Interesting Stuff Thread

Morag

They don't publish images of women, at all.

MagicMarker

Not atheism related, but interesting none the less.

What an amazing transformation!!

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-face-transplant-20110510,0,2611226.story

Science ftw.

MagicMarker

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/04may_epic/

NASA Announces Results of Epic Space-Time Experiment

May 4, 2011: Einstein was right again. There is a space-time vortex around Earth, and its shape precisely matches the predictions of Einstein's theory of gravity.

Researchers confirmed these points at a press conference today at NASA headquarters where they announced the long-awaited results of Gravity Probe B (GP-B).

"The space-time around Earth appears to be distorted just as general relativity predicts," says Stanford University physicist Francis Everitt, principal investigator of the Gravity Probe B mission.

"This is an epic result," adds Clifford Will of Washington University in St. Louis. An expert in Einstein's theories, Will chairs an independent panel of the National Research Council set up by NASA in 1998 to monitor and review the results of Gravity Probe B. "One day," he predicts, "this will be written up in textbooks as one of the classic experiments in the history of physics."

Time and space, according to Einstein's theories of relativity, are woven together, forming a four-dimensional fabric called "space-time." The mass of Earth dimples this fabric, much like a heavy person sitting in the middle of a trampoline. Gravity, says Einstein, is simply the motion of objects following the curvaceous lines of the dimple.

If Earth were stationary, that would be the end of the story. But Earth is not stationary. Our planet spins, and the spin should twist the dimple, slightly, pulling it around into a 4-dimensional swirl. This is what GP-B went to space in 2004 to check.

The idea behind the experiment is simple:

Put a spinning gyroscope into orbit around the Earth, with the spin axis pointed toward some distant star as a fixed reference point. Free from external forces, the gyroscope's axis should continue pointing at the star--forever. But if space is twisted, the direction of the gyroscope's axis should drift over time. By noting this change in direction relative to the star, the twists of space-time could be measured.

In practice, the experiment is tremendously difficult.
GP-B (gyro, 200px)
One of the super-spherical gyroscopes of Gravity Probe B. [more]

The four gyroscopes in GP-B are the most perfect spheres ever made by humans. These ping pong-sized balls of fused quartz and silicon are 1.5 inches across and never vary from a perfect sphere by more than 40 atomic layers. If the gyroscopes weren't so spherical, their spin axes would wobble even without the effects of relativity.

According to calculations, the twisted space-time around Earth should cause the axes of the gyros to drift merely 0.041 arcseconds over a year. An arcsecond is 1/3600th of a degree. To measure this angle reasonably well, GP-B needed a fantastic precision of 0.0005 arcseconds. It's like measuring the thickness of a sheet of paper held edge-on 100 miles away.

"GP-B researchers had to invent whole new technologies to make this possible," notes Will.

They developed a "drag free" satellite that could brush against the outer layers of Earth's atmosphere without disturbing the gyros. They figured out how to keep Earth's magnetic field from penetrating the spacecraft. And they created a device to measure the spin of a gyro--without touching the gyro. More information about these technologies may be found in the Science@NASA story "A Pocket of Near-Perfection."

Pulling off the experiment was an exceptional challenge. But after a year of data-taking and nearly five years of analysis, the GP-B scientists appear to have done it.

"We measured a geodetic precession of 6.600 plus or minus 0.017 arcseconds and a frame dragging effect of 0.039 plus or minus 0.007 arcseconds," says Everitt.

For readers who are not experts in relativity: Geodetic precession is the amount of wobble caused by the static mass of the Earth (the dimple in spacetime) and the frame dragging effect is the amount of wobble caused by the spin of the Earth (the twist in spacetime). Both values are in precise accord with Einstein's predictions.

"In the opinion of the committee that I chair, this effort was truly heroic. We were just blown away," says Will.
GP-B (black hole, 200px)
An artist's concept of twisted spacetime around a black hole. Credit: Joe Bergeron of Sky & Telescope magazine.

The results of Gravity Probe B give physicists renewed confidence that the strange predictions of Einstein's theory are indeed correct, and that these predictions may be applied elsewhere. The type of spacetime vortex that exists around Earth is duplicated and magnified elsewhere in the cosmos--around massive neutron stars, black holes, and active galactic nuclei.

"If you tried to spin a gyroscope in the severely twisted space-time around a black hole," says Will, "it wouldn't just gently precess by a fraction of a degree. It would wobble crazily and possibly even flip over."

In binary black hole systems--that is, where one black hole orbits another black hole--the black holes themselves are spinning and thus behave like gyroscopes. Imagine a system of orbiting, spinning, wobbling, flipping black holes! That's the sort of thing general relativity predicts and which GP-B tells us can really be true.

The scientific legacy of GP-B isn't limited to general relativity. The project also touched the lives of hundreds of young scientists:

"Because it was based at a university many students were able to work on the project," says Everitt. "More than 86 PhD theses at Stanford plus 14 more at other Universities were granted to students working on GP-B. Several hundred undergraduates and 55 high-school students also participated, including astronaut Sally Ride and eventual Nobel Laureate Eric Cornell."

NASA funding for Gravity Probe B began in the fall of 1963. That means Everitt and some colleagues have been planning, promoting, building, operating, and analyzing data from the experiment for more than 47 years—truly, an epic effort.

What's next?

Everitt recalls some advice given to him by his thesis advisor and Nobel Laureate Patrick M.S. Blackett: "If you can't think of what physics to do next, invent some new technology, and it will lead to new physics."

"Well," says Everitt, "we invented 13 new technologies for Gravity Probe B. Who knows where they will take us?"

This epic might just be getting started, after all….

sink

MagicMarker wrote: »

Not atheism related, but interesting none the less.

What an amazing transformation!!

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-face-transplant-20110510,0,2611226.story

Science ftw.

To relate it further to atheism the patient received his injuries while painting a Church and then goes on to say he is in Gods hands. :rolleyes:

Turtwig

sink wrote: »

To relate it further to athleticism the patient received his injuries while painting a Church and then goes on to say he is in Gods hands. :rolleyes:

Athleticism??

sink

Malty_T wrote: »

Athleticism??

Oops

God damn iPhone autocorrect :shakes fist:

CiaranMT

The Size Of Everything

Mind-boggling.

Turtwig

CiaranMT wrote: »

The Size Of 17% of Everything.

Mind-boggling.

FYP:D

CiaranMT

Malty_T wrote: »

FYP:D

I don't follow

Turtwig

CiaranMT wrote: »

I don't follow

Oh well basically we probably can only observe 17% of the known matter that makes up the universe.:)

CiaranMT

Malty_T wrote: »

Oh well basically we probably can only observe 17% of the known matter that makes up the universe.:)

A-ha!

Galvasean

uncleoswald wrote: »

http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2011/05/09/removing-women-from-situation-room-photo/

Woah, that's taking the concept of 'history denying' to a whole new level!

liamw

CiaranMT wrote: »

The Size Of Everything

Mind-boggling.

How come the estimated size of the universe (900YM) is larger than the observable universe (140YM)?

robindch

Psychology students track hundreds of pundits' predictions over a 16 month period. And learn that liberal pundits are much more accurate than conservative ones.

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/romenesko/130485/claim-krugman-is-top-prognosticator-cal-thomas-is-the-worst/

The Mad Hatter

Director Paul Thomas Anderson (of There Will Be Blood and Magnolia) seems to be gearing up to make a film which is absolutely not about Scientology.

According to Deadline, he’s already retooled the script, and the story focuses on [Philip Seymour] Hoffman as an L Ron Hubbard-style character who returns after a horrific tour of duty in World War Two and starts to try to rediscover who he is. Along the way, he creates a belief system that catches on with others looking for meaning in the world, including [Joaquin] Phoenix.

Source.

muppeteer

Demographics of the American non-religious.


Nothing terribly surprising apart from this little bit:

Americans with Irish ancestry make up a significant percentage of the non-religious. They account for about 12% of Americans, but about 1/3rd of all non-religious:

So we've given them red hair, a fear of the sun and a slight disposition to being an atheist.:)


Linky: http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2011/03/11/demographics-of-the-non-religious/

And the original study:http://www.americanreligionsurvey-aris.org/american_nones_the_profile_of_the_no_religion_population.html

Dades

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Director Paul Thomas Anderson (of There Will Be Blood and Magnolia) seems to be gearing up to make a film which is absolutely not about Scientology.

Would be better with Resident Evil/Event Horizon Paul WS Anderson, tbh. :pac:

Turtwig

liamw wrote: »

How come the estimated size of the universe (900YM) is larger than the observable universe (140YM)?

The universe is expanding faster than the speed of light. There are even galaxies in the observable region moving away from us faster than the speed of light.

Genghiz Cohen

Malty_T wrote: »

The universe is expanding faster than the speed of light. There are even galaxies in the observable region moving away from us faster than the speed of light.

I The Universe

liamw

Malty_T wrote: »

The universe is expanding faster than the speed of light. There are even galaxies in the observable region moving away from us faster than the speed of light.

God sure does work in mysterious ways

DeBunny

I think I heard a slight pop from inside my head when I read that.

The Mad Hatter

Malty_T wrote: »

The universe is expanding faster than the speed of light. There are even galaxies in the observable region moving away from us faster than the speed of light.

Is it a case that we're moving away from each other?

Turtwig

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Is it a case that we're moving away from each other?

Not sure what exactly you're asking here.:o

The Mad Hatter

Malty_T wrote: »

Not sure what exactly you're asking here.:o

Sorry. If one of the galaxies is moving away from us at near light speed, and we're moving away from it at near light speed (probably showing my ignorance here...), then wouldn't the total would be faster than light speed?

Coriolanus

uncleoswald wrote: »

Spot the difference?





An American Orthodox Jewish newspaper edited out the two women from the iconic photo of white house staff watching data from the Bin Laden raid. Having unenlightened views of the roles of sexes is one thing, trying to rewrite history is quite another.


http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2011/05/09/removing-women-from-situation-room-photo/

They could be in trouble. That picture was made available by the White House Press Office with the following provisos.

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, along with members of the national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House, May 1, 2011. Seated, from left, are: Brigadier General Marshall B. “Brad” Webb, Assistant Commanding General, Joint Special Operations Command; Deputy National Security Advisor Denis McDonough; Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton; and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Standing, from left, are: Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; National Security Advisor Tom Donilon; Chief of Staff Bill Daley; Tony Binken, National Security Advisor to the Vice President; Audrey Tomason Director for Counterterrorism; John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism; and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. Please note: a classified document seen in this photograph has been obscured. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)


This official White House photograph is being made available only for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photograph. The photograph may not be manipulated in any way and may not be used in commercial or political materials, advertisements, emails, products, promotions that in any way suggests approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.

amacachi

Nevore wrote: »

They could be in trouble. That picture was made available by the White House Press Office with the following provisos.

Bet nothing happens.

Coriolanus

amacachi wrote: »

Bet nothing happens.

Cause they're jews, right? :pac:

MagicMarker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imS6H1JAkGY

The Mad Hatter

MagicMarker wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imS6H1JAkGY

Carl Sagan seems to be one of those rare people who had a hugely positive impact on everyone he met. I've heard the same said of Oscar Wilde, and few others.

DeBunny

Is this the first piece of technology that might allow us to upload and download information to the brain?

http://www.ted.com/talks/ed_boyden.html

(is it Possible to embed TED talk videos?)