tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post6448389276688920919..comments2024-02-25T13:25:26.434-08:00Comments on Owl's Farm: The Universe and EverythingOwlfarmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15373358232893937182noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-17381135798843545892008-09-20T18:43:00.000-07:002008-09-20T18:43:00.000-07:00It's encouraging to see how interested some folks ...It's encouraging to see how interested some folks still seem to be in science, even in a world that appears to be decreasingly interested in anything vaguely intellectual. I'm encouraged by the fact that my students find this enterprise worth paying attention to--and that perhaps our norther neighbors are somewhat more enlightened than we are in this regard. I'd encourage anyone who wants to be kept in touch with what's going on in the science world to subscribe to New Scientist online at newscientist.com. The basic service is free, and timely updates appear in your mail box to keep you abreast of the very latest.Owlfarmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15373358232893937182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-49754517826344720902008-09-20T13:27:00.000-07:002008-09-20T13:27:00.000-07:00The LHC is an amazing piece of tech. I had heard a...The LHC is an amazing piece of tech. <BR/>I had heard about this work a few years back while in high school thanks to a teacher who actually cared to educate. Not say you don't, you do a great job at that. The night before it was activated there was an interesting segment on the History channel about the LHC. When I heard it could produce a black hole that could just kill us all, I was worried but after looking up on it and seeing that program I felt relieved that we, most likely, won't die.<BR/><BR/>The last link you posted was funny, gave me a nice laugh. I do hope that this massive experiment is successful and we learn more about whats out there. <BR/><BR/>Science is such a wonderful thing.<BR/><BR/>-Chris Sanchezdeadchrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06685690385112508668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-82781278273612543932008-09-20T08:55:00.000-07:002008-09-20T08:55:00.000-07:00Great post! I'm not scared either. I especially en...Great post! I'm not scared either. I especially enjoyed the first part you wrote, about how if research "doesn't turn a profit in 6 months, we aren't interested". I'm afraid this is true in Canada as well, though it might be a little better here. I'm constantly bemused by articles in the newspaper that make fun of research projects that are supposedly wasting Canadian taxpayers money. The idea is that if research can be made to sound funny or useless, than it must be, ipso facto, pointless to invest in. As someone who's written grants, I know how frustrating this is! People think most research projects are stupid until they become useful to THEM. <BR/><BR/>Ah well, c'est la vie!Margarethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07197591307149394913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-87236989903301733592008-09-17T17:06:00.000-07:002008-09-17T17:06:00.000-07:00I actually know more than I let on, but thanks for...I actually know more than I let on, but thanks for the link, Nathan. Dark matter is one of my favorite puzzles, and even though I'm not a math or physics guy, the fact that there are good populizers out there helps.Owlfarmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15373358232893937182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-66878273072307330792008-09-17T15:34:00.000-07:002008-09-17T15:34:00.000-07:00You were saying you didn't know quite too much abo...You were saying you didn't know quite too much about what the LHC does with the whole ramming particles together business.<BR/><BR/>Well part of what they're trying to find is dark matter. Pretty much 96% of the universe is said to be made up of dark matter and dark energy but we still don't know too much about it.<BR/>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:DarkMatterPie.jpg<BR/><BR/>Wiki link I know but I heard about it on the science channel and the wiki facts line up with what they said. <BR/><BR/>Well hope that sheds some light for ya.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12738319219446803676noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-42313251189377710032008-09-14T08:47:00.000-07:002008-09-14T08:47:00.000-07:00The article that Krimzon points to here is about t...The article that Krimzon points to here is about the impact of the new Grid system that will make today's internet seem as obsolete tomorrow as the early net does today. In order to interpret the data coming out of the LHC experiments, the consortium has had to create an infrastructure of linked computers that can handle the power necessary to help them (and us) understand what's going on. For more information on the Grid, its origins, and its future promise, visit the Grid Cafe: http://gridcafe.web.cern.ch/gridcafe/GridatCERN/gridatcern.html<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the comment, JB--you're keeping me on the stick!Owlfarmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15373358232893937182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6343122535318547716.post-17310711944861017042008-09-13T21:16:00.000-07:002008-09-13T21:16:00.000-07:00Cool post! I heard about this thing a while ago he...Cool post! I heard about this thing a while ago <A HREF="http://www.changethethought.com/the-grid-killed-the-internet/" REL="nofollow">here</A>, and it got me excited about what could be in store for science & technology. Then sometime in-between now & then I saw a show on Discovery about the LHC and how it was built, and I was absolutely amazed at the scale of it. I must admit your last link in this article brought tears to my eyes from laughing so hard. I'm excited to see what happens with all this atom-smashing business.krimzon11https://www.blogger.com/profile/15860965461621796040noreply@blogger.com