SCIENCELIVE

A highly anticipated clinical trial has shown that treating patients with epilepsy with a compound derived from marijuana can significantly reduce and, in some cases, eliminate seizures in children and young adults. In the study, children and young adults with a rare and debilitating form of epilepsy called Dravet syndrome who took doses of  marijuana  extract experienced half as many seizures per month as those who received a placebo. And 5 percent of those treated with the marijuana extract, called cannabidiol, became seizure-free during the study period. [ 25 Odd Facts About Marijuana ] Currently, there aren't any medications that can completely control seizures in children with Dravet syndrome, according to the  Epilepsy Foundation . The study, published today (May 24) in the  New England Journal of Medicine , is among the first to provide solid, clinical evidence to support a form of treatment that is becoming fairly widespread with the advent of medical marijuana, but whi

In 1912, Charles Dawson, an amateur archaeologist in England, claimed he'd made one of the most important fossil discoveries ever. Ultimately, however, his "Piltdown Man" proved to be a hoax. By cleverly pairing a human skull with an orangutan's jaw – stained to match and give the appearance of age – a mysterious forger duped the scientific world. In the decades between the find's unearthing and the revelation it was fraudulent, people in the United States and around the world learned about Piltdown Man as a "missing link" connecting ape and man. Newspaper articles, scientific publications  and museum exhibitions  all presented Piltdown Man as a legitimate scientific discovery supporting a particular vision of human evolution. Historians, science writers and others have  investigated the Piltdown Man controversy  over the years, shedding  new light on the fraud . As we reconsider the nature of " facts ," " fake news " and knowledge

A morbidly obese macaque who lives near a floating market in Thailand is raising eyebrows for his sheer size. At about 33 lbs. (15 kilograms), the chubby monkey, dubbed "Uncle Fatty" by tourists in the park, dwarfs his average-size comrades, who typically weigh about between 13.2 and 15.4 lbs. (6 and 7 kg), said Patricia Turner, a pathobiologist at the University of Guelph in Canada, who has studied  obesity  in macaques. The portly primate is now entering a special wildlife rescue center to get to a healthier state. But how exactly did Uncle Fatty get so rotund, and are the causes and consequences of obesity in animals similar to those found in humans? "Like humans,  macaques  become obese from consuming excess calories — regardless of the type of food," Turner told Live Science in an email. And it turns out that Uncle Fatty isn't alone: As animals that live in association with humans take up the habits of people, the animals too are facing increased rates