Word: defectiveness
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Word of the flaw in Intel's Pentium chip, the powerful new brain in 4 million personal computers sold this year, began circulating before Thanksgiving. But the manufacturing problem was nothing compared with the flaw in Intel's understanding of how to keep good customer relations. Having kept the defect secret for months, Intel blithely dismissed the criticism at first, maintaining that the imperfection in the Pentium would affect only highly complex calculations. Most folks, said Intel, would encounter an inaccurate answer just once in 27,000 years; therefore, the errant chips would be replaced only if computer owners could...
Hereditary weakness can be introduced even when there is no underlying genetic defect at all. The biological interplay between individual genes can be extremely complicated, and breeding to enhance one characteristic can have unintended consequences. Vets believe the retinal disease that afflicts most collies may fall into this category. The gene responsible may lie very close to the one that gives collies their long noses and closely set eyes -- traits that have been deliberately emphasized by breeders. Says Dr. Donald Patterson, chief of the medical genetics section at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine: "Many people have...
...that can be done to improve overall canine health. One factor that is forcing breeders to pay closer attention to genetic problems is the emergence of puppy lemon laws in a dozen states, including New York, Massachusetts, California and Florida. If a dog is found to have a debilitating defect, owners can get a refund or a healthy dog in exchange, or they can force the breeder to pay the vet bills to repair a problem...
...European counterparts by imposing health standards as part of its registration process. Rather than wait for that step, individual- breed clubs are taking their own action. At least three Rottweiler clubs have ruled that dogs missing more than one tooth, which can be a sign of a genetic defect, may not be bred. English springer spaniel owners are encouraging one another not to breed dogs with temperament problems; they want to eliminate what they call the "rage syndrome," a type of brain seizure that makes some dogs lose control. And the Portuguese Water Dog Club requires breeders who advertise...
...controversy over a defect in Intel Corp.'s popular Pentium microchip heated up as scientists and engineers accused the company of being too casual in its response to the problem. According to a Nov. 7 article in the Electrical Engineering Times, the flaw in the chip can cause computers to reach incorrect answers in complex division problems approximately once in every 37 billion calculations. Intel discovered the defect last summer, and has since corrected it, but it is offering free replacement chips only to customers with provably esoteric needs. "The chip is fine," said a company spokesman. "Statistically, the average...