May 17, 1997
"Does the Cosmos Have a Direction?" (SN: 4/26/97, p. 252) quotes me as saying that the difference in polarization of radio waves recently claimed by Nodlund and Ralston "appears to be on a sound footing," and is "'statistically significant.'" This did not and does not reflect my view. Not only is my earlier work inconsistent with Nodlund and Ralston's result, but my current data on the polarization structure of radio-extended quasars is totally incompatible with their claims.
Philipp P. Kronberg
Department of Astronomy
University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario
I am neither an attorney nor a marijuana user, but it seems to me that people wanting marijuana legalized for glaucoma treatment have a constitutional argument for it in light of the existing legal use by other citizens ("Marijuana on Trial," SN: 3/22/97, p. 178). Here we have an elite group of people legally entitled to a treatment option that is actively denied to other citizens with the identical disease.
On what basis does the government enforce such a discriminatory practice? Aren't we all entitled to equal treatment under the law?
Anthony M. Castaldo
San Antonio, Texas
I am a plaintiff in a suit to protect doctors and patients from federal government prosecution when doctors prescribe medical marijuana and patients use medical marijuana in states where it is legal. Three states -- Connecticut, Virginia, and California -- now have such laws.
We argue that the federal government cannot prosecute doctors for their prescriptions because prescriptions are protected speech under the First Amendment. We also argue that the federal government cannot regulate the physician prescription of and patient use of medical marijuana under state law because the Constitution limits federal powers under the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, as well as the commerce clause.
In short, the federal government does not have the constitutional authority to regulate intrastate medical practice that is legal under state law.
Sandy Shaw
Tonopah, Nev.
I don't see the significance of 85 percent of hard-drug users beginning with marijuana, as cited by Califano. I'd have expected all hard-core drug users to have first tried marijuana -- and alcohol as well.
More significant would be the percentage of marijuana-smoking teens who do or do not go on to harder drugs.
Paul Hewitt
Hilo, Hawaii
Cannabis is an herb, not a drug. Herbs, when used in their naturally occurring state, can have extremely beneficial effects because of the unique mix of chemicals present in the plants. For example, coca has been used by indigenous Peruvians for thousands of years for its mildly stimulating effects, which help in dealing with steep hills and high altitudes. It is only when coca is concentrated into cocaine hydrochloride that it becomes the severely addictive, potentially deadly mix found on our streets.
It should also be recognized that THC [the active ingredient in marijuana] is nontoxic, unlike cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. There are numerous beneficial uses for cannabis in Chinese medicine and in the American materia medica before prohibition.
Lyle D. Courtsal
Seattle,Wash
I notice that "Why Do Women Menstruate?" (SN: 4/12/97, p. 230) does not mention that the typical duration of a menstrual period is a lunar month nor what the significance of the "coincidence" is. When discussing the pros and cons of energy consumption, it did not note that the menstrual cycle can be interrupted by intensive exercise or insufficient food. Nor is any link established between the cessation of growth in stature with the onset of menstruation.
Is this absence due to oversight by the researchers or was the space available to discuss an intriguing puzzle too limited?
Martin Kappeyne
Pacific Palisades, Calif.
The latter. -- J. Travis
On the subject of justifying human features in terms of evolutionary advantages, what about the advantages of male breasts, the appendix, tonsils, and wisdom teeth?
Alfred B. Kausel
Atlanta, Ga.
I beg to differ with both Profet and Strassmann regarding why women menstruate.
Menstruation was designed to benefit men!
For such an annoying and frequent event, the selective pressure must be through the reproductive system. What man would want to mate with a women who did not menstruate? Lack of menstruation indicates either that she is pregnant by a rival or that she is not healthy enough to bear children.
Why monthly? Anything as predictable as the moon provides a reliable measure for controlling a woman's behavior.
In England, the banns must be read for 3 weeks in the church before a wedding can take place. Surely in this amount of time the bride would demonstrate that she is not pregnant before the church sanctions the union. Perhaps I am extending my precepts too far here, but as your article mentions, the religious taboos surrounding this subject are extensive.
Susan Dean
San Jose, Calif.
Maybe the benefit of menstruation is that is discourages male sexual activity during the female's infertile days before estrus. This allows the male to accumulate a higher concentration of sperm and increases the probability of conception when sexual activity resumes after the period.
Gordon Foreman
Los Alamos, N.M.
Perhaps having an endometrium that has not been deteriorating for a long time creates a better chance of producing viable young.
Karl S. Veit
Springfield, Va.
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Table of Contents -- May 17, 1997
