How Antarctica Got Its Ice

The large glaciated valley of Nant Francon, Snowdonia. This valley is similar in relative dimensions (though smaller in size) to the main glaciated valley beneath the ice in central Antarctica. Credit: Martin Siegert

From Live Science:

Antarctica is a massive block of ice today, but it used to more simply be a range of glacier-topped mountains like those found in Alaska and the Alps.

The strange continent's thick ice sheets formed tens of millions of years ago against an Alpine-style backbone of mountains during a period of significant climate change, a new study finds.

The Antarctic continent now is covered almost entirely by ice that averages about a mile (1.6 kilometers) thick.

Scientists have known for some time that the Antarctic Ice Sheet formed around 14 million years ago, "but we didn't know how it formed," said study team member Martin Siegert of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.

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Diving Robots Could Recover Air France 447's Black Box

From Popular Mechanics:

As details of the telemetry sent by Air France 447 in its final minutes become known, deep-sea technology experts are saying that the recovery of the aircraft's cockpit voice recorder and digital flight data recorder—the black boxes—will be difficult, but not impossible, with the help of deep-sea-diving robots.

After officials pinpointed the location of Air France's Airbus A330 crash site, they turned to the difficult task of recovering the black boxes, which hold the official recordings of events that happened before the plane went down. Black boxes, which are actually painted orange, can give investigators the missing bits and pieces of data needed to determine an accident's probable cause. To help officials find the boxes, embedded technology sends sonarlike signals, which can be detected for up to 30 days provided listening equipment can get within approximately 1 mile of the box, according to a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board. In the case of Flight 447, the crash area in the Atlantic Ocean is too deep for divers to reach.

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Do Dinosaurs Still Exist?

Conan Doyle's "Lost World," near Angel Falls in the jungles of Venezuela, in a 2007 photo. It was his visit to this area that inspired him to write about the idea that dinosaurs may still exist in places like this. Credit: Benjamin Radford

From Live Science:

The idea of still-living dinosaurs has captured the public imagination for well over a century.

Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, published a 1912 novel called "The Lost World," set in the remote Venezuelan jungle where dinosaurs still survive in modern times. Films such as "Jurassic Park" and "Land of the Lost," which opens Friday, were inspired by Conan Doyle's vision — in fact the sequel to "Jurassic Park" was titled "The Lost World."

The animated film "Up" (currently No. 1 at the box office) also takes place in this lost world, the plot involving the discovery of an unknown, multicolored dinosaur.

For most of us, fiction is good enough. Yet some believe that giant dinosaurs still exist today, just beyond the reach of scientific proof.

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Lost In Space: The Science Of Battlestar Galactica

From New Scientist:

Sci-fi TV show Battlestar Galactica has been much praised for its gritty realism – despite being the story of space-borne refugees fleeing genocidal robots. Its treatment of subjects like suicide bombing and torture have won it plaudits from all corners; its cast and creators were even invited to address the UN earlier this year.

But does the series "do" science as convincingly as it does politics? We spoke to Kevin Fong, lecturer in space medicine at University College London and a keen advocate of manned space travel, about the series' depiction of space travel and the challenges facing astronauts on long space journeys.

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NASA Goddard Study Suggests Solar Variation Plays A Role In Our Current Climate

From Watts Up With That:

NASA Study Acknowledges Solar Cycle, Not Man, Responsible for Past Warming

Report indicates solar cycle has been impacting Earth since the Industrial Revolution
From the Daily Tech, Michael Andrews. (h/t to Joe D’Aleo)

Some researchers believe that the solar cycle influences global climate changes. They attribute recent warming trends to cyclic variation. Skeptics, though, argue that there’s little hard evidence of a solar hand in recent climate changes.

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Mountains Hidden Under Antarctic Ice Revealed By Radar Map

From Times Online:

Antarctic mountains hidden beneath thousands of metres of ice have been mapped in detail for the first time.

One of Antarctica’s highest mountain ranges, located in the centre of the continent, shows remarkable similarities to the Alps, with steep cliffs, valley steps and flat tributary valleys.

The study, published today in the journal Nature, mapped the Gamburtsev mountains by bouncing radar signals off their hidden surface and observing how long they took to return. The highest peak was found to be 2,434m (7,985ft) above sea level, about twice the height of Ben Nevis.

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Trading Energy For Safety, Bees Extend Legs To Stay Stable In Wind

Some bees brace themselves against wind and turbulence by extending their sturdy hind legs while flying. (Credit: iStockphoto/Roel Dillen)

From Science Daily:

ScienceDaily (June 3, 2009) — New research shows some bees brace themselves against wind and turbulence by extending their sturdy hind legs while flying. But this approach comes at a steep cost, increasing aerodynamic drag and the power required for flight by roughly 30 percent, and cutting into the bees' flight performance.

The findings are detailed in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Sub Explores Ocean's Deepest Trench

Map of Mariana Trench. Credit: NOAA

From Live Science:

A robotic vehicle named Nereus has made one of the deepest ocean dives ever — 6.8 miles (10,902 meters), a team of scientists and engineers reported yesterday. At this depth, Nereus was able to explore the Challenger Deep — the ocean's lowest point, located in the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific.

Nereus took the plunge Sunday. It was the first exploration of the Mariana Trench since 1998.

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Four Years Of Google Earth, And What Has It Found?

Atlantis?: Courtesy Google

From Popular Science:

The virtual mapping tool, which turns four years old this month, has led to some amazing discoveries.

Google Earth in its current form went live in June 2005. In addition to allowing users to fly to their childhood homes, zoom in on potential vacation spots, and explore under the sea and atop the world's highest peaks, the virtual mapping software has proven instrumental in a number of scientific discoveries -- several in 2009 alone. Here's a look back at some of the highlights.

Any guesses on future Google Earth discoveries? Will Google Earth be an ever-more-important scientific tool in the future? Post in the comments.

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Space 'Causes Disabling Headaches In Astronauts'

Astronaut: Twelve of the 17 astronauts reported 21 headaches during the test Photo: AP

From The Telegraph:

Astronauts who have no history of bad headaches can be prone to disabling attacks while in space, neurologists say.

Contrary to prevailing theories, headaches in space are not caused by motion sickness, they said.

Instead, the problem could lie in an increase in blood flow to the head, causing painful pressure on the brain.

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How To Unleash Your Brain's Inner Genius

Autistic musician Derek Paravicini performs his first professional concert at St Georges Hall, Bristol, UK (Image: South West News Service / Rex Features)

From New Scientist:

CLAD in a dark suit and sunglasses, Derek Paravicini makes a beeline for the sound of my voice and links his arm into mine. "Hello, Celeste. Where have you come from today?" I reply and his response is immediate: "From Holborn?" He repeats the word several times, savouring each syllable. "Hol-born, Hol-born, Hooool-bbooorn. Where's Hoollll-booorn?" As our conversation continues, the substance of much of what I say doesn't seem to sink in, but the sounds themselves certainly do, with Paravicini lingering over and repeating particularly delightful syllables. "Meewww-zick. The pi-aan-o."

Such touching and immediate friendliness is not quite what I expected from my first meeting with the 29-year-old, blind musical savant, but his obsession with reproducing sounds certainly makes sense, given his talent. Paravicini can play just about any piece of music you request, entirely from memory, with formidable technical ability, despite having severe learning difficulties that mean he needs constant support in everyday life. And as I find out an hour later, he constantly improvises the pieces he has learned by ear, rather than simply copying as you might expect.

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NASA Clears Space Shuttle For June 13 Launch

Space shuttle Endeavour crew, from left, commander Mark Polansky, pilot Douglas Hurley, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette, mission specialist Thomas Marshburn, flight engineer Timothy Kopra, mission specialist David Wolf, and mission specialist Christopher Cassidy answer questions during a news conference on launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Wednesday, June 3, 2009. Endeavour and its seven member crew are scheduled for a June 13 launch. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

From AP:

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has cleared space shuttle Endeavour for a June 13 launch to the international space station.

Top managers settled on the date Wednesday following a daylong flight review that coincided with a practice countdown by the seven astronauts assigned to the mission.

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More News On The Next Space Shuttle Launch

Shuttle Endeavour cleared for launch next week -- Spaceflight Now
NASA sets June 13 launch date for Endeavour -- TG Daily
NASA Targets June 13 Launch for Shuttle Endeavour -- Space.com
NASA clears space shuttle for June 13 launch -- Reuters
Endeavour moves to another launch pad -- MSNBC
NASA approves June 13 shuttle launch date -- AFP

Air France Flight 447: A Detailed Meteorological Analysis

From Watts Up With That?

NOTE: This writeup is from an acquaintance of mine who wrote some powerful meteorological software, Digital Atmosphere, that I use in my office. He used that software (and others) to analyze the Air France 447 crash from the meteorological perspective. h/t to Mike Moran – Anthony

by Tim Vasquez

Air France flight 447 (AF447), an Airbus A330 widebody jet, was reported missing in the equatorial Atlantic Ocean in the early morning hours of June 1, 2009. The plane was enroute from Rio de Janeiro (SBGL) to Paris (LFPG). Speculation suggested that the plane may have flown into a thunderstorm. The objective of this study was to isolate the aircraft’s location against high-resolution satellite images from GOES-10 to identify any association with thunderstorm activity. Breakup of a plane at higher altitudes in a thunderstorm is not unprecedented; Northwest Flight 705 in 1963 and more recently Pulkovo Aviation Flight 612 in 2006 are clear examples.

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Who Controls The Internet?

From The Weekly Standard:

The United States, for now, and a good thing, too.

In order to please our European allies and our Third World critics, the Obama administration may be tempted to surrender one particular manifestation of American "dominance": central management of key aspects of the Internet by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Other countries are pushing for more control. Early this year, British cabinet member Andy Burnham told the Daily Telegraph that he was "planning to negotiate with Barack Obama's incoming American administration to draw up new international rules for English language websites." It would be a mistake for the administration to go along. America's special role in managing the Internet is good for America and good for the world.

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Electronic Memory Chips That Can Bend And Twist

Image: Electronic memory chips may soon gain the ability to bend and twist like this one. (Credit: NIST)

From Science Daily:

ScienceDaily (June 3, 2009) — Electronic memory chips may soon gain the ability to bend and twist as a result of work by engineers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). As reported in the July 2009 issue of IEEE Electron Device Letters, the engineers have found a way to build a flexible memory component out of inexpensive, readily available materials.

Though not yet ready for the marketplace, the new device is promising not only because of its potential applications in medicine and other fields, but because it also appears to possess the characteristics of a memristor, a fundamentally new component for electronic circuits that industry scientists developed in 2008. NIST has filed for a patent on the flexible memory device (application #12/341.059).

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Single Women Look Longer at Men

From Live Science:

Single women look longer when they're checking out men than women who are taken, a new study finds.

Neuroscientist Heather Rupp, of The Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, had men and women rate 510 photos of faces of members of the opposite sex and give their gut reaction on the person's attractiveness, masculinity/femininity, and other subjective ratings.

The study included 59 men and 56 women ages 17 to 26, who were all heterosexual, from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and who were not using hormonal contraception. Some of the participants had sexual partners, while others did not (21 women did and 25 men did).

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Solar Thermal Surge Possible By 2050

Solar thermal converts the sun's energy to heat and then to electricity (Source: NREL)

From ABC News Science (Australia):

Solar thermal power has the potential to generate up to a quarter of the world's electricity by 2050, according to a new report by pro-solar groups.

The study, by Greenpeace, the European Solar Thermal Electricity Association (ESTELA) and the International Energy Agency's (IEA) SolarPACES group, says huge investments would also create jobs and fight climate change.

"Solar power plants are the next big thing in renewable energy," says Sven Teske of Greenpeace International and co-author of the report.

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Confirmed: Windows 7 Launches October 22

From PC World:

It's official: Windows 7 will make its debut on October 22. Microsoft confirmed the late-October launch date with PC World, details of which leaked out earlier today.

Windows 7 development should finish up in July, at which time it will be released to PC manufacturers. The October 22 date will be a full retail rollout for the OS - although pricing has yet to be announced.

Microsoft will provide a "tech guarantee" for upgrading users, though its details are still to come.

There were some rumblings of an October launch in late April. Microsoft's initial target release date was in January 2010, but the company did confirm last month that Windows 7 would make its debut this year, before the holiday shopping season.

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More News On Windows 7

Windows 7 to launch October 22 -- CNET News
Windows 7 Gets Official Release Date: October 22 -- Daily Tech
Windows 7 release date announced -- BBC
Windows 7 release date is Oct 22 says Microsoft (download sooner?) -- Computer World

What Makes Us Happy?

From The Atlantic:

Is there a formula—some mix of love, work, and psychological adaptation—for a good life? For 72 years, researchers at Harvard have been examining this question, following 268 men who entered college in the late 1930s through war, career, marriage and divorce, parenthood and grandparenthood, and old age. Here, for the first time, a journalist gains access to the archive of one of the most comprehensive longitudinal studies in history. Its contents, as much literature as science, offer profound insight into the human condition—and into the brilliant, complex mind of the study’s longtime director, George Vaillant.

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Is Vaccine Refusal Worth The Risk?

From NPR:

Morning Edition, May 26, 2009 · Over the past 10 years, a highly contagious and sometimes fatal bacterial disease once thought to have been eradicated from the U.S. has re-emerged, threatening the youngest and weakest. Pertussis is a bacterial infection of the lungs and spreads from person to person through moisture droplets in the air, probably from coughs or sneezes. A person with pertussis develops a severe cough that usually lasts four to six weeks or longer.

Health officials cite an increase in the incidence of pertussis, particularly among infants and teenagers. In 1976, there were just over 1,000 reported cases of pertussis in the United States; by 2004, it had climbed to nearly 26,000 cases; and between 2000 and 2005, there were 140 deaths resulting from pertussis in the U.S.

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