Scientific American Magazine Vol 242 Issue 6

Scientific American Magazine

Volume 242, Issue 6

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Features

Genetic Amniocentesis

The fluid that surrounds a fetus in the uterus can now be examined for the prenatal detection of genetic disorders, yet the procedure is being performed for only a tenth of the parents most in need of it

Fritz Fuchs

Basaltic Meteorites

Eucrites and shergottites are remarkably similar to volcanic rocks on the earth and the moon, but they are from somewhere else. They testify to the long history of volcanic activity in the solar system

Edward M. Stolper, Harry Y. McSween

Computer Backgammon

Backgammon is a good test of principles of artificial intelligence. BKG 9.8 is the first computer program to defeat a world champion at any board or card game

Hans Berliner

The Functioning of Blood Platelets

These small bodies act to stop the Row of blood from a wound. The interactions of their contents with substances in the blood plasma and in tissue play complex roles in health and disease

Marjorie B. Zucker

Gauge Theories of the Forces between Elementary Particles

All the basic forces of nature are now described by theories of this kind. The properties of the forces are deduced from symmetries or regularities apparent in the laws of physics

Gerard't Hooft

Ice-Age Subsistence in Northern Spain

A 12,000-year record of man's quest for food in Pleistocene times has been found in a cave near the Bay of Biscay. Changes in the use of resources suggest a response to increasing demographic pressure

Geoffrey A. Clark, Jesus A. Ortea, Jesus Altuna, Lawrence Guy Straus

The Deep-Earth-Gas Hypothesis

There is much evidence indicating that earthquakes release gases from deep in the earth's mantle. Such gases may include methane of nonbiological origin, which could be a vast resource of fuel

Steven Soter, Thomas Gold

Sexual Selection in the Black-tipped Hangingfly

This species has evolved a striking form of mating behavior: females choose males on the basis of the prey they present during courtship, and males may mimic female behavior to steal such prey hom rivals

Randy Thornhill

Departments

Letters to the Editors, June 1980

50 and 100 Years Ago, June 1980

The Authors, June 1980

Mathematical Games, June 1980

Books, June 1980

Science and the Citizen, June 1980

The Amateur Scientist, June 1980

Bibliography, June 1980