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The biologists had been in the plane for hours, flying back and forth over the calm ocean. They had seen dolphins, leatherback turtles, a flock of water birds called gannets and even a basking shark -- but not what they were looking for. Then Millie Brower, who was peering with intense concentration through a bubblelike window fitted into the plane's fuselage, announced ''nine o'clock, about a mile off.'' The plane made a stomach-churning lurch as the pilots banked left and began to circle. And there, below, were a right whale mother and her new calf, barely breaking the surface, lolling in the swells. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Reports on the appeal of marine scientists for emergency action to help prevent humans from accidentally killing right whales in the U.S.

Discusses several topics related to science. Problem of how to connect a single-molecule component to a source of electricity in molecular electronics; Discovery that some whales and dolphins do not sleep after birth; Condition of North Atlantic right whales, one of the most endangered whale species, in 2005. INSET: Sleeping With More Than One Eye Open..

Reports on the discovery of a dead North Atlantic right whale, a highly endangered species, in the Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. Total number of right whale found dead in the area; Cause of the death of the whale; Condition of the female right whale upon discovery.

Discusses the efforts of scientists in Canada and the United States to track and save right whales by testing underwater listening devices to pick up the sounds that the animals make. Death of whales due to ship collisions; Details on acoustic tests on whales; Benefits of sound experiments to whales.

Looks at threats facing the calving of the North Atlantic right whale. The surge of calving in 1996 balanced by a record number of deaths; Possible explanations including entanglement in fishing gear, ship collisions and habitat decline in feeding areas; Maps showing route that right whales take along the United States' Atlantic coast; Dangers from naval and commercial shipping lanes, as well as war game sites.