Jump to content
Χρήστος Λάππας

Το διάβασα στο internet...

Recommended Posts

Πολλές φορές τυχαίνει να διαβάσουμε κάτι στο internet που βρήκαμε ενδιαφέρον. Από εδώ και στο εξής μπορούμε να το μοιραστούμε με το υπόλοιπο snowclub παραθέτοντας τον δεσμό εδώ. Δεν είναι ανάγκη να έχει σχέση με την χιονοδρομία, μπορεί να έχει να κάνει με την επικαιρότητα, επιστήμη, οτιδήποτε, αρκεί να σας τράβηξε το μάτι. Εξυπακούεται ότι οι δεσμοί είναι ανοιχτοί σε σχολιασμό και κριτική. Δεν επιτρέπονται παραπομπές σε πολιτικά, καθώς αυτό είναι αντίθετο στους κανονισμούς του snowclub forum.

Να σημειωθεί ότι είναι σημαντικό να αναφέρουμε την πηγή, ή να παραθέτουμε δεσμό στην ιστοσελίδα

Και για να αρχίσουμε...

How low can the crime rate go?


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ζώνη χαμηλής εκπομπής ρύπων στο Λονδίνο

Με πρόστιμο περίπου τριακοσίων ευρώ απειλούνται από σήμερα οι οδηγοί των πιο ρυπογόνων φορτηγών που κυκλοφορούν στους δρόμους του Λονδίνου, στο πλαίσιο του νέου μέτρου που προβλέπει τη δημιουργία της πρώτης Ζώνης Χαμηλής Εκπομπής Ρύπων στη Βρετανία. Σκοπός του μέτρου είναι η βελτίωση της ποιότητας του αέρα στη βρετανική πρωτεύουσα, καθώς υπολογίζεται ότι η ρύπανση της ατμόσφαιρας ευθύνεται για το θάνατο περίπου χιλίων Λονδρέζων το χρόνο, προκαλώντας ασθένειες όπως άσθμα ή καρδιαγγειακά νοσήματα.

 

Η ζώνη καλύπτει 1.580 τετραγωνικά χιλιόμετρα και ισχύει επί 24ώρου βάσεως. Αρχικά, θα απαγορεύεται η κυκλοφορία στα φορτηγά και ημιφορτηγά ντίζελ άνω των 12 τόνων, καθώς υπερβαίνουν το όριο της εκπομπής σωματιδίων σε ποσότητα 0,05 γραμμαρίων ανά χιλιόμετρο. Το μέτρο θα επεκταθεί σταδιακά ώστε να καλύπτει τελικά όλα τα ρυπογόνα λεωφορεία και μίνι λεωφορεία, πούλμαν, μικρότερα φορτηγά και τροχόσπιτα. Από το μέτρο θα εξαιρούνται τα Ι.Χ. αυτοκίνητα και οι μοτοσικλέτες.

 

Οι εταιρείες που υποχρεώνονται να προχωρήσουν στις απαραίτητες μετατροπές των μηχανών των φορτηγών τους υποστηρίζουν ότι το μέτρο είναι εξαιρετικά κοστοβόρο, ωστόσο η υπηρεσία του δήμου του Λονδίνου που εφαρμόζει το μέτρο το χαρακτηρίζει ως αναγκαίο για τη βελτίωση της ποιότητας ζωής των Λονδρέζων. Η αποτελεσματικότητα της Ζώνης Χαμηλής Εκπομπής Ρύπων θα παρακολουθείται και από άλλες βρετανικές πόλεις, ενώ παρόμοια μέτρα σχεδιάζονται σε δεκάδες ευρωπαϊκές πόλεις, σε χώρες όπως η Νορβηγία, η Ολλανδία και η Γερμανία.

 

 

.............................................

Άντε να δούμε πότε θα εφαρμοστεί και στην Αθήνα το μέτρο.


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Tobacco to Kill 1 Billion by 2100

 

(NEW YORK) — Tobacco use killed 100 million people worldwide in the 20th century and could kill one billion people in the 21st unless governments act now to dramatically reduce it, the World Health Organization said in a report Thursday.

 

Governments around the world collect more than $200 billion in tobacco taxes every year but spend less than one fifth of 1 percent of that revenue on tobacco control, it said.

"We hold in our hands the solution to the global tobacco epidemic that threatens the lives of one billion men, women and children during this century," WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan said in an introduction to the report.

 

The WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2008 calls on all countries to dramatically increase efforts to prevent young people from beginning to smoke, help smokers quit, and protect nonsmokers from exposure to second hand smoke.

 

It urges governments to adopt six "tobacco control policies" — raise taxes and prices of tobacco; ban tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship; protect people from second hand smoke; warn people about the dangers of tobacco; help those who want to quit smoking; and monitor tobacco use to understand and reverse the epidemic. "The tobacco epidemic already kills 5.4 million people a year from lung cancer, heart disease and other illnesses," Chan said. "Unchecked, that number will increase to more than 8 million a year by 2030."

 

Chan was launching the report with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, helped fund it.

 

According to the report, nearly two thirds of the world's smokers live in 10 countries — China, which accounts for nearly 30 percent, India for about 10 percent, Indonesia, Russia, the United States, Japan, Brazil, Bangladesh, Germany and Turkey. It forecast that more than :P percent of tobacco-related deaths will be in low- and middle-income countries by 2030.

 

Tobacco use is growing fastest in low-income countries, the report said, "due to steady population growth coupled with tobacco industry targeting, ensuring that millions of people become fatally addicted each year."

While standard cigarettes are most common, WHO said other types of smoked tobacco are also "lethal," including small hand-rolled cigarettes called bidis which are smoked in India and other Southeast Asian nations, clove and tobacco cigarettes called Kreteks smoked in Indonesia, and tobacco cured with flavorings known as shisha smoked from water pipes.

 

It warned that "the shift of the tobacco epidemic to the developing world will lead to unprecedented levels of disease and early death in countries where population growth and the potential for increased tobacco use are highest and where health care services are least available. "In the 20th century, the tobacco epidemic killed 100 million people worldwide," the report said. "Unless urgent action is taken, more than one billion people could be killed by tobacco during this century."

 

Only 86 of 193 countries surveyed have recent data on tobacco use for both adults and youths. Seventy-four countries still allow smoking in health care institutions and about the same number allow smoking in schools. And more than half the countries, with two-thirds of the world's population, allow smoking in government offices and workplaces, the report said.

 

Only two countries — Uruguay and New Zealand — had both comprehensive smoke-free laws and high enforcement, it said. For the tobacco industry to survive, and keep existing customers hooked and attract new customers, "it spends tens of billions of dollars a year on advertising, promotion and sponsorship," WHO said.

 

(Από το TIME)


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

How a Lunar Eclipse Saved Columbus

 

By Joe Rao

SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist

 

080208-ns-LunarEclipseSavedColumbus-01.jpg

 

On the night of Feb. 20, the full moon will pass into Earth's shadow in an event that will be visible across all of the United States and Canada.

 

The total lunar eclipse will be made even more striking by the presence of the nearby planet Saturn and the bright bluish star, Regulus.

 

Eclipses in the distant past often terrified viewers who took them as evil omens. Certain lunar eclipses had an overwhelming effect on historic events. One of the most famous examples is the trick pulled by Christopher Columbus.

 

Shipwrecked

On Oct. 12, 1492, as every schoolchild has been taught, Columbus came ashore on an island northeast of Cuba. He later named it San Salvador (Holy Savior). Over the next ten years Columbus would make three more voyages to the "New World," which only bolstered his belief that he reached the Far East by sailing West.

 

It was on his fourth and final voyage, while exploring the coast of Central America that Columbus found himself in dire straits. He left Cádiz, Spain on May 11, 1502, with the ships Capitana, Gallega, Vizcaína and Santiago de Palos. Unfortunately, thanks to an epidemic of shipworms eating holes in the planking of his fleet, Columbus' was forced to abandon two of his ships and finally had to beach his last two caravels on the north coast of Jamaica on June 25, 1503.

 

Initially, the Jamaican natives welcomed the castaways, providing them with food and shelter, but as the days dragged into weeks, tensions mounted. Finally, after being stranded for more than six months, half of Columbus' crew mutinied, robbing and murdering some of the natives, who, themselves grew weary of supplying cassava, corn and fish in exchange for little tin whistles, trinkets, hawk's bells and other rubbishy goods.

 

With famine now threatening, Columbus formulated a desperate, albeit ingenious plan.

 

Almanac to the rescue

Coming to the Admiral's rescue was Johannes Müller von Königsberg (1436-1476), known by his Latin pseudonym Regiomontanus. He was an important German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer.

 

Before his death, Regiomontanus published an almanac containing astronomical tables covering the years 1475-1506. Regiomontanus' almanac turned out to be of great value, for his astronomical tables provided detailed information about the sun, moon and planets, as well as the more important stars and constellations by which to navigate. After it was published, no sailor dared set out without a copy. With its help, explorers were able to leave their customary routes and venture out into the unknown seas in search of new frontiers.

 

Columbus, of course, had a copy of the Almanac with him when he was stranded on Jamaica. And he soon discovered from studying its tables that on the evening of Thursday, Feb. 29, 1504, a total eclipse of the moon would take place soon after the time of moonrise.

 

Armed with this knowledge, three days before the eclipse, Columbus asked for a meeting with the natives Cacique ("chief") and announced to him that his Christian god was angry with his people for no longer supplying Columbus and his men with food. Therefore, he was about to provide a clear sign of his displeasure: Three nights hence, he would all but obliterate the rising full moon, making it appear "inflamed with wrath," which would signify the evils that would soon be inflicted upon all of them.

 

Bad moon rising

On the appointed evening, as the Sun set in the West and the moon started emerging from beyond the eastern horizon, it was plainly obvious to all that something was terribly wrong. By the time the moon appeared in full view, its lower edge was missing!

 

And, just over an hour later, as full darkness descended, the moon indeed exhibited an eerily inflamed and "bloody" appearance: In place of the normally brilliant late winter full moon there now hung a dim red ball in the eastern sky.

 

According to Columbus' son, Ferdinand, the natives were terrified at this sight and ". . . with great howling and lamentation came running from every direction to the ships laden with provisions, praying to the Admiral to intercede with his god on their behalf." They promised that they would gladly cooperate with Columbus and his men if only he would restore the moon back to its normal self. The great explorer told the natives that he would have to retire to confer privately with his god. He then shut himself in his cabin for about fifty minutes.

 

"His god" was a sandglass that Columbus turned every half hour to time the various stages of the eclipse, based on the calculations provided by Regiomontanus' almanac.

 

Just moments before the end of the total phase Columbus reappeared, announcing to the natives that his god had pardoned them and would now allow the moon to gradually return. And at that moment, true to Columbus' word, the moon slowly began to reappear and as it emerged from the Earth's shadow, the grateful natives hurried away. They then kept Columbus and his men well supplied and well fed until a relief caravel from Hispaniola finally arrived on June 29, 1504. Columbus and his men returned to Spain on Nov. 7.

 

Another side to the story

In an interesting postscript to this story, in 1889, Mark Twain, likely influenced by the eclipse trick, wrote the novel, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. In it, his main character, Hank Morgan, used a gambit similar to Columbus'.

 

Morgan is about to be burned at the stake, so he "predicts" a solar eclipse he knows will occur, and in the process, claimed power over the sun. He gladly offers to return the sun to the sky in return for his freedom and a position as "perpetual minister and executive" to the king.

 

The only problem with this story is that on the date that Mark Twain quoted — June 21, 528 A.D. — no such eclipse took place. In fact, the moon was three days past full, a setup that can't generate an eclipse.

Perhaps he should have consulted an almanac!


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ιντρεστινγκ. Τραβηγμένο απο τα μαλλιά. Είχα σκεφτεί οτι κάποια στιγμή στο μέλλον μπορεί να συνέβαινε, αλλα όχι τόσο σύντομα :P

 

Επισυνάπτω PDF

 

_______facebook_12022008.pdf


no friends on a powder day

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Was A Satellite Shootdown Necessary?

 

sm3_missle_0220.jpg

 

It's a measure of how peacefully human beings have used space in the 50-plus years we've been traveling there that we're a whole lot better at putting things into orbit than we are at blowing them back out. That, of course, is a function of practice. Thousands of pieces of machinery have been lofted into space since the launch of Sputnik in 1957 and almost all of them have either tumbled back down on their own or simply remained in orbit.

 

This week, the Pentagon tried something different. On Wednesday evening, it announced that it successfully launched a sea-based missile and shot down a crippled satellite gliding 150 miles overhead, in a $60 million effort to blast it out of the sky before it could tumble home and hurt someone. It's been a neat little feat on the part of the military planners — but that doesn't mean they're telling the whole truth about why they bothered in the first place.

 

The clay pigeon in the military's cross hairs was an unnamed, 5,000-lb. spy satellite that was launched in 2006 and never quite got its purchase in space, suffering a malfunction almost immediately upon its arrival in orbit. Comparatively low-orbiting craft like this one tumble back to Earth faster than high-orbiting ones, as the upper wisps of the planet's atmosphere produce increasing amounts of drag, pulling the object lower and lower. This one was on a trajectory that would have caused it to begin its terminal plunge sometime in March, sending it on a fiery descent that should have entirely — or at least mostly — incinerated it.

 

So why make the effort at such a complicated bit of sharpshooting just to bag a target that was coming down anyway? The Pentagon says it's all about safety. Five thousand pounds of out-of-control satellite can do an awful lot of damage if it drops on the wrong spot. What's more, this particular satellite is carrying a 500-lb. tank of frozen hydrazine fuel — nasty stuff if you're unlucky enough to inhale it. Striking the ground at reentry speed, the gas could immediately disperse over a patch of ground as big as two football fields.

None of this, however, was likely to happen. For one thing, 70% of the Earth's surface is water. Even considering that the flight paths of most satellites are designed to carry them over as much land as possible, that's still a lot of uninhabited square mileage lying below. NASA acknowledges that 3,000 satellites and 6,000 pieces of space debris are currently circling the planet — a pretty huge swarm of potentially incoming rubbish to justify devoting so much attention to just one.

 

The hydrazine argument is similarly suspect. It's extremely hard for a spacecraft component to survive reentry even if you want it to. The scientific experiments carried aboard the Apollo lunar modules were powered by radioactive fuel, which was itself encased in heavy ceramic just to ensure that it would survive such an accident. Even then, there were white knuckles whenever one flew since the risk existed that an uncontrolled reentry would crack the cask and leak radiation. The hydrazine tank — a hollow vessel — is nowhere near as robust and is unlikely to make it through the heat and aerodynamic violence of the plunge that awaits it, meaning that it will spill its contents high in the atmosphere, where it will represent barely a breath of gas that will disperse harmlessly.

 

The more believable explanation for the duck hunt is that it's been an exercise in politics rather than safety. Washington was none too pleased in January of 2007 when China shot down one of its own weather satellites after it had outlived its usefulness, a bit of technological sword-rattling that proved it could target any other nation's orbiting hardware with equal ease. Beijing too made vague claims of worrying about the public weal, but Washington saw the act more as the political statement it probably was, and concluded — correctly — that American spy satellites are not quite as safe as they once were. An American shootdown would be one way to return the gesture. The timing is particularly suspicious since Russia and China issued a joint condemnation of the militarization of space only days before the Pentagon went public with its plans. While Beijing's sudden pacifism is hardly credible after it own exercise in cosmic skeet-shooting, neither is the Washington's insistence that there is no linkage between the two events.

 

Another possibility is that the Pentagon was indeed nervous about something aboard the satellite, but not the tank of fuel. Spy satellites are, by definition, made of secret hardware, and nothing so pleases one military power as the chance to seize and pick over the technology of another. Should American camera and communications components fall into the wrong hands, whatever tactical advantage was gained in developing them would be lost.

 

With success announced on Wednesday night, the Pentagon is hardly likely to change its explanation now. They say the mission to destroy the satellite been accomplished, and —for now—any questions that it's raised may be gone along with it.

 

(TIME magazine)


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Απίστευτο να ζείς εκει..Πως να είναι άραγε??

Ο λόγος για το..

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is a U.S. research station at the south Pole, in Antartica

 

350px-Amundsen-scott-south_pole_station_2006.jpg350px-SPSM.05.jpg

 

Description and History[/size]

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is the southernmost continually inhabited place on the planet. Its name honors Roald Amundsen who reached the South Pole in 1911, and Robert F. Scott who reached the South Pole in 1912.

 

It was constructed in November 1956 to support the International Geophysical Year in 1957, and has been continuously occupied since then. It currently lies within 100 meters (330 ft) of the Geographic South Pole, and drifts towards the pole at the rate of about 10 meters per year. Although the US has continuously maintained an installation at the South Pole since 1957, the central berthing, galley, and communications units have been constructed and relocated several times. Each of the installations containing these central units has been named the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station.

 

Snow accumulation is about 60–:lol: millimeters (water equivalent) per year (3 in/yr). The station stands at an elevation of 2,835 meters (9,301 ft) on the interior of Antarctica's nearly featureless ice sheet, about 2,850 meters (9,350 ft) thick at that location. Recorded temperature has varied between −13.6 °C (7.52 °F) and −82.8 °C (−117 °F). Annual mean is −49 °C (−56 °F); monthly means vary from −28 °C (−18 °F) in December to −60 °C (−76 °F) in July. Average wind is 5.5 m/s (12 mph); peak gust recorded was 27 m/s (60 mph)

 

 

Original station (1957–1975)

 

The original South Pole station, now referred to as "Old Pole", was constructed by an 18-man United States Navy crew during 1956–1957. The crew landed on site in October 1956 and was the first group to winter-over at the South Pole, during 1957. Since the winter conditions at the South Pole had never been measured, the station was built partially underground in order to protect it from the worst imaginable weather. The low temperature recorded during 1957 was −74 °C (−102 °F). These temperatures, combined with low humidity and low air pressure, are only manageable with proper protection.

 

As with all structures at the South Pole, the original station caused wind-blown snow to build up in the surrounding area. This snow accumulation resulted in the structure being further buried by about four feet of snow per year. The station, abandoned since 1975, is now deeply buried, and the pressure has caused the mostly wooden roof to cave in. The site is therefore a hazardous area and off limits to all visitors.

 

On 3 January 1958 Sir Edmund Hillary's New Zealand part of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition reached the station over land from Scott Base, followed shortly by Sir Vivian Fuchs' British scientific component.

 

800px-Pole-from-air.jpg

An aerial view of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station taken circa 1983. The central dome is shown along with the arches, and various storage containers and support structures

Dome (1975–2003)

 

The station was relocated and rebuilt in 1975 as a geodesic dome 50 meters wide and 16 meters high, with 14×24 m steel archways, modular buildings, fuel bladders, and equipment. Detached buildings within the dome house instruments for monitoring the upper and lower atmosphere and for numerous and complex projects in astronomy and astrophysics. The station also included the skylab, a box-shaped tower slightly taller than the dome and accessible by tunnel. The skylab housed atmospheric sensor equipment and later a music room.

 

During the 1970–1974 summers, the dome construction workers were housed in Korean War tents, or "jamesways". These tents consist of a wooden frame with a raised platform covered by canvas. A double-doored exit is at each end. Although the tents are heated, the heating power is not sufficient to keep them at room temperature during the winter. After several jamesways burnt down during the 1976–1977 summer, the construction camp was abandoned and later removed.

 

However, starting in the 1981–1982 summer, extra seasonal personnel have been housed in a group of jamesways known as "summer camp". Initially consisting of only two jamesways, summer camp now has 11 berthing tents housing about 10 people each, two recreational tents and bathroom and gym structures. In addition, a number of science and berthing structures, such as the hypertats and elevated dorm, were added in the 1990s, particularly for astronomy and astrophysics.

 

 

 

800px-Amundsen-Scott_South_Pole_Station.jpg

The main entrance to the dome ramps down from the surface level. The dome base was originally at the surface level of the ice cap, but has been slowly buried in snow drift.

 

 

During the period in which the dome served as the main station, many changes to US South Pole operation took place. From the 1990s on, astrophysical research conducted at the South Pole took advantage of its favorable atmospheric conditions and began to produce important scientific results.

Such experiments include the Python, Viper, and DASI telescopes, as well as the 10 m South Pole Telescope. The AMANDA / IceCube experiment makes use of the two-mile (3 km)-thick ice sheet to detect neutrinos which have passed through the earth. An observatory building, the Martin A. Pomerantz Observatory (MAPO), was dedicated in 1995. The importance of these projects changed the priorities in station operation, increasing the status of scientific cargo and personnel.

The 1998–1999 summer season was the last year that the US Navy operated the five to six LC-130 Hercules service fleet. Beginning in 1999–2000, the New York Air National Guard's 109th Airlift Wing took responsibility for the daily cargo and passenger ("PAX") flights between McMurdo Station and the South Pole during the summer.

 

 

 

Elevated Station (2003-present)

 

Design of the building started in 1992 by Ferraro Choi & Associates. Structural engineering was performed by BBFM Engineers. Their design was of an 80,000 ft² (7,400 m²), 2-story building that cost $150 million.

 

Construction of a new station, adjacent to the Dome, began in 1999. Features of the new station included a modular design, to accommodate an increasing station population, and an adjustable elevation, in order to prevent the station from being buried in snow. The building faces into the wind with a sloping lower portion of wall. This angled wall increases the speed of the wind as it passes underneath, causing the snow to be scoured away and keeping the building from being quickly buried. Wind tunnel tests show that scouring will continue to occur until the snow level reaches the second floor.

 

In a location where about 20 cm (8 inches) of snow accumulates every year without ever thawing, the building's rounded corners and edges help reduce snow drifts. Because snow gradually settles over time under its own weight, the foundations of the building were designed to accommodate substantial differential settlements over any one wing, any one line, or any one column. If differential settlement continues, the supported structure will need to be jacked and leveled.

 

The facility was designed to be jacked up an entire story, so the primary building columns are outboard of the walls. During jacking, a new height of column will be added over the existing columns, and jacks will pull the building up to the higher elevation.

 

89 59'51.19" S, 139 16'22.41" E

 

 

800px-Amundsen-Scott_marsstation_ray_h_edit.jpg

 

A photo of the station in the night. The new station can be seen at far left, power plant in the center and the old mechanic's garage in the lower right. The green light in the background is Aurora Australis.

 

 

Airstrip

The station has a runway for aircraft (ICAO: NZSP), 3658 m / 12000 ft long. Between October and February, there are several flights per day of ski-equipped LC-130 Hercules aircraft from McMurdo to supply the station. Resupply missions are collectively termed Operation Deep Freeze.

 

Dimensional cargo capacity of the Hercules aircraft must be considered for all of the station's logistical support. Large scientific experiments and structures such as the new station are broken down into modular pieces and reassembled on-site. Limitations of the Hercules aircraft have been cited by the National Science Foundation as one of the main reasons for the McMurdo-South Pole highway of an over-ice ground supply route.

 

800px-South_Pole_cargo.jpg

The South Pole cargo crew unloads passengers from an LC-130. In order to prevent hydraulic fluids and fuel from freezing, the engines are kept running while the plane is on the ground.

 

Operation

During the summer the station population is typically over 200. Most personnel leave by the middle of February, leaving several dozen (86 in 2005) "winter-overs", mostly support staff plus a few scientists, who keep the station functional through the months of Antarctic night. The winter personnel are isolated between mid-February and late October. Wintering-over offers notorious dangers and stresses, as the station population is almost totally isolated. The station is completely self-sufficient, and powered by three generators running on JP-8 jet fuel.

 

Research at the station includes glaciology, geophysics, meteorology, upper atmosphere physics, astronomy, astrophysics, and biomedical studies. Most of the scientists work in low-frequency astronomy; the low temperature and low moisture content of the polar air, combined with the altitude of over 2743 m (9,000 ft), causes the air to be far more transparent on some frequencies than is typical elsewhere, and the months of darkness permit sensitive equipment to run constantly.

 

Time zone

The South Pole sees the sun rise and set only once a year, technically on the Autumnal equinox on September 21 and the Vernal equinox in March, respectively, but atmospheric refraction means that the sun is above the horizon for some four days longer at each equinox. The station uses New Zealand time (UTC+12, UTC+13 during daylight saving time) since all flights to McMurdo station depart from Christchurch and therefore all official travel from the pole goes through New Zealand

 

 

 

 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

 

 

 

και σε συνέχεια του παραπάνω πόστ μου ο Νότιος Πόλος σε απ'ευθείας συνδεση.. :unsure:

 

South Pole Live Camera This photo is of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station taken every 15 minutes (if a relay satellite is available for transmission) from the roof of the National Science Foundation's Atmospheric Research Observatory which houses NOAA/ESRL's Clean Air Facility. In order to preserve the life of the camera, it is tilted down onto the snow when the sun is in the field of view, which occurs for several weeks around sunset (March) and sunrise (September) when the sun marches in a circle above the horizon. From mid-April until mid-August the moon and the aurora australis provide the only natural lighting.

 

The new station can be seen to the right in the photo; the old (circa 1973) domed station is to the left. The new station is elevated above the snow to prevent it being buried by the drifting snow (the present fate of the old domed station).

 

 

Most Recent Image

cmdlfullsize.jpg


Skiing is a dance, and the mountain always leads.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Earthquake felt across much of UK

 

The biggest earthquake in the UK for nearly 25 years has shaken homes across large parts of the country. People in Newcastle, Yorkshire, London, Cumbria, the Midlands, Norfolk and also parts of Wales, felt the tremor just before 0100 GMT.

 

A man suffered a broken pelvis when a chimney collapsed in South Yorkshire.

 

The British Geological Survey (BGS) said the epicentre of the 5.2 magnitude quake was near Market Rasen in Lincolnshire.

 

Davie Galloway, seismologist for the BGS, said people had reported feeling the tremor from as far as Bangor in Northern Ireland to the west, Haarlem in Holland to the east, Plymouth to the south and Edinburgh to the north.

 

Student David Bates, 19, suffered a broken pelvis when he was pinned under masonry in his attic bedroom in Barnsley Road, Wombwell, South Yorks.

 

His father Paul Bates said: "There was a rumble and then we heard a bang and my son screaming 'Dad'."

 

His son was taken to hospital and was due to undergo surgery later.

 

Bev Finnegan, who lives in Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, said: "I was terrified to be honest. The noise was really, really terrifying... it was so deep and rumbling.

 

"It felt like the roof was going to fall in. There were people coming out in their dressing gowns wondering what it was. It was quite an experience."

 

A Lincolnshire police spokeswoman said the force had received dozens of calls from residents but there were no reports of anyone in the county being injured.

 

_44453930_market_rasen_map203.gif

 

 

There is slight structural damage, cracks and a couple of chimneys damaged. There's nothing serious at present," she said.

 

"Mostly people were distressed by it so there were a large quantity of calls coming in."

 

Speaking from Gainsborough, Mike Thomas, chief fire officer for Lincolnshire, said crews had been called out to 50 incidents and one fire as a result of the quake.

 

And Justin Cowell, in Gainsborough, told BBC News that it "started as a massive shake".

 

"People had come out into the street. It seemed the whole town had woken up."

 

Tom Edwards, from Heckington, Lincolnshire, said he heard a noise like "an underground train and an enormous roar".

 

"I thought I was probably going to get killed." _44453868_quake_203.gif

 

 

 

Dr Brian Baptie, of the BGS, said: "An earthquake of this size, of magnitude five or thereabouts, will occur roughly every 10 to 20 years in the UK.

 

"So we can get these kind of moderate to significant earthquakes of this size but they're relatively rare."

 

The BGS recorded an aftershock with a magnitude of 1.8 at about 0400 GMT.

 

The main 10-second quake, which struck at 0056 GMT at a depth of 15.4km (9.6 miles), was the biggest recorded example since one with a magnitude of 5.4 struck north Wales in 1984.

 

Thousands of people from across England contacted the BBC to described how their homes shook during the tremor.

 

Jemma Harrison, 22, in Bury, Greater Manchester, said: "It was really bad. I was fast asleep and woke up and the room was shaking and there was a loud bang and alarms were going off."

 

Natasha Cavey, in Tipton in the West Midlands, said: "All my cupboard doors flew open and the whole house shook, it was unreal. I can't believe it."

 

David in Alrewas in Staffordshire said: "The birds were flying around like it was daylight.

 

"It was quite severe. I experienced the Dudley one and this was more severe.

 

"I went outside to see if the roof had collapsed. I could see the furniture in the room moving, it was like it was on a jelly mould."

 

Dr Baptie said: "The largest earthquake that we know about that has struck the UK was about 100km off the east coast of England on the Dogger Bank and it had a magnitude of 6.1.

 

David Somerset, 41, from Driffield near Beverley in East Yorkshire, said: "I have never felt one as strong as that one before. I was in my sitting room and the grandfather clock was rattling rather violently.

 

Philip Norton, a BBC reporter for Look North in Hull, said: "Everything started wobbling.

 

"The windows were rattling and the blinds were visibly moving. It sounded like the roof was coming in."

 

BBC reporter Lynn Crombie in Norwich said she was "absolutely terrified" and thought somebody "had driven into the side of the house".

 

"Then I thought somebody must have kicked the door in and everything continued to rattle inside the house," she said.

 

Jamil Ali in Sheffield said: "I woke up and the first thing I thought was that there were a load of burglars in the house.

 

"The kids were screaming and so was my wife. It was that violent you actually moved yourself."

 

The West Midlands was hit by an earthquake in 2002 in the Dudley area that reached a magnitude of 5.0 and one measuring 4.3 hit Folkestone in Kent last year.


Skiing is a dance, and the mountain always leads.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ο άγνωστος πόλεμος του Τζορτζ Μπους

 

H επιστήμη και η έρευνα συγκαταλέγονται στις παράπλευρες απώλειες της οκταετίας του 43ου Αμερικανού προέδρου

Το ραντεβού με όλους τους υποψηφίους προέδρους της Αμερικής στις φετινές προεδρικές εκλογές έχει κλειστεί για τις 18 Φεβρουαρίου, στη Φιλαδέλφεια. Αν ο Ομπάμα, η Κλίντον και ο Μακέιν προσέλθουν, μπορεί να παρακολουθήσουμε μια από τις πιο ενδιαφέρουσες αντιπαραθέσεις στην ιστορία των αμερικανικών εκλογών. Αντικείμενο του διαλόγου: Οι θέσεις των υποψηφίων για τις μεγάλες προκλήσεις που θέτει η σύγχρονη επιστήμη -από το φαινόμενο του θερμοκηπίου και τις εναλλακτικές μορφές ενέργειας, μέχρι την έρευνα με βλαστοκύτταρα, τον νέο «πόλεμο των άστρων» και το μέλλον της ιατρικής περίθαλψης, σε μια χώρα όπου 47 εκατομμύρια πολίτες δεν έχουν την παραμικρή ασφάλιση.

 

Η πρωτοβουλία ξεκίνησε τον περασμένο Δεκέμβριο από μια διακομματική ομάδα επιστημόνων και πολιτικών. Τη σχετική έκκληση, η οποία δημοσιεύεται στον διαδικτυακό τόπο της πρωτοβουλίας (www.sciencedebate 2008.com), έχουν υπογράψει 12 νομπελίστες, μέλη του Κογκρέσου, διάσημα πανεπιστήμια, το Εθνικό Ινστιτούτο Ιατρικής και η Ακαδημία Επιστημών. Η έκκληση ακούγεται και σαν κραυγή αγωνίας. Σύμφωνα με τη Σίρλεϊ Τζάκσον, πρόεδρο του Πολυτεχνείου του Ρενσελίαρ (του αρχαιότερου ερευνητικού ινστιτούτου της χώρας), η Αμερική μαστίζεται από μια «αθόρυβη κρίση», καθώς το εκπαιδευτικό σύστημα έχει πάψει από καιρό να δημιουργεί τους επιστήμονες και τους τεχνικούς που χρειάζεται.

 

Κατηγορητήριο από 49 νομπελίστες

Οι λόγοι είναι πολλοί, αλλά ένας από τους σοβαρότερους είναι αυτό που η Χίλαρι Κλίντον καυτηριάζει ως ακήρυκτο «πόλεμο του Τζορτζ Μπους εναντίον της επιστήμης». Το 2006, περισσότεροι από 6.000 επιστήμονες, μεταξύ των οποίων 49 νομπελίστες και 154 μέλη Εθνικών Ακαδημιών Επιστημών, είχαν υπογράψει διακήρυξη εναντίον του 43ου Αμερικανού προέδρου, καταλογίζοντάς του πληθώρα αντιεπιστημονικών πρακτικών λόγω των εξαρτήσεών του από την ιδεοληπτική, Χριστιανική Δεξιά, το ενεργειακό λόμπι και από άλλα οργανωμένα συμφέροντα. Το κατηγορητήριο εναντίον του Τζορτζ Μπους είναι μακρύ. Ενδεικτικά:

 

- Αμφισβήτησε τις προειδοποιήσεις των επιστημόνων για την υπερθέρμανση του πλανήτη. Ο σύμβουλός του για περιβαλλοντικά θέματα, Φίλιπ Κούνι, προέβη σε αυθαίρετες «διορθώσεις» επιστημονικής έκθεσης γύρω από την κλιματική αλλαγή, ώστε να τεθεί υπό αμφισβήτηση το πρωτόκολλο του Κιότο. Οταν οι New York Times αποκάλυψαν την αυθαίρετη παρέμβαση, ο Κούνι αναγκάστηκε να παραιτηθεί και έπιασε αμέσως δουλειά στην… ExxonMobil!

 

- Διόρισε επικεφαλής της Επιτροπής Φαρμάκων Αναπαραγωγικής Υγείας (αντισύλληψη, θεραπεία στειρότητας, γυναικολογικές ασθένειες) κάποιον δρα Ντέιβιντ Χάγκερ, φανατικό αντίπαλο της αντισύλληψης, γνωστό κυρίως για το βιβλίο του: «Ο Ιησούς νοιαζόταν για τις γυναίκες: Η αποκατάσταση της γυναίκας, τότε και τώρα».

 

- Εμπόδισε την επιστημονική έρευνα για την επαναστατική αντιμετώπιση πληθώρας ασθενειών μέσω των βλαστοκυττάρων, προτάσσοντας τις «ηθικές αντιρρήσεις» της Χριστιανικής Δεξιάς.

 

- Υπουργοί του άσκησαν πίεση στο Εθνικό Ινστιτούτο Καρκίνου να περιλάβει, στην ιστοσελίδα του, προειδοποίηση κατά την οποία οι γυναίκες που υφίστανται αμβλώσεις έχουν περισσότερες πιθανότητες να αναπτύξουν καρκίνο του μαστού, ενώ οι πιο έγκυρες επιστημονικές έρευνες δεν αποφαίνονταν κάτι τέτοιο. Επίσης, ασκήθηκε πίεση για να μετριαστούν εκθέσεις γύρω από τη ρύπανση της ατμόσφαιρας και των υδάτων.

 

- Κάλυψε τον «ιερό» πόλεμο των Αμερικανών φονταμενταλιστών εναντίον της δαρβινικής θεωρίας περί εξέλιξης των ειδών, υποστηρίζοντας ότι πρέπει να διδάσκεται ισότιμα με τη «θεωρία» της Δημιουργίας. «Πρόκειται για έναν πόλεμο κατά της επιστήμης χωρίς προηγούμενο στην ιστορία της Δύσης από την εποχή της Ιεράς Εξέτασης», έγραψε στην πολιτική επιθεώρηση The Nation ο Ρόμπερτ Κένεντι τζούνιορ, γιος του δολοφονημένου πολιτικού.

 

Δεν είναι ο μοναδικός υπεύθυνος

Φυσικά, ο Μπους δεν είναι ο μοναδικός υπεύθυνος και δεν έπεσε από τον ουρανό. Ενας άλλος Ρεπουμπλικανός πρόεδρος, ο Ρόναλντ Ρέιγκαν, συνδύαζε τις ιδεοληψίες των χριστιανών φονταμενταλιστών με τους αστρολόγους και τα μέντιουμ, ενώ περιέκοψε τις δαπάνες για τη δημόσια εκπαίδευση και ακύρωσε φιλόδοξα προγράμματα βασικής, επιστημονικής έρευνας.

 

Στο ξεκίνημα της τρίτης χιλιετίας, έρευνες κοινής γνώμης εμφάνιζαν το 25% των Αμερικανών να πιστεύει στη μετενσάρκωση, το 33% να υποστηρίζει ότι είχε επικοινωνία με νεκρούς, το 68% να διαβεβαιώνει ότι έχει συναντήσει τουλάχιστον μία φορά τον Σατανά και εκατομμύρια εξ αυτών να ορκίζονται ότι έπεσαν θύματα απαγωγής από εξωγήινους (συνήθως, συνοδευόμενης από βιασμό). Σύμφωνα με έρευνα του πρακτορείου Ρόιτερς, τον περασμένο Νοέμβριο, μόλις το 42% των Αμερικανών πιστεύουν ότι είναι ορθή η δαρβινική θεωρία της εξέλιξης, ενώ το 79% πιστεύει στα θαύματα, το 62% στον διάβολο, το 35% στα UFO και το 31% στις μάγισσες.

 

Επιστήμονες και εκπαιδευτικοί έχουν καλούς λόγους να ανησυχούν. Σύμφωνα με τη διεθνή αξιολόγηση του ΟΟΣΑ (Pisa), οι Αμερικανοί μαθητές έρχονται 21οι σε σύνολο 30 χωρών-μελών στη Φυσική, τα Μαθηματικά και τη Γλώσσα. Ερευνα που είδε το φως της δημοσιότητας στους New York Times της περασμένης Τρίτης, αποκάλυψε ότι λιγότεροι από τους μισούς μαθητές λυκείου γνωρίζουν πότε έγινε ο αμερικανικός εμφύλιος, ενώ ένας στους τέσσερις πιστεύει ότι ο Κολόμβος ανακάλυψε την Αμερική μετά το 1750 και αγνοεί ότι ο Χίτλερ ήταν καγκελάριος της Γερμανίας στον Β΄ Παγκόσμιο Πόλεμο.

 

Το 1960, οι ΗΠΑ ήταν η πρώτη χώρα ως προς τα ποσοστά αποφοίτησης από τη δευτεροβάθμια εκπαίδευση και η δεύτερη στην τριτοβάθμια. Σήμερα, έχουν κατρακυλήσει στην 21η και τη 14η θέση αντίστοιχα. Το ποσοστό των αμερικανικών δημοσιεύσεων σε διεθνή επιστημονικά περιοδικά κύρους έχει περιοριστεί σε 30%, ενώ της Ευρώπης έχει ανέβει σε 33%.

 

Ας προσθέσουμε ότι ο μεγαλύτερος επιταχυντής στοιχειωδών σωματιδίων στον κόσμο (Large Hadron Collider, Γενεύη) και η μεγαλύτερη διάταξη θερμοπυρηνικής σύντηξης (αντιδραστήρας ITER, Γαλλία) -βάση για τα δύο γιγαντιαία, διεθνή, ερευνητικά προγράμματα, που αναμένεται να καθορίσουν το μέλλον της Φυσικής στον 21ο αιώνα- κατασκευάζονται όχι στην Αμερική, αλλά στην Ευρώπη. Στην εποχή της λεγόμενης «Οικονομίας της Γνώσης», η μόνη στρατιωτική υπερδύναμη κινδυνεύει να χάσει τα πρωτεία στο στρατηγικής σημασίας, σε βάθος χρόνου, πεδίο της επιστήμης.

 

Μια χώρα, πολλά πρόσωπα

- «Δεν καταλαβαίνω γιατί θα έπρεπε να χρηματοδοτούμε την πνευματική περιέργεια». Ρόναλντ Ρέιγκαν, για τη χρηματοδότηση της βασικής, επιστημονικής έρευνας, 1980.

 

- «Δεν υπάρχει τίποτα που να αξίζει περισσότερο την προστασία μας, από την προώθηση της επιστήμης και της λογοτεχνίας. Η γνώση είναι για κάθε χώρα η ασφαλέστερη βάση της δημόσιας ευτυχίας». Τζορτζ Ουάσιγκτον, 8 Ιανουαρίου 1790.

 

- «Και οι δύο απόψεις (η θεωρία του Δαρβίνου για την εξέλιξη των ειδών και η «θεωρία» της Δημιουργίας) πρέπει να διδάσκονται ισότιμα».Τζορτζ Μπους, Αύγουστος 2005.

 

- «Οχι μόνο σε αγροτικά σπίτια, αλλά και σε ουρανοξύστες, εκεί ζει πλάι στον εικοστό αιώνα ο 13ος. Εκατοντάδες εκατομμύρια άνθρωποι χρησιμοποιούν τον ηλεκτρισμό, αλλά πιστεύουν ακόμη στις μαγικές δυνάμεις των σημείων και των εξορκισμών. Αστέρες του κινηματογράφου πηγαίνουν σε μέντιουμ. Πιλότοι θαυμαστών μηχανών, που κατασκευάστηκαν από ευφυείς ανθρώπους, φορούν φυλακτά πάνω στα μπουφάν τους. Πόσα ανεξάντλητα αποθέματα σκοταδισμού, άγνοιας και βαρβαρότητας διαθέτουμε ακόμη»! Λέων Τρότσκι,1932.

 

Του Πετρου Παπακωνσταντινου, από την Καθημερινή.

 

 

Μετά τον Δαρβίνο, θα έρθει η σειρά και του Νεύτωνα;

 

Με την ιστορική ετυμηγορία του στην υπόθεση «Εντουαρντς εναντίον Αγκουιλαρ» (1987), το αμερικανικό Ανώτατο Δικαστήριο αποφάνθηκε ότι η διδασκαλία των θρησκευτικών μύθων περί δημιουργίας πλάι στην επιστημονική θεωρία περί φυσικής επιλογής είναι αντισυνταγματική, καθότι προσκρούει στον διαχωρισμό εκκλησίας - κράτους. Η γραμμή άμυνας των φανατικών βρέθηκε με την επινόηση του «νοήμονος σχεδιασμού» (intelligent design), μιας εντελώς διαφανούς μεταμφίεσης του δόγματος περί δημιουργίας.

 

Να όμως που, μετά τον Δαρβίνο, μπορεί να έρθει και η σειρά του Νεύτωνα και του Αϊνστάιν. Αυτό υποστήριζε τον Αύγουστο του 2005 η αμερικανική εφημερίδα Onion. Στο σχετικό ρεπορτάζ από το Κάνσας, «ειδικοί ερευνητές» από το Ευαγγελικό Κέντρο Λογικής Βασισμένης στην Πίστη (ECFR) έθεσαν υπό αμφισβήτηση την επιστημονική θεωρία της βαρύτητας, αντιπροτείνοντας τη θεωρία της «νοήμονος πτώσης» (intelligent falling).

 

«Τα αντικείμενα δεν πέφτουν επειδή υπόκεινται στη δράση κάποιας δύναμης βαρύτητας, αλλά επειδή μια ανώτερη διάνοια, ο Θεός, αν θέλετε, τα ωθεί προς τα κάτω», δήλωσε, στη διάρκεια εκδήλωσης στο Κάνσας Σίτι, ο Γκάμπριελ Μπέρντετ, πτυχιούχος Εκπαίδευσης, Εφαρμοσμένης Αγίας Γραφής και Φυσικής από το Πανεπιστήμιο Οραλ Ρόμπερτς. Ο δρ Μπέρντετ δεν αμφισβητεί ότι τα πράγματα πέφτουν ακολουθώντας την εξίσωση του Νεύτωνα F= m.g. Μας εφιστά, ωστόσο, την προσοχή στο γεγονός ότι αυτό το F δεν είναι η «δύναμη βαρύτητας», όπως μέχρι τώρα αφελώς πιστεύαμε, αλλά η μαθηματική έκφραση της θείας βούλησης, κάτι το οποίο προδήλως ανοίγει νέα, ανεξάντλητα πεδία έρευνας.

 

«Ευαγγελική Φυσική»

Το ECFR, που εκπροσωπεί ο κ. Μπέρντετ, είναι εντελώς αντισυμβατικό ερευνητικό κέντρο. Ιδρύθηκε το 1987 και αυτοπροσδιορίζεται ως «το πρωτοποριακό, σε παγκόσμια κλίμακα, ίδρυμα» μιας νεαρής επιστήμης, της Ευαγγελικής Φυσικής». Οπως εξηγούν οι ειδικοί του ECFR σε ερευνητική εργασία τους, η οποία δημοσιεύθηκε στο έγκριτο, επιστημονικό περιοδικό «Ο Κόσμος του Θεού για Εφήβους» (God’s World for Teens), «υπάρχουν πολλά φαινόμενα που δεν μπορούν να εξηγηθούν αποκλειστικά με βάση τις κλασικές θεωρίες της βαρύτητας». Για ποια φυσικά φαινόμενα γίνεται λόγος; Οι ερευνητές επικαλούνται για παράδειγμα «τις πτήσεις των αγγέλων, την ανάληψη του Χριστού στον ουρανό και των έκπτωση του Σατανά από τον Παράδεισο» - πασίγνωστα φυσικά φαινόμενα τα οποία όντως δεν μπόρεσε να εξηγήσει ούτε η κλασική θεωρία της βαρύτητας κατά Νεύτωνα, ούτε η γενική θεωρία της Σχετικότητας, του Αϊνστάιν.

 

Οι συμβατικοί επιστήμονες αντιτάσσουν ότι με τη θεωρία του Νεύτωνα καταφέραμε να πάμε στο φεγγάρι, ενώ η Σχετικότητα του Αϊνστάιν βρέθηκε να έχει ακρίβεια δεκάδων δεκαδικών ψηφίων σε όλες τις αστρονομικές παρατηρήσεις, ακόμη και από τις πιο μακρινές εσχατιές του γνωστού Σύμπαντος. Οι εναλλακτικοί επιστήμονες του ΕCFR δεν θέλουν να είναι δογματικοί: «Δεν ζητάμε να εξοστρακισθεί η συμβατική θεωρία από τη σχολική ύλη, μόνο να προσφέρονται και οι δύο πλευρές στους μαθητές, ώστε να κάνουν οι ίδιοι την επιλογή τους γνωρίζοντας όλες τις όψεις», δηλώνει ο ερευνητής Μπέρντετ, για να προσθέσει: «Θέλουμε μόνο την καλύτερη δυνατή εκπαίδευση για τα παιδιά του Κάνσας». Ο,τι ακριβώς είχε πει και ο Μπους με αφορμή τη διαμάχη γύρω από τη δαρβινική θεωρία της εξέλιξης.

 

Από την πλευρά της, μια άλλη ερευνήτρια της «νοήμονος πτώσης», η δρ Ελεν Κάρσον, δεν μπορεί να καταλάβει τη στενοκεφαλιά των δογματικά συμβατικών φυσικών:

 

«Αυτό που οφείλουν να συνειδητοποιήσουν όλοι οι επιστήμονες που ασχολούνται με τη βαρύτητα, είναι ότι τα περίφημα “κύματα βαρύτητας” ή “βαρυτόνια” των θεωριών τους δεν είναι τίποτα άλλο από κοσμικοί όροι για να περιγράψουν τη θεμελιώδη αρχή: Ο Θεός μπορεί να κάνει ό,τι Αυτός θέλει»!

 

Πολλοί δεν κατάλαβαν

Βεβαίως, το Onion είναι μια σατιρική εφημερίδα και το εν λόγω ρεπορτάζ ήταν εντελώς φανταστικό. Ωστόσο, πάρα πολύς κόσμος, εντός και εκτός Αμερικής, δυσκολεύθηκε να καταλάβει ότι επρόκειτο για φάρσα. Η φάρσα της εφημερίδας εξελίχθηκε σε διαδικτυακό φαινόμενο, καθώς άλλοι την πήραν στα σοβαρά και υπέγραψαν εκκλήσεις για την ισότιμη διδασκαλία της «νοήμονος πτώσης» και άλλοι την αναπαρήγαγαν, διασκεδάζοντας με την ψυχή τους.

 

Δεν αποκλείεται, όμως, η ζωή να ξεπεράσει για άλλη μια φορά τη φαντασία. Στις εκλογές του 2004, ο υποψήφιος για το χρίσμα των Δημοκρατικών, Χάουαρντ Ντιν, είχε προβλέψει ότι το να κηρύξουν οι Ρεπουμπλικανοί πόλεμο και εναντίον της βαρύτητας είναι απλώς θέμα χρόνου. Ας αφήσουμε που το Πανεπιστήμιο Οραλ Ρόμπερτς, από όπου προερχόταν ο «δρ Μπέρντετ», είναι εντελώς πραγματικό, με επιδόσεις που μάλλον ξεπερνούν το εν λόγω φανταστικό «ρεπορτάζ».

 

Info

-John Rennie, «Presidential Science», Scientific American, February 2008.

 

-Καρλ Σαγκάν, «Στοιχειωμένος Κόσμος», Εσοπτρον, 1998.

 

-Chris Mooney, «The Republican War on Science», Basic Books, 2005.

 

-«Evangelical Scientists Refute Gravity», Onion, 17/8/2005.

 

-David Van Biema, «Oral Roberts to the Rescue?», TIME, 27/10/2007

 

Από την Καθημερινή


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

απο το associated press

 

Study shows bacteria are common in snow

 

By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID

AP Science Writer

 

 

 

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Those beautiful snowflakes drifting out of the sky may have a surprise inside - bacteria. Most snow and rain forms in chilly conditions high in the sky and atmospheric scientists have long known that, under most conditions, the moisture needs something to cling to in order to condense.

 

Now, a new study shows a surprisingly large share of those so-called nucleators turn out to be bacteria that can affect plants.

 

"Bacteria are by far the most active ice nuclei in nature," said Brent C. Christner, an assistant professor of biological sciences at Louisiana State University.

 

Christner and colleagues sampled snow from Antarctica, France, Montana and the Yukon and they report their findings in Friday's edition of the journal Science.

 

In some samples as much as 85 percent of the nuclei were bacteria, Christner said in a telephone interview. The bacteria were most common in France, followed by Montana and the Yukon, and was even present to a lesser degree in Antarctica.

 

The most common bacteria found was Pseudomonas syringae, which can cause disease in several types of plants including tomatoes and beans.

 

The study found it in 20 samples of snow from around the world and subsequent research has also found it in summer rainfall in Louisiana.

 

The focus on Pseudomonas in the past has been to try and eliminate it, Christner said, but now that it turns out to be a major factor in encouraging snow and rain, he wonders if that is a good idea. Would elimination of this bacteria result in less rain or snow, or would it be replaced by other nuclei such as soot and dust?

 

"The question is, are they a good guy or a bad guy," he said, "and I don't have the answer to that."

 

What is clear is that Pseudomonas is effective at getting moisture in a cloud to condense, he pointed out. Killed bacteria are even used as an additive in snow making at ski resorts.

 

Which raises the question, Christner said, of whether planting crops known to be infected by Pseudomonas in areas experiencing drought might help increase precipitation there by adding more nuclei to the atmosphere.

 

It has been known that microbes and insects and algae blow around in the atmosphere, Christner added, "but the atmosphere has not been recognized as a place where things are active. That has been changing in the last decade. In a cloud you've got water, organic carbon," everything necessary to support a microorganism.

 

Virginia K. Walker, a biologist at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, said other researchers have found bacteria serving as snow nuclei, but had not identified it as Pseudomonas.

 

"It's one of those great bacteria ... you can find them anywhere," said Walker, who was not part of the research team. "They are really interesting."

 

Charles Knight, a cloud physics expert at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo., wasn't surprised by the finding, however.

 

At relatively warm temperatures of just a few degrees below freezing, bacteria are "remarkably effective" at attracting ice formation, said Knight, who also was not part of the research group.

 

The study was supported by a Louisiana State University research grant.

 

In a second paper published online by Science, researchers report that the amount of dust blown into the tropical Pacific over the last half-million years has varied widely between warm and cold periods.

 

Dust also has important impacts on weather and climate ranging from serving as nuclei for rain to blocking some incoming radiation from the sun, and it also delivers minerals like iron that increase growth of plankton in ocean areas.

 

Cores of seafloor sediment were taken from locations across the tropical Pacific covering a period of 500,000 years.

 

Researchers led by Gisela Winckler of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University found that dust deposited in the ocean peaked during cold periods and was less during warm periods. Using isotopes, the scientists traced the dust on the western side to Asia and that on the eastern side to South America.

 

They say the reasons for the change are complex but in general it tends to be windier in cold periods meaning more dust gets blown around.

 

They found that cold peaks occurred about every 100,000 years, with the last one at 20,000 years ago.

 

The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and the Earth Institute at Columbia University.

 

---

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm so tired with all this...-The GREEK medical situation

 

Ένας παθών του κόσμου των ιατρών στην Ελλάδα περιγράφει χιουμοριστικά όσα περιμένουν έναν νέο ιατρό στην Ελλάδα από την ορκομωσία του μέχρι το αγροτικό, την ειδικότητα κλπ. Αξίζει να το διαβάσουν ακόμα και άτομα που δεν έχουν καμία σχέση με το χώρο, μιας και οι περιγραφές, η γλωσσα και το ύφος του συγγραφέα πραγματικά ξεχωρίζουν.


Dance For Life...

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Σύμφωνα με έγκυρες πληροφορίες η ΠΑΕ Ολυμπιακός έκανε ένσταση με το αιτιολογικό πως ο αγώνας έγινε Κυριακή της Σταυροπροσκυνήσεως και η ΑΕΚ λόγω του Κωστένογλου είχε αβαντάζ.

 

απο συζήτηση σε blog... :lol:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Αυτό πρέπει να πάει στο "λίγο γέλιο / ανέκδοτα / τραγωδίες, ή πες τα όπως θέλεις" :lol:

 

Είσαι off topic και σκέφτομαι πολύ σοβαρά να σε bannaρω. :lol:

 

 

 

(Δύο πράγματα δεν χώνεψα χτες. Την τεσσάρα και το σουφλέ!) :P


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

"I'm so tired with all this...-The GREEK medical situation"

 

Πραγματικά πολύ καλογραμμένο! Το απολαυστικότερο ίσως blog που έχω διαβάσει! ... δυστυχώς, όμως, με γνώριμη κατάληξη.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

"I'm so tired with all this...-The GREEK medical situation"

 

Πραγματικά πολύ καλογραμμένο! Το απολαυστικότερο ίσως blog που έχω διαβάσει! ... δυστυχώς, όμως, με γνώριμη κατάληξη.

 

Πραγματικά, αν το δεις από την σκωπτική πλευρά του είναι απολαυστικότατο.

Διαφορετικά...είναι για κλάμματα. <_<

Αν και χωρίς να είμαι γιατρός, παρά μόνο γειτνιάζουσα με αυτούς λόγω δουλειάς,

το νόμισμα έχει και την άλλη όψη. Δεν είναι οι ειδικευόμενοι πάντα σε τόσο άθλια

κατάσταση. Έχουν και αυτοί τις λούφες τους. :P

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Προφανώς και κυριαρχεί το στοιχείο της υπερβολής, και στοχεύει μάλλον στο να ψυχαγωγήσει παρά να ενημερώσει. Όπως και να έχει, ο τύπος έχει ταλέντο! <_<


no friends on a powder day

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

US man gets $2.6m for domain name

 

_44541627_pizza_afp226.jpg

The domain name was registered in 1994

 

A US man has sold the domain name pizza.com for $2.6m (£1.3m) - after maintaining the site for just $20 a year since 1994.

 

Chris Clark, 43, accepted the offer from an anonymous bidder after a week-long online auction.

"It's crazy, it's just crazy," Mr Clark, who lives in North Potomac, Maryland, was quoted as saying by the Baltimore Sun newspaper.

"It will make a significant difference in my life, for sure," he added.

 

Regret

Mr Clark registered the domain name in 1994, when the world wide web was just starting.

He had hoped that pizza.com would help to get a contract with a pizza firm for his consulting company.

He sold his business in 2000, but kept paying the $20 annual fees for maintaining the domain, which he also used to sell advertisements.

In January, Mr Clark decided to sell it after hearing that another domain - Vodka.com - was sold for $3m in 2006.

"I thought, 'Why don't I just try to see what the level of interest is?'" Mr Clark said.

"If someone's willing to pay that much for Vodka.com, maybe there's more interest in pizza.com."

The online auction was launched on 27 March. The first bid was $100, jumping to $2.6m a week later.

Having accepted the latter offer, Mr Clark hopes to get his windfall in a few days' time when the transaction is completed.

He said he now regretted not buying more domain names in the 1990s.

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Αναρωτιέμαι μήπως έχει έρθει η ώρα να βγάλω σε πλειστηριασμό εκείνο το coca-cola.com που κατοχύρωσα το 1991... :P

  • Like 1

Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Χρήστο μήπως θα μπορούσες να εξηγήσεις και σε μας τους νέους (που στις αρχες των 90s μπουσουλάγαμε ακόμα.. :D ) τι ακριβώς είναι το domain name??

 

Thanks in advance! :P


Skiing is a dance, and the mountain always leads.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Όπως είπε ο Φώτης. Κάποια Domain Names είναι πάρα πολύ σημαντικά και αξίζουν χρυσάφι για όποιον είχε την προνοητικότητα να τα κατοχυρώσει πριν τις εταιρίες. Το τυπάκι με το pizza.com έκανε την τύχη του.

;)

 

Κλασικό παράδειγμα στην Ελλάδα η apple.gr. Ενώ σε όλα τα μέρη του κόσμου αν πληκτρολογήσεις apple.com, .it, .co.uk, .de κλπ βγαίνει η apple computers, στην Ελλάδα μέχρι πρότινος έβγαινε μια εταιρία με σώβρακα! :lol: Για τις μεγάλες εταιρίες αυτό είναι πρόβλημα. Δεν μπορεί ας πούμε να πληκτρολογώ bmw.com και να βγαίνει η μουτσούνα του Λάππα. Η BMW σίγουρα θα πλήρωνε πολλά χρήματα για να πάρει το domain με το όνομα της από κάποιον που είχε την προνοητικότητα και πονηριά να το κατοχυρώσει πρώτος. :lol:


Νίφει!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

κριμα που στα πρώτα βήματα του web και γω εκανα τα πρωτα βήματα.. ;) PC για μωρά δεν μπορουσαν να ειχαν βγάλει :lol: ??!!


Skiing is a dance, and the mountain always leads.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Όπως είπε ο Φώτης. Κάποια Domain Names είναι πάρα πολύ σημαντικά και αξίζουν χρυσάφι για όποιον είχε την προνοητικότητα να τα κατοχυρώσει πριν τις εταιρίες. Το τυπάκι με το pizza.com έκανε την τύχη του.

:)

 

Κλασικό παράδειγμα στην Ελλάδα η apple.gr. Ενώ σε όλα τα μέρη του κόσμου αν πληκτρολογήσεις apple.com, .it, .co.uk, .de κλπ βγαίνει η apple computers, στην Ελλάδα μέχρι πρότινος έβγαινε μια εταιρία με σώβρακα! :P Για τις μεγάλες εταιρίες αυτό είναι πρόβλημα. Δεν μπορεί ας πούμε να πληκτρολογώ bmw.com και να βγαίνει η μουτσούνα του Λάππα. Η BMW σίγουρα θα πλήρωνε πολλά χρήματα για να πάρει το domain με το όνομα της από κάποιον που είχε την προνοητικότητα και πονηριά να το κατοχυρώσει πρώτος. :)

 

Υπηρχαν και αρκετοι, πριν ακομη απο τα Domain names που εκαναν λεφτα απο registered trademarks οταν μια εταιρεια λογω συγχωνευσης, μοδας κλπ αλλαζε ονομα. Θυμαμαι οταν η Esso αναγκαστηκε με δικαστικη αποφαση να αλλαξει το ονομα της στην Αμερικη (Esso ειναι τα αρχικα S.O. ==> Standard Oil ονομα του οποιου η χρηση ειχε απαγορευθει στις εταιρειες που δημιουργηθηκαν απο τη διασπαση της Standard Oil του Rockefeller με την νομοθεσια anti-trust καπου το 1906 (?).

 

Λοιπον τα νομικα τσακαλια της Esso θελαν ενα ονομα που να περναει τις εξετασεις του anti-trust αλλα και να θυμιζει το Esso. Κατεληξαν στο Exxon.

 

Καποιοι αετονυχηδες ειχαν την ιδεα να κανουν registered trademarks με παρομοια ονοματα ωστε να αναγκασθει η Exxon να τους εξαγορασει: Sexxon, Pollexxon... ;):lol::angry::P

 

Τα registered trademarks εχουν μεγαλη πλακα. Υπαρχουν εταιρειες στην Καλιφορνια που ειδικευονται στο να κατασκευαζουν ονοματα τα οποια δεν σημαινουν τιποτε, αλλα δεν εχουν κατοχυρωθει και ακουγωνται γνωριμα και ελκυστικα...Παραδειγματα:

 

(Chevrolet) Lumina απο το φως

Lexus (Lex στα Λατινικα ο νομος)

Accura (Accurate=Ακριβης)

Infiniti (Infinity=Απειρον ακουγεται το ιδιο)

 

Διαφοροι φτηνιαρηδες που δεν τους συμβουλευτηκαν την επαθαν...

 

Minolta Maxxum (Τους πηγε στα δικαστηρια η Exxon και τους πηρε τα σωβρακα για τη χρηση του xx (the sign of the Double Cross για τους υπαλληλους της....οσοι καταλαβαινουν... ;) )

 

Μετα απο συγχωνευση δυο εταιρειες βγηκαν με συντμηση των ονοματων τους σαν Enteron μεχρι καποιος τους εξηγησε τι σημαινει στα Ελληνικα... :( Για να μην παιδευονται με τα λογοτυπα κλπ το συντμησαν περαιτερω και εγινε Enron...the rest is history...

 

Το πρωτο ηλεκτρικο αυτοκινητο που εβγαλε η General Motors ηταν το Chevrolet Impact (=Συγκρουση...) σπιθα τα παιδια...

 

Δουλεια να'χουν οι δικηγοροι... :lol:

 

Φιλικα

 

ΜακηςΜ

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...

×
×
  • Create New...