tribe has cast an unduly large shadow

over genetics. Both sides have much to gain from deeper communication, aided by those who
belong to both communities.

States versus gases 489
A state-led lawsuit against greenhouse-gas emitters highlights a forceful regional movement in US
climate policy.

News

Lawyers blast nuclear pact as a breach of disarmament treaty 491

Energy labs halt classified research amid security fears 491

Joint suits aim to weed out agencies' red tape 492

Sea snapshots will map frequency of freak waves 492

Dinosaur eggs escape sale as smuggling claims unearthed 493

Swedish enthusiasm peps up plans for neutron source 493

Winged messenger set to follow ancient mariner to Mercury 494

Russian bid to drill Antarctic lake gets chilly response 494

Tough talker quits Congress for bioindustry 495

Biologists lobby China's government for funding reform 495

news in brief 496

News Feature

What's in a name? 498
Physicists agree that experiments at the Brookhaven atom collider have created a new form of

matter. But theorists and experimentalists are still arguing about what to call it. Geoff Brumfiel
investigates.

When two tribes go to war 500
Medical geneticists and isolated Native American communities afflicted by inherited diseases should
have much to gain from working together. But the relationship can go sour, as Rex Dalton finds out.

I
Correspondence

If you can lose a driving licence, why not a PhD? 503

A doctorate is seen as a licence to do science. It should be revocable for misconduct.

Species problem solved 100 years ago 503

Tight budget should fund benefits, not more posts 503

Books and Arts

The decline of China's environment 505
CRISPIN TICKELL reviews The Retreat of the Elephants: An Environmental History of China by Mark

Elvin
The spread of agriculture led to deforestation and the growth of towns.

The body-plan explosion 506

STEFAN BENGTSON reviews On the Origin of Phyla by James W. Valentine

Sorrows of the young statistician 507
PETER J. BOWLER reviews Karl Pearson: The Scientific Life in a Statistical Age by Theodore M.
Porter

Seeing the world 507

Science in culture 508
MARTIN KEMP
Margaret Leiteritz turns scientific graphs into painted diagrams.

Essay

CONCEPTS
Why can't planets be like stars? 509
STUART ROSS TAYLOR
Planetary science: both the deductive skills of geologists and the mathematical approach of
astrophysicists are needed to study planets.

News and Views

Neurobiology: Odorant receptors make scents 511
RAINER W. FRIEDRICH
The goal of making sense of the sense of smell has come a step closer. Work on fruitflies reveals that
odorant receptors act as bidirectional chemical detectors and determine the function of sensory
neurons.

Superconductivity: Why the temperature is high 512
JAN ZAANEN

According to a new empirical law, the transition temperature to superconductivity is high in copper
oxides because their metallic states are as viscous as is permitted by the laws of quantum physics.

Cell biology: How to build a cell junction 513
WILLIAM I. WEIS
Structures of the protein vinculin reveal drastic conformational changes associated with binding to
its partners in cell-adhesion contacts. These changes might let vinculin regulate the assembly of
these complexes.

Evolutionary biology: Oceans of bacteria 515
STEPHEN GIOVANNONI
Cloning microbial genes from natural environments has revealed a surprising amount of diversity. In
understanding how microorganisms function in ecosystems, how much of this diversity really
matters?

Nuclear physics: Not-so-magic numbers 517
DAVID WARNER
When a nucleus has a 'magic' number of neutrons or protons, it is particularly stable. But it seems
that for exotic nuclei, with large numbers of neutrons relative to protons, these magic numbers can
change.
II
Self-assembly: Towards precision micelles 519
DENNIS E. DISCHER AND RANDALL D. KAMIEN

Detailed imaging reveals the structure of a spherical 'micelle', self-assembled from cone-shaped
molecules, and marks progress towards mimicking the natural assembly skills of biological systems.

100 and 50 years ago 520

Molecular biology: Cohesins slip sliding away 520
KAREN E. ROSS AND ORNA COHEN-FIX
Cohesin complexes have a central role in cell division, mediating the association between sister
chromosomes. It now seems that cohesin binding is dynamic, adapting to changes in gene
transcription.

Research highlights 522

Brief Communications

Animal communication: Ground squirrel uses ultrasonic alarms 523
DAVID R. WILSON AND JAMES F. HARE
This rodent emits a high-frequency shriek as a warning that is inaudible to predators.

Brief Communications Arising

Earth science: Role of fO on fluid saturation in oceanic basalt
2
BRUNO SCAILLET AND MICHEL PICHAVANT

Earth science: Role of fO on fluid saturation in oceanic basalt (reply)
2
ALBERTO E. SAAL, ERIK H. HAURI, CHARLES H. LANGMUIR & MICHAEL R. PERFIT

Progress

The nonlinear nature of friction 525

MICHAEL URBAKH, JOSEPH KLAFTER, DELPHINE GOURDON & JACOB ISRAELACHVILI

Articles

Crystal structure of the calcium pump with a bound ATP analogue 529

CHIKASHI TOYOSHIMA AND TATSUAKI MIZUTANI

Letters to Nature

Solar chromospheric spicules from the leakage of photospheric oscillations and
flows 536
BART DE PONTIEU, ROBERT ERDÉLYI & STEWART P. JAMES

A universal scaling relation in high-temperature superconductors 539
C. C. HOMES, S. V. DORDEVIC, M. STRONGIN, D. A. BONN, RUIXING LIANG, W. N. HARDY,
SEIKI KOMIYA, YOICHI ANDO, G. YU, N. KANEKO, X. ZHAO, M. GREVEN, D. N. BASOV & T. TIMUSK

Magnetic phase control by an electric field 541
THOMAS LOTTERMOSER, THOMAS LONKAI, UWE AMANN, DIETMAR HOHLWEIN, JÖRG IHRINGER
& MANFRED FIEBIG

Demixing in simple fluids induced by electric field gradients 544

YOAV TSORI, FRANÇOIS TOURNILHAC & LUDWIK LEIBLER

Evidence of power-law flow in the Mojave desert mantle 548

ANDREW M. FREED AND ROLAND BÜRGMANN

Fine-scale phylogenetic architecture of a complex bacterial community 551
SILVIA G. ACINAS, VANJA KLEPAC-CERAJ, DANA E. HUNT, CHANATHIP PHARINO, IVICA CERAJ,
DANIEL L. DISTEL & MARTIN F. POLZ

Cambrian origins and affinities of an enigmatic fossil group of arthropods 554

N. E. VACCARI, G. D. EDGECOMBE & C. ESCUDERO
III
Social parasitism by male-producing reproductive workers in a eusocial insect 557
CARLOS LOPEZ-VAAMONDE, J. WILL KONING, RUTH M. BROWN, WILLIAM C. JORDAN &
ANDREW F. G. BOURKE

Neurons compute internal models of the physical laws of motion 560

DORA E. ANGELAKI, AASEF G. SHAIKH, ANDREA M. GREEN & J. DAVID DICKMAN

Median bundle neurons coordinate behaviours during Drosophila male courtship 564

DEVANAND S. MANOLI AND BRUCE S. BAKER

Cyclophilin A retrotransposition into TRIM5 explains owl monkey resistance to
HIV-1 569
DAVID M. SAYAH, ELENA SOKOLSKAJA, LIONEL BERTHOUX & JEREMY LUBAN

Cohesin relocation from sites of chromosomal loading to places of convergent
transcription 573

ARMELLE LENGRONNE, YUKI KATOU, SAORI MORI, SHIHORI YOKOBAYASHI, GAVIN P. KELLY,
TAKEHIKO ITOH, YOSHINORI WATANABE, KATSUHIKO SHIRAHIGE & FRANK UHLMANN

Structural determinants for generating centromeric chromatin 578
BEN E. BLACK, DANIEL R. FOLTZ, SRINIVAS CHAKRAVARTHY, KAROLIN LUGER,
VIRGIL L. WOODS JR & DON W. CLEVELAND

Structural basis for vinculin activation at sites of cell adhesion 583
CONSTANTINA BAKOLITSA, DANIEL M. COHEN, LAURIE A. BANKSTON, ANDREY A. BOBKOV,

GREGORY W. CADWELL, LISA JENNINGS, DAVID R. CRITCHLEY, SUSAN W. CRAIG &
ROBERT C. LIDDINGTON

Low-populated folding intermediates of Fyn SH3 characterized by relaxation dispersion
NMR 586

DMITRY M. KORZHNEV, XAVIER SALVATELLA, MICHELE VENDRUSCOLO, ARIEL A. DI NARDO,
ALAN R. DAVIDSON, CHRISTOPHER M. DOBSON & LEWIS E. KAY

Naturejobs

Prospects: Up for review 591

PAUL SMAGLIK

Career View 592

Job outlooks from the scientific community

Graduate Journal: The 'lab widow' 592

TSHAKA CUNNINGHAM

Nuts & Bolts 592

DEB KOEN

Movers 592

IV
29.7 Editorial 489 MH 27/7/04 2:08 pm Page 489
29 July 2004 Volume 430Issue no 6999
Tribal culture versus genetics
A dispute between researchers and a small Native American tribe has cast an unduly large shadow over genetics. Both
sides have much to gain from deeper communication, aided by those who belong to both communities.
Native Americans in the southwestern United States are in Moreover,there have been a growing number ofinstances in which
conflict with researchers over a genetics study.The Havasupai repeat consent was sought from research subjects from special
tribe has engaged scientists and universities in a legal battle communities,where language and cultural barriers may complicate
over a diabetes research project. The tribe’s lawsuits allege that projects.While worthy,this concept — time-consuming and poten-
researchers from Arizona State University and other institutions tially costly — would be unnecessary ifthere was a regular two-way
used DNA for studies without proper consent.The project’s leader flow ofinformation between researchers and subjects.
emphatically denies this,and researchers are stunned at the allega- Some ethicists suggest that an obsession with the details ofcon-
tions about their (as they see them) benevolent efforts. sent have caused research subjects to forget they have an opportunity
Politically charged interpretations of the dispute have spread to help not only their own tribe,but all mankind.For Native Ameri-
through Native American communities,fanning tribal distrust of cans,this is a hard concept to accept.Having seen their people and
academics.Ill-founded rumours are the last thing that tribes and cultures abused for centuries,they are understandably hypersensi-
scientists need at this promising time for genomic research. tive.But it could be a new form ofempowerment for them to realize
Such studies last for years,and the dispute highlights the impor- that their culture helped cure a disease.
tance ofresearchers keeping in constant communication with their Today,many Native American tribes have economic opportunities
Native American research subjects throughout (see page 500).His- they never dreamed of,including education and access to scholar-
tory has shown that a court oflaw is not a good forum for resolving ships. Gaming revenues provide better community services and
ethical debates.But how to balance the need for sensitivity to tribal chances to eliminate the sicknesses of poverty that for generations
culture while fostering rigorous scientific inquiry? have plagued reservations.But too often this new-found economic
Some tribes now maintain their own human-subjects commit- clout is used to further litigation for tribal political purposes. In
tees,which must approve all research projects.There are advisory Arizona,sensitive,caring scientists are privately saying they do not
committees to assist groups in monitoring projects whose complex- want to go anywhere near a reservation after recent events in the
ities are difficult for non-scientists to understand. And there are Havasupai case.Given the broader potential benefits ofresearch,this
proposals for Native American gene banks controlled and monitored cannot be a climate that tribes wish to foster.
by the tribes themselves — a concept that could provide them with Leaders from both communities need to reach out to each other to
ownership ofproducts that may be derived from their genes. bridge the gap between their cultures.The National Human Genome
All ofthese initiatives offer promising opportunities,but they also Research Institute is funding work to do precisely this.One group
come with responsibilities for both researcher and subject.Ifsubjects in a unique position to help are Native American scientists:they too
want to know what the researchers are trying to accomplish,and are can support dialogues to create a research environment to match the
kept informed, clashes of culture and science may be prevented. genetic opportunities ofthe times. ■
States versus gases
A state-led lawsuit against greenhouse-gas emitters highlights a forceful regional movement in US climate policy.
Ifyou had to predict who would save the world,city lawyers may President George Bush is sitting on his.And the states can force the
not instantly spring to mind.So many people were surprised last federal government to deal with issues where activists have failed.
week when US lawyers launched a strike against global warming. The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative,for example,is an effort
Attorney-generals from eight states and lawyers from New York by nine northeastern and mid-Atlantic states to build a system to
City filed a lawsuit demanding cuts in emissions from the five cap greenhouse-gas emissions.California,meanwhile,is developing
major power companies that they say belch out about 10% ofthe legislation demanding curbs in carbon dioxide from vehicles.Such
nation’s carbon dioxide (see www.nature.com/news/2004/040719/ initiatives could drive a change in national policy simply by showing
full/040719-12.html).The move is an unmistakable dig at the Bush that it can be done,or because companies reined in by conflicting
administration for shirking strict curbs on greenhouse-gas emissions state laws may turn to the federal government for clarity.
in favour ofvoluntary reductions. Many environmentalists would like to see the heads of power
Much ofthe lawsuit is sheer showmanship from the ambitious plants squirm in the dock,and may get their wish.Some experts pre-
legal team behind it.When they get their day in court,they may dict an imminent wave oflawsuits against greenhouse-gas producers,
struggle to win a guilty verdict.It may be tough to prove that a few much like those against the tobacco industry,from people claiming
companies should shoulder the blame for their share in a global damages for property or loved ones lost to floods or droughts.
problem,or that the modest cuts the lawsuit seeks would help. But acrimonious court battles are not the best way to resolve issues
But the trial signals that the fight against global warming in the that affect the future ofthe planet.Negotiation,legislation and regu-
United States is far from over.Lawyers and policy-makers in individ- lation are.State lawmakers should unite and act where the federal
ual states are willing to take the issue into their own hands — even if government has not;scientists and activists should support them. ■
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29.7 news 491 MH 27/7/04 2:25 pm Page 491
news
High stakes Whisked away Out of the House Making a splash
Researchers launch Dinosaur eggs saved Congressional Improved cash flow
lawsuit to secure from the clutches of firebrand heads aids restoration of
legal marijuana private collector for industry Iraq’s wetlands
p492 p493 p495 p496
Lawyers blast nuclear pact as a
breach of disarmament treaty
Jim Giles,London under the agreement.A spokesman for the H
R
The impending renewal of a pact on UK Ministry ofDefence points out that the T
nuclear research between the United King- allies regularly exchange information on
dom and the United States could breach the how to safeguard existing nuclear weapons,
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), rather than information about developing
British lawyers say. new ones.But researchers who took part in
Critics argue that the two countries have previous MDA collaborations, including
long been in violation ofthe NPT,the cor- Bob Peurifoy,former chiefweapons designer
nerstone ofinternational attempts to halt the at Sandia National Laboratories in Albu-
spread ofnuclear arms,both in spirit and in querque, New Mexico, say that weapons
the letter ofthe law.But this year’s pending development has definitely been part ofdis-
renewal of the US/UK Mutual Defence cussions in the past.“The designs were better
Agreement (MDA) prompted advocacy because ofthe exchange,”Peurifoy says.
groups to seek a legal opinion on the matter. Britain has already declared its intention
Armed with this advice,they are hoping to to renew the MDA for a further 10 years,and
force both countries to take disarmament the agreement is expected to pass through
more seriously. Collaboration between US and UK scientists US Congress without debate.
The MDA dates from 1958 and allows for helped develop the Trident nuclear missiles. The British American Security Informa-
the exchange of plans for the research and tion Council, one of the advocacy groups
development of nuclear weapons between ament advocates counter that any work to that commissioned the Matrix lawyers,says
Britain and the United States.Such collabora- improve weapons is a legal breach ofthe treaty. that it is considering seeking a judicial review
tion aided the development of Britain’s It is a grey area, but lawyers have now ofthe UK decision to renew the MDA — ifit
nuclear weapon system,Trident,for example. tipped the balance in favour of those who can come up with the money needed to do so.
But both countries have also signed the NPT, criticize the MDA.“It is strongly arguable Daryl Kimball,executive director ofthe
which came into force in 1970 and requires that the renewal ofthe MDA is in breach of Arms Control Association in Washington
them to work towards disarmament. the NPT,” conclude Rabinger Singh and DC,says the lawyers’conclusion highlights
Britain and the United States have Christine Chinkin,lawyers at Matrix Cham- the secrecy that surrounds the MDA.“The
improved their weapons systems since the bers in London,who were hired by a number United States and the United Kingdom
NPT became binding,arguing that they have ofUK-based advocacy groups. should be more transparent.Ifno there is no
stuck to its spirit by working to reduce the Neither Britain nor the United States will violation,they should provide more infor-
overall number of nuclear arms. Disarm- discuss details of the research that goes on mation,”he says. ■
Energy labs halt classified research amid security fears
Geoff Brumfiel,Washington connection with the disappearance. be seriously affected:Sandia National
The bulk ofclassified research at all 24 labs Now all energy labs will stop doing Laboratories in Albuquerque,New Mexico,
run by the US Department ofEnergy was classified research that involves removable and Lawrence Livermore National
shut down this week after officials decided storage devices — such as computer disks — Laboratory in California.Together with
that the security problems recently found at until all the devices are accounted for and Los Alamos,these two labs conduct the
the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New new procedures are in place for monitoring bulk ofthe country’s nuclear-weapons
Mexico might also exist elsewhere. their handling by laboratory employees. programmes.At Livermore,876 employees
Several computer disks went missing at “While we have no evidence that the will be suspended during the inventory of
Los Alamos earlier this month,prompting problems currently being investigated are some 12,000 items ofclassified removable
energy secretary Spencer Abraham to halt all present elsewhere,we have a responsibility material.
work at the lab until the problems are ironed to take all necessary action to prevent such At other labs,far fewer people will be
out (see Nature430,387;2004).As of26 July, problems,”Abraham said on 23 July. affected.“The impact should be minimal,”
two missing disks had still not been found, The shut-down isn’t quite as dramatic says Martha Krebs,former director ofthe
and 15 employees had been suspended in as it sounds,experts say.Only two labs will energy department’s science office. ■
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Joint suits aim to weed out agencies’ red tape
Helen Pearson,New York like to see a situation like that in Britain, PL
Frustrated with the slow pace of research where Salisbury-based GW Pharmaceuticals, E/S
D
into medicinal marijuana,researchers have under licence from the Home Office, has EE
R
launched a pair oflawsuits accusing US gov- established its own greenhouse facility to D.
ernment agencies ofobstructing attempts to grow marijuana for clinical trials.
obtain supplies ofthe plant. The US Department of Health and
In order to study marijuana for its ability Human Services,NIDA and the DEA would
to ease pain,nausea or symptoms ofAIDS, not comment on the lawsuits. But those
US researchers procure the drug from a small behind the legal action claim that the agencies
farm at the University ofMississippi,under are sitting on the applications because they go
contract from the National Institute on Drug against the federal government’s hard line on
Abuse (NIDA).But some complain that the drugs.“It’s politically unacceptable to say yes,”
red tape and long delays involved in getting says Craker (see Nature430,394–395;2004).
the plant through NIDA,the Drug Enforce- Other researchers in the field agree that
ment Administration (DEA) and other the bureaucratic application process for
agencies are unacceptable. marijuana studies has contributed to slug-
The lawsuits,filed on 22 July,were coordi- gishness in the field.“The pace has been slow-
nated by the Florida-based campaign group er than one would like,”says mental-health
Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedel- researcher Stanley Watson ofthe University
ic Studies (MAPS). of Michigan,Ann Arbor,who co-authored
In one lawsuit, MAPS is demanding a a 1999 Institute of Medicine report urging
decision on an application filed in 2003 to clinical trials into medicinal marijuana.
buy 10 grams ofNIDA marijuana — a tiny But that does not mean that NIDA is
amount worth just $70,the group says.The doing anything illegal, Watson says. The
researchers plan to use the plant in testing a Strong blow:federal agencies are being sued agency’s remit is to study research linked to
vaporizer,an alternative method ofdelivery for hampering researchers’access to marijuana. the abuse ofdrugs,he points out,not their
to smoking.The test would look at the chem- medicinal use.“It’s going to be a tough one
ical constituents of the vapour and would the first official alternative US marijuana for MAPS to win,”says Watson.Others add
not involve human subjects. source for medical researchers. that there could be scientific problems with
The second lawsuit contends that the MAPS president Rick Doblin argues that the MAPS applications that are holding
DEA has stalled an application to set up a the NIDA supply ofmarijuana is oflow quality things up.
separate farm to grow marijuana for and potency, and that researchers will be Watson suggests that researchers might
research,filed in June 2001 by botanist Lyle unable to get clinical approval for drugs best forge ahead by improving the design
Craker of the University of Massachusetts derived from it unless they can grow a pharma- of their trials,or perhaps by negotiating
at Amherst. If successful, this would be ceutical-grade crop themselves. He would marijuana supplies from other countries.■
Sea snapshots will map frequency of freak waves
Michael Hopkin,London member Wolfgang Rosenthal ofthe GKSS E
V
They are known as ‘rogue waves’— the Research Centre in Geesthacht,Germany. WA
K
towering walls ofwater that,some experts The full project,which will encompass EA
R
suspect,sink tens ofships every year.Now two years’worth ofimages from 1998 to N/F
O
oceanographers are planning to use satellite 2000,could help to explain the staggering Z
RI
images to produce a global map ofwhere number ofunexplained sinkings worldwide. HO
and how often the rogues occur. “There are many more accidents than you BC
B
The WaveAtlas initiative follows a trial would think — around two a week,”says
using three weeks’worth ofradar images Rosenthal.“They simply get put down to
obtained by the European Space Agency bad weather.”
(ESA) from its two European Remote As the ERS satellites circle the globe,they Surf’s up:an artist’s impression ofa rogue wave.
Sensing (ERS) satellites.The trial data each take a representative radar snapshot of
covered February and March 2001,a period an area 10 kilometres by 5 kilometres for suspects that rogue waves can form when
during which two tourist liners,the Bremen every 200 kilometres ofthe Earth’s surface existing waves are chased by a storm system
and the Caledonian,had their windows they cover.The WaveAtlas team uses the moving at roughly the same speed.“We want
smashed by 30-metre waves in separate amount ofradar reflected to determine the to see what weather patterns they are
incidents in the Southern Ocean. incline ofthe ocean surface,and therefore associated with,”she says.
The trial’s results make hair-raising the size ofthe waves captured in the image. The project could also inform the design
reading.Besides the two 30-metre giants, The researchers have received 75% ofthe ofships and oil platforms,Rosenthal argues.
the team identified at least eight other waves requested images from ESA,and hope to Most current platforms are built with a
topping 25 metres across the world.It is a complete the analysis early next year. clearance of15 metres,he says.“The designers
wake-up call for anyone who views rogue Project leader Susanne Lehner,a marine think they did a good job,but officers on the
waves as a nautical myth,says project physicist at the University ofMiami,Florida, platform say ‘we get wet feet’.” ■
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Y Swedish enthusiasm
T
T
E
G
A/ peps up plans for
M
A
T
M. neutron source
Quirin Schiermeier,Munich
An ambitious plan for a powerful
neutron facility in Europe has been
reawakened by a show ofinterest from
Sweden.There are as yet no promises that
the facility will be built — let alone a
decision on where — but Sweden’s move
has fuelled hope in the 5,000-strong
European neutron community that the
project will finally go ahead.
Europe announced plans in 1992 to
build the European Spallation Source
(ESS),a facility designed to be the most
powerful neutron source in the world.
Bad eggs:a New York auction house decided not to put fossilized embryos under the hammer. The ESS would produce neutrons by
accelerating protons at a heavy metal
Dinosaur eggs escape sale as target — such neutrons can be used to
probe materials from proteins to plastic
and steel.Although other neutron
smuggling claims unearthed
sources are planned in the United
States and Japan,the ESS would be
more powerful and flexible than these.
Rex Dalton,San Diego The Argentinian fossils were brought to By 2002 the technical plans were
An outcry among palaeontologists — and a the auction by Terry Manning of Leicester, finalized,but in 2003 both Germany and
little help from US federal agents — has UK,who has collected dinosaur eggs for about Britain withdrew support,in a move that
saved some dinosaur embryo fossils from 15 years.He has refined an acid-etching tech- seemed to kill offthe €1.5-billion (US$1.8-
disappearing into the living room of a nique to reveal embryonic material in fossils. billion) project (see Nature421,563;2003).
wealthy patron.But questions remain as to Manning says he bought the dinosaur On 16 July,the Swedish government
how the half-dozen specimens,thought to eggshells two years ago at a fossil show in Tuc- asked former minister offinance,Allan
have been smuggled out of Argentina,will son,Arizona.He says he took the shells to Eng- Larsson,to review the possibility of
be repatriated for study. land to clean them up,and then brought them hosting the facility.Larsson has a one-
The fossils, which were set to be auc- to New York, mentioning to US customs year mandate to garner support for the
tioned on 24 June at Guernsey’s in New York agents that the specimens were probably orig- project — or a scaled-down version —
City,include some valuable specimens,such inally smuggled from Argentina.The agents from European governments,science
as a dinosaur egg in which the skull of a told him to “Have a good auction,”he says. agencies and industry.Ifhe succeeds,
sauropod embryo can be seen. “It is a Although Manning says he would appre- next summer Sweden will submit a
tremendous specimen,extremely rare,”says ciate some money for his fossils, he adds: formal bid.
Luis Chiappe, an Argentinian palaeontol- “The most important thing is that the “I am absolutely delighted,”says Bob
ogist who is a curator at the Natural History research work must be completed on the Cywinski,a physicist at the University of
Museum of Los Angeles County. Such specimens.”This is only likely to happen if Leeds,UK,and a long-time lobbyist for
detailed fossils could be used to study the the fossils wind up in government hands, a Yorkshire site for the ESS.“Ofcourse
early development ofdinosaurs. rather than in a private collection. The I’d favour it being built in Britain,but
When Argentinian government officials Argentinian government is keen to take Sweden’s move will definitely dispel the
learned from US palaeontologists that the them,although Marcelo Cema,a spokesman notion that the ESS is a dead project.”At
illicit dinosaur embryos were to be sold, at the Embassy ofthe Argentine Republic in the same time,an umbrella organization
they contacted the US government,which Washington,is adamant that it will not pay —the European Spallation Source
took the unusual step of directing the for transportation ofthe “stolen property”. Initiative — is being set up in Grenoble,
Federal Bureau ofInvestigation to contact Ifanyone wants to retrieve Haag’s fossils France,to oversee the project.
Guernsey’s auction house. The embryo to send them home to Asia, it will cost There are other contenders for hosting
fossils were then removed from the auction. them.Haag says his three-metre-long Tyran- the site,however.Hungary is expected to
They are now being held in New York,and nosaurus bataarskull,for example,is worth come up with a formal bid later this year.
efforts are under way to get them back to at least US$160,000. Palaeontologist Mark And Britain,which operates what is
Argentina. Norell ofthe American Museum ofNatural currently the world’s most intense
Palaeontologists have also raised ques- History,New York,says someone probably neutron source at the Rutherford
tions about the background ofother fossils smuggled the skull out of Mongolia.Haag Appleton Laboratory near Oxford,
that went unsold in the auction,which were says he bought the skull and other specimens may also remain an option.
listed as being from China but which scien- in Tokyo, and shipped them to Arizona, It would take about ten years to
tists say were probably smuggled from claiming them properly for import. As to build the ESS,so advocates are pressing
Mongolia. These fossils are still owned whether these specimens would be better off for a decision to be made on its location
by commercial fossil-dealer Zee Haag of in a lab than on the auction block, Haag as soon as possible.“We could start
Tucson,Arizona. simply says:“I’m an American capitalist.” ■ building tomorrow,”says Cywinski. ■
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