Authentic Science Fiction Monthly, No. 67 — page 156: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

AUTHENTIC SCIENCE FICTION to bear on the old question “Is there life on Mars?’ The author believes that there is, and sets out to prove it. The proof resolves itself on a study of the varying sizes of the “‘vegetation’’ patches, the canals, the probable water-content of the extremely thin air, and conclwsions drawn from photographs taken in different lights, coupled with the, known capabilities of certain bacteria here on Earth. The conclusion the author has drawn is that there is cer- tainly plant life on Mars, and possibly intelligent life also, though he states that such intelligent life may be entirely unfamiliar to us. No science fiction reader will dispute the possibility of life existing beneath utterly different con- ditions to our own. The book, unfortunately, does not confine itself to one planet, but makes an attempt to speculate on the possibility of life on Venus, the probable future of space flight, and the establishment of a Luna base. I say “unfortunately,” be- cause the subject matter of the title deserves more space than that given it, but despite that, this is a book which all who are interested in “scientific speculation” will thoroughly enjoy. 135 CONSTRUCTING AN ASTRONOMICAL TELE- SCOPE, by G. Matthewson, published by Blackie & Son, Ltd., 17 Stanhope Street, Glasgow, C.4, at 7s. 6d., is the most comprehensive and easy to follow book I have ever read on this subject. Even if you have no in- clination to make your own telescope, this book is well worth obtaining for the in- formation it contains. Graphi- cally written, well-illustrated with line and half-tone on art paper, it explains every step of telescope production from the very beginning to the finished, mounted product. SCIENCE AND MODERN LIFE, by Sir E. John Russell, published by The Epworth Press, 25-35 City Road, E.C.1, at 6s. 6d., is the Beckly Lec- ture for 1955. It deals with some of the problems arising out of the rapid advance of science and technology, isolates their causes and effects, deals with the newer problems arising from the unexpected effects of scientific progress, and attempts to propose a solution which, while workable, may not be the best, but is certainly the best yet offered. A mature and thoughtful book. comicloooks.com