Uncategorized
- Math
Cosmic Numerology
Like the ancient Pythagoreans, astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) found numbers fascinating. Imbued with the same conviction of a natural order that drove Pythagoras (c. 580–500 B.C.) and his followers to search for an underlying numerical harmony, Kepler maintained that the physical universe was laid out according to a mathematical design that was simple and accessible […]
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From the May 16, 1931, issue
FOUR-MILE-PER-MINUTE WIND POSSIBLE IN NEW TUNNEL An artificial windstorm blowing 240 miles per hour has been found possible in the remarkable wind tunnel recently constructed at Pasadena for the California Institute of Technology. The outfit is a feature of the new Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory. This velocity exceeds the original hopes of the designers. A wind […]
- Health & Medicine
Virus in transplanted hearts bodes ill
Pediatric heart-transplant recipients who acquire a viral infection in the heart fare poorly over the long term.
- Humans
San Jose hosts 2001 science competition
More than 1,200 students from almost 40 countries competed last week in San Jose for more than $3 million in prizes and scholarships at the 2001 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.
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18933
In “Many refugees can’t flee mental ailments,” Bhutan is greatly maligned. Equating Bhutan’s story with the Cambodian genocide, as the article does, is like equating a Fourth of July firecracker with the atomic bomb. Tiny, Tibetan, Buddhist Bhutan, with a population of only 650,000, is struggling to survive between giants China and India and among […]
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Many refugees can’t flee mental ailments
Refugees interviewed in camps in Nepal exhibit post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental ailments, especially if they have survived torture in their native country.
- Astronomy
Snacking in space: Star dines on planet
Astronomers have found evidence that a star has swallowed one or more of its own planets.
- Physics
Light shines in quantum-computing arena
A new computing scheme using available technology and only classical physics appears to handle many tasks that researchers thought would be unsuited to any computers except the still-hypothetical ones that would exploit quantum physics.
- Earth
They’re not briquettes, but they’ll do
Chunks of fossil charcoal found in ancient sediments in north central Pennsylvania suggest that cycles of wildfire plagued Earth more than 360 million years ago.
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To save gardens, ants rush to whack weeds
Ants can grow gardens, too, and the first detailed study of their weeding techniques shows that whether a gardener has two legs or six, the chore looks much the same.
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Anticancer Protein Locks onto DNA
The protein encoded by the normal form of BRCA1 attaches to DNA directly, seeks out unusual DNA structures, and joins multiple DNA strands together—all activities suggesting a direct role in DNA repair.
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Lyme ticks lurk on golf course edges
At least half the ticks collected along woodsy edges of five golf courses in Rhode Island carry the baterium that causes Lyme disease.
