Science scan

URBANIZATION

In the beginning . . .

Discover, December issue

Andrew Lawler, the magazine's archaeology beat writer, traveled to the plains of northeastern Syria to write about a 6,000-year-old settlement called Tell Brak. The discovery three years ago of more than 100 skeletons has helped archaeologists understand how urban civilization got its start. Besides the human remains, seemingly of the victims of a vicious battle or a mass murder, scientists have unearthed buildings, pottery and jewelry that "prove that Tell Brak was a place of impressive wealth and sophistication, an important trading center and a major (and previously unappreciated) player in the early game of civilization," Lawler reports. He also introduces readers to the excavation team's leader, Joan Oates. The pioneering archaeologist, now 81, started her career excavating in Iraq in the 1950s.

HIGH-RISE HORTICULTURE

Taking gardening to new heights

Scientific American, November issue

Anyone who has watched the Topsy Turvy upside-down tomato planter infomercial ("Just plant, hang and water!") is familiar with vertical gardening. But Columbia University professor of public health and microbiology Dickson Despommier thinks that large-scale vertical farming -- growing crops in glass skyscrapers built on abandoned city lots -- would use less water and fossil fuel than traditional farming and produce safer, better-tasting food. Those who can plow through the statistics-dense first section of this article are rewarded with Despommier's creative vision for sustainable agriculture, plus a great full-page graphic of the inner workings of an imagined 30-story vertical farm. More information at http://www.verticalfarm.com.

-- Rachel Saslow