Age determinations and isotopic abundance measurements on lunar samples

A K-Ar age of 2300 x 10(6) years has been determined for a sample of type A crystalline rock (57,34). The presence of an anomalously large quantity of 4 degrees Ar, in a sample of type C breccia (65,35) precluded the calculation of its K-Ar age. Both of the rock types are characterized by low Rb/Sr ratios and consequently low (87)Sr/(86)Sr values. The U-Th-Pb results for a sample of type D fines (84,33) yield a (207)Pb/(206)Pb age of 4760 x 10(6) years, but ages based on U-Pb and Th-Pb ratios are anomalously high. Isotopic compositions of Li, K, Rb, Sr, U, and Th are very close to the accepted values for terrestrial materials.     

Potassium-Argon Ages and Spreading Rates on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 45{degrees} North

Potassium-argon dates obtained from extrusives collected on a traverse across the Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 45 degrees N are consistent with the hypothesis of ocean-floor spreading. The dates suggest a spreading rate in the range of 2.6 to 3.2 centimeters per year near the axis of the ridge; the rate agrees with that computed from fission-track dating of basalt glasses. Additional data for a basalt collected 62 kilometers west of the axis gives a spreading rate of 0.8 centimeter per year, which is similar to the rate inferred from magnetic anomaly patterns in the area. Reasons for the difference in calculated spreading rates are discussed.     

Structure of the uncleaved human H1 hemagglutinin from the extinct 1918 influenza virus

The 1918 "Spanish" influenza pandemic represents the largest recorded outbreak of any infectious disease. The crystal structure of the uncleaved precursor of the major surface antigen of the extinct 1918 virus was determined at 3.0 angstrom resolution after reassembly of the hemagglutinin gene from viral RNA fragments preserved in 1918 formalin-fixed lung tissues. A narrow avian-like receptor-binding site, two previously unobserved histidine patches, and a less exposed surface loop at the cleavage site that activates viral membrane fusion reveal structural features primarily found in avian viruses, which may have contributed to the extraordinarily high infectivity and mortality rates observed during 1918.