Larissa's Media Review!
Magazine Article: Half-Life (More or Less)Original Publication: Perturbation of Nuclear Decay Rates During the Solar Flare of December 2006
Summary:
This news article illuminated recent findings that some radioactive materials did not decay at a constant rate, as is widely accepted. Adequate research on this field has not been conducted, so it is difficult to determine if the results seen in several studies are conclusive or not. The implications of such findings are extensive and would affect not only dating methods, but also widely accepted principles of physics. Further research will be undertaken in order to determine if these findings are legitimate, and, if they are, this means that there are new opportunities for applied science to find a practical use for such findings.
1) What specific claim(s) does the news article make about the study? That is, what did the news article say was discovered? For each claim, indicate if the original paper actually makes that claim.
This article claims that there is a probable correlation between solar flares and the decay rates of radioactive materials. It cites a study from Purdue University in 2006 which observed the rates of decay spiking when a solar flare was being observed. This is a significant observation because the current theories of physics accept that radioactive materials decay at a constant rate. This article also claims that there is a probable correlation to the flux of neutrinos transmitted from the sun through the earth during a solar flare. It is suggested that this is probable, but not entirely likely, due to the small size of neutrinos, which makes it difficult for them to affect atoms since they are so much larger than neutrinos. A correlation to the distance between the earth and the sun is also implied in the citations of additional publications. **The original paper published mentions the correlations between solar flares and the decay rates of materials, and it does suggest that neutrinos may possibly be responsible. It does not entirely offer a cause for the correlation, but it does suggest a few possibilities. The original article does not make a lot of mention of seasonal impacts on the decay rates. It largely contributes the causation of the changes in radioactive decay to alterations of the magnetic field, but there is no cause of these changes offered (apart from neutrinos) as a cause of magnetic change.
2) Most technical papers have a "Conclusions" section (often labeled as such). Find this section. Are the items which the original authors highlighted as conclusions of their study discussed in the news article? Indicate "yes" or "no", giving your evidence.
There is not a clear conclusion in the magazine article, though some conclusions, assuming the validity of this study, are scattered throughout the article. It mentioned the possibility of creating detectors of solar flares from radioactive materials which could be useful to astronauts, among other related things. This articles seems to have sought objectivity, so this study is not clearly endorsed or derided. In addition to mentioning the potential to create solar flare detection devices, the original article also suggested the possibility of speeding up decay rates to get rid of radioactive materials on the earth. The experiment was clearly outlined, and, from the evidence in the study, it is shown that there is a likely correlation between the solar flares and a change in rates of decay. It is still open to more study, and a lot of evidence will certainly be required to convince scientists of something with this many serious implications.
3) Most technical papers will describe the uncertainty around their conclusions and discoveries, often discussed in a section labeled "Discussion." Does the original paper describe the degree of confidence the scientists have in their discoveries? If so, describe this, and indicate whether or not the news article also discusses the degree of uncertainty.
The conclusions are discussed in both the magazine and in the original article. The magazine discussed a couple probable conclusions without particularly endorsing one. It did not reference additional explanations, but it did reference studies which could possibly refute the conclusions of the proposed correlation. The main issue the magazine article illuminated from the studies which seem to support the claims of altered decay rates was the possibility of human error and inaccurate machines. It also mentioned that a conclusive correlation to a specific natural phenomenon was not clearly shown, though a correlation to a few effects may be seen. The original publication clearly asserted that the correlations in the studies it mentioned were not due to statistical change, but were statistically significant, meaning the required an explanation based upon cause and effect, not on chance. The study seemed to acknowledge that adequate evidence is not yet known and seems very open for further study to occur in order to comprehend the natural cause of these fluctuations.
4) It is the job of the news reporter to make whatever item they are reporting on relevant to some larger issue or set of issues; in contrast, a technical paper is often much more focused and may not deal with broader implications of the work. Do you find examples of the reporter discussing "broader implications" not present in the original paper? If so, describe them. Additionally, if so, indicate whether you (as a reader) can see that this broader implication actually does follow from the conclusions of the study.
The magazine article begins by pointing out what the broad implications of a conclusive study would entail. It cited the fact that physics currently understands that decay rates of radioactive materials are constants, so a correlation showing that they are anything but constant would require physicists to re-examine formerly accepted theories, and they would have to configure mathematical formulae which reflect the fluctuations in decay rates. This is obviously huge, for it would require physics books to essentially be re-written because the formulae would all change relevant to such a discovery. It would also entail overturning everything understood on the subject of decay constants since the work of Rutherford.
5) In some technical paper the original scientists might describes previous contradictory work of previous research (often in the "Introduction"), which they presumably consider their new work has overturned. If so, does the news article reflect that this study has resulted in the rejection of a previous hypothesis?
This article mentions the implications of overturning some aspects Rutherford’s work, which is why scientists believe decay rates to be constant. It doesn’t go into the actual study Rutherford conducted to reach his conclusions, but it clearly states that his hypothesis of rate constants would be undoubtedly overturned if this theory could be adequately supported.
6) Journalists very often couch science news items as "debates between equal sides", even if the weight of the evidence is not equal. Does the news article discuss alternative hypotheses that are not mentioned in the original paper? If so, does the news article give a measure of what degree of evidential support exists for either of the alternative models?
The magazine article mentions the alternative hypothesis that there is not correlation. Most of the issues it mentions re not necessarily testable in other laboratories. It was positive that it included evidence from other studies which did not obtain concurrent results, but these are not clearly shown to have been free of human error either. Alternative models to explain the cause of the phenomenon are not really mentioned, so there are not very many constructs to build upon. The other articles the magazine cites simply seek to vindicate or refute the findings of the Purdue study and do not seek out other explanations for such phenomenon, which, according to the magazine article, is visible in other studies and is adequately referenced. The article made it abundantly clear that there is not adequate evidence to accept the findings of the Purdue study, but it seems optimistic about further research on this topic.
Last modified: 23 November 2008