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Jeff Hecht reports on Roger Bilham's belief that the 1737 Calcutta earthquake should not be included in lists of major earthquakes (This Week, 16 April). However, my studies have led me to conclude that an earthquake undoubtedly did occur near Calcutta in 1737. The Gentleman's Magazine of June 1738 stated that an earthquake and a …

I could work out what your inventive correspondents Wendy Ashby and Ron Clark (Letters, 7 May) had written, without recourse to the English version. Yes, there is a need for an international language and it is not beyond the wit of mankind to devise one and agree on its use. Esperanto has been used for …

My transatlantic colleague Rodney Brooks includes among his talents an impressive quality of gusto ('Birth of a human robot', 14 May). This leads occasionally to flights of overinclusiveness, as when he lays claim across the board to the authority of Alan Turing for his own ideas on developing intelligence in machines. He is right that …

Hamburgers are possibly the most successful food to be introduced this century, but has anyone stopped to consider why? Could this be the reason? Our ancestors hunted in packs, and returned to their young, sick and elderly with a present of a mouth full of chewed meat. (This is of course the origin of our …

Tam Dalyell is right to lament the intransigence of the US in refusing to move to a first-to-file system of patent law (Forum, 16 April), but the reasons he cites for opposing the first-to-invent system do not reveal the true horrors of the current American law and its real impact on inventors. The central feature …

I would like to correct Renee Twombly's article on chronic fatigue syndrome ('The trouble with ME,' 14 May) which said that I use the term ME to describe 'CFS-like disorders believed to have a biological basis'. The name myalgic encephalomyelitis refers to a specific entity which has its own code in the WHO's International Classification …

Peter Behan suggests that heavy metals and other factors may cause enzyme malfunction, thus disrupting cellular energy production, leading to CFS/ME. Mercury and other heavy metals are well-known enzyme inhibitors, and the WHO consider dental amalgam to be the single largest source of mercury exposure for the general population. In animal experiments, placement of amalgam …

Many doctors still regard ME as a psychosocial disorder and consequently offer management advice which is either inappropriate or harmful. Such inaccurate classification can also result in a refusal of sickness/disability benefits and conflict with employers and educational authorities – neither of which are going to be beneficial in promoting recovery. To try and improve …

For the first time in a generation the Nazis are a threat across Europe. In Italy for the first time since the war fascists have achieved a place in government. In France, Germany and Russia far-right groups have gained widespread support. In this country the British National Party has been trying to gain a similar …