Badminton fanatic Dan Chien began noticing a change in his shuttlecocks a few months ago. The feathers seemed thinner and his shuttlecocks were falling apart at an alarming rate.

- opening paragraph of article by Jia Rui-Chong (LA Times), via Lexington Herald, 31.7.06

The H5N1 virus is posing a threat worldwide to the sport of badminton. The Guardian gives us a rundown of the situation, while NBC11.com explores the economic impact on the shuttlers of El Monte, California.

Meanwhile, National Geographic News reports the diagnosis of the related but less virulent H11 virus in three Iowa people.