THE INDEPENDENT OF LONDON reported May 26 that a group of paleontologists from the Institute of Archaeology at Hebrew University in Jerusalem have discovered evidence that humans may have learned to control fire 790,000 years ago, far earlier than the previously accepted date. RICHARD KLEIN, professor of anthropological sciences and an expert on early humans, said the finding is important. "I think they have made by far the best case yet for humanly controlled fire before 250,000 years ago," he said. The discovery is considered a milestone in human evolution because controlling a fire demonstrates an ability to plan ahead. The scientists found fragments of burnt flint and charred remnants from fruit trees at a site in Israel that had been preserved by extensive waterlogging over tens of thousands of years. Some of the burned vegetation, which included olive, wild barley and grape, was found grouped together, suggesting that a hearth had been used for cooking.

COCHLEAR IMPLANTS, artificial joints, genetic engineering, and mood-altering and memory-enhancing drugs are all preludes to an era when people will routinely enhance their brains, improve their bodies and perhaps live forever, the Chicago Tribune reported May 28. While members of the World Transhumanist Association in Willington, Conn., share a desire "to ethically use technology to become more than human," not everyone is thrilled with such a prospect. "There is the thinking that we will get the 'real us,' the better, higher us, from technology," said WILLIAM HURLBUT, a consulting professor in human biology who serves on the President's Council on Bioethics. Hurlbut said that what makes us human depends on being in bodies that are not always perfect and that can fail. "Our bodies are not just pieces of biochemical equipment," he said. "Our bodies are ourselves."

THE SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS argued in a June 1 editorial that schools must protect students, but they need guidance from state justices. The editorial referred to the case of a 15-year-old student who ended up in juvenile hall three years ago after sharing a poem on killing students with his new classmates. Now the state Supreme Court is deciding whether the punishment was appropriate. The editorial argued that the student should have been referred to a psychologist instead of to the police. Furthermore, writers and civil rights groups argue that the case raises questions of censorship. "There's a difference between a specific threat and a general expression of violence that involves your imagination," said English Professor ROBIAS WOLFF, an award-winning author. "If we put this kid in jail over a violent poem, it wouldn't be hard to argue that we should put most of our best-known authors there, too."