Weighing the baby

Weighing the Universe.

Weighing the Scales:

Political science provides two very different takes on how the information revolution affects the relationship between governments and global civil society. The more popular and prominent argument is that the Internet dramatically lowers the costs of networked communication; therefore, civil society groups are better able to mobilize action to influence governments. Countless numbers of article...

The Baby Boom and Baby Bust

The fertility of American women over the last 200 years has two salient features, portrayed in Figure 1. First, it has declined drastically. The average white woman bore 7 children in 1800. By 1990 this had dropped to just 2. This decline in fertility ran unabated during the 140-year period between 1800 and 1940. Second, fertility showed a surprising recovery between the mid1940s and mid-1960s....

Weighing the deep continental biosphere.

There is abundant evidence for widespread microbial activity in deep continental fractures and aquifers, with important implications for biogeochemical cycling on Earth and the habitability of other planetary bodies. Whitman et al. (P Natl Acad Sci USA, 95, 1998, 6578) estimated a continental subsurface biomass on the order of 10(16) -10(17) g C. We reassess this value in the light of more rece...

Dynamic Weighing

In fabricating flowmeters, the meter's calibration is its final and accuracy determining step that comprises a great time consumption relative to its completion from its single component parts. Thus calibration (unless the respective time of calibration for a flow meter is not minimized) may represent a relevant contribution to fabrication costs. High-accuracy liquid flow calibration facilities...