You might very well think that, but I couldn't possibly comment

I am more and more attracted to the theory that the Man of Steel has fallen inextricably in love with Francis Urquhart, and has decided to amuse himself by putting about a bit of stick, mainly in the direction of Peter Costello.

Costello seems to have forgotten that in Australia, succession is a blood sport and no-one gets handed the top job. It may not be pretty to look at, but that's the way it is. It's also something Gordon Brown might like to think about in the UK.

Not all news is bad news

Fastest-evolving genes in humans and chimps revealed

The most comprehensive study to date exploring the genetic divergence of humans and chimpanzees has revealed that the genes most favoured by natural selection are those associated with immunity, tumour suppression, and programmed cell death.

These genes show signs of positive natural selection in both branches of the evolutionary tree and are changing more swiftly than would be expected through random mutation alone. Lead scientist Rasmus Nielsen and colleagues at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, examined the 13,731 chimp genes that have equivalent genes with known functions in humans.

Research in 2003 revealed that genes involved with smell, hearing, digestion, long bone growth, and hairiness are undergoing positive natural selection in chimps and humans. The new study has found that the strongest evidence for selection is related to disease defence and apoptosis - or programmed cell death - which is linked to sperm production.

I decided to post this instead of my latest argument for intelligent design — that the role of the prostate in male homosexual climax proves the existence of a gay-friendly deity.




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