Letters to the Editor
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19782
This article took a wrong turn into Hormesis Swamp. The hormesis thesis has been thoroughly discredited by all major radiation organizations and professional societies, and its past conferences have been sponsored by tobacco companies and the U.S. Air Force. Lynn Howard EhrlePlymouth, Mich.
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19781
Regarding this article, there are also suspected connections between high-impedance commuting and blood pressure, commuting and unhealthy exposure to air pollution, and commuting and back problems and anxiety. Combined with the effects of auto emissions on global warming, one would think that national debates on sprawl and mass transit are long overdue. Julia JorgensenHouston, Texas […]
- Humans
Letters from the January 20, 2007, issue of Science News
Sea tales In “Dashing Rogues” (SN: 11/18/06, p. 328) on rogue waves, you make no mention of the use of satellite data, which is ideal for this sort of study. Two projects, in particular, are of great relevance: the European Union’s MaxWave study and the subsequent WaveAtlas project. The former, with just 3 weeks’ data, […]
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19780
Would it be feasible for the government to require both folate and vitamin B12 in grain products? Nancy PowerAltadena, Calif. Researchers say that such double fortification is theoretically possible. However, vitamin B12 is more expensive than folate, and it turns flour pink. —B. Harder
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19779
Do cows and other domestic-herd animals really emit more methane than bison and other wild-herd animals emitted before people came along? Do grass, alfalfa, and other pasture plants remove less carbon dioxide than do forests? There were open grasslands before pastures replaced some forests. I hope the people who are researching these things take such […]
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19778
Morse code “fist” analysis can easily be defeated by a software buffer that conforms the intervals between all types of strokes. Actual Morse buffers are already in regular use among ham operators. “Writeprints” can also be defeated. “Clickprints” aren’t as easy to conceal, perhaps, but some clever software designer will devise a foil for them […]
- Humans
Letters from the January 13, 2007, issue of Science News
Sunny exposition “The Antibiotic Vitamin” (SN: 11/11/06, p. 312) reminds me that in preantibiotic days, tuberculosis patients were put on a fresh-air-and-sunshine regimen. Could the vitamin D so acquired account for the cures this system sometimes produced? Nancy AxfordSacramento, Calif. Researcher John J. Cannell points to TB sanitariums as anecdotal evidence that sunlight fights infections.—J. […]
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19777
At least on Earth, rock impacts result in charging of the particles. In space, wouldn’t this have a great effect on the motion of the rocks? Stuart HoenigTucson, Ariz. According to researchers, it’s true that the electrostatic charging of space dust and rocks may affect the motions of small particles. However, little is known about […]
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19776
Without a corresponding study of bone densities, it’s not possible to determine whether the link between proton-pump inhibitors and increased fractures in people over age 50 is due to increased numbers of falls (dizziness, etc.) or to bone damage. It would be extremely helpful to try to tease out the cause behind this linkage. Dan […]
- Humans
Letters from the January 6, 2007, issue of Science News
Gone with the heat? “Feeling the heat of an extrasolar planet” (SN: 10/28/06, p. 285) made me wonder how long a gas planet is expected to survive when one of its faces is more than 1,000°C. The conventional model of our solar system assumes that gas planets can form and survive only in a cold […]
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19775
The statement in the article that astronomers “don’t yet have” a probe to journey to the vicinity of a black hole is puzzling. As far as I know, the closest known black hole is V4641, more than 1,500 light-years away. Given that, the implied assumption that a probe will someday be able to reach a […]
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19774
I haven’t seen any reference to the similarity between the “morphing” wing in this article and the “warping” wing that the Wright brothers used on their gliders and powered aircraft. It seems we’ve come full circle in our quest to emulate the flight of birds. Paul BakerBrowns Valley, Calif.
