Great Post ~ Title is linked ~ over on Science & Reason

Great, informative post on Early Galaxy Formation with nice links and quality structure.
KAS

Dark Energy Found Stifling Growth in Universe ~ NASA.gov

Venus & Jupiter Monday Night

Check it out!! Monday night, available for all to see with the naked eye, are Jupiter and Venus in the night sky. Eye the moon and look for the golden rule;

"Stars twinkle due the fact that they produce light, planets are solid due to the fact that they reflect light"

G. sphaerica ~ A single celled, mobile, blast from the precambrian past

G. sphaerica

Single celled organism discovered as not only a rare specimen at 1.2 inches; but, also a cause of a particular trail fossil type from the Precambrian period that was thought to have been caused by multi-celled organisms.

This exciting discovery opens a door into the past that questions our understanding of these types of fossils (trails, movement fossils) and also brings to light the fact that the G. sphaerica could be the eldest single-celled organism, which is still prospering and alive today, to ever be discovered.

The issue lies in the misinterpretation that the 'trace fossils' dating to around 580 million years ago were presumed to have been left by multi-cellular organisms. This discovery proves that single celled organisms can also leave trails; leaving many a fossil open for reanalyzing.

KAS

Space Station upgrades

The Astronauts going up to the international space station this spring will enjoy better accommodations than all who have lived there before. Among the improvements are a second toilet (everyone remember when the only one on board was broken) a mini fridge so that they can enjoy a few things cool. They also added two new bedrooms allowing for more area for sleep as well as leisure and new resistance exercise gear.

KAS

Cosmic Variance on Dark Matter and Dark Energy

Visit title link. Great article, nicely written and thought provoking.

~KAS

Hadron Collider & Higgs Boson (God Particle)

So, it's October… The Hadron Colider was up for only a few days in early September prior to having an issue with one of the magnets that caused the shut down. As this was an unbelievably complex/large mechanical, electronic and magnetic machine created for a purpose that has not yet been successful at this level: issues were not unexpected. But, now we hear that it will not be up and running until next year.

Can I wait a year to find out about the creation of microscopic black holes , extra dimensions , super symmetric particles and dark matter? Well, of course. And, I am sure it will be just as exciting and wonderful when it does begin producing (hopefully) the many answers we are looking for. Besides, I don't think the questions are going anywhere in the interim.

Of all the possible discoveries (or up close and personal experiences such as the microscopic black holes) There is something that is generating the most anticipation~ the 'God Particle' or Higgs Boson. The Higgs Boson is proposed as the missing link within particle physics that will hopefully help explain the ability of massless particles to become particles with mass. Hence the 'God Particle' as it the link between massless and mass (and you need mass for life.) Hmm.. You say. Well, if a particle is massless; something must affect it in order for a change to occur in order to make the particle portray a mass. This missing (hypothetical) massive scalar elementary particle would hopefully answer this question. It may also allow us to visualize the particle. As an important component of particle physics, its discovery would lead to many new understandings (as well as new and exciting questions of course) that will expand our knowledge of the material world.

For example, it will assist in our understanding of why particles such as quarks and electrons have varying amounts of mass.

The Higgs Boson Theory is that a large collection of particles, like a field, exist all over and cause particles to be restricted in their movement; particles passing through this field are affected in different manners. Some particle's zip right through, with little resistance and in turn little mass. Yet others are caught up in the resistance and are slowed and infringed in their passing through, leading to a larger recognizable mass.


~KAS

Appalachian Trail, White Mountains

Fantastic comparison of Obama vs McCain Science plan

Gone Camping :)

Well, I just got back from camping in the White Mountains (NH) & it was great!! I will post some picture's soon. But, I couldn't exactly blog while camping (smores smudges all over the screen would not be good!)

KAS

Particle Collider - Heat'n up!

Amazing - This advance will help our kind learn the truth in the theory's as have been proposed by various Physicists, the most important being the Big Bang Theory.

~KAS

Updated... WATER!! Phoenix Lander –@ Mars in just 12 days -- Updated

I imagine that I am not alone in the fondness and affiliation I have for our ‘sister’ planet, Mars? With it’s intertwined majestic quality and our natural drive to find similarities in our understandings of the universe; as well as our actuality of finding multiple commonalities on this red planet. To understand what may have happened, is the ever important key to this puzzle; especially if reformation is part of the goal.

The most intriguing aspect of our sister planet, is that it apparently contains the very same life granting ingredient as our own planet – Water. That we have discovered various signs of water existing on the surface, like the existing ice caps and sub terrain ice sheets as well as surface features like gullies and components like silica, should be of astounding interest to all humans. You might ask: If Mars has many of the right components for life, what is wrong with the recipe? Of particular issue is the atmosphere, or lack there of.

The atmosphere of Mars is a hundred times thinner than that of Earth. Due to atmospheric pressure differences; liquid water boils on Mars at as low a temperature as ten degrees Celsius, as is discussed in this article. To understand this in more ‘earthly’ terms – the site uses the difference in temperatures needed to boil on different altitude’s on Earth as an example. If you are at a high altitude (a mountain for instance) water boils at a lower temperature. Mars’s window of opportunity for liquid water is grossly smaller than that of Earths; because, its atmospheric pressure makes water boil at such a common temperature as the planets freezing point; as a result, water exists primarily in solid or gas form.

However, as ice exists in liquid form in our own extreme cold zones, amongst frozen ice, it is possible that the same could have taken place or could take place on Mars. If the atmosphere was only a wee bit thicker, Mars would have oceans – do I sense some human intervention possibilities? And then to Europa, and then we take over the Univerrrssse… anyway, another mentioning is the assistance sodium provides in maintaining liquid water at lower temperatures allowing a larger window of liquid formation (as is also the case on Earth.) Maybe with a little interference, this planet could start or once again harbor life.

Lastly, the discovery and analysis of the seven caves on Mars are worth following, as this find teases our hypothesis of life being under the surface, as liquid water has a higher probability of flowing if protected from the frigid surface. These caves are seen as an important revelation of possible access points into the planet's depths that may or may not reveal life or life granting/sustaining liquid water.

If this doesn't amaze you, what in the Universe can?

Update: Wow, it's landed safely!

Update: 08/01/2008

WATER!!!!! This is such a fantastic discovery! Now, we had our presumptions of course. But, what it must have been to see the signature of Water appear on the testing equipment back at NASA. What could have been, what is and what could be, is now all up for discovery.

Water is the life granting element here on earth and to find it elsewhere is not astonishing, but encouraging. I am so happy to be alive at a time when the progression of discovery is so remarkable.

KAS

Here is an article discussing the first pictures in the Times and here's another one on space.newscientist.com.

KAS