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Watching the World

“Significant” Earthquakes Up

● There were 70 “significant” earthquakes worldwide in 1983, according to the United States Geological Survey. “This was 14 more than in 1982 and 20 more than in 1981, but just one less than in 1980,” said geophysicist Waverly Person. An earthquake is called significant if it reaches a magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale, or if it causes casualties and considerable damage. The agency’s report stated: “During the past decade, nearly three-quarters of a million people were killed by earthquakes, including estimates of more than 600,000 deaths in a major earthquake in China in 1976.”

Aerosols Innocent?

● Scientists working at Faraday Base in British Antarctica claim to have demolished the theory that the use of aerosol cans harms the earth’s atmosphere, reports The Daily Telegraph of London. For some time it has been thought that the fluorocarbons in aerosols weaken the ozone layer that protects the earth from excessive ultraviolet radiation. For years now, the scientists have been measuring and recording the amount of radiation reaching the earth in Antarctica. Noting no appreciable increase in it, they have concluded that the ozone layer has not been weakened and that aerosols are innocent after all. “The discovery will prove embarrassing to members of the United States Congress and the European Parliament who, in the 1970s, passed measures severely restricting the use of aerosol sprays,” says the Telegraph.

Anorexia Nervosa Increasing

● Anorexia nervosa is an emotional illness where a person refuses to eat. Despite the attention it has been receiving, it is spreading at an alarming rate, according to Dr. Stewart Agras of Stanford University. About 4,000 Americans, he says, are starving themselves at the present time, and 2.3 million more have the disorder called bulimia, where victims induce the vomiting of their food. “Our recently collected studies show a doubling of anorexia every decade for the past 30 years,” Agras said. A person is considered to be suffering from the disorder when body weight falls to 25 percent below normal. It mainly afflicts women​—nine women for every man—​and will result in death for 5 percent of its victims, most of whom are bright teenagers from affluent families. “Why do these otherwise intelligent young people who seem to have everything to live for become obsessed with what, in effect, becomes a slow death?” asks Dr. Agras. One factor, he feels, is the current preoccupation with dieting.

Joseph’s Secrets Sought

● “Almost 4,000 years after Joseph of the Old Testament saved the ancient Egyptians from starvation by stockpiling grain in the desert,” says the New Jersey Sunday Herald, “Israeli scientists are puzzling over his methods in hopes of offsetting famine in drought-ridden 20th century lands.” Working together with Israel on the project is the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which, according to Professor Moshe Kalderon, head of the research effort, has “a lot of wheat to sell.” Experimenting with a white-domed tent that houses 550 tons of wheat, the scientists are trying to figure out how Joseph stored the grain during the seven years of plenty and the seven years of famine so as to keep out insects and moisture. The Bible does not state how he did it.

Space Race

● U.S. President Ronald Reagan has approved a plan to put a permanently manned space station in orbit by 1992. As reported in Maclean’s magazine, the president’s announcement was made in an address “that was rich with nationalistic rhetoric and grand designs for colonizing outer space.” Five men and two women​—specialists in their respective fields—​are to make up the initial crew, but this is expected to increase as the space station expands. The space shuttle is to be used to carry the parts and equipment into orbit. The cost? An expected $8 billion to start and perhaps exceeding $30 billion by the end of the century. The plan is not without opposition. According to the National Academy of Sciences, there is “no scientific need” for the station. Some say the experiments proposed can be accomplished by unmanned satellites at a fraction of the cost. Others lament the cost at a time when social programs are being cut because of tremendous budget deficits. National prestige is stated to be the only justification for the station. Said Reagan: “We can be proud to say we are the first, we are the best.”

“Hurry-Up Disease”

● “Hurry-up disease” claims millions of people as its victims, says Dr. Gershon Lesser, a cardiologist at the University of Southern California. It is a “real pathological entity,” he states, that leads to a number of illnesses, including colds, flu and heart disease. As reported in the newspaper USA Today, Lesser cites how people today are constantly on the rush: to and from work, eating, doing chores and even on vacations. “People in a constant state of rush are in a chronic chemical state of emergency,” he says. “They’re experiencing a ‘rush’ of adrenaline that overtaxes the cardiovascular system, placing ultimately a life-threatening strain on the heart.” To avoid paying the price of a heart attack, which often occurs in middle age, he advises learning to relax, planning activities so that hurrying is unnecessary, concentrating efforts on real priorities and not being intimidated by matters left unfinished.

Torah Registration

● Torahs, handwritten copies of Moses’ writings of the first five books of the Bible, have been disappearing from Jewish synagogues in the United States. Over 200 of the sacred scrolls​—each costing an average of $25,000—​have been stolen in the past three years. Few have been recovered, as they all look basically the same once the covers and posts are removed. Since Jewish law prohibits visible markings on the scrolls, previous identification attempts have been largely unsuccessful. Now, after three years of research, authorities have come up with a system that is acceptable. A registration system is being put into operation in which each Torah will be uniquely coded in ten locations by “micro-perforations”​—eight holes so small they are invisible to the naked eye but can be read with police equipment. A computerized record of all Torahs thus registered will be kept for immediate access to law-enforcement agencies.

Halfpenny Halts

● After a history of 704 years, the British halfpenny coin will no longer be minted and is slated to be withdrawn as legal tender at the end of the year. Introduced in 1280 by King Edward I and originally made of silver, the halfpenny has shrunk in size and value to the point where people will not bother to pick the coin up when it is dropped. Since the copper coin now costs more than its face value to mint, and prices are usually raised or lowered by at least a penny, no one has tried to save the coin from extinction. Over 2.5 billion are currently in circulation.

Fly Swatting

● Why is it so difficult to swat a fly successfully? Because it only takes a thousandth of a second for the fly’s eye to relay the information to its brain. Now, E. G. Gray of London’s National Institute for Medical Research says, there is a better way. As reported in Changing Times, he advises approaching the fly with a piece of tissue in the palm of each hand and holding each hand at an equal distance from the fly. Then, moving slightly to and fro, clap both hands on it. Why does it work? According to Gray, the fly’s brain will only let it respond to movement from one sector of its field of vision. “Two simultaneously approaching swats render the fly immobile,” says Gray, “for its central nervous system now cannot compute at which angle to take off.”

Surviving “Drowning”

● “Everybody used to assume that when a person drowned that was it, he was dead,” says Dr. Robert Pozos of the University of Minnesota, an expert on hypothermia. “Now we know that even after total submersion in cold water for up to one hour a person has a chance to survive and that every effort should be made to revive him.” The biological phenomenon responsible is called the “mammalian diving reflex,” which is triggered by water temperatures below 70° F. (21° C.). It diverts blood away from the surface areas and extremities of the body and sends it to protect the heart and the brain. At the same time, the rapid cooling of the body plays a major part in preserving the functioning of vital organs. The brain’s metabolic rate drops swiftly, drastically reducing its need for oxygen. Recent cases where children have survived “drowning” without brain damage or other ill effects​—even though pronounced clinically dead and lacking vital signs of life—​have taught doctors not to give up on submerged victims suffering from hypothermia.

Ancients Best

● Herod’s engineers of 2,000 years ago have solved a problem for modern Israeli builders. As reported in the Sun-Telegraph of London, the breakwater built in 1971 at the port of Ashdod was eroding and crumbling. Unable to solve the problem, the engineers turned to the Haifa University maritime center. It, in turn, examined the breakwater that was built by King Herod at Caesarea, some 50 miles (80 km) north of Ashdod. “We found that Herod’s engineers had built their breakwater with more advanced technique and foresight than used at Ashdod,” said Mr. Avner Rahand of the university. Following the ancient method in which they first paved the ocean floor with stones and pebbles for a solid, impregnable foundation, the Ashdod breakwater was reconstructed and is reported to be holding up well.

Parts Costly

● Did you ever wonder why more and more cars are considered a total loss after an accident? According to the Alliance of American Insurers, it is because the replacement parts are so costly. The cost of replacing all the parts of a $7,128 imported subcompact car is said to be $26,787​—the price of a luxury car! Mathematics notwithstanding, this is one case where the whole does not equal the sum of the parts.

Check Hospital Bills

● It may be a good idea to check your next hospital bill before paying it. According to a recent audit taken by Equifax Services, a risk management company that serves insurers, there is a good possibility that you will be overcharged. As reported in Family Weekly magazine, 93 percent of the hundreds of bills checked in 40 states​—each for over $10,000—​contained errors. Three fourths of the errors were found to be either duplicate charges or billings for services never performed.