Center for Short-Lived Phenomena
Encyclopedia
The Center for Short-Lived Phenomena (CSLP) was an office at the Smithsonian Institution
from 1968 to 1975 designed to assist Smithsonian scientists in studying unusual short-lived natural phenomena such as meteorite impacts
, volcanic events
, earthquakes, and unusual ecological events such as plagues, extinctions, fish rains, and the effects of oil spill events.
CSLP published a series of scientific reports on unusual phenomena, as well as a 1972 paperback collection of unusual phenomena entitled Strange, Sudden, and Unexpected: True stories from the files of the Smithsonian Institution's Center for Short-lived Phenomena (ISBN 0-590-09380-0), which covered topics including:
CSLP restructured in 1975, with some activities moved to other portions of the Smithsonian to become the Scientific Event Alert Network, and eventually the Global Volcanism Program
. Some of its activities and data were subsequently maintained and operated as an independent non-profit entity under the Center for Short-Lived Phenomena name. CSLP was hired by Cahners Publishing Co. (since acquired by Reed-Elsevier) in 1977 to provide the pilot editorial content for the Oil Spill Intelligence Report newsletter. That publication was the first for Cahners' Newsletter Center business unit, later spun off as Cutter Information Corp (now Cutter Consortium
). CSLP continued under contract to Cahners and then Cutter for such content for several years.
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
from 1968 to 1975 designed to assist Smithsonian scientists in studying unusual short-lived natural phenomena such as meteorite impacts
Meteorite
A meteorite is a natural object originating in outer space that survives impact with the Earth's surface. Meteorites can be big or small. Most meteorites derive from small astronomical objects called meteoroids, but they are also sometimes produced by impacts of asteroids...
, volcanic events
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
, earthquakes, and unusual ecological events such as plagues, extinctions, fish rains, and the effects of oil spill events.
CSLP published a series of scientific reports on unusual phenomena, as well as a 1972 paperback collection of unusual phenomena entitled Strange, Sudden, and Unexpected: True stories from the files of the Smithsonian Institution's Center for Short-lived Phenomena (ISBN 0-590-09380-0), which covered topics including:
- The 1970 earthquake and mudslide on HuascaránHuascaránHuascarán or Nevado Huascarán is a mountain in the Peruvian province of Yungay, situated in the Cordillera Blanca range of the Western Andes. The highest southern summit of Huascarán is the highest point in Peru, and all the Earth's Tropics...
that consumed the town of Yungay, PeruYungay, Peru-Location:Yungay is located in the Callejón de Huaylas on Río Santa at an elevation of 2,500 m, 450 km north of Lima, the country's capital. East of the small town are the mountain ridges of snow-covered Cordillera Blanca, with Huascarán, Peru's highest mountain, no more than 15 km east...
. - Floating islandFloating islandA floating island is a mass of floating aquatic plants, mud, and peat ranging in thickness from a few inches to several feet. Floating islands are a common natural phenomenon that are found in many parts of the world. They exist less commonly as a man-made phenomenon...
s - A short-lived volcanic island in TongaTongaTonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
- A report on the extinction of the KoupreyKoupreyA kouprey , is a wild, forest-dwelling ox found mainly in northern Cambodia, but also believed to exist in southern Laos, western Vietnam, and eastern Thailand. It was discovered in 1937.Koupreys are very large ungulates, and can approach similar sizes to the wild Asian water buffalo...
, later found to be incorrect. - The 1970 flood of BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
.
CSLP restructured in 1975, with some activities moved to other portions of the Smithsonian to become the Scientific Event Alert Network, and eventually the Global Volcanism Program
Global Volcanism Program
The Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program documents Earth's volcanoes and their eruptive history over the past 10,000 years. The GVP reports on current eruptions from around the world as well as maintaining a database repository on active volcanoes and their eruptions. In this way, a...
. Some of its activities and data were subsequently maintained and operated as an independent non-profit entity under the Center for Short-Lived Phenomena name. CSLP was hired by Cahners Publishing Co. (since acquired by Reed-Elsevier) in 1977 to provide the pilot editorial content for the Oil Spill Intelligence Report newsletter. That publication was the first for Cahners' Newsletter Center business unit, later spun off as Cutter Information Corp (now Cutter Consortium
Cutter Consortium
Cutter Consortium, founded by Karen Fine Coburn in 1986 as Cutter Information Corp., is an American information technology research company. In 1990, Cutter purchased the American Programmer journal , and partnered with its founder, Ed Yourdon, to form the Cutter Consortium...
). CSLP continued under contract to Cahners and then Cutter for such content for several years.