What a lede: "Contrary to Chicken Little's warning, the sky isn't falling -- it's rising." Science writer Keay Davidson proves that an enterprising reporter can get a good "original" story from a specialized scientific journal (in this case, Journal of Geophysical Research). Davidson explains findings published by atmospheric scientist Ben Santer of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and colleagues. Their data suggest that tropopause, the boundary between the lower atmosphere (troposphere) and the rarified stratosphere, has risen by an average of 650 feet globally over the last 22 years. From further analysis, they conclude that the change is not natural, but caused by human impacts such as global warming and stratospheric ozone depletion. It is refreshing to see a science writer go beyond journals like Science and Nature in search of news. And find it. (See: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/01/07/MN174644.DTL)