Details of the landscape of the planet Venus as revealed by the Magellan spacecraft are discussed and illustrated. Advances beyond previous space probes are demonstrated. Details of the program are described. Additional work from this project is proposed. (CW)

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) wants universities to convert to low-grade fuel in their research reactions. Researchers claim the conversion, which will bring U.S. reactors in line with a policy the NRC is trying to impress on foreigners, could be financially and scientifically costly. Impact of the policy is considered. (JN)

Examines controversies over the control of scientific information, citing cases about and discussing issues concerning professional control, confidentiality, competition, and national security. Addresses policy changes and the difficulties of establishing principles for control. (DC)

Provides information regarding recent administrative budgetary decisions for 1982 to support basic research in the universities from Department of Defense (DOD) monies. Discusses the concern that research and training programs on campuses remain unclassified, even though DOD monies fund the programs. (CS)

Comments on the personalities and viewpoints of Richard Leakey and Donald Johanson, paleoanthropologists who hold differing views on the origin of humans. Summarizes major paleoanthropological finds and suggests the use of radio-immunoassay techniques for untangling the human family tree. (JN)

Reviews seismological studies that provide evidence of the existence of continental roots beneath the continents. Suggests, that through the collisions of plate tectonics, continents stabilized part of the mobile mantle rock beneath them to form deep roots. (ML)

Describes specific activities and accomplishments of the President's Office of Science and Technology Policy. Addresses policy issues related to strengthening the U.S. science and technology enterprise, fostering industrial innovation, enhancing relationships among government, industry, and universities, and improving the regulatory process.…

Discusses reasons for the small contribution to science and technology from Latin America which is essential for promoting the economic and social development of the region. Reviews the origin of Latin American educational and research systems, and the obstacles faced by the scientific communities in the recent past. (LZ)

Compares and contrasts French universities which emphasize research in their science and engineering programs to the prestigious "grandes ecoles" (highly specialized engineering schools) which emphasize theory. Discusses the need for reforming the dual higher education system and issues related to alternative reform proposals. (DC)

Reports effects of context that are entirely perceptual. Visual discrimination was enhanced when line segments were flashed in a region that was perceived as a figure. Discrimination was substantially degraded when the same region was seen as ground although the physical stimulus remained identical throughout figure-ground reversals. (Author/JN)

Reviews the pros and cons of using animals or alternatives in scientific research. Such alternatives (as indicated in congressional bill HR 556) include mathematical models, isolated organs, tissue and cell cultures, computer simulations, mechanical models, and "lower" organisms among others. (SK)

Describes recent research by Edward Steele appearing to support the Lamarckian theory of inheritance. Steele suggests that a mutant somatic cell favored by the environment will undergo clonal expansion. Altered genetic materials from these cells is then picked up by C-type viruses and inserted into the germ line genome. (CS)

Discusses the controversy surrounding the initial decision to establish, and the current decision to phase out, the National Resource for Computation in Chemistry (NRCC), a computational chemistry center jointly sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy. (CS)

A brief history of science and technology in Latin America that begins with the Mayan civilization and progresses through the colonial period to the present. Compares increased scientific productivity in the Latin American and Caribbean regions to productivity in the United States and European Union. (LZ)

Examines a trend toward increased corporate funding of upgrades to aging academic labs and equipment prompted by the loss of federal money. Discusses the benefits and dangers of university alignment with industrial research agendas. (LZ)