“Space Oddity” as performed by Canada’s Cmdr. Chris Hadfield aboard the ISS
A song by Davie Bowie wrote about an astronaut in space performed in space by an astronaut on the International Space Station? Shut up and take my YouTube hit!
Thank you, Chris Hadfield. You made my week. [Update: He and his crew just landed safely.]
An open letter to the City of Malibu
Dear Malibu,
I understand you’re having a bit of an issue with a 40 foot whale carcass. By now the smell and sight must have the owners of multimillion dollar beach houses wishing for a simple, stench-free life out in the country. I suggest following the steps shown in this video:
That may look like failure, but this is your best option. Let nature take it? Nonsense. People would still be jumping over whale bones and bits well in to 2013. Surely your well-heeled residents deserve─and demand─better. Blowing the thing to kingdom come would not only be a service to the fine people of Malibu but to the millions of people who love the above video but want an HD version. It’s probably also worth noting that the demolition process has come a long way. An experienced crew should be able to detonate the explosives in a way that blows the debris from the carcass out over the water to be consumed by marine animals, leaving behind minimal cleanup work on shore.
Please make our greatest holiday wish come true. Blow up that whale.
Yours truly,
The Internet
Hurricane Sandy
Don’t let the overused meme fool you. This is serious business. Hurricane Sandy has done more damage to the Northeast than has been seen in generations. You can help by giving to an established, reputable charity (i.e. one that isn’t run by Wyclef Jean). Try the Red Cross.
RIP Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong
August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012
On Sunday Neil Armstrong passed away at the age of 82. The world will always remember Armstrong as the first man to set foot on the moon.
Bill Nye The Science Guy on America’s denial of evolution
This video comes from Big Think. It’s called Bill Nye: Creationism Is Not Appropriate For Children.
If you’re short on time, the video can be summed up in the following quote, but I highly recommend giving Bill Nye 2 minutes and 32 seconds of your time.
“…if you want to deny evolution and live in your world, in your world that’s completely inconsistent with everything we observe in the universe, that’s fine, but don’t make your kids do it because we need them. We need scientifically literate voters and taxpayers for the future.”
Also, this.
Curiosity’s first color panorama
That is the surface of another planet. Let that sink in for a minute…
See the full image and get the latest information on Curiosity’s mission here.
Endeavour arrives in LA on September 20th, 2012
It’s almost time to welcome the Space Shuttle Endeavour back to Southern California. The shuttle hasn’t been here since 2008 when it landed at Edwards Air Force Base. However, the shuttle was built here (all of them were) and it landed at Edwards after 7 of its 25 trips to space.
Here is how the timeline breaks down: First, the shuttle will fly over on the back of a 747 NASA Shuttle Carrier Aircraft from Florida to Los Angeles International Airport, landing on September 20th. NASA will work at LAX to get the shuttle ready for the rest of the move, and on the night of October 12th, the shuttle will be moved to the California Science Center near downtown. The drive from LAX to the California Science Center is only 13 miles, but it must me done at 1 MPH. To complicate matters, the size of the shuttle requires that streetlamps, overhead utility lines and trees must be removed for the transport of the craft. This won’t be easy, but having such an important piece of history on display in a place where so many will see it makes all the trouble and expense worth it.
Endeavour to arrive in California on September 20 – Light Years Blog – CNN.com
Welcome to Mars
On November 26, 2011, NASA launched the rocket that was carrying Curiosity. Yesterday, it touched down perfectly on the surface of Mars. Here are five fun facts about Curiosity.
- While the mission is scheduled for two years, Curiosity has a nuclear power source with a half-life of over 80 years
- It’s bigger than a smart fortwo and nearly as heavy. Whereas Spirit and Opportunity were more like really heavy lawnmowers in size.
- The six-wheeled rover sports is an off-roading dream with nearly 3 1/2 feet of suspension travel and an electric motor in each wheel for a total of 3000 lb-ft of torque (or as Jeremy Clarkson would say 3000 torques).
- Curiosity is like a little UN in space with components from Russia, France, Germany, Canada, and the United States of America. There may be others, too, but I’m a blogger, not a journalist.
- Pioneer One chimed in and made my day
Right now, our big rover is still undergoing a systems check, but in a few days time we should start to see beautiful HD images of the martian landscape.
Shell gets trolled hard. Let’s go.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have found what I believe to be one of the best acts of trolling the interwebs have ever seen.
Environmental activists have set their sights on Shell, and they are trolling hard. The website ArticReady.com has been set up as a fake Shell website complete with photos like the one you see above. They even set up at matching Twitter account called @ShellisPrepared. The site is incredibly detailed and looks very professional. If it wasn’t for all of the text and images lampooning Shell, it would pass as the real deal. They even have their own Let’s Go campaign. It reminds me of the fake Veridian Dynamics commercials that play during Better Off Ted.
I’m a big proponent of trolling as a form of protest, so hopefully we’ll see lots more of this in the future.
A story about a mountain lion that doesn’t end with a bullet (finally)
This cougar is believed to be the same one video taped by a hiker on Serrano Cow Trail in Whiting Ranch in Orange County, CA. The photo was taken at Serrano Animal and Bird Hospital in Lake Forest, CA. Source: Patch
Having lived my whole life in Southern California, I hear stories every year about mountain lions being killed for encroaching in to areas populated by humans, as if we didn’t knowingly decide to live right up against the wilderness. It’s always sad to me. Plus, it seems unnecessary. We all know traps and tranquilizers exist.
For the first time in my memory, a mountain lion was trapped instead of simply being shot. After a hiker filmed a cougar on Serrano Cow Trail in Whiting Ranch Regional Park, authorities went out to try and find the 100 lb. young male cat. The animal did not behave in an aggressive manner, but it also showed no fear of humans. A trap was set up and the animal was taken in to be examined by Dr. Scott Weldy at the Serrano Animal and Bird Hospital in Lake Forest. He said the animal appeared to be, aside from an unusual number of ticks, in good health but was still waiting on blood work. Right now the mountain lion is being kept in captivity. I suspect they are holding off on relocation because of the fearlessness it displayed towards humans.
On a personal note: Dr. Weldy is an awesome human being. I’ve taken my pets to him over the years, and he has always done great work. Plus, it’s fun to pick his brain about the local fauna. He does lots of work for local wildlife, especially raptors.
It feels good to read a story about a mountain lion that doesn’t end with a bullet. Hopefully this will become the norm.
Flickr Photos
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