All Stories by Science News
- Astronomy
Moon Zoom
Imagine riding a magic carpet around the moon and being able to zoom down to any point or appear magically at any location. NASA has developed software that allows you to interactively browse three-dimensional images of the moon, based on data obtained by the Clementine spacecraft. These Web pages provide information about downloading the software, […]
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19612
I’m surprised that NASA envisions an absurdly massive, nuclear-powered “gravitational tug” to avoid “the biggest problem” of a contact-tug’s need to “fir[e] its rocket engine only at specific times” to compensate for an asteroid’s rotation as mentioned in this article. Cassini, in orbit around Saturn, fires its rocket engine “only at specific times” routinely. Voyager-1 […]
- Humans
Letters from the November 12, 2005, issue of Science News
Big leap The pendular running gait described in “Stepping Lightly: New view of how human gaits conserve energy” (SN: 9/17/05, p. 182) as one of the most efficient bipedal gaits looks remarkably like the way eyewitnesses claim Bigfoot creatures move. In a Bigfoot hoax, one might use a gait that is unhuman but energy efficient, […]
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19611
This article says, “the blood of people who consume 3 to 6 drinks weekly was less likely to clot in a test tube than was the blood from nondrinkers.” I wonder if there is a rebound effect that could make the blood of new abstainers even more likely to clot than that of regular nondrinkers. […]
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19610
I would venture to suggest the reason that the pasta-fragmentation process stops. Once the strand breaks, it becomes x number of new strands, each of which is still vibrating at some residual frequency and amplitude. The mass, diameter, and length of each resultant strand might determine the wavelength and amplitude necessary to break it. If […]
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19609
This article makes the point that shrub intrusion into tundra reduces albedo, the percentage of reflected light, but doesn’t report actual impact on ground temperature. Albedo itself is not a good indicator of waste heat. Much of the extra absorbed sun energy is used by the shrubs for photosynthesis and the fixing of carbon and […]
- Humans
From the November 2, 1935, issue
Indian Pipe's waxen beauty, the need for better brakes, and a new magnetic alloy.
- Health & Medicine
About Sinuses
This Web site from Dr. Wellington S. Tichenor examines the symptoms and treatment of sinusitis and other sinus diseases, as well as the interrelated problems of allergy and asthma. The site defines sinusitis and provides information on treatment regimens, fungal sinusitis, surgery, sinusitis in children, and more. Go to: http://www.sinuses.com/
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19608
Humans vocalize primarily non-harmonically (talk), but some can also vocalize harmonically (sing). Birds, likewise, mostly vocalize non-harmonically (chatter), but some can vocalize harmonically. It would be most helpful, when discussing birds, mice, and whale “songs,” if scientists would clarify whether they mean non-harmonic or harmonic vocalizations. Peter WilsonSimi Valley, Calif.
- Humans
Letters from the November 5, 2005, issue of Science News
Wind or fury? (“The Wind and the Fury” (SN: 9/17/05, p. 184) states, “In 2004, Florida suffered its worst hurricane season in 118 years, with nine hurricanes, five of which were classified as major.” While it’s true that 9 of the 15 named tropical or subtropical storms that formed in the North Atlantic basin last […]
- Humans
From the October 26, 1935, issue
Electric light without wires, lab-grown flu virus, and superhard glass.
- Astronomy
Spooky Sounds of Saturn
For Hallowe’en, tune in to eerie, bizarre sounds from the Saturnian system. These NASA Jet Propulsion Lab Web pages provide sound files based on magnetometer data from Cassini spacecraft observations of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, radar echoes from Titan’s surface, Saturn’s radio emissions, and more. Go to: http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/sounds/
