Been There, Done That

Rewriting Evolution—“Been There, Done That”

A recent paper by a science journalist in Nature shows major errors in understanding phylogenies, in this case of placental mammals. The underlying unrooted tree is probably correct, but the placement of the root just reflects a well-known error from the acceleration in the rate of evolution among some myomorph rodents.

Pragmatism in bioethics: been there, done that.

It has often been remarked that bioethics is a quintessentially American phenomenon. Broadly speaking, bioethics as a field has tended to enshrine the value of autonomy, it places individual rights above communal well-being, and it has adopted a largely permissive and optimistic view of emerging biotechnologies. In contrast to much European thinking at the intersection of ethics and medicine, A...

Mate Choice: Been There, Done That

Females may benefit from mating with several males, but how can they avoid mating with the same male repeatedly? A new study of crickets has found that females mark their mates to avoid repeat copulations.

Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction in COPD-associated pulmonary hypertension: been there, done that?

To many of us involved in teaching pulmonary physiology and gas exchange to medical students, hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) is a favourite topic. The unique property of small pulmonary arteries to constrict in response to a reduced alveolar oxygen tension allows us to cover not only the complexities of ventilation perfusion matching, but also to dive into the more exciting “physiolog...

Been There, Done That: What Your Mobility Traces Reveal about Your Behavior