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Letters archive

Join the conversation in Âé¶¹´«Ã½'s Letters section, where readers can share their thoughts and opinions on articles and see responses from experts and enthusiasts across a range of science topics. To submit a letter, please see our terms and email letters@newscientist.com


14 August 2019

Computational terms are a lens in neuroscience

From Sam Levy, Somerville, Massachusetts, US

David Fitzgerald worries that the frequency of computer terms in neuroscience indicates a bias in research methods ( Letters , 13 July ). Rest assured that most neuroscientists are careful to make a distinction between the models we use to understand our data and the metaphors we use to explain our work to the general …

14 August 2019

Because the wind is low it blows that argument

From Perry Bebbington, Kimberley, Nottinghamshire, UK

You say each proposed wind farm hub in the North Sea will power up to 12 million UK homes ( 20 July, p 10 ). You don't mention how many days of the year there is enough wind for it to power that number, nor how much fuel will be consumed by power stations standing …

14 August 2019

Constant cussed changes in a cosmic constant

From Andrew Taubman, Sydney, Australia

Anil Ananthaswamy reports that two different ways of measuring the present-day expansion of the universe produce different values of the Hubble constant ( 20 July, p 34 ). This brings to mind the principle that measurement changes the phenomenon observed at the quantum scale. The current mess of string theory suggests this may be happening …

14 August 2019

An appeal for analogue moon computer archives

From Rod Cripps, Melbourne, Australia

I love all your articles about the 1969 moon landing ( 13 July, p 36 ). I was a close observer at that time at Electronic Associates , a company that helped it happen. Digital computers of that time weren't fast enough to do the critical calculations determining the time to ignite the engines and …

14 August 2019

Communicate credit for this film's facts, please

From Rachel Feilden, Tellisford, Somerset, UK

Simon Ings observes that The Hummingbird Project is scripted and filmed like a true-life story, and asks who would make up a thriller about high-frequency trading infrastructures ( 13 July, p 30 ). He says the film springs entirely from the head of writer-director Kim Nguyen. Has Nguyen not read Flash Boys: A Wall Street …

21 August 2019

The importance of being earnest about urban parks (1)

From Rachel Mckeown, Aberfan, Mid Glamorgan, UK

Graham Lawton praises London's self-declared status as a National Park City ( 20 July, p 24 ). Born and raised in the South Wales valleys, I have always felt the lure of green spaces. Lawton made me realise that I associate London as strongly with birdwatching and strolling around Hyde Park as I do with …

21 August 2019

The importance of being earnest about urban parks (2)

From Anders Jansson, Helsinki, Finland

Lawton praises London as the world's first National Park City. In Finland, we have nine National Urban Parks, created under the Land Use and Building Act of 1999 . At present, Helsinki is in the long and tedious process of trying to decide whether to join places such as Turku, Forssa and Kuopio.

21 August 2019

The importance of being earnest about urban parks (3)

From Ben Haller, Ithaca, New York, US

I was shocked by Lawton's claim that the artificiality of ecosystems dominated by invasive species doesn't matter. He notes that Hawaii is now a hotchpotch of mostly invasive and introduced species. That's true – and the harm caused is incalculable. More than half of honeycreepers, a group of bird species endemic to Hawaii, have gone …

21 August 2019

Taking care of the willow seeds that we collect

From Ian Willey, Fieldwork officer, Royal Botanic Gardens Millennium Seed Bank, Wakehurst, West Sussex, UK

Vijay Koul's experience makes him concerned about the viability of willow seeds (Letters, 13 July ). Indeed, they are generally very short-lived in natural situations. For several years, we have been developing a protocol for long-term storage of Salicaceae species at the Millennium Seed Bank . This procedure addresses all stages, from seed collection in …

21 August 2019

Responding to sound when in a coma

From Ruth Shapiro, Glasgow, UK

I found Helen Thomson's report of findings that one in 10 people in vegetative states may be conscious very interesting ( 29 June, p 38 ). On 30 December 1990, I experienced a severe head injury in a car crash. I was placed in an induced coma, so I was more deeply unconscious for the …

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