European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 02, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 the stars and stripes Friday june 2,1989 americans9 cosmic literacy in t comical Cambridge mass. Up Many american adults suffer from cosmic illiteracy with nearly half surprised to find out the Sun is a Star research ers said. A nationwide Survey of  11 adults found Only 55 percent knew the Sun is a Star Only 37 percent believed the Sun will eventually Burn out and Only 24 percent knew the universe is expanding. Only a third of american adults have a minimally acceptable understanding of the universe re searchers from the Massachusetts Institute of technology and Northern Illinois University concluded in wednesday s edition of the British journal social studies of science. When asked whether the Sun is a planet a Star or something else 25 percent said the Sun is a planet 15 percent said it was something else and 5 per cent had no idea whatsoever. The results of that question were the most sur prising to me said Mit professor Alan Lightman who co authored the study. Only 24 percent of those surveyed thought the universe is expanding a concept generally accepted since 1929 findings by american scientist Edwin Hubble. Only 37 percent of those polled said the Sun will eventually Burn out. That was established in the 19th Century by lord Kelvin a British physicist. It will Burn out in about 10 billion years so we Don t have to worry right now Tighlman said. China scholar once accused by Mccarthy of being spy Dies Pawtucket . A Owen Lattimore a China scholar whom sen. Joseph Mccarthy once accused of being the top soviet espionage agent in the United states has died. He was 88. Lattimore who suffered a stroke last year and who had been in failing health the Pas two weeks died wednesday relatives said. Mccarthy made his much quoted accusation against lat Tim orc in March 1950. Later toning it Down to one of the top agents. However a sen ate foreign relations subcommittee concluded there was no basis for Mccarthy s accusation and exonerated i Imort in july 1950. In 1952, a Federal grand jury indicted Lattimore on seven counts of perjury in connection with his 1951 testimony before the Senate internal Security subcommittee which was investigating the Institute on Pacific relations an International organization of count pics concerned with the Pacific Region. The Justice department dropped All charges against Lati More in 955.Lattimore edited the Institute s Pacific affairs Jour Nal from 1934 to 1941. Lattimore who grew up in China and spent nearly 25 years in the far East did not earn a University degree instead going into Busi own Lattimore Ness and doing newspaper work in Shanghai China and Beijing from 192010 1926. He studied at Harvard University in 1929 before beginning research in Manchuria in 1929 and 1930. He conducted More research in Beijing from 1930 to 1935, also working in Mongolia. From 1941 to 1942 he served As a political adviser to Chiang Kai Shek the Leader of the nationalist government. He then became Deputy director of Pacific operations for the . Office of War information serving until 1944. He was the director of the Walter hints Page school of International relations at Johns Hopkins University from 1939to 1953. He lectured at Hopkins from i938to 1963. Among Lal Limonc s books arc High tartar 1930man Churia. Cradle of conflict 1932. Inner asian frontiers of China 1940 and ordeal by slander 1950. He is survived by a son David Lattimore of Paw Tucket a professor in the department of East asian studies at Brown University a sister six grandchildren and two great grandsons. His wife. Eleanor died in the mid-1960s. A family member said Lattimore s remains will be cremated and a memorial service will be held at a later Date. Stateside plane slides on runway after Landing gear failure Chicago a an Iowa air Turboprop plane Slid up to 300 Yards on its belly when its Landing gear collapsed during a Landing officials  pilots and one passenger were aboard wednes Day s flight 1523 for Benton Harbor Mich. No injuries were reported. The plane had just left Midway Airport when the Pilot noticed a problem with the Landing gear and re turned said Mori Edelstein a Federal aviation administration  plane came to rest at the intersection of two main runways. Though runways for Small aircraft were not affected Midway s two runways for Large commercial flights were closed for two hours until the plane could be towed away. Mild earthquake jolts Southern California Al steel maker blamed for cracks found in Hull of new submarine Washington a two cracks discovered in the Hull of a nearly completed nuclear submarine Stem from a failure of the steel manufacturer and went undetected by Navy officials and the ship s builder for five years the submarine builder said wednesday. The electric boat division of general dynamics corp., which in a memo to lawmakers last week de scribed the cracks As quite severe said repairs have been completed and apparently would not Impact on the sept. 30 commissioning Date of the Topeka a los Angeles class attack submarine. Electric boat spokesman Neil Ruenzel said metallurgical tests conducted by the Groton conn., sub maker showed that the steel plate in question devel oped a defect during the manufacturing process. The steel maker. Aramco inc. Of Parsippany n.j., initiated repairs but did not completely eliminate the lbs correspondent Drinkwater Dies of cancer at 53 in Calif. Los Angeles not Terry Drinkwater the senior correspondent in the los Angeles Bureau of lbs news died of cancer wednesday at his Home in Malibu. He was 53. He was a native of Denver and earned a Bachelor s degree at Pomona College and a master s degree at the University of California at Berkeley. He served in the .Armyin 1958 and 1959. Defect in this plate when they made the repair elec tric boat said. The cracks were present prior to or during heat treatment following the repair. While it is not uncommon for a Vendor to Correct defects in steel plate use Din submarine construction it is rare that cracks remain after this repair electric boat said. The cracks were on the area that had undergone repairs. Ruen cd said. Jim Herzog. A spokesman for Aramco said the steel maker would withhold comment until it receives elec tric boat s report on the findings. That report had not been received by the end of business wednesday he said. The steel plate was manufacture red by Aramco s Houston Plant and delivered in 1984.1 Ler of said. The electric boat order was among the last for the Houston Plant before it was shut Down he said. Ruenzel when asked How the cracks could have gone undetected by company and Navy inspectors for five years said it could have gotten bigger Over time. I think that s the Best  Navy and company officials refused to describe the cracks saying the information was classified. But the Hartford courant reported that one was a 2-Inch-Long hairline crack and the other was smaller. The cracks were discovered by a Foreman during preparation for painting the Hull at the Groton ship Yard Runzel said it was not immediately known How much the repairs Cost electric boat. The question of liability would be addressed in the future he said. Redlands Calif. A a mild earthquake jolted Southern California residents awake Early thursday but caused no damage or injuries authorities  was a loud bang there was a Little bit of shaking and that s it Redlands police dispatcher Marv Klein  quake measuring 3.5 on the Richcr scale struck at 2 33 a.m., 3 Miles South of Redlands. Said Robert finn spokesman for the California Institute of technology in  temblor was Felt in several cities in san Bernar Dino and Riverside counties. Redlands is about 65 Miles cast of downtown los  Richter scale is a gauge of the Energy released by an earthquake As measured by the ground motion recorded on a  earthquake of 3.5 on the Richter scale can cause slight damage in the local area. Car kills retired policeman working with film Crew los Angeles a a retired policeman escort ing a camera truck filming the movie dead men Don t die was knocked off his motorcycle by a car that dragged him 200 feet to his death authorities said  company members watching helplessly As the car rounded a Corner and struck the officer rushed to the Auto after the Driver fled and lifted it off the motor  right front wheel came to rest on top of the officer. They lifted the car up but he died police detective John Gibson said. Alan Sclapp 60, retired from the los Angeles police department in 1969 and was working for the film company As a uniformed Security officer said Gibson. Antonio Harold Rosas 21. A native of Colombia was arrested by police who tracked him with a dog and booked him for investigation of murder said Gibson. Drug and alcohol tests were performed but the results were not available. Paraplegic planning to swim English Channel Milford . A a 33-year-old paraplegic said he plans to swim the English Channel in August. I want to prove to myself 1 have no limitations do Spile what s happened to me Robert Roy Patterson of Milford. New York told the Binghamton press and Sun bulletin on wednesday. Patterson plans to swim from Dover England to Cap gris Nez France a distance of 20.5 Miles. If he s successful hell be the first paraplegic to swim the Channel. Two others have tried and failed