The two residences served by the well now have water treatment systems that can reduce manganese to levels that do not present a health concern.

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And now defense attorneys for a dozen companies are asserting that manganese-induced Parkinson's and its supposed symptoms were fabricated "out of thin air" by lawyers and a physician working with them.

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Whether the rock varnish is rich in manganese, and whether nature or past or present life created it, are questions that could be tackled by two U.S. rovers and one European lander that are scheduled to reach the red planet in 2003 and 2004.

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