On the Cover
September-October 2001 Volume 89, Number 5
In the early spring of 1991, a volcanic eruption 2,500 meters below the
ocean surface on the East Pacific Rise destroyed a thriving community of
organisms living around hydrothermal vents. Investigators aboard the
deep submersible Alvin were fortunate enough to be on the scene at Nine North (named for the latitude) within days of the eruption. ...
FEATURE ARTICLES
Colin C. Adams, Joey Shapiro
Recent experimental evidence has hinted that the shape of the universe may be found among the ten orientable Euclidean 3-manifolds
Armand Delsemme
The evidence suggests that a rain of comets brought the Earth its water, its organic molecules and its atmosphere—key ingredients for life's beginnings
Erich Gulbins, Florian Lang
Invading pathogens can co-opt even the cells of the immune system. New anti-infective drugs may arise from an understanding of this chemical warfare
Richard Lutz, Timothy Shank, Robert Evans
Following immolation by volcanic eruption, the community around a hydrothermal vent recovers spectacularly
Stephen Arnold
Light can become trapped within tiny, transparent spheres. The surprising properties that result may turn "microsphere photonics" into an important new technology
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