APRIL 2 0 0 6 VOLUME 115 NUMBER 3 



FEATURES 



COVER STORY 



42 THE BIGGEST FISH 



Unraveling the mysteries of the whale shark 

 STEVEN G. WILSON 



48 THE WORLDS 

 BEHIND THE GLASS 



Museum dioramas create such a compelling 

 "virtual reality" that visitors can forget 

 the artifice and engage with nature itself. 

 STEPHEN CHRISTOPHER QUINN 



ON THE COVER: Whale shark 

 accompanied by pilot fish off 

 the coast of Western Australia. 

 Photograph by Gary Bell. 



54 ALASKA'S 



UNDERGROUND FRONTIER 



An observatory that looks down — not 

 up — at the planet's microbial diversity 



CHRISTINE M LOT 



