Quirks & Quarks for April 29, 2000
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BOOMERANG - map of the universe
In 1965, astronomers discovered the universe was bathed in a faint eerie glow
of microwave radiation. Unlike regular light coming from stars and other points in the sky, the microwave background came from everywhere.
In 1992, a spacecraft called COBE, Cosmic Background Explorer painted a surrealistic picture of a mottled sky. This week, that picture became more detailed as an international group of astronomers released new images of the cosmic microwave background.
They discovered, among other things, that the universe is flat. This means that it is expanding, and will continue to expand, indefinitely.
The pictures came from a mission called BOOMERANG, on which Dr. Barth Netterfield was the principal Canadian investigator. Dr. Netterfield is in the department of Physics at the University of Toronto.
Hamster dads
Researchers at Queens University in Kingston may have found the ultimate dad. Dr. Katherine Wynne-Edwards has been studying Djungarian hamsters, and discovered this rodent papa is truly devoted to parenting. Dr. Wynne-Edwards is a professor of biology at Queens, and she discussed her discoveries about hamster dads with us at Q&Q.
Ferret brains
Scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology rewired ferrets' nerves to find out about their brains. The ferrets underwent some delicate surgery - they had the nerves connecting the eyes with the visual cortex cut, and reconnected to the auditory cortex.
The auditory cortex adapted and interpreted the visual information, proving that brains are adaptable. Dr. Mriganka Sur, head of the department of brain and cognitive studies at MIT, was in charge of the experiment.
Fossil tusk rings
An American scientist has been studying fossil tusks from an ancient beast, Gomphotherium. It was a prehistoric Mammoth-like creature, and its tusks revealed not only a record of its diet, but a diary of dramatic climate change that likely led to the animal's own extinction.
The research was carried out by David Fox, a post-doctoral fellow in the department of Earth Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Beating blood clots
Not so long ago, many heart attack and stroke patients died due to complications with blood clots. Today, largely as a result of pioneering research by a Canadian scientist, the incidence of this is as low as eight per cent of patients.
Dr. Jack Hirsh from McMaster University in Hamilton, was honoured last week for his work on blood clots. He won the prestigious Gairdner Prize for biomedical research, and spoke with us at Quirks and Quarks.
Question of the week
One of our listeners wanted to know why humans still have body hair after evolving for so long. In order to discover the purpose of hairiness, we consulted Dr. Christopher Meiklejohn, a professor of anthropology at the University of Winnipeg.
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