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To Space, Young Man.
By Ed Chen | October 9th 2009 01:31 AM | Print | E-mail
To my fellow students:

The economic depression is likely to last for some time without the opening of some new economic frontier for further exploitation.  Indeed, after this financial crisis it seems the last 15 years have been more economic redistribution rather than economic growth.  Do not get me wrong, I am not innocent of going after some of that redistribution.  And I would likely continue chasing after personal economic prosperity, even after having thought through the consequences of taking the post-ivy league path of corporate economic security, and having borne it for some short time in, because I, like every individual educated in the economic orthodoxy, believes in the power -- no sovereignty -- of free markets.
Happy Octopus Day!

Happy Octopus Day!

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)



Today begins the Third Annual International Cephalopod Awareness Days! Naturally, since it is the eighth of the month, we are honoring octopods today. This provides the perfect opening for my favorite cephalo-rant: the etymologically correct plural of octopus.
The Twentieth Century

The Twentieth Century

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Perhaps the more wrenching by-product of the scientific revolution has been to render untenable many of our most cherished and most comforting beliefs. The tidy anthropocentric proscenium of our own ancestors has been replaced by a cold, immense, indifferent Universe in which humans are relegated to obscurity. But I see the emergence in our consciousness of a Universe of a magnificence, an intricate, elegant order far beyond anything our ancestors imagined. And if much about the Universe can be understood in terms of a few simple laws of Nature, those wishing to believe in God can certainly ascribe those beautiful laws to Reason underpinning all of Nature.
Heart Regeneration A Step Closer

Heart Regeneration A Step Closer

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Calcium is crucial for heart regeneration by cardiac stem cells following cardiovascular problems say scientists in an article to be published in the journal Circulation Research this 9th of October. The study also identifies the body molecules controlling calcium levels in the stem cells and reveals, how their manipulation, can lead to the formation of new cardiac tissue. The work, that follows the recent surprising discovery of stem cells within the heart, can have important implications in the regenerative medicine of this organ in patients with cardiovascular diseases.
I now own half a satellite

I now own half a satellite

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

I now own half a satellite... and in a way, you do to.  The Scientific Blogging "Project Calliope" satellite order has been placed!  Thanks to Hank's SB contribution, we have the 'science' half covered.  The other half of the satellite is up to the music community, and I'll let you know as soon as that's signed, sealed and delivered.

Half is crucial.  WIth half, we are 'go' for construction.  With our first half payment, we get:
  1. the actual hardware
  2. all the detailed tech specs
  3. a slot on the launch schedule
H1N1 Swine Flu : How it feels to have the dreaded

H1N1 Swine Flu : How it feels to have the dreaded "Pandemic Flu". Don't Panic.

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

It's been all over the news for so long and so hyped that people expect it to be 1918-1919 all over again.  Well I reckon that I have that pandemic flu.  Let me tell you all you need to know about this flu.  How bad is it? How easy is it to catch it?  How long has it taken for me to get over it? How does it feel to have it? (Some of you will ask how do I know I have that flu?)

I am not a medical doctor, if you feel sick follow the guidelines given by the Centers for Disease Control, and if you feel really sick report to an emergency room.  Though honestly I don't think you'll need to. because...
Asking too many questions

Asking too many questions

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Suppose that when you started your car today, it displayed a question on the dashboard: “Should I advance the timing by 4 degrees?” The car wouldn’t go until you responded. What would you think?

What if you were having a house built, and the builder sent you a text message: “Should we put your floor joists 16 inches on center? I need an answer immediately, or my workers are going to another job.” Would you know how to respond, without asking any questions back and risking losing the day?

How about if you tried to visit a web site, and your browser responded with a popup that said, “There’s a problem with the site’s certificate. Should I accept it anyway?”

Dinosaurian Physiology Inherited By Birds? Archaeopteryx Imaging Study Says Rapid Bone Growth Not Necessary For Flight

Dinosaurian Physiology Inherited By Birds? Archaeopteryx Imaging Study Says Rapid Bone Growth Not Necessary For Flight

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Archaeopteryx (Urvogel ) is the most primitive bird yet discovered.   Found in the 1860's, it has since been dated  to 150 million years ago but new microscopic imaging of its bone structure says this ancient critter grew less like what we think of as birds and more like dinosaurs.

The bones of more recent bird fossils like Confuciusornis from the Yixian Formation in China which are more recent than Archaeopteryx demonstrate rapid growth more similar to that of modern birds, which means rapid bone growth, considered a prerequisite for flight, was not necessary for taking to the air.
An Evolutionary Root For 'Goo Goo' And 'Ga Ga' In Babies?

An Evolutionary Root For 'Goo Goo' And 'Ga Ga' In Babies?

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Researchers studying Rhesus Macaque mothers and writing on their results in Current Biology have determined that interactions of macaque mothers with their infants have a lot of similarity to human mothers in the first month of a newborn's life.

"What does a mother or father do when looking at their own baby?" asks Pier Francesco Ferrari of the Università di Parma in Italy. "They smile at them and exaggerate their gestures, modify their voice pitch—the so-called "motherese"—and kiss them. What we found in mother macaques is very similar: they exaggerate their gestures, "kiss" their baby, and have sustained mutual gaze."
Discrimination Will Never Not Happen But 'Gender Fatigue' Leads To Diminishing Returns

Discrimination Will Never Not Happen But 'Gender Fatigue' Leads To Diminishing Returns

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

No country is immune from gender discrimination, says the World Economic Forum's Gender Gap Report, and most companies feel like they are gender neutral and perhaps are - but because people and perceptions are different it's dificult to say what is discrimination and what is sensitivity or even militancy.

It's not to say there aren't disparities - "No country in the world has yet managed to eliminate the gender gap"  they write in the report.   But it may be more looking for causation in the correlation than entrenche discrimination. 
Four-Fin, Spiny-Skin--Strange Squid off of Grand Cay-min!

Four-Fin, Spiny-Skin--Strange Squid off of Grand Cay-min!

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

Chiroteuthids (ky-ro-tooth-ids) are crazy weird squid; their most notable feature is having two sets of fins on the "tail end" of their mantles as paralarvae. To me, this is nearly as bizarre as imagining a whole family of mammals in which babies are born with two sets of hind legs. I imagine cranchiid (cran-kid) squid shouting "hey, four-fins!" as they pass a chiroteuthid in the depths.

(Only technically they aren't four fins:
Peak Oil - It's Still Coming, It May Be Delayed Though

Peak Oil - It's Still Coming, It May Be Delayed Though

Oct 08 2009 | comment(s)

If you're a child of the 1970s you remember peak oil - it was a book that claimed by 1992 we were going to reach maximum capacity and then it would gradually become more scarce.   If you're a fan of science fiction, it meant a world where oil was worth more than gold and we put machine guns on cars to fight over stuff.  More likely, we would come up with an alternative, but not before government lobbyists got subsidies for things we know won't work.

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

Moon Crash

Moon Crash

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

Want a chance to see the water on the moon in real life? Wake up early Friday morning (if you live in the Americas), and get out your telescope.

NASA’s Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) is being crashed into the moon, on purpose, along with the now empty 2.2-ton rocket that launched it this past June. The rocket will crash first, around 7:31am EDT, into the crater Cabeus in the south polar region. It should produce a plume of debris over 6 miles high. That plume is what you might be able to see with your telescope.
To The Moon, ALICE - And Maybe Make Fuel On Mars, Too

To The Moon, ALICE - And Maybe Make Fuel On Mars, Too

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

A new type of rocket propellant made from a mixture of water and nanoscale aluminum powder could be manufactured on the moon or Mars or any place remnant ice may exist, say researchers from NASA, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Purdue and Pennsylvania State University who believe their aluminum-ice, or ALICE, propellant could be used to launch rockets into orbit from Earth as a pit stop for long-distance space missions.  Since it's greener than current propellants it will also be acceptable to those of you concerned about universal global warming(1).
Blog Carnivals Galore

Blog Carnivals Galore

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

My real life has swamped my online one recently, and so I failed to note that the 16th Carnival of Evolution is up at the excellent blog Pleiotropy. Bjørn has managed to collect 50,228 words of blogging about evolution, covering the human brain, man-eating birds, child-eating eagles, sperm wars, evolving views on selfish genes, true sexual reproduction for same-sex couples, and much more.
Above Average Issue of Nature

Above Average Issue of Nature

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

Last week it was Science, with a swath of Ardipithecus papers. This week Nature has an above-average issue. I can't vouch for the quality of the papers (since I havent' finished them yet), but these look interesting (subscription required, unfortunately):

- Craig Venter and some distinguished colleagued offer "An agenda for personalized medicine.".
Silvio on the Wrong Side of the Dildo

Silvio on the Wrong Side of the Dildo

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

This just in: Berlusconi is not above the law. In a reassuring sentence the judges of the Italian "Consulta" of the constitutional court have ruled today that the "Lodo Alfano", a law strongly wanted by Berlusconi himself, is in conflict with the Italian Constitution where the latter says that citizens are equal in their rights and for the Law. 
Setting the (Periodic) Table - For Hanna*

Setting the (Periodic) Table - For Hanna*

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

The periodic table has been covered in myriad ways on this site1, but no one has addressed the re-setting of the venerable Table. I was reminded of this slightly consternating activity this morning while reading Technology Review's arXiv physics blog on a new graphical representation of the Periodic Table.2

I like the flat, 2D familiar table. Nostalgia and comfort likely play a role in that. So I don't know how I feel about the newly shaped tables out there.
There Oughta Be A Law. And, Actually, There Is One

There Oughta Be A Law. And, Actually, There Is One

Oct 07 2009 | comment(s)

They say the world is changing. Let’s check that out empirically.

We might run a couple of sample surveys, to see how people’s behaviors or attitudes change between the two questionnaire mailings.  A colleague, however, suggests panel sampling.