December 16, 1996
Headliners
The latest nod to David Chalmers's new book came from the
London Times. Following up on earlier coverage, the paper
printed two stories on Chalmers in a recent Sunday edition--one
in the magazine section and one in the books section listing The
Conscious Mind as one of the best science books of the year.
The December issue of Discover features an article about
Supernova 1987A, the star that blew up so famously nearly ten
years ago. Our resident supernova expert, Stan Woosley,
opined that astrophysicists soon would detect a rapidly spinning
neutron star at the core of the explosion, even though many researchers
now believe a black hole lurks there instead.
A report about the impact of Proposition 209 on public health
programs that was coauthored by community studies professor David
Wellman was the subject of an article in the Contra Costa
Times. The report, leaked to the press before the initiative
was approved by voters, concluded that health care providers wouldn't
be able to take race, ethnicity, or, national origin into account
when they design and implement programs--a conclusion that could
have dire consequences for programs to screen or treat inherited
diseases that strike specific groups, such as sickle cell anemia.
Marine biologist Dan Costa told the Santa Cruz County
Sentinel about a new federal permit that will allow his
research team to study the effects of deep diving on the physiology
of sea lions. Little is known about how much energy the animals
expend in the ocean, Costa said.
Economist Donald Wittman was the subject of a profile in the Santa Cruz County Sentinel's "Bookends" section. The article focused on Wittman's book The Myth of Democratic Failure and covered Wittman's views on politics, economics, and the democratic process, among other topics.