<img alt=“Florida.jpg” src=“https://blogs.nature.com/nm/spoonful/Florida.jpg” width=“250” height=“187” align=“right” border=0 hspace=“10px”/>

— As Massachusetts goes, so goes health care reform, it seems. Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley last night for Ted Kennedy’s vacated Massachusetts Senate seat, imperiling the health care bill currently making its way through Congress. Democrats will no longer have a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority, and the House is reluctant to rush the Senate’s version of the bill through, before Brown takes his seat. (NYTimes)

— With its own malaria vaccine in development, GlaxoSmithKline announced the release of data on 13,500 compounds that could help fight the disease. The pharma giant is also opening one of its labs in Spain to up to 60 scientists and has put $8 million toward a foundation for sharing research on malaria and other neglected tropical diseases. (AP/ABC News)

— Florida is facing an uphill battle toward becoming a biotech hub. Despite the state investing $759 million toward equipment, facilities, and salaries, only 1,100 biotech jobs have been created, according to a government report. Adding on the $795 million in local and private funding, that equals about $1.4 million per job. Talk about a stimulus package! (Orlando Sentinel)

— The website Pray4Trig called for a worldwide day of prayer for former vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s son Trig, asking God to cure him of Down’s Syndrome. Though the site has now changed to Pray4Healing, its FAQ section previously stated: “Science has no way to undo this condition, which is the result of an extra chromosome; but God can.” (Alaska Dispatch)

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