Stunning proof.

South Korea paid Russia $20 million to get their first astronaut (participant) in space. Yi So-yeon, a South Korean bioengineer, was picked from 36,000 applicants. She was actually South Korea's second pick. Ko San made a boo boo and, alas, he was replaced.

The Soyuz flight also marked a milestone for the mission commander, Volkov, who became the first second-generation astronaut or cosmonaut to reach space.

Volkov's father, Alexander Volkov, is a decorated cosmonaut from the Soviet era. On his last journey, he left Earth as a Soviet citizen and returned as a citizen of the new Russian Federation, following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

Pretty cool.

Per the KNS today...NASA is having a contest to name the new GLAST (Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope) telescope. Here's your chance to become part of space exploration history!

Before the latest chapter in the search begins for supermassive black holes, new laws of physics and the mysterious dark matter, you’ll have the historic chance to help name the satellite that makes it all possible. This unique opportunity is open to the public across the globe. Now, YOU may be the one to offer the name which will be given to the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) after its launch in 2008. GLAST is NASA’s next generation gamma-ray mission, designed to explore the most extreme phenomena in our Universe and probe energy regimes far beyond anything possible on Earth.

Go here to enter your own suggestion!

I did!...May the best namer win!

The Memphis Pink Palace family of museums is looking for a Collections Manager. Ron Brister, Collections Manager for 37 years, has retired. An opportunity like this comes along once in a lifetime.

Picture of Mars from the "Roving Mars" by Walt Disney Pictures at the IMAX Theater at the Pink Palace.

Find out more about the job on the Pink Palace Museum page, at the bottom, on Art Museum Touring.com (Link...).

The Pink Palace Museum current exhibition is "Gregor Mendel: Planting the Seeds of Genetics" (Bodine Exhibit Hall) through April 27. You can see a couple of the fabulous Burton Callicott Murals commissioned by the WPA on The Pink Palace Mansion page. Both the musem and the mansion have pages on the Art Museum Touring.com (mansion on the page preceding the Pink Palace Museum).

Sherrie

Perfect launch execution, Shuttle Atlantis has just entered Earth orbit...

or Friday or Saturday.

Weather is the watch word at NASA's Kennedy Space Center after meteorologists updated their launch forecast to give space shuttle Atlantis a 30 percent chance of acceptable conditions on Thursday.

The good news for Atlantis and its crew of seven astronauts is that the shuttle is showing no technical issues and liftoff preparations are continuing at the launch pad and in the launch team facilities.

Godspeed, crew of the Atlantis.

Innovation Through Engineering kicks off today at the Knoxville Convention Center and runs through Jan. 10th.

More than 1,000 scientists and engineers from around the world are expected to attend. Keynote speakers are Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and Dr. Jeff Wadsworth, former ORNL Director.

The conference is hosted by U.T. and is sponsored by the National Science Foundation's Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation, which funds research on civil, mechanical, and industrial engineering, engineering design, and manufacturing.

Wired interviews Dr. Bill Bass of the UT Forensic Anthropology Center. Now accepting donations!

I found this incredibly touching.

Link...

"Even up through last week, Alex was working with Dr. Pepperberg on compound words and hard-to-pronounce words. As she put him into his cage for the night last Thursday, she recalled, Alex looked at her and said: “You be good, see you tomorrow. I love you.”

Travel weary, damaged, and trying to beat the storm, the Shuttle Endeavour is heading home. They are preparing to land Tuesday.

Godspeed!

We went up to the Look Rock parking area on the Foothills Parkway for the Perseid meteor show last night. We got there about 12:30 AM and stayed until about 3:30 AM.

I was surprised by the number of people and all the traffic. There were people at just about every pullout, and some of the lower ones were almost full. We saw several people with cameras.

The difference in the number of stars you can see in the darker skies is amazing as compared to the suburbs. The Milky Way is so bright you almost don't need a flashlight. There were so many stars and they were so bright, the Mrs. (our star navigator for the mission) had trouble orienting the various constellations at first. It helped when we finally got out a compass and figured out that North was the opposite direction from what I thought. (I believe I have mentioned before that I am directionally challenged.)

The meteor activity seemed to peak between 1:30 AM and a little after 2 AM. We saw dozens of meteors -- I'd guess around 50, but we weren't counting. Some were quite spectacular. I saw at least one double and a couple of rapid fire bursts of two or three.

I took about two hundred continuous 30 second exposures (actually more, but I deleted a bunch of non-productive shots along the way) using a cable release with a locking trigger and continuous shutter mode, and managed to capture exactly four meteors that I can actually see in the images. There were several more that I was sure I had captured, but I guess they just weren't bright enough. Click read more for the two best, which aren't all that great, and some notes on what I learned.

Anti-gravity device

Atlantis is nearing orbit...

This new Citizen's Voice feature at the KNS is going great. One of their featured voices is Dr. Pete Stevens, a "retired international business and education consultant, researcher, writer, speaker, manager and professor," who today tells us that global warming is a "leftist" hoax.

(The headline on the KNS website says "Another look at the controversial issue of global warming." The print edition headline in bold print on the front page of the editorial section says "A leftist hoax?")

It's not clear what his PhD is in or what his field of research is, and I'm unable to find a reference to him in any published works or professional directories. (I was able to find a couple of irrational, radical rightwing rants on his website.)

Whatever his qualifications are, I'm sure his climatology credentials are stellar. Or that at least his status as an amateur climatologist is well established. And he cites one of the most respected climatologist of our time, whose credentials are beyond repute:

The global warming scare is, as John Stossel says, junk science and merely the latest anti-capitalism and anti-America leftist hoax.

Indeed.

Let's look at some of Dr. Stevens' studied assertions so that we might learn more about this hoax.

Read more...

You've probably heard about the growing concerns regarding Colony Collapse Disorder, which is wiping out honeybee populations around the world. The cause is a mystery, and there is concern that the disappearance of bees could lead the disappearance of the food crops they pollinate.

Today's Knoxville News Sentinel has an article about the findings of two U.T. associate professors of entomology and plant biology suggesting that infection by tiny tracheal mites could be the cause of the problem.

Other theories include:

• Genetically altered crops

• Fungus

• Pesticides

• Cell phones

• Fulfillment of Bible prophecy

Whatever the cause, the consensus is clear: It's not nice to mess with Mother Nature!

Stacey X apparently missed a huge opportunity for more free publicity at the expense of East Tennessee's image.

A Georgia state representative got associated with an anti-evolution memo put out by an outfit that says evolution and the Big Bang are all bunk and part of a vast Jewish conspiracy going back thousands of years.

Bonus, the outfit's website, FixedEarth.com, says the Earth does not rotate and does not revolve around the Sun:

The Earth is not rotating...nor is it going around the sun.

The universe is not one ten trillionth the size we are told.

Today’s cosmology fulfills an anti-Bible religious plan disguised as "science".

The whole scheme from Copernicanism to Big Bangism is a factless lie.

Those lies have planted the Truth-killing virus of evolutionism in every aspect of man’s "knowledge" about the Universe, the Earth, and Himself.

OK, then.

Don't forget, the great Backyard Bird Count starts today.

Northern Flicker in Lakemoor Hills this past Wednesday.

The Great Backyard Bird Count starts this Friday, Feb. 16th and goes through Monday, Feb. 19th.

What it is:

The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes. It’s free, fun, and easy—and it helps the birds.

Why do it:

Scientists and bird enthusiasts can learn a lot by knowing where the birds are. Bird populations are dynamic; they are constantly in flux. No single scientist or team of scientists could hope to document the complex distribution and movements of so many species in such a short time.

What to do:

1. Plan to count birds for at least 15 minutes during February 16–19, 2007. Count birds at as many places and on as many days as you like—just keep a separate list of counts for each day and/or location.

2. Count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time, and write it down.

3. Enter your results on the Great Backyard Bird Count web site!

Follow the above links for more info. It's a great educational outdoors/nature activity for the kids and fun for the entire family.

Here are the statistics from last year's GBBC:

Total Checklists Submitted: 60,503
Total Species Observed: 622
Total Individual Birds Counted: 7,594,742

Among Tennessee reporting localities for 2006, the Knoxville area topped the list with 81 species and 161 reports, which was more than double the nearest location (Nashville) with 78 reports.

You can view all the results from last year's count here. When the count gets underway, post yours in comments here!

Now if we could just send the rest of them ALONG WITH HER.

NANOTECHNOLOGY will someday protect us from terrorists. But it's a double-edged sword that must never fall into the hands of terrorists. Vigilance is the watchword of the day.

Kuja, a 23 year old gorilla, died at the National Zoo during heart surgery. The report says the gorilla became lethargic and had a loss of appetite about a month ago. I'm certain it had nothing to do with this.

Although there appears to be no real and permanent method for us to defend ourselves from fire ant encroachment, there is a "myrmecologist — a biologist who specializes in ants" defending fire ants.

Tschinkel says, "people should just leave them alone unless allergic to their venom. Otherwise they do no harm". I don't believe this for a minute. Try walking through a field and not looking down to avoid a fire ant hill. You stop to admire a scene or just rest. Fire ants are fast and plenty. Before you know it your ankle and foot are covered, you are stung many times in the process of trying to brush off the ants. The sting hurts and you have multiple wounds. Days later your wounds still look like you are recovering from leprosy.

Tschinkel has spent 35 years studying fire ants. He now has a 723 page book on this topic. Scientists/academics sure have interesting lives.

As with so many recent critical warnings, this one too will be ignored.

"The system of environmental satellites is at risk of collapse," said Richard A. Anthes, president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. "Every year that goes by without the system being addressed is a problem."

. 

Scientists warn that the consequences of neglecting Earth-observing satellites could have more than academic consequences. It is possible that when a big volcano starts rumbling in the Pacific Northwest, a swarm of tornadoes sweeps through Oklahoma or a massive hurricane bears down on New Orleans, the people in harm's way — and those responsible for their safety — will have a lot less information than they'd like about the impending threat.

When will the United States Government return to focusing on our degrading infrastructure?