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July-August 2010 cover

On the Cover

July-August 2010 Volume 98, Number 4

In this 1983 photograph, water quality technician Gail Flory of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (left) and hydrologist Steven Sumioka of the U.S. Geological Survey pause while collecting water samples amidst log debris that littered Spirit Lake after Mount St. Helens erupted. ...

FEATURE ARTICLES

Ivermectin and River Blindness *

Philip A. Rea, Vivian Zhang, Yelena S. Baras

Science and philanthropy put an end to blindly following the next generation

Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors *

Robert Hargraves, Ralph Moir

An old idea in nuclear power gets reexamined

Wiggling Through the World *

Daniel I. Goldman, David L. Hu

The mechanics of slithering locomotion depend on the surroundings

Science After the Volcano Blew

Research near Mount St. Helens proceeded despite bureaucratic hurdles, limited funding and an extremely hazardous environment

* access restricted to members and subscribers

SCIENTISTS’ BOOKSHELF

An Urge to Understand and Predict

A review of Science: A Four Thousand Year History, by Patricia Fara. It’s hard to imagine compressing 4,000 years of scientific history into 400 pages, but Fara succeeds at it, says Dahm, and “compellingly shows how insightful a backward glance can be”

See all book reviews for this issue.

DEPARTMENTS

MACROSCOPE

The Widening Gyrus

Concert pianists could be model organisms for studying the physiological basis of intellectual greatness

Charles T. Ambrose

COMPUTING SCIENCE

E Pluribus Confusion

There’s more than one way to turn census data into congressional seats

ENGINEERING

Technology Plus*

An innovative forum in Seoul seeks a brighter stage for South Korean technology

MARGINALIA

A single 30-day span begat much of modern biology

Robert L. Dorit

SLIDE SHOW

Spirit Lake 1981–2000

See Spirit Lake after the 1980 eruption of Mt. Saint Helens through the photography of Douglas Larson, whose feature article appears in this issue

SIGHTINGS

Chasing Winged Perfection

Smoke and mesh help researchers visualize the mechanics of insect flight

Catherine Clabby

SCIENCE OBSERVER

Copper, Heal Thyself

Nanocrystalline structures help materials self-repair radiation damage

Fenella Saunders

Does Peak Phosphorus Loom?

Scientists make the case that easily accessible supplies of an essential element are being depleted

Catherine Clabby

Getting a Fix on Pollen Folding

A collaborative study illuminates old questions about how pollen grains survive

Anna Lena Phillips

LETTERS TO THE EDITORS

Inspiring Art and Science

Why Do We Forget?

Skip the Memes, Please

Uncertainty Is Allowed

SIGMA XI TODAY (PDF)

IN THIS SECTION

American Scientist Classics

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