Science World articles from April 2002

Science World archives from April 2002

Sand dunes saved! (Earth News).
April 8, 2002... GOOD NEWS for nature lovers: Thanks to a massive land-preservation effort, Colorado's Great Sand Dunes National Monument and Preserve is primed to become the nation's 58th national park by 2005. The deal hinges on the Nature Conservancy's...

Jurassic puke. (Life News).(fossilized vomit)
April 8, 2002... As a paleontologist, Peter Doyle spends a lot of time sifting through dirt in search of dinosaur fossils. Most often his efforts turn up, well--dirt. But last fall, the University of Greenwich professor lucked out while fossil hunting in a clay...

Rubber ducky? (Freeze Frame).(rescuing murres)
April 8, 2002... SPLISH, SPLASH, this bird is having a bath--at the International Bird Rescue Research Center in Suisun City, California. Rescuers used a toothbrush and Dawn dish soap to scrub off a suffocating coat of oil plastered to its feathers. The bird, a...

Humans vs. animals: does anybody win?
April 8, 2002... You need a sale home, healthy food, and clean water to survive. So do other animals. Why care about the needs of a fish or butterfly or wild horse? "All different aspects of the natural world are connected," says biologist Jim Helfield. "We're...

Saving salmon why care? Dams serve vital human needs but may harm salmon. Should dams be busted to save a fish? (Life Cycle/Rivers).
April 8, 2002... AFTER YEARS on their own, some animals will do anything to get back home. For several years, the chinook (or king) salmon roams the open Pacific Ocean, where it feasts on crustaceans, squid, and smaller fish, growing from a smolt (juvenile) to...

Monarch massacre: freak winter storms, illegal logging, suburban sprawl, widespread pesticide use--can the monarch butterfly survive? (Biology/Migration).
April 8, 2002... INSECTS UNDER SEIGE LAST JANUARY, a monster winter storm pelted four inches of icy rain over central Mexico, home to two of the world's largest winter hibernation (resting state) sites for monarch butterflies. In the storm's wake, frigid...

Mustangs in danger? Too many horses, too little land. (Population Ecology).
April 8, 2002... FORTY-FIVE THOUSAND untamed horses roam vast Western rangeland. These wild mustangs--descended from horses of explorers, Native Americans, and pioneers--are revered symbols of the Wild West. But mustangs don't roam the range alone. They share...

Tease your brain. (You Can Do It).
April 8, 2002... How many triangles can you find in this diagram? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Can you remove 4 toothpicks to form 4 triangles? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ANSWER 1 triangle 36 4 triangles 21 9 triangles 11 16...

Gross out?(tarantulas)
April 8, 2002... ZOOLOGIST (animal expert) Scott Petersen at the Serpentarium and Reptile Zoo in Goldbar, Washington, will try anything to cure people of arachnophobia (fear of spiders)--even letting a Brazilian black tarantula crawl across his face. "Unlike in...

The lighter side.
April 8, 2002... "Global warming is affecting every square inch of the planet... except your feet!"

Raise your own monarch baby! If you've never seen a caterpillar miraculously transform into a butterfly, now is your chance! (Hands-On Science).
April 8, 2002... You Need: shoe box * scissors * plastic wrap * scotch tape * monarch egg or caterpillar (commonly found on milkweed leaves) * milkweed leaves * glass jar * paper towel * rubber band * water To Do: 1. Use a shoebox to create a...

Wild mustang statistics. (Chart-Reading Activity).
April 8, 2002... Free-roaming wild horses roam rangeland in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) monitors the horse herds and makes Sure the animals don't damage...

Pitch in and help! Many human activities severely impact Earth's environment. Want to help improve the state of your home planet? Here are some ideas. (Resource Guide).
April 8, 2002... Celebrate Earth Day The global environmental event takes place this year on April 22, 2002. Join in on local or international activities to help save the environment. Or organize one for your class or neighborhood. Check out the official...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
April 8, 2002... SW12 3/25/02 Life News: "Copycat" It took the brilliant scientists at Texas A&M University 188 attempts to successfully clone a cat. And unfortunately our first attempt at explaining how those scientists cloned a cat wasn't entirely successful,...

Earth: a watery planet: water covers 70 percent of our planet. And 97 percent of that water is in the oceans. Dive in and explore. (Did You Know?).(Brief Article)
April 8, 2002... More than 25 percent of all marine plants and animals call coral reefs home--including 10 percent of all fish that humans eat. But some scientists estimate 70 percent of the world's coral could be destroyed within 40 years. Some culprits:...

It's tidal. (Critical Thinking Skills).(Brief Article)
April 8, 2002... Everyday, coastlines expand and shrink because the ocean rises (high tide) and falls (low tide). The reason: gravity. Gravity is the attractive force that keeps planets orbiting around the Sun. It's also the force that pulls matter to the...

Maps from space. (Diagram-Reading/Chart-Making Skills).
April 8, 2002... What's the height of the ocean surface? And how level is it? Scientists can determine the actual elevation within 4.5 centimeters (1.8 inches) thanks to satellites carrying radar altimeters. An altimeter works by bouncing microwave (invisible...

Aqualungs. (Hands-On Activity).
April 8, 2002... Fish can breathe underwater thanks to a pair of gills and oxygen dissolved in water. Can't see the dissolved air? Check out this experiment. You Need: 2 containers for heating: cooking pans or glass beakers * heat source: hot plate or...