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<!doctype html> <html lang="en"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8" /> <title>Scientific American Volume 208, Issue 4 | Scientific American</title> <link rel="canonical" href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/issue/sa/1963/04-01/"> <meta name="theme-color" content="#fff"/> <meta name="robots" content="max-image-preview:standard"/> <link rel="image_src" src="https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/3F60383B-B86E-4A38-87BD082EDF5AC40D_source.jpg"> <meta property="og:url" content="https://www.scientificamerican.com/issue/sa/1963/04-01/"/> <meta property="og:image" content="https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/3F60383B-B86E-4A38-87BD082EDF5AC40D_source.jpg?w=1200"/> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/3F60383B-B86E-4A38-87BD082EDF5AC40D_source.jpg?w=1200"/> <meta name="description" content=""The Mekong River Plan", "Planetary Nebulae", "The Synthetic Elements: III" and more"/> <meta property="og:description" content=""The Mekong River Plan", "Planetary Nebulae", "The Synthetic Elements: III" and more"/> <meta property="og:type" content="website"/> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Scientific American Volume 208, Issue 4"/> <meta name="twitter:description" content=""The Mekong River Plan", "Planetary Nebulae", "The Synthetic Elements: III" and more"/> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Scientific American"/> <meta property="og:locale" content="en_US"/> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@sciam"/> <meta name="twitter:domain" content="scientificamerican.com"/> <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"/> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"PublicationIssue","@id":"https://www.scientificamerican.com/issue/sa/1963/04-01/","datePublished":"1963-04-01","description":"Scientific American Volume 208, Issue 4","hasPart":[{"@type":"Article","about":"","author":[],"datePublished":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","headline":"Letters to the Editors, April 1963","image":null},{"@type":"Article","about":"Articles from the Scientific American archive","author":[],"datePublished":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","headline":"50 and 100 Years Ago: April 1963","image":null},{"@type":"Article","about":"","author":[],"datePublished":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","headline":"The Authors","image":null},{"@type":"Article","about":"","author":[],"datePublished":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","headline":"Science and the Citizen: April 1963","image":null},{"@type":"Article","about":"A bit of foolishness for April Fools' Day","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Martin Gardner","url":"www.scientificamerican.com/author/martin-gardner/"}],"datePublished":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","headline":"Mathematical Games","image":null},{"@type":"Article","about":"How to construct a stream, table to stimulate geological processes","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"C. 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400w, https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/3F60383B-B86E-4A38-87BD082EDF5AC40D_source.jpg?w=600 600w, https://static.scientificamerican.com/sciam/cache/file/3F60383B-B86E-4A38-87BD082EDF5AC40D_source.jpg?w=900 900w" sizes="300px" width="300"/></div><div class="issue__detail__info-PytSq"><div class="issue__detail__meta-cIUoE"><h1>Scientific American Magazine</h1></div><div class="issue__heading-gBfnb"><h2><time dateTime="1963-04-01">April 1963</time></h2></div><small><span>Volume 208</span>, <span>Issue 4</span></small><div class="download__access-pNuvp"><p>You are currently logged out. Please sign in to download the issue PDF.</p><button class="button-Nws5y button__primary-WTBGh">Sign In</button></div><div class="issueArchiveArticleList-p9KXT"><div class="issueArchiveArticleList-p9KXT"><h2 class="listHeading-TIGph">Features</h2><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">The Mekong River Plan</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>In spite of many political obstacles, four southeast Asian nations helped by 14 others under UN auspices are engaged in thorough advance planning for a historic experiment in river development</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Gilbert F. White</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">Planetary Nebulae</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>These peculiar celestial objects consist of a hot, dense star surrounded by a sphere of luminous gas. The comparison of old and new astronomical photographs elucidates their mechanism</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Martha, William Liller</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">The Synthetic Elements: III</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p><i>Two earlier articles in this magazine described the synthesis of elements up to element 101. The list now extends to element 103, and plans are afoot to make some of the rarer elements in quantity</i></p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Glenn T. Seaborg, Arnold R. Fritsch</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">Continental Drift</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>In 1912 Alfred Wegener proposed that the continents had originated in the breakup of one supercontinent. His idea has not been widely accepted, hut new evidence suggests that the principle is correct</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">J. Tuzo Wilson</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">The Aging of Collagen</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p><i>Simple tests of this protein provide objective measurements of the biological age, as distinct from the calender age, of an animal. They also clarify the molecular basis of aging</i></p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Frederic Verz&aacute;r</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">Problem-Solving</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>The intelligent solution of a problem seems to involve more than trial and error. Experiments show that it often requires a fresh insight based on a sudden shift in the way the problem is viewed</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Martin Scheerer</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">The Origins of the Lathe</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>The importance of the iron-cutting lathe to the Industrial Revolution is rarely appreciated. A number of ingenious lathe mechanisms can be traced back to the Middle Ages</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Robert S. Woodbury</p></section></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h4 class="articleTitle-e093r">Predatory Wasps</h4><section><div class="dek-5E7-A"><p>Solitary wasps prey on spiders and insects to feed their larvae. Their highly specific predatory behavior, including choice of prey and manner of carrying it, provides clues to the evolution of wasps</p></div><p class="authors-G71Hd">Howard E. Evans</p></section></article></div><div class="issueArchiveArticleList-p9KXT"><h2 class="listHeading-TIGph">Departments</h2><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">Letters to the Editors, April 1963</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">50 and 100 Years Ago: April 1963</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">The Authors</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">Science and the Citizen: April 1963</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">Mathematical Games</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">The Amateur Scientist</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">Books</h2></article><article class="article-4xs14"><h2 class="departmentsArticleTitle-4XlrA">Bibliography</h2></article></div></div></div></div></div></div></main><footer class="footer-VfsmT"><div class="footerContainer-pfbjC"><h2 class="footerMainText-wQ3og">Expand Your World with Science</h2></div><div class="footerFlexContainer-XKe5g footerContainer-pfbjC"><div class="footerLinks-m1THn"><p class="footerText-PzHcy">Learn and share the most exciting discoveries, innovations and ideas shaping our world today.</p><a class="footerLink-uRzI4" href="/getsciam/">Subscribe</a><a class="footerLink-uRzI4" href="/newsletters/">Sign up for our newsletters</a><a class="footerLink-uRzI4" href="/">See the latest stories</a><a class="footerLink-uRzI4" href="/latest-issue/">Read the latest issue</a><a class="footerLink-uRzI4" href="/getsciam/gift/">Give a Gift Subscription</a><p class="footerSocialMedia-7KIIV">Follow Us:<a href="https://www.instagram.com/scientific_american/?hl=en" target="_blank" alt="Instagram link" title="Instagram"><svg 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The comparison of old and new astronomical photographs elucidates their mechanism</p>","authors":[{"mura_id":"2DA3ADE6-5308-4924-BCAFCCD7F7912AB8","url":"/author/martha/","contentful_id":"7yIbISQxtYB7EM99jrLel5","name":"Martha","slug":"martha","biography":null,"picture_file":null,"category":null,"contacts":[]},{"mura_id":"62042412-358D-477B-924F85275A90E0B3","url":"/author/william-liller/","contentful_id":"73iThxN7f0iQqqn3KBYODe","name":"William Liller","slug":"william-liller","biography":null,"picture_file":null,"category":null,"contacts":[]}],"image_url":null,"image_width":null,"image_height":null,"image_alt_text":null,"image_caption":null,"image_credits":null,"image_desktop_url":null,"image_desktop_width":null,"image_desktop_height":null,"image_block_syndication":false,"media_url":null,"media_type":null,"release_date":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","date_published":"1963-04-01T00:00:00-05:00","digital_column":null,"digital_column_slug":null,"category":"Space & Physics","subtype":"news","column":"Features","page_number":"60"},{"id":1224258,"contentful_id":"U6Fsaovg6IaE4Aqmxyegy","article_doi":"10.1038/scientificamerican0463-68","mura_id":"EE45E843-DFA6-4553-BF08B0BEE1CF6BC9","mura_contentid":"57C6C2B6-F211-C5AE-921F610C372BC6FB","title":"The Synthetic Elements: III","display_title":"<p>The Synthetic Elements: III</p>","slug":"the-synthetic-elements-iii","url":"/article/the-synthetic-elements-iii/","summary":"<p><i>Two earlier articles in this magazine described the synthesis of elements up to element 101. The list now extends to element 103, and plans are afoot to make some of the rarer elements in quantity</i></p>","authors":[{"mura_id":"8021839F-8A4B-4286-89ADF5322CF5C34B","url":"/author/glenn-t-seaborg/","contentful_id":"5YHfAmq0lq8wyXCPooTv7s","name":"Glenn T. Seaborg","slug":"glenn-t-seaborg","biography":null,"picture_file":null,"category":null,"contacts":[]},{"mura_id":"C8716957-B797-4627-B4B4EE22E376FB20","url":"/author/arnold-r-fritsch/","contentful_id":"2rEldZWrDN9JwFWQ2epApi","name":"Arnold R. 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