Tag Archives: Science

Another General Posting

The frequent eye strain headaches have made the desire to sit and compose blog posts rather rare of late. After spending 8 hours at the computer for my day job I am disinclined to spend much more at home. Even bumping up the font only helps so much. However on Wednesday I had my annual eye exam, discovered that the axis of my astigmatism had shifted quite a bit. So while my visual acuity is about the same, I still require new lens. They have been ordered, 7-10 days which is like something from the last century, and when I get them I should be back to my old happy self.

Having just finished the Book of Job, I’m about halfway through my reading of the Old Testament. God has finished making he transition to a spirit above and encompassing the world, quite a change from the wrestling guy in Genesis or the dude who appeared, wrapped in smoke and flame like a Balrog, above magic boxes. I’m not sure if I will finish this read, it has been sucking up a lot of my time and I really shouldn’t waste too much.

Today, 5/25/12, the Dragon spacecraft docked with the International Space station, opening a new era for spaceflight. Space X is going where only governments have gone before, and while I cheer this achievement should we consider where other corporations might go if given the chance? Is this is herald of a bright off-world future or the sign that the cyberpunks might have been right?

Paging Dr. McCoy, your hypo is ready.  Speaking as someone who despises the needle, I can’t even watch one on the movie screen, I truly cheer this invention.

The three day weekend is nearly upon us. I have plans, but hardly anything extravagant. Sadly I will not be going to BayCon this year. It was a choice between BayCon and WorldCon and in that contest WorldCon always wins. So tonight will be D&D, where I am a player. We’re in the middle of a fight, outnumber and fighting under hampered conditions. So far the gamemaster has been holding back, but we’ll see if this is the last game for my Arabic Paladin, Alladin. Tomorrow and Sunday will be board and card gaming with friends and my sweetie-wife, must resist buying the Game of Thrones board game, and on Monday I will be going toDisneyland. Sadly by myself, my dear friend who was going to go is under the weather health wise and that has caused quite a bit of financial stress. I already had paid for my ticket, so alone I go. I shall have fun in his honor.

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Back from Vegas

Had a really good time in Sin City doing very little sinning. (Mainly eating too much and I gambled away $2) I’ll post more when I am not so tired.
After the cut is a cool video of a rocket launch. It looks like every other rocker launch but stay with it until about 1:53 and experience the cool
Continue reading →

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Our science-fictional world.

Two weeks ago researchers UC Berkley reported a breakthrough in understanding human speech, a breakthrough that could someday shatter many of our social conventions. The scientists, studying the patterns with varies subjects’ brains, were able to determine what words the subjects hearing by the brain’s activity alone. It is a small step from there to deciphering the unspoken words thought by a person. The researchers are developing this technology to medically help people with severe brain injury and disease. We could even learn just what is going on in a person who is in a persistent coma state, breaking through to these terribly isolated people. Continue reading →

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An Interesting Question

We are rapidly approaching an interesting time in human history, the moment when our phonotypical nature becomes utterly under our control. Right now we have limited ability to alter our appearance. We can dye our hair, insert inert implants to alter our shape, to an extent, suction away fat cells, and it a limited degree we can even dye our skin, altering the appearance of our pigmentation. This is as crude as the amputations and drugs used by the ship board doctors of the 18th century compared to what I think is coming in our near future. A future so near that I expect to survive to see it. The moment when we have enough genetic knowledge and control that switching on and off with ease and control will become available to the local physician and practiced upon the general population. Continue reading →

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Global Warming and particle physics

Late year I blogged about the habit of some AGW supporters using the term denier to denigrate their opponents. In that post I referred to the GCR hypothesis for global climate changed. In a nutshell it runs like this, GCR (Galactic Cosmic Rays)  when present increase cloud formation, which reflects sunlight back into space before it get to earth, and this cools the planet. When GCR decrease, cloud formation drops and the Earth warms as more sunlight reaches the surface. The Solar magnetic field determines the amount of GCR reaching the Earth, so the solar magnetic field is a principle driver of climate changes on the planet.

The key here is cloud formation, a process not very well understood as the science not stands. The GCR theory is an outlier for cloud formation theory and as such the GCR aspect of global climate changes have been discounted by climatologist in general. (Note: I am not accusing people is hiding or ignoring evidence, some idea takes awhile to become accepted, provided the fact support them and they are falsifiable. To with look at the history of continental drift, once considered a crackpot idea.)

Well the GCR hypothesis for cloud formation has leapt over a major hurdle. The fine physicists at CERN have established with particle accelerators that GCR do play a major part in cloud formation. As current climate models all ignore GCR as a factor in cloud formation, and cloud formation is a critical element of climate modeling, the current models have the be redone. It is possible, perhaps even likely, that all of the climate change we have seen so far is due to increased GCR reaching the Earth as the solar cycle varies.

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Really Interesting Medical News

Scientists have developed a cancer test that can detect free-floating cancer cells in the blood stream. It is sensitive enough to detect individual cancer cells at a ratio of one to one billion.

This is really incredible stuff people. The yahoo article is basic, but once this gets refined and mass produced it will dramatically effect cancer survival rates in my untrained opinion.

I am getting to the age where I think about such things much more often than I used to and news likes this brightens my day.

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There was a Dragon in the sky today!

Earlier today, December 8th 2010, SpaceX successfully launched their Dragon space capsule into orbit. After two orbits, apparently without and flaws, they de-orbited the craft and brought it down for a soft landing in the pacific ocean.

I think this is the first time a private enterprise spacecraft has flown to orbit and back. SpaceX, and companies like SpaceX, (such as Xcor) are the pioneers of a bold new tomorrow.

I salute them and sheer their victory today!

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