Exciting Stuff on Earth and in Space

Large holes of ground continue to disappear into the depths of Earth somewhere in Siberia.  There were many hypothesis behind the sudden collapse of ground - ranging from nuclear testing to the end of the world.  Check out more on iflscience!

The Mars' Rover, Curiosity, recorded a long burst of methane that lasted about 2 months.  Methane is a molecule that points to either 1)  the existence of hydrothermal systems or 2) some bacteria or alien cows farting.  It's an exciting development that may point to life on Mars.  Current life.

Curiosity, the rover, takes a selfie

Nacho Average Cheese.  The oldest piece of cheese has been found.  Using dating techniques that we will study in 2 months from now, the cheese, from 1615 BC, was discovered in clumps on mummies of Bronze Age people buried under wooden boats wrapped in cowhide.  This burial ritual created a vacuum packing effect that's better than our ziplock bag in our kitchens!  Read some more here on popscience.

I shall end off this post with a tremendous video from NASA.  NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory released time lapse videos of extreme violet, ultraviolet, and visible light.  We get to see solar flares and prominences up close and personal:

Welcome, Class of 2015

Whoa, another Earth-like planet was discovered, and some NASA scientists say it has probable life!  It is 'only' about 500 ly away from us, and its orbit is in the 'habitable' zone, a similar distance as we are away from the sun!    Check out the video below for further details.

A question was asked to me the other day - how do super massive black holes come into existence? Well, one way for a black hole to be a billion times bigger than our sun, is to merge black holes, of course!  Behold, a simulation of two merging black holes.

Oh my - some research into Einstein's equation has some scientists claiming that there was no big bang and that this universe has always existed.  Their math has the universe at a finite size, and thus an infinite age.  We will see how much traction this gets, if other scientists jump on board or find some error in their assumptions, or even their math!  Read more here at phys.org.  

The big four of Jupiter's moons were on display last month.  Take a look at this spectacular footage. Make sure you don't mistake the shadows on Jupiter for moons!  Read more at one of the more popular space blogs, Bad Astronomy. 

With so many questions in class regarding dark matter, I just wanted to post this oldie from popular science that really showcases how hard our scientists are at work trying to find dark matter.

An amazing animated GIF showcasing the powers of our current telescopes shows the pillars in monkey head nebula.  It starts with the constellations we see in the night sky, and demonstrates how far back in space/time we're able to see.  It's beautiful and really a sight to take in.  

Ok - now it's your turn to blog!  Find ONE topic and start going in depth.  Good luck!

2015 - Here we go!

Another year, another post.  This year's a little different than most with all of your applications to university due and you're wrapping up your 7/8 of your high school career.  Exams are coming up as well as a multitude of final assignments and projects.  You're probably experiencing stress as you have never felt before. I respond to you with this:

Colleges in the US and universities in Canada are turning to puppy therapy to help relax their students.  Puppies can be found in libraries and study halls throughout the university as a proven stress reliever. 

Here's an article on McGill University with their puppy room. 

Now that you're a little more relaxed, you're ready to catch up with the latest in science news! 

This professor can't get funding for his warp drive research because it's "too far out there".  It doesn't  stop David Pares though as he's willing to continue his research in his garage after a full day's work of teaching.  He's convinced of all that anecdotal evidence of veteran pilots who have traveled through serious electrical storms around the world and in the Bermuda triangle and find themselves 100 miles away from where they should be.  It's happened too often to far too many pilots in the past half decade that this man believes there's a correlation between high electrical activity and the ability to bend space.  Some physicists actually believe he's on to something.  Read more here.  

Some person wondered what would each of the planets look like if they were as close as the Moon.  Here's an animated GIF that I cannot corroborate on its authenticity but it's fun to look at nonetheless.

 A 5,500 year old fossil of an aboriginal woman found in Canada has its DNA analyzed.  It was found in BC's northern coast where many members of the indigenous First Nations currently live and apparently have lived for many years according to their history.  Their claim of living there has been verified by matching the DNA of that fossil with a living person who is now scientifically the 200x great-grandaughter.  That's a lot of generations.  Take a look! 

Remember those infographics and concept maps I assigned?  They're an increasingly important method of visually communicating information and its shown in WIRED's top 2014 science visualizations of the year.  Above what we see is a computer animation of a coronal mass ejection from the sun with the Earth in the background.  Make sure to look at the rest and make sure to read the captions. 

A mathematician has found a better way to get to Mars on less fuel.  Instead of aiming at the intended target and using extreme brakes (fuel) to arrive safely, the mathematician has shown a method of slowing down earlier at a proper speed enough to be gently pulled into orbit by the gravitational pull of the target.   It will be slower, but it's much cheaper. 

Again, I've shown versions of this before, but here's a video version that came out xmas eve with extreme font to annoyingly hammer it home that we live in a very, very, small portion of the universe.  Have fun in your last few days of holidays - I know I will, because I'm marking. 

 

Closing the door on 2014 and Diving into 2015

Curiosity, the Mars Probe, Confirms Organics on Mars
We briefly went over the biobits that were necessary for life to begin on Earth.  Similar biobits, the building blocks of life, were found by the Mars rover Curiosity.  Combine this fact with the finding that Martian soil is 2% water, methane gas has been found in the atmosphere, a huge ancient lake was found, and these organics did not come from Earth - we have more scientists scrambling to find out what is or was on Mars!  Check it out!

                                  A photo, courtesy of CBC, of Curiosity - the Rover


ET is (probably) out there - Get Ready
If you're into videos - here's a TED talk from a SETI researcher who bets that we will find life out there in the next 24 years by discussing the new tech and laws of probability.

Don't Discount Planets with Horizontal Spinning Axis
In the search for extra terrestrial life, astronomers have always been looking at planets with similar characteristics as Earth.  No tilt to small tilt was one aspect that seemed to always be a characteristic until scientists at MIT have explained that planets that is spinning on a horizontal axis similar to Uranus could support life as long as the planet was completely covered in deep ocean.   Check it out here, at phys.org!

Since we Keep Talking about Life...
You guys enjoyed the last circular evolution animated GIF - look at how embroyos develop into babies.  Feast your eyes on this one.

New Photos from Rosetta Comet Landing
At the American Geophysical Union they spent the time to discuss the newest pictures released from Philae, the probe that's currently sitting on the comet.  They will wait until the comet approaches the sun at a different angle - sometime in March or April - Philae will then be able to use the sun's energy to power up and gather/send more data.  See here for more photos.

NASA to be Overfunded in 2015
Looks like excitement is building up in the space field.  So much so that NASA got MORE money than they asked for - $364 million more for a total of $18 billion.

Working for NASA would be pretty cool. Maybe Interstellar got me.  Or maybe these NASA employees doing this lip dub got me excited...

Working towards the Xmas Deadline

I understand that many of you are working on some scholarships, other courses (yikes - multiple tests for all courses this week), and layer B; but I assure you, scientists, researchers, and rovers are all trying to hit deadlines and non-stop working.

A New Theory on the Origin of Life
We spent a few days dissecting the origin of life; how did Earth go from rocks, to life?

Jeremy England, an assistant professor at MIT, has a new theory published.  Here's an excerpt from Quanta Magazine:

"... indicates that when a group of atoms is driven by an external source of energy (like the sun or chemical fuel) and surrounded by a heat bath (like the ocean or atmosphere), it will often gradually restructure itself in order to dissipate increasingly more energy...you start with a random clump of atoms, and if you shine light on it for long enough, it should not be so surprising that you get plant..."

For further info, listen to one of his multiple talks or you can look at his published paper "Statistical Physics of Self Replication".


Rosetta Findings Add to Debate of How Water Arrived on Earth
The more comprehensive findings of the comet that Philae has landed on is yet to be released; it takes about a year for the best quality pieces to be observed, analyzed, tested and written about.  However, an interesting one has already come out and it's caused enough of a stir that it's been reported by the weathernetwork.com. One of the more popular hypothesis of the origin of our water is that it came from comets and asteroids - but this more scientific description from NASA has been written here and they've concluded that water from comets such as the one they're studying now couldn't have been the source of our water.  The water at this comet has 3 times the amount of deuterium than our Earth water.

The Importance of Writing in Science
As we are closing to the end of the course, Mr. McCumber and I will be asking for some of your feedback on the organization of the course.  I understand that it may have been writing heavy for some of you, but even post-secondary education is slowly putting some emphasis on the writing as can be seen in this article from the Atlantic.

"Scientists need to know how to write to get their work published and get grants—it's an important skill that people assume they already have [once they reach a certain level], so no one ever teaches them how to write well in these specific formats...research is king, and it's important," she said, but over the past decade universities have started to pay more attention to the "soft skills" that scientists also need."

The Difference between Skeptics and Deniers
It's important to respect everyone's opinion.  Everyone is entitled to an opinion and so here is a bit of mine:  while some of those pro creationist essays I read over the past week had well-formed arguments and fall into the 'skeptics' of Darwin's evolution, others' essays fall into the "denier" category as further defined by a blog post over at Quarks and Quasars.

"Skeptics want evidence; they seek it; they find it; then they accept it. Deniers do not want real evidence and they won’t accept any if it is brought before them.  A person who rejects an idea that is backed by scientific evidence is a denier, and they are anti-science."

Alright, so that wraps up this week's post.  Let me know what you guys think.  Let's finish the last week strong!

Trying to Improve my Curating Skills

Last post regarding evolution was the first one that really attracted much of your attention.  I have to work on what content makes it up here.  I hope this week doesn't let you down!

First up is regarding a spectacular find on unearthing neanderthals.  In class, we're currently learning about fossilization and how it has helped paint the picture of evolution and how the world used to be. Although they found this cave of 12 neanderthals last year, they're still reporting and finding new things as they continue their analysis of the quartz and chert tools.  All three types of absolute age dating has placed these neanderthals at an age of 40,000+ years.  Incredible.

Up next is a fantastic imaginary video of what human exploration will be like in the near future.  All footage is based on real photos of the planets.  This could be a reality in your lifetime!  

Wanderers - a short film by Erik Wernquist from Erik Wernquist on Vimeo.

Summer Research Prize Opportunity

McMaster university is trying to encourage students to consider astronomy as a university program by offering a new summer research prize opportunity.  Since it's new -  very few people know about it - which increases your likelihood that you will win a summer research position and $6200.  

Here are the details that I've received from Sara Cormier, the outreach coordinator (same position as Dr. Michael Reid in last week's guest lecture)  from McMaster: 

I just wanted to draw your attention to a brand new research prize for first year students offered by the Department of Physics & Astronomy at McMaster University. Current Gr. 12 students who are interested in applying to the Chemical and Physical Science I program (formally Physical Sciences I) and considering an Honours program in the Physics Department can apply.

What is it:
The prize is a paid research position in the Department of Physics & Astronomy working under the supervision of a faculty member. In the summer (2016) after their first year of university, the prizewinner will work full time for 16 weeks in a research laboratory or theoretical group. The nominal value of the prize is $6200 plus an early start on their research career!

Applications are open now and will remain open until January 31st. Students interested in applying are asked to submit an essay describing a project related to physics, astronomy or biophysics that they have been involved in, and how it has shaped their interest in physics and astronomy. Possible examples are a science fair project, culminating task, lab experiment, volunteer position, special interest, lecture or event, club or competition, co-op placement. The essay must be 500 words or less. Applicants will be judged on their written responses and entrance average. Grades submitted with their program application will be used. 

The online application website can be accessed through www.physics.mcmaster.ca and clicking on the link "Chemical and Physical Sciences Entrance Prize in Research", you can also access it directly here. I've also attached a PDF of our advertisement poster if you would like to post in your classroom.