A recent report addresses what appears to be a long-observed phenomenon in some circles: That bubbles in stout often sink, rather than rise. No, this is not an effect enhanced by increased consumption of the imbibable under discussion; rather, it is a very real phenomenon, seen even by those who are not inclined to see what is not there. It …
Dragons Exist!
Activities in space and on Earth today continued the opening of a new chapter in spaceflight. An uncrewed capsule, hight Dragon, containing a nominal mass of otherwise expendable and relatively unimportant cargo, docked with the International Space Station (ISS). This it the first time a commercial construct has docked with the ISS; previously, only capsules officially from governments have done …
Perceived Powerlessness?
The news in several places that the recently released movie, The Avengers broke the $1 billion mark for ticket sales (see here, for example) left me wondering, Why? What is it about this movie that has knocked earlier blockbusters (such as the Harry Potter canon) off their pedestals? I mean, I love a good movie, and may even set things …
Taking Big Bites
A couple of weeks ago there was much sound (and some fury) at the prospect of a group of billionaires coming together to form an entity that would seek out and mine asteroids. I loved it! That asteroids may be sources of multiple gigatons of useful materials (metals, mostly) has long been known. That mining them could bring untold riches …