Links for Feb 4/05

Discovery Phase (The American Prospect)
Now, at long last, we're getting acquainted with the new anti-evolutionists -- and they seem very familiar, writes Chris Mooney. You know, there are so many battles worth waging, and one can't possibly engage in all of them. So for now, I'll just sit back and watch Chris formidably fight this one.

Scientists baffled as autism cases soar in state, with no relief in sight. Treatment centers, schools inundated by kids needing help (SF Gate)
California's mysterious explosion of autism cases worsened in 2004, disappointing researchers who had hoped the number of new diagnoses would level off as they searched for an explanation for the neurological disorder.

Melting Mars (Astrobiology)
Mars Life Injecting synthetic "super" greenhouse gases into the Martian atmosphere could raise the planet's temperature enough to melt its polar ice caps and create conditions suitable for sustaining biological life.

Ayn Rand at 100 (Reason)
Loved, hated, and always controversial, the best-selling author of The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged is more relevant than ever, writes Cathy Young.

Augmented-reality Machine Works in Real Time (New Scientist)
Computer-generated scenery can be realistically added to live video footage, using a machine vision system developed at Oxford University, UK.