In the News:
New Carnivore Found - Researchers from the World
Wildlife Fund are setting traps on the island of Borneo hoping to capture
a mysterious new species of carnivore that so far has only been seen in
photographs. The animal, which looks like a cross between a cat and a
fox, is thought to live in the densely forested mountains of that Indonesian
island. The unknown mammal appears to be slightly larger than a cat with
red fur and a long tail. It has been photographed twice by an automatic
camera. If researchers can establish that it is a new species, it will
be the first time in a over a century that a new carnivore has been discovered
on that island.
Japanese Monkeys may have Accent - Human beings
aren't the only species that have accents according to a study released
in the German scientific journal Etholog. Researchers found that
two groups of Japanese Yakushima macaque monkeys, the first located on
the southern Japanese island of Yakushima, and the other group relocated
to Mount Ohira in 1956, had developed slightly different calls. The island
group's calls had a tone about 110 hertz higher on average than the group
in central Japan. Scientists believe that this is due to the higher trees
on the island which block lower tones. This causes the scientists to speculate
that the differences in voice tones are not just caused by genes, and
may lead to a clues to the origin of human language.
Voyager Saved from Budget Cut - NASA has decided
to continue funding the monitoring of the Voyager spacecraft. The program
had been one of those slated to be terminated to help NASA with budget
problems. The Voyager 1 & 2 probes were launched from Earth almost 30
years ago and Voyager 1 is the first man-made object to reach the heliosheath
which is the final layer between our solar system and interstellar space.
"It will be our first sample of material that is non-solar system in origin,"
said Tom Krimigis, a Voyager investigator with Johns Hopkins University's
Applied Physics Laboratory. It costs NASA between $4 million and $5 million
a year to operate the spacecraft and fund the science teams.
Date of Moon Birth Established - Scientists using
new techniques to study the rocks brought back from the moon by Apollo
astronauts, say that they show the surface of the moon became solid more
than 4.5 billion years ago. If this is accurate it would put the formation
of the moon at about the same time as the solidification of the Earth's
crust. This would booster the theory that the moon was created as the
result of a collision of a Mars-sized body with early Earth in which a
part of the Earth's crust was flung into orbit and later coalesced into
the moon.
Mass Extinction Theory - An article in the December
issue of journal Geology suggests that the mass extinction of life
at the end of the Permian era, 250 million years ago, was caused by a
massive volcanic eruption in what is now Siberia. The eruption released
gas that depleted earth's protective ozone layer, made the land and sea
more acidic, and killed all the land plants. The death of the land plants
led to massive soil erosion which clouded the sea and disrupted the ecosystem
there. If the theory is right this led to the worst mass extinction in
the Earth's history.
What's New at the Museum:
Watch Out! Quicksand! - Being sucked into
quicksand is a staple of many 'B' movies, but is this phenomenon of nature
really as dangerous as it is portrayed? >Full
Story
Chapter Four of Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World
- Follow the expedition members in our graphic novel version as they
try to avoid being eaten by hungry dinosaurs while finding a way to get
home. >Full Story
Ask the Curator:
Suspended Animation - Is it possible to deep-freeze
your body (brain, heart, etc. ) and restore your body in a later time?
For example a person freezes and wakes up 1,000 years later - Rowell
The idea of cryogenically preserving by a person and thawing them out later - sort of like a frozen dinner - has long been a staple of science fiction, but so far scientists have not figured out how to make it work. The reason is ice. Most of the human body is water and water expands when it freezes. This is the reason the pipes in your house will crack open if they are filled with water and your heater fails in freezing temperatures. The expansion of the water in a human body systems wrecks the delicate structure of cell tissue throughout the body. Scientists have tried to counteract this by mixing substances like glycerol in with body fluids to act as sort of a biological antifreeze, but the results have not yet been fully successful. If such a system could be developed it could, in theory, be used to freeze a human indefinitely.
Another, perhaps more promising approach, to the problem is not to literally "freeze" a person, but to put them into hibernation. Many animals, including bears, hibernate by lowering their body temperature and metabolism. Just recently scientists have demonstrated the ability to put mice into a state of "suspended animation" by having them breath air laced with hydrogen sulfide. While high concentrations of this gas would be fatal, just the right amount seems to put the mice to sleep and their metabolic rates dropped by 90%. They were revived by simply returning the air they were breathing to normal. As metabolism is not stopped with this method, but just slowed, it could not be used to preserve humans indefinitely.
There would be many uses for such a state of suspended animation. Currently trips to other planets in our solar system, or beyond, could take many months or years and the trip would be made much simpler - less food, drink and psychological stress - if the astronauts slept most of the way. The technique could also be used to preserve organs for transplantation or have critical patients hibernate through operations or recovery.
Strange Encounter on the Slopes - It was in the
afternoon on January 7, 1970 that two skiers in Finland reported they
encountered a strange red fog. As they approached it they noticed that
the fog seemed to be created by a domed, hovering disc at the center of
the cloud. Standing under this object appeared to be a three-foot high
man with pale skin and no eyes. The fog suddenly thickened and when it
dissipated the disc and the creature were gone.
In the Sky:
Meteor Shower - The Quadrantid Meteors are hard
to see, but fascinating if you can catch them. The meteor shower is short
and you will have to be looking near the bright star Arcturus in the constellation
of Bootes right before sunrise on the 3rd of November (North America)
to see them. Most are very faint and have a distinctly blue color.
Observed:
Roswell Incident Figure Dies - Former Army lieutenant
Walter Haut, who was responsible for putting out the news release that
started the rumors of a crashed flying saucer near the tiny town of Roswell,
NM, died last month at the age of 83. It was his actions as a spokesman
for the Roswell Army Air Field that set off a controversy about what happened
there that still continues today. Haut released a story that was carried
in the local newspaper under the title of "RAAF Captures Flying Saucer
on Ranch in Roswell Region." Later that same day the Army retracted the
story saying what they found was only the wreckage of a weather balloon.
The incident converted Haut into a believer, however, and he went on to
found the International UFO Museum in Roswell in 1991. Due in part to
his influence the even town boasts an annual UFO Festival
On the Tube:
Currently we are only able to give accurate times and dates for these programs in the United States. Check local listings in other locations.
NOVA - The Mummy Who Would Be King -
Could a mummy exhibited for 140 years at an obscure museum in Niagara
Falls be the remains of a long-lost Egyptian pharaoh? On the PBS: January
3 at 8 pm ET/PT
Fireballs From Space - Asteroids and comets roar
across the solar system threatening to smash into distant planets and
occasionally the Earth. Probes like Deep Impact are watching these dangerous
space rocks. Some probes are attempting to land on these alien terrains.
On the Science Channel: JAN 15 @ 10:00 PM; JAN 16 @ 01:00 AM; JAN 16 @
05:00 AM; JAN 16 @ 11:00 AM; JAN 16 @ 03:00 PM; JAN 22 @ 09:00 AM ET/PT
Einstein's Beautiful Equation - Scientific genius
can change the world, but at what price? Albert Einstein's theory E=mc2
ultimately led to creation of a weapon of mass destruction. He considered
the atomic bomb his biggest blunder and spent years promoting disarmament
and peace. On the Science Channel: JAN 08 @ 09:00 PM; JAN 09 @ 12:00 AM
JAN 09 @ 04:00 AM; JAN 09 @ 10:00 AM; JAN 09 @ 02:00 PM; JAN 14 @ 09:00
AM ET/PT
Valley of the T-Rex - In the arid badlands of
Montana, paleontologist Jack Horner found five T-Rex dinosaurs in a single
summer, exposing clues to a lost world. Unearthed is a 90 percent complete,
never before seen, juvenile tyrannosaur, called Daspletasaurus. On The
Science Channel: JAN 09 @ 09:00 PM; JAN 10 @ 12:00 AM; JAN 10 @ 04:00
AM; JAN 10 @ 10:00 AM; JAN 10 @ 02:00 PM; JAN 14 @ 05:00 PM ET/PT.
Killer Waves - Recent disappearances of huge
cargo vessels at sea have breathed new life into an old mariner's tale
of single, massive waves capable of sinking a ship in one hit. Investigate
evidence that suggests these towering waves really are out there. On The
Science Channel: JAN 26 @ 09:00 PM; JAN 27 @ 12:00 AM; JAN 27 @ 04:00
AM; JAN 27 @ 10:00 AM; JAN 27 @ 02:00 PM; JAN 28 @ 02:00 PM; ET/PT.
Killer Ants - Over 8,000 species of ants cover
the planet. Most are harmless, but some have a violent streak. African
driver ants have eaten a horse in a day and suffocated a human, and the
army ants of South and Central America can wipe out entire ecosystems.
On The Discovery Channel: JAN 19 @ 10:00 PM; JAN 20 @ 02:00 AM ET/PT.
Egypt Untold: Secrets of the Rosetta Stone -
Napoleon's invasion of Egypt in 1798 ignited the rediscovery of an ancient
civilization shrouded in mystery. Europe was astounded by what they found.
Jean-François Champollion deciphered the inscriptions which held the secrets
of ancient Egypt. On The Discovery Channel: JAN 13 @ 09:00 PM; JAN 14
@ 01:00 AM; JAN 16 @ 12:00 PM ET/PT.
Houdini: Unlocking the Mystery - In one of magic
history's rarest events, a private collector auctioned off the largest
collection of personally-owned Harry Houdini artifacts and memorabilia,
providing an unprecedented peek behind the curtain at the world's great
showman and magician. In a 2-hour special, hosted by renowned magician
Lance Burton, we explore the life and magic of the great escape artist
through his most prized possessions: the Chinese Water Torture Cell, the
Milkcan, his straitjackets and handcuffs, and lockpicks that were "key"
to his handcuff escapes, revealed to the public for the first time. We
also unlock secrets of the man--brash showman, fierce competitor, loyal
son and husband. With expert commentary, including a great-nephew and
the last surviving member of his magic troop. On History Channel: January
2 @ 8pm ET/PT.
Giganto: The Real King Kong - An exploration
of the Giganto (King Kong) legend using modern science, technology, and
historic eyewitness accounts. Gigantopithecus (the Latin term for "Giant
Ape") is believed to have existed 9 to 5-million years ago and supposedly
was around 10-feet tall. Some fossil evidence shows that it may have lived
in China or India. Scientists of varying fields will attempt to genetically
connect Giganto to modern-day creatures from around the world. Could Bigfoot
be a relative? Forensic testing, extensive scientific research, 3-D animation,
and body reconstruction will help determine the true mystery behind this
prehistoric ape. On History Channel: January 8 @ 6pm, ET/PT.
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