Nature Geoscience, Table of Contents, Vol. 4, No. 4 (April 2011)

EDITORIALS		Top
Coal's true cost p209 doi:10.1038/ngeo1136 The deaths of birds have become a rallying point against the proliferation of wind farms. Yet the loss of human life in mines is rarely linked with coal as an energy source. Full Text | PDF
Tweets on Earth p209 doi:10.1038/ngeo1137 Nature Geoscience has joined Twitter. We share our take on exciting developments in the Earth and planetary sciences as they happen. Full Text | PDF
CORRESPONDENCE		Top
Not the earthquake's fault pp210 - 211 Brian G. McAdoo & Lisabeth Paravisini-Gebert doi:10.1038/ngeo1116 Full Text | PDF
Closed ranks in oceanography pp211 - 212 LuAnne Thompson, Renellys C. Perez & Amelia E. Shevenell doi:10.1038/ngeo1113 Full Text | PDF
COMMENTARY		Top
Science-based insurance pp213 - 214 Molly E. Brown, Daniel E. Osgood & Miguel A. Carriquiry doi:10.1038/ngeo1117 Crops are at risk in a changing climate. Farmers in the developing world will be able to insure against harvest failure if robust insurance packages, based on a geophysical index rather than individual loss, become widely available. Full Text | PDF
RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS		Top
Our choice from the recent literature p215 doi:10.1038/ngeo1131 Full Text | PDF
NEWS AND VIEWS		Top
Earth's core: A new twist on inner-core spin pp216 - 217 Mathieu Dumberry doi:10.1038/ngeo1091 An observed hemispheric structure in the Earth's inner core has been hard to reconcile with evidence that it rotates faster than the mantle. Detection of a shift of the hemisphere boundary that occurred over geological timescales removes the contradiction. Full Text | PDF See also: Letter by Waszek et al. Structural geology: Natural fault lubricants pp217 - 218 Ben van der Pluijm doi:10.1038/ngeo1126 Motion along faults can occur in sudden earthquakes or through steady, aseismic creep. Rock samples retrieved by drilling deep into a creeping section of the San Andreas Fault show that clay minerals in fault rock promote creep behaviour. Full Text | PDF See also: Letter by Carpenter et al. Early Solar System: Gathering dust pp219 - 220 Jeff Cuzzi doi:10.1038/ngeo1112 Chondritic meteorites are remnants of the ancient Solar System. Analysis of the dust rims often found on their constituent particles shows that the rims were swept up while the particles wafted about and collided in a weakly turbulent protoplanetary nebula. Full Text | PDF See also: Letter by Bland et al. Oceanography: Chemical twins, separated pp220 - 221 Martin Frank doi:10.1038/ngeo1125 How the chemical composition of sea water changes on its journey through the world's oceans is poorly understood. Systematic measurements of dissolved trace metals across the Pacific Ocean suggest that these metals may help track sources and mixing of water masses. Full Text | PDF See also: Letter by Firdaus et al.