262 results found.
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 8: Fall 1979 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Due to a fortunate coincidence you can read about a fortunate coincidence There are embedded in the fabric of our universe a number of curious coincidences among the so-called physical constants. Two amusing examples are: The size of a planet is roughly the geometric mean of the size of the universe and the size of the atom; and The mass of man is the geometric mean of the mass of a planet and the mass of the proton. Less hilarious is the observation that the age of the universe is of the order of the quotient of the electron time scale and the gravitational fine structure constant; and that only at the present time are physical conditions in the universe favorable to the existence of life-as-we-know-it! The surprising number of coincidences that have been identified suggests that we exist and are aware of the universe around us only when certain coincidences prevail among physical constants. Is "now" a magic moment in the history of the universe during which we have "happened" as a natural coincidence of blindly drifting physical constants, or did some metaphysical force tune the universe specially for us? This long, rather mathematical article is redolent with metaphysics and mystery. (Carr, B.J ., and Rees, M.J .; "The Anthropic Principle and the Structure of the Physical World," Nature, 278:605, 1979.) Comment. One might speculate that at other ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 16: Summer 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Grooves Of Phobos Still Unexplained The Martian satellite Phobos is etched by curious grooves. Initially, the grooves were thought to be fracture lines formed by the impact that blasted out Stickney, the huge crater seen on Phobos. However, studies of the grooves revealed at least three families of grooves of different ages, with members of each family located on parallel planes cutting right through the body of the satellite. Two recent papers have proposed radically different explanations. A. Horvath and E. Illes wonder whether Phobos might not be a layered structure, having once been part of a larger stratified body. J.B . Murray thinks the families of grooves might have been scraped out by disciplined formations of meteorites that were launched into space by Martian volcanos. (Horvath, A., and Illes, E.; "On the Possibility of the Layered Structure of Phobos," Eos, 62:203, 1981. Also: Murray, J.B .; "Grooved Terrains on Planetary Satellites," Eos, 62:202, 1981.) Comment. It is not easy to conceive of such well-drilled formations of meteorites. Neither is it easy to imagine a large, stratified body that might have given rise to Phobos. From Science Frontiers #16, Summer 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 5: November 1978 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects How ancient is vermont?The present article from the British journal Antiquity is obviously an Establishment reaction to the books Ancient Vermont and The Search for Lost America. Two aspects of this "problem" are discussed in the article: The supposed Ogam writing discovered in New England, and The many peculiar stone structures in the same region. A. Ross and P. Reynolds have examined the purported Ogam inscriptions first-hand and are emphatic that are not of Celtic origin, although they are probably deliberately inscribed in many instances. On the other hand, the strange stone structures in New England, particularly Vermont, do bear some resemblance to megalithic remains in Europe. The authors are not as anxious to pass these off as Colonial root cellars as are their American allies in the Establishment. Ross and Reynolds suggest that much more work needs to be done here before the purposes of these chambers and standing stones can be determined. (Ross, Ann, and Reynolds, Peter; "Ancient Vermont," Antiquity, 52:100, 1978.) Reference. Several of these enigmatic New England chambers are detailed in our Handbook: Ancient Man. See a description of this Handbook at: here . From Science Frontiers #5 , November 1978 . 1978-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 21: May-Jun 1982 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Strange Megalithic Monuments In The Central Sahara Archeologists have recently made some spectacular discoveries of megalithic structures in the central Sahara. This region boasts many V-shaped prehistoric monuments as well as spiral and meandertype carvings. There are even a few cup-and-ring markings, like those so prevalent in northern Europe. Most curious are the so-called "axle-type" monuments, which consist of a central hub with two straight projecting arms. Early in 1981, the monument shown in the sketch was found in the Immidir district. It is basically V-shaped, with two sets of "auxiliary" arms, one V-type and one axle-type, both of which are detached from the hub like "spare parts." The tips of the north-south arms in the sketch are about 75 meters apart. Clearly, orientation was important to the builders of the monuments, but the asymmetry and auxiliary arms are puzzling. The stonework in these central Saharan monuments is good. Dates are elusive, but all indications are that the sites are ancient. (Milburn, Mark; "Multi-Arm Stone Tombs of Central Sahara," Antiquity, 55:210, 1981.) Reference. For more on megalithic ruins in North Africa, consult our Handbook: Ancient Man. This book is described here . From Science Frontiers #21, MAY-JUN 1982 . 1982-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 9: Winter 1979 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Moon-like craters in the north sea floor During the exploitation of the North Sea oil fields, geophysicists made detailed surveys of sea-floor topography with seismic instruments called boomers. They were startled to discover thousands of elliptical craters or pockmarks in the sediments. The craters are 30-330 feet across, 6-25 feet deep, and located in water about 500 feet deep. The long axes of the craters point roughly in the same direction; and the craters tend to be arranged in lines. The authors suggest that escaping subsurface gases and fluids may have formed the unusual structures. The possibility was underscored on July 30, 1978, when a very large eruption of sediment was detected by sonar. (McQuillin, Robert, and Fannin, Nigel; "Explaining the North Sea's Lunar Floor," New Scientist, 83:90, 1979.) Comment. The North Sea is a prime habitat of mistpouffers (sea-associated booming sounds). There might be a correlation here between natural-gas eruptions and these strange booming sounds. Also, the crude similarity of these sea-floor craters to the Carolina Bays should not be passed over. Reference. All types of unusual craters are cataloged in Section ETC in: Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds. For ordering information, visit: here . From Science Frontiers #9 , Winter 1979 . 1979-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 16: Summer 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The moon's magnetic swirls The impressively strong magnetic anomalies discovered on the lunar surface remain enigmas. They appear to be superficial patches of highly magnetic material rather than deep-seated manifestations of basic lunar structure. Instead of being associated with gravity anomalies, the magnetic patches seem coincident with strange swirl-like markings on the moon's surface. The logical inference is that the swirls are surface patterns of highly magnetic substance -- but why the pecu-liar patterns and where did the strongly magnetic material come from? (Hood, L.L .; "The Enigma of Lunar Magnetism," Eos, 62:161, 1981.) Comment. The swirls were originally attributed to cometary impacts, but comets hardly seem likely carriers of highly magnetized materials. Reference. The lunar magnetic swirls are cataloged at ALZ3 in The Moon and the Planets. For a description of this catalog, got to: here . From Science Frontiers #16, Summer 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 12: Fall 1980 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Little big bangs!The photographic enhancement of plates taken by the UK Schmidt and Anglo-Australian telescopes has revealed that several normal elliptical galaxies are surrounded by shell-like structures. D.F . Malin and D. Carter report that these envelopes are vast -- up to 180 kiloparsecs in diameter. Furthermore, some galaxies are wrapped in a series of thin shells. Malin and Carter believe that the colossal shells are really thin layers of stars either created by a powerful shock wave during galaxy formation or comprised of a debris layer of old stars blown out of the galaxy during some cataclysmic event. (Malin, David F., and Carter, David; "Giant Shells around Normal Elliptical Galaxies," Nature, 285:643, 1980.) Comment. This article typifies the emergence of "catastrophic astronomy" which contrasts sharply with the older vision of a leisurely evolution of stars and galaxies. From Science Frontiers #12, Fall 1980 . 1980-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 15: Spring 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Is your brain really necessary?John Lorber, a British neurologist, has studied many cases of hydrocephalus (water on the brain) and concluded that the loss of nearly all of the cerebral cortex (the brain's convoluted outer layer) does not necessarily lead to mental impairment. He cites the case of a student at Sheffield University, who has an IQ of 126 and won first-class honors in mathematics. Yet, this boy has virtually no brain; his cortex measures only a millimeter or so thick compared to the normal 4.5 centimeters. Although the deeper brain structures may carry on much of the body's work, the cortex is supposed to be a late evolutionary development that gave humans their vaunted mental powers and superiority over the other animals. If the cortex can be removed with little mental impairment, what is it for in the first place? (Lewin, Roger; "Is Your Brain Really Necessary?" Science, 210:1232, 1980.) Comment. Brain size, then, may mean nothing in comparing ancient and modern human skulls or human brain capacity with those of animals! Where is the seat of intelligence? In some cases of hydrocephalus, the cortex is only paper-thin, but little mental impairments is apparent. From Science Frontiers #15, Spring 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 22: Jul-Aug 1982 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Bowerbird art for art's sake The bowerbirds of New Guinea and Australia build and decorate marvelously intricate and esthetic works of art. One must classify these impressive structures as works of art, even by human standards. For example, the bowers have geometrical organization and may be oriented to a specific compass direction, depending upon the species. Colorful berries, stones, and, when available, human artifacts are systematically arranged around the bower. Some bowerbirds even take a piece of bark in their bills and paint their bowers with colored berry juices. Each species has a certain style, but the bowers vary from individual to individual and with the age of the bird. Manifestly, these birds use tools for artistic purposes. Or do they? Is it all instinct? Some animal behaviorists believe the bower's purpose is to attract mates, but the males often chase females away, although mating does eventually occur within the bowers. A second explanation is that the bowers symbolize territorial rights. In this context, bowerbirds fre-quently raid and destroy neighboring bowers, stealing choice decorations -- all very human-like behavior. (Diamond, Jared M.; "Evolution of Bowerbirds' Bowers: Animal Origins of the Esthetic Sense," Nature, 297:99, 1982.) Comment. Is human art any more profound than that of the bowerbirds? Human artists doubtless feel they are doing something more than attracting mates or ...
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... form of an arc in an east-west line, reaching the surface approximately 2 n. mile ahead and astern of the vessel. Visibility under the cloud was about 10 n. mile in the north-south direction and 2 n. mile to the east and west. Once the vessel reached the point where the cloud touched the surface, the visibility was reduced to approximately 1.5 n. mile. Whilst the vessel was passing the cloud, the barograph trace fell almost vertically and both the air and sea temperatures dropped several degrees." (Shepherd, F.; "Cloud," Marine Observer, 51:107, 1981.) Comment. This is just one more mysterious cloud arch, but on a very small scale. What bizarre meteorological conditions create such strange structures? Reference. Other unusual cloud phenomena may be found in Section GWC in our Catalog: Tornados, Dark Days. For more information on this book, visit: here . A curious cloud arch in the Strait of Gibralta. The ends terminated in the ocean at points 4 miles apart. From Science Frontiers #20, MAR-APR 1982 . 1982-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... region discloses 212 pillar-circle sites and 251 "tombelles," which are stone cairns or heaps often surrounded by ring-like stone walls. Hundreds of sites with tumuli also dot the area. One of the pillar-circle sites boasts all of 50 individual pillar circles. Some of the pillars are topped with cupules, raised discs, or balls. The fanciest pillars are V- or Y-shaped with crossbars. Archeological exploration of these impressive sites is incomplete. Preliminary dating makes the Senegambian Complex over 1,000 years old. The functions of this vast array of megalithic sites is unknown, although it is not obviously astronomical. (Hill, Matthew H.; "The Senegambian Monument Complex: Current Status and Prospects for Research," in Megaliths to Medicine Wheels: Boulder Structures in Archaeology, Michael Wilson, et al, eds., Calgary, 1981, p. 419.) Reference. Much more information about these North African sites may be found in our Handbook: Ancient Man. This volume is described here . Lyre-shaped megalithic monument in Senegal From Science Frontiers #18, NOV-DEC 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... half-century, scientists have been studying this perplexing problem, but it has been the amateurs who have accumulated the bulk of the data. Over 100 reports exist where echoes of radio transmissions were received seconds later at the original transmitting station. Since light travels 186,000 miles per second, any simple radio-wave reflector would have to be well beyond the moon's orbit. A wide variety of natural phenomena (interplanetary matter) and even artificial devices (alien space probes) have been postulated to explain the long delays. Muldrew's article is first of all an excellent summary of the long and fascinating history of this effect. His bibliography is extensive and apparently nearly complete. Muldrew next examines the various ionospheric mechanisms that might cause long delays. The ionosphere is a complex structure with ducts in which radio signals can get trapped. Delays of a second or so might be due to such trapping but the longer delays require some other explanation. Muldrew favors a rather complex interaction between signals from separate transmitters that (theoretically at least) can create a long-lived electrostatic wave that travels in the ionosphere -- a sort of natural memory device. The coded signals could then be read out much later when the proper natural conditions developed. Delays of up to 40 seconds might be possible with this "ionospheric memory." (Muldrew, D.B .; "Generation of Long Delay Echoes," Journal of Geophysical Research," 84:5199, 1979.) References. More information on these curius echoes is located at GER1 in our Catalog: Rare ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 17: Fall 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Shergottites and nakhlites: young and mysterious The shergottites and nakhlites are two types of meteorites that have scientists scratching their heads. Both types have been dated by various radioactive clocks at 1,300 million years or less -- far younger than all other meteorites. Where could such young meteorites have originated? The asteroids and moon's surface are far too old. A current guess is the surface of Mars. There, an impacting meteor could have blasted pieces of young lava sheets in space and thence to earth. The shergottites have a shocked structure and could well have originated in such catastrophism, but the nakhlites show no signs of violence and seem to require a separate explanation. (Anonymous; "Mystery Meteorites May Come from Mars," New Scientist, 91:219, 1981.) From Science Frontiers #17, Fall 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Frontiers ONLINE No. 16: Summer 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Earth-moon fission: a slight hint Although the Sm/Nd isotope ratios of the earth and the chondrites (a type of meteorite) seem pretty close in value, the possibility of a slight but significant discrepancy remains. If this small difference is confirmed, it would strongly imply that the earth's Sm/Nd ratio was shifted after the planet's formation. The most reasonable event that could shift this ratio is an long-debated earth-moon fission, wherein the earth's lighter surface material was somehow torn off to form the moon. (DePaolo, Donald J.; "Nd Isotopic Studies: Some New Perspectives on Earth Structure and Evolution," Eos, 62:139, 1981.) Comment. The moon's density is markedly less than the earth's , so the idea is not as wild as it seems. The hypothetical fission of Earth-Moon could have shifted the Nd isotope ratio in relation to that of the chondrites. From Science Frontiers #16, Summer 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... in the earth's crust, now covered over by thick sediments. One hypothesis is that a 60-90 kilometer meteorite smashed into the earth some 4 billion years ago, wrinkling the young surface for several thousand kilometers in all directions around a colossal crater. Magma welling up in the crater solidified creating the nucleus of the North American continent. It is quite possible that the other continents began their existences in this way -- meteor impact. The gravity data that led to this hypothesis have been available for some time but apparently no one ever looked at them with continental patterns in mind. (Simon, C.; "Deep Crust Hints at Meteoric Impact," Science News, 121:69, 1982.) Comment 1: John Saul has discovered surface indications of immense ring structures in the American southwest. See ETC2 in our Catalog: Carolina Bays, Mima Mounds, which is described more fully here . Comment 2: If all our continents were initiated by meteor impacts, and if they were once clustered together in a supercontinent, as postulated by Continental Drift, then the incoming meteorites would have to have been focussed on a restricted portion of the earth's surface; that is, where the supercontinent was formed prior to continental drift. Several solar system bodies show just such preferential cratering on one hemisphere. From Science Frontiers #20, MAR-APR 1982 . 1982-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 16: Summer 1981 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Plants Manufacture Fake Insect Eggs Plants are usually considered rather passive to environmental forces, but careful observation show that they fight back against predators in subtle ways. Williams and Gilbert, for example, have found that a number of Passiflora species, which are heavily defoliated by the larvae of Heliconius butterflies, have developed tiny structures that closely resemble in size, shape, and color the eggs of these butterflies. Heliconius butterflies, when searching for likely plants on which to lay eggs, tend to avoid plants that already have eggs on them. The plants' fake eggs, then, help protect the plant from predation. (Williams, Kathy S., and Gilbert, Lawrence E.; "Insects as Selective Agents on Plant Vegetative Morphology....."; Science, 212:467, 1981.) Comment. We have heard over and over again about Nature's "marvelous adaptations," but it is still difficult to imagine chance-driven evolution of fake eggs of just the right size, shape, and color. How many shapes and colors were tried before the plants got it right? From Science Frontiers #16, Summer 1981 . 1981-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 28: Jul-Aug 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Ball Lightning With Bizarre Structure An older case of ball lightning with special features has just surfaced. "It happened in the afternoon in 1924. There came a large ball of fire -- or so it looked -- but the thing was that it had chains all the way round. It lasted about five minutes, then all the chains clashed together with a terrific bang; then we had a terrible thunderstorm which lasted quite a long time.' In a second let ter Mrs. Revell drew the ball lightning as a red globe with 16 rays, composed of links like a chain, issuing from it; the rays were rather longer than the diameter of the ball. She said, 'You asked the size. From the ground it looked about four to five yards across, which would be larger than that in the sky. The chains opened from the top to the bottom with a terrific bang." (Rowe, Michael W.; "Unusual Ball Lightning," Journal of Meteorology, U.K ., 8:125, 1983.) Reference. Additional examples of ball lightning with internal structure are available in our Catalog: Lightning, Auroras. This volume is described here . From Science Frontiers #28, JUL-AUG 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Dec 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Subterranean Electric Currents We have little appreciation of the immense electrical currents that flow through the rock formations beneath our feet. These "telluric" currents are primarily those induced by the earth's changing magnetic field, as it is affected by the solar wind. Telluric cur-rents do not flow uniformly through the earth's crust. Rather, they seek out low resistance rocks, in accordance with Ohm's Law. Such current concentrations can be detected at the surface with magnetometers. The present paper announces the discovery of a regional telluric current flowing in the vicinity of the San Francisco Peaks volcanic field in Arizona. The shallow part of the current flows in an unidentifiable "geoelectrical" structure not more than 10 kilometers below the surface. There are no surface hints as to what this geoelectrical structure could be. (Towle, James N.; "The Anomalous Geomagnetic Variation Field and Geoelectric Structure Associated with the Mesa Butte Fault System, Arizona," Geological Society of America, Bulletin, 95:221, 1984.) Comment. Similar anomalous magnetic fields exist in many areas, indicating a vast subterranean system of poorly understood geoelectrical structures. Some of the channeled earth currents are man-made, being the return paths in electrical power transmission systems. The return paths may be far-removed from the actual power lines because they tend to follow the geoelectrical structures. Reference. Other important subterreanean electrical currents are described in EZC5 in the book Inner Earth. To obtain this ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 28: Jul-Aug 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Bones Of Contention Introduction. This item needs an editorial because it shows how a very tiny and obscure brick in the Temple of Science, long thought to be structurally sound, might lead to widespread collapse. Are there other sleepers? A group of burrowing lizards (the amphisbaenians) possess a heavy bone in their heads that helps them ram their ways through the soil. In surface-living lizards this structure is merely a soft, flimsy cartilage. It was long assumed that the bone in the burrowing lizard developed from the cartilage of its surface-living kin. But a study of embryos now shows that the head bone of the burrowing lizard actually developed from a membrane instead of cartilage. The two similarly located structures are not homologous after all. They had different origins. Superficially this doesn't seem very anomalous and especially not very exciting. But vertebrate evolution in particular has been charted on the basis of homologous structures. If these structures have different biological origins -- even in just some cases -- the evolutionary family trees may be drawn wrong. (Anonymous; "Lizard Bone Shakes World of Taxonomy," New Scientist, 98:221, 1983.) Comment. No one yet knows how serious this problem really is. Basically it means that some animals that look alike (at least bonewise) need not be closely related. To use an analogy, if nature has the plans for a house stored in ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 30: Nov-Dec 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Rock Lake Pyramids Professor James Shertz, of the University of Wisconsin, is trying to get to the bottom of the reputed stone pyramids submerged in Rock Lake, near Lake Mills, Wisconsin. Fishermen have hit the pyramids with their oars when the lake is very low; and others have spotted structures (perhaps as many as four) from the air. In 1937, a diver reported seeing a 29-foot-high pyramid in the murky waters. Recent divers have found boul-der alignments; but the visibility is so poor that organized structures cannot be identified. Truncated earthen pyramids exist at nearby precolumbian Aztalan; and strange rock piles exist elsewhere in Wisconsin. Consequently, one cannot brush off the idea that some edifices were built at Rock Lake when the water was much lower. (Smith, Susan Lampert; "Lake Mills' Lost Pyramids," Wisconsin State Journal, June 26, 1983. Cr. R. Heiden via L. Farish.) Comment. The 1937 dives are described in our Handbook Ancient Man. Perhaps it is relevant that sonar-imaging equip-ment has detailed obviously human-built rock structures on the floor of Loch Ness. Reference. Ancient Man is described here . Rock Lake pyramids drawn from 1937 diving observations. From Science Frontiers #30, NOV-DEC 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 36: Nov-Dec 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Evolution Of Man And Malaria Malarial parasites are customarily classified according to the species infected and then further subdivided by morphology and biological characteristics. The two assumptions implicit in this classification procedure, which is supposed to mirror actual historical evolution, are: Malarial parasites evolved in parallel with their hosts; and Morphology is a measure of evolutionary relatedness. With modern biochemical techniques it is possible to test these assumptions by comparing the DNA structures of the different malarial parasites. P. falcipa rum, the parasite transmitting the most deadly human malaria, turns out to be more closely related to rodent and avian malaria than the other primate malarias. Therefore, assumption #1 above is in correct in this view. Assumption #2 is also wrong because some species of malaria parasites which are very similar morphologically are quite different DNAwise. (McCutchan, Thomas F., et al; "Evolutionary Relatedness of Plasmodium Species as Determined by the Structure of DNA," Science, 225:808, 1984.) Comment. The article does not draw attention to still another assumption; namely, that similarities are measures of evolutionary relatedness. If this as sumption isn't correct, evolutionary family trees based on bodily structure, which means most of the family trees in the textbooks, may not truly reflect what really happened in the development of life. Further, if malarial parasites did evolve along with their hosts, hu man evolution seems farther removed from the evolution ...
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... cell that monitors genomic activities and corrects common errors, senses unusual and unexpected events, and responds to them, often by restructuring the genome. We know about the components of genomes that could be made available for such restructuring. We know nothing, however, about how the cell senses danger and instigates responses to it that often are truly remarkable." Thus Barbara McClintock ends the paper she delivered in Stockholm when she received a Nobel Prize in 1983. Most of McClintock's paper reviews her pioneering work with the corn genome, but she adds some examples of other genomic responses to external stresses. One such stress is applied to an oak tree when a wasp lays its egg in a leaf. The stress causes the oak genome to reprogram itself and construct a wholly new and unplanned plant structure to house and feed the developing insect. Some of these structures (galls) are very elaborate and are precisely tailored to each different wasp species. From such examples, it is apparent that the genome of an organism somehow perceives stresses and reacts to them -- often in completely unanticipated ways. The stresses may be mechanical, thermal, chemical; in fact, almost anything. McClintock's conclusion is: ". .. that stress, and the genome's reaction to it may underlie many formations of new species." (McClintock, Barbara; "The Significance of Responses of the Genome to Challenge," Science, 226:792, 1984.) Comment. The implications here are broad and deep. Evolution can be driven by external stresses. The new species ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 35: Sep-Oct 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Infrared Atmospheric Waves When the night sky is photographed in the infrared portion of the spectrum, luminous wave-like structures appear in the upper atmosphere. The wave crests are about 50 kilometers apart; lengthwise, they stretch up to 1.000 kilometers; altitude, about 85 kilometers. As many as ten waves may be seen at the same time. Morphologically, these waves resemble noctilucent clouds, which are sun-illumined, high-altitude clouds. The infrared waves, however, appear when the sun is well below the horizon. Since these waves are seen only at low angles over the horizon, some geophysicists propose they are the result of a geometric effect produced by viewing a rippled layer of weakly emitting gases in the upper atmosphere. When one looks at this rippled layer just above the horizon, one sees alternating thick and thin sections due to the perspective. The thick portions will appear brighter than the thin sections. As for the origin of this postulated rippled layer; no one is sure. Gravity waves may be involved. (Herse, M.; "Waves in the OH Emissive Layer," Science, 225:172, 1984.) Comment. As described in our Catalog Lightning, Auroras, Nocturnal Lights. luminous atmospheric waves are, on rare occasions, visible to the naked eye. It is possible that the bandedsky phenomenon is related to the infrared waves. For more information on the book just ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 35: Sep-Oct 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects A Different Way Of Looking At The Universe Here is an excellent survey of American archeoastronomy from Canadian medicine wheels to Mesoamerican aligned structures. To the anomalist, the most interesting part of Aveni's review paper is found in his comments about the world view of the Precolumbian Americans, particularly the Maya. That the Maya were acute astronomers is beyond question. They had even developed a correction scheme to keep Venus' 584-day canonical cycle on track with its true synodic period of 583.92 days. Their predictions of the position of Venus were accurate to 2 hours in 481 years! Not bad for a civilization that did not seem to have any conception that the planets revolved around the sun. The Maya, in fact, did not seem to care what made heavenly bodies move; they only wished to predict their appearance accurately. Instead of developing celestial mechanics based on gravitation and laws of motion, as we have done, they were content with numerical algorithms; that is, ways of computing a desired result. Their astonishingly accurate predictions of Venus, solar eclipses, and other astronomical phenomena evolved from cycles of numbers advancing each day like interlocking gear teeth. These algorithms gave them no insight into cause and effect, but they got the right answers. They needed no physical laws, just patterns of numbers. It was a different way of comprehending and dealing with the universe. (Aveni, Anthony F.; " ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 33: May-Jun 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Rubberneckia The long-standing belief that unlimited rotary motion is impossible in animals has been shattered. It was, after all, a very reasonable assumption, because necks and other appendages turn only so far before bones and muscles begin to snap. Well, it seems that inside ter-mite guts there resides a single-celled animal with a head that rotates constant-ly 30 times a minute. Since none of its membranes shear during rotation, we must infer that membranes are basically fluid structures rather than solids as supposed. The animal, called Rubberneckia, has a shaft running the full length of its body plus a motor of undetermined character. To make Rubberneckia even more bizarre, thousands of tiny, rod-like bacteria occupy long grooves on the cell's surface. Like galley slaves, the bacteria row with their flagella to keep Rubberneckia moving -- a curious symbiotic relationship. (Cooke, Robert; "A Tale to Make Your Head Spin,: Boston Globe, March 20, 1984, p. 1. Cr. P. Gunkel) From Science Frontiers #33, MAY-JUN 1984 . 1984-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 29: Sep-Oct 1993 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Sedimentary rocks on venus?The Soviet spacecraft Veneras-13 and 14 took photos of the hot surface of Venus from their landing spots beneath the planet's thick cloud cover. The rocky debris surrounding the spacecraft shows, to nearly everyone's surprise, strong evidence of sedimentary, layered structure. The rock formations display ripple marks, thin layering, differential erosion, and even hints of cross-bedding. The vision of ancient seas on Venus leaps to the mind, but according to the Russian scientists, it is far more likely that the sediments were created by winds, episodic volcanism, or repeated meteor strikes. (Florensky, C.P ., et al; "Venera 13 and Venera 14: Sedimentary Rocks on Venus?" Science, 221:57, 1983.) Reference, Venus harbors many anomalies. See our Catalog: The Moon and the Planets. This book is described here . Two pictures of the surface of Venus taken by the Russian space probe Venera 14. From Science Frontiers #29, SEP-OCT 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 29: Sep-Oct 1993 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects South american-polynesian contacts at easter island In a letter to Archaeoastronomy, Jim Wheeler lists three bits of evidence suggesting that there were ancient contacts between South America and Easter Island. The Rapa Nui legends mention the arrival of strange men (about 25) from the east. Excavation of the ancient Easter Island tombs in 1981 revealed that some of the skeletons belonged to American Indians. The wall of carved stone at Vinapu on Easter Island is almost identical with the South American stone structures at Pisac and Machu Picchu. (Wheeler, Jim; "Comment on Ben Finney's Review," Archaeoastronomy, 5:8 , July-September 1983.) Reference. Many articles on the anomalous diffusion of culture are presented in our Handbook: Ancient Man. For ordering information, go to: here . From Science Frontiers #29, SEP-OCT 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 29: Sep-Oct 1993 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Ancient Horsemen Over 70 years ago, paleontologist Henri Martin found horse teeth estimated to be 30,000 years old that showed clear signs of "crib biting." Crib biting occurs when captive horses, perhaps out of boredom, bite ropes, enclosure structures, and even rocks -- wild horses don't do this. The implication is that man domesticated the horse long before archeologists believed possible. The theory languished until recently, when Paul Bahn brought it out of limbo. He has now found additional teeth showing more evidence of crib biting. Bahn maintains that man may have been riding the horse for 100,000 years! (Perrin, Timothy; "Prehistoric Horsemen," Omni, 5:37, August 1983.) From Science Frontiers #29, SEP-OCT 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 28: Jul-Aug 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Foamy Cosmos According to recent observations, there seem to be a lot of spherical voids in the cosmos. These vast nothingnesses are closed in by nearly spherical shells of galaxies. In other words, the cosmos consists of foam; homogeneous in the large, but bubbly in the small -- if spherical shells of galaxies can be considered "small." The only way, say the theorists, that such a foamy structure can arise is for the universe to be closed, not flat as counts of galaxies seem to indicate. Thus, the foamy cos-mos infers that we do not detect a lot of the mass existing in the universe. (Anonymous; "Honeycomb Universe Must Be Closed," New Scientist, 98:540, 1983.) Comment. In the Better, Bigger Big Bang there seems to be plenty of room for a foamy section or two! From Science Frontiers #28, JUL-AUG 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 25: Jan-Feb 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Andes Ice Islands High in the Bolivian Andes are some shallow, saltwater lakes. From some of these white-shored lakes rise bizarre "islands" of fresh-water ice, neatly layered horizontally, and up to 20 feet higher than the saltwater surface. The ice crystals comprising these islands are vertical, proving that they grew in water and are not pieces of glaciers. Clearly, they did not form from the present saltwater lakes, but they might be relics of the Ice Ages, when the lakes were deeper and fresher. But whence the nicely layered structure? Some scientists have thought that volcanic springs might be the sources of fresh water, but some ice islands occur in lakes where there are no volcanic springs nearby. At the moment, every-one seems stumped by these strange creations of Nature. (Anonymous; "Who Made the Andes Islands of Ice?" New Scientist, 96:272, 1982.) Comment. Could the ice islands be related to the Arctic pingoes -- those debris-covered ice hills? From Science Frontiers #25, JAN-FEB 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 25: Jan-Feb 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Manifestations of earth energy at megalithic sites?Stories have long circulated that strange phenomena cluster about megalithic sites, such as Stonehenge. Those who claim psychic powers state that earth energies (whatever they are) seem to focus at these ancient constructions. The story goes that the builders of the stone circles could also detect these natural forces and intentionally chose these spots where the energies were most powerful. "Proper" siting and orientation were doubtless important to the builders of the megalithic structures, but can modern, no-nonsense science even begin to explore these mystical, psychic claims? Given today's scientific impatience with all psychic subjects, one would not expect a scientific journal, even a popular one, to touch the subject of "earth energies." Yet, here is an article describing the use of ultrasound detectors and Geiger counters in surveying megalithic monuments for foci of earth energies. Sure enough, curious enhancements of ultrasound intensity were discovered at the Rollright Stones. At another site, the natural radiation background level was anomalously depressed. It is all very mystifying. (Robins, Don; "The Dragon Project and the Talking Stones," New Scientist, 96: 166, 1982.) Comment. This appearance of this article would be comprehensible if it were in the April 1 issue of New Scientist, but it wasn't . In truth, of course, there could be something in the "earth energy" ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 37: Jan-Feb 1985 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Flip-flop radio jets?Many radio galaxies and quasars are found to have a double-lobed structure, with one lobe on one side of the nucleus and another diametrically opposite. When examined in detail, these lobes turn out to be quite different in size, shape, and intensity. In particular, very bright regions on one lobe often correspond to gaps or regions of low brightness on the other. So striking are these asymmetries that astronomers think that these huge, tremendously energetic systems are ejecting material first from one side then the other. Somehow, one side of the galaxy or quasar communicates with the other, which may be many light years away, and coordinates a flip-flop action. How and why radio galaxies and quasars should flip-flop is a major mystery. (Anonymous; "Flip-Flop Radio Jets?" Sky and Telescope, 68:506, 1984.) Comment. This flip-flop action immediately recalls the great elliptical galaxies which seem to be shooting out shells of stars first from one end, then the other. From Science Frontiers #37, JAN-FEB 1985 . 1985-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... the house next door. At this stage my mother rushed in the back door of the house where we huddled for about 30 seconds before hearing a resounding crash some 250 yards away off to the east. It had hit Green's house at the far eastern end of Campbell Road. It apparently then bounced all the way to the Salvation Army home and demolished the whole house somewhere near Dawson and Florence Streets at Fullarton." The ball rotated slowly and emitted small sparks. (Illert, Theodore Charles; "The Parkside Lightning Ball," personal communication from C. Illert. To be published in "Speak No Evil: A Case Study of Lives and Times of German Settlers in South Australia," by C. Illert) Ball lightning with a wormy or rope-like surface structure. The example sketched above appeared in an English garden, but it is basically the same as the Parkside ball lightning. (See the Catalog of Anomalies) From Science Frontiers #33, MAY-JUN 1984 . 1984-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... for the evolution of the more complicated parts of living cells. The microspheres absorb sunlight and, with the addition of this energy, display some of the electrical characteristics of biological neurons, like those in the brain. The implication is that some components of "mind" may have existed in the very earliest life forms. (Peterson, Ivars; "Microsphere Excitement," Science News, 125:408, 1984.) Comment. Two comments here: First, the word "spontaneous" is customarily employed when describing how atoms unite to form molecules and molecules combine into polymers, which then gather into microspheres. The word "spontaneous" seems to imply chance is operating rather than design. Actually, atoms and even subatomic particles must have innate properties which force them to combine into larger structures the way they do. Philosophically, one can ask whether the lowliest subatomic particles are "coded" to combine into molecules, microspheres, and living creatures. In other words, the design of life could be inherent in quarks. Second, if nonliving microspheres possess some of the properties of neurons, it is possible that natural, nonliving minds can form spontaneously -- a sort of "natural" artificial intelligence! Mind, then, could preced life, which is manifestly more complex than computers. The science-fiction possibilities are endless here. From Science Frontiers #35, SEP-OCT 1984 . 1984-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... taken from a letter to Nature by a "practising geneticist." "In the discussion in your columns about the application of quantitative methodology based on the study of evolutionary processes to the analysis of the development of human culture, there is an unquestioned assumption on both sides of that issue that quantitative theory, as expounded by practitioners such as Fisher, Haldane, Wright, Cavalli-Sforza and Maynard Smith, has been successful in illuminating and explaining the process of biological evolution and the genetic relationships between species. As far as I know, there is no evidence to support this assumption. Indeed, there is a vast number of observations unaccounted for in the extant quantitative evolutionary theories. Many of these observations (inducible mutation systems, rapid genomic changes involving mobile genetic elements, programmed changes in chromosome structure) challenge the most fundamental assumptions which these evolutionary theories make about the mechanisms of hereditary variation and the fixation of genetic differences." (Shapiro, James A.; "Evolution by Numbers," Nature, 303:196, 1983.) Comments. The "observations unaccounted for" are buried in such obscure journals as S.B . ges. Morph. Physio. (Munchen). It is pretty obvious that the Sourcebook Project is just scratching the surface. From Science Frontiers #28, JUL-AUG 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 26: Mar-Apr 1983 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Gyroscopic Galaxies The popular conception of a galaxy draws it in pancake shape, with a spiral structure consisting of many millions of stars. Oddities and deviants exist, but hardly anything as bizarre as a handful of recently discovered ringed spirals. Although the spiral sections of the ringed spirals seem normal enough, the rings are perpendicular to the plane of the spiral -- an inclination hardly countenanced by theories of galactic evolution. The ringed spirals look superficially like toy gyroscopes. One suggestion is that two galaxies collided at an angle, but there is no evidence of such a cataclysm. Ringed galaxies are eminently anomalous. (Anonymous; "Ringed Galaxy Clue to Cosmic Riddle," Science Digest, 91:22, February 1983.) From Science Frontiers #26, MAR-APR 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... ". .. had the uncanny power of mentally computing, to a long string of decimals, the values of e and e163 When asked (by his children) to multiply 987...1 by 123...9 , he remarked afterwards: 'I saw in a flash that 987...1 multiplied by 81 equals 80 000 000 001, and so I multiplied 123...9 by this, a simple matter, and divided the answer by 81.'" But what, asks Smith, led Aitken to 81? To this question, which is the heart of the mystery, he commendably admits he has no reply. And the same deep mystery confronts us even after all has been said about the sur, as distinct from the underlying, structure of the processing. At the unlettered end of the spectrum of mental calculators, the ". .. ignorant vagabond, Henri Mondeux, who at the age of 14 years, before the French Academy of Sciences, was able promptly to state two squares differing by 133." Of course, some mental feats of calculation can be done consciously employing various shortcuts and mathematical tricks. The really fantastic performances, however, are accomplished unconsciously. No one knows how, even the calculators themselves. (Cohen, John; "What Makes a Calculating Prodigy?" New Scientist, 100:819, 1983.) From Science Frontiers #32, MAR-APR 1984 . 1984-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... passive, and almost asking to be snapped up by their pursuers. Second, the stomachs of whales often contain much faster and more mobile prey -- often without any teeth marks. Finally, bottlenose dolphins are known to have the capability of producing bursts of sound five orders of magnitude more intense than their usual navigating clicks. This is more than enough to kill small fish. (Norris, Kenneth S., and Mohl, Bertel; "Can Odontocetes Debilitate Prey with Sound?" American Naturalist, 122:85, 1983.) Comment. Here is another instance of the "problem of perfection." An existing organ of great complexity seems utterly useless of only fractionally developed. One would think that the complicated sound lenses, the muscular sound-generating tissues, and their containing structures would have to have developed in a single step in order to have any survival value. Reference. Sperm whales also use a stun gun. See BMO10 in our Catalog: Biological Anomalies: Mammals II. For more information, visit: here . From Science Frontiers #29, SEP-OCT 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Confusing Seismic Data From The Deep Continental Crust Seismic exploration of the deep continental crust seems to indicate that huge sheets of crystalline rock have been pushed over sedimentary strata. The crystalline sheets, perhaps kilometers in thickness, were forcibly shoved hundreds of kilometers over sedimentary deposits during continental collisions -- so the theory goes. One such crystalline sheet is under the Southern Appalachians. Seismic data say it is about 10 kilometers thick and was pushed westward some 225 kilometers. If it seems intuitively impossible for such a thin sheet to remain intact during 225kilometers of shoving over other rocks, consider a similar sheet in the Basin and Range province of Utah. This sheet was pulled down an inclined fault without coming apart! These sliding sheets with remarkable structural integrities are required to explain what geophysicists see in the seismic reflections; namely, transparent zones of crystalline rock sitting on top of rocks that return strong reflections typical of layered sedimentary strata. However, one such situation in Arizona was explored with a drill bit. When the upper crystalline layer was penetrated, the drill found only more crystalline rocks, nothing sedimentary. In fact, the crystalline rock was not layered and was homogeneous. Thus, the source of the misleading seismic reflections is unknown. (Kerr, Richard A.; "Continental Drilling Heading Deeper," Science, 224:1418, 1984. Also: Anonymous; "Probing the Deep Con-tinental Crust," Science, 225:492, 1984) Comment. So-called "low-angle thrust faulting is ...
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... to be running down is the subject of a thoughtful report by Wallace and Karen Tucker. They give additional examples of order arising from disorder in astronomy (spiral galaxies, superclusters), from chemistry (Belousav-Zhabotinsky reactions), and biology (embryonic development). Again and again, they ask why order persists on increasing when the Second Law of Thermodynamics seems to demand more disorder. Throughout the article, the Tuckers employ the card-shuffling analogy. If nature is shuffling the cards of the universe, why are so many royal flushes being dealt? They introduce the works of Ilya Prigogine and others which focus on chemical situations (the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reactions), where reaction by-products actually make the reaction more likely and in which large, stable spiral and ring-shaped structures appear spontaneously. At the macroscopic level, shock waves from supernovas can (at least in computer models) stimulate the formation of spiral arms in galaxies. The article concludes with a quote from astronomer David Layzer: "The universe is unfolding in time but not unraveling; on the contrary, it is becoming constantly more complex and richer in formation." (Tucker, Wallace, and Tucker, Karen; "Against All Odds: Matter and Evolution in the Universe," Astronomy, September 1984.) Comment. Now Layzer's statement seems a clear denial of the Second Law. It says, rather, that there is something intrinsic in the universe that creates order (spiral galaxies, amino acids, humans). We don't explain this tendency (assuming it really ...
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... would be found to be integral multiples of the mass of the hydrogen atom was not far off the mark. Certainly an entertainment factor exists, too, for Maddox cannot resist printing a curious little contribution by Peter Stanbury, entitled "The Alleged Ubiquity of pi." Stanbury has discovered a large number of relations between the masses of the fundamental particles that are closely related to pi. Four representative examples follow: The proton-to-electron mass ratio is almost exactly 6pi5 ; The sum of the masses of the basic octet pio, pi +, k +, k-, ko, k-baro is 3.14006 times the proton mass; The sum of the masses of the baryon octet is very close to pi2 times the proton mass; and The reciprocal of the fine structure constant, 137.03604 is close to 4-pi3 + pi 2+ pi , or 137.03630. There are many more such relationships. Further, the ratios 1.0345 and 1.1115 keep popping up more frequently than coincidence would seem to allow. What could these ratios be? At least pi has geometrical significance. (Maddox, John; "The Temptations of Numerology," Nature, 304:11, 1983.) From Science Frontiers #29, SEP-OCT 1983 . 1983-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... submarine canyons cut into the continental shelves of Alaska and Siberia emphasize once again the colossal scale of these crustal gashes: "Erosion of some of the largest known submarine canyons has removed more than 20,000 km3 of former subduction margin between the Aleutian Islands and Cape Navarin, U.S .S .R . The canyons are incised as deeply as 2,400 m into Tertiary sedimentary and igneous rocks that make up the margin and attendant deep sedimentary basins along the outer Bering shelf. Cutting of the seven major canyons probably occurred during low stands of sea level when the Bering shelf was exposed to a depth of about -135 m, which allowed the ancestral Anadyr, Yukon, and Kuskokwim Rivers to carry large volumes of sediment to the outer shelf. Although their positions appear to be structurally influenced, the canyons apparently were cut by combinations of massive slumping and sliding of sediment deposited near the shelf edge and of scouring action of the resulting turbidity currents that carried debris to the abyssal sea floor, where deep-sea fans have formed." (Carlson, Paul R., and Karl, Herman A.; "Ancient and Modern Processes in Gigantic Submarine Canyons, Bering Sea," Eos, 64:1052, 1983.) Comment. The authors believe that submarine slumping and turbidity currents were sufficient to have eroded these huge canyons. Other geologists doubt this. The other possibility is that sea level was once a mile or more below present levels and that the canyons were cut by rushing water spilling over the continental shelves. Reference. Grand Canyon anomalies (and there ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 32: Mar-Apr 1984 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Subtle Is The Virus "Without causing noticeable structural damage, a virus administered to laboratory mice has been found to dis rupt hormone production in a particular type of pituitary cell. This novel observation -- that viruses are able to injure their hosts in ways not previously suspected -- may trigger a far-reaching search for viruses as causes of many unexplained human diseases." Some of the other types of diseases mentioned as possible consequences of virus infection are those involving the faulty manufacture of insulin, neurotransmitters, hormones, and immune system regulators. (Miller, J.A .; "Subtle is the Virus: Cells Stay Intact," Science News, 125: 70, 1984.) Comment. This item dwells on the negative aspects of vial infections. Indeed, we automatically assume every infection by any virus or bacterium to be bad for the organism. This may not be so. Now that we have discovered that viruses can cause bodily changes without damaging the cells of the infected organism, we should ask whether favorable physical changes might not be caused by viruses, but not recognized as such. Going a few steps further: Is intelligence a disease? Could evolution be accelerated or directed through the mediation of viruses? See below for more on this. From Science Frontiers #32, MAR-APR 1984 . 1984-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 42: Nov-Dec 1985 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Immense Complex Of Structures Found In Peru The well-known explorer, Gene Savoy, has discovered a "lost" city some 120 square miles in area in the jungle-covered mountains of Peru. This citadel, called Gran Vilaya, is located about 400 miles northeast of Lima on a 9,000-foot mountain ridge. Savoy said: ". .. the city's buildings ran along the ridge for at least 25 miles. He said the expedition calculated that there were 10,350 stone structures in the defensive network along the ridge and 13,000 other stone buildings in three major city layouts. The stone structures, some measuring 140 feet in length, were built atop terraces that go up the mountain slopes like stairs, he said. He described them as 'complex units of circular buildings with doorways, windows, and niched walls.' The walls, he said, 'soar up as high as a 15-story building." The city was built by the Chachapoyas Indians about 1,000 years ago. The Chacahpoyas empire is dated at 800-1480 AD. The Incas, who finally conquered them, told Spanish explorers that the Chachapoyas were tall, fair-skinned people! (Anonymous; "Ruined City Found in Jungle in Peru," New York Times, July 7, 1985. Cr. M. Hall via L. Farish.) From Science Frontiers #42, ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 46: Jul-Aug 1986 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Salt structures on venus?The following quotation is the abstract of a paper appearing in the Bulletin of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. "The discovery of a surprisingly high deuterium/hydrogen ratio on Venus immediately led to the speculation that Venus may have once had a volume of surface water comparable to that of the terrestrial oceans. We propose that the evaporation of this putative ocean may have yielded residual salt deposits that formed various terrain features depicted in Venera 15 and 16 radar images. "By analogy with models for the total evaporation of terrestrial oceans, evaporite deposits on Venus should be ar least ten to hundreds of meters thick. From photogeologic evidence and insitu chemical analyses, it appears that the salt plains were later buried by lava flows. On Earth, salt diapirism leads to the formation of salt domes, anticlines, and elongated salt intrusions -- features which have dimensions of roughly 1 to 100 km. Due to the rapid erosion of salt by water, surface evaporite landforms are only common in dry regions such as the Zagros Mountains of Iran, where salt plugs and glaciers exist. Venus is far drier than Iran; extruded salt should be preserved, although the high surface temperature (470 C) would probably stimulate rapid salt flow. Venus possesses a variety of circular landforms, ten to hundreds of kilometers wide, which could be either megasalt domes or salt intrusions colonizing impact craters. Additionally, arcuate bands seen in the ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 49: Jan-Feb 1987 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Inca walls and rockwall, texas First, we have what seems to be a new Inca wall of impressive proportions. This story began when R.Chohfi, a UCLA graduate student was examining aerial photos of the Machu Picchu region in Peru. He noticed a straight line where no archeological ruins had been recorded. Friends put up money for Chohfi to journey to Peru and investigate. His hunch was that, since straight lines are rare in the jungle, something manmade must be there. He was right. He found a wall more than 7 feet thick. at least that high, and more than 1,000 feet long. Other structures were also found in the area, suggesting the existence of a major new archeological site. (Dye, Lee; "Incas: UCLA Student May Have Opened a New Door," Los Angeles Times, October 4, 1986. Cr. E. Krupp.) Next, let us consider Rockwall, Texas, a small town named for a strange wall, mostly buried, that exists in the area. We have had inquiries about this structure but have little in the way of substantial data. Just arrived is a facetious newspaper item that relates how, some 50 years ago, R.F . Canup excavated part of this wall. He dug 8 feet down and eventually unearthed about 100 feet of the wall. That was enough to convince him that it was the masonry wall ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 47: Sep-Oct 1986 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Lumps, clumps, and jumps "Astronomers have already discovered lumps, motion and structure never suspected in a universe once considered smooth and expanding uniformly in all directions. Two researchers now say the universe is even lumpier, has faster relative motion and shows larger structures than previously believed." N. Bahcall and R. Soneira have been studying the structures and motions of superclusters of galaxies. Each supercluster consists of clusters of clusters of galaxies and contains upwards of hundreds of billions of stars. (Obvious-ly, these are not inconsequential entities!) By analyzing the redshifts of galaxies, Bahcall and Soneira have found that the universe is much more dynamic and inhomogeneous than expected. (1 ) The clusters of galaxies are larger and more extensive. Superclusters can be 500 million light years across -- about 1% of the known universe (2 ) Relative motions within the clusters are as high as 2,000 kilometers per second more than one can account for using gravitational attraction alone. (Kleist; T.; "Lumps, Clumps and Jumps in the Universe," Science News, 130:7 , 1986.) Comment. Before swallowing whole such grand sketches of the cosmos, one should always examine the assumptions. Here, redshifts are assumed to be measures of velocity, which if an expanding universe is assumed, can be converted into distances. Local Group of galaxies, including the Milky Way. and nearby superclusters ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 41: Sep-Oct 1985 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Australian Pyramids "Standing in the bushland some distance from the town of Gympie in southern Queensland, is a crudelybuilt, 40-metre-tall terraced stone pyramidal structure which, I believe, will one day help to alter the history of Australia -- to prove that, 3,000 years ago, joint Egyptian and Phoenician mineral-seeking expeditions established mining colonies here." Thus runs the lead paragraph of an article in a popular Australian publication. This purported pyramid boasts 18 recognizable terraces. The bottom 14 terraces are built from rather small stones; but the top four consist of slabs weighing up to 2 tons. Trees as old as 600 years poke up through the stones, attesting to a pre-European origin. Another much larger pyramid inhabits dense scrubland near Sydney. The claim that these admittedly crude structures are Egyptian is based upon the discovery of artifacts in the area with Egyptian and Phoenician characteristics; i.e ., a stone idol resembling a squatting ape, an onxy scarab beetle, and cave paintings with Egyptian symbols. Aborigine legends also tell of "culture heros" arriving at Gympie in large ships shaped like birds. (Gilroy, Rex; "Pyramids of Australia," Australasian Post, August 30, 1984. Cr. A. Jones.) Comments. Professional archeologists are very wary of anything R. Gilroy claims. Further, our Australian readers warn that Australian newspapers are not always as ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 44: Mar-Apr 1986 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects How The Incas Worked Stone Inca stonework is famous for its large stones (some over 100 tons), which are fitted so precisely that "a knife cannot be inserted into the joints." An aura of mystery has always hung about the great "walls" at Saqsaywaman and Ollantaytambo (spellings vary). How could the Incas have quarried, dressed, transported, and lifted such huge stones? As usual with such remarkable ancient structures, the overzealous have proposed antigravity devices, stone-softening agents, and similar wild notions. In truth, as J. Protzen relates in the subject article, Inca stonemasonry was surprisingly unsophisticated and yet efficient, although some mysteries remain. Protzen has spent many months in Inca country experimenting with different methods of shaping and fitting the same kinds of stones used by the Incas. He found that quarrying and dressing the stones were not problems at all using the stone hammers found in abundance in the area. Even the precision-fitting of stones was a relatively simple matter. The concave depressions into which new stones were fit were pounded out by trial and error until a snug fit was achieved. Protzen's first-hand experience is impressive and convincing. Certainly he required no radical solutions. The problems that Protzen was not able to solve to his satisfaction involved the transportation and handling of the large stones. The fitting process necessitated the repeated lowering and raising of the stone being fitted, with ...
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... a metallic glass results; cooled too slowly, it forms normal metal crystals. But when conditions are just right, icosahedral crystals cluster together in nodules a few microns in size. These icosahedral crystals are not normal in the sense that they have five-fold symmetry. In fact, to a crystallographer, these crystals are the equivalent to ESP in psychology. All the rules of crystallography insist that icosahedral crystals should not exist. One scientist reacted in this way: "All my training has been with the assumption that crystals are periodic. Now, almost everything has to be reexamined." Actually, the icosahedral crystals are "quasi-periodic"; that is, they are completely regular only over small distances. Nevertheless, there are hints that these materials that should not exist have remarkable structural and electronic properties. (Peterson, Ivars; "The Fivefold Way for Crystals," Science News, 127:188, 1985.) Two-dimensionsal quasiperiodic geometry (Penrose tiling) with five-fold symmetry formerly thought to be impossible in nature. The tricontahedron with 30 faces is the basis of three-dimensional quasiperiodic structures with five-fold symmetry. From Science Frontiers #39, MAY-JUN 1985 . 1985-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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