Immer nur Dinge?

B.C. . Only with the experiment of Torricelli in 1644, however, did it become possible to distinguish questions of empty space clearly from implications of air pressure. The natural sciences subsequently developed on the basis of the ancient atomists‘ concept: the world is made up exclusively of unbreakable atoms and the empty space between them. In contrast to this, modern physics has confirmed another kind of ancient speculation to the effect that there cannot be empty space anywhere at any time. However, this approach has failed to answer the questions addressed with it. Beginning with a historical review, the article describes present-day answers to the ancient question of the void.     

Prenatal diagnosis of cystinosis utilizing chorionic villus sampling

The prenatal diagnosis of cystinosis is currently based on the increased amount of free-cystine present in amniotic fluid cells. Amniocyte cultures must be grown for at least 2 weeks to obtain sufficient cells for such measurements. Thus, the diagnosis cannot be made until close to 20 weeks gestational age by this method. We report a case in which chorionic villi were used for direct cystine measurement resulting in the in utero diagnosis of cystinosis at 9 weeks gestational age. The diagnosis was confirmed by the study of cultured chorionic villus cells, and of the 10-week abortus.