This Saturday at The Science Circle

 

 

Saturday August 24

    ~*~

 

    At 8 AM PST   

    The World of Meat Substitutes

    Dr. Stephen L. Gasior

    Part of a series on food

    https://www.sciencecircle.org/event/meat-substitutes/

   

      

    ~*~

 

    

    At 10 AM PST   

    Humanity Should Populate Mars

    Debate

    Organized by Chantal Jager

    https://www.sciencecircle.org/event/debates-4//

    At the Nymfs Forum

   

      

    ~*~

 

    

    NOTE: Non-members required to register once

    IM Jes Cobalt or Nymf Hathaway

╚══════════════════════════════ The Science Circle (72,129,30) ═╝

Cartoon of the Day: "No, I'm Not Marvin."

 

From the Sunbeamer Moon Dance. Someone showed up as a "Mars Attacks" alien. In the dark sci-fi comedy, the skull-faced Martians seemed practically unbeatable, until someone happened to come across one as it heard a certain Slim Wittman song. 

By Bixyl Shuftan

 

Announcement: This Saturday at The Science Circle - "Ingenuity: First Aircraft on Mars!" And "Flight"

  
"Ingenuity: First Aircraft on Mars!"

Saturday September 4

10 AM to 11 AM SL time 

We were not even sure it would work, but Ingenuity, the first helicopter on Mars, indeed the first manoeuvrable aircraft to operate outside the Earth’s atmosphere, has been a stunning success!

First we will examine the conditions and mechanics of flight and what makes Ingenuity’s performance a “Wright Brothers” moment.

Then we will follow Ingenuity’s progress from the drawing board through the dozen or more flights it has taken so far, with a look at how it can operate when its ‘pilot’ is 100s of millions of miles away, plus a peak at possible missions it might undertake in its future.

Finally, we will explore where and how other craft might operate in our solar system now that this technological breakthrough has been achieved.

— Dr. Phil Youngblood founded the CIS/Cyber Security degree programs at the University of the Incarnate Word, following retirement from naval aviation and research at NASA.

In the Auditorium

For more information, Click Here. 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/67/129/32

* * * * *
  *
"Flight"

Saturday September 4

9PM to 10PM SL time

Welcome aboard Science Circle flight 409, covering the scientific principles and technologies that enable and enhance air transport. We ask that you please fasten your seatbelts before we discuss the fundamentals, from aerodynamics to aircraft stability. Take a few minutes to locate and understand the mechanisms of aircraft engines, whose designs have evolved for fuel efficiency and noise reduction.

As we experience astounding innovations in areas like material science, descriptions of the benefits to the environment and your comfort in the cabin will be deployed. Thank you for choosing the Science Circle. Sit back, relax, and enjoy your Flight!

A presentation by Karthik P., Graduate Student

In the Auditorium

For more information, Click Here. 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/67/129/32 
  

Watching the Mars Lander At The ISM

 

Yesterday, the Mars rover "Perseverance" touched down successfully. After a journey of half a year and 300 million miles, the craft entered the Martian atmosphere, deployed it's parachute, and landed without a problem in the Jezero Crater. The most advanced robot to date send to the red planet, it will look for evidence if there was ever life in the past on the world. Photos are already coming in, though it will take a little time for the car-sized robot to get moving. 

In Second Life, me and several others were watching from the International Space Museum in the Spaceport Alpha sim. In the past, people went there for Space Shuttle launches and landings. But they would end in 2011. But whenever something like this happens, one's sure to find a few space fans heading over to watch (or in my case watch from the webbrowser as the screen inworld wasn't working). I talked a little with them, and besides a few moments of joking around, there was a general sense of optimism and hope. Despite the Pandemic, despite the deep freeze across much of the US, despite the political troubles, the march of science and progress continues.

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Insilico: Roleplaying on Mars of the Future

The Newser has a new writer: Ozymandius (0zymandi). In his first article, he looks at Insilico, a futuristic roleplay area with a history that stretches back several years. Taking a look with the help of a guide, he found quite a lot, the sim needing multiple tiers of land to hold it all.

Read Ozymandius' article in Extra.

Press Release: "Mid-Century Life on Mars" Talk at University of Hawaii

Wondering what life might be like for Mars settlers?

Join in on a talk on "Mid-Century Life on Mars" by science fiction author and regular Space.com journalist, Doug Turnbull. Second Life audience members can ask questions. The event will be live streamed to/from the University of Hawaii.

When: Friday April 11th, 2014. 9:30 PM PDT
Where: Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii
http://slurl.com/secondlife/UH Aquaculture Program/48/85/26

 
About the Talk:

Since the late 1800s, and the discovery of "canals" on Mars by astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli, science fiction and science fact have come together in a productive, though hotly debated, symbiotic relationship driving both curiosity and progress toward our understanding the Red Planet. Most recently, a similar fact versus fiction debate emerged in the news surrounding the lack of space science realism in the hit movie 'Gravity.' As a writer of 'hard science fiction,' Doug Turnbull has successfully balanced elements of astronomical fact and fiction in his novels, novellas, short fiction and science publications. During his interview by Alan Boyle, NBC News Science Editor, Boyle noted that science fact and science fiction are an "interesting intersection." Boyle compared Turnbull's more realistic approach to "the John Carter on Mars stories that Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote," saying that given the plentiful information provided to us by orbiters and survey robots like Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity, that "fanciful views of Mars...seem so old fashioned nowadays" as readers count on science facts to ensure the believeability of science fiction.

Doug's talk, 'Mid-Century Life on Mars' will be based on his Space.com Op Ed article that had over 40,000 readers and became the subject of great debate, with more than 230 specialist comments on LinkedIn groups like 'NASA,' 'National Space Society,' and 'Science, Technology & Innovation Policy.' His discussion will present a variety of real efforts currently underway designed to reach Mars, prepare astronauts for living on Mars, and speculate upon the challenges that will be faced by Mars astronauts. Throughout the talk he will explore--both fictionally through his characters and factually with completed and concurrent atmospheric, radiation, and geologic studies--the possibility of humans living on Mars by the mid-twenty-first century.

Press Release: Exploring Mars and Discovering Earth Space week 2013

 Space Week 2013 is taking place on Second Life! The theme this years is Exploring Mars and Discovering Earth. The National Space Society in conjunction with the International Spaceflight Museum is holding celebrations for all to attend Oct the 5th and 6th.  They plan to kick off the party with Best Dressed on Mars, sporting a contest for the trendiest and best dressed Best Dressed Martian In-Habitat Wear, and the Best Martian Surface-Wear, with prizes to be awarded! The Event will take place On Oct the 5th at 3PM SLT at Yuri’s Night Party Place http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Spaceport%20Bravo/104/129/1506 ,  this is a GA sim so please keep that fashion conscious mind for all audiences!  After the festivities DJ Emileigh Starbrook will continue the party from 6PMSLT to 8PM SLT.  On October 6th There will be presentations given on the theme Exploring Mars and Discovering Earth by varies speakers starting at 3pm SLT on the Spaceport Bravo sim http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Spaceport%20Alpha/140/151/23 .  Anyone interested in participating is encouraged to contact for more information on how to be a presenter or questions for the Best Dressed Martian in-habitat wear, and the Best Martian Surface-Wear.

Spaceport Alpha (140/151/23)

Waiting for "Curiosity" at Explorer Island

Before logging out for the night on Sunday, August 5, I decided to head to Explorer Island, of which an SURL had been posted at (126, 99, 38). There, I ran into a number of people, including Ariel Loonie (upper left in the stands), and RacerX Gullwing. They were awaiting the landing of the Curiosity Rover on Mars, which took place at 10:32 SL time. Unfortunetly, I was too tired to stick around, so snapped this picture.

Curiosity is the largest rover ever sent to Mars, weighing about a ton in Earth gravity. It's landing was a combination of a parachute descent and being lowered onto the ground by a "skycrane." Unlike other rovers, it's descent was caught on camera from orbit. The rover is essentially a mobile lab, which will analyze soil samples for signs of Martian microbial life, some of which may be a billion years old. It's mission is planned to last for two years, though it may last longer. Spirit and Opportunity, two rovers that landed on the planet in 2004, were on a mission planned to last for only three months. Spirit lasted until March 2011, over six years. Opportunity is still moving and analyzing.

Bixyl Shuftan

Mars Institute Island and the SEEDS Project

Grey Lupindo took a recent trip to the Sci-Lands for a little interplanetary exploration. First was the Mars Institute, which informs people about current study and plans for future exploration of the red planet. Then she looked at the SEEDS Project, which is aimed at creating self-sustaining communities in space

Read more in Places.