Week 7 - 12 February to 18 February

I got sick of hearing all the doom and gloom given to us as 'news' by the media so decided to look every day for some good news. Sometimes it's quite difficult to find. I post the good news for the day on Twitter and every week I plan on posting a summary here.

Found some good news? If I didn't spot it please feel free to add it.

Well here goes - the 7th week of 2012

12th February 2012 - Researchers produce brain tissue from skin cells

Genetic scientists claim to have made a major breakthrough. They have persuaded skin cells to turn to stem cells and from them made brain cells. The hope is that these cells will be of major use in the study of brain disorders and lead to cures for Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy and strokes.


Full story at http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/researchers-produce-brain-tissue-from-a-few-scratches-20120212-1szpg.html

13th February 2012 - A poor day for good news (Well it was Monday)

So let's concentrate on what didn't happen. In 1866 a series of bank robberies occured in the USA. The bank in Liberty, Missouri was robbed of $15,000, on 13th February. A fortune in those days and worth almost $250,000 today. It was believed to be the first of a series of robberies committed by Jessie James. The good news is that there isn't a modern Jesse James equivalent. (Unless you count Wall Street bankers.)

Full story: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_James

14th February 2012 - Real steak but not from a cow.

I came across this article from ABC Australia, about growing steak without involving raising and killing cattle. It's a subject I've been following for a while, since we introduced it in our book series A Vested Interest. The idea is that by taking a biopsy from a cow (or any other animal) it should be possible to culture the meat. The result will be real beef/pork/chicken e.t.c. (Not fake as the article says). The article is a little behind the times because a hamburger has already been produced. At the moment it's an expensive process with that hamburger costing thousands of dollars. It will become less expensive and more flavour intensive though. In the future you should be able to buy a cultured steak which tastes delicious but has not involved the death of a cow or the use of the 70% of arable land currently used for raising livestock.


Full story: http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2012/02/13/3428033.htm

15th February 2012 -  Genetically modified fly gut bacteria used to fight sleeping sickness

A lot of people are against genetic modification. It has, however a huge potential for eradicating disease. Now scientists have come up with a possible way of ridding the world of the scourge of sleeping sickness. The disease is caused by a parasite spread by the tsetse fly. Without treatment it's a fatal disease. With treatment 20% still die and it is an unpleasant process which victims describe as being like having fire in your veins. 


The new method developed involves modifying a bacteria normally found in the tsetse fly gut to destroy the parasite before it can infect humans.

The story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-17024714

16th February 2012 - Cleaning up Space.

For years we've been sending satellites into space and in the process have put a lot of space junk there also. Space junk can range from the fleck of paint, which left a crater half the depth of Space Shuttle Challenger's front window, to defunct satellites. There is concern that as these objects collide the amount of junk will increase to the point where it would be dangerous to travel through that area.


Now the Swiss are developing a satellite to capture and destroy space junk. It's something we must do if we are to continue with space exploration and essential if we are ever to produce a space elevator.


Full story and video: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17068279

17th February 2012 - Creating a 'DNA robot' to target cancer cells.

Scientists at Harvard have come up with a way of folding up DNA to trap cancer fighting drugs within it. The DNA can then be made to unfold and release the drugs next to the cancer cells they are designed to fight. This means better drug action and fewer side effects for cancer patients.

Full story:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17058066

18th February 2012 - European Court of Justice blocks net-filtering bid.

The European Court of Justice has blocked a move by Belgian music royalty collecting firm SABAM to require the social network Netlog  stop users infringing copyright. 


The ruling will have an impact on other court decisions relating to social networks.


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17060112

			Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality. The result is 'A Vested Interest', a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman
UK £0.77 FREE HERE! (Until March 2012)	UK £1.91	UK £1.53

Week 6 - 5th to 11th February 2012

I got sick of hearing all the doom and gloom given to us as 'news' by the media so decided to look every day for some good news. Sometimes it's quite difficult to find. I post the good news for the day on Twitter and every week I plan on posting a summary here.

Found some good news? If I didn't spot it please feel free to add it.

Well here goes - the 6th week of 2012

5th February 2012 - Why is Sunday such a poor day for good news?.

A massive earthquake DIDN'T strike Southern Italy and Sicily today and 30,000 people were NOT killed as a result. That makes quite a change from what happened in 1783 when a series of earthquakes devastated the area.


Full story at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1783_Calabrian_earthquakes

6th February 2012 - 3D Printer used to create a new jawbone

We are all familiar with computer printers. There's probably one in your home if you are reading this. For the last few years though, 3D printers have started to appear. At the moment they are relatively expensive. Give it a few years though and you'll probably have one.


Today, the use of a 3D printer was in the news because it was used to create a new jawbone for an 83 year old woman.



Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16907104



Want a 3D printer? You can get a kit of parts to build one yourself for about $1,100 and could then use it to make the parts for another printer. It's perhaps not what you would need for a tungsten jawbone though http://store.makerbot.com/thing-o-matic-kit-mk7.html

7th February 2012 - Google 'attention grabbing'?.

Google has created a project designed to help solve huge problems by the application of breakthrough science and technology.


The remarkably cynical news article I found suggests they were 'attention grabbing'. I prefer to think that Google now has the money and means to solve major problems 


Hey Google - How are you getting on with your space elevator project?


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16925842

The image left is for a book on the space elevator produced by the Liftport group. get it from Amazon.com
Liftport - The Space Elevator: Opening Space to Everyone

8th February 2012 -  Gene Therapy Restores Vision in Both Eyes

The University of Pennsylvania's Mahoney Institute of Neurological Sciences has managed to restore sight to patients with Leber's congenital amaurosis. This rare genetic disease leads to total blindness. Mutant forms of the RPE65 gene prevent the production of a crucial enzyme needed for sight.


The researchers used a virus to carry normal copies of the gene into the victim's eyes which began producing the enzyme needed.

The story: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=gene-therapy-blindness

9th February 2012 - New hope for Alzheimer's Disease.

A cancer drug given to mice eliminates brain-damaging proteins, leading to improved cognition within days. The drug is already approved for human use - it's used to treat skin cancer, but will it work in humans?


Many people are at risk of this debilitating disease so let's hope that there's something to this report in Scientific American


Full story: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=alzheimers-disease-sympto

10th February 2012 - Volunteers with spare time help plug holes in the climate record.

Between 1915 and 1942 HMS Foxglove, a British minesweeper, patrolled the South Pacific. Each day weather measurements were taken and recorded in the ship's log. They formed a unique record of the climate in an era not covered by ice cores and before modern records of climate. 


Transcribing the hand written records would have taken years. A group of volunteers split the task up and completed it in six months.

You can help, if you have the time, just go to http://oldweather.org to find out more (NB the link shown in the Scientific American article is incorrect)

Full story:http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=all-hands-on-deck

11th February 2012 - 61 couples fall for each other at the Love Hearts factory.

In New Mills, Derbyshire, England you'll find a candy manufacturer Swizzels Matlow. One of their products is a tube of slightly fizzy candy, each one with a raised romantic message in a heart shape. They are called 'Love Hearts'.


It seems the romance theme is catching because no fewer than 61 couples, working at the factory have tied the knot.


Full story: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/love-hearts-factory-where-61-couples-681158

			Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality. The result is 'A Vested Interest', a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman
UK £9.29	UK £1.91	UK £1.53

New Mills, Derbyshire

Week 5 - 29 January to 4 February

I got sick of hearing all the doom and gloom given to us as 'news' by the media so decided to look every day for some good news. Sometimes it's quite difficult to find. I post the good news for the day on Twitter and every week I plan on posting a summary here.

Found some good news? If I didn't spot it please feel free to add it.

Well here goes - the 5th week of 2012

29th January 2012 - Iran being reasonable? Iran admits nuclear inspectors to it's supposed weapons site.

US view of Iran's nuclear program

Iran and the US seem to have been spoiling for a fight for some time. Since October 2010 there has been concern that Iran was developing a nuclear capability and that action needed to be taken to prevent this. Iran has always insisted that this wasn't the case and that they were developing a nuclear reactor to generate power. This seems unlikely to many since Iran is floating on a sea of oil. 


We've seen attacks on Afghanistan and on Iraq. Afghanistan because the ruling Taliban supported terrorists and Iraq because non-existent weapons of mass destruction were being developed. In the case of Afghanistan there might have been some justification for action against a country ruled by religious frenzy who apparently saw it their duty to punish the 'evil' in the world. In Iraq's case a despot didn't see the writing on the wall and didn't give UN inspectors sufficient access.


Iran seems to be a combination of religious frenzy and refusal to bow to the will of the UN. The last thing they needed to do was to give anyone an excuse to invade. Today they agreed to allow UN inspectors to examine their nuclear facilities for evidence of weapons research. Hopefully that will calm things down a little in a volatile area. My only concern is that Gaddafi in Libya toed the line at one point but that didn't save him.


Full story at http://www.thejournal.ie/un-nuclear-inspectors-start-investigation-in-iran-340568-Jan2012/

30th January 2012 - Not quite as dangerous as the media says.

Remember walking to school on your own? There was a time when it was considered safe for young children to do this. Today many people feel their children are at risk if they are allowed unsupervised outside their garden. 


Is the risk as great as the media would have us believe? This is a story in which one mother took action to put the risk to children in a small town in its true perspective.


Full story: http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/theres-hope-for-mayberry-yet/

31st January 2012 - Donors rally round 101 year old victim of eviction.

Would you evict a 101 year old woman and leave her sitting in the street with all her possessions in a dumpster? It seems some finance companies will. They did realise their mistake but then people found out that the house in question was in an appalling state. Neighbours rallied round to help. 


Full story: http://www.freep.com/article/20120126/NEWS01/201260526/Donations-roll-in-for-101-year-old-Detroit-woman-who-was-evicted

1st February 2012 - Researchers seem to have made significant advance in mental control of a computer.
I don't know about you but I hate keyboards so the news that researchers in California have made significant advances in allowing the brain to control a computer directly has to be good. 


At the moment the process is a little severe. It requires electrodes to be implanted in the brain. The method was discovered with the co-operation of patients undergoing brain surgery. It offers hope to those completely disabled  of being able to control and interact with the world. The obvious next step will be mental control of computers for everyone. 


So long as it's me controlling the computer and not the other way round that's fine by me. Electrodes in the brain? Maybe not.


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16811042

2nd February 2012 -  Quote - "The Cost of Cigarettes is Killing Me".

I came across this story in The Huffington Post. In it a smoker bemoans the fact that she has to pay £7.04 (US $11.13) for her daily fix of cigarettes. Now to me that's excellent news because maybe she'll quit her addiction.


Now don't get me wrong - I'm not in favour of forcing anyone to do anything and the last thing we should do is create another law to make smoking illegal. I agree - smokers have a right to kill themselves if they want to. What I don't support is their right to affect others.


Apart from a brief experiment at the age of 14 I have never smoked. I tried but very quickly realised 1. I didn't like it. 2. I couldn't afford it. 3. Anything which made people cough obviously wasn't good for them. 4. People had problems quitting even though they wanted to quit so obviously it was addictive. 5. People who smoked didn't smell nice. I made the choice never to smoke and haven't regretted it.


Despite never smoking myself I've been faced with:

• The death of two relatives whose smoking put us through unnecessary traumatic experiences.
• Coming home stinking of tobacco because I walked through a room where people were smoking.
• Seeing impressionable children pick up the habit because they see others smoking and think it's a way of making themselves seem more adult (in their eyes) and rebelling against being forbidden to smoke.
• finding out that my home insurance premiums are higher to pay for fires in houses caused by the presence of smoking materials.
• Finding out I pay more for health insurance to pay for the medical treatment of smokers.
• Having to daily clear up the mess by smokers who think nothing of throwing out their empty cartons onto the grass outside my house.

So paying for cigarettes is killing her? That's excellent news! Quit!

The story: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ellie-slee/giving-up-smoking-costs_b_1245562.html

3rd February 2012 - 9-year-old girl back home after 6 organs are replaced in groundbreaking surgery.

A 9-year-old girl is finally home after a four year battle with cancer destroyed her stomach, liver, spleen, small intestine, pancreas, and part of her esophagus. They were all replaced by a transplant operation in October. 

Alannah Shevenell is well enough to go sledging and building a snowman.

Full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/9-year-old-maine-girl-bouncing-back-after-6-organs-are-replaced-in-groundbreaking-surgery/2012/02/03/gIQAkklGmQ_story.html

Talking of snowmen - today it snowed for the first time since 1986 in Rome. Good news for children there. http://claudenougat.blogspot.com/2012/02/rome-under-snow-what-its-really-like.html

4th February 2012 - A South African's view of Singapore where 'everything just works'.

Singapore http://www.bestcities.net/Singapore.aspx 

We hear so much of the failure of government, industry and people that it's nice to hear of a place where 'everything just works'. Donovan Kretsman, from South Africa, visited Singapore and thinks we could learn from the people there.
Full story: http://www.news24.com/MyNews24/A-Different-Perspective-20120202

			Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality. The result is 'A Vested Interest', a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman
UK £9.29	UK £1.91	UK £1.53

Week 4: 22nd - 28th January 2012

I got sick of hearing all the doom and gloom given to us as 'news' by the media so decided to look every day for some good news. Sometimes it's quite difficult to find. I post the good news for the day on Twitter and every week I plan on posting a summary here.

Found some good news? If I didn't spot it please feel free to add it.

Well here goes - the fourth week of January 2012

22nd January 2012 - Chinese man breaks his little finger after being hit by 8 cars.

Li Tao was hit by a taxi, bounced over the roof and broke his little finger. "I'm fine," he said. What makes this story unusual is that this was the eighth time he'd been hit by a car that day! It's a day's work for Li, a chinese stuntman. Full story http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/life/2012-01/16/content_14455388.htm


Of course there's a downside to any story - Li Tao does this for just $32 a day.


Today was a truly rotten day for finding good news so in best 'Some Better News' tradition you'll be pleased to hear that:

• Thousands of people were not killed by an earthquake in southern Syria as in 1837
• A ship called the SS Northfleet did not sink at Dungeness, England. 300 people were not drowned as in 1873.
• There wasn't a train crash in Los Angeles so 30 people lived unlike 1956
• There wasn't a mine disaster in Johnburg meaning 417 didn't die as in 1960.

23rd January 2012 - EU proposes 'Right to be forgotten' law.

You probably won't understand why this is good news unless you've ever tried to get your Facebook, Twitter or other website account deleted. You may think it's gone but the data you posted is often still there on sites such as the Internet Archive or Google's cache. Certainly you can delete the account but the data is still there.


To most people that doesn't matter. many make in-discrete statements on our accounts which we later regret. 

• In December 2011 a congressman fired three aids who made remarks about him on Twitter
• In April 2011 a policeman was confined to desk duties after making remarks about his job on Facebook
• Families have split up after Facebook pictures and posts were made
• Young people have posted items on social media sites which years later prevented them getting jobs
• The Child Support Agency and other government agencies keep an eye on the Facebook pages of people they deal with.

The European Union is proposing new laws which give people the right to have data concerning them forgotten as part of it's laws reforming data protection. 

Full story http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16677370 

24th January 2012 - Fold-up car unveiled in Europe.

A lot has been made of the pollution caused by cars over the last few years and car manufacturers have responded by producing smaller, fuel efficient and electric cars. The trouble is that many of them are treated more as a joke than as a car. Yet back in the 50's and early 60s there were small 'fun' cars around which cost very little to run. I remember owning a 'Bubble car' as a student. It cost me £5 to buy, £5 to insure, £5 to tax and in a year I spent less than £5 on petrol/gas. 


Today a similar car was unveiled and tried out by the European Commisionar of Spain.
Like a child's stroller it can fold up to save space. It's electrically powered and can reach a top speed of 31mph and travel 75 miles on a single charge. Three of them will fit in a normal parking bay. It seats two.


Details at http://www.theverge.com/2012/1/25/2733709/hiriko-folding-car-electric-ev-citycar-mit

Incidentally my bubble car could reach 55mph and travel 200 miles on it's 2 gallon tank. Like the car tested by the commissioner it's door opened at the front. It could seat 3 (5 at a struggle) Impressive how we've advanced since the 60's

25th January 2012 - Like fried food? It CAN be healthy!

Lots of people love that fried breakfast but are concerned that it can be bad for the heart. Now a report indicates that it can be a healthy breakfast..


Apparently it's all a question of what sort of oil you use. Olive and sunflower oils seem to be the best. 


I have to admit this report didn't come as news to me but it's nice to have it confirmed by a scientific study.

26th January 2012 - The 'Cash Mob' hits an Ohio store.

Chagrin Falls hardware totals up the day's takings.
 Picture by  AP Photo/Amy Sancetta  the Denver Post 

Supermarkets and 'big box' stores have meant that many small businesses struggle to make a living. One such store in Chagrin Falls, Ohio was feeling the pinch. E-mail, Facebook and Twitter made a difference though. A challenge was sent out by Jim Black, a resident of the town,  for people in the area to support these 'good people' by spending at least $20 at the store on 21 January. The message was passed around by Internet and on the appointed day hundreds visited the store to buy. 


What a great idea. Can you think of 'good people' in your area who would benefit from similar action?


Full story: http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_19816216

27th January 2012 - Asteroid near miss.

An asteroid, discovered on Wednesday, passed the Earth within one fifth of the distance of the Moon. That's considered a near miss. It wasn't by any means a huge object - just 36 feet across, but it passed within 60,000 Km and, had it been on a collision course, was discovered too late for us to do anything about it.


In this case it was too small to cause much  damage if it had impacted but there are others out there which could wipe out humanity. In the last three months there have been two near misses (that we know of)


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16756450

28th January 2012 - A bad day for good news.
To find good news I search the UK, US, Canadian, Australian, Indian, Sri Lankan, New Zealand, South African and Chinese news services. Today, apart from an article about a new method of growing new bone for people who are disfigured (South Africa), I couldn't find any good news. Weekends do tend to be slow for good news so far this year but today was the worst case. So today's good news is....

• The Pope did NOT have to give up his son as a hostage to the French (unlike 1495!)
• Syria was not in any danger from besieging Christians (unlike 1099)
• The English didn't ship any convicts to Australia (unlike 1788)
• Paris wasn't invaded by Prussians (unlike 1871)

			Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality. The result is 'A Vested Interest', a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman
UK £9.29	UK £1.91	UK £1.53

15th - 21st January 2012

I got sick of hearing all the doom and gloom given to us as 'news' by the media so decided to look every day for some good news. Sometimes it's quite difficult to find. I post the good news for the day on Twitter and every week I plan on posting a summary here.

Found some good news? If I didn't spot it please feel free to add it.

Well here goes - the third week of January 2012

15th January 2012 - Three survivors found on stricken cruise ship.

24 hours after the cruise ship Costa Concordia sank rescue workers found three survivors trapped within the ship.


One of the survivors had a broken leg. It later transpired that this Italian crew member, Manrico Gianpetroni, had made repeated trips inside the ship to guide passengers to safety. On his last trip he had fallen and broken his leg.


Full story at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16564789

16th January 2012 - Dramatic rescue on round-the-world yacht race.

A British sailor was plucked from the sea by his new Zealand co-skipper when he was washed overboard while changing sails on their yacht. The yacht was out of sight before it could be turned around and the Brit was left alone in heavy seas without a lifejacket. After 25 minutes the rescue was finally made and the yacht went on to win that leg of the race.


Full story: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10779199

17th January 2012 - World's first tidal current generator gets 24 hour go-ahead.

It may not be the first site to produce power from the tides; the tidal barrage at the Rance River in France has that honour, but today the go-ahead was given to the Seagen generator at Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland to run 24 hours a day. This generator uses the strong current produced by the tide to turn a turbine and produce electricity. Unlike other tidal schemes there is no barrage involved. Until now there have been concernes that the blades of the generator could injure the local wildlife - seals especially. As a result the generator has only been allowed to run during daylight hours. Those fears have now been proved unfounded and the generator will run full time producing the power needed for 1,500 homes.


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-16595752 and http://www.seageneration.co.uk/faq.asp

18th January 2012 - Meet the accidental billionaire.

Several years ago I waited at an ATM in Scotland. The man in front of me asked for £20 and the machine threw a fit and kept pumping out money at him until he had over £200, far more than he had in the bank at that time. Something similar happened to Parijat Saha in India. He went to an ATM expecting his balance to be about 10,000 rupees (about $200) and found he had 490 billion rupees ($9.8 bn). 


For someone who normally earns $700 a month as a teacher he doesn't look too happy though! The Indian State Bank is looking into the problem.


I wonder how much daily interest they are going to give him on that ultimate 'bank error in your favour'?


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-16607018

19th January 2012 - Apple producing digital textbooks.

Apple launched the iBook2 textbooks today. 


So why is a product launch by Apple good news? 


The answer is that for years schools have regularly paid a small fortune for textbooks each year. At universities and colleges too cash strapped students have struggled to carry round weighty textbooks which cost a fortune to buy. Apple, throwing it's weight behind digital textbooks can only be good news since:

• It will encourage others to do the same
• There will be an ever increasing number of textbooks available
• The textbooks are far easier to update than a printed book
• The cost should be lower
• It will encourage the development of colour liquid paper displays
• Textbook shortages will not be a problem
• It will encourage other reading and the development of ebook readers
• Authors will make more money
• A single e-reader can hold an entire student library

20th January 2012 - NEOShield gets funding.

NEOShield stands for Near Earth Object Shield and this project could mean the difference between the survival of humanity and humans going the same way as the dinosaurs.


Throughout the Earth's history our planet has been bombarded by objects from space. On average there's a major impact every 2,000 years where a rock from space produces a similar effect to a nuclear detonation. Every few million years a much bigger object hits and an ELE occurs (Extinction Level Event). 75 million years ago one such event wiped out the dinosaurs.


We've seen the films but so far little progress has been made in protecting ourselves from an ELE. The dinosaurs didn't have the ability to do so but we are now at a level of technology where we might be able to protect ourselves. All we need is the funding and the will to do something before it's too late.


Today we got that funding from the EU and a program drawing on expertise in Europe, the US and Russia will start investigating what we could do.


Full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16651642

21st January 2012 - Average age of cars increasing AND Snake bit.
Again two odd subjects for good news but...

My 11 year old car and, still serviceable, 19 year old car

In the US (and elsewhere) the average age of cars has been slowly increasing for a number of years. Today it was announced that the average car age is eleven years. That's good news!
A car is considered to be the second major purchase we make in life. We spend thousands on them and for years we've thrown them away after just a few years. This is a tremendous waste of resources both in terms of materials and energy. 


In the past our cars have wasted a huge amount of energy and added greatly to pollution. I remember having cars which were rust heaps within five years too. That is no longer the case!


An eleven year old car today is reasonably fuel efficient, mechanically sound and rust free. There is no need to throw it away!


Full story: http://tiny.cc/s5nvo


And finally...

The normal pattern of events is:

• Extremely venomous snake bites human. 
• Human dies
• Snake escapes. 

Not so in this case. In South Africa a farmer was bitten on the toe by a puff adder. It wouldn't let go. The farmer's dog, a Jack Russell terrier, bit the snake and killed it. The farmer was rushed to hospital, was treated and survived. She even kept her toe. The dog is being treated as a hero.

Puff adder venom is cytotoxic (tissue destroying). An untreated bite can cause an edema (extensive watery blood oozing from the puncture wounds) nausea, vomiting, swelling of the lymph nodes, necrosis, gangrene and can often be fatal.

Full story: http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Dog-kills-snake-which-bit-owner-20120121

			Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality. The result is 'A Vested Interest', a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman
UK £9.29	UK £1.91	UK £1.53