Cool weird!

Some women may see 100 million colours

http://www.mirabilis.ca/2006/09/14/some-women-may-see-100-million-colours/

From post-gazette.com: Some women may see 100 million colors, thanks to their genes.

Susan Hogan can't be sure, but it wouldn’t surprise her if she turned out to be a tetrachromat.
A tetrachromat is a woman who can see four distinct ranges of color, instead of the three that most of us live with.
A genetic test would be needed to verify whether Mrs. Hogan truly fits that description, but it could help explain why the interior decorator can hold up three samples of beige wall paint, "and I can see gold in one and gray in another and green in another, but my clients can’t tell the difference."
It may be impossible for us trichromats to imagine what a four-color world would look like. But mathematics alone suggests the difference would be astounding, said Jay Neitz, a renowned color vision researcher at the Medical College of Wisconsin. [continue]

I like...

Former 'tenth planet' named for goddess of discord

http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?i=3763523029dacfc27847ae27b08692f7

http://www.newscientistspace.com/article.ns?id=dn10081&feedId=online-news_rss20

The object that sparked the row over Pluto's status has now been christened 'Eris' after the Greek goddess of discord, who helped start the Trojan War.

In hot water

The major 1997-8 El Nino climate event in the Pacific Ocean is blamed for the deaths of 2,000 people.
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In this week's Science & Nature newsletter

** El Nino 2007 **
** Countryfile photo competition **
** Going dishy **
** TV & Radio choices this week **

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