Science in Review in the Sunday Times

Science editor Waldemar Kaempffert devoted his "Science in Review" feature this Sunday to a rather technical explanation of the work of Jacob H. Wiens and Luis W. Alvarez of the University of California on the use of a wave length in gold to obtain precise measurements. Alvarez won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1968 and his diverse work later made him one of the best known scientists of his time.

This week's "Notes on Science" included:

• The naming of the recently created elements americium and curium.

• A presentation before the American Chemical Society that promised "a longer, healthier life for man." The miracle of the week was a nucleic acid found in yeast that was said the increase the lifespan of mice by as much as 9 per cent. Lucky mice.

• Monsanto Chemists development of a chemical to preserve textiles.

• A special shipment of a new anti-malarial drug flown to Managua for the personal use of Anastasio Somoza, the brutal dictator of Nicaragua.

• A new ointment for burns said to painlessly remove dead tissue that also was announced at the American Chemical Society meeting.

An article reported on the work by a trio of MIT researchers that suggested that petroleum was formed through radioactivity.

Another story announced a new treatment for dogs with distemper. The cell blocker already was in use as a vaccine.

Promising new treatments of anemia were announced at two separate scientific meetings.