Hans Is Great

Eye Candy

2010-05-17T10:46:00.009-04:00

Jupiter

2010-05-17T10:20:00.013-04:00

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System, 1400 times the volume of the Earth, big enough to contain all the other planets and more.

Early models of the Universe placed the Earth at the center, with the Sun and planets revolving around it. In 1609, Galileo started looking at the night sky through a telescope. When he observed the planet Jupiter, he found it was surrounded by several small moons that orbited around it. This suggested that not everything revolved around the Earth. In this way, Jupiter redefined how we consider our place in the Universe.

It takes Jupiter 11.9 Earth years to complete one revolution around the Sun. A day, however, is only 9.9 hours long. This rapid rotation causes an equatorial bulge that is visible when you view the planet through a telescope.

The banded appearance reflects the presence of strong atmospheric currents which have different rotation periods at different latitudes. These bands get their lovely pastel colors from clouds, including the famous Great Red Spot. These colors come from lightning discharges and heat, and some of the chemical compounds may be related to organic molecules that formed on ancient Earth as a prelude to the origin of life.

The darker brown strips across Jupiter are called belts, the brighter strips are zones. Belts are darker because they are cooler, settling lower into the atmosphere.

The belts themselves are more than 200,000 miles wide each. After Jupiter emerged from behind the Sun in 2010, it was mysteriously missing the South Equatorial Belt. Astronomers are uncertain what causes this phenomenon, but it has happened before: in 1973 and again in the early 1990s. In both cases, the planet kept its appearance for a few weeks until the belt eventually returned.

This planet has no solid surface: it is entirely liquid and gas. The surface that we see comes from the uppermost layer of its ever-changing atmosphere, composed of thick clouds of hydrogen and helium.

Although the clouds are all anyone ever sees of Jupiter, they constitute less than 1 percent of the planet's total radius. Underneath the clouds the atmosphere grows denser and hotter under the pressure. Here methane, ammonia, and other trapped gasses may be crushed into tiny rocks, until they eventually cease to behave as gasses. Five thousand miles down, the atmospheric pressure is a million times what it is on Earth. Here liquid hydrogen is compressed into a shiny, metallic substance.

Scientists have fabricated only tiny quantities of metallic hydrogen here on Earth, which has helped explain certain aspects of Jupiter's nature. Its magnetic field is twenty thousand times as strong as Earth's, and extends all the way to Saturn. The presence of highly unstable metallic hydrogen in the core may also be a factor in causing all the electrical storms which are constant in the planet's atmosphere.

There are lots of great books about outer space. My favorite is Astronomy: A Visual Guide, by Mark A. Garlick. It's filled with interesting information and lots of beautiful photographs.

For my previous posts on outer space, click here. For a look at Jupiter's first four known moons, click here.

Always worth checking out is the Hubble Space Telescope, which celebrated its twentieth anniversary last month.

Eye Candy

2010-05-16T18:14:00.008-04:00

The Elements

2010-05-16T17:53:00.013-04:00

I've been writing a continuing series of posts on the Periodic Table of Elements, the atoms of which the entire Universe is composed. The last few have been on the lanthanides, or rare-earth elements, found in the first row at the bottom of the periodic table.

The name "rare-earths" is a bit of a misnomer, because several aren't rare at all... they're just not commonly understood, and are found in nature at very low concentrations. Additionally, they are often difficult to extract from the ores in which they are found.

One of the most frequent uses of lanthanide metals is in color television sets, because they glow in distinctive colors when bombarded with electrons.

Europium:

Atomic Symbol: Eu

Atomic Number: 63

Europium is used to coat television picture tubes to give a bright red color. Every time you see the color red on television, it's thanks to the presence of europium. In fact, it was this property which caused early pioneers of television to consider the possibility of developing color.

Europium was found in much higher concentrations than expected in rocks brought back from the surface of the Moon. This unusually high abundance suggests that the Earth and Moon were not formed from the same cosmic material. As yet, there is no generally accepted theory about how the Moon was formed.

Gadolinium:

Atomic Symbol: Gd

Atomic Number: 64

Like several other rare-earth elements, gadolinium is used in television screens. However, it does not produce a vibrant color when exposed to electrons. It is therefore used to control the picture's brightness and contrast, because it gives off bright light without "quenching" the colors of the other elements.

Gadolinium is unique in two respects: first, it has the greatest neutron-capturing ability of any known element, which is put to use in medical techniques like neutron radiography. Second, it is magnetic, like iron, but loses its magnetism when its temperature rises above 20^oC. For this reason it is used in video recording and data storage discs which can be permanent or erasable.

Terbium:

Atomic Symbol: Tb

Atomic Number: 65

This is one of the rarest of the rare-earth elements, being four times more expensive than platinum. It has few commercial uses because it is so costly. There was once a plan to use ceramic containing terbium for false teeth because it resembles the gleam of real teeth, but nothing came of it.

Using terbium has led to greater safety when taking X-rays, because it reduces the time the patient is exposed to this dangerous radiation. Terbium allows the same quality image to be produced in a quarter of the time previously required.

A favorite book of mine which has been invaluable in writing these chemistry posts is Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements, by John Emsley. A great recent addition is The Elements: A Visual Exploration, by Theodore Gray, which includes a lot of nice pictures and is suitable for a coffee table near you.

For my previous posts on the elements, click here.

Eye Candy

2010-05-15T15:34:00.009-04:00

Oil!

2010-05-15T15:04:00.009-04:00

Petroleum, or crude oil, is a naturally occurring oily liquid found in large quantities below the surface of the earth. It is used as fuel and as raw material in the chemical and plastic industries.

Modern industrial societies use it primarily to achieve a degree of mobility that was unimaginable a hundred years ago. In fact, modern civilization depends on petroleum and its products: the way of life in the suburban communities surrounding great cities are the result of an ample and inexpensive supply of petroleum. Additionally, developing countries exploit petroleum deposits to supply food for their growing populations. All of this is based on the assumption of petroleum availability.

In recent years, worldwide availability of petroleum has steadily declined and its relative cost has increased. Pollution caused by the burning of fossil fuels has created additional complications, causing industrialized nations to consider alternative, non-polluting, renewable fuels. Petroleum will probably cease to be a common commercial material by the mid 21st century.

World production of petroleum was 85 million barrels per day in 2009. The United States, Russia, and Saudi Arabia are the world's largest producers, accounting for about one third of the world's petroleum production. The US is by far the biggest consumer, using 20.6 million barrels per day, more than one fourth of the world's total and double the amount it produces. This forces America to import 13 million barrels of petroleum each day. No other country consumes even half as much.

Petroleum is formed under the earth's surface by decomposed marine life, enmeshed with fine sands that settle to the bottom of sea basins. Such deposits, which are rich in organic material, grow thicker under pressure and from the heat of the Earth's core. The mud and sand harden into shale, and the remains of the dead organisms are transformed into crude oil and natural gas. This process takes millions of years.

Crude oil has been used by humans for thousands of years. In areas where oil bubbled up to the surface, it was used for caulking boats, waterproofing cloth, and fueling torches. During the Renaissance, oil was distilled for lubricants and medicinal products, but the wholesale exploitation of petroleum began in the 19th century. The Industrial Revolution brought a search for new fuels. Various scientists developed processes to make commercial use of petroleum. The Canadian physician Abraham Gessner patented an affordable, oil-based lamp fuel called kerosene in 1852. In 1855, an American chemist named Benjamin Silliman published a paper on the wide range of useful products that could be derived from the distillation of petroleum.

In this way, the quest for greater supplies of crude oil began. The concept of drilling for oil soon followed. With the invention of the automobile and the energy needs brought on by World War I, the petroleum industry became one of the hallmarks of industrial society.

Ocean pollution disturbs marine ecosystems, and is primarily noticed when an oil well at sea is damaged or when an oil carrying ship leaks into the sea as the result of an accident. The 1989 Exxon Valdez and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disasters are two examples. Despite this perception, most ocean oil pollution is caused by municipal and industrial runoff, cleaning of ships' tanks, and other routine events. Tar, plastic, and sewage wash up on beaches, making swimming hazardous. Plastic, which does not break down in the ocean, is a hazard to sea life. International treaties prohibit disposal of such wastes that can cause these environmental threats, but these treaties are very difficult to enforce.

Scientists agree that burning fossil fuels is a major factor in causing global climate change. The US has attempted to pass laws limiting carbon emissions, such as the "Cap and Trade" bill. So far, these efforts have stalled.

For an insightful look into the history of oil production, check out Oil, by Upton Sinclair.

2010-05-08T20:04:00.001-04:00

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Jellyfish

2010-05-08T18:52:00.013-04:00

There are over 3,000 species of jellyfish. Some weigh over 400 pounds, while others are barely visible. They have lived on Earth for over 650 million years, but have no brains, hearts, or skeletal systems. Its tentacles can stretch up to 120 feet. The lion's mane jellyfish may be the longest living animal in the world.

The name jellyfish is actually a misnomer: these animals aren't fish at all. They are part of a group of animals called coelenterates, which also includes corals and sea anemones.

There are two stages in the jellyfish life cycle. First is the polyp stage, when the animal looks like a small stalk on the ocean floor. In the second stage, the animal assumes the familiar umbrella shape, called a medusa, which swims away from the stalk to grow by feeding on plankton. Larger jellyfish may feed on shrimp or small fishes. Prey is captured in the tentacles, where it is stunned or killed by stinging cells called nematocysts. Even a dead or dying jellyfish can sting when touched.

Their behavior is simple: most swim slowly or are carried by ocean currents. Jellyfish appear transparent because less than 5% of their body mass is organic matter, the rest is water.

In recent years, scientists have noticed a huge rise in jellyfish populations in tropical areas, and suspect this increase may be caused by global climate change. So many jellyfish threaten the fishing industry, by preying on fish normally collected by humans. It also creates an obvious nuisance to tourism: jellyfish stings are very painful, and some can be deadly. The venom of some species is as toxic as a cobra's, and can cause death in under three minutes.

Although they have little nutritional value, some varieties are collected as food. Mostly this takes place in southeast Asia, where they are cured with salt to produce a crunchy, crispy texture. In China they are often served raw, with oil dressing or as a salad with vegetables . The cannonball jellyfish is a favorite delicacy, because of its meaty body and because its toxins are harmless to humans.

Biologists are especially interested in a species called turritopsis nutricula, because it appears to be immortal. This jelly, found in the Caribbean Sea, can change from a medusa back to the polyp stage, allowing it to enter another life cycle, and another after that. Some individual turritopsis might be thousands of years old. Researchers think humans may one day be able to live up to 500 years if this process can be duplicated.

Most famous of all is the giant, dangerous, Portuguese Man-Of-War. It is common in tropical seas, floating on the surface with a brightly colored, gelatinous mass. This is actually a colony of hundreds or thousands of individual animals, living together for mutual defense. They have no independent means of propulsion, and travel either by floating in the currents or by catching wind with their billowing sails. When threatened, they can deflate the airbag and briefly submerge. The tentacles typically grow to over 60 feet in length, and have sunk ships by getting tangled underneath them.

Finally, it is a myth that urine cures a jellyfish sting. So don't try it.

There's a cool, two minute video worth checking out below:

This is my second blog post on animal life. For the first one, on sponges, click here.

Facebook

2010-05-08T00:34:00.003-04:00

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Space Shuttle

2010-05-07T19:43:00.009-04:00

NASA has announced the final voyage of the space shuttle Atlantis will launch next week, on May 14 at 2:20 PM. Commander Ken Ham will lead the expedition. Atlantis will be flying to the International Space station (ISS), carrying a crew of six and a load of supplies. NASA is retiring its remaining shuttles by the end of 2010.

The American space shuttle is still the world's only fully reusable space vehicle. Originally there were six members of the fleet: Enterprise, Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavor. Enterprise was only built for test missions and was never flown into space. Columbia flew the first real missions, beginning in 1981. After the losses of Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003, only three active shuttles remain in use. After the final voyage of Atlantis, there will be only two.

After the first Apollo missions to the moon, President Richard Nixon wanted to continue exploration, but wanted to reduce the costs of space travel. He reasoned that if the US had reusable space vehicles instead of the "one time use only" vessels like Apollo, it could afford to explore a lot more.

Today there are two main manned space vehicles: the American space shuttle and the three-stage Russian Soyuz rocket. The space shuttle missions have carried out a variety of experiments, transported satellites into orbit, and performed repairs and upgrades on the Hubble Telescope. Their most ambitious enterprise began in 1999: the construction of the ISS in cooperation with Japan, Russia, and the European Space Agency. Its symbolism of peace and cooperation between former enemies, America and the Soviet Union, cannot be overstated.

The shuttle program suffered a tragic setback on 28 January, 1986, when Challenger exploded minutes after launching, killing its entire crew, including a high school teacher, the first ordinary citizen to fly into space. Shuttle flights were suspended until 1988. Tragedy struck again in 2003 when Columbia was destroyed. This accident raised concerns for astronaut safety, and delayed construction of the ISS for several years.

President Barack Obama has not called for the construction of a new space fleet, but has a strategy for the exploration of space that will send man to an asteroid by 2025 and Mars by 2035.

With the space shuttle program entering its last year, many argue that manned space missions waste resources. Why send people into space when you can send probes for a fraction of the cost and with none of the risk to astronauts' lives? It might be wiser to use probes and deep space telescopes like Hubble to search space for someplace worthwhile to go before sending humans on dangerous and arbitrary missions. Plans to build a new manned space fleet and send humans to Mars remain in the embryonic stages.

There are lots of great books about outer space. My favorite is Astronomy: A Visual Guide, by Mark A. Garlick. It's filled with interesting information and lots of beautiful photographs.

For my previous posts on outer space, click here.

Eye Candy

2010-04-29T15:32:00.010-04:00

Japan: The Muromachi Period

2010-04-29T14:56:00.016-04:00

Today's post on the history of Japan begins in 1338 and ends with Commodore Perry's arrival in 1853. While it's perfectly enjoyable on its own, it might be a bit confusing without the previous two chapters: Japan: The Early Centuries, and Medieval Japan. You might want to check these two out before proceeding to today's post.

Also please note that I am absolutely not an expert on Japanese history or culture. If I've made any mistakes, please feel free to point them out. If anyone has anything to add, please do so using the "comments" option.

The Ashikaga was a Japanese family that occupied the office of shogun ("great general") from 1338 to 1573. This time is called the Muromachi period because the shogun's palace was in the Muromachi district of Kyoto. The dynasty's founder, Takauji, rebelled against the emperor, setting up a rival government in Kyoto. Civil war continued until 1392, when the legitimate emperor Daigo II renounced his claim to the throne.

The Ashikaga then tried to unify the country, but were unable to control the local feudal lords. Wars between these feudal lords became common through the 16th century.

In general, the Muromachi period was one of great refinements in art and literature, and of the development of Buddhism as a major Japanese political force. For centuries Buddhist monasteries had grown in wealth and power. Buddhist monks, dressed in armor and carrying weapons, often turned the tide of battles with their strong organization and fortified monasteries.

Flowers became connected to the religion of Japan. "Flower masters" grew, who taught how flowers should be grown in the garden and placed in the home.

The Japanese watch for the blossoms associated with each season, and for a week or two in April, the cherry blooms. All Japan seems to leave work to appreciate it, and even make pilgrimages to places where the miracle is most abundant. Nowhere has another people shown as much love of nature as one finds in Japan, or shown such care in cultivating gardens and nourishing plants.

Another result of the shogun's domination was the imposed isolation of Japan from the rest of the world. The first Europeans to visit the country were Portuguese traders who landed on the island in 1542.

St. Francis Xavier, a Jesuit missionary, brought Christianity to Japan in 1549; and by the end of the century about 300,000 Japanese had converted to Roman Catholicism. Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch traders began visiting the island with increasing regularity. The shoguns became convinced that Christianity was designed to pave the way for European conquest and colonialism. In 1612, persecution of Christians began and several massacres followed. Europeans were refused permission to land, and a series of laws forbade travel abroad, prohibiting even the building of large ships. Japan had entered its "Enclosed period".

For the next few centuries, Japanese culture remained static. During the 18th century, however, new economic and social conditions began to indicate the collapse of feudalism. A large merchant class grew in strength, and peasant revolts grew more frequent because of the poverty of the lower classes.

Japan's awakening consciousness of the outside world began in 1720, when shogun Yoshimune repealed the ban of European books and study. The US was particularly anxious to make a treaty and open commerce with the Japanese. In 1853, the American government sent a formal mission to the emperor headed by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry, leading a squadron of four war ships and 560 men.

To be continued...

There are a lot of great books on Japan, of course. One that's been especially helpful to me in writing these posts is Japan: Its History and Culture, by W. Scott Morton and J. Kenneth Olenik. There's also a very enjoyable travel memoir called A Year in Japan, by Kate T. Williamson. Both are available in the Hansisgreat Bookstore, or online at Barnes & Noble.

For my posts on other Nations of the World, click here.

Eye Candy

2010-04-28T02:44:00.009-04:00

The History of Civilization

2010-04-28T02:08:00.012-04:00

Chapter Twenty-One: Alexander's Conquest of Persia

This is my second chapter on Alexander the Great. If you'd like to read the previous chapter first, click here.

In the spring of 331 BC Alexander visited the oracle of Amon-Ra, Egyptian god of the Sun. He wanted the god to help him defeat his Persian enemies, and the pilgrimage appears to have been a success.

He met the army of Darius at Guagamela, and was briefly dismayed at their multitude. He spent the night reconnoitering the ground and offering sacrifices to the gods. His victory was decisive.

The disorderly Persian army was no match for the Greeks. Alexander made straight for the figure of Darius in his chariot who was closely guarded by horsemen. The Persian king lost his nerve and fled the battlefield, leaving his army without a leader. He was soon murdered by his own people as a coward and a traitor.

Babylon surrendered after the Battle of Guagamela, as did the ancient city of Susa with its enormous treasure vaults. Hardly stopping to rest, Alexander marched his army over mountains in the dead of winter to seize Persepolis, the Persian capital.

He arrived so quickly that he was in Darius' palace before the Persians could conceal the royal treasury. Here he lost his good judgement. After plundering the city's wealth, Alexander burned Persepolis to the ground in a drunken rage. This completed the destruction of the Persian Empire.

Still ambitious, he attempted the subjugation of tribes on the eastern borders of Persia. He achieved some victories in modern Iran and Afghanistan, but here his behavior became more erratic. He began massacring villages, torturing enemies to death, and demanding that defeated subjects worship him as a god. At every new town Alexander was becoming less Greek and more like a barbarian king.

His army crossed the Himalayas into India in 327 BC. His generals advised against it, and the army went unwillingly. Crossing the Indus River, he defeated the Punjab king Porus; and wanted to press on to the Ganges, but his soldiers refused. They had been in Asia for over nine years, and wanted to return to their homes. The army was also desperately low on supplies and had lost men to starvation, disease, and exposure. Sadly, Alexander turned to go back. They followed the Indus to its mouth, and sailed the Indian Ocean into the Persian Gulf, arriving back at Babylon in 323 BC.

In June of that year, Alexander developed a fever and died. When his advisors asked who would inherit his empire he answered, "to the strongest". He was only thirty-three years old. The effects of his death were immediate: revolts broke out everywhere, and fifty years of civil war followed as various successors fought one another for dominance.

The same tragic year brought the death of Aristotle. It was the end of an era: the total collapse of Greek democracy. The city-state had been incapable of solving the problems of government, and had discovered no way of reconciling local autonomy with national stability and power. Class warfare had become bitter beyond control, and had turned the free market into legalized looting. The Assembly, once a noble body, had degenerated into an unruly mob rejecting all restraint, voting itself every favor and taxing the other classes to the point of crushing industry and initiative.

It was a sad end for what was in many ways an admirable civilization. Greece's decline cleared the way for the rise of Rome, and its legacy of philosophy would inspire and influence civilization through modern times.

To be continued...

For my previous posts on the history of civilization, click here.

Naturally, there are a lot of great books about Alexander. He's one of the most famous people of all time. My personal favorite is In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great: A Journey from Greece to Asia, by Michael Wood.

Eye Candy

2010-04-27T12:09:00.003-04:00

Quotations

2010-04-27T11:50:00.007-04:00

The world is wide, and I will not waste my life in friction when it could be turned into momentum.

Frances Willard (1839-1898)

Love flies, runs, and rejoices; it is free and nothing can hold it back.

Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471)

The last temptation is the greatest treason: to do the right deed for the wrong reason.

T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)

Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.

Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Whatever you are by nature, keep to it; never desert your line of talent. Be what nature intended you for and you will succeed.

Sydney Smith (1771-1845)

You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom.

Malcolm X (1925-1965)

No one can build his security upon the nobleness of another person.

Willa Cather (1873-1947)

Even God cannot change the past.

Agathon (448 BC-400 BC)

Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

For one human being to love another; that is perhaps the most difficult of all our tasks, the ultimate, the last test and proof, the work for which all other work is but preparation.

Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926)

Eye Candy

2010-04-26T17:24:00.003-04:00

Volcano

2010-04-26T16:58:00.010-04:00

A volcano is a fissure in the Earth's crust, above which a cone of volcanic material has accumulated. At the top of the cone is a bowl-shaped vent called a crater.

During eruptions, solid ash falls around the vent on the slopes of the cone, and lava oozes from the vent as well as from cracks on the side of the cone. Thus, the mountain is built up from layers of fragmental materials and the flow of lava.

Until recently, volcanoes were thought to be the homes of vengeful gods who vented their anger on the people below. It is now understood that volcanoes are a visible sign of the Earth's tectonic forces. Most people associate volcanoes with the destruction they cause, but they've been very helpful in teaching us about the Earth's interior.

The Earth's crust is composed of about 20 tectonic plates, which move from a few millimeters to several centimeters per year. As plates move away from each other, molten rock emerges from the Earth's super-hot interior. Most volcanoes are found where two tectonic plates meet, such as the "Ring of Fire" around the Pacific Ocean. A few, such as the volcanoes that formed the Hawaiian Islands, are over hot spot's inside the Earth, where magma flows upward with enough force to burn through the crust.

Magma is molten rock below the surface of the Earth. When it erupts onto the surface it is called lava. We tend to think of magma as a liquid, but some components can separate from the liquid to form a gas. Although it is usually present in relatively small quantities, magmatic gas is extremely important because its presence will cause a volcanic eruption. During an eruption, 10 million to 1,000 million tons of volcanic gas are discharged into the atmosphere over a period lasting from a few hours to several days.

Vesuvius the only volcano on the European mainland, erupted on August 24, 79. The top of the mountain was blown off by an explosion, and the cities of Herculaneum, Pompeii, and Stabiae were destroyed. For more than 1,500 years these cities lay undisturbed, until 1798 when excavations began. The showers of wet ash and cinders formed a seal around the towns, preserving many public buildings and private dwellings. In addition, remnants of more than 2,000 victims were found, including several gladiators who had been chained to prevent them from escaping or committing suicide.

Eye Candy

2010-04-19T22:23:00.003-04:00

Dinosaur Ridge

2010-04-19T22:15:00.010-04:00

Sandwiched between the bustling frontier city of Denver and the formidable Rocky Mountains is Dinosaur Ridge, a famous fossil site offering visitors a unique outdoor museum-like experience. Tucked away in the shadow of the popular Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Dinosaur Ridge consists of ancient fossil beds and prehistoric trackways strewn throughout theDakota Hogback, a jagged strata of rocks slicing through Colorado’s Front Range. Dinosaur Ridge is extremely accessible by car as most of the major highways leading to and from the Rockies offer an easy on-off exit. However, most choose to navigate the terrain on foot or mountain bike as the area boasts many beautiful miles of winding, picturesque trails dotted with fossil sites and steeped in geographical history, all marked by informative placards.

The western half of Dinosaur Ridge is just a small part of the Morrison Formation, a vast stretch of rippling sedimentary rock strata with outposts in virtually every land-locked state with heavy concentrations in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. In 1877, Arthur Lakes, a professor from the Colorado School of Mines in nearby Golden, unearthed bones dating back over 150 million years to the Late Jurassic age. This sparked a general enthusiastic interest in 19^th century American dinosaur explorations and helped to later establish other world-renowned fossil sites such as Dinosaur National Monument in Utah. The digs along the Morrison Formation also ignited the notorious Bone Wars between rivaling paleontologists O. C. Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope. Although Lakes was employed exclusively by Marsh, he provided both men with his ancient finds causing each to sabotage and ruin potentially important historical discoveries.

Among the many dinosaurs dug up along this section of the Morrison Formation, the following were the most prevalent and noteworthy. The world’s first tail-spiked stegosaurus was recovered here, classified by the aforementioned Marsh, and later named the official State Dinosaur of Colorado. The long-necked Apatosaurus (a.k.a. Brontosauras) used to dwell here before making an appearance as Littlefoot in The Land Before Time. His counterpart, the scary bipedal predatory Allosauras (think of a smaller version of a T-Rex) once roamed the ancient rocks side by side with the horizontally-figured, whip-tailed Diplodocus. While most of these primordial remains rest in museums across the globe, they all helped to establish the Morrison Formation as the most fossil-rich earth in North America.

The eastern side of Dinosaur Ridge is assumed to be a satellite portion of the Cretaceous Dakota Formation, an ancient shoreline and seaway spanning from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico and reaching as far east as present-day Missouri. In 1937, the city of Denver broke ground on the West Alameda Parkway, an access road from the main highway I-70 to Dinosaur Ridge’s neighboring attraction, Red Rocks Park. The project was halted when workers discovered hundreds of footprints left by the lizard-like Iguanodon species embedded in the rocks. These tracks are slightly younger than the finds at the Morrison Formation, dating back about 100 million years. Paleontologists believe the tracks found here are merely a sliver of what still lies beneath the earth in the Dakota Formation running between New Mexico and northern Colorado. After much vandalism, the calcified tracks were beautifully restored and are now highly visible and interactive.

After visiting Dinosaur Ridge, the surrounding area of Morrison begs to be explored as well. Now familiar with the lay of the land, tourists and natives alike flock to Red Rocks to become dwarfed by massive, soaring striped rocks which forms a natural amphitheatre drawing large music acts every summer. The town of Morrison is a mini-frontier hamlet with quaint shops, cafes, and bars catering to the after-concert crowd. One restaurant in particular, the Fort, lies directly beneath Red Rocks and provides a sweeping view of Denver from it’s expansive dining room. Situated in a recreated Indian dwelling, the Fort serves up buffalo, elk, rattlesnake, and those infamous, yet tasty Rocky Mountain Oysters. For those in need of quick and easy elevation, head to Green Mountain. A lovely jeep trail accessible from the West Alameda Parkway makes for a light hike to the summit of almost 7,000 feet. The panoramic view is unparalleled on the Front Range, boasting uninterrupted views of Denver to the east (and on a clear day, Boulder to the north and Pikes Peak to the south) with the craggy peaks of the Rockies to the west.

This article was contributed by Amy, staff writer at Hansisgreat. Check out her writing portfolio at her blog.

A Poem

2010-04-11T00:37:00.003-04:00

Vietnam, me love you long time. All day, all night, me love you long time.

"Delta One-Niner, this is Alpha patrol. We are on the northeast face of hill Seven-Zero-Five and taking fire, I repeat, taking fire. Immediate air assistance required on the fucking double. Can you confirm?"

Radio static.

"I say again, this is Alpha patrol and we are taking fire. Immediate air assistance required. Can you confirm? We are taking fire. Please confirm. We are... Incoming, incoming!"

Boom.

"...Medic!"

Dropping acid on the Mekong Delta, smoking grass through a rifle barrel, flying on a helicopter with opera blasting out of loudspeakers, tracer fire and paddy field scenery, the smell of napalm in the morning.

Long time.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil, for my name is Richard. I was born in 1974.

-Alex Garland, "The Beach"

Eye Candy

2009-12-17T12:13:00.004-05:00

The Elements

2009-12-17T11:46:00.014-05:00

The elements from lanthanum to ytterbium are known collectively as lanthanides or rare-earth elements. The term rare-earth elements is a misnomer because some are not rare at all. The minerals from which they are extracted are actually quite common. The mineral monazite is mined worldwide, and it contains a complex mixture of nearly all the lanthanide elements.

My last chemistry post discussed the first three lanthanide metals. Today's will cover the next three. Please enjoy...

Neodymium:
Atomic Symbol: Nd
Atomic Number: 60
This is the best known of all the rare-earth elements because of neodymium magnets. These are by far the strongest magnets available, so strong that they are genuinely dangerous to be around, especially if you have more than one. They fly together which such force that they can shatter and send splinters in all directions, and can jump at each other from more than a foot away. Even very small ones can crush a finger, large ones an entire hand. They are used in fake magnetic piercings, which sometimes become impossible to pull apart, requiring a hospital visit for surgical removal.
Neodymium magnets are also used to check for counterfeit currency by detecting the magnetic particles in the ink used to print real currency.

Promethium:
Atomic Symbol: Pm
Atomic Number: 61
There is no way that this element could be successfully extracted from terrestrial sources. Promethium is radioactive with a half-life too short to have survived from when the earth was formed. The longest lived isotope has a half-life of only 17.7 years.
Promethium is obtained in minute quantities from the fission products of nuclear reactors. Its commercial applications are very meager: it was briefly used to create luminous dials for watches, but was soon replaced because its half-life made the glowing dials wear out too quickly to be practical.

Samarium:
Atomic Symbol: Sm
Atomic Number: 62
Surprisingly, samarium is not named for the ancient city of Samaria, but rather for its discoverer, the Russian scientist Vasili Samarsky-Bykhovets.
One of the strangest compounds on earth is samarium sulfide. It exists as a black crystal, but if scratched, it immediately transforms into a golden crystal with the properties of a metal.
Neodymium magnets are the strongest available, but samarium magnets can operate at higher temperatures where others would lose their magnetism.

A favorite book of mine which has been invaluable in writing these chemistry posts is Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements, by John Emsley. A great recent addition is The Elements: A Visual Exploration, by Theodore Gray, which includes a lot of nice pictures and is suitable for a coffee table near you.

For my previous posts on the elements, click here.

Eye Candy

2009-12-15T21:20:00.004-05:00

Orion

2009-12-15T20:38:00.018-05:00

During the winter months, the constellation of Orion dominates the northern sky. This group of stars is among the easiest to recognize because of the three bright stars in a straight line that make up his belt. Orion and the surrounding area contains a number of remarkable stars and other celestial objects.

In Greek mythology, Orion was a mighty hunter who fell in love with Metrope, daughter of the king of Chios, and sought her hand in marriage. The king constantly deferred his consent to the marriage, and eventually had Orion blinded. Orion consulted an oracle who told him he could regain his sight by going to the far east and letting the rays of the rising sun fall on his eyes. His sight restored, Orion went to live on the island of Crete, where he was killed by the sting of a scorpion. After Orion's death, he was placed in the heavens as a constellation.

The orange star at he top left is the star Betelgeuse, 400 light-years from Earth and shining more brightly than 10,000 Suns. This is a star in decline, pulsating in the red supergiant stage. The color of a star gives information about its temperature, size, and life expectancy. Stars change color like a piece of heated metal, becoming progressively red, orange, yellow, white, and blue. For this reason Betelgeuse appears to flash red, contrasting with the pale blue of the surrounding stars.

Orion also contains a number of notable nebulas. Until 1610, nebulas were thought to be stars. Now they are recognized as giant clouds of gas and dust, sometimes luminous and other times dark. Nebulas fascinate astronomy enthusiasts because of their wispy, spiral shapes.

Clearly visible to the naked eye as a bright fuzzy patch, the Orion Nebula is the closest nebula to Earth (1,200 light-years away). Its location in Orion's sword, just south of the leftmost star in the belt, also makes it easy to find. Several thousand stars were probably born here. A few of the youngest are still inside the nebula, and they heat the ambient gas to over 18,000^oF.

The Horsehead Nebula is one of the most admired objects in the sky, first observed at the Harvard University Observatory in 1888. The familiar horse head shape is actually a small extension of a much larger cloud, invisible against the night sky's black background. Stellar winds are gradually eroding the magnificent scrolls of this famous nebula, so that the head will lose its familiar shape over the next several thousand years. Enjoy it while you still can.

Adjacent to the Orion Nebula is a cloud of microscopic, bluish gas known as the Witch Head Nebula. The color is derived from the reflected light of the blue supergiant star Rigel, which shines more brightly than 40,000 suns. The nebula is actually a more vibrant blue than the star itself. Like the particles in the Earth's atmosphere, the nebula reflects more blue radiation because it absorbs blue less than other colors.

Next to Orion is the constellation Taurus, which contains the Pleiades, the most visible open cluster in the night sky. Single stars like our sun are relatively rare: stars usually come in groups of two or more that orbit one another. The Pleiades appears to contain seven stars in tight formation, although there are actually more than seven. They have been celebrated since ancient times: Homer's Odyssey mentions the Pleiades, as do the Old Testament books of Job and Amos. The cluster will dissipate over the next few million years, and each star will follow its own path through the galaxy.

All these objects near Orion are visible during December and January. For a clear view, use a telescope, but most can be spotted simply by looking up at the night sky on a clear night.

If you're interested in outer space, check out Astronomy: A Visual Guide, by Mark A. Garlick, and Cosmos, by Sylvia Arditi and Marc Lachieze-Rey. Both contain fascinating astronomy facts, along with lots of gorgeous glossy pictures.

For my previous posts on outer space, click here.