In this issue

	Issue 26

Contents Download Article

The small marsupials ‘Their generation or procreation is Very Miraculous, Yea, worthy to note; under the belly the females have a pouch . . .’ Download Article

Burning waste as it floats on air Fluidized-bed combustion is catching on rapidly as a means of dealing with troublesome wastes. Download Article

Does the sun influence our weather? The earth coasts within the sun's outer atmosphere, bathing in its stream of sunlight, invisible radiation, magnetic field, and charged particles — not close enough to be fried; not distant enough to freeze. Download Article

Dung beetles get a little help from their friends One hot day last February a message reached the CSIRO Division of Entomology's station at Rockhampton, Queensland. A farmer had found huge numbers of dung beetles on his property, about mid way between Springsure and Roma. Download Article

Sun power — how will the grids cope?
The lucky country, the sunburnt country: Australia is better placed than most nations to exploit the most abundant of all energy sources, the sun. For some years solar collectors have been on sale to householders keen to use less electricity to heat water, and more and more people installing them. The question now arises, how would State electricity supply systems be affected if really large numbers of homes used solar water heaters?
PDF file

Download Article

Quail study suggests hunting dates need review There is a case for postponing the opening of the season for shooting stubble quail in Victoria and South Australia, according to a study by two CSIRO scientists. Download Article

Fighting tooth decay: new atoms for old
Tooth decay is one o f the commonest chronic diseases of mankind. Fossil skulls several hundred thousands years old show the unmistakable signs of dental caries, to give tooth decay its formal name, and modern man is no healthier: a 1968 survey in England and Wales found that only three people in a thousand were free of the disease, and in 1978 the average Australian 14-year-old had six decayed teeth.
PDF file

Download Article

Letters to ECOS We look forward to hearing from readers. In selecting letters for publication, preference is given to those dealing with research topics covered in ECOS — providing additional information or commenting on conclusions reached in articles. Please keep letters as brief as possible. When necessary, they will be edited for publication. Download Article

Tree rings are (sometimes) annual More than four centuries ago, when our oldest mountain ash was just a sapling, Leonardo da Vinci recognized the annual character of tree rings. Download Article