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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1985-12-04, Page 23-MAMMOTH BONES The skeleton of a young mammoth was included in half a tonne of fossils of ice - age mammals collected in the Old Crow. Dawson and Sixtymile regions of the Yukon in the past year by the National Museum of Natural Sciences paleontologists with the help of local residen.ts. RELEASE PLEA The United States asked the International Court of Justice on Nov. 29, 1979, to order the release of the hos- tages in Iran. NATIONAL MUSEUM science + technology STARGAZING DECEMBER Halley's Comet this month (NC) — The following is from Valley's. Comet, Bulletin no. 4 (available from the National Museum of Science and Technology): "December 1985: Using binoculars, it should become relatively easy to see Halley's Comet this month. On the ev- ening of the 6th it is 5° below the left side of the Great Square of Pegasus, somewhat more than half way from the southern horizon to the overhead point about 21/2 hours after sunset. The Moon interferer from the 16th untilthe 29th or 30th, when it will be dark enouch to see the cornet briefly before moonrise. To Lind the comet at this time, wait about 100 minutes after sunset for the sky to darken suffi- ciently (90 minutes may be enough for those south of latitude 45°) and the comet is then 30 to 35° above the ho- rizon in the southwest. At the end of the year Halley's Comet is veru nearly at. our distance from the sun but it is more than that distance away from us, as it stans to loop around behind the sun as seenTrom Earth." The map shows the late evening sky in December. To, find Pegasus face west and hold the map vertically with "western horizon" toward the hot - torn. Look for four fairly hright stars that outline what is called the Great Square of Pegasus. Only three corners of the square are defined by stars in Pe- gasus: the fourth, ,9/pherat2, is in the constellatio.n Andromeda. The Big Dipper is a convenient ret- erence for measuring angular distan- ces in the sky of from 5.'• to 25'.The fist and the fingers•can be used to transfer these measurements anywhere in the sky. At arm's length the three middle fingers held close together cover about the distance across the knuckles of a fist about 100, and the index finger .and little finger stretched as far apart as possible spans about I5". Check these measurements against _the Dipper to see how they work with our fist size and ann length. Then, with a little practice, it will become itdmost automatic to scale distances in this. way. Meteors: Look for Geminid mete - 'ors from December 13-15:• the hest time is on the morning of the 14th when an experienced observer may see as manv as 50 meteors in an hour if • conditions are ideal. This year the new moon is on the 12th so hright moon- light will not he a problem. Geminids move. at. medium speeds, manv are hright and some are coloured. Moon- light will wash out taint Ursids this year. At its hest.the shower prdduces about 15 meteors per hour. Planets: Bright .Jupiter is low in the NC 142-10 south at sunset and sets about 41/2 hours later. Look for red Mars well up in the south-east in the predawn sky. It is particularly close to the Moon on the 8th. A grouping of Mercury, Venus and Saturn early in the month is inter- esting but, because it is near the ho- rizon, quite difficult to observe. A thin crescent Moon enhances the scene 011 the 10th. Enif we \ , PEGASUS Markab /. Algenibjf 4 Scheat / Alpheratz Calendar d h (Universal Time) 4 04 Mercury 1°.6 N. of Venus 5 09 Last Quarter Moon 5 11 Venus 1°.1 S. of Saiurn 8 10 Mars 0".01 S. of Moon 10 18 Mercury 5°•N. of Moon 10 23 Saturn 40 N. of Moan 12 01 New Moon 14 06 Cieminid Meteors 15 18 Jupiter 5° N. of Moon 16 17 Mercury 0'.5 N. of Saturn 19 02- First Quarter Moon . 21 22 Winter Solstice 22 12 Ursid Meteors 27 08 Full Moon BIG DIPPER • MC To convert from Universal Time to Canadian Time Zones (Standard Time) = Substract the number of hours indicated below: NST 3'30' EST 5'' MST 7'' AST 4'' CS'i' 61' PST r2� Curator, Astronomy For more information, write: SKY - SHEETS, National Museum of Science & Technology, 1867 St. Laurent Blvd., Ottawa K1A 0M8. Gfand Opening' of our NEW PREMISES & _._ OPEN HOUSE Friday, December 6th from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Saturday, December 7th from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Most. manufacturers will be represented -- • • Olympia • Canon • Sanyo • Global • Commander • Atlas • Royal • Gardex • Eba • Towa • Chub Safes • O'Sullivan • Nightingale * Door Prizes * Free Coffee Guelph c8M HWY 7 SPEEDVALEAVE W 1 G.B.M. Business Machines Limited 350 SPEEDVAI E AVE W 350 Speedvale Ave. W., Unit 4, Guelph, Ontario, N1H 7M7 X24-3200 WOODLAWN Z 0 PRESSWAY 5 ft w HWY 24 RD rz 5 5-10 WINTER WARMERS—Bundle up' in this cosy set, quick, -and -easy to make in the soft brushed Chunky yarn, Patons Diana. The cuffed hat, neckwarmer and fingerless mitts, to be worn over purchased gloves, will keep you comfy all winter Tong. For really windy weather, the neckwarmer can be pulled over the hat, mak- ing a hood. For your free instruction folder send a stamped, self-addressed envel- ope to Crossroads, P.O. Box 390, Wingham, Ont. NOG 2W0, requesting Winter Warmers No. 5-10. THE RETAILING REVOLUTION Retailers must face up to the fact that they are facing a revolution in their in- dustry. Given economic trends, they must adjust in order to survive. There are long term prob- lems facing retailers. Two - income families have become commonplace, and these affluent consumers will force retailers to adapt to meet their unique needs. As consumers' real in- comes have increased, - in part due to lower rates of in- flation, product quality and style willbecome more important. Consumers in- creasingly are moving be- yond their basic survival needs, and are looking for some kind of psychological fulfilment., There i5 no other way to explain the almost rrunrileis activity of -many shoppers drifting around shopping malls on Saturday afternoons. With many traditional markets saturated, retailers must move into unrelated fields such as travel advice, entertainment, financial consulting, and even private health consulting or den- tistry. Retailers seem to be on the verge of grasping' the bene- fits of new computer tech- nology for use in inventory control and to reduce the cost of check-out personnel whose wages • have risen astronomically. Laser scan- ning check-outs will diminish the need for such high-priced help. The more affluent con- sumers of the 1980s, usually with two working adults in the same household, in - crowded downtown stores with poor car -parking facilities. Instead they prefer to shop at large out-of- town superstores where parking is easier and there is greater accessibility to their homes A Small neighborhood con- venience stores are flourish- ing, and many of them are manned by immigrants who Canada's Business by Bruce Whitestone are willing to work long hours. Their customers do not seem to mind paying premium prices for the con- venience of shopping at odd times. Prosperity in retailing will depend on recognizing population trends and the needs of special segments of the population. Stores that specialize in health foods, or equipment for those with hearing problems, for in- stance, will find ready markets for their wares. The old fashioned department stores frequently find them- selves unable to provide the service demanded by young- er shoppers who must hold down full-time jobs and maintain a household. As well, department stores are too crowded and fail to. provide the service or know- how that older consumers wish to hatreitr thrs era. BOOK REVI PAGODA, SKULL & SAMURAI. 3. stories by. - Rohan Koda. Translated by Chieko irie Mulhern. Charles E. Tuttle Company, Rutland, Vermont. 280 pp. U. S. $12.50. Reviewed by PERCY MADDUX The Japanese writer Rohan Koda, born in Tokyo in 1867, began work as a tele-" grapher in Hokkaido in 1884, but three years later he went back to Tokyo, where he wrote fiction and scholarly treatises. He died in 1947. The little book in English translation called "Pagoda, Skull & Samurai" contains three of his stories. You can -see-from--their-titles-why the book is called as it is. The first is "The Five -Storied Pagoda", the second ."En- counter with a Skull", and the third "The Bearded Samurai". These are all good reading, although they are for the most past rather quiet. How- ever, by the end of each story you can see that things have livened up quite a bit. The winners in the retail- ing revolution in the 1990s will be those who recognize that we have an aging population, more working wives than ever, smaller families, and consumers who call for more than just the basics of everyday living. The cross -selling of financial and other services, previous- ly outside the scope of what people have bought from department stores, will mark the retail battles of the next decade.. The fight to stay in front will require changes by retailers on a scale unprecedented since the 1920s. Crossroads—Dec. 4, 1985—Page M HEY KIDS! LEARN TO DRAW WITH DANNY COUGHLAN 1. Here's Danny's complete drawing. 2. Finish what Danny started. 3. Now try it yourself! Please Give CANADIAN CANCER SOCIETY SOCIETE CANADIENNE DU CANCER Palmerston 343-2201 "Little Referee" - Gillian, daughter of Sherri and Paul Berfelz, Listowel •