Letters to the Editor
- Humans
Letters from the April 22, 2006, issue of Science News
Second cousins With reference to “Chimps creep closer yet” (SN: 2/11/06, p. 94), some scientists say that bonobos are genetically closer to humans than to chimps. How did they compare in the referenced study? Dick MedvickCleveland Heights, Ohio Bonobos are indeed as genetically close to humans as are chimps, but there wasn’t enough genomic data […]
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19670
This article raises a couple of questions for me. Recently, I drank some clam-tomato juice that contained jalapeño puree. It seemed to alleviate some of my internal ailments. So, I wonder if jalapeño peppers also contain capsaicin. Norman MooreBoca Raton, Fla. Jalapeño peppers do contain capsaicin, but it’s impossible to say whether the substance delivers […]
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19669
After taking some of the bias tests talked about in this article, I am very skeptical. Since the major tool is speed of reaction, and since my eyes are not too good now, the results were very curious and probably totally unreliable: Though a lifelong, unprejudiced heterosexual, the test has me biased in favor of […]
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19668
Clock time has long been out of step with the heavens. Since the adoption of time zones in the 19th century, we have accepted disparities of as much as 30 minutes at the edges of the time zones (more in some cases since time zones are set by politics, not geography). And of course, the […]
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19667
It seems that each of the moons of all of the planets within our solar system—and even some moons outside of our solar system—are named. However, it strikes me as remarkable and ironic that our own moon is the only moon that is unnamed. I think we should have a naming contest for our moon. […]
- Humans
Letters from the April 15, 2006, issue of Science News
Light shift Regarding “Blasts from the Past: Astronomers begin to go the distance with gamma-ray bursts” (SN: 2/11/06, p. 88), why is it that visible light is shifted to lower frequencies but gamma rays aren’t? Shouldn’t they have become X rays after all that distance? Stephen WoodOrlando, Fla. All wavelengths are redshifted. That means that […]
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19666
Although I love finding out about how traits supposedly unique to humans are shared by animals, I don’t see how the experiment in this article demonstrates episodic memory in hummingbirds. How is this not the simple sensing (smelling) of the sugar drink in the syringes? Yvonne LyerlaSonoma, Calif. Researcher T. Andrew Hurly says that his […]
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19665
A great earthquake occurs on average every 130 years in the southern part of the San Andreas fault, so Los Angeles is long overdue. Make no mistake, loss of life, injuries, and damage will be on an apocalyptic scale. The government may take days or weeks to bring in help. You must take responsibility for […]
- Humans
Letters from the April 8, 2006, issue of Science News
Hot and cold “Warming climate will slow ocean circulation” (SN: 2/4/06, p. 77) makes me wonder, Does continental drift cause occasional changes to the ocean’s currents? Would major reorganizations of ocean currents tend to cause ice ages by temporarily disrupting the flow of warm water that normally keeps the ice at bay? Would simulations of […]
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19664
Could it be that the ancient teeth discovered with drill marks but no signs of fillings were drilled to relieve abscesses? On a long holiday weekend years ago, a dentist opened and drained an abscess for me until I could get back home to my regular dentist. It relieved the pain almost instantly. David WattGlasgow, […]
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19663
Changing the diet of pigs, cows, chickens, etc., to include more omega-3 fatty acids would be a healthy alternative to genetic engineering and wouldn’t require government approval. In particular, the weed purslane is higher in omega-3s than any other vegetable and is also edible by humans, although it is not generally available in markets. In […]
- Humans
Letters from the April 1, 2006, issue of Science News
The prion game I must quibble about the headline of the piece about chronic wasting disease in deer (“Hunter Beware: Infectious proteins found in deer muscle,” SN: 1/28/06, p. 52). “Hunter Beware” sounds ominous, but in order to get the mice to exhibit symptoms after getting muscle tissue from infected deer, it was necessary to […]
