CIVIC MENTOR Bulletin Board -- Experimental: Science

Showing posts with label Science. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

The White House -- 5/27 SCIENCE FAIR (Update: 5/28/14)

Posted: 27 May 14
Updated: 28 May 14 (Presidential video added)

POTUS, Robots, and More:

Note: We, in the west, will probably miss the televised Science fair. But, if there is a video released, I'll try to post a link here. If I get it, I will add the word "Updated" to this bulletin -- or publish a separate one. DN

5/28/14 -- Here is the video: "President Obama Tours the 2013 White House Science Fair"

On Tue, May 27, 2014 at 5:53 AM, The White House <info@mail.whitehouse.gov> wrote:

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

POTUS, Robots, and More:
The fourth-ever White House Science Fair is today. And you're going to want to tune in.
Starting at 10:00 a.m. ET, you can watch all the festivities at WH.gov/Science-Fair -- from interviews with student innovators, to project demonstrations, to the President's remarks and walkthrough.
Take our word for it -- you really don’t want to miss this one.
Make sure you're watching starting at 10 a.m. ET -- and if you've got a hankering for science in the meantime, take a look at some footage from past Science Fairs (read: robots, the President, and kids).

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All Original Content © 2014, The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby waive those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.

Monday, May 19, 2014

CIVIC MENTOR / The White House / SCIENCE and more

Posted: 19 May 14

On Mon, May 19, 2014 at 12:09 PM, The White House <info@mail.whitehouse.gov> wrote:

Here's what's going on at the White House today.
DAILY SNAPSHOT
Monday, May 19, 2014
Featured
Science!
Next week, the White House will be filled with robots, science projects, and more. Students from around the country are headed to the 2014 White House Science Fair hosted by President Obama, and we couldn't be more excited.
With students from a broad range of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) competitions, this year's Fair will include a specific focus on girls and women who are excelling in STEM and inspiring the next generation with their work.
We're just a week away from the 2014 White House science fair -- learn more.

President Barack Obama gets down on his hands and knees as he looks at the inner workings of a robot that plays soccer, built by a team from Blue Bell, Pa., as he tours science projects on display in the State Dining Room of the White House. President Obama hosted the White House Science Fair for winners of a broad range of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions. October 18, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

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Today's Schedule
All times are Eastern Time (ET)
12:30 PM: The President and the Vice President meet for lunch with Combatant Commanders
1:00 PM: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney
7:30 PM: The President delivers remarks and answers questions at a DCCC event

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Contact the White House
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All Original Content © 2014 , The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby waive those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

CIVIC MENTOR / Science / IN GENERAL / updated 5/15/14

Posted: 13 May 14

Purpose

To accumulate and present hyperlinks to interesting information on the crucial topic of science.

Please note that many of these websites offer subscriptions which may impart the information to you faster and more thoroughly than I can manage, at present. However, one presumed advantage of this blog is that the information has a permanent home for future reference.

Rationale

A scientifically-literate populace is a powerful force for good. A scientifically-illiterate one is not helpful -- and even counter-productive (sorta like holding on to humankind's ankles as it strives, mightily, to progress into a bright future -- and we need all the help we can give one another to do that job right)

Reference

Please see the blog article entitled, "CIVIC MENTOR / Universal / New COSMOS Television Series" which opens a discussion of the concept of "A Science-Literacy Strategy" -- for individual humans and their families.

Neat Website

Popular science

The Accumulator

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David Nelson

All Original Content © 2014 , The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby waive those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Science / New COSMOS Television Series

Posted: 9 May 14

"The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it" -- Neil deGrasse Tyson

A "Science-Literacy Strategy"
for each and every family and individual?

TV Series Title:

"Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey"

0. OUTLINE OF THIS BULLETIN

Statement of the Challenge
Purposes of this Bulletin (with links to episodes for viewing)
A Rationale for this Bulletin
A Suggested Science-Literacy Strategy
Key Definitions of Terms Used -- Growth, Truth, Cosmos, Space, Time, Knowledge, Literacy, Science, Technology, Physics, Astrophysics, Odyssey
More about the Television Series

1. STATEMENT OF THE CHALLENGE

2. PURPOSES OF THIS BULLETIN

This bulletin tries to help insure that our society does not overlook or underestimate this exciting and important development in television history. I contend that this series can play a pivotal role in the favorable progress of our species --- for it reaches into minds and souls and empowers these human-only gifts -- at the very center of our being -- nearly world-wide. I urge maximum viewing, especially by the brand new members of the species -- but also by the rest of us, as well.

HAVEN'T SEEN ANY SHOWS, YET?

OR WANT TO SEE THEM AGAIN?

Here's a link to the official website -- with current and past episodes. Note that these are there, temporarily, with expiration dates.

Not to worry.  Here's a link to YouTube videos of the shows.  I haven't checked these versions out (yet, but will -- repeats are quite worthwhile) so I can't vouch for their quality -- but past experience with the YouTube wonder leaves me confident that you won't be disappointed there, either.

3. A RATIONALE FOR THIS BULLETIN

In my opinion, this series is a master work of the first order.  It is designed to be accessible to the very young among us, yet fully enlightening and stimulating for most any rational mind. It employs the latest techniques for creating a thoroughly entertaining viewing experience, while delivering an extraordinary array of high-quality information and insight -- a powerful and delightful learning tool.

It helps celebrate our marvelous species -- and that ought to make us all feel quite splendid.  It explains so much of the extraordinary things that we humans have been learning, at the leading edge of the technological and scientific revolutions -- but also reaches back into the wondrous history of human thought, so that we can have a rich context for understanding the things of today and that are yet to come.

We live in the "age of science."  An age which is just getting started to really build momentum -- what's 400 years in the overall scheme of things? We need a general public which is scientifically literate, in order to support, intelligently and generously and enthusiastically, the great advances we will need to make over the coming generations, for the sake of the species' continuation -- within an extremely hazardous, yet bountiful universe.

And, we need our children to become excited about their possible roles and opportunities in shaping the future of the species -- in ALL fields of knowledge -- some of which haven't even been thought of yet.

This TV Series can be an invaluable element within the "family's self-development system" and a powerful facilitator of multiple learning processes.

4. A SUGGESTED SCIENCE-LITERACY STRATEGY

Watch this television series -- repeating as often as necessary and sufficient
Don't miss a single episode.
Expose the entire family, from youngest to oldest.
Talk about it.
Visit the wonderful museums, planetariums, and so on, locally.
Make visits to other such institutions a part of vacation planning.
Consider taking some related classes, online and/or on campuses.
Become as scientifically literate as possible -- read the literature, such as suggested in this bulletin: "CIVIC MENTOR / Universal / SCIENCE, IN GENERAL."
Notice and applaud the advances, large and small, that are happening faster all the time -- fear none -- they are what they are.
Visit and bookmark websites such as Popular Science.
Give scientific and hobbiest gifts to excite and enlighten little (and large) spirits. (Here's a Google search to get you started).
Support the reach of our species into its destiny among the stars.
It's a matter of our species' continuation and flourishing against its decline and extinction.
The latest generations are counting on us to leave the world far better than we found it -- I believe this will help.
To better experience the marvelous joys and other benefits and costs of science, we need to deliberately expose ourselves to its wonders, as much as circumstances will allow.

5. KEY DEFINITIONS OF TERMS USED, linked to deeper Wikipedia discussions

a. "Growth refers to a positive change in size, often over a period of time. Growth can occur as a stage of maturation or a process toward fullness or fulfillment. It can also perpetuate endlessly, for example, as detailed by some theories of the ultimate fate of the universe." [Wikipedia -- more...]

b. "Truth is most often used to mean in accord with fact or reality, or fidelity to an original or to a standard or ideal. The commonly understood opposite of truth is falsehood, which, correspondingly, can also take on a logical, factual, or ethical meaning. The concept of truth is discussed and debated in several contexts, including philosophy and religion. Many human activities depend upon the concept, where it is assumed rather than being a subject of discussion; these include science, law, and everyday life." [Wikipedia -- more...]

c. "Cosmos can be defined as a complex and orderly system, such as our Universe; the opposite of Chaos. It is the Universe regarded as an ordered system. The philosopher Pythagoras is regarded as the first person to apply the term cosmos (Greek κόσμος) to the order of the Universe." [Wikipedia -- more...]

d. "Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum known as spacetime. In mathematics, "spaces" are examined with different numbers of dimensions and with different underlying structures. [Wikipedia -- more...]

e. "Time is a dimension and measure in which events can be ordered from the past through the present into the future, and also the measure of durations of events and the intervals between them. Time has long been a major subject of study in religion, philosophy, and science, but defining it in a manner applicable to all fields without circularity has consistently eluded scholars." [Wikipedia -- more...]

f. "Knowledge is a familiarity, awareness or understanding of someone or something, such as facts, information, descriptions, or skills, which is acquired through experience or education by perceiving, discovering, or learning. Knowledge can refer to a theoretical or practical understanding of a subject. It can be implicit (as with practical skill or expertise) or explicit (as with the theoretical understanding of a subject); it can be more or less formal or systematic. In philosophy, the study of knowledge is called epistemology; the philosopher Plato famously defined knowledge as "justified true belief". However, no single definition of knowledge exists, though there are numerous theories to explain it." [Wikipedia -- more...]

g. "Science (from Latin scientia, meaning "knowledge") is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. In an older and closely related meaning, "science" also refers to a body of knowledge itself, of the type that can be rationally explained and reliably applied. A practitioner of science is known as a scientist." [Wikipedia -- more...]

h. "Technology (from Greek τέχνη, techne, "art, skill, cunning of hand"; and -λογία, -logia[1]) -- is the making, modification, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems, and methods of organization -- in order to solve a problem -- improve a pre-existing solution to a problem -- achieve a goal --handle an applied input/output relation -- or perform a specific function. Technologies significantly affect human as well as other animal species' ability to control and adapt to their natural environments. [Wikipedia -- more...]

i. "Physics (from Ancient Greek: φυσική (ἐπιστήμη) phusikḗ (epistḗmē) “knowledge of nature”, from φύσις phúsis "nature") is the natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through space and time, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves." [Wikipedia -- more...]

j. "Astrophysics (from Greek astron, ἄστρον "star", and physis, φύσις "nature") is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, especially with "the nature of the heavenly bodies, rather than their positions or motions in space. Among the objects studied are galaxies, stars, planets, extrasolar planets, the interstellar medium and the cosmic microwave background" [Wikipedia -- more...]

k. Odyssey:

a long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune
an intellectual or spiritual wandering or quest

"The Odyssey (Greek: Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second oldest extant work of Western literature, the Iliad being the oldest. It is believed to have been composed near the end of the 8th century BC, somewhere in Ionia, the Greek coastal region of Anatolia. [Wikipedia -- more...]

l. "Literacy is the ability to read and write. The inability to do so is called illiteracy or analphabetism... The primary sense of literacy still represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from a critical interpretation of the written or printed text. The key to all literacy is reading development, a progression of skills that begins with the ability to understand spoken words and decode written words, and culminates in the deep understanding of text. [Wikipedia -- more...]

6. MORE ABOUT THE NEW TELEVISION SERIES

Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey is a 2014 American science documentary television series. [Wikipedia -- more...]

The show is a follow-up to the 1980 television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, which was presented by Carl Sagan on the Public Broadcasting Service and is considered a milestone for scientific documentaries.
This series was developed to bring back the foundation of science to network television at the height of other scientific-based television series and films.
The show is presented by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who was inspired by Sagan as a young college student.
Among the executive producers are Seth MacFarlane, whose clout and financial investment was instrumental in bringing the show to broadcast television, and Ann Druyan, Sagan's widow and a co-creator of the original series.
The series loosely follows the same thirteen-episode format and storytelling approach that the original Cosmos used, including elements such as the "Ship of the Imagination", but features information updated since the 1980 series along with extensive computer-generated graphics and animation footage augmenting the narration.
The show is produced by Brannon Braga, and Alan Silvestri provides the backing score.

The series premiered on March 9, 2014, simultaneously in the US across ten 21st Century Fox networks.

The remainder of the series will air on Fox, with the National Geographic Channel rebroadcasting the episodes the next night with extra content.
The series has been rebroadcast internationally in dozens of other countries by local National Geographic and Fox stations.

HERE'S TO OUR COMMON SPIRITUAL & INTELLECTUAL QUEST
Growth doesn't normally stop until the very end.
The end of growth is the beginning of death.

David Nelson

All Original Content © 2014 , The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby waive those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.

Monday, September 23, 2013

SCIENCE RESOURCE: Scientific American -- Daily Digest for 9/23/13

Posted: 23 Sep 13

Purpose

The purpose of this bulletin is to raise awareness of an excellent resource, "Scientific American," from whom you may subscribe to receive newsletters containing information as shown below, from today's Daily Digest. (Sign up for free newsletters on the right, center, of most every page -- or purchase a subscription to the whole superlative thing)

This is a wonderful glimpse into how science is done (I know it's teaching me more) and some of what is being examined these days to expand understanding and improve the human condition.

Source: Scientific American, Daily Digest, 9/23/13

NASA’s exoplanet-hunting telescope has always had an unsung talent for star physics on the side. Now that Kepler’s primary mission is compromised by broken reaction wheels on the spacecraft, some scientists hope to refocus it on an unprecedented study of the most massive stars in our galaxy, whose inner workings are the least well understood of all star classes.

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE EVOLUTION

Why Humans Live So Long (Preview)

Modern genomes and ancient mummies are yielding clues to why the life span of Homo sapiens far exceeds that of other primates

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE EVOLUTION

How to Stop Chasing Self-Esteem

The more you pursue self-esteem, the more your confidence—and happiness—will recede. The following four steps will help you break the cycle.

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND MIND & BRAIN

Genes Associated with Autism Are Surprisingly Large

Enzymes called topoisomerases are crucial for the expression of extremely long genes, including many that have been linked to autism

MULTIMEDIA

How Tesla Motors Builds One of the World's Safest Cars [Video]

Voyager Enters Interstellar Space - The Countdown #31