By Science News
See the light
“Vision Seekers: Giving eyesight to the blind raises questions about how people see” (SN: 11/22/03, p. 331: Vision Seekers) brought to mind what could be a biblical description of this phenomenon. In Mark 8:22–26, a blind man reports after an initial healing touch by Jesus that he sees people, but they look like “walking trees.” After a second healing touch, the man sees everything “clearly.” While the account doesn’t specify how long the man had been without sight, one can presume that the description refers not only to changes in the eyes but also to image processing in the brain.
Sonia Balcer
Glendale, Calif.
Old mountain
The irregular satellites of the outer planets are interesting, as reported in “Moonopolies” (SN: 11/22/03, p. 328: Moonopolies), but my heart paused when I read “the medium-size Hale Telescope.” That historic 200-inch telescope was the largest in the world for almost 50 years. Incidentally, it’s on Palomar Mountain, not Mount Palomar.
Jay M. Pasachoff
Williams College
Williamstown, Mass.
Equal opportunity
Sounds like “Bias Bites Back: Racial prejudice may sap mental control” (SN: 11/22/03, p. 325: Bias Bites Back: Racial prejudice may sap mental control) is on to a fertile field of inquiry. But why were all the subjects who were tested for racial bias white? I suggest that people of other colors be tested, too. In my experience, racial bias cuts many ways.
Anne Jones
Shawnee Mission, Kan.
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