Mountain in Arizona. If it had not been for Middletown's help I'm afraid
our investigation would never have gotten past the clinical stage.

LATHAM. In what way was Middletown of assistance?

NIEMAND. It was the old case of workers in one field of science being
completely ignorant of what was going on in another field. Someday we
will have to establish a clearing house in science instead of keeping it
in tight little compartments as we do at present. Well, Hillyard and I
packed up for Arizona with considerable misgivings. We were afraid
Middletown wouldn't take our findings seriously but somewhat to our
surprise he heard our story with the closest attention. I guess
astronomers have gotten so used to hearing from flying saucer
enthusiasts and science-fiction addicts that nothing surprises them any
more. When we had finished he asked to see our records. Hillyard had
them all set down for easy numerical tabulation. Middletown went to work
with scarcely a word. Within an hour he had produced a chart that was
simply astounding.

* * * * *

LATHAM. Can you describe this chart for us?

NIEMAND. It was really quite simple. But if it had not been for
Middletown's experience in charting other solar phenomena it would never
have occurred to us to do it. First, he laid out a series of about
thirty squares horizontally across a sheet of graph paper. He dated
these beginning March 1, 1955, when our records began. In each square he
put a number from 1 to 10 that was a rough index of the number and
intensity of the attacks reported on that day. Then he laid out another
horizontal row below the first one dated twenty-seven days later. That
is, the square under March 1st in the top row was dated March 28th in
the row below it. He filled in the chart until he had an array of dozens
of rows that included all our data down to May, 1958.

When Middletown had finished it was easy to see that the squares of
highest index number did not fall at random on the chart. Instead they
fell in slightly slanting parallel series so that you could draw
straight lines down through them. The connection with the Sun was
obvious.

LATHAM. In what way?

NIEMAND. Why, because twenty-seven days is about the synodic period of
solar rotation. That is, if you see a large spot at the center of the
Sun's disk today, there is a good chance if it survives that you will
see it at the same place twenty-seven days later. But that