December 18, 2000
For more information on these science news and feature story tips, please
contact the public information officer at the end of each item at (703)
292-8070.
Editor: Charles Drum
Contents of this News Tip:
The divisiveness of the 2000 presidential election will benefit both
parties and have a positive effect on the U.S. political system for years
to come, say two political science researchers.
Based on results of their NSF-funded research over 16 years and four
national elections, Ronald B. Rapoport of the College of William and Mary
and Walter J. Stone of the University of Colorado say that activist on
behalf of their candidates in one election carries over into support for
the party in subsequent elections. "The mobilization of party loyalists,
such as we have seen over the past five weeks, is likely to yield energized
party members who will become more involved, by virtue of their experiences
this year, in the 2002 congressional elections and in subsequent presidential
and congressional elections," says Rapoport.
Research by Rapoport and Stone on 1984 and 1988 elections found divisive
and often bitter contests for presidential nominees tended to mobilize
active supporters for both the losing and winning candidates, and led
to increased involvement in the subsequent campaigns. In the 1992 elections,
they found that supporters of H. Ross Perot were active well beyond the
election, contributing to significantly increased major-party activity
in the 1994 congressional elections. This carryover was disproportionately
directed toward support of Republican candidates and helped account for
the Republican win that year.
"This research clearly holds out the promise of an important positive
result from the conflict which has so profoundly affected the political
system since November 7, "Stone says. "These benefits will occur because
of, not despite, the protracted contest so closely fought after election
day." [Charles Drum]
For more about Rapoport’s and Stone’s studies see: http://faculty.wm.edu/rbrapo/reports/index.htm and http://socsci.colorado.edu/~amstudy
Top
of Page
The Mojave Desert could be on its way to becoming grassland that is
subject to frequent fires, threatening ecosystems in the west, say scientists
at the University of Nevada. In research funded by the National Science
Foundation, the discovered that non-native grasses such as Red Brome will
dramatically increase their population compared to native species by the
year 2050.
Led by University of Nevada at Las Vegas biologist Stan Smith, the scientists
simulated the atmospheric conditions of the year 2050, when carbon dioxide
would be nearly 50 percent higher than today's level. "As carbon dioxide
levels increase," explains Smith, "non-native grasses dominate the Mojave
Desert and Great Basin area, potentially accelerating the fire cycle,
reducing biodiversity, and altering ecosystems."
The average fire cycle-the number of years between major fires--in the
region is now 75 years or longer. That cycle could be reduced to as few
as four years if annual grasses come to dominate the Mojave. "This understanding
should allow us to develop environmental policies that can help sustain
arid ecosystems in the face of such growth," says James Coleman of the
Desert Research Institute, one of Smith’s colleagues in the research. [Cheryl
Dybas]
Top of Page
Recent experiments by a large team of physicists shed new light on the
nature of magnetism. The 35-member team, supported by NSF and the Department
of Energy, conducted the research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's
Bates Laboratory, published in the Dec. 15 issue of Science.
A proton is like a tiny magnet. Much of the proton's magnetism comes
from the magnetism of the so-called "up" and "down" quarks within the
proton and from their motion inside the proton (analogous to the electric
current in an electromagnet).
The scientists were the first to conduct tests at the level of precision
needed to find out whether other, more exotic, sources also contribute
to the proton's magnetism. In particular, they tested the prediction that
a third kind of quark, the "strange" quark, and its anti-particle can
appear and disappear in a way that affects the magnetism of the proton.
They were able to confirm that these contributions, if they exist at all,
are extremely small.
The finding could have implications for future studies in nuclear physics
that require precise measurement of magnetism. [Amber Jones] Top of Page
|