Free Republic 2nd Qtr 2024 Fundraising Target: $81,000 Receipts & Pledges to-date: $25,957
32%  
Woo hoo!! And we're now over 32%!! Thank you all very much!! God bless.

Science (General/Chat)

Brevity: Headers | « Text »
  • Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Cluster and Starforming Region Westerlund 2

    04/25/2015 3:55:15 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 7 replies
    NASA ^ | April 25, 2015 | (see photo credit)
    Explanation: Located 20,000 light-years away in the constellation Carina, the young cluster and starforming region Westerlund 2 fills this cosmic scene. Captured with Hubble's cameras in near-infrared and visible light, the stunning image is a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope on April 24, 1990. The cluster's dense concentration of luminous, massive stars is about 10 light-years across. Strong winds and radiation from those massive young stars have sculpted and shaped the region's gas and dust, into starforming pillars that point back to the central cluster. Red dots surrounding the bright stars are...
  • Epic Fail: Seven Big Failed Environmentalist Predictions

    04/25/2015 12:52:22 PM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 39 replies
    The Federalist ^ | 04/24/2015 | Robert Tracinski
    I recently discussed what it would take to prove that global warming is actually occurring, that it is caused by humans, and that it will be catastrophic. But that’s not the full picture. To understand why so many of us are so skeptical about global warming, you have to understand the environmentalists’ larger track record: a long series of failed predictions and bogus prognostications of doom. It has been 45 years now since the first Earth Day. You would think that in this time frame, given the urgency with which we were told we had to confront the supposed...
  • The Holocaust as a Green Nazi Sacrifice

    04/25/2015 10:41:28 AM PDT · by Olympiad Fisherman · 14 replies
    American Thinker ^ | 4-25-2015 | Mark Musser
    In truth, National Socialism was an ancient fertility cult brought up to date under the scientific guise of eugenics where people were to make sacrifices and/or be sacrificed for the fecundity of nature. Fertility, sacrifice, and power were all virtually worshiped by the National Socialists in one form or another, no matter how scientific or secular many of its adherents would try to couch their ideology. The great desire of National Socialism was to become fertile and powerful through sacrificial eugenic measures ...
  • Mysterious X-37B Military Space Plane to Fly Again Next Month

    04/25/2015 6:14:55 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 19 replies
    space.com ^ | Mike Wall,
    "The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) and the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (AFRCO) are investigating an experimental propulsion system on the X-37B on Mission 4," Capt. Chris Hoyler, an Air Force spokesman, told Space.com via email. "AFRCO will also host a number of advance materials onboard the X-37B for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to study the durability of various materials in the space environment," Hoyler added ... The Air Force owns two X-37B space planes, both of which were built by Boeing's Phantom Works division. The solar-powered spacecraft are about...
  • Climate models are WRONG: Global warming has slowed - recent changes down to ‘natural variability'

    04/25/2015 5:14:58 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 13 replies
    Daily Mail ^ | 04/23/2015 | By ELLIE ZOLFAGHARIFARD
    * Duke University study looked at 1,000 years of temperature records * It compared it to the most severe emissions scenarios by the IPCC * Found that natural variability can slow or speed the rate of warming * These 'climate wiggles' were not properly accounted for in IPCC report Global warming hasn't happened as fast as expected, according to a new study based on 1,000 years of temperature records. The research claims that natural variability in surface temperatures over the course of a decade can account for increases and dips in warming rates. But it adds that these so-called 'climate...
  • Is diet – rather than exercise – the key to losing weight? Cambridge health experts enter the debate

    04/25/2015 5:10:52 AM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 38 replies
    Cambridge News ^ | 04/23/2015 | Florence Snead
    f you haven't made it to the gym this week then don't fret – it turns out exercise might not be as important as we all think. That's the stance being taken in a new study which has suggested it is in fact diet – and not exercise – that is the key to tackling obesity. Research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, has claimed poor diet now generates more disease than physical inactivity, alcohol and smoking combined. So should we all just kick back on the sofa with a snack – as long as we stick to...
  • Did Halley's Comet Convert the Irish to Christianity?

    04/25/2015 3:57:38 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 18 replies
    Smithsonian (video) ^ | circa 2014 | unattributed
  • 7.9 magnitude earthquake rattles Nepal 50 miles from capital, Kathmandu

    04/25/2015 12:40:38 AM PDT · by eastforker · 12 replies
    CNN ^ | 4/25/2015 | Ben Brumfield
    A 7.9 magnitude earthquake has struck Nepal less than 50 miles from the capital, Kathmandu, the U.S. Geological Survey said Saturday. It occurred at a depth of less than two miles, which is considered shallow. The USGS previously rated the temblor at 7.5 magnitude but later upgraded the strength.
  • NASA May Have Accidentally Created a Warp Field (MAY)

    04/24/2015 10:35:10 PM PDT · by Dallas59 · 52 replies
    mysteriousuniverse.org ^ | 4/24/2015 | mysteriousuniverse.org
    “Star Trek” introduced the world outside of rocket science circles to the concept of warp drive – the propulsion system that allowed the starship Enterprise to travel faster than the speed of light. Warp speed is the holy grail that would let us explore the universe safely surrounded and protected by a space-distorting warp field. After watching the SpaceX rocket recently just try to land on a platform, you’d think this ability is years if not decades away. Yet the buzz on space websites is that NASA may have accidentally discovered a way to create a warp field. Wait, what?...
  • Tulane scientists say tiny 'pocket shark' reveals secrets in depths of Gulf of Mexico

    04/24/2015 6:12:53 PM PDT · by BBell · 27 replies
    NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune ^ | 4/24/15 | Benjamin Alexander-Bloch
    A rare, tiny "pocket shark" found about 190 miles off the Louisiana coast is only the second of its kind ever discovered, according to Tulane University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists. The fish was caught five years ago during a Gulf of Mexico research expedition, frozen and then sent to Tulane researchers in 2013. They ultimately identified the species and compiled a study that was published this week in Zootaxa, the international journal of taxonomy. The 5 ½-inch male juvenile is unique because of the twin pockets next to its front fins. Those pockets are believed to...
  • It is a beautiful day. You are wearing an Apple Watch.

    04/24/2015 4:47:36 PM PDT · by amigatec · 69 replies
    The Verge ^ | April 24, 2015 | T.C. Sottek and Adi Robertson
    It's a beautiful day. You just got your Apple Watch™ in the mail! You take it to your living room and unbox it. Wow. It's incredible. You go through the setup process, and link it to your iPhone. You set the charging dock on your nightstand, and set an alarm. You go to sleep, and dream of floating through white clouds in a blue sky as Jony Ive narrates. Your alarm wakes you at 9:30 on Saturday — the alarm on your Apple Watch. You pick the Apple Watch up from its charging dock, and put it on your wrist....
  • Cheaper Robots, Fewer Workers (Video and Article)

    04/24/2015 1:13:50 PM PDT · by Enlightened1 · 14 replies
    NY Times ^ | 4/24/15 | Jonah M. Kessel and Taige Jensen
    China faces rising labor costs and a shortage of workers. But a government project called “replacing humans with robots” is trying to change the face of the work force in Guangdong Province.
  • Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Blue Tears and the Milky Way

    04/24/2015 11:29:31 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 3 replies
    NASA ^ | April 24, 2015 | (see photo credit)
    Explanation: Lapping at rocks along the shore of the Island of Nangan, Taiwan, planet Earth, waves are infused with a subtle blue light in this sea and night skyscape. Composed of a series of long exposures made on April 16 the image captures the faint glow from Noctiluca scintillans. Also known as sea sparkles or blue tears, the marine plankton's bioluminescence is stimulated by wave motion. City lights along the coast of mainland China shine beneath low clouds in the west but stars and the faint Milky Way still fill the night above. Over the horizon the galaxy's central bulge...
  • 3D printing is so last year: We're onto 4D printing now

    04/24/2015 10:39:53 AM PDT · by LibWhacker · 7 replies
    Phys.org ^ | 4/24/15
    Another dimension: Professor Marc in het Panhuis and PhD student Shannon Bakarich are building objects using 4-D printing, where time is the fourth dimension. 4D printing is unfolding as technology that takes 3D printing to an entirely new level. The fourth dimension is time, shape shifting in fact, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) at the University of Wollongong is helping to set the pace in the next revolution in additive manufacturing. Just as the extraordinary capabilities of 3D printing have begun to infiltrate industry and the family home, researchers have started to develop 3D...
  • Astronomers find runaway galaxies

    04/24/2015 10:30:47 AM PDT · by LibWhacker · 6 replies
    Phys.org ^ | 4/23/15
    Astronomers find runaway galaxies 21 hours ago Enlarge This schematic illustrates the creation of a runaway galaxy. In the first panel, an "intruder" spiral galaxy approaches a galaxy cluster center, where a compact elliptical galaxy (cE) already revolves around a massive central elliptical galaxy. In the second panel, a close encounter occurs and the compact elliptical receives a gravitational kick from the intruder. In the third panel, the compact elliptical escapes the galaxy cluster while the intruder is devoured by the giant elliptical galaxy in the cluster center. Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2015-04-astronomers-runaway-galaxies.html#jCp We know of about two dozen runaway stars,...
  • Teach children outside to save their vision, say scientists

    04/24/2015 6:40:27 AM PDT · by KeyLargo · 5 replies
    The Telegraph UK ^ | 23 Apr 2015 | Sarah Knapton
    Science News Teach children outside to save their vision, say scientists By Sarah Knapton, Science Editor 5:35PM BST 23 Apr 2015 Children should be allowed to study outside to stop them becoming short-sighted, a new study suggests. Researchers believe that youngsters are spending so long inside for lessons that it is damaging their eyesight. In China, pupils are already being taught in huge translucent boxes to try and halt their vision decline after a study found that 80 per cent of children in Beijing were short-sighted. Around 40 per cent of Britons suffer from myopia, or short-sightedness, with experts warning...
  • Search for someone who has archived Space X Parody

    04/23/2015 6:22:25 PM PDT · by mojo114 · 17 replies
    Anyone archive Space X Parody? Grandson's favorite and can no longer find it on the internet. If anyone has it archived would you send me link please.
  • Vast magma reservoir found hiding beneath Yellowstone park

    04/23/2015 3:19:16 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 70 replies
    newscientist.com ^ | Andy Coghlan
    A massive chamber holding enough magma to fill the Grand Canyon more than 11 times over is hiding beneath the steaming volcanic system of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. We knew of a smaller magma chamber closer to surface, holding some 10,000 cubic kilometres of magma and feeding heat upwards. The newly discovered reservoir sits under it and has a volume of 46,000 cubic kilometres. Together, the two form the largest known magma reservoir in the world. "We can't say definitively that this is the biggest magma reservoir in the world, but we currently don't know of any other that...
  • The Apple Watch Is Neat, But That Is All

    04/23/2015 1:33:52 PM PDT · by Up Yours Marxists · 340 replies
    Business Day Live ^ | April 23 2015, 12:42 UTC | Jeffrey Joslin
    PEOPLE have been raving about the Apple Watch, so it is probably time for a rant from a devil’s advocate. For starters, Apple’s smartwatch is neat, but that might be the only thing it has going for it. If the product’s intended function is providing you with around-the-clock health information, then there are a lot of roadblocks that need to be addressed. Here are five: (...) 1. Battery life is as terrible as you would expect. 2. Too little screen for too much information. 3. It is too big. 4. Even the positive reviews are negative. 5. The Apple Watch...
  • Embryonic Twin Discovered in Woman's Brain During Surgery in LA

    04/23/2015 9:35:58 AM PDT · by EveningStar · 35 replies
    KNBC Channel 4 Los Angeles ^ | April 23, 2015 | John Cádiz Klemack
    An Indiana woman undergoing surgery in Los Angeles to remove a tumor experienced a twist worthy of a sci-fi plot when doctors discovered an embryonic twin in her brain. Yamini Karanam, 26, was unaware of what was happening in her head until she underwent a procedure designed to reach deep into the brain to extract the tumor. After waking up from the surgery, Karanam was surprised to learn of the "teratoma" -- her embryonic twin, a rarity in modern medicine, complete with bone, hair and teeth.