Pushing the envelope of science, sometimes breaking through. http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:57:11 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/images/nyberg125.jpgtomorrow-is-here/alqqhttp://feedburner.google.com http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/139/106/ The Carnival of Space (http://www.universetoday.com/carnival-of-space/) is coordinated by Fraser Cain. Every week a different web master or blogger hosts the carnival. Reviewing some of the posts written on the topic of space for that week. Thanks to Steve Nerlich for this week's Carnival of Space (http://www.cheapastro.com/index_files/Page3532.htm) on Cheap Astronomy (http://www.cheapastro.com/index.htm). A blog aimed at exploring the universe for under $300. And that includes $0. Carnival of Space 97 is as interesting as ever. Always worth a surf Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/138/121/ I love to play pub quiz machines, they are now a common feature of UK pubs. Now I can play any time I like online at the Triviala web site. Triviala is a free to play fast-paced trivia and quiz site. As you complete the trivia quizzes you win 'crowns'. Use these crowns to enter daily and weekly prize draws. There is £5,000 to be won each month! The more crowns you win by answering the Trivia Quiz questions the more times you can enter the draws. There are different ways to play. Chose to answer 30 quick fire questions, or one question a day. Every way you win. Quizzes cover a wide range of subjects. Everything from general knowledge to highly specialized subjects. You can find a quiz on your favourite singer, TV show or movie. Test your first aid knowledge or details of the British Monarchy. There are other ways of gaining crowns such as creating and submitting your own trivia quizzes. Upload a photo or invite your friends to join in the fun. And there are more ways to win still, theses you will have to discover for yourself. So, if you want a fun and simple way to keep the grey matter fizzing. If you want to win money by playing great games then Triviala is the place for you. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/137/85/ After three months offline, the European Space Agency's Mars Webcam (http://webservices.esa.int/blog/blog/6) is back, with much improved IT infrastructure support. The Mars Webcam is officially called "The Mars Express Visual Monitoring Camera (VMC)." Its original purpose was to monitor the separation from the Mars Express of the ill-fated Beagle lander. It is not a scientific instrument, but a simple, low-tech camera. It provides fantastic views of the Red Planet. Including crescent views not seen from Earth. ESA's deep space probe, Mars Express, has been on the other side of the Sun recently, so there have been no pictures from the VMC. It started sending pictures again mid-February. ESA have now set up the IT support so that pictures form the VMC are uploaded automatically to its own blog as they arrive. Depending on what other data is in the transmission queue, a picture from the VMC could be available online within an hour of it being taken. These images are raw and unprocessed. This is where you could help. ESA are looking for anyone to process the images or even identify landmarks on the surface. If you are looking to make a contribution to planetary science go to the Mars Express Visual Monitoring Camera blog (http://webservices.esa.int/blog/post/6/487) and see how you can help. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/136/106/ Ian O'Neill has edited the Carnival of Space 96 (http://www.astroengine.com/?p=4453) on astroengine.com (http://www.astroengine.com/). I very much recommend a surf of the carnival. As usual it is very interesting. In terms of verity and quality the Carnival of Space is one of the best carnivals I see. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/135/92/ According to a report produced by the PC Gaming Alliance (PCGA) the PC is the largest single platform for games with annual worldwide revenues of US$10.7 billion. This is more than any of the consoles currently available from Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. PCGA president Randy Stude told the BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7960498.stm) these figures underline the PC as the "Number one platform for gaming world wide." He said, "Despite Xbox LIVE and PlayStation, the online platform that remains the most accessible and robust is the PC." The report (http://www.pcgamingalliance.org/RESOURCES/Articles/tabid/397/Default.aspx), released to coincide with the opening of the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, noted the three biggest trends in 2008 were: The growth of online digital distribution via services like Valve’s Steam The growth of free games with a virtual item purchase model The growing presence of game cards at major retailers like 7-Eleven The report also contains many interesting factoids such as: Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) are the leading products for both revenue and profits World of Warcraft is generating over $1 billion in annual revenue PC games regularly generate over $50 million in sales but can generate substantially more in subscription and/or add-on revenue Several Asian MMOGs are generating over $100 million in annual revenue after 5+ years on the market The Lich King expansion to World of Warcraft outsold its predecessor. In 2008, two major new subscription MMOGs, Warhammer Online and Age of Conan, sold over 1 million units each. However, the PCGA is an umbrella organization for companies interested in promoting the PC as a gaming platform. Mr Stude, its president, works for Intel, the chip manufacture behind most of the CPUs that drive PCs. So its reports may be little biased. Something the BBC interview did not point out. Still, I don't think anyone needs the PCGA to tell them MMOGs are where all the fun's at. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/134/85/ Polls have opened (http://marsrovername.jpl.nasa.gov/SubmitVoteForm/) on the final naming of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover. The non-binding poll to help NASA select a name opened on Monday will stay open until Sunday Mar. 29. The names, submitted by students from across the USA are: Journey Amelia Adventure Vision Pursuit Sunrise Wonder Perception Curiosity NASA will select the winning name, based on a student's essay and the poll. NASA will announce the wining name in late April or early May 2009. The MSL will launch in 2011 and touch down on Mars in 2012. It is part of the Mars Exploration Program, a series of expeditions to Mars with the four main goals of: Determining whether life ever arose on Mars Characterizing the climate of Mars Characterizing the geology of Mars Preparing for human exploration The MSL will continue the work of the highly successful Spirit and Opportunity rovers and Mars Polar Lander Missions. If you like, you can send your name to the surface of Mars. Enter your name here (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/participate/sendyourname/) and it will be loaded onto a microchip that will travel to Mars as part of the MSL rover. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/133/59/ Fossil footprints found in Kenya have revealed our ancestors were moving around much as we do today, over 1.5 million years ago. Students from the Koobi Fora Field School excavated the footprints between 2006 and 2008. Along with the prints of many animals, they found three sets of human-like footprints. One was probably a child's tracks. The prints were made in fine sand on what was once a riverbank. The sand had been sandwiched between layers of volcanic ash. Scientists estimate the height of the adults to be about 5ft 9in from the stride length. David Braun, an archaeologist from the University of Cape Town in South Africa, told Reuters (http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSTRE51P82420090226): "It was kind of creepy excavating these things to see all of a sudden something that looks so dramatically like something that you yourself could have made 20 minutes earlier in some kind of wet sediment just next to the site. "These could quite easily have been made on the beach today. An international team, led by Professor Matthew Bennett from Bournemouth University in England, has studied the footprints. They published their conclusions in Science (http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/short/323/5918/1197) last week.Professor Bennett says (http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/newsandevents/News/2009/feb/ne008_ancient_footprints.html?srclnk=home): "Our findings from Ileret show that by 1.5 million years ago, these individuals had evolved an essentially modern human foot function and a style of two-footed locomotion that we would recognize today. "Foot bones are rarely preserved because they are small, encased in flesh, and easily consumed by carnivores. "Consequently, our knowledge of foot anatomy and function in our early ancestors is poor. Fossil footprints are rare but when they are found, they provide an invaluable line of evidence. By finding the age of the surrounding ash layers, scientists were able to estimate the age of the footprints to about 1.51 million to 1.53 million years old. They conclude that the prints were likely to have been made by the early hominid Homo ergaster or early Homo erectus. Homo sapiens or modern man first appeared 200,000 years ago. John Harris, a paleoanthropologist at Rutgers University in New Jersey, USA is one or of the co-authors of the Science paper. He told the National Geographic (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/02/090226-oldest-footprints.html): The ancient footprints indicate a rounded heel, pronounced arch and a big toe parallel to the other toes just as modern humans have. The big toes of chimpanzees, by contrast, splay outward, which is useful for grasping branches. "We've lost that, but what we've created is a platform from which we can step up on and balance ourselves on and push off on in bipedal locomotion. Image courtesy of Matthew Bennett/Bournemouth University Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/132/92/ Sixteen-year-old Kimberley Swann has been sacked from Ivell Marketing Logistics in Clacton-on-Sea, England. Her boss, Stephen Ivell had seen comments she had left for her friends on her Facebook page. We all have had a good moan about our jobs from time to time. But from now on, you had better be careful where you do it. Kimberley Swann started work as an office administrator just under a month ago. The first day was not what she had hopped it would be. She posted to Facebook, "first day at work. omg !! So dull!!" Then two days later, "all i do is shred holepunch n scan paper!!! omg!" Another fortnight produced, "im so totally bord!!!" On Feb. 23, Ms Swann was called into the office of boss, Stephen Ivell and sacked on the spot. She was handed a letter and marched from the offices. The letter said: "Following your comments made on Facebook about your job and the company we feel it is better that, as you are not happy and do not enjoy your work, we end your employment with Ivell Marketing Logistics with immediate effect. Ms Swann told the Daily Mail (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1155971/Teenage-office-worker-sacked-moaning-Facebook-totally-boring-job.html): "I didn't even put the company's name, I just put that my job was boring. They were just being nosy, going through everything. I think it is really sad, it makes them look stupid that they are going to be so petty. Is posing a comment on Facebook any different from making the same comments to a friend in a public place? Ms Swann thinks Mr Ivell overreacted, she said: "I was an office administrator, so of course it was boring at first and I knew it would get more interesting. I was happy there, although they said I wasn't. It's not fair. I think it's really out of order but there is nothing I can do now. Mr Ivell told the Daily Mail his firm had done everything by the book: "We were looking for a long-term relationship with Miss Swann as we do with all our staff. Her display of disrespect and dissatisfaction undermined the relationship and made it untenable. "It is unfortunate that we didn't come up to Miss Swann's expectations on this occasion and we wish her every success in the future Mr Ivell appears to be motivated by protecting his company's image. According to Miss Swann: "He called me into the office and said, 'I have seen your comments on Facebook and I don't want my company being in the news.' They said it was not good for the company. If that was the objective then this heavy-handed action has backfired gaining Ivell Marketing Logistics national coverage in the UK MSM and internationally on the internet. However, this is another warning for any users of social media sites. Do not ever consider them private or erasable. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/131/101/ We are altering our world. This cannot continue. From energy efficient light bulbs to carbon footprints, environmental considerations are entering our lives. This trend will grow. Energy efficiency is no longer an optional extra, but an essential design criterion. When you furnish your next home or re-furnace the present one, you will need to think green. When you are looking for energy efficient and environmentally friendly window shades go look at what The Shade Store (http://socialspark.com/metrics/click/post?slot_id=33027&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theshadestore.com%2Fcategory%2Fshades%2Fsolar-shades%2Fview%2Fall) has to offer. These shades are made from of GreenGuard Certified fabrics which will: Absorb heat Block 97 percent of ultra-violet (UV) rays Reduce glare Maintain the view There is a choice of fabric density with three percent the densest and ten percent is the sheerest. Each Solar Shade comes with continuous loop control; a silver beaded chain that allows you to roll the shade up and down easily and precisely. The option of a valance and decorative bottom bar is available. All from $66 and they ship in just five days. For affordable, energy efficient and environmentally friendly window shades go to The Shade Store. The Shade Store is currently offerings exclusively to SocialSpark Bloggers and their readers (that’s you an me) 15 percent off and free shipping on all orders. Just use the code: IZEA01 when ordering. Tim Neale http://www.tomorrow-is-here.org/content/view/129/57/ Bernie Bamford, a 38-year-old aeronautical engineer from Chester in England caused a stir last week with his claim to have found the fabled lost City of Atlantis. Mr Bamford spotted a grid pattern on the sea bad 620 miles off the coast of Africa. On Google Maps (http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=h&ll=31.522361,-24.477539&spn=4.293184,5.916138&z=8) The first mention of Atlantis is by Plato in 360 BC. According to Plato, Atlantis was a naval power lying, "in front of the Pillars of Hercules" or the Straights of Gibraltar. He claimed Atlantis conquered many parts of Western Europe and Africa about 9600 BC. After a failed attempt to invade Athens, Atlantis sank into the ocean, "in a single day and night of misfortune." The legend of Atlantis has grown since then. The Nazis thought Atlanteans were the ancestors of their master race. New Age legend has Atlanteans with psychic powers responsible for building everything from the Pyramids to Stonehenge. Popular culture places Atlantis in another Galaxy. So, the discovery what looks like a street pattern on the sea bed caused quite a stir. However, there are a few problems with the picture. The first is scale. The area covered by the grid is 20 times as big as Greater London. The second is that the lines do not actually appear on the seabed but are an artifact of the way the map making process. In a statement Google said: "It's true that many amazing discoveries have been made in Google Earth -- a pristine forest in Mozambique that is home to previously unknown species, a fringing coral reef off the coast of Australia, and the remains of an Ancient Roman villa, to name just a few. "In this case, however, what users are seeing is an artefact of the data collection process. "Bathymetric (or seafloor terrain) data is often collected from boats using sonar to take measurements of the seafloor. The lines reflect the path of the boat as it gathers the data. So the fabled Lost City of Atlantis Remains lost, who knows it could be in another Galaxy. Tim Neale