Football stars, for all their riches, are not immune from the fears and hazards of us all

For some 70 years the impact of Sir Alan Cottrell's work on the basic understanding of materials and its application to engineering structures, his academic leadership, his role of Scientific Adviser to the Government, and his contributions to safe nuclear energy, have been immense. He was the most influential physical metallurgist of the 20th century. Through his pioneering researches, and as an educator, he influenced countless students, scientists and engineers and will continue to do so. His papers and books are remarkable for their clarity.

The best-known member of Aldershot, Farnham and District Athletics Club – past or present – has been in the news this week. It was announced on Tuesday that Zola Budd is to run in the 56-mile Comrades Marathon in South Africa in June – the ultimate running challenge for the woman who famously tangled with Mary Decker in the 3,000m at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.

Modified forms of the drug Ecstasy may be effective against leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma, early research has suggested.

All new babies should be routinely screened for life-threatening heart defects using a simple and painless test, researchers say. The pulse oximetry test measures blood oxygen levels in newborns using a small skin sensor on the hands or feet.

Noreen Murray was recognised internationally as being one of Britain's most distinguished and highly respected molecular geneticists.

Our congratulations to Diana Layfield, who was appointed regional chief executive officer for Africa by Standard Chartered Bank yesterday. Ms Layfield shouldn't have too many problems finding her way round in her new post: her impressive CV, which boasts an education from Oxford University and Harvard plus a stint at McKinsey & Co, also reveals that Layfield spent two years piloting relief planes for the International Committee of the Red Cross and United Nations in Africa.

Scientists have built an "invisibility cloak" that can hide everyday objects by splitting light.

Michael Green, who collapsed and died suddenly at his home in Birmingham on 14 December, was an academic who helped to establish the discipline of cultural studies at the pioneering Birmingham Centre for Cultural Studies. His death shocked and deeply saddened the many who knew and respected him, both friends and colleagues, as well as his close family. He was in his mid-60s.

Mini-versions of the "Big Bang" which gave birth to the universe almost 14 billion years ago have been created within the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the giant machine probing the nature of matter near Geneva.

New research holds out the hope of ending the misery of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) for many thousands of sufferers, it was revealed today.