Arthur Kantrowitz dies at 95; physicist pioneered rocket nose cones, intra-aorta pumps

Though his expertise was in fluid mechanics, his interests were wide-ranging, including early experiments in nuclear fusion and fighting for the creation of a science court. Arthur R. Kantrowitz, a physicist and inventor whose research pioneered the development of nose cones for rockets as well as pumps to help failing hearts move blood more effectively, died of heart failure Nov. 29 at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. He was 95.

Weird science

Explosions. Bunsen burners. Adoring crowds in evening dress - or school uniform - eyes wide with wonderment. Can we recapture the excitement of science, asks historian Lisa Jardine.

Obama names Holdren, Lubchenco to science posts

President-elect Barack Obama today named a Harvard physicist and a marine biologist to science posts, signaling a change from Bush administration policies on global warming that were criticized for putting politics over science.

Obama names 4 top members of science team

President-elect Barack Obama's selection Saturday of a Harvard physicist and a marine biologist for science posts is a sign he plans a more aggressive response to global warming than did the Bush administration.

Of budgets and black holes

More fancy toys, fewer physicists to play with themFROM outside, the huge silver doughnut looks like a flight of vain architectural fancy, or perhaps a racetrack for very superior greyhounds. Racetrack turns out to be nearer the truth?but it is electrons, not animals, that are doing laps. Energised by huge magnets, they accelerate to close to the speed of light, before a final series of wiggles persuades them to emit beams of tightly focused, fiercely energetic X-rays. These are then used by researchers to probe the fundamental structure of anything from Dead Sea scrolls too fragile to open, to samples of avian-flu virus, aircraft wings or ancient bones. This is Diamond Light Source, the newest addition to the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) in rural Oxfordshire, and the country's most expensive government-funded physics facility of the past four decades. By the time it opened in 2007 it had already cost GBP260m, with another GBP120m committed for expansion, and running costs will be steep (its electricity bill alone equals that of a small town). It is just one of the visible signs of a recent splurge on science. Since 2004 total spending on science has risen by 5.8% yearly in real terms, its share of GDP is rising, and further increases are planned until 2011. ISIS, another ?super-microscope? at RAL that uses neutrons rather than electrons, is also getting a GBP120m upgrade. ...

Leading scientist urges teaching of creationism in schools

Creationism should be taught in schools as a legitimate point of view to stop religious children losing interest in science lessons, a leading Royal Society scientist has urged.