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1、PLUS UNDISCOVERED ILLNESS The opposite of depression PAGE 36 TOOL USE IN MONKEYS Archaeologys surprising finds PAGE 64 WEATHER AMPLIFIER Weird atmospheric waves cause heat waves and floods PAGE 42 PAGE 58 2019 Scientific American ScientificA MARCH 2019 Inside the densest objects in the universe WHY

2、WE BELIEVE CONSPIRACY THEORIES THE INNER LIVES OF NEUTRON STARS March 2019, ScientificA 1 ON THE COVER Neutron stars form when stars of certain masses die in supernova explosions, leaving behind dense remnants made mostly of neutrons. Inside these remnants, the neutrons themselves may break down, or

3、 they might form a friction less “superfluid.” New experiments should help scientists sort through the possibilities. Illustration by FOREAL. MaRCH 2019 VOLUME 320, NUMBER 3 JOSH EDELSON Getty Images 42 ASTROPHYSICS 24 The Inner Lives of Neutron Stars What is inside these odd little starsthe densest

4、 objects in the universehas long been one of the greatest mysteries in space. Thanks to new experiments, it is a mystery that scientists are starting to crack. By Clara Moskowitz ANIMAL BEHAVIOR 30 The Orcas Sorrow A spate of new observations of grief in animals is providing insight into why some sp

5、ecies mourn and others do not. By Barbara J. King PSYCHIATRY 36 The Undiscovered Illness Hundreds of thousands of people experience mania without ever getting depressed. Why does psychiatry insist on calling them bipolar? By Simon Makin CLIMATE 42 The Weather Amplifier Strange waves in the jet strea

6、m foretell a future full of heat waves and floods. By Michael E. Mann BIOLOGY 50 Untangling the Genome New discoveries on ancient loops in DNA offer clues into gene regu lation. By Erez Lieberman Aiden PSYCHOLOGY 58 Why We Believe Conspiracy Theories Baseless theories threaten our safety and democra

7、cy. It turns out that specific emotions make people prone to such thinking. By Melinda Wenner Moyer ARCHAEOLOGY 64 The Other Tool Users Excavations of stone tools left behind by nonhuman primates are illuminating the origins of technological innovation. By Michael Haslam 2019 Scientific american 2 S

8、cientific American, March 2019 Scientific American (ISSN 0036-8733), Volume 320, Number 3, March 2019, published monthly by Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature America, Inc., 1 New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, N.Y. 10004-1562. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y., and at ad

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12、end e-mail to scacustserv. Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2019 by Scientific American, a division of Springer Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved. Scientific American is part of Springer Nature, which owns or has commercial relations with thousands of scientific publications (many of them can be f

13、ound at Scientific American maintains a strict policy of editorial independence in reporting developments in science to our readers. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Revisiting Fukushima Scientific American looks a

14、t the legacy of the Fukushima nuclear disaster of March 11, 2011, and the science still being done to grapple with its continuing effects. Go to www.ScientificA ON THE WEB 3 From the Editor 4 Letters 6 Science Agenda Autonomous robots that kill may threaten civilians and soldiers alike. By the Edito

15、rs 7 Forum Genomic studies need diversity to make medicine precise. By Jonas Korlach 8 Advances How a warming planet is making humans sick. Wasps turn spiders into zombies. Einstein was right about gravity. Drunk witnesses remember more than we think. 20 The Science of Health Why body parts such as

16、the appendix and tonsils arent truly expendable. By Claudia Wallis 22 Ventures Technology can make beautiful music. By Wade Roush 72 Recommended The art of anatomy gives life to extinct hominins. Ein steins first wifes contribution to physics. Why do hu mans regard humans as special? By Andrea Gawry

17、lewski 73 The Intersection Too much data can stymie our decisionmaking. By Zeynep Tufekci 74 Anti Gravity Evidence for parachute intervention. By Steve Mirsky 75 50, 100 the rich were few and were not so obscenely wealthy, and most important, the middle class was dominant. In 1981, shortly after tak

18、ing office, Ronald Reagan slashed the top brackets rate to 50 percent and then, in 1986, to 28 percenta tremendous wind fall for the rich that continues un abated (todays top rate is 37 percent on income exceeding $500,000). One has only to look at Stiglitzs graphs, in which everything takes a turn

19、for the worse after 1980, to see how our current tax code lines the pockets of the rich and steadily erodes the middle class. We either return to a progressive tax policy or con tinue the descent into plutocracy. R. C. Gibson Irvine, Calif. I agree with the points that Stiglitz (who is my former pro

20、fessor) makes about the causes of inequality, as well as those that James K. Boyce makes about the links be tween environmental degradation and inequality in “The Environmental Cost of Inequality” The Science of Inequality. But Stiglitzs list of needed policy changes falls short, as does Boyces reli

21、ance on en vironmental activists to save flora, fauna and natural resources. We know that the problems with slav ery would not have been fixed simply by calling for more regulation and stiffer penalties. Our laws today ensure that a few can claim excessive wealth and pow er. By what right do those o

22、wning firms have the power to decide how the in come and wealth generated by the talent and labor of many are used? Stakehold ersemployees, customers, the commu nities affected by a companys decisions have rights that require greater recogni tion. Stakeholders interests should be rep resented on the

23、 boards of big firms. Those with revenues exceeding $1 billion should be required to have a national charter that would lay out obligations and penalties. Where would the power to institute such changes originate? My fellow econo mists are very reluctant to talk about poli tical parties, yet we want

24、 to influence po litical platforms. We can at least begin to identify not only where the public interest lies but also what kind of political group is most likely to represent those interests. Marianne Hill South Portland, Me. REDISTRICT JUDGE In “Geometry v. Gerrymandering,” Moon Duchin describes m

25、athematicians efforts to create statistical methods to detect and replace biased voting district maps. Last Novembers election in Missouri had an amendment on the ballot, ap proved by about 62 percent of the vote, to change “the process and criteria for re drawing state legislative districts during

26、reapportionment.” (While many argued that the ballot wording was deceptive, one needs examine the details. The full state ment can be found here: www.sos.mo.gov/ elections/petitions/2018BallotMeasures) I wonder if any of the ideas or analyses Duchin presents could be used toward validating the metho

27、d outlined in the constitutional amendment before actual redistricting maps are constructed. Moritz Farbstein St. Louis, Mo. The Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) process for redistricting that Duchin de scribes requires the public to trust both the mathematics and the mathemati cians. The possible co

28、nfigurations are so enormous that it reminds me of all the possible outcomes in a game of chess. And yet even beginners play chess with out being overwhelmed by the vast num ber of moves. Perhaps the entire process could be treated more like chess, with the two sides taking turns choosing a district

29、 to maxi mize its number of voters instead of let ting one side make all the moves for both. If one side outnumbers the other, that side may be given proportionally more choices. The final result would be approved by a judge or a redistricting committee. There is no need to resort to the mas sive co

30、mputations in MCMC as long as the process of choosing the districts is fair. Benjamin Jones via e-mail DUCHIN REPLIES: The Missouri amend- ment that Farbstein refers to belongs to a crop of state-level reform measures ap- proved by voters in 2018 (joining Colora- do, Utah, Ohio and Michigan). Missou

31、ris was especially detailed: specific criteria were laid out, including a formula to de- fine “partisan fairness” and a precise way to measure “competitiveness.” A legiti- mate worry for such reforms is that trade- offs in redistricting priorities are so com- plicated that well-meaning rules might a

32、ctually conflict or have unintended con- sequences. This raises scientific questions, and they are approachable! Sampling from the universe of plans can illustrate the cost to one priority as another is intro- duced and can give a state-specific base- November 2018 “The problems with slavery would n

33、ot have been fixed simply by calling for more regulation and stiffer penalties.” marianne hill south portland, me. 2019 Scientific American March 2019, ScientificA 5 Subscriptions For new subscriptions, renewals, gifts, payments, and changes of address: U.S. and Canada, 800-333-1199; outside North A

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47、d to evaluate a commissions proposals. Regarding Joness letter: One of the problems caused by rampant redistrict- ing abuse is precisely the erosion of public trust, and restoring it will require trans- parency. MCMC for redistricting needs to be open-source, peer-reviewed and fully auditable. In te

48、rms of the problems com- plexity, strategy games like chessor Go are great examples. The rules are simple, but mastery is elusive. Note that advocates of outlier analysis propose to use MCMC only to evaluate plans and not to select them. There must still be a role for local knowledge, commu- nity in

49、put and all things human. But a birds-eye view of the possibilities can help ensure that no groups interests are tram- pled, no matter what process is used. CORRELATION TO MURDER Maia Szalavitzs story “Income Inequality and Homicide” Forum refers to psy chologist Martin Dalys assertion that in come inequality predicts murder rates be