Easter 2013

Issue 27
www.bluesci.co.uk
The Cambridge University
science magazine from
Cambridge University science magazine
Northern Lights
.
Open-Source
.
Cryptography
Energy Saving
.
Everest
.
Oliver Sacks
FOCUS
A World of Music
Curing the bends
This breakthrough article included
early research into decompression
and the frst ever dive tables.
Its just one of the treasures in the
Cambridge Journals Digital Archive
journals.cambridge.org/thebends
The University of Cambridge has access
to the Cambridge Journals Archive, via
journals.cambridge.org
Hill and Greenwood decompressed
themselves, without any serious symptoms,
after short exposures at excess pressures of
as much as fve and even six atmospheres.
From The Prevention of Compressed Air Illness,
Journal of Hygiene, 1908
CP Dive Tables Ad.indd 1 15/03/2013 20:12
Have you Heard the Northern Lights?
Shane McCorristine examines the eerie sounds
made by the glowing sky
Contents 1
Cambridge University science magazine
Easter 2013
Issue 27
Contents
BlueSci was established in 2004 to provide a student forum for
science communication. As the longest running science magazine
in Cambridge, BlueSci publishes the best science writing from
across the University each term. We combine high quality writing
with stunning images to provide fascinating yet accessible science
to everyone. But BlueSci does not stop there. At www.bluesci.co.uk,
we have extra articles, regular news stories, podcasts and science
flms to inform and entertain between print issues. Produced entirely
by members of the University, the diversity of expertise and talent
combine to produce a unique science experience.
President: Nicola Love ................................................................ president@bluesci.co.uk
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Committee
FOCUS
Features
The Myriad Genes
Kevin C-C Chen explores the implications of a Supreme
Court ruling on BRCA cancer gene patents
6
8
Open for Everyone
Haydn King describes the open-source software
movement and two of its most striking characters
10
Commemorating a Commission
Felicity Davies celebrates the centenary of the
Medical Research Council
Cracking Codes
Philipp Kleppmann deciphers the advance of
cryptography throughout the centuries
14
Regulars
On the Cover 3
News 4
Reviews 5
Science and Policy
Maja Choma discusses the environmental
impact of biomedical research
22
History
Nathan Smith explains how the pre-antibiotic
era could come back to help us
Away from the Bench
Two weeks before he treks out, Elly Smith talks to
Dr Andrew Murray about science on Everest
Initiatives
Elizabeth Mooney remembers the opening of
the new Cambridge Science Centre
Behind the Science
Robin Lamboll looks at the controversial career
of a neurologist who works with music
Weird and Wonderful 32
26
BlueSci explores the
phenomenon of music
what it is, where it comes
from and why we do it
About Us...
28
A World of Music
12 25
16
24
Curing the bends
This breakthrough article included
early research into decompression
and the frst ever dive tables.
Its just one of the treasures in the
Cambridge Journals Digital Archive
journals.cambridge.org/thebends
The University of Cambridge has access
to the Cambridge Journals Archive, via
journals.cambridge.org
Hill and Greenwood decompressed
themselves, without any serious symptoms,
after short exposures at excess pressures of
as much as fve and even six atmospheres.
From The Prevention of Compressed Air Illness,
Journal of Hygiene, 1908
CP Dive Tables Ad.indd 1 15/03/2013 20:12
Arts and Science
Christoforos Tsantoulas explores the relationship
between music and science
30
Editor: Jannis Meents
Managing Editor: Felicity Davies
Business Manager: Michael Derringer
Second Editors: Sheenagh Aiken, Luke
Burke, Laura Burzynski, Keren Carss,
Maja Choma, Aaron Critch, Kathrin Felder,
Nicola Hodson, Robin Lamboll, Ana Leal-
Cervantes, Shaun Lim, Nicola Love, Vicki
Moignard, Deirdre Murphy, Laura Pearce,
Laura Schmidt, Elly Smith, Nathan Smith,
Caroline Sogot, Christoforos Tsantoulas,
Theodosia Woo
Copy Editors: Luke Maishman, Laura
Pearce, Martha Stokes, Theodosia Woo
News Editor: Joanna-Marie Howes
News Team: Mrinalini Dey, Joanna-Marie
Howes, Toby McMaster
Reviews: Maja Choma, Yvonne Collins,
Christoforos Tsantoulas
Focus Team: Matthew Dunstan, Nicola
Hodson, Zac Kenton, Elly Smith
Weird and Wonderful: Jordan Ramsey,
Joy Thompson, Theodosia Woo
Production Team: Philipp Kleppmann,
Esther Lau, Shaun Lim, Louise Nicol,
Laura Pearce, Caroline Sogot, Christoforos
Tsantoulas
Illustrators: James Conan Baker,
Josephine Birch, Alex Hahn, Aleesha
Nandhra, Christos Panayi, Emily Pycroft
Cover Image: Dr Daniela Sahlender
ISSN 1748-6920
2 Editorial Easter 2013
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Issue 27: Easter 2013
humans have been making music for thousands of
years. Te oldest musical instrument dates to 36,000 years
ago, and it is possible that the Neanderthals were already
able to make music long before that. In fact, music may
even predate the development of language! But much has
changed since the frst notes were blown on a fute made
of bone. From the prehistoric age, medieval minstrels,
Mozart and Duke Ellington, all the way to the present day,
music has become more and more universal. In todays
high-speed society, most of us could not imagine a world
without music. Many people use it as a creative outlet that
counterbalances their day-to-day life, and some just listen to
it in order to relax. And yet, we are rarely consciously aware
of the importance music has in our lives. Indeed, there are
few human abilities that we have possessed for such a long
time and that we know so little about.
In this issue of BlueSci, we try to decipher this
omnipresent phenomenon. In the Focus, we look at what
music actually is, where it comes from, and fnally ask the
question why we play music. Our Regulars and Features,
deal with music in a more specifc way: we examine its
relationship with science and how these two disciplines
can proft from one another. We look at the life of Oliver
Sacks who uses music in the treatment of his neurological
patients and we listen to the sound of one of natures most
fascinating phenomena: the Northern Lights.
But of course, music is not all that puzzles us. Tis
diverse issue will introduce you to the science of
cryptography and to the un-encrypted world of open-
source software. We look at Cambridge as a scientifc
hot-spot and some of the issues it faces and, fnally, we
celebrate extraordinary achievements that have brought us
to where we are now: we talk about science conducted on
Mount Everest, 60 years after its summit was frst climbed;
85 years after Fleming published his work on penicillin,
we remember what treatments were available before that;
and we look back at 100 years of research funded by the
Medical Research Council.
As you know, we at BlueSci are always looking for new
faces to contribute to our next issue. You could be an
author, an editor, a member of our production team, flm
or radio crew or many other things. If you fnd yourself
interested, please get in touch. Tat would truly be music to
our ears!
Jannis Meents
Issue 27 Editor
Striking a Chord?
Electron Microscopy
in the 1670s Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek
revolutionised science when he began to experiment
with magnifcation. His curiosity to observe
anything that could be placed under a magnifying
lens led him to be the frst person to describe
many microscopic entities, such as bacteria, which
he isolated from his own tooth plaque, algae,
nematode worms, and sperm. Leeuwenhoeks
discoveries rightly earned him the title of the
Father of Microbiology, and his descriptions of the
fascinating microscopic detail of the world fuelled
the development of microscopes like those still in
use today.
Since the time of Leeuwenhoek and his
contemporaries, we have been trying to engineer
microscopes that will allow us to view increasingly
small objects in ever more detail. Optical or light
microscopes, like those you might see in any lab
or science classroom, use light and a system of
lenses to magnify small samples, allowing us to
view them as if they were up to 2000 times larger.
However, the wavelength of visible light limits these
light microscopes in their resolution to around
200 nanometres (200 billionths of a meter); two
objects that are closer together than this cannot be
distinguisehd any more. While this is sufcient to
clearly see plant and animal cells as well as bacteria,
it is not suitable to study organelles within the cell,
such as the nucleus, mitochondria or chloroplasts,
or to see most viruses.
In the 1920s it was shown that accelerated
electrons could behave like light waves when in
a vacuum, and furthermore, the path of these
electrons could be shaped by electric and magnetic
felds in a similar way to how glass lenses focus light.
In 1933, these discoveries lead the German scientist
Ernst Ruska to build the frst microscope that used
electrons rather than light waves. It was named,
rather unimaginatively, the electron microscope.
Ruska won the Nobel Prize for his work, but not
until 1986. Initially, his invention didnt impress
the scientifc community as it was impractical to
use, had the tendency to burn samples and its
resolution was no better than that of traditional
light microscopes. It wasnt until fve years and
several prototypes after his frst one that the
electron microscope gained popularity. Tis was
in no small part due to the discovery that coating
biological samples with heavy metals, such as lead
or uranium, helped separate electrons, thus giving
better contrast.
Electron microscopes magnify by fring streams of
electrons at an object. Te electrons hit the object,
bounce of and are focused by electromagnetism
onto a screen or a photographic plate to make
a visible image. As an electron has a wavelength
around 100,000 times shorter than a visible
light wave, the electron microscope has a much
greater resolving power and can be used to reveal
the structure of much smaller objects than can
be seen with light microscopes. Modern electron
microscopes can resolve something as small as
50 picometers (around one trillionth of a meter)
and magnify it by up to 10 million times. Tis
resolution is staggeringly high when you consider
that the diameter of a hydrogen atom is just 100
picometers. Such high resolution allows scientists
to study cellular compartments and gain a greater
understanding of what goes on inside a cell.
Tis issues cover image illustrates the incredible
detail that can be achieved when using electron
microscopy. Taken by Daniela Sahlender from
Margaret Robinsons lab in Clinical Biochemistry,
the image shows a sub-cellular structure called a
clathrin-coated vesicle, which has been magnifed
1.6 million times. Clathrin vesicles are small
bubbles, around 100-200 nanometers in size that
are used to transport molecules, such as nutrients
and hormones within and between cells. Te
vesicles are able to pass from the outside of a cell
into the cell, a process known as endocytosis. Te
vesicles have a membrane similar to the outer
membrane of a cell and these two membranes can
merge, allowing the content of the vesicle access
to the inside of the cell. Te cover image shows
a clathrin-coated vesicle being endocytosed and
budding out from the cell membrane.
Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek would never have
believed that his work with lenses would lead to
the discovery of microscopes so powerful that tiny
intracellular structures could clearly be seen. As we
continue to build ever more powerful microscopes,
who knows what else we might discover about the
microscopic world around us.
Nicola Love explores the technique used to obtain this issues cover image
On the Cover 3 Easter 2013
Nicola Love is a 3
rd
year PhD student at the
Department of Physiology, Development and
Neuroscience
A replica of the
frst electron
microscope
developped by
Ernst Ruska in
1933
Easter 2013
Issue 27
www.bluesci.co.uk
The Cambridge University
science magazine from
Cambridge University science magazine
Northern Lights . Open-Source . Cryptography
Energy Saving . Everest . Oliver Sacks
FOCUS
AWorld of Music
j
b
r
e
w
THE HORMONE
INSULIN is best
known for its
defective action
in diabetes; those
with type one are
unable to produce
insulin and those
with type two are
unable to respond
to it efectively. Te
insulin receptor has also been shown to be involved in
several cancers, with its over-expression in malignant
cells leading to an increased insulin response. However,
new research has fnally produced a structure for the
interaction of insulin with its receptor. Tis may lead to
the development of drugs able to simulate the efects of
insulin. At the same time, the development of insulin-
mimicking molecules that would block the insulin
receptor could prevent its overexpression in cancer
cells from being an issue. Te structure of the binding
was published in Nature by Dr Michael C. Lawrence
and colleagues at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of
Medical Research in Australia. It reveals that the binding
of insulin to its receptor takes place in a way distinct
from other similar receptors. Tis implies that molecules
engineered to bind or block the insulin receptor would
be less likely to inadvertently afect other receptors.
Dr Lawrence described the discovery as a fresh
consolidation of knowledge...with the potential to feed
through into a new generation of insulin therapeutics.
DOI: 10.1038/nature11781 tm
CAMBRIDGE SCIENTISTS
have discovered four-
stranded quadruplex-helix
DNA in the year of the 60
th

anniversary of Watson and
Cricks ground-breaking
publication on the DNA
double-helix. Led by
Giulia Bif, the research group from Professor Shankar
Balasubramanians lab at the Department of Chemistry
reported in Nature Chemistry that these G-quadruplexes
exist within the human genome alongside their
double-helical counterparts. Using antibodies to detect
quadruplex-rich areas of the human genome, the group
identifed signifcant levels of quadruplex hot spots
during cell division and, more specifcally, during
DNA replication. Furthermore, the concentration of
quadruplexes decreased when replication was inhibited.
Tese fndings may lead to improvements in cancer
treatment. Cancers are caused by mutated genes, called
oncogenes that lead to uncontrolled DNA replication,
cell division and tumour growth. Consequently, the
high rate of replication increases the concentration
of quadruplexes. Targeting and trapping these excess
quadruplexes with synthetic compounds could prevent
cell proliferation in cancer. Even though the discovery
that four-stranded DNA exists within human cells is a
landmark achievement, much is still unknown about the
function of quadruplex DNA. However, it is exciting
that DNA continues to puzzle and amaze Cambridge
researchers today.
DOI: 10.1038/nchem.1548 md
4 News Easter 2013
News
THE DISCOVERY of a Higgs-like particle at the
Large Hadron Collider (LHC) may allow scientists to
determine the eventual fate of our universe. Te Higgs
boson is a theoretical particle, that, if proved to exist,
would validate Te Standard Model of particle physics
and explain the relationship between force and matter.
Atoms are comprised of protons and neutrons, orbited
by electrons. Protons and neutrons consist of quarks
whereas electrons are classed as leptons. Quarks and
leptons are held together by bosons. Two bosons, the
graviton and the Higgs, have so far eluded detection.
Last year, physicists detected a Higgs-like particle,
the mass of which spells bad news for our Universe.
Calculations predict the formation of a quantum
bubble at lower energy than its surroundings, which
our higher energy
universe will want to
occupy. Te result is
a rapid expansion of
the bubble; replacing
the known universe
as it grows. Tis
discovery suggests
the possibility of a
cyclical universe, which would make our big bang
merely the latest of a history of expansions. Just as
physicists were coming close to confrming the identity
of the Higgs, the LHC shut down for maintenance and
will start operating again in 2015.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1232005 jh
Insulinbound to help
Recipe for an unstable universe may burst our bubble
Check out
www.bluesci.co.uk
or @BlueSci
on Twitter
for regular
science news
and updates
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New twists in the tale of DNA
IN PERIODIC TALES, Hugh Aldersey-Williams goes through the periodic table not following
the atomic number order but his own logic, fnding interesting stories and anecdotes, whether
about the well-known oxygen or the less celebrated francium. Te book provides a good mix
of various cultural references, history and scientifc trivia. Each element is presented in an
eclectic, yet rather selective wayyou will fnd out where in the Bible sulphur got a mention
and how lead was used as a metaphor for the human condition. You will also be treated to
an 18
th
century recipe of how to obtain phosphorus from urinefrom 50 pails of it. Luckily,
the author follows this protocol himself, saving us all the trouble and the gross factor, while
satisfying our curiosity as to whether it will work. In short, Periodic Tales is a feast for anyone
who wants to be able to answer the questions on the comedy show QI. Personally, I could do
with fewer quotes from Shakespeare and even more stories of discoveries, whether strikes of
genius or just pure luck, and where to fnd each element. But perhaps this makes the book
more enjoyable for geeks with a more artistic slant. mC
Reviews
Reviews 5
IN BORN TO RUN, American author and runner Christopher McDougall unravels the strangely
appealing pleasures of running. Set in the remote Copper Canyon area in Mexico, the book
introduces the elusive Tarahumara tribe, reputed to be the most remarkable endurance
runners in the world. Te story follows a group of iconic Western ultrarunners who, along
with McDougall himself, set to compete against the natives in a 50-mile race organised by
the mysterious fgure Caballo Blanco. Although it reads as a pleasantly owing novel, the
characters and events are all real and the book is subtly packed with intriguing facts on the
history, physiology, and culture of running. One theme is the endurance running theory
of human evolution, according to which, many aspects of our physiology can be explained
as adaptations for long-distance running. Te author goes on to explain how the wearing
of modern cushioned shoes alters the natural running posture, holding this responsible for
the recent explosion in injury rates. Fascinating and informative, Born to Run is written
with evident underlying passion; a flm adaptation is already planned. Fellow runners will
instinctively indulge in its themes while others may well be enthused to put their trainers on, or
perhaps to even go barefoot, and discover what makes running so popular. Ct
MEDICINE IS BROKEN, Ben Goldacre fearlessly declares in his new book Bad Pharma.
As the title suggests, Goldacre takes on the multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical industry and
exposes the tricks they play to undermine the scientifc process of drug development in favour
of big proft. Using carefully collected evidence and a forensic attention to detail, Goldacre
unearths examples where drug companies have suppressed data, distorted evidence and used
poorly designed clinical trials to mislead doctors, make huge profts and expose patients to
unnecessary harm. If this is not shocking enough, Goldacre also brings to light the failings of
those responsible for assessing the science objectively: from the regulators, to scientifc journals
and academic establishments. Although this book may seem a little unbalanced at times,
Goldacre attempts to compensate this by acknowledging the importance of the pharmaceutical
industry as a whole, and outlining obvious fxes throughout. Even though the tone is much
more serious and intense than in his previous book Bad Science, his witty writing style,
indignant passion and ability to humanise the numbers brings the subject matter to life and
makes this book a worthwhile read. YC
Bad Pharma: how drug companies mislead doctors and harm
patients Ben Goldacre
Penguin, 2012, 9.99
Fourth Estate, 2012,
13.99
Periodic Tales Hugh Aldersey-Williams
Born to Run Christopher McDougall
Prole Books, 2010,
8.99
Easter 2013
THE AURORA BOREALIS, or the Northern Lights, is
a natural luminous light phenomenon that occurs in
the night sky at polar latitudes and is sometimes visible
in the northern hemisphere. For centuries aurora-
watchers have reported hearing strange sounds of
hissing and fapping during an auroral manifestation,
but most scientists think of these as an anomaly.
Before the emergence of geomagnetic theories,
natural philosophers and scientists had various
interpretations of aurorae: they thought they were
caused by solar rays, sulphurous vapours, electric fuid,
combustion of infammable air or glaciers. Indigenous
people of the North, on the other hand, interpreted
them as the torches of the spirits of the recently
deceased, its motions as spirits (or children who died
still-born) playing football, and its sounds as voices
coming from the otherworld.
During the Enlightenment natural philosophers
sought to separate science from superstition, by
establishing stricter boundaries between empirical
expertisethe western savantand folk beliefs,
including those of indigenous inhabitants; although
this process of purifcation was unable to fully consign
folk beliefs to the scrapheap. For instance, in the
1780s, while looking back at the famous appearance
of the aurora in England of 1716, Tomas Pennant
criticised the vulgar suppositions of the populace,
and suggested instead the natural explanation of a
great abundance of electrical matter. Pennant believed
this theory was supported by the sounds the aurora was
reported to make: crackle, sparkle, hiss.
However, while indigenous witnesses reported
distinct sounds of rushing, hissing, rustling, and
crackling during meteoritic auroral activity to western
travellersthe Sami people call the aurora guovssahas
(the light that can be heard)this became a contentious
issue once the great age of Arctic exploration began in
the nineteenth century. Even if descriptions of these
sounds were remarkably similar across regions and
cultures, there was no instrumental evidence of their
existence, and therefore most British scientists and
Arctic explorers did not believe it. Long and attentive
observation by expeditioners during successive winters,
utilising the latest scientifc instruments, all failed to
prove the existence of auroral sounds. Tis fact meant
that perceiving the aurora borealis became interrelated
with issues of credibility and expertise.
One sceptic put forward the popular argument that as
none of the most well-known Arctic explorers had ever
heard the aurora borealis, it was likely that any sound
might easily be attributed to the aurora, when the mind
is excited by the wondrous spectacle, and susceptible to
every illusion. Naturalistic explanations ranging from
acoustic illusions to environmental noise (the sound
of the wind, waves, and cracking ice) were deployed if
sounds occurred.
However, narratives in the library of the Scott Polar
Research Institute reveal a more complicated and
indeterminate picture of beliefs at the time, showing
that the typical disenchanted pose of the scientifc
traveller was afected by testimonies from permanent
European residents in the Arctic regarding the sounds
of the Northern Lights. Indeed, tales received from fur
traders working for the Hudsons Bay Company could
destabilise the sceptical position on auroral audibility.
Writing of his travels through northern Canada from
1769-72, the fur trader Samuel Hearne afrmed that
in still nights I have frequently heard [the Northern
Lights] make a rustling and crackling noise, like the
waving of a large fag in a fresh gale of wind. Hearnes
account, which accepted that many non-indigenous
travellers had not heard such sounds, became well-
known among later British explorers, but it did not
have an adequate scientifc theory to explain them. A
scientifc amateur, the English fur trader and explorer
David Tompson was the frst to specifcally test for
auroral sounds. He spent the winter of 1796-97 at
Reindeer Lake, Saskatchewan, where he performed
some basic experiments on the perception of the
Northern Lights: in the rapid motions of the Aurora
we were all perswaded [sic] we heard them, reason told
me I did not, but it was cool reason against sense. My
men were positive they did hear the rapid motions of
the Aurora, this was the eye deceiving the ear; I had my
6 Have You Heard the Northern Lights? Easter 2013
Shane McCorristine examines the eerie sounds made by the glowing sky
P
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The English
explorer David
Thompson was
the frst to test for
auroral sounds
Have You Heard the
Northern Lights?
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