Watching the World
Complex Problem
● “One of these days,” states an article in The Wall Street Journal, “a baby could be born with five parents: the woman who donated the egg, the man who donated the sperm, the woman who received the embryo after the egg and sperm were brought together in a laboratory dish and who carried it to birth, and the infertile couple who commissioned the process and will raise the baby.” Although unlikely to occur this way, it is presently medically possible. Already, two live births have occurred by surrogate embryo transfer, where an embryo is conceived in one woman by impregnating her with sperm, and then it is transferred and carried to birth in the womb of an infertile woman. Although hailed as a boon for infertile married couples desiring children, disturbing social, moral and legal issues have been raised—including the question of who are the legal parents of a child so conceived. Huge emotional problems have also been known to occur, and not unexpectedly so, for the procedure is contrary to God’s law in the Bible.
Hindu Priestesses
● Contrary to established Hindu custom, a group of 22 women have been organized and trained to chant prayers and perform purification rites. Some of these rishikas, or priestesses, are not even Brahmans—the highest caste traditionally assigned to the priesthood. Instructed by Shankar Hari Thatte, a 76-year-old Brahman, the group is said to be the only one of its kind in India. Why was it formed, despite strong initial opposition? “The men priests were cheating people, their lives had degenerated, they were unable to honor the holy books,” said Mr. Thatte, adding that there was no specific ban in the religious texts against women performing the rites. “We found that the men priests were incapable of good religious work and they were doing it just for the money,” said one priestess.
Soviet Firsts
● The Soviets, first to orbit the earth in 1957, also have the first woman astronaut to walk in space. During her 3-hour-and-35-minute excursion in space, 36-year-old Svetlana Savitskaya performed welding and soldering operations. She was also the first woman to make two space flights. Although impressed by a view of the earth from space, her strongest impression was of her return to earth—when the space module landed in a plowed field. “The hatch was opened and all the smells rushed in,” Miss Savitskaya said. “That moment was really nice.”
The Soviets have also been leading in the opposite direction—down toward the center of the earth. After 14 years of effort, they have drilled over 12 kilometers (7.5 mi) down from the surface of the Kola Peninsula. As reported in Science magazine, the hole is already over two kilometers (1.2 mi) deeper than any hole ever drilled for gas or oil. The goal is to go on to 15 kilometers (9 mi). “The trip down has been full of surprises,” says Science.
Increased Hijacking
● “Hijacking of heavy goods vehicles is increasing at an alarming rate,” reports The German Tribune. “Virtually any cargo stands to be hijacked: bibles and schnapps, toilet seats and TV sets, cheese and computers. Organised highway robbery is growing steadily more violent, and hauliers are worried.” Hijackers have posed as policemen and revenue investigators, set up fake roadworks, and even faked a breakdown so as to rob two truckers who stopped to help. In Italy alone last year, stolen trucks and hijackings increased twofold over the previous year, and over 4,800 truckloads vanished without a trace. “A spokesman for Italy’s leading insurance company has admitted that his firm would sooner insure a tanker in the Persian Gulf than a truck with goods to deliver to Naples,” says the Tribune.
Shrinking Symbol
● The Empire State Building, long a New York symbol, has shrunk. When renovations to its mast are completed, the building will be 18 feet (5 m) shorter than the 1,472 feet (449 m) it has been since 1951 when the 222-foot (68-m) mast was added. However, excluding its mast, it still holds title to being the world’s fourth tallest building. The 1,454-foot (443-m) Sears Tower in Chicago is the world’s tallest building, and then come the two 1,350-foot (411-m) World Trade Center buildings in Manhattan, New York.
Happiest People
● Who are the happiest people in the world, according to this world’s standards? The Australians are, says Dutch sociologist Ruut Veenhoven, after researching the subject of happiness for seven years. Studying 245 papers written in 32 countries over the past 60 years, he also concluded that married persons are happier than those who are single, that women are as happy as men, and that those living in industrialized countries are happier than those residing in developing or underdeveloped countries.
Drink, But Don’t Swim
● Water that is considered safe to drink may not be safe to swim in. At least that’s what toxicologists at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Quality Engineering say after studying the body’s absorption of organic solvents that are used in homes and industry, and that are often found in public water supplies. “The toxicologists say that for an adult’s typical daily exposure—drinking roughly one-half gallon of water and taking a 15-minute bath—about two-thirds of the chemicals absorbed by the body can come through the skin,” reports Science magazine. So bathing, showering, or swimming in polluted water may be even more dangerous than swallowing it. The toxicologists say that the body’s absorption of organic solvents, which penetrate the skin more effectively in low concentrations, must be kept in mind when determining the safety of water supplies.
Alcohol and Driving
● Automobiles kill more people in the United States than any other consumer product sold, says the Consumer Federation of America. They kill almost 140 persons every day, with alcohol often being a contributing factor. However, measuring the percentage of alcohol in the bloodstream is not an accurate indicator of whether one’s driving ability is impaired or not, according to investigators at the University of Colorado. This is because the responses of individuals vary according to their genetic differences and their acquired tolerance for alcohol. The old approach, to ask the driver to walk a straight line, is a much more accurate indicator, the investigators said.
The belief that a drunk driver is more relaxed and therefore likely would escape serious injury in a crash is also said to be a fallacy. “It’s becoming better understood that alcohol not only increases the risk of motor vehicle crash but also reduces human tolerance to impact injury,” says Dr. David Viano, assistant director of General Motors Corp.’s Biomedical Science Department. And a Swedish study has shown that hangovers also impair driving ability. Volunteers who drank to the point of being legally intoxicated, then slept through the night and were measured the next morning after breakfast, showed a 20-percent decline in driving ability—even though many said they felt fine. Impairment lasted three hours after their blood alcohol had dropped to zero.
Crime Drop
● Serious crime in the United States dropped 7 percent in 1983, according to an FBI report. It was the biggest decline in 23 years, and it was the second year in a row that crime decreased after an all-time high in 1981. Yet the prison population reached a record 454,136, almost twice as many as ten years ago. According to the Justice Department, this means that one out of every 520 persons in the United States is in a federal or a state prison. However, data collected by the Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics showed that the most serious offenders complete a smaller percentage of their prison sentences. “The auto thief serves up to twice as large a percentage of his sentence as the homicide offender,” the survey said. Also reported was a record number of convicts on parole (251,708), and adults on probation (1,502,247) in 1983.
‘The Biggest Problem’
● “The biggest general problem today is law enforcement,” says Ray Kendall, the head of Interpol’s police division and coordinator of police activity in 135 countries. “People are getting away with breaking the law. It is almost becoming acceptable in society to be a lawbreaker. There is a psychological climate of acceptance. What happens is that the law loses credibility and becomes unenforceable. It’s a nasty, slippery slope.” As reported in the Asahi Evening News of Japan, Kendall is also very concerned over drug-related crimes, which account for 60 percent of all criminal activities. If drug abuse “goes on at its present rate,” he says, “it will lead to a breakdown in public order.”