Science News

All Stories by Science News

  1. 19617

    Regarding the findings in this article, would it be possible for an antibiotic to be included with the RU-486 package to prevent a Clostridium sordellii infection? Like millions of other people, I have to take an antibiotic prior to dental procedures to prevent the very rare possibility of an infection in my heart, and it […]

  2. 19616

    First, thanks for a great article. I did note a few overgeneralizations. The most important, from a beer drinker’s perspective, would be this quote from Raymond J. Klimovitz of the Master Brewers Association of the Americas: “The fresher the beer, the better it’s going to be.” While this is generally true for lighter, mainstream beers, […]

  3. Humans

    Letters from the November 26, 2005, issue of Science News

    Roads to ruin? Chloride concentration in streams should be a concern to everyone. However, projecting problems at century’s end based on the present rate of chloride increase is bad science (“Steep Degrade Ahead: Road salt threatens waters in Northeast,” SN: 9/24/05, p. 195). Salt use in some New England areas has roughly doubled in the […]

  4. Beyond Einstein

    On Dec. 1, 2005, CERN and its partners will present a 12-hour webcast celebrating the achievements of Albert Einstein, as the World Year of Physics 2005 draws to an end. The program will feature a world tour of major physics laboratories and science museums, commentary from prominent physicists on the impact of Einstein’s discoveries and […]

  5. From the November 23, 1935, issue

    Experiments at record altitudes, an increase in malaria deaths, and sending facsimiles by radio.

  6. 19615

    This article says that “twice as many … with sleep apnea had a stroke or died of that or another cause. …” This sounds serious, but your readers can’t correctly assign importance to “twice as many” because you omit numbers of deaths. David KollasTolland, Conn. Among the 697 people with sleep apnea, 22 suffered strokes […]

  7. Humans

    Letters from the November 19, 2005, issue of Science News

    It’s not there “Organic Choice: Pesticides vanish from body after change in diet” (SN: 9/24/05, p. 197), as presented, doesn’t address the statement made in the headline. The article shows only that on days when no pesticides are ingested in food, no pesticides are excreted in urine. Charles WyttenbachLawrence, Kan. Sex differences I am dismayed […]

  8. Humans

    From the November 16, 1935, issue

    Bears on a diet, aluminum-plated steel, and a new test of relativity theory.

  9. Math

    Pentomino Pursuits

    Pentominoes are flat shapes, or tiles, formed by joining together five unit squares. There are 12 different pentominoes. This set of simple geometrical objects has inspired a variety of puzzles and games, including the addictive pastime known as Tetris. The pentomino Web site, created by students of Belgian math teacher Odette De Meulemeester, provides all […]

  10. 19614

    The picture caption in this article states, “This phytolith, which was extracted from fossilized dinosaur dung unearthed in India, indicates that the reptiles dined on grasses.” I do believe that dinosaurs aren’t classified as reptiles. Patricia GriffithAmerican Canyon, Calif. Confusion in this area stems from the fact that not all ancient reptiles were dinosaurs. But […]

  11. 19613

    Several decades ago, I heard of the anecdotal correlation between the rise of hydrogenated oils in our foods and the rise of colon cancer. The Swedish study mentioned in this article that correlated high dairy-fat intake with lower risk of colon cancer might be reexamined to see if it reveals a correlation between intake of […]

  12. Humans

    From the November 9, 1935, issue

    Beauty in a machine shop, a cloud of island universes, and moon-made earthquakes.