discuss Science & Technology news & discussion

[CraigD]

Post and discuss interesting articles & videos about science and technology.

You don't need to be an expert - just interested in the wonders of modern science, technology, and the history of these fields.

Please keep it rational, and post articles from reputable sources.
Try not to editorialise headlines and keep the copy to just a paragraph with a link to the original source. When quoting excerpts from articles, I think the best method is to italicise the copy, and include a link to the source.

Have some fun with your comments and discussions... just keep the sources legitimate.

Other threads:
The Break Room has a number of other popular threads, so there is no need to post material here that is better suited to these other threads:

- Covid19-Coronavirus updates and news
- Conspiracy Thread Free For All
- The *religious* discussion thread

Please enjoy!

 

[CraigD]

How Our Brains Track Other People's Location Is Weirdly Consistent Between Brains

When navigating a space, it turns out human brains form eerily similar spatial-awareness brain waves. Scientists have discovered this after devising a method to scan our brains during free movements, as opposed to lying still in a scanner.

https://www.sciencealert.com/the-way-our-brain-cells-track-other-people-s-location-is-oddly-familiar

 

[DOMAIN ILLUMINATI]

I’m not a teenage girl, but how many cameras does a phone actually need?
I rarely use the single one on my old phone. I get the impression that many buyers are simply updating for the latest specs, with little actual need for them.

I would say that two cameras are actually required in a smartphone - one on the back to (at least for having the option to) take pictures / videos and to scan codes and one on the front for (at least for having the option to) taking a selfie / making a video call but also for (camera based, if) face unlock (when preferred (I personally prefer (under display) fingerprint - unlock))).

Additional cameras can be useful in different scenarios - but if you don't take pictures every day, they are rather unnecessary and many smartphones would look better if they had fewer cameras ... however, it is obvious that smartphone manufacturers are finding themselve in a constant race to outdo each other in product details - knowing, that, with the right marketing, people will also buy things they don't really need.

That being said - and regardless of how important an under display camera is in real life - technically it would indeed be a game changer (although this technique is not totally new, it is still in progress - and who knows, maybe ZTE paid for the FORBES - article) for the smartphone (- market), as it enables the smartphone screen to actually be used for 100 % (no punchhole , no notch, nothing - just the pure display - but still with a (hidden) camera) which at least creates a perfect viewing experience.

Of course there are more important things in life - but technically it's kind of impressive nonetheless, it's somehow like "taking a picture without a cam".

 

[CraigD]

ISS PASSING BETWEEN JUPITER AND SATURN

Photographer Jason De Freitas managed to capture the ISS trail between Jupiter and Saturn during the conjunction earlier this week, as seen from Mitagong, NSW, Australia.

Pentax 67, Takumar 600mm f/4 lens, Fujifilm Provia 100f.
Exposure: 10s @ no aperture given.

https://www.diyphotography.net/this...-between-jupiter-and-saturn-was-shot-on-film/

 

[CraigD]

Awesome thread, very interesting stuff included.

Thank you!

There have been a core group of us posting and discussing here for a few months now.

It has been very educational and a lot of fun.

Everyone is welcome, just keep it rational and post articles from reputable sources.

Please enjoy

 

[koolishman]

Korean artificial sun sets the new world record of 20-sec-long operation at 100 million degrees

The Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR), a superconducting fusion device also known as the Korean artificial sun, set the new world record as it succeeded in maintaining the high temperature plasma for 20 seconds with an ion temperature over 100 million degrees (Celsius).

So far, there have been other fusion devices that have briefly managed plasma at temperatures of 100 million degrees or higher. None of them broke the barrier of maintaining the operation for 10 seconds or longer. It is the operational limit of normal-conducting device and it was difficult maintain a stable plasma state in the fusion device at such high temperatures for a long time.

 

[koolishman]

Scientists Have Discovered A New Kind of Brain Cell

Two main types of cells compose the central nervous system—neurons and glia. Neurons form the primary actors in the brain. They use electrical signals and the chemical signalling to relay information about the various regions. Without the function of neurons and supporting cells, anything that we think and experience and do would be impossible.

Recently, scientists have discovered a new brain cell type sensitive to the distance and position of items. Discovery of "vector tracing cells" is especially important as the brain area in which they occur is one of the first attacks of brain disorders such as Alzheimer's.

Scientists say the absence or alteration of those cells could be an early biomarker of the disease could lead to better intervention and more effective treatment for it.

 

[CraigD]

Astronauts on the International Space Station beam Christmas cheer to Earth

All seven members of the station's Expedition 64 crew are taking the day off in orbit to relax and likely make calls to friends and family, but five of them beamed home some special videos for everyone on Earth. Their message: Resilience, based on the name of the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule that launched four of the astronauts to the station last month.

https://www.space.com/space-station-astronauts-christmas-2020-video

 

[CraigD]

20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history

Plagues and epidemics have ravaged humanity throughout its existence, often changing the course of history.

https://www.livescience.com/worst-epidemics-and-pandemics-in-history.html

 

[DOMAIN ILLUMINATI]

20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history

Plagues and epidemics have ravaged humanity throughout its existence, often changing the course of history.

https://www.livescience.com/worst-epidemics-and-pandemics-in-history.html

One has to be carefull with such claims (also - or probably especially - if they are from "reputable sources") about our history - the posibility that such events (epi/pandemics) did never happen at all (which would mean that their "existence" are just being the result of lies and their endless medial repeats throughout time) should not be excluded.

That's why I am indeed not sure if there were / are indeed epidemics / pandemics happen(ing) in history / currently, I rather tend to think such is part of an ongoing brainwash by those who since ever controll the world to hold the masses in a permanent uncoucious state of fear (health is just one but one of the main topics).

The roots of manipulation are deeper than most (understandably) want to imagine - but as long as one understand that we were born with the potential of being able to distinguish between real and fake and as long as we care about our potential, the evil has no chance.

 

[CraigD]

One has to be carefull with such claims (also - or probably especially - if they are from "reputable sources") about our history - the posibility that such events (epi/pandemics) did never happen at all (which would mean that their "existence" are just being the result of lies and their endless medial repeats throughout time) should not be excluded.

That's why I am indeed not sure if there were / are indeed epidemics / pandemics happen(ing) in history / currently, I rather tend to think such is part of an ongoing brainwash by those who since ever controll the world to hold the masses in a permanent uncoucious state of fear (health is just one but one of the main topics).

The roots of manipulation are deeper than most (understandably) want to imagine - but as long as one understand that we were born with the potential of being able to distinguish between real and fake and as long as we care about our potential, the evil has no chance.

Thanks. I've been hearing these types of arguments quite often recently.

I think the best way to respond is to point out that to 'fake' or control the masses on the scale you are talking about takes an immense number of people to be 'in on the game', and to hold that position and never recant, even on their death beds. It's simply not possible.

Think about the moon landing conspiracy theories. For NASA to fake the moon landing, tens of thousands of people would be required to be in on the deception. I have yet to hear one of these scientists or engineers who worked on that program come out and say that they were part of a huge conspiracy.

As far as pandemics etc, we have historical records from many people, in many professions who report the same incident.

I think that at some point you need to just accept that, no matter how much things don't fit in with your personal view of the world, recorded history is reasonably accurate.

The alternative is to spend your life thinking that everyone but yourself is part of a great deception.

 

[CraigD]

Quantum philosophy: 4 ways physics will challenge your reality

Working out the basic nature of reality according to quantum mechanics is a little bit like an impossible Sudoku. No matter where we start with quantum theory, we always end up at a conundrum that forces us to rethink the way the world fundamentally works. (This is what makes quantum mechanics so much fun.)

Let me take you on a brief tour, through the eyes of a philosopher, of the world according to quantum mechanics.

By Peter Evans,
ARC Discovery Early Career Research Fellow, The University of Queensland

https://theconversation.com/quantum-philosophy-4-ways-physics-will-challenge-your-reality-150175

 

[Sutruk]

If a planet has a lot of methane in its atmosphere, life is the most likely cause

https://phys.org/news/2020-12-planet-lot-methane-atmosphere-life.html

"The ultra-powerful James Webb Space Telescope will launch soon. Once it's deployed and in position at the Earth-Sun Lagrange Point 2, it'll begin work. One of its jobs is to examine the atmospheres of exoplanets and look for biosignatures.

...In fact, the presence of oxygen is not necessarily reliable. It's methane that can send a stronger signal indicating the presence of life."

"Oxygen might seem like the obvious thing to look for in a planet's atmosphere when searching for signs of life, but that's not the case. Its presence or lack thereof is not a reliable indicator. Earth's history makes that clear."

"...This is one reason that planetary scientists focus on other things, like methane (CH4). In a new paper, researchers examined the potential for methane to signal biological activity. They say that abundant methane in a planet's atmosphere is unlikely to come from volcanoes and most likely has a biological origin."

 

[Sutruk]

Image: Hubble sees a 'molten ring'

https://phys.org/news/2020-12-image-hubble-molten.html

"The narrow galaxy elegantly curving around its spherical companion in this image is a fantastic example of a truly strange and very rare phenomenon.

First theorized to exist by Einstein in his general theory of relativity, this object's unusual shape can be explained by a process called gravitational lensing, which causes light shining from far away to be bent and pulled by the gravity of an object between its source and the observer. In this case, the light from the background galaxy has been distorted into the curve we see by the gravity of the galaxy cluster sitting in front of it."

 

[DOMAIN ILLUMINATI]

Thanks. I've been hearing these types of arguments quite often recently.

I think the best way to respond is to point out that to 'fake' or control the masses on the scale you are talking about takes an immense number of people to be 'in on the game', and to hold that position and never recant, even on their death beds. It's simply not possible.

Think about the moon landing conspiracy theories. For NASA to fake the moon landing, tens of thousands of people would be required to be in on the deception. I have yet to hear one of these scientists or engineers who worked on that program come out and say that they were part of a huge conspiracy.

As far as pandemics etc, we have historical records from many people, in many professions who report the same incident.

I think that at some point you need to just accept that, no matter how much things don't fit in with your personal view of the world, recorded history is reasonably accurate.

The alternative is to spend your life thinking that everyone but yourself is part of a great deception.

You are welcome.
To think that a conspiracy of global proportions would not be feasible for social reasons is likely based on the (false) assumption that secret societies were formed just to pass the time.
We live in the greatest hierarchical system ever built - based on occultism, held together by oaths, fueled by gold.


CLICK FOR FULL VIEW

It is a basically a pharaonic chronic and their symbols can be found worldwide but especially in Switzerland.

 

[DOMAIN ILLUMINATI]

This is probably one of the best (clearest) examples of GODs perfection in plant nature, I admire this creations optic since the first time I saw it (as a child), simply mind blowing.

 

[CraigD]

The biggest events from 2020, before and after, as seen by satellites

2020 featured incredible upheaval around the world thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as its fill of natural and man-made disasters. Through it all, the scale of the disruption and destruction was captured from the sky by Maxar Technologies, a US space tech company that specialises in Earth observation.

Here are the best before-and-after photos as seen by Maxar's satellites.

https://blog.maxar.com/news-events/...cts-on-biggest-events-seen-from-space-in-2020

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12...020-biggest-events-seen-from-the-sky/12982732

 

[CraigD]

If a planet has a lot of methane in its atmosphere, life is the most likely cause

https://phys.org/news/2020-12-planet-lot-methane-atmosphere-life.html

"The ultra-powerful James Webb Space Telescope will launch soon. Once it's deployed and in position at the Earth-Sun Lagrange Point 2, it'll begin work. One of its jobs is to examine the atmospheres of exoplanets and look for biosignatures.

...In fact, the presence of oxygen is not necessarily reliable. It's methane that can send a stronger signal indicating the presence of life."

"Oxygen might seem like the obvious thing to look for in a planet's atmosphere when searching for signs of life, but that's not the case. Its presence or lack thereof is not a reliable indicator. Earth's history makes that clear."

"...This is one reason that planetary scientists focus on other things, like methane (CH4). In a new paper, researchers examined the potential for methane to signal biological activity. They say that abundant methane in a planet's atmosphere is unlikely to come from volcanoes and most likely has a biological origin."

There was no mention that Methane (CH4) is also abundant on our giant planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, although the paper does say that the study is concerned with rocky exoplanets similar to Earth.

 

[Sutruk]

There was no mention that Methane (CH4) is also abundant on our giant planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, although the paper does say that the study is concerned with rocky exoplanets similar to Earth.

I think it is about the proportion of methane also depending on the rest of the gases on the planet:

"During the Archaean Eon, Earth's heat flow was up to three times more than it is currently. According to the study, it could've produced 25 times more magma than modern Earth and much more methane. But the same activity that produced all that methane would also produce far more carbon dioxide. That, the authors point out, is a detectable false-positive. But if abundant methane is detected without accompanying amounts of CO2, then that is a more reliable biosignature."

 

[koolishman]

Neutron stars scanned for signals of dark matter turning into light

Dark matter is thought to outnumber the regular stuff by a ratio of five to one, yet it remains frustratingly elusive. But there might be ways to potentially spot it, if you know where to look, and now astronomers have scanned neutron stars for telltale signals of a proposed dark matter particle called an axion.

Experiments have been run in the past to try to detect axions as they produce electric or magnetic fields in certain conditions, or by affecting the spin of electrified neutrons. But for the new study, the researchers turned their gaze away from the lab and up to the stars.

Another predicted property of axions is that when they encounter a strong electromagnetic field, they should sometimes spontaneously convert into photons – particles of light that are easily detectable.

Neutron stars have some of the strongest magnetic fields in the universe, and their huge masses should attract large numbers of axions. So the researchers reasoned that these objects would be the perfect places to scan for axions converting into photons.


Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 171301 (2020) - Green Bank and Effelsberg Radio Telescope Searches for Axion Dark Matter Conversion in Neutron Star Magnetospheres (aps.org)

 

[CraigD]

Science Made Simple: What is the Higgs Boson (God Particle)
By U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY DECEMBER 25, 2020

Scientists are now studying the characteristic properties of the Higgs boson to determine if it precisely matches the predictions of the Standard Model of particle physics. If the Higgs boson deviates from the model, it may provide clues to new particles that only interact with other Standard Model particles through the Higgs boson and thereby lead to new scientific discoveries.

https://scitechdaily.com/science-made-simple-what-is-the-higgs-boson-god-particle/