51��

Skip to content

Outward bound

16 December 2000

Innate curiosity and many other motivating forces make it inevitable that
there’ll be manned landings on Mars this century, followed by colonisation. The
possibilities are immense and so is the adventure. Malcolm Walter’s The
Search for Life on Mars is an up-to-date survey on what has been
accomplished so far and what is planned. Mars is a hostile environment, so
Walter tempers his account with sobriety, but passion ferments underneath”.
Published by Perseus, $15, ISBN 073820367X.

Sign up to our weekly newsletter

Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with 51�� events and special offers.

Sign up

or

Existing subscribers

More from 51��

Explore the latest news, articles and features

A honey bee flies with pollen balls stored in pollen baskets (corbiculae) on its hind legs. (Photo credit: Jennie Durant) Bitter Honey by Jenny Durant

Environment

51�� recommends a devastating account of farming honeybees

Culture

The early moments of the nuclear blast on 16 July 1945

Physics

Photos reveal unexpected details from the world's first atomic test

Regulars

Oliver Sacks and The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat

Comment

After news about Oliver Sacks's "lies", we revisit his best-loved book

Culture

Lascaux Cave is a Palaeolithic cave situated in southwestern France, near the village of Montignac in the Dordogne region, which houses some of the most famous examples of prehistoric cave paintings. Close to 600 paintings ??? mostly of animals - dot the interior walls of the cave in impressive compositions. Horses are the most numerous, but deer, aurochs, ibex, bison, and even some felines can also be found. Besides these paintings, which represent most of the major images, there are also around 1400 engravings of a similar order. The art, dated to c. 17,000 ??? c. 15,000 BCE, falls within the Upper Palaeolithic period and was created by the clearly skilled hands of humans living in the area at that time. The region seems to be a hotspot; many beautifully decorated caves have been discovered there. The exact meaning of the paintings at Lascaux or any of the other sites is still subject to discussion, but the prevailing view attaches a ritualistic or even spiritual component to them, hinting at the sophistication of their creators. Lascaux was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in 1979, along with other prehistoric sites in its proximity. Valley, France.

Life

51�� recommends a smart new account of human exceptionalism

Culture

51��

Outward bound

Sign up to our weekly newsletter