California In stitu te of Technology EN G I N EE Volume LX , Number 2, I 9 9 7 IN THIS ISSUE The Neuroanatomy of Vision Radar Looks at Asteroids A Peek at Caltech's New President Caltech President-Elect David Baltimore greets members of the faculty (Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering Julia Kornfield, right, and Norman Brooks, the Irvine Professor of Environmental and Civil Engineering, Emeritus. left) after the announcement of his appointment on May 13. Behind them are, from left, Peter Dervan. the Bren Professor of Chemistry and chair of the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering; Gordon Moore, chair of the Board of Trustees and of the trustees' presidential selection committee; and Kip Thorne, the Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics and chair of the faculty presidential search committee. Baltimore and his wife, Alice Huang, will move to Pasadena in the fall, when he will officially take office. Baltimore's Impressive research career is outlined in a story beginning on page 32. California Institute of Technology 2 Random Walk 11 The I O-Foot Wi nd Tunnel: Ove r an d Out A piece of aviation history flies off into tbe sunset, or, rather, heads east by truck. 14 Rad a r Obse r va tions of Earth-Approaching Asteroids - by Steven J. Ostro l ong the province of supermarket tabloids, killer asteroids are actually worthy of serious study. A group at JPl find'i them to be quite a remarkable rock collection. 24 How We See - by Richard A. Andersen Cu ltech biologists arc beginning to find out what goes on in our brains when we see somerhing move. 32 D avi d Baltimore: A Short Portrait of a Long Career - by Douglas L. Sm ith Calrecb's incoming president won the Nobel Prize back in 1975, and be hasn't ",if exactly rested on his laurels since tben. .. ' './ 38 Obituaries 43 Facu lty File On the cover: In 2004, an Engineering & Science (ISSN 0013-7812) is published Thomas J, Tyson Preside1lf o[ the All/11m; AJJoc;a/;oll asteroid named Toutatis quarterly at the California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91 125. Annual J. Ernest Nunnally will whi z by Earth at a dis­ subscription $10.00 domestic, $20.00 foreign air mai l; Vice PreJide1lf for IlISlilllle Relaliom tance of fou r lunar orbits. single copies $3.00. Send subscriptions [0 Calte<:h 1-7 1, Robert L O'Rourke Pasadena, CA 91125. Third class postage paid at Pasade­ AJJociale Vice Presidelll [orimlillilt Rela/iom If you were ~a(at i on in g on na, CA. All rights reserved. Reproduction of material con­ Tou tatis then, this is what rained herein forbidden without authorization. © 1997, STAFF: Edilor - J ane Dietrich you'd see. Earthbound Californ ia InstitUte of Technology. Published by Cal tech and the Alumni Association, Te lephone: 626-395-3630. MaJ1agiJ1g Editor - Douglas Smith radar astronomers are COJ1lrihuting \Vrifer - Robett Tindol taking close looks at a PICfURE CREDIT'S: Cover - E. De Jong, S. Suzuki, S. Hudson Copy Edilol'J - Michael Farquhar, & S. Ostro; inside covers, 8, 9, ! 1, 12, 13,32,43, 4ti - Bob Paz; Danielle Gladding, Julie Hakcwill , num ber of Earth- 3 - J ane Dietrich; S - David Wald; 7, ! ti, 16 - JilL; 19 - Steven Anne Sommer approaching asteroids, as Ostro; 21-23 - De Jong & Suzuki; 24, 30 - David Brad ley; 26, BusilleJS "{allage,. - Debbie Bradbury 28-31 - Richard Andersen; 26 - Fritz Goro; 27 - Bruce Whict:­ Cimt/alioll Mflllagel' - Susan Lt:e you'll see on page 12. head; 34,35 - MlT; 35 - Tobbc Gl1stavsson/Reporwgebild Photographer - Robert Paz Images of the gamma-ray burst field obtained at the lOO-inch Hale Telescope at Palomar Observatory on May 9 (left) and 10 (right) show the visible-light brightness of the optical counterpart (arrow) still rising. The gamma-ray burst was first detected May 8. Random Walk bursts was quite crude, leaving astronomers with GAMMA-RAY BURSTS DEMYSTIFIED thousands of faint stars and galaxies as potential "hosts." An important recent develop­ ment was the deployment of In Maya ceam of Calcech some as-yet unknown popu­ BeppoSAX, a joinc Iealianl astronomers solved one of lation of objects within our Dutch satellite launched in astronomy's most incriguing own Milky Way galaxy; and lace 1996 by the Iealian space mysteries, pinpointing for a anorher that proposes that the agency. This satellite, for the gamma-ray burst an optical bursts originate in distant first time, provided a rapid counterpart several billion galaxies, several billion light­ and accurate position in the light-years away from the years away. If the latter is sky for strong gamma-ray Milky Way. The resulcs true (as was indirectly bursts. This enabled astrono­ "When I finished analyzing demonstrate for the first time supporced by che Compcon mers to search for possible the specttum and saw fea- that at least some of the enig­ Observatory's earlier observa­ visible and radio counter­ matic gamma-ray bursts that tions), then the bursts are parts, using telescopes on the tures, I knew we had finally have puzzled astronomers for among the most violent and ground. The first such decades occur at very great brilliant events in the universe. counterpart was deteCted at caught it. Ie was a stunning distances and nor, as some Gamma-ray bursts occur che beginn.ing of May, buc have thought, inside our own a couple of times a day, says faded away before its nature moment of revelation." galaxy. Shci Kulkami, professor of could be escablished. The burses of high-energy astronomy and planetary The satellite detected radiation were first discovered science and one of the team another burst on May 8, and by military satellites almost members. These brilliant Cal tech astronomers were 30 years ago, but so far their flashes seem to appear from able to bring telescopes at origin has remained a mys­ random directions in space Palomar Observatory to bear tery. New information came and typically lase a few within a few hours. The in recent years from NASA's seconds. "After hunting clues Cal tech team noticed a star­ Compton Gamma-Ray to these bursts for so many like object that was changing Observatory satellite, which years, we now know that the brightness in an unusual has so far detected several bursts are in fact incredibly fashion at the position of the thousand bursts (see E&S, energetic events," said bum. (Dr. H oward Bond of Wincer 1992). Nonecheless, Kulkarni. the Space Telescope Scie.nce the fundamental question of Progress in understanding Institute initially reponed where the bursts came from the nature of the bursts was the object based on his remained unanswered. stymied by the fact that until measurements at Kite Peak Competing theories on recently the bursts were National Observatory.) gamma-ray bursts have gen­ detected as very high-energy The crucial piece to the erally fallen into two catego­ gamma rays. It is difficult to puzzle was finally found by ries: one that suggests that focus gamma rays, and thus che Calcech ceam on May 11 the bursts to originate from the positional accuracy of the using one of the two W. M. 1 ENGINEERING & SCIE NCE NO. 1997 Keck lO-meter telescopes, Professor of Astronomy the world's largest, on Mauna Charles Steidel (PhD '90); Kea, Hawaii. The starlike postdoctoral scholars Steven object showed features known Odewahn and Debra Shep­ co originate in inrergalactic herd; and graduate students 626 clouds in its spectrum. By Kurr Adelberger, Roy Gal, measuring the wavelengths and Michael Pahre. The team Longtime residents complain that the San Gabriel Valley of these features, the Calfech also includes Dale Frail of the doesn't have an identity of its own. Not any more--on June astronomers were able co National Radio Astronomy 14, 1997, the area code for che San Gabriel Valley, and wich measure the distance co a Observatory in Socorro, New ic Calcech, changed co 626. The old 8 18 area code will still gamma-ray burst for the first Mexico. work chrough February 21, 1998, however. And che time. Their measurements "Gamma-ray bursts are one telephone company in its infi nite wisdom has decided that place the burst at a distance of the great mysteries of Burbank, Glendale, and La Canada Flintridge belong co the of several billion light-years, science," said Djorgovski. "It San Fernando Valley, wh ich retains the 8 18 area code. Thus over one-half the size of the is wonderful to contribure CO the J et Propulsion Laboratory's area code remains 818, observable universe. its unraveling." 0 because although JPL's mailing address is in Pasadena, the Mark Metzger, assistant vast majority of the facility li es in La Ca nada Flintridge. professor of astronomy, said In other telecommunications news, Cal tech's Office of he was chrilled by che resulr. Public Events has changed its tOil -free number from "When I finished analyzing (800) 423-8849 co (888) 2-CALTECH . the spectrum and saw features, I knew we had finally caught it. Ie was a stunning moment of revela­ tion. Such events happen only a few times in the life of a scientist." fly By Recent observations from the telescopes at Palomar show that this starlike object is fading away. Because such rapid fad ing had been seen When Ari Hoffman, a with the burst in March, the sophomore at Tamalpais High Calrech as tronomers had to School in Mill Valley, Cali­ make an extra effort to fornia, entered his Drosophila identify this counterpart project in the Marin County quickly so chac che Keck science fai r, he never dreamed observations could be carried he would run afoul of animal out when the object was rights.