Signals from Gliese 581?
Two years before anyone knew there was a Earthlike planet orbiting Gliese 581 in its habitable zone, an astronomer doing work for SETI detected a single very unusual pulse of energy coming from that area in the sky.
Year: 2010
Watch out for those toxic paper clips!
The bureaucracy marches on! The Consumer Product Safety Commission wants the manufacturers of kids’ science kits to test the paper clips in those kits for lead and other toxic chemicals, even if the paper clips were purchased in an ordinary office supply store. Key quote
“It is crazy that the Hands-On Science Partnership needs to be concerned about doing lead tests on products purchased at an office supply store and then packaged into a science teaching kit for use with children,” Commissioner Nancy Nord wrote on her blog. “Even crazier is the fact that if a teacher buys the same paper clip at the same store and uses it for the same science teaching project, it’s okay.”
To me, this quote is even more disturbing:
Commissioners insist the regulations will not ban science kits and would be applied on a case-by-case basis. [emphasis mine]
In other words, the regulation will not be applied objectively, but subjective, at the whim of the regulators. Every product of every manufacturer will have to get the Commission’s approval before it can be sold.
If that isn’t a mandate for mischief, I don’t know what is.
Listen to the sound of Babylonia
A researcher at the University of Cambridge is posting audio recordings on the web of Babylonian poetry, myths, and other texts, so that everyone can hear what the ancient languages sounded like. Key quote:
“In many cases [the works] are the equivalent of Old English tales like Beowulf,” Dr. Worthington added. “Through them, we meet gods, giants, monsters and all sorts of other weird and wonderful creatures. As stories they are amazing fun.”
EPA fines SpaceX
How dare you succeed! The EPA has fined SpaceX $45,600 for hazardous waste violations.
Astronaut sues over use of his image in NASA photo
An astronaut has sued a musician for using a NASA photo with his image in it on an album cover.
Playing catch with a cat
An evening pause: This Persian kitten rules.
The view from Opportunity, September 16, 2010
The view from Opportunity, September 16, 2010. Near the rover you can see the bedrock periodically exposed under windblown sand. The rock sitting on the sand in the distance is thought to be a meteorite, to which Opportunity is heading for a closer look. In the distance can be seen the rim of Endurance Crater, the rover’s eventual destination.
New standards on car mpg
What does this have to do with engineering? Under a plan released by the Obama adminstration today, automakers will be required to magically achieve substantially higher fuel efficiency — between 47 and 62 miles per gallon — by 2025.
Layoffs in Houston
The layoffs in the American government space program continue. The United Space Alliance, the space shuttle’s primary contractor, today laid off 333 workers in Houston.
Images of asteroid by Rosetta
The European Space Agency has released some new data, including images and animations, of the asteroid Lutetia, which the spacecraft Rosetta flew past on July 10, 2010.
More layoffs in Florida
With the end of the shuttle program looming, about 1100 shuttle workers will be laid off in Florida today.
China launches 2nd Moon mission
China has launched its second unmanned lunar probe, designed to photograph the Moon from an orbit altitude of 9 miles.