Reading Between the Lines

Mercury, January/February 2005 Table of Contents

Courtesy of N. A.Sharp, NOAO/NSO/Kitt Peak FTS/AURA/NSF.

by C. Renee James

As our knowledge about the Universe has progressed, we astronomers have become a timid bunch. Instead of reading self-aggrandizing reports about "remarkable" and "amazing" discoveries, we instead find the great insights buried under pages of caveats and qualifiers in the journals. The more we know, the more we realize how uncertain we are. And sometimes the most pivotal discoveries have been hidden almost apologetically from view, as though their discoverers are ashamed to find something that contradicts contemporary understanding. Such was the case for two fundamental findings in the 20th century concerning the nature of the Sun and stars, findings that have helped drive the basic picture of the evolution of the material universe.

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