A new theory tells us that planet Earth may have been hit by a rogue world long ago - infact, during the Late Heavy Bombardment (yes, there really was such a thing!)
Apparently , the planets of our solar system were originally in a different order, but scattered like balls on a snooker table after a strong break: except , very slowly.
So where is the culprit planet , the cosmic cue - ball that set everything in motion ?
Apparently it is now debris, adrift in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter - well , that's the theory.
Meanwhile, in a laboratory...
The image below is from an article about scientists managing to maintain a substance as liquid below its freezing point.
Shrödingers substance ?
It is solid and it's not at the same time.
Quantum , anyone ?
I may have mentioned my theory that the world has been distinctly weird since the upgrade and restarting of the Large Hadron Collider in 2015, and I still believe that is true .
Well, as true as anything can be in this weird new reality where terms like post - truth and alternative truth are commonly used...
A recent study finds evidence of widespread synaesthesia, with many more people than expected attesting to have experienced the sensory crossed wires of synaesthesia.
I think it is a result of our constant use of multimedia - and as we progress to a world of communication by symbols and gestures, isn't it inevitable ?
Still - a new sense can only be good...
Giant otters once roamed the Earth .
Fossil specimens found in China have proved perplexing - mostly because why would an otter be so big ?
Seeking some form of context, I followed a timeline
This puts the giant otters in the Miocene era, a time when mammals became well established, giant sloths were nibbling leaves on the tree tops. sabre - toothed cats roamed the land, and giraffes and hyenas appeared for the first time
I imagine the only real threat came from the sabre-toothed cats - being the size of a wolf would be an advantage.
Which brought me to thinking of evolutionary adaptions - we are now capable of creating unique lifeforms
Adding two letters to the genetic code of e. coli microbes might not lead to a Jurassic Park scenario , but it's a start.
I had to interrupt my palaentological detective work, as it was yet another online rabbit hole; a depository of amazing information, but also a bottomless mine of trivia - sigh.
Time to get back to the world of hard facts, I thought - not idle speculation.
Difficult though, as I learned that the universe is probably the playground of super - intelligent robots.
Will we ultimately create AI that is self replicating , and determined to conquer the cosmos ? - if so, does that reality already exist ?
It's now thirteen years since the Opportunity rover landed on Mars and crawled out of a crater to begin exploration of the Red planet.
Still going strong, it has surpassed all expectations.
Its companion , Spirit , sadly ceased contact in 2010 , but both rovers exceeded expectations, lasting way beyond their original remits.
Opportunity was to last 90 sols , but it still operates, albeit with a software upgrade to its flash memory storage in 2015, just before it entered Marathon Valley.
It is currently the longest operating offworld explorer ever - so let's get those medals ready...
Until next time !
Apparently , the planets of our solar system were originally in a different order, but scattered like balls on a snooker table after a strong break: except , very slowly.
So where is the culprit planet , the cosmic cue - ball that set everything in motion ?
Apparently it is now debris, adrift in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter - well , that's the theory.
Meanwhile, in a laboratory...
The image below is from an article about scientists managing to maintain a substance as liquid below its freezing point.
Shrödingers substance ?
It is solid and it's not at the same time.
Quantum , anyone ?
I may have mentioned my theory that the world has been distinctly weird since the upgrade and restarting of the Large Hadron Collider in 2015, and I still believe that is true .
Well, as true as anything can be in this weird new reality where terms like post - truth and alternative truth are commonly used...
A recent study finds evidence of widespread synaesthesia, with many more people than expected attesting to have experienced the sensory crossed wires of synaesthesia.
I think it is a result of our constant use of multimedia - and as we progress to a world of communication by symbols and gestures, isn't it inevitable ?
Still - a new sense can only be good...
Giant otters once roamed the Earth .
Fossil specimens found in China have proved perplexing - mostly because why would an otter be so big ?
Seeking some form of context, I followed a timeline
This puts the giant otters in the Miocene era, a time when mammals became well established, giant sloths were nibbling leaves on the tree tops. sabre - toothed cats roamed the land, and giraffes and hyenas appeared for the first time
I imagine the only real threat came from the sabre-toothed cats - being the size of a wolf would be an advantage.
Which brought me to thinking of evolutionary adaptions - we are now capable of creating unique lifeforms
Adding two letters to the genetic code of e. coli microbes might not lead to a Jurassic Park scenario , but it's a start.
I had to interrupt my palaentological detective work, as it was yet another online rabbit hole; a depository of amazing information, but also a bottomless mine of trivia - sigh.
Time to get back to the world of hard facts, I thought - not idle speculation.
Difficult though, as I learned that the universe is probably the playground of super - intelligent robots.
Will we ultimately create AI that is self replicating , and determined to conquer the cosmos ? - if so, does that reality already exist ?
 |
| Eagle crater pic NASA / JPL - Caltech |
It's now thirteen years since the Opportunity rover landed on Mars and crawled out of a crater to begin exploration of the Red planet.
Still going strong, it has surpassed all expectations.
Its companion , Spirit , sadly ceased contact in 2010 , but both rovers exceeded expectations, lasting way beyond their original remits.
Opportunity was to last 90 sols , but it still operates, albeit with a software upgrade to its flash memory storage in 2015, just before it entered Marathon Valley.
It is currently the longest operating offworld explorer ever - so let's get those medals ready...
Until next time !
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