The University of Minnesota's Consortium on Law and Values in Health, Environment & the Life Sciences will host a major conference on "Should We Return Research Results and Incidental Findings from Genomic Biobanks & Archives," from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, May 19, Bethesda, Md.

When a heart attack begins, a stopwatch starts. With each passing minute heart tissue is deprived of blood, causing it to deteriorate or die. In order to minimize damage to the heart, blood flow must be restored promptly, or the effects can be serious, often even fatal. Research shows that the length of time between when a heart attack starts and when treatment begins is fundamental to improving survival rates; so what if an alarm sounded at the onset of a heart attack signaling the immediate need for medical attention?

Exotic bacteria that do not rely on oxygen may have played an important role in determining the composition of Earth's early atmosphere, according to a theory that UChicago researcher Albert Colman is testing in the scalding hot springs of a volcanic crater in Siberia.