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Recalls the author's experience in taking a picture of the Crown Zellerbach Paper Co. locomotive in Gilroy, California. Problems encountered; Reason cited for entering a private property.

The article offers information on the process of scratch building the Santa Fe rail yard in San Bernardino, California. It highlights how the author created an HO scale model of the San Bernardino depot, that scales out to 13 inches by 5 1/2 inches, through the January 25, 1919 issue of the journal "Railway Review" that presents the depot's prototype, floor plan and dimensions. In addition, the history of the rail yard's prototype is discussed.

The article discusses how amateur astronomer Russell Crotty makes detailed observations of the Moon and the planets from his backyard observatory in order to create works of astronomical art. Rotty is the caretaker of a 130-acre property perched on a bluff overlooking the Pacific. Leaving Los Angeles's Rampart district for the peaceful seaside meant a significant change in surroundings. His work is shown at the CRG Gallery in New York City regularly and has been included in exhibits at numerous museums, most recently at the Miami Art Museum. To begin his work, Crotty commissioned Ed Grissom, a well-known local amateur astronomer, to build a telescope facing away from the lights of Los Angeles and toward the deep, black sky over the ocean. Solstice Peak Observatory, as Crotty calls it, cost him about $3,000 and houses his 10-inch f/8 Newtonian reflector on a proudly non-computerized, dual-axis parallax drive. Crotty also started attending star parties with fellow amateur astronomers on Mt. Pinos in the Los Padres National Forest in southwestern California, far from any city lights and perfect for stargazing. Crotty is committed to astronomy of the 19th century, when the discipline was suffused with romance and mystery. He makes straight scientific illustrations that serve as departure points for his artwork. He focuses on the circle format that gives viewers the impression of looking through the eyepiece of a telescope, a point of view that includes them in the experience of discovery. He spends the nocturnal hours in his observatory, making painstaking drawings illuminated by a tiny flashlight held in his mouth. Back in the studio, he expands and alters these firsthand impressions.

Reports on the launching of the Voting Technology Project by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the California Institute of Technology. Flaws of other voting systems; Reliance of paper ballots and optical scanners; Security of voting in machines.

Reports on the discovery of the destabilizing effects of the stars in the solar system on the Oort Cloud, a reservoir of comets far beyond the planets. Observations made by the European Hipparcos satellite and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California; Reference to a paper published in the February 1999 issue of `The Astronomical Journal.'

The article focuses on how the company BNSF Railway manages railroad dispatching in California. It states that the company's train dispatcher Damaris Ripp helps in the work through computer. It mentions that dispatchers of the company work closely with Metrolink dispatchers in Pomona, California. Bob Brendza of the company highlights that locating dispatchers near areas they control enables face-to-face interaction with regional personnel.

In this article the author describes his experience of installing switch machines in N scale layout on Bakersfield Yard in California. He states two things which make benchwork easy are no glue should be used and screws can easily get out from the layout. He further defines the problems which he faced due to lack of proper planning and aspects of the layout which includes track configuration, scenery, writing and others which should done in a refined way.

The article presents the author's insights regarding his HO scale layout and model railroad of the Goldfield & Hangtown Railroad (G&HRR). It says that G&HRR is designed as point-to-point railroad, wherein a cattle train runs between the towns of Goldfield, Nevada and Hangtown, California. It says that all the visible tracks on the layout were handlaid and commercial flextrack was used only in tunnels. It adds that a latex mold of decomposed granite was made for the Western layout.

The article focuses on the McCloud River Railroad in Northern California that was established in 1897 as the forest-to-factory pipeline for parent McCloud River Lumber Co. It spent its first 35 years molding logging spurs into a Class II common carrier providing interchange between the Southern Pacific Co. at Mount Shasta City and the Great Northern Railway at Lookout. The service between McCloud and Mount Shasta ended in 1929 though it continued to carry patrons into the 21st century.

The article mentions how astronomers have announced that a far-flung array of three 4-inch telescopes has discovered a Jupiter-size planet by sensing a slight dimming as the planet passes in front of its star. The telescopes make up the Trans-Atlantic Exoplanet Survey (TrES) and are modified versions of those available to backyard astronomers. The survey has a telescope in the Canary Islands, one at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, and one on Palomar Mountain in California. The array uses 4-inch Schmidt telescopes equipped with CCD cameras and an automated search routine that surveys relatively bright stars. The survey was created by David Charbonneau (Center for Astrophysics), Timothy Brown (National Center for Atmospheric Research), and Edward Dunham (Lowell Observatory).

The article focuses on the Los Angeles Junction Railway (LAJ) and its benefits to railroad companies in Los Angeles, California. Despite its initial aerial appearance, the LAJ was well planned in the early 1920s as the neutral switching railroad for the 2,800-acre Central Manufacturing District in the cities of Vernon, Maywood, Bell and Commerce, serving the Union Stock Yards area for the three titans of Golden State railroading: Santa Fe, Union Pacific and Southern Pacific.

The article presents a historical bacground of Surf, California and the Southern Pacific Railroad. Surf is located 302 miles south of Southern Pacific's San Francisco, California headquarters. As a station on the famous Coast Line between Los Angeles and San Francisco, it possessed a captivating ebb and flow, changing like the tide, providing a look into the world of railroading. INSET: Behold a mystery.

Discusses the factors that contributed to the closure of Southern Pacific Railroad's lettuce business in Salinas Valley, California. Measures implemented by Southern Pacific to address deficiencies that affect its perishable business; Purpose of the Salad Bowl Express, a perishable service launched by the company on May 12, 1976; Stand of grower-shippers on long-term contracts offered by the company's marketing managers. INSET: Valley of the World.

Describes how a railroad modeler lay flextrack for good looks and smooth operation in designing the new HO layout to represent some parts of the modern-day Union Pacific in California. Prototype rail sizes; Attention to detail; Roadbed; Superelevated curves; Parallel gauges; Turnouts; Easement or transition curve; Painting track; Digital Command Control.

Focuses on the construction of a railroad model and a layout of the Davies Warehouse in Los Angeles, California. Construction planning; Start of the laying out process with the curved wall of the building; Modeling of the trackside doors; Application of paint and mortar; Parts and tools used; Assembly of the building.

Presents an article on working at a small switching yard in San Jose, California. Reason for thinking the switching yard as a hospital yard; Description of the yard; Details on workers at the yard.

Provides information on the Los Angeles Union Station in California. List of motion pictures filmed in the railroad station; History of the station; Facilities and amenities of the station.

Describes how the author, a geologist at Barstow College, Barstow, Calif., and his friend Ruben Minjarez climbed the Salathe Wall on the steep southwest face of El Capitan, overlooking Yosemite Valley, Calif. How El Capitan was formed; Two types of joints that give Half Dome its characteristic form; Effect of glaciers on the Tuolumne Meadows; Glacial imprints on other parts of Yosemite; Thoughts on the climb.

Presents an interview with motion picture film script story editor Christopher Lockhart in Hollywood, California. Lockhart discusses his duties as a story editor and his typical work day, what he loves to find in a screenplay, and what he thinks about the number of script doctor programs and contests available to authors. INSET: The Christopher Lockharat File.

Presents products and books pertaining to astronomy. 1/10,000 scale models of the asteroids Toutatis and Castalia offered by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Design Cast Studios; Starsplitter Tube from Starsplitter Instruments; `Black Holes,' a video from ARK Media Group; Contents of the book `Looking for Earths: The Race to Find New Solar Systems,' by Alan Boss.

The article discusses the trends of the train industry in California with an estimated loss of 20 billion dollars. Economists have forced train operators to reduce funding for popular services and public transportation affecting freight railroads' passenger and commuter operations. Bill Bronte, chief of the California Department of Transportation, stresses the state's budget crisis on public transportation including Caltrain and Amtrak National Railroad Corp.

Gives an account of amateur astronomer Tom Dobbins' visit to Lick Observatory from August 7 to 13, 1995. Details of visit.