Pathologist Gustavo Ayala of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, won a Creativity Award in May from the Prostate Cancer Foundation, Santa Monica, California, for his work on how nerve toxins affect tumours.

New York facility plans new building and seeks faculty members.

In Britain, organizations award 'chartered status', which claims to validate a scientist's professional credentials. But what are such designations really worth? Nadya Anscombe reports.