Letters to the Editor
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19841
People get excited about the birds and bats killed by 400-foot windmills planted in their flyways, but the average wind speed should also be considered. In our region, the wind speed averages 11 to 12 miles per hour, but the windmills are most efficient where winds are 30 mph. Unfortunately, many regions with good wind […]
- Humans
Letters from the June 9, 2007, issue of Science News
Safe passage I have to ask you to remove the subtitle “Dangerous Bridge” under the photograph of the exit ramp from the New Jamarat Bridge in Saudi Arabia (“Formula for Panic: Crowd-motion findings may prevent stampedes,” SN: 4/7/07, p. 213). There has never been an accident on that ramp, and the bridge is now being […]
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19840
While testing was done on 5- or 6-year-old children, it would be interesting to see if this intuitive skill persists after these students are exposed to standard mathematical instruction in the higher grades. I suspect that the answer will be no, as students restricted to a method of learning math will be deprived of this […]
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19839
Rather than concluding that the object that hit Canada 12,900 years ago was a comet, I wonder whether there might not be an alternate reason that geologists haven’t discovered a large hole. If a meteor hit a kilometer-thick glacier, would it have left a crater in the rock underneath the ice? Peter ShorWellesley, Mass. Scientists […]
- Humans
Letters from the June 2, 2007, issue of Science News
Where there’s fire Regarding “Risky Flames: Firefighter coronaries spike during blazes” (SN: 3/24/07, p. 180), was the increased death rate due to firefighters having a higher rate of heart disease than people do in other jobs? An analysis of eating habits may reveal more insight. Jim SchmitzSt. Louis, Mo. The study looked only at what […]
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19838
I would debate the “1,000 watts or more” value attributed to typical adults during strenuous exercise as mentioned in this story. Hiking up steep slopes, I rarely exceed 250 W myself, and typical hikers are going much slower. The 1,000-watt figure can only apply to elite athletes during brief periods of peak exertion. David B. […]
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19837
As I read this article, I wondered if the sex of the killed infant was determined. In a troop characterized as having a disproportionate number of females, could it be that the chimps are selectively killing females in an attempt to balance sexes in the group? Eliza GouverneurPrinceton, N.J.
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19836
This article states that although men who suffer from migraines are more likely to experience heart attacks, scientists have failed to find a biological mechanism linking them. Such a link seems to be suggested in an earlier Science News article, “A Gasping Heart” (SN: 4/7/07, p. 218), which states that a patent foramen ovale is […]
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19835
When this article says that “scientists don’t expect traditional silicon-based solar cells to become competitive with fossil fuels,” one has to ask, “Ever?” Can anyone accurately predict the future price of polysilicon or of fossil fuels? Peter A. KaczowkaLenox, Mass. Your article notes as a put-down that it would be necessary to build a 1-gigawatt […]
- Humans
Letters from the May 26, 2007, issue of Science News
It’s cold out there I couldn’t help noticing the last sentence of “World’s climate map gets an update” (SN: 3/24/07, p. 190): “One of the system’s 30 possible climate subtypes—a temperate climate with a cold, dry summer—wasn’t found anywhere on Earth.” The comment reveals that the writer has never read Mark Twain’s comment that the […]
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19834
In view of the extreme importance of atmospheric carbon dioxide, I would have expected the momentous conclusion that southern oceans aren’t absorbing the expected increased amount of CO2, as well as the assertion that nutrient-enriched water absorbs CO2 less effectively than leaner water does, to be confirmed by field observations. As presented, your article appears […]
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19833
The fact that various teas contain beneficial antioxidants is well-known. Many claim to be slimming. Is it only oolong that inhibits fat absorption, and, if so, why? James C. MatthewsCoral Springs, Fla. Lauren Budd of the University of California, Davis works only with oolong. She acknowledges that research by others has shown a slimming effect […]
