EVIE BLOOMER is the first IVF baby to be born in the UK using a pioneering technique to freeze embryos.

And Evie’s parents, Ian and Rebecca, said they wanted their story to inspire other childless couples trying for a baby not to give up hope. The childhood sweethearts, from Cwmbran, South Wales, had been trying for a baby since they married in 2001. But Mrs Bloomer, 28, had endometriosis, a condition which was making it difficult for her to conceive.

After one failed attempt University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff offered the Bloomers a new way of freezing their unused embryos – embryo vitrification – that gave them a better chance of survival when they were ready to try again.

Step closer to invisibility cloak

SCIENTISTS have taken a further step towards developing a practical invisibility cloak. Materials created by researchers in the US can bend light around three dimensional objects so they seem to disappear. Applying the technology on a larger scale could pave the way to a real-life Harry Potter-style “invisibility cloak” capable of hiding a person. The invisibility effect is made possible by “metamaterials” – materials with features smaller than the wavelength of light.

Acas staff vote

HUNDREDS of staff at the organisation which helps resolves industrial disputes have started voting on whether to go on strike in a dispute over pay. More than 630 members of the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) working for Acas are being balloted over the next few weeks amid complaints in delays in settling wage deals. The union said last year’s pay rise was 10 months late, while negotiations over a rise due on August 1 have not even started. National officer Dave Cliff said there was an agreement that this year’s pay settlement would be paid on time. “However, Acas management have dragged their feet and not even started negotiating yet.’’

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