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Passagel:Itpaystogive
Allowingconsumerstosettheirownpricescanbegoodforbusiness;
evenbetterifthefirmsgivesomeofittocharity
INOCTOBER2007Radiohead,aBritishrockgroup,releaseditsfirst
albuminfouryears,“InRainbows”,asadirectdigitaldownload.The
movedrewafairbitofattention(includingfromthisnewspaper)notonly
becauseitrepresentedatechnologicalthumbintheeyetothetraditional
musicindustry,butalsobecausethebandallowedlistenerstopay
whatevertheywishedforit.Some60%ofthosewhoseizedthe
opportunitypaidnothingatall,butthebandseemedpleasedwiththe
result;oneestimatehaditearningnearly$3mfromtheexperiment.
Onegroupoutsidethemusicindustrytakinganinterestwasatrioof
professorsthenattheRadySchoolofManagementattheUniversityof
California,SanDiego:AyeletGneezy,UriGneezyandLeifNelson(who
isnowattheHaasSchoolofBusinessattheUniversityofCalifornia,
Berkeley).Inspired,theydesignedaseriesofexperimentstogauge
whetherpay-what-you-wantpricingwouldworkforotherbusinesses.
Theirmostrecentexperiment,co-authoredwithAmberBrownofDisney
ResearchandpublishedinSciecce,alsostirredinanewelement:wouldit
makeanydifferenceiffirmsdonatedsomeofthepay-what-you-wantfee
tocharity?
Theauthorssetuptheirpricingexperimentattheexitofaroller-coaster
rideatalargeamusementpark.Riderswereofferedaphotographof
themselves,snappedmid-coast.Theusualpricewas$12.95,butonone
day,ridersweretoldtheycouldpaywhattheywished,includingtaking
thephotoforfree.Asecondgroupwaschargedthefullpricebuttoldthat
halfthemoneywouldgotoawell-regardedhealthcharity.Yetathird
groupcouldsetthepriceandseehalfoftheirchosenamountdonated.
Allowingcustomerstosetthepricedramaticallyincreasedthepercentage
ofbuyers—fromlessthan1%to8%.Evenaccountingforthosewhotook
afreephoto,theamusementparkcollectedmorerevenueonthe
pay-what-you-wantdaythanwhensellingfortheusualfixedprice.
Theauthorsalsofoundthatofthecustomerswhowereallowedtopay
whattheywant,thosewhoweretoldthathalfthemoneywouldgotoa
goodcausepaidsubstantiallymorethanthosewhowerenottoldabout
thecharitabledonation—tothepointthatrevenuemorethantripled.(The
charitydid,indeed,getitspromisedcut.)Thesmallestnumberof
purchases,meanwhile,camethedaythatcustomershadtopaythefull
$12.95buthalfwasdonated.
Thereforemorethansimplealtruismwasmotivatingthecustomerswho
gavemoneyforaphototheycouldhavehadforfree."Oneofthequirks
aboutpayingwhatyouwant,^^suggestsMrNelson,“isthatitstartsto
signalsomethingaboutwhoyouare.Everydollaryouspendisadirect
reflectionofhowmuchyoucareaboutthischarityandwhatkindof
personyouare.Noonewantstogocheapwithacharity.^^Hecallsthis
phenomenon“sharedsocialresponsibility^^:insteadofpassively
acceptingafirm'sassertionofitscharitabledonations,thecustomermust
activelyagreetogivemoneytocharity,anddeterminehowmuch.
Buthowwidespreadcouldsharedsocialresponsibilitybe?MsGneezyis
thefirsttopointoutthatcustomer-determinedpricingworksbestfor
productswithlowmarginalcosts.Sincepublishingtheirfindings,the
researchershavespokentoseveralcompaniesinterestedinpursuing
similarexperimentswiththeirproducts,includingsoftwaredevelopers
andvideo-gamedesigners.Butofferingflexiblepricingonavirtual
productonline,insteadofinpersonatanamusementpark,maymakeit
easierforpeopleto“gocheap“evenifacharityisinvolved.Combining
customer-determinedpricing,corporatesocialresponsibility,and
increasedprofitswillbetrickytopulloff,andnoteverycompanywillbe
abletodoit-justlikenoteverybandcanputtheiralbumonlineforfree
andstillprofit.
Passage2:Whydofirmsexist?
RonaldCoase,theauthorof“TheNatureoftheFirm”(1937),turns
100onDecember29th
FORphilosophersthegreatexistentialquestionis:"Whyisthere
somethingratherthannothing?^^Formanagementtheoriststhemore
mundaneequivalentis:"Whydofirmsexist?Whyisn'teverythingdone
bythemarket?55
Todaymostpeopleliveinamarketeconomy,andcentralplanningis
rememberedasthegreatesteconomicdisasterofthe20thcentury.Yet
mostpeoplealsospendtheirworkinglivesincentrallyplanned
bureaucraciescalledfirms.Theystickwiththesameemployerforyears,
ratherthanregularlyreturningtothejobsmarket.Theylabourtofulfilthe
"strategicplans“oftheircorporatecommissars.JohnJacobAstofs
AmericanFurCompanymadehimtherichestmaninAmericainthe
1840s.Butitneverconsistedofmorethanahandfulofpeople.Today
Astor'scompanywouldnotregisterasabliponthecorporatehorizon.
Firmsroutinelyemploythousandsofworkersandmovebillionsof
dollars-worthofgoodsandserviceswithintheirborders.
Whyhavethese“islandsofconsciouspower”survivedinthesurrounding
“oceanofunconsciousco-operation",toborrowaphrasefromD.H.
Robertson,aneconomist?Classicaleconomicshadlittletosayaboutthis
question.AdamSmithopened“TheWealthofNations“withawonderful
descriptionofthedivisionoflabourinapinfactory,buthesaidnothing
aboutthebosseswhohiredthepin-makersorthemanagerswho
organisedthem.Smith'ssuccessorssaidevenless,eitherignoringthepin
factoryentirelyortreatingitasatediousblackbox.Theypreferredto
focusonthesearatherthantheislands.
Whoknowsthesecretoftheblackbox?
Themanwhorestoredthepinfactorytoitsrightfulplaceattheheartof
economictheorycelebrateshis100thbirthdayonDecember29th.The
economicsprofessionwasslowtorecogniseRonaldCoase'sgenius.He
firstexpoundedhisthinkingaboutthefirminalectureinDundeein1932,
whenhewasjust21yearsold.Nobodymuchlistened.Hepublished”The
NatureoftheFirm^^fiveyearslater.Itwentlargelyunread.
ButMrCoaselabouredonregardless:asecondseminalarticleon”The
ProblemofSocialCost”laidtheintellectualfoundationsofthe
deregulationrevolutionofthe1980s.Eventually,MrCoaseacquiredan
armyoffollowers,suchasOliverWilliamson,whofleshedouthisideas.
In1991,aged80,hewasawardedaNobelprize.Farfromrestingonhis
laurels,MrCoasewillpublishanewbookin2011,withNingWangof
ArizonaStateUniversity,on“HowChinaBecameCapitalisf.
Hiscentralinsightwasthatfirmsexistbecausegoingtothemarketallthe
timecanimposeheavytransactioncosts.Youneedtohireworkers,
negotiatepricesandenforcecontracts,tonamebutthreetime-consuming
activities.Afirmisessentiallyadeviceforcreatinglong-termcontracts
whenshort-termcontractsaretoobothersome.Butifmarketsareso
inefficient,whydon'tfirmsgoongettingbiggerforever?MrCoasealso
pointedoutthattheselittleplannedsocietiesimposetransactioncostsof
theirown,whichtendtoriseastheygrowbigger.Theproperbalance
betweenhierarchiesandmarketsisconstantlyrecalibratedbytheforces
ofcompetition:entrepreneursmaychoosetolowertransactioncostsby
formingfirmsbutgiantfirmseventuallybecomesluggishand
uncompetitive.
Howmuchlightdoes“TheNatureoftheFirm^^throwontoday5s
corporatelandscape?TheyoungMrCoasefirstgrewinterestedinthe
workingsoffirmswhenhetravelledaroundAmerica'sindustrial
heartlandonascholarshipin1931-32.Heabandonedhistextbooksand
askedbusinessmenwhytheydidwhattheydid.Hehaslongchidedhis
felloweconomistsforscrawlinghieroglyphicsonblackboardsratherthan
lookingatwhatitactuallytakestorunabusiness.Soitseemsreasonable
totesthisideasbythesameempiricalstandards.
MrCoase'stheorycontinuestoexplainsomeofthemostpuzzling
problemsinmodernbusiness.Taketheriseofvastandhighlydiversified
businessgroupsintheemergingworld,suchasIndia'sTatagroupand
Turkey'sKocHolding.ManyWesternobserversdismisstheseasrelics
ofaprimitiveformofcapitalism.Buttheymakeperfectsensewhenyou
considerthetransactioncostsofgoingtothemarket.Wheretrustin
establishedinstitutionsisscarce,itmakessenseforcompaniestostretch
theirbrandsovermanyindustries.Andwherecapitalandlabourmarkets
areinefficient,itmakesequalsenseforcompaniestoallocatetheirown
capitalandtraintheirownloyalists.
ButMrCoase'snarrowfocusontransactioncostsneverthelessprovides
onlyapartialexplanationofthepoweroffirms.Theriseofthe
neo-Coasianschoolofeconomistshasledtoafiercebacklashamong
managementtheoristswhochampionthe"resource-basedtheory“ofthe
firm.Theyarguethatactivitiesareconductedwithinfirmsnotonly
becausemarketsfail,butalsobecausefirmssucceed:theycanmarshala
widerangeofresources-particularlynebulousonessuchas''corporate
culture"and"collectiveknowledge"—thatmarketscannotaccess.
Companiescanorganiseproductionandcreateknowledgeinuniqueways.
Theycanalsomakelong-termbetsoninnovationsthatwillredefine
marketsratherthanmerelysatisfydemand.MrCoase'stheoryof“market
failure”needstobecomplementedbyatheoryof"organisational
advantages”.
Allthisundoubtedlycomplicates“TheNatureoftheFirm^^.Butitalso
vindicatesthetwindecisionsthatMrCoasemadeallthoseyearsagoasa
youngstudentattheLondonSchoolofEconomics:tolookinsidethe
blackboxratherthansimplyignoringit,andtoexaminebusinesses,not
justfiddlewiththeories.Isittoomuchtohopethatotherpractitionersof
thedismalsciencewillfollowhisexampleandstudytherealworld?
Passage3:Academicview:Virtuouscircles
DanielCSmith,deanofIndianaUniversity'sKelleySchoolofBusiness,
saysthatuniversitiesneedtofindnewwaystocombatrisingtuitioncosts
THEcurrenteconomicsofhighereducation,atleastinAmerica,arenot
sustainable.Ashigh-payingmanufacturingjobsdisappear,college
educationbecomesanecessity.Yet,formorethanadecade,tuitionfees
haverisenatmanytimestherateofinflation.What'smore,theforces
drivingtheseincreaseswillnotabate.America'spublicuniversitiesface
steepcutsinstatesupport,risinghealthcareandenergycosts.Andwhen
cashistight,thephilanthropistswhoaresoimportanttouniversities
disappear.Thismeansthatnotonlywillthepriceoftuitioncontinueto
increase,butuniversities5abilitytoofferfinancialaidtostudentsisalso
hit.
IfthecostofattendinganAmericanuniversitybecomesprohibitiveit
willthreatenthecountry'slong-termglobalcompetitiveness.Itis,
therefore,notonlyaproblemforstudentsbutalsoforbusinessesand
society.Toremaincompetitive,Americaneedsanewmodelofstudent
financialsupport;highereducationandtheprivatesectorhaveajoint
responsibilitytoinnovateincreatingsuchmodels.
Enterthebusinessschool.Businessschoolsareperfectlypositionedto
developnewwaysofpayingforhighereducation.AttheKelleySchool,
weareexploringan"educationcircleoflife”modeloffinancialsupport
forstudents.
Itbeginswiththeimmediateneedsofbusinesses-particularlysmall-to
mid-sizecompaniesthatarethegrowthenginesoftheeconomy.Inorder
togrowandhiremoretalent,thesecompaniesmustexploreopportunities
beyondUSborders.Butmanylacktheskillsorglobalcontactstodoso.
Mosttopbusinessschools,ontheotherhand,haveaglobalnetworkof
alumni,corporatefriendsandgovernmentcontacts.Theyalsohave
superbstudentsandfaculty.Ourideaistocreateaconsultingconsortium
inwhichteamsofstudentshelpclientcompaniesidentify,assessand
capitaliseonglobalgrowthopportunities.Usingdistance-learning
technologies,studentteamscollaboratewithinternationalalumni,
studentsatpartneruniversitiesandglobalcorporatepartnerstopair
mid-sizeAmericanfirmswithglobalopportunities.
Sowheredoestuitionsupportcomein?Thefirmspayafeeforthe
studentconsultingservices.Aportionofthefeegoestowardsthe
students5tuitioncosts;theremainderispaidintoanendowmentaccount
thatprovidesfinancialaidfordeservingstudents.Contractsarealso
structuredsothataportionofnewrevenuegeneratedfromtheglobal
ventureswill,forasetperiodoftime,addtothescholarshipendowment
account.
Theeducationcircleoflifecreatesgrowthformid-sizefirms,whichcan
inturnspuremployment.Theinitiativeprovidesstudentswithhands-on
experienceandintheprocesscreatesasustainablerevenuestreamforthe
schooltooffsetrisingtuitioncosts.
Passage4:Afistfulofdust
Thetrueeffectofwindblownmaterialisonlynowcomingtobe
appreciated
Climatescience
ONMAY26th2008Germanyturnedred.Thewindsofchange,though,
weremeteorological,notpolitical.Unusualweatherbroughtiron-rich
dustfromAfricatoEurope,notonlyalteringthecolourofroofsandcars
onthecontinentbutalso,accordingtorecentcalculationsbyMax
Bangert,agraduatestudentattheKarlsruheInstituteofTechnology,
makingtheplaceaboutaquarterofadegreecolderforaslongasthedust
stayedintheair.
UnusualforGermany;commonplacefortheplanetasawhole.The
Saharaandotherbone-dryplacescontinuallysenddustupintothe
atmosphere,whereitmaytravelthousandsofkilometresandinfluence
regionalweather,theglobalclimateandeventhegrowthofforests
halfwayaroundtheplanet.
Earlierin2008,forinstance,HanKorenandhiscolleaguesatthe
WeizmannInstituteofScience,inIsrael,detectedaparticularly
voluminousburstofdustfromtheBodeleDepression.Thislow-lyingbed
ofsiltinChad,acrosswhichpowerfuljetsofwindarewonttoblow,
constituteslessthan1%oftheSahara'sareabutisreckonedtheworld's
dustiestplace.Itisthoughttoberesponsibleforaquarterormoreofthe
Sahara'soutputofairbornedust.
DrKorenobservedthedustrisewithacameraonasatellitecalledAqua;
watcheditobscurethesunusinganautomatedphotometerinIlorin,
Nigeria;followeditacrosstheAtlanticwithanothersatellite,CALIPSO;
andfinallysawaspikeinlevelsofsilicon,aluminiumandironasit
landedondetectorsinManaus,Brazil.Hisresults,presentedatameeting
oftheAmericanGeophysicalUnionheldinSanFranciscoinDecember,
providearemarkableaccountoftheintercontinentaltransferofdust.
Blowin*inthewind
Theimportanceofthislong-distancelogisticalchainhasbecome
apparentonlyinthepastfewyears,andresearchersarestillworkingout
itsmanyrepercussions-forthemoreyoulookatdust,themoreeffectsit
seemstohave.Africandustisthought,forexample,tostimulateplant
growthintheAmazonbybringinginphosphorus(whichisinshort
supplythere).Thismayputacheckonglobalwarmingbyremovingwhat
wouldotherwisebealong-termconstraintontheforest'sabilitytosuck
upcarbondioxideasitgrows.
Dustwhichdoesnotreachlandmaydosomethingsimilartothesea.
Somepartsoftheoceanareshortofiron,whichreddesertdusthasin
abundance.DustfromtheGobidesertseemstostimulateplankton
bloomsinthenutrient-poorwatersoftheNorthPacific,thoughitisnot
clearwhetherthisresultsinanetreductionofatmosphericcarbondioxide,
sincethatwouldrequiresomeoftheplanktontosinktotheseabed,never
toreturn.
Dustaloftcoolsthelandbelow,asEurope'smeteorologistsfoundoutin
May2008.Itdoesthisdirectly,byreflectingsunlightbackintospace,
andindirectly,byhelpingcloudstoform.Theeffectissignificant.The
carbondioxidewhichhasbeenaddedtotheatmospheresincethe
industrialrevolutionbeganhasagreenhouseeffectequivalenttothe
arrivalofabout1.6wattsofextrasolarpowerpersquaremetreofthe
Earth'ssurface.Thedirecteffectsofdustareestimatedtoprovidea
countervailingcoolingofabout0.14wattspersquaremetre.Addthe
indirecteffectoncloudsandthiscouldincreasemarkedly,thoughthere
aregreatuncertainties.
Thisdust-drivencooling,though,ispatchy-andinsomeplacesitmay
notevenbehelpful.Dustthatcoolsadesertcanchangelocalairflow
patternsandlessentheamountofrainthatfallsinsurroundingareas.This
causesplantstodie,andprovidesmoreopportunitiesforwildfires,
increasingtheatmosphericcarbon-dioxidelevel.
Togetabettersenseoftheneteffectsbroughtaboutbytheupsand
downsofdust,itwouldhelptohaveadetailedhistoricalrecordofthe
dustinessoftheplanet.AndthisiswhatNatalieMahowaldofCornell
Universityand19colleagueshaveachieved.Theyanalysedcoresfrom
glaciers,lakebottomsandcoralreefsandmeasuredhowthelevelsof
sometelltalechemicalschangedwithdepth,andthuswithtime.They
thenusedmodelsofglobalwindcirculationtodeducewhichdustsources
havebecomestrongerandwhichweaker.Theirconclusion,published
recentlyinAtmosphericChemistryandPhysics,isthatinfitsandstarts
overthepastcenturytheairbecametwiceasdusty.
Partoftheincreasestemsfromhumanactivities-directly,inthecaseof
construction,orindirectly,whenitresultsfromclearingvegetationfrom
marginallandinordertofarmit.Anotherpartoftheexplanationmaybe
globalwarmingitself,shiftingtheboundariesofdesertsandintensifying
dustproductioninsomeareas.
Howmanytimesmustamanlookup?
Theamountofdustactuallyinjectedintotheatmosphere,though,may
havebeensignificantlyunderestimated.Inarecentpaperinthe
ProceedingsoftheNationalAcademyofSciences,JasperKokofthe
NationalCentreforAtmosphericResearch,inBoulder,Colorado,writes
thattheamountofcoarsedustdrivenintotheatmospherebywindisat
leastdoubleandmaybeeighttimesasmuchaspreviouslythought.
Hearrivedatthisconclusionnotbymeasuringdustdirectlyfromplanes
orsatellites,whichseeonlyabitoftheatmosphereatatimeandarenot
necessarilygoodatpickingupallsignsofdust,butbyreasoninghisway
toamodelofhowloosesoil,somefineandsomecoarse,isaffectedby
thewindandliftedintotheair.
Fineparticlesofdustdonotsimplyliearounduntiltheyareblownaway
bythewind.Rather,theysticktogetherinclumps.Onlywhenthese
clumpsarebrokenupisthedustliberated.Thathappenswhenheavier
particlesareliftedbythewindandthenfallbacktotheground,
hammeringandshatteringthedust-clumpsastheydoso.DrKokshows
thatthisshattering,liketheshatteringofallsortsofotherthings,
producesadistinctivemixofparticlesizes.Thismixdoesnotmatch
thosecurrentlyusedinclimatemodels.Ithasmorebiggerparticlesand
fewersmallerones.Thediscrepancyseemsnottohavebeennoticed
beforebecauseexistingwaysofmeasuringdustarebiasedtowardsthe
finestmaterial—thatwhichmostinfluencesairtemperatureandcloud
formation.
Theconsequencesofthisreassessmentareunclear,sincetheeffectsof
coarsedustarenotwellunderstood.Also,thelargerparticlesfalloutof
theatmospheremorequickly.Whatisclearisthatitisyetanother
exampleofhowfiendishlycomplicatedtheatmosphereis,andwhata
broadsetofapproachesisrequiredtounderstandit.
Passage5:Makingcancerglowaway
Howtotrackdowntinytumours
ONEproblemwithcancersisdetectingthemwhentheyaresmalland
easytodealwith.Oncetheyhavegrownlargeenoughtobenoticed,they
haveoftenalsospreadtoothertissues,withlethalconsequences.
However,NormanMaitlandoftheYorkshireCancerResearch
Laboratory,inHarrogate,England,thinksthathemayhaveasolutionto
thisdifficulty.
DrMaitlandspeculatedthatifhecouldattachglowingproteinstoviruses
programmedtofindandinfectcancercells,hecouldmaketumourseasier
tosee.Theproteinsinquestioncomefromthecrystaljelly,amarine
organism.TheiroriginalextractionwasrewardedwiththeNobelprizefor
chemistryin2008.
Tousecrystal-jellyproteinstoilluminatetumours,DrMaitlandandhis
colleaguesdevelopedaseriesofviruses,rangingfromastripped-down
versionofHIVtoaninsectvirusreprogrammedtoinfecthumancells,
thathavebeenmodifiedtoattachspecificallytoproteinsonthesurfaceof
thecancercellsinquestion.Theyhavealsobeenprogrammedtocause
theproductionofcrystal-jellyprotein,bysplicingaprostate-specific
controlsequenceintotheirgeneticmaterial,nexttoaversionofthe
fluorescent-proteingene.
Onceexposedtotissuesamplescontainingprostate-cancercells,the
virusesinfectedthem.Theinfectiondidnotharmthecells,butasthe
virusreplicatedandinfectednewcancercells,theglowingprotein
multipliedtoo.Thiscausedthetumourstogrowbrighterandbrighter.
Unfortunately,theyglowedgreen,thecolourofthelightfromnatural
crystal-jellyprotein.Greenlight'sfrequencyistoohighforittobeable
totravelthroughhumantissues.Fortheglowingproteinstobeseenfrom
outsidethebody,theyneededtoproducelightthatcanpassthrough
readily.Redlookedtobetheperfectchoice.Fortunately,theteamthat
wontheNobelprizewasabletoprovideDrMaitlandwithaversionof
theproteinthatemitsredlight.
Evenwhentheyareinfectedwithvirusesthatmakethemglowred,
though,smalltumoursarehardtosee.Tobeabletodetectthem,Dr
Maitlandwillhavetouseaspeciallydevelopedcamerathatscansthe
bodyslicebyslice.Suchcamerasareexpensive,andthe£500,000
($750,000)theycostmaybethegreatesthurdletodeployingthe
technique.
Thattechniquewillnot,inanycase,bereadyforclinicaltrialsfor
anotherfiveyears,andthepriceofcamerasmayhavecomedownbythen.
Ifitallworks,pickingtumoursupatastagewhentheycanbedealtwith
shouldbecomealoteasier.
Passage6:Theoldmanofthemountainreturns
Moreevidenceforapreviouslyunknownspeciesofhuman
SVANTEPAABO,theDNApalaeontologistwhoseworkprovidedthe
inspirationfor44JurassicPark",hasproducedaniceChristmaspresentfor
studentsofhumanevolution.Heandhiscolleagueshaveconfirmed,
usingthecreature5swholegenome,thatafossilfingerbonewhichisat
least30,000yearsold,andwhichwasfoundinacaveintheAltai
mountainsofSiberia,comesfromapreviouslyunknownhumanspecies.
Thatwasallbutcertainfromtheirpreviousstudyofthecreature's
mitochondrialDNA(anabundantformofthemoleculefoundincells5
powerpacks),releasedinMarch.Thelatestanalysis,publishedinNature
onDecember23rd,removesanydoubt—andaddsatoothtothemeagre
stockofevidencefromthenewspeciesthatmodernscienceisableto
examine.
Thisdiscoveryisextraordinaryonmanylevels.Perhapsthemost
importantisthatonesmallgroupofmodemhumanswholivefaraway
fromSiberia-theMelanesianislandersofthePacificOcean-have
pickedupablockofgenesfromthenewlydiscoveredspeciesontheir(or,
rather,theirancestors5)travels.GeneticevidenceoftheMelanesians5
journeyfromtheAfricancradleofHomosapiens,whichstarted(likethat
ofallnon-Africanpeople)about60,000yearsagowhenabandof
adventurerscrossedthestraitsofBabelMandeb,frommodemDjibouti
tomodernYemen,suggeststheythencontinuedalongthesouthcoastof
Asia,nevergoingfarinland.Forthenecessaryinterbreedingtohave
happened,DrPaabo'snewspecieswouldthushavetohavebeenspread
overavastareaofAsia.Yetithasleftnopreviouslyidentifiedtraces.
Tobefair,Asiahasnot,sofar,beenarichsourceofhuman
fossils—unlikeAfrica,wheremanysitesintheeastandthesouthhave
yieldedancestralhumans,andEurope,whereNeanderthalshavebeen
foundbythehundred.GoodAsianfossilscomeonlyfromChina(Peking
Man,atypeofHomoerectus)andIndonesia(JavaMan,anothererectus,
andHomofloresiensis,themuch-maligned“hobbit“oftheislandof
Flores).Stonetoolsabound,buthumanbonesfromotherAsiansitesare
almostasrareashens'teeth.Thefewthatdoexistarenow,ofcourse,the
subjectofintensescrutinyandmuchdebateaboutwhetherthey,too,
belongtothenewspecies.
Whatthisdiscoveryoughttoprovide,then,istheimpetustostartlooking
muchharderforhumanfossilsinAsia.Thenewspecies,whichhasyetto
benamed,clearlylivedallovertheplace.If,despitethat,itremained
hiddenuntilnow,whoknowswhatotherspeciesofhumanmightalsobe
outthere?
Passage7:Canadabeckons
THISmonthhasseenqualifiedgoodnewsforpolarbears.OnDecember
16thresearchersfromtheUnitedStatesandCanadapredictedthateven
thoughtheextentofthesummericeintheArcticOceanisexpectedto
declineprecipitouslyoverthenextfewdecades,arefugeofsortswill
remainforthem.Meanwhile,inapaperinNature,agroupAmerican
climatologistsarguedthatasuddenandirreversibledeclineoftheseaice
may,afterall,notbethemostlikelyoutcomeofglobalwarming.
TherefugewillbealongthenorthernshoresofCanadaandGreenland,
StephaniePfirman,ofBarnardCollegeinNewYork,andhercolleagues
toldtheautumnmeetingoftheAmericanGeophysicalUnioninSan
Francisco.Eveninsummer,icewillpersisttherebecauseincreased
meltingwillbecompensatedforbythearrivaloficefromthecentreof
theArcticOcean,andevenfromasfarawayasEuropeandAsia.Then,
asnow,prevailingwindsandresultantoceancurrentscarryicetoNorth
America.ThatiswhytheiceontheEurasiansideistypicallyyoungand
aboutonemetrethick,whereasthatnearCanadacanbeeightmetres
thickandasmanyyearsold.
DrPfirmanarrivedatthisconclusionafterrunningacomputermodel
calledtheCommunityClimateSystemModelversion3,orCCSM3,
whichwasdevelopedbytheUniversityCorporationforAtmospheric
ResearchinBoulder,Colorado.Accordingtothismodel,theArctic
Oceanwillbemoreorlessice-freeby2050ifnospecialeffortism
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