Some University of Illinois scientists are praising naked mole rats for their latest scuttle up the evolutionary tree: The mole rats are insensitive to certain kinds of pain. When drops of acid are placed on the skin of these creatures, they don't seem to notice. Naked mole rats, the only known mammals that are cold-blooded, live together in groups in their underground burrows. The researchers think high levels of CO2--a potentially acidic gas humans and animals exhale--in the burrows led to the "pain-free" adaptation. The cause of the mole rats' imperviousness to acid is thought to be the lack of a neurotransmitter called substance P, an unusual neural wiring of the mole rat's spine, and other adaptations in the animals' skin.

You can only imagine the futuristic medical possibilities here. Imagine a genetic switch you could turn off and enjoy a life completely devoid of pain. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Oh yeah, I guess it would be a problem if you were touching a hot skillet and didn't realize it.

 The problem here is that evolution isn't upward in this case, (Actually, evolution is never upward, which is why it's better called adaptation) since the naked mole rats are again losing--having already lost their, um, clothes--a certain ability, the ability to know if their skin is being damaged. Although the idea of pain-free living is initially attractive and sounds like a positive adaptation, in reality it's a step backwards. It's likely this particular mutation would have been selected against in a any population of above-ground mammals.

Other stuff: The Dakota Voice spotlights peer review biased against creationism.