Sky window

The largest window built for use in space promises to give astronauts a spectacular view from the International Space Station, allowing them to control its robotic arm. The 80-cm-wide window is one of the seven fitted to an observation dome called Cupola, which will be attached to the ISS in 2009. Cupola has six trapezoid-shaped side windows around the large, circular one.

New language

Since 1977, deaf children in Nicaragua have been creating an increasingly sophisticated system of hand signals, Nicaraguan Sign Language, says a study done by researchers at the Columbia University. Three successive generations of children have introduced new features that are found only in true languages.

Lice varieties

DNA fingerprinting of 443 lice by the researchers at the University of Queensland, Australia, shows that head lice and body lice are two different species. Children who shared sleeping quarters showed that the lice travelled from the body of one child to that of another, or from head to head, but never between the body and head, ruling out the concept of interbreeding.