On December 2, 1942, in a racquet court underneath the West Stands of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago, a team of scientists led by Enrico Fermi created the first controlled, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction. This updated and revised story of the first reactor (or "pile") is based on postwar interviews (as told to Corbin…

Traces the history of the antivivisection movement, examining issues related to the use of animals in studying the cause of rabies. Also discusses issues related to the current controversy over animal experimentation. (JN)

Discusses the acoustics of bells by examining what determines the quality of a bell, the frequency it emits, and the note perceived by the listener. The analysis concentrates on a ship's bell but also considers several handbells. Laboratory bench set up for studying bells and nodal lines of bells are illustrated. (BC)

Discusses the development of the concept of atomicity and some of the many which can be used to establish its validity. Chemical evidence, evidence from crystals, Faraday's law of electrolysis, and Avogadro's number are among the areas which show how the concept originally developed from a purely philosophical idea. (JN)