Letters to the Editor
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19526
This article includes three images of the Arches cluster near the center of the Milky Way, each taken with a different telescope. I’d be interested to know what the three telescopes are. John McKeeBrunswick, Maine In the trio of progressively sharper (left to right) images, the leftmost one was taken in 1994 with a 3-meter […]
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19525
Evidence of animals sensing where people are looking and what they’re seeing is interesting yet hardly new. For years, I have observed that wild rabbits will remain motionless as long as I stare in their direction. But as soon as I avert my eyes or turn my head, the rabbit is gone. Clearly, they correctly […]
- Humans
Letters from the March 12, 2005, issue of Science News
Cheaters like us? The model for the emergence of a population of “cheaters” out of a population of “cooperators” described in “When Laziness Pays: Math explains how cooperation and cheating evolve” (SN: 1/15/05, p. 35) gives a fresh viewpoint on existing ecosystems—and much more. Might the evolution of asymmetric modern sex from symmetric DNA exchange […]
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19524
The many reports of the explorations of Mars looking for water seem to be motivated by mere curiosity. Even if water is found on Mars, the lack of a Martian magnetic field would expose any life on Mars to the ravages of radiation from space. The high-velocity sandstorms would also be adverse to any life […]
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19523
Your article didn’t specify how strong the ultrasonic waves were or if any special conditions were required for these bubbles to form. I am curious to know if there’s a difference between the ultrasonic waves mentioned in your article and those in ultrasound exams of pregnant women. Andrea BikfalvyDowagiac, Mich. The article made me wonder […]
- Humans
Letters from the March 5, 2005, issue of Science News
Way-up wander? It seems interesting that undersea flows have at least one characteristic different from rivers: “While river floods on land can create natural levees a few meters tall, the levees formed by [undersea] turbidity currents can grow up to 100 m[eters] high” (“Hidden Canyons,” SN: 1/1/05, p. 9). There are several sites on Mars […]
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19522
I’m sure you published this article in good faith, but I believe that claims for shark cartilage are not made seriously by anyone who studies the role of natural substances in cancer prevention. It was proved ineffective long ago. I think your article does a disservice to honest people who are trying to fight the […]
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19521
Your article appears to suggest that healing of old people could be promoted by young people’s blood. Perhaps there is something to the Dracula story after all. Young people give blood for money. Anything known about the effect of transfusions on old people? Bill HawkinsMinneapolis, Minn. The mice in this experiment exchanged far more blood […]
- Humans
Letters from the February 26, 2005, issue of Science News
Let’s move it, people When I read of the Hubble Space Telescope–repair controversy (“People, Not Robots: Panel favors shuttle mission to Hubble,” SN: 12/18&25/04, p. 388; “Lean Times: Proposed budget keeps science spending slim,” SN: 2/12/05, p. 102), this question comes to mind: Why can’t an unmanned, powered vehicle latch on to Hubble and fly […]
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19520
Early in our history, U.S. citizens ate bushmeat. We hunted deer, bear, squirrel, rabbit, possum, turkey, pheasant, armadillo, and other wild game. We hunted because it was easier to hunt than to earn the money necessary to buy meat. We diminished our supply of wild game. Africans are simply doing what we used to do. […]
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19519
Another hypothesis for the polish on the Stone Age corundum ax head is that the Stone Age people never had absolutely pure corundum, which indeed would have required diamond to polish. It is possible that these people used one grade of corundum to make the ax head and a slightly harder grade to polish it. […]
- Humans
Letters from the February 19, 2005, issue of Science News
Negative thinking The article “Sweet Glow: Nanotube sensor brightens path to glucose detection” (SN: 1/1/05, p. 3) mentions “ferricyanide, an electron-hungry molecule.” This puzzled me no end. Aren’t ferricyanide molecules, unlike their ions, electrically neutral? I’m trying to visualize ravenous molecules gobbling up innocent electrons. Ernest NussbaumBethesda, Md. Ferricyanide is indeed an ion, with a […]
