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Getting the Jump on QuakesMarch 14, 1998 | Volume 153 | Number 11 Cover: The Northridge earthquake near Los Angeles on Jan. 17, 1994, killed 57 people and caused approximately $30 billion in damage. A new network of instruments and computers in Southern California will help emergency managers respond to quakes more quickly, possibly saving lives and property during the next disaster. Page 169 (Credit: David L. Carver, U.S. Geological Survey) |
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News of the Week:
Nailing Down Pheromones
in Humans
Women exude chemicals that influence the menstrual cycles of other women with whom they have close contact.
Human ancestor may have taken to sea
Stone artifacts found on an Indonesian island provide evidence for sea travel by a predecessor of humans at least 800,000 years ago.
Math enthusiast wins
Science Talent Search
The top winners in the 1998 Westinghouse Science Talent Search are students from Indiana, Arizona, and New York.
Stimulating clue hints how lithium works
New studies of lithium’s effects on cells may help explain how the drug combats manic depression.
Craft finds evidence of ice on the moon
NASA’s Lunar Prospector spacecraft has gathered the best evidence so far of frost deep within craters at the moon’s north and south poles.
Cosmic rays sow the seeds of cloud growth
Atmospheric ions created by cosmic rays could play a role in creating the precursors to cloud droplets.
Timeless machine detects electric charge
A microscopic device based on an 18th century scientific instrument mechanically measures tiny amounts of electric charge.
Nuclear collisions spawn odd fragments
Physicists report new evidence that fragments created in nuclear collisions sometimes travel unexpectedly short distances before decaying.
Research Notes
Biology
Rattlesnakes feel the final bite
The sense of touch may play a role in the accuracy of rattlesnake strikes.
When the little guys win one
Small birds benefit from harassing big, dangerous predators.
Biomedicine
Heart benefits from sneaky calcium ions
Calcium ions may enter heart cells through an unexpected pathway.
Stopping coughs . . . and cancer?
A cough suppressant known as noscapine may also combat tumors.
Paleontology
Flat-footed fossil of former flyer
The remains of a Jurassic-aged pterosaur indicate these animals could not walk on their toes.
Dinosaur denizens of the dark
A duck-billed dinosaur has been discovered in Antarctica.
Physics
Watching washes out interference
Increasing the ability of a detector to determine whether an electron has passed through one opening or another of a pair of narrow slits reduces the amount of quantum interference observed.
Frigid running
Interactions between electrons in a metal and those in another material may contribute to friction.
Articles:
Inner Strength
Gene therapy aims to build cells that thwart HIV replication
Intracellular immunization tests are stepping from animals to people.
Racing the Waves
Seismologists try to catch quake tremors quickly enough to save lives
A new network of earthquake sensors in southern California will soon provide information about quakes even before the shaking starts.
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