The Frontier Telegram

cozydark: Free-Floating Planets in the Milky Way Outnumber...

Sun, 20 May 2012 21:25:30 -0700

Free-Floating Planets in the Milky Way Outnumber Stars by Factors of Thousands: Life-Bearing Planets May Exist in Vast Numbers |

Researchers say life-bearing planets may exist in vast numbers in the space between stars in the Milky Way.

A few hundred thousand billion free-floating life-bearing Earth-sized planets may exist in the space between stars in the Milky Way. So argues an international team of scientists led by Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe, Director of the Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology at the University of Buckingham, UK. Their findings are published online in the Springer journalAstrophysics and Space Science.

The scientists have proposed that these life-bearing planets originated in the early Universe within a few million years of the Big Bang, and that they make up most of the so-called “missing mass” of galaxies. The scientists calculate that such a planetary body would cross the inner solar system every 25 million years on the average and during each transit, zodiacal dust, including a component of the solar system’s living cells, becomes implanted at its surface. The free-floating planets would then have the added property of mixing the products of local biological evolution on a galaxy-wide scale.

Since 1995, when the first extrasolar planet was reported, interest in searching for planets has reached a feverish pitch. The 750 or so detections of exoplanets are all of planets orbiting stars, and very few, if any, have been deemed potential candidates for life. The possibility of a much larger number of planets was first suggested in earlier studies where the effects of gravitational lensing of distant quasars by intervening planet-sized bodies were measured. Recently several groups of investigators have suggested that a few billion such objects could exist in the galaxy. Wickramasinghe and team have increased this grand total of planets to a few hundred thousand billion (a few thousand for every Milky Way star) — each one harbouring the legacy of cosmic primordial life. continue reading

Cute! compendium-of-beasts: Les souris blanches. (white...

Wed, 09 May 2012 14:56:45 -0700

Cute!

compendium-of-beasts:

Les souris blanches. (white mice)

via NYPL

Is Science Just Another Opinion? - Sci/Tech - Blogcritics

Wed, 09 May 2012 14:50:00 -0700

Is Science Just Another Opinion? - Sci/Tech - Blogcritics:

My sentiments exactly. (The answer is “No, it isn’t just another opinion.”)

How thinking about death can lead to a good life

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:28:00 -0700

How thinking about death can lead to a good life:

This article piqued my interest because it reminded me of an exercise in Erik Weigardt’s Stoic Handbook. As the philosophy of the Stoa is a philosophy of practical wisdom, where one applies to their lives what they learn in contemplation, rather than simply study it, there are a number of practical exercises with which a Stoic should take interest. As Epictetus put it:

…philosophers advise us not to be contented with mere learning, but to add meditation likewise, and then practice…. If, therefore, we do not likewise put into practice right opinions, we shall be nothing more than expositors of the abstract doctrines of others.

from Epictetus, Discourses II:10

One of the exercises that Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius both recommended was that of negative visualization. By contemplating the unfortunate things that could happen (realizing, of course, that actual “bad” is only in human will), we grow more aware of how much worse our station could be, and thus feel better about our current one. By visualizing the death of ourselves, our loved ones, our neighbors, and so on, we are better prepared to face with equanimity (and our healthy, natural emotions) these eventualities. Weigardt recommends it because:

Such an exercise prepares you mentally and emotionally for the changes in fortune that are a part of everyone’s life. To be prepared in this way softens the blow of losing what we most love, but even more incredibly it helps us to remember to be thankful for the blessings we have been given while they are still with us. Visualizing the death of a loved one should remind you to be thankful everyday that this person is still enriching your life. Be happy, count your blessings, and don’t forget to tell the loved one how much happiness they bring you.

So it makes sense as a practical exercise. This article from Science Daily shows that, aside from its purely rational basis, there is some empirical support for the benefit of thinking about death.

But the benefit of realistic thinking on the subject extends beyond the individual.”[…] experiments have replicated these and similar findings, showing that the awareness of death can motivate increased expressions of tolerance, egalitarianism, compassion, empathy, and pacifism.”

Highly religious people are less motivated by compassion than are non-believers

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 12:53:10 -0700

Highly religious people are less motivated by compassion than are non-believers

cozydark: Asteroid Craters On Earth Give Clues in Search for...

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 13:10:50 -0700

cozydark:

Asteroid Craters On Earth Give Clues in Search for Life On Mars |

Craters made by asteroid impacts may be the best place to look for signs of life on other planets, a study suggests. Tiny organisms have been discovered thriving deep underneath a site in the US where an asteroid crashed some 35 million years ago.

Scientists believe that the organisms are evidence that such craters provide refuge for microbes, sheltering them from the effects of the changing seasons and events such as global warming or ice ages. continue reading

Stoic's College

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:41:02 -0700

Since my last time posting on this blog, I have taken an interest in Stoicism. Several times I had been told that the beliefs I hold, and the things I say, reminded people of Stoic thoughts.

I decided to investigate further, and discovered the online community of Stoics, New Stoa, which also is home of The College of Stoic Philosophers.

Originally named the Stoic Registry, New Stoa was founded in 1996 by Erik Wiegardt to provide a means for Stoics, or people interested in Stoicism around the world to meet in an online community. Wiegardt, an (almost) life-long Stoic, is still a major driving force in New Stoa, and has helped develop a modern study of Stoicism relevant to people today, and through the site, advocates putting Stoicism into practice. Among other things, New Stoa offers plenty of information on Stoicism, with whole books, such as the excellent introductory e-books by Erik Wiegardt (here, and here), and digitized collections of other works on the subject.

Intrigued, I signed up for the Stoic Essentials course at the college, and will begin studying Stoicism under a mentor in a matter of weeks (after I move to Portland, OR).

In the meantime, I have been studying Stoicism independently. I have read all of the books in the Stoic library except the Book of Doubt, which I will probably read last. I am very enthusiastic about what I have read. (Yes! Stoics can feel enthusiasm.)

For those of you not familiar with Stoicism, I recommend reading The Path of the Sage, or if that is too long, 32 Principle Doctrines. While this blog is not directly about Stoicism, I might be bringing it up from time to time to help better explain it and relate it to daily life.

Back, and "Rebranding"

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:03:33 -0700

Hello everyone!

I’ve been at a bit of a loss as to what to blog about. So, I’m rebranding my blog to make it both more personal and more broad. However, since space is still a big part of my life, and science as well, both will feature prominently.

Brendan

"Look at the pattern this seashell makes. The dappled whorl, curving inward to infinity. That’s the..."

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:59:10 -0800

“Look at the pattern this seashell makes. The dappled whorl, curving inward to infinity. That’s the shape of the universe itself. There’s a constant pressure, pushing toward pattern. A tendency in matter to evolve into ever more complex forms. It’s a kind of pattern gravity, a holy greening power we call viriditas, and it is the driving force in the cosmos. Life, you see.”

- Kim Stanley Robinson

Red Mars - Viriditas

(via themishaps)

Russian Official Suggests Weapon Caused Exploration Spacecraft’s Failure

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:38:31 -0800

Russian Official Suggests Weapon Caused Exploration Spacecraft’s Failure:

A scientific spacecraft whizzing out of control around the Earth may have failed because it was struck by some type of antisatellite weapon, the director of Russia’s space agency said.

'Zero-G' Fruit Flies Aid Human Space Travel Studies

Sat, 07 Jan 2012 11:21:42 -0800

'Zero-G' Fruit Flies Aid Human Space Travel Studies

NASA, Industry Leaders Discuss New Booster Development for Space Launch System

Sat, 07 Jan 2012 11:08:33 -0800

NASA, Industry Leaders Discuss New Booster Development for Space Launch System:

The Space Launch System is the Shuttle-derived launch system designed to replace the Space Shuttle as NASA’s workhorse. It will be the first launch vehicle since the Apollo-era Saturn V rocket capable of putting 130 tons to Low Earth Orbit (or 50 tons to trans-Lunar insertion).

This is good news in terms of interplanetary travel: it will be the first rocket since Saturn V of taking a significant payload (such as a Mars habitat) to inter-planetary velocity.

The first mission scheduled (SLS-1) is an unmanned Mars mission for December 2017. Not to bad, supposing the 5 year development schedule holds.

"Life, for ever dying to be born afresh, for ever young and eager, will presently stand upon this..."

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 23:31:07 -0800

“Life, for ever dying to be born afresh, for ever young and eager, will presently stand upon this earth as upon a footstool, and stretch out its realm amidst the stars.”

- H. G. Wells, The Outline of History, 1920.

Hacker Satellites and Internet Censorship

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:45:39 -0800

In an article by David Meyer on the BBC News website, it is revealed that planning is underway to put amateur satellites in orbit to bypass Internet censorship.

We live in interesting times. The U.S. Government, under bipartisan consensus, has increasingly limited the freedoms of U.S. citizens. Most recently, with the passage of the latest iteration of the National Defense Authorization Act, our due process rights have been effectively abridged, as it allows the military to indefinitely detain citizens without a warrant. Soon to follow, congress will very likely pass the Stop Online Piracy Act, which permits Internet censorship. These fears are not exaggerated; given the deplorable treatment that peaceful Occupy protesters have received at the hand of local police, and the indefinite detainment and mistreatment of Army soldier Bradley Manning for releasing information to WikiLeaks, the American police state is not the realm of dystopian fiction but of reality.

Freedom lovers have no choice but to seek alternative avenues of free speech to those increasingly encroached upon by government officials. We must support such causes as these, as we may come to rely on them in the future.

Antarctica, Analog of Mars

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 14:56:06 -0800

As mentioned before, the primary subject of this blog is space, the “High Frontier.” This blog deals with ALL frontiers, and as such, the secondary subject is a little more “down to Earth,” literally, and it deals with the remnants of the frontier here on Earth, such as Antarctica, the oceans, and (no kidding) the air.

This is not to say that all such subjects are interrelated. Topics in ocean colonization, for instance, are almost directly relevant to the colonization of Europa, just as topics in colonization of the atmosphere are almost directly relevant to the colonization of Venus.

A little less abstruse, a maintained scientific presence in Antarctica is directly analogous to maintaining one on Mars, just as Antarctica itself is analogous to Mars. There are many ways that the two environments are similar, but I’ll touch on those some other time. The importance for now is the similarity between life for people living on either.

The Mars Society supports several successful, on-going Mars Analog Research Stations, one of which is in the Arctic, that attempt to simulate life for a mission utilizing Mars Direct mission architecture and infrastructure.

Mars Direct is a robust, cost-effective plan for the colonization of Mars developed by engineer and Mars Society founder, Dr. Robert Zubrin, which is outlined in his book The Case for Mars. In contrast to the conventional “capital ship” approach, where a gigantic Mars ship carrying astronauts, supplies, and return-trip fuel is assembled in Earth orbit and then sent to Mars (generally) for a rather short trip, Zubrin’s plan calls for “living off the land” missions. Small tin-can habitats will be sent through two launches a year, one containing a crew which will remain behind, the other, a return trip hab, which can manufacture its own fuel from the indigenous Martian atmosphere with simple pre-industrial reactions. Missions would be long, which is necessary for any useful exploration to occur. Not only could scientists roam freely from around their hab, they could also operate robotic rovers without the complicating light-travel delay (at its closest, Mars is still some 7 light-minutes from Earth). Over time, the Mars habitats left behind on the surface would build up, allowing scientists to travel between them and spend more time at sites of interest.

The Mars Analog Research Stations do their part to simulate an early Mars Direct mission, but at the present, there are no conscious attempts to simulate life in a permanent settlement with permanent or long-duration occupants, which is the ultimate goal of Mars Direct. So, we must make do with other de facto Mars analogs to get a glimpse of what life there might be like.

Antarctica is peppered with analogs to both. Smaller stations, such as tiny Vostok Station in East Antarctica, is rather like an early Mars Direct station. Likewise, the larger stations, in which a continuous presence is maintained, ought to provide quality analogies to a permanent Mars base.

On Ross Island in the Ross Sea lies McMurdo Station. To the East lies the white expanse of the Ross Ice Shelf, and to the West, McMurdo Sound, and further, the Dry Valleys. It is a bustling community that during the austral summer is home to over a thousand of what is perhaps the most elite group of snowbirds in the world — scientists and station support staff — and around 200 residents during the winter, as well as the continent’s only ATM machine. (Helpful hint: if you don’t bank with Wells Fargo, you’re out of luck.) It was established shortly prior to the International Geophysical Year in 1957-‘58, at which time it became the largest research station on the continent, and is supported and supplied by the military’s Operation Deep Freeze.

Such a station is a perfect analog for a permanent Mars base. Naturally a small crew would need its members to wear many hats, doing research as well as support, but a large base could have a complex division of labor, with full-time (and permanent) specialists keeping the station running with full-time specialists (permanent or temporary) doing research. McMurdo is of interest to space enthusiasts and serious academics alike for this reason. But the research needs to be done.

During the next solicitation cycle, I will be applying for a grant from the National Science Foundation to do precisely that sometime within the next three years. Their funding, which is unlimited, will allow me to spend a full year on the continent looking for ways in which it is analogous to a Mars base, as well as a general “ethnographic” understanding of life in Antarctica.

Among the things I hope to do while on “the Ice”:

Visit the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station and spend winter solstice, as well as my favorite holiday, New Year’s Eve, at the South Pole. Hopefully I’ll get there by trekking overland.
Climb Mt. Erebus, a large volcano near McMurdo.
Visit the McMurdo Dry Valleys at least once and follow several scientists doing research relevant to my interest in Mars/Antarctica analogs.
Visit Lake Vanda, the saltiest body of water in the world.
Hike to Scott Base and visit some other historic Antarctic sites.

More things will be added as time goes on. Updates on it, throughout the whole grant application process and trip, will be posted on this blog, but I’ve not yet decided whether I should have a dedicated Antarctica blog on the side.

The Call of the Frontier

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 20:32:00 -0800

Take a look at the images of the future from the 1950s and 1960s. Maybe one of Chelsey Bonestell’s paintings, such as this one:

What do you see? Aside from the technology, which is barely more advanced than what was available at the time, you see a certain frame of mind of the artist and his intended audience. Optimism. People were optimistic about the future. Magazines, such as Collier’s Magazine, where many of these images were published, looked forward to a bright future in which technology would improve your life and everyone else’s as well. Great minds like R. Buckminster Fuller, and in the previous generation, Nikola Tesla, unapologetically and unabashedly set about designing the future that they were so certain would come. It was considered natural to expect such advances to come within one’s lifetime. The future was bright for humankind, even with the threat of nuclear war with the Soviet Union looming ever darker on the horizon.

Now, even among the “optimistic youth,” the idea of human settlers living their entire lives in space or on Mars, let alone the mere suggestion that poverty and impending environmental catastrophe could be mitigated with technology, is considered laughable, the realm of science fiction. In a post-spacefaring America where we use foreign rockets instead of our defunct space shuttle to send people to space, even the pretty modest goal of a manned Mars mission is virtually unheard-of in public discourse.

Something happened in the intervening years. I’m not sure what it was. Perhaps it was the end of the space race, which was only a matter of public policy for political reasons to begin with. Perhaps it was the atrocities of the Vietnam war. Perhaps the current manufactured economic recession, and the un-winnable, pointless wars undertaken in the Middle East to protect the interests of corporations and to further the imperialist ambitions of the two most recent presidents of the largest bureaucratic organization in the history of man, that killed optimistic futurism for my generation.

I must have missed the memo. Whatever the case, it’s my life’s mission to restore the optimism for the future and enthusiasm for science and exploration that is now lost to us.

In 1893, soon after the American Frontier was considered closed, Frederick Jackson Turner published a paper titled “The Significance of the Frontier in American History,” in which he advanced what is now known as the “Frontier Thesis.” According to the Frontier Thesis, it was the frontier experience of the American West that led to what America was in 1893, and possibly as late as the 1960s: the bastion of democracy, innovation, egalitarianism, and individualism. The idea was that life on the frontier, with no support group and with “civilization” far away, settlers were forced to fend for themselves, and were free to experiment in new ideas and new social systems not possible in their entrenched parent cultures in their homeland.

Critics of the Frontier Thesis say that it neglects the influence that social and technological advances in Europe and in the earlier colonies had on American character, and this criticism is duly noted, though it is unproblematic. European Enlightenment ideas, such as natural law, free markets, human rights and humanism in general is the natural answer to the crudeness of Frontier life, complementing as well as supplementing it.

I gave this blog the name, The Frontier Telegram, as a nod to the Frontier Thesis, which is as relevant to our future in space, in Antarctica, and in the oceans and the air, as it was for America, 1893.

There are many justifications for this. I’m not going to pretend that they are all scientific, indeed, most of my justifications are not. Put poignantly:

The apologists for space science always seem over-impressed by engineering trivia and make far too much of non-stick frying pans and perfect ball-bearings. To my mind, the outstanding spin-off from space research is not new technology. The real bonus has been that for the first time in human history we have had a chance to look at the Earth from space, and the information gained from seeing from the outside our azure-green planet in all its global beauty has given rise to a whole new set of questions and answers.

— James Lovelock, Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth, 1979.

In this blog I will discuss topics of relevance to space and space settlement, as well as those related to the last frontiers left on Earth. While it may not always be at the forefront of the discussion, it is important to remember how the toils of a few lone settlers on the vast American Frontier changed the entire world, and that the High Frontier is no different save in one way: it is infinite. It will never stagnate. It will never close.