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Showing posts with the label science

Half-Million-Year-Old Structure: Rethinking Cavemen, Origins

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Wood generally doesn't last long if left out in the open. That's why finding interlocking logs near the Kalambo River is such a big deal. Well, part of the reason. They've been submerged, it that's the right word, in wet sediment. For something like a half-million years. Which makes them part of the oldest known wooden structure. Ancient Builders on the Kalambo River Luminescence Dating and Carbon 14: a Nerdish Digression Finally Finding Kalambo Falls Cavemen, Labels, and Me Lincoln Logs Long Before Lincoln This Doesn't Change Everything : But It's a Big Deal 'Friends, Romans, Hominins...' Good News, Bad News, and (Slowly) Changing Attitudes We're Learning More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (The Kalambo River structure: interlocking logs that are a half-million years old. New data leads to rethinking old assumptions about "humans".)

Any Landing You Can Radio Back From: IM-1 Odyssey

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"Any landing you can walk away from is a good one." (Gerald R. Massie, photographer, following the crash-landing of his B-17 (1944) ( from " Stayin alive — 16 favorite aviation quotes ", Dan Littmann, Air Facts (August 25, 2016) ) So far, this has been a good year for Lunar exploration. Both JAXA's SLIM and Intuitive Machines' Odysseus made good landings. Not perfect: and that's what I'll be talking about this week. Tipped, Tilted and Maybe Tripped: But Successful! The IM-1 Odysseus Mission: a "Spicy" Experience and Serendipity Odysseus: On Target and "Still Kicking" First Successful Commercial Flight, Farthest South Landing SLIM: Another Good Lunar Landing NASA News Conference: In Case You're Interested More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Two successful Lunar landings: SLIM and Odyssey. First successful commercial flight to the Moon, scouting for south polar Lunar base.)

Hearing the Universe, Touching the Stars

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A musician who's also a scientist found music in TRAPPIST-1 data. Meanwhile, 3D models help folks 'see' galaxies: and I found a Lenten connection in all that. Sonification and Switching Senses for Science TRAPPIST-1: A Planetary System With Resonance and Rhythm Scientific Sonification and the Cocktail Party Effect Tactile Perception: Making Mental Maps With 3D Models A Grain and Galaxies: Comparing the Incomparable More at A Catholic Citizen in America . Switching senses for science: sonification, 3D models of astronomical images, the cocktail party effect, and mental maps. And, briefly, a Lenten connection.

The Cabrières Biota: an Ordovician Snapshot

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When I saw "epic importance" and "fossils" in the same headline, I figured whatever'd been found would be at least somewhat out of the ordinary. I've learned to take journalistic puffery with at least a few grains of salt. But this time, the fossils really were something important: exceptionally well-preserved samples from a 470,000,000 year old biome. "Epic Importance", Fabulous Fossils, and a Calamitous Crisis Down a Rabbit Hole — — And Out again Welcome to the Cabrières Biota Lobsters Do It, Maybe Trilobites Did It Lobopodians and Other Seriously Weird Critters Cabrières Biota Fossils: What's the Big Deal? Heraclitus and Life in a Changing World Ordovician Climate and Getting a Grip Two Biota and Increasing Diversity Gradual Cooling, Occasional Meteor Showers, and an Ice Age Living in a Vast and Ancient Universe ... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Almost 400 fossils will show how life worked in a polar bio

Jezero Sediment, TOI-715 b: Headlines and Extraterrestrial Life

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Last month ended with headlines hinting that our first glimpse of extraterrestrial life was just around the corner. " Discovery Alert: A ‘Super-Earth’ in the Habitable Zone " Pat Brennan, NASA News (January 31, 2024) " Scientists More Hopeful Than Ever That Perseverance Has Already Found Life on Mars " Carly Cassella, ScienceAlert (January 24, 2024) A week later, there's the usual politics and pandemonium in the news: but no space aliens. I'm not surprised. I'm not disappointed, either. I am, however, excited about what we've found in Jezero crater, and a new world that's not quite Earth 2.0. Perseverance on Mars: Sediment and Speculation Bacteria and Mars TOI-715 b: Habitable? Maybe — Worth Studying? Definitely! Extraterrestrial Life: Bat-People and Making Sense Anyway Evidence, Logic, and — Maybe — Extraterrestrial Life Earth 2.0, Reality, and an Op-Ed 'Because Aristotle Says So'?! Belief, Preference, and God Mor

Capital Punishment: It Could be Worse

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It seems that, no matter how bad things are: they could be worse. Take Alabama's recent execution of a Mr. Smith, for example. There's been discussion of whether or not using nitrogen gas was okay, along with the ongoing capital punishment debate. But at least the State of Alabama didn't defray expenses by livecasting the execution: despite pay-per-view being a well-established part of our society. I'll be talking about capital punishment this week: along with Hammurabi's laws, the breaking wheel, and a trend that might be good news. Death Sentences: An Ancient Practice The Breaking Wheel But We've Always Done It This Way Statistics, a Little History, and Science Nitrogen Asphyxiation: Bad News, Good News Excessive Bail, Excessive Fines, Cruel and Unusual Punishment Graphs and Charts, Numbers and — Maybe — a Trend Growth Curves: Executions Go Down as Population Goes Up Acting As If Human Life Matters Responsibility and Dignity: For Everyon

Doom, Gloom, and Dystopias: But Hope is an Option

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This week I'll be talking about what's changed over the last century, what hasn't, and why I think progress isn't inevitable. On the other hand, I don't think we're doomed. That last may take explaining. Yesterday's Future O Tempora, O Mores, O Wow! Progress is Inevitable Possible "...The Good or Evil Performed by Nations ... in a Cosmopolitical View..." Science, Religion, Progress, and — Maybe — Mything the Point Truth, Facts, Science: and Hope Works in Progress ... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Blind optimism does not make sense. Neither does blind pessimism. I look at what has changed in the last century, what has not: and works in progress.)

T. Rex, or Not T. Rex, That is the Question

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Headlines about Tyrannosaurus rex, scientists, and "what we thought we knew" being wrong started showing up in my news feed last week. It's been a while since I talked about dinosaurs, and I found Nicholas R. Longrich and Evan T. Saitta's research paper: a pre-publication copy, at any rate. So this week I thought I'd talk about T. rex, Nanotyrannus, and what they'd learned. That's what I thought. Here's what I wound up with, after diving down delightfully diverse rabbit holes: Tyrannosaurus, Nanotyrannus: New Study, Old Debate T. Rex, Tyrant King Lizard; something else; and King Kong Trix the Tyrannosaur Takes a Walk 'What is Wrong With This Picture?' A Hodgepodge of Oddments A Skull, a Caption, and As-Yet-Unsolved Puzzles Best Supporting Monster? T. Hawkins, H. P. Lovecraft: and a Little Science Great Western Seaway: From Hadrosaurs to Prairie Chickens "...There is a Great Deal We Do Not Know...." Growth Rates

Colliding Planets Near ASASSN-21qj: Maybe

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They were looking for supernovae. What they found may become a double planet, like the Earth-Moon system, once it cools down. Or a planet with a giant moon, again like the Earth-Moon system. Then again, an oddly-uneven dusty disk may be orbiting this young, very "Sun-like" star. Either way, ASASSN-2qj is much more interesting than it was a few years back. strong>Barycenters and Binaries: Briefly Rabbit Holes and an ‘Assassin Star’ Professional Scientists, Amateur Astronomers, Teamwork and Twitter/X "...So Slow Smart" ASASSN-21qj: Once Obscure, Now Intriguing A Very Sun-Like Star Uncertainty and Science '...A Star to Steer By...' More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Scientists looking for supernovae noticed a very sunlike star that flared in infrared and then dimmed. It may be evidence of a planetary collision.)

Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A: Cool Images of Hot Gas

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That's more than just a pretty picture. Well, part of a pretty picture. It's our latest look at the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant. Webb's high-resolution cameras are showing details that scientists have never seen before.... ...That's what I started talking about this week. But the Cassiopeia A supernova's underwhelming appearance, or maybe non-appearance, reminded me of famines, coffeehouses, and other malign menaces. So here's what I had, Friday afternoon: Spotting an Invisible Supernova, Coffeehouses, — [disconnecting] [reconnecting] — Flamsteed's Star, and Another Supernova Four Ways Stars Explode: a NASA/JPL (very) Short Video Cassiopeia A: Might have been a FELT Transposing the Invisible: Infrared Astronomy Cosmic Scale and a 15-inch Telescope "...To Follow Knowledge like a Sinking Star...." "On to God!" — "Truth Cannot Contradict Truth" More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Latest NIRCam image from

Medieval Monkish Medicine: Scientific Before Science was a Thing

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Looks like word is getting around, among historians at any rate, that the "Dark Ages" weren't an abyss of superstition and ignorance. I see that as good news, and recommend reading the rest of Meg Leja's Smithsonian Magazine article. I've highlighted parts of this excerpt, and talked (briefly, for me) about the medical angle of post-Roman Europe under Respecting Ancient Authorities: Above and Beyond the Call of Reason .... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (The Medieval roots of modern medicine: excerpt from a Smithsonian Magazine article, how I see monastic medicine and the Renaissance.)

Sednoids and the Mysterious Missing Planet X

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As I've said before, this isn't the world I grew up in. Back then, the Solar System had nine planets, assorted moons, and asteroids. Plus, of course, the sun. Now we've got planets, dwarf planets, minor planets, natural satellites, trans-Neptunian objects, plutoids, comets, centaurs, and small Solar System bodies. Just to keep things interesting, definitions for the new labels overlap. Some labels, like plutoids, didn't catch on; and it all keeps changing as we collect more data. This week I'll be talking about sednoids, another subset of trans-Neptunian object; 1 along with whatever else comes to mind. "All the News That's Fit to Print" — and Some That Isn't 'COMET PILLS! GAS MASKS!! GET 'EM WHILE YOU CAN!!!' Sedna, Sednoids, and Orbits: Traces of a Missing World? Beyond the Kuiper Cliff: An Unexpected Void and Wandering Worlds Charting the Borderlands of Sol Out of the Ecliptic, Beyond the Kuiper Belt To be Continued

Double Jupiters, a JuMBO Puzzle; Antimatter Falls Down

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Every time we develop new tech for studying this universe, we find something new. New to us, that is. This week, I'll be talking about unexpected Jupiter-size objects in the Orion Nebula, and why scientists at CERN dropped a few hundred antihydrogen atoms. Baffling Binaries, Planetary Problem: JuMBOs in Orion Low Expectations, a Pleasant Surprise A Planet by Any Other Name JuMBOs and Questions Antimatter, Gravity, the Universe: and an Experiment at CERN A Quick Look at Antimatter, From Hicks to Dirac, and Weirdness (Most) Antihydrogen Atoms Fell Down Mystery of the Missing Antimatter 'Where's the Antimatter?' — Broadening the Search Ptolemy, C. S. Lewis, the Universe, and Assumptions "...Its Inhabitants Like Grasshoppers...." More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Unexpected Jupiter-size binaries in the Trapezium Cluster, antimatter and gravity experiment at CERN. New data, new puzzles.)

Unidentified Phenomena, Being Human, Taking Reality As-Is

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NASA's "UAP Independent Study Team Report" used the words stigma, destigmatize, or destigmatizing about a dozen times. At 31 mostly-text pages, that works out to one of those words every two and a half pages. That's nowhere near the frequency I've seen for terms like "communist threat" or "climate change" in fevered philippics, but it was enough to get my attention. Particularly since I'm both a nerd and a convert to Catholicism. That's given me opportunities for experiencing scorn and/or bemused puzzlement: along the lines of 'how can you believe in that stuff'; or 'well, I don't believe in...'. Oh, boy. Before getting around to perceived existential threats and B movie space monsters, I'd better talk about "believe in". More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (UAPs and UFOs. Beliefs, assumptions, and science fiction movies of the 1950s. Extraterrestrial intelligence as a perceived exis

Silly Headlines and Space Aliens, Serious Science and UAPs

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Monday, I wondered what I was going to write about this week. Then I read that scientists found methane and carbon dioxide in a not-really-Earth-like planet's atmosphere — and saw a silly headline or two.... ...Anyway, K2-18's atmosphere is mostly on hold for now. Instead, I'll talk about (alleged) space alien bodies, Nazca Lines and (human) mummies. And I'll take a look at NASA's UAP report. A quick look. It's been one of those weeks. Nice Weather, a Drought, and Me "Two mummified alien corpses..." ??? "Experts", Extraterrestrials, and Exclamation Marks "Nazca Mummies" and — — The Skull of Doom Speculation and the Nazca Lines K2-18b: Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and — Plankton?! Existing UAP Reports: Acknowledging Possibilities Attitudes Questions More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (My take on science news this week: allegedly alien mummies, K2-18b and organic gasses, a NASA UAP report. Unwarranted ass

Yellowstone: Geysers, Quakes and, Eventually, a Supereruption

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I started writing about Yellowstone, hazards, and science a few weeks ago. Then life happened — there's a link near the end of this post — something more timely came up, and now I'm back with a look at the area's past, present and future. Travelers' Tales Yellowstone: Hydrothermal and Other Hazards Explosions and Boardwalks Earthquake Lake and a 1959 Landslide Looking Ahead Supereruptions: and a Film Clip More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Yellowstone history, tall tales, science, hazards and disasters: one recent, another possible. How geysers work, what's ahead: and a short disaster film clip.)

Another Prescription SNAFU / Yellowstone: USGS Video

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I'll be talking, briefly, about my most recent effort to both follow the rules and get a needed prescription. (Spoiler alert: I finally got the stuff, and have maybe three weeks before wading into this mess again.) But first, an even briefer look at something I'd much rather have been talking about. Yellowstone: Earthquakes Happen Prescribed Medications, Controlled Substances, and Me It Could be Worse Postscript: Success! Until Next Month More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (My monthly efforts to get a prescribed medication were more than usually frustrating this time. I talk a little about that, and less about Yellowstone geology.)

Frog and Spider are Friends

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I've decided to list this post in the "Science News" category, although it doesn’t feature a current news item. That's because some of the tarantula-and-frog research has been news, and current spiders-have-pet-frogs videos remind me of human interest stories, back when print-format newspapers were more common. It's been an interesting week. “ Update: Air Conditioner Fixed 🙂 ” (August 3, 2023) “ Power Failure Last Week, Now Equipment Failure ” (August 2, 2023) That may, or may not, explain why this week's post is a mix of science and creature features of days gone by: Picking This Week’s Topic Big Spider, Little Frog: Helping Each Other Names, Senses and (Maybe) Mutualism Tarantula Research “SCIENCE’S DEADLIEST ACCIDENT”: “Tarantula!” (1955) “Vox Populi…” One Phrase, Two or more Viewpoints Special Effects and Speculation Harmony, Understanding and Medieval Bestiaries And the Moral of this Spider is — More at A Catholic Citizen in

Fusion Rocket Engines, SETI and Science: Seriously

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Nerd alert! This week I used words like deuterium and magnetohydrodynamics. And I may have gone into more detail that necessary about why we didn’t have fusion power generators in the 1960s. A British company's plans for test-firing a fusion rocket engine got my attention last week. I'd planned on writing about it then, but a dental procedure and household matters got in the way. So I researched and made more notes over the weekend, and when my town's power came back online late Monday afternoon: the notes weren't there any more. That's something I may talk about, sometime next week. Anyway, I re-researched, got stuck and/or distracted a couple times — I'll talk about tralphium and mindsets in a bit — and ended up with this post. Which, as it turned out, included a bit about NASA's interest in UAPs and the serious search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Sunshine, Energy and Mass: Fusion Basics Thermonuclear Weapons, History and Ideas: Ver

Good Nutrition, Radioactive Breakfast Cereal

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(Breakfast cereal: wholesome, nutritious, and normally not radioactive. Ads from ca. 1900, left; 1906, right.) I'd prefer living in an America where doctors never used kids as lab animals, and "feeble-minded" folks who were already locked up were not feared by the powers that be. But I live in a very real America. We had problems in my youth. We still do. This is not a perfect country, but on the whole I like being an American: and appreciate living in a country where we are allowed to learn about — and from — our past mistakes. This week I'm talking about the time a giant of the food industry and a prestigious university dosed kids with radioactive breakfast cereal. I am not making that up. Looking Back at Fernald State School and a "Science Club" Science and Cereal Zombies and Mutants, Radon and the Minnesota Department of Health Good News, Bad News and Flexible Ethics "A Disappointing Type of Feeling", "'This is