mypubliclands:

Sunset in Kotzebue, Alaska.

-Matthew Vos

spaceplasma:

Russian Meteorite Not Asteroid Debris

The meteorite that hit Russia’s Urals on Friday morning was not debris from the 2012 DA14 asteroid which is due to pass close by the Earth later the same day, the European Space Agency (ESA) said.

The agency’s experts confirmed there is no link between the meteorite and the asteroid, ESA said on its official Twitter, but provided no details of its analysis.

The 2012 DA14, which is roughly 50 meters (165 feet) in size, will pass 27,000 kilometers (17,100 miles) from the Earth – closer than satellites in the geosynchronous orbit, which is 36,000 kilometers.

The 2012 DA14 flyby will take place at 19:24 GMT, about 16 hours after the meteorite incident in Chelyabinsk Region which left at least 400 injured, mostly from glass broken by the shock wave as the meteorite flew past.

The asteroid was linked to the meteor by numerous media reports. Tatiana Bordovitsina, an astronomy professor at Tomsk State University in western Siberia, told RIA Novosti two hours before the ESA statement that the meteorite could have been debris preceding the asteroid, but said a more thorough examination of the incident was needed.

NASA confirmed that 2012 DA14 is not on collision course with the planet, but said if the asteroid hit the Earth, the resulting explosion would be 1,000 times more powerful than the nuclear bomb that obliterated Hiroshima in 1945.

Credit: Ria Novosti

abcstarstuff:

BLACK HOLES GROWING FASTER THAN EXPECTED, NEW STUDY SHOWS

Lurking at the centers of most galaxies are black holes that can weigh anywhere from one million to one billion times as much as the Sun. New research, published today in the Astrophysical Journal, shows that these black holes are growing at much larger rates than had previously been thought possible. Even the black hole in our own Milky Way Galaxy, which otherwise appears very quiet, has probably been consuming the equivalent of one Sun every 3,000 years.

Until recently astronomers had thought that black holes grow mostly when galaxies crash into each other, at which time a large concentration of gas forms around the black hole and gets very hot, shining very brightly in what is known as an active galactic nucleus. This gas gets so bright that active galactic nuclei can be seen all the way back to shortly after the universe first formed. This theory held that black holes in the centers of ordinary spiral galaxies like our own Milky Way cannot grow much. However, a new study led by University of Central Lancashire astronomer Dr. Victor Debattista used computer simulations to show that black holes in spiral galaxies must grow by large amounts without the need for collisions.

Recent observations by the Hubble Space Telescope have indicated that black holes can grow even in quiet spiral galaxies. Some spiral galaxies have active galactic nuclei and these may outnumber those in merging galaxies. Closer to home, astronomers have recently discovered a gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way that later this year will be ripped apart by the central black hole. Over the next 10 years, the black hole is predicted to swallow up to as much as 15 times the mass of the Earth from this cloud.

The team of researchers, which included Dr. Stelios Kazantzidis of Ohio State University and Professor Frank C. van den Bosch of Yale University, used a property of black holes that was first discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope, that their masses can be quite accurately predicted from the speed of stars in the galaxies they live in.

The team successfully disproved the previous theory that black holes are unable to grow while the galaxy itself grows by using computer simulations to compare the masses of black holes in spiral galaxies with those of elliptical galaxies. The team’s comparison of spiral and elliptical galaxies found that there is no mismatch between how big their black holes are. For this to have happened black holes had to have been growing along with the galaxy.

The black hole that has grown the most can be found in the Sombrero galaxy The researchers estimate that this black hole has been swallowing the equivalent of one Sun every twenty years and is now over 500 million times as heavy as the Sun.

The new study, published today in the Astrophysical Journal, provides the theoretical basis for understanding the emerging picture that galaxy collisions are a relatively small contribution to the growth of black holes, contrary to previous assumptions.

Commenting on the significance of the new research, Dr. Debattista said: “These simulations show that it is no longer possible to argue that black holes in spiral galaxies do not grow efficiently. Our simulations will allow us to refine our understanding of how black holes grew in different types of galaxies.”

abcstarstuff:

Physics researchers join effort to finally complete quantum theory

An assistant professor of physics at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) will be among a team of international researchers looking to advance the theory of quantum mechanics, a notion challenged by Albert Einstein and pursued by many of the top scientific minds during the past century.

Le Luo, Ph.D., specializes in atomic physics and quantum optics, with expertise in the measurement and manipulation of trapped ions (charged particles). A new grant will allow him to work with researchers at the University of Science and Technology in China (USTC), Harvard University and several European universities to conduct a “loophole-free test” of the Bell Inequalities—one of the most fundamental questions in quantum mechanics.

“This research is going to be conducted over much of the next five years or so,” Luo said. “If successful, this could have a major effect on exploring the fundamentals of quantum mechanics as well advancements in quantum information science, which will ultimately make information technology much more secure and efficient than it is today.”

Quantum theory states that there is no local realism. In other words, an object has no pre-existing values until that object is measured. Until then, there is only probability. The theory also suggests that a single measurement may affect two remote, distinct systems described by “entangled” quantum states.

For example, the theory says that if two entangled particles (ions, protons, electrons, etc.) are sent off to remote places, a measurement taken on one particle at one point should indicate the states (position and speed, for example) of both particles, no matter the distance between the two particles.

Einstein’s theory of relativity claims this would be impossible because the particles would have to communicate with one another faster than the speed of light. When considering the local realism for physics laws, the quantum theory could not be complete, Einstein reasoned.

What is reality? What is matter? These weighty questions and others related to quantum theory have challenged scientists for generations.

“Hopefully, the expertise of this group from across the world will be able to make some progress in answering these long-standing questions,” Luo said.

The debate on the local realism of quantum mechanics has been ongoing since the early 1900s. Einstein and collaborators Podolsky and Rosen first challenged the completeness of quantum mechanics on a large public scale in the 1930s. This later became commonly known as the EPR Paradox.

In 1964, the European physicist John Bell provided a detailed analysis of the EPR paradox. Bell’s research produced a now famous result, known as Bell’s Inequality, which suggests specific ways in which local realism can be tested.

Researchers began using photons in 1980s to test Bell’s theory and determine if Einstein’s reasoning is right or wrong. Since then, researchers have used various quantum states to test the theory but continued to have loopholes in their methods, therefore falling short of a definitive result. Luo said the new collaboration would, for the first time, be using several different quantum systems—including photons, ions, quantum dots and solid-state ensembles—to test the theory across large distances and hopefully eliminate all possible loopholes, he said.

“It is very important that such Bell Inequality tests be implemented at large distances, across distances such as tens of miles, so that our measurement can be loophole-free by eliminating the possibility the two objects can communicate with one another,” Luo said.

Andy Gavrin, chair of the Department of Physics at IUPUI, said two graduate students at IUPUI will work with Luo on the project. The department should “receive additional financial support and recognition from being involved in this major effort,” he added.

Co-collaborators with Luo include Chuan-Feng Li and Yongjian Han of USTC, one of the top research universities in China; Jyrki Piilo; University of Turko in Finland; Heinz-Peter Breuer, Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg in Germany; and Man Hong Yung of Harvard University.

The School of Science is committed to excellence in teaching, research and service in the biological, physical, behavioral and mathematical sciences. The School is dedicated to being a leading resource for interdisciplinary research and science education in support of Indiana’s effort to expand and diversify its economy. For more information, visit www.science.iupui.edu.

(via sagansense)

sagansense:

Einstein: The Military Mentality

It seems to me that the decisive point in the situation lies in the fact that the problem before us cannot be viewed as an isolated one. First of all, one may pose the following question: from now on institutions for learning and research will more and more have to be supported by grants from the state, since, for various reasons, private sources will not suffice. Is it at all reasonable that the distribution of the funds raised for these purposes from the taxpayer should be entrusted to the military? To this question every prudent person will certainly answer: “No!” For it is evident that the difficult task of the most beneficent distribution should be placed in the hands of people whose training and life’s work give proof that they know something about science and scholarship.

If reasonable people, nevertheless, favor military agencies for the distribution of a major part of the available funds, the reason for this lies in the fact that they subordinate cultural concerns to their general political outlook. We must then focus our attention on these practical political viewpoints, their origins and their implications. In doing so we shall soon recognize that the problem here under discussion is but one of many, and can only be fully estimated and properly adjudged when placed in a broader framework.

The tendencies we have mentioned are something new for America. They arose when, under the influence of the two World Wars and the consequent concentration of all forces on a military goal, a predominantly military mentality developed, which with the almost sudden victory became even more accentuated. The characteristic feature of this mentality is that people place the importance of what Bertrand Russell so tellingly terms “naked power” far above all other factors which affect the relations between peoples. The Germans, misled by Bismarck’s successes in particular, underwent just such a transformation of their mentality—in consequences of which they were entirely ruined in less than a hundred years.

I must frankly confess that the foreign policy of the United States since the termination of hostilities has reminded me, sometimes irresistibly, of the attitude of Germany under Kaiser Wilhelm II, and I know that, independent of me, this analogy has most painfully occurred to others as well. It is characteristic of the military mentality that non-human factors (atom bombs, strategic bases, weapons of all sorts, the possession of raw materials, etc.) are held essential, while the human being, his desires and thoughts—in short, the psychological factors—are considered as unimportant and secondary. Herein lies a certain resemblance to Marxism, at least in so far as its theoretical side alone is kept in view. The individual is degraded to a mere instrument; he becomes “human material.” The normal ends of human aspiration vanish with such a viewpoint. Instead, the military mentality raises “naked power” as a goal in itself—one of the strangest illusions to which men can succumb.

In our time the military mentality is still more dangerous than formerly because the offensive weapons have become much more powerful than the defensive ones. Therefore it leads, by necessity, to preventative war. The general insecurity that goes hand in hand with this results in the sacrifice of the citizen’s civil rights to the supposed welfare of the state. Political witch-hunting, controls of all sorts (e.g., control of teaching and research, of the press, and so forth) appear inevitable, and for this reason do not encounter that popular resistance, which, were it not for the military mentaility, would provide a protection. A reappraisal of all values gradually takes place in so far as everything that does not clearly serve the utopian ends is regarded and treated as inferior.

I see no other way out of prevailing conditions than a far-seeing, honest, and courageous policy with the aim of establishing security on supranational foundations. Let us hope that men will be found, sufficient in number and moral force, to guide the nation on this path so long as a leading role is imposed on her by external circumstances. Then problems such as have been discussed here will cease to exist.

From The American Scholar, New York, Summer, 1947

neurosciencestuff:

Expert psychologist suggests the era of genius scientists is over

Dean Keith Simonton, a psychology professor at the University of California, has published a comment piece in the journal Nature, where he argues that it’s unlikely mankind will ever produce another Einstein, Newton, Darwin, etc. This is because, he says, we’ve already discovered all the most basic ideas that describe how the natural world works. Any new work, will involve little more than adding to our knowledge base.

Simonton’s comments are likely to draw a strong reaction, both in and out of the science world. It’s been the geniuses among us that have driven science forward for thousands of years, after all. If no more geniuses appear to offer an entirely new way of looking at things, how will the human race ever reach new heights?

Simonton has been studying geniuses and their contributions to science for more than 30 years and has even written books on them. He also writes that he hopes he is wrong in his assessment, even as he clearly doesn’t think he is. Sadly, the past several decades only offer proof. Since the time of Einstein, he says, no one has really come up with anything that would mark them as a giant in the field, to be looked up to hundreds, if not thousands of years from now. Worse perhaps, he details how the way modern science is conducted is only adding to the problem. Rather than fostering lone wolves pondering the universe in isolation, the new paradigm has researchers working together as teams, efficiently going about their way, marching towards incremental increases in knowledge. That doesn’t leave much room for true insight, which is of course, a necessary ingredient for genius level discoveries.

Simonton could be wrong of course – there might yet be some person that looks at all that has been discovered and compares it with his or her own observations, and finds that what we think we know, is completely wrong, and offers evidence of something truly groundbreaking as an alternative. The study of astrophysics, for example, appears ripe for a new approach. Scientists are becoming increasingly frustrated in trying to explain why the universe is not just expanding, but is doing so at an increasing rate. Perhaps most of the theories put forth over the past half-century or so, are completely off base. Modern science can’t even explain gravity, after all. Isn’t it possible that there is something at work that will need the intelligence, insight and courage of an Einstein to figure out? It appears we as a species are counting on it, even as we wonder if it’s even possible.

spaceplasma:

In Two Weeks This 50-Meter Asteroid Will Buzz Our Planet

On February 15 a chunk of rock about 50 meters wide will whiz by Earth at nearly 8 km/s, coming within 27,680 km of our planet’s surface — closer than many weather and communications satellites.

For those of you more comfortable with imperial units, that’s 165 feet wide traveling 17,800 mph coming within 17,200 miles. But regardless whether you prefer meters or miles, in astronomy that’s what’s called a close call.

Scientists stress that there’s no danger of an impact by this incoming asteroid, designated 2012-DA14, but it’s yet another reminder that in our neck of the Solar System we are definitely not alone.

“2012-DA14 will definitely not hit Earth,” says JPL’s near-Earth object specialist Don Yeomans. “The orbit of the asteroid is known well enough to rule out an impact.”

But with 2012-DA14′s upcoming February flyby Yeomans notes, “this is a record-setting close approach.”

The rocky asteroid will come within about 4 Earth radii, which is well within the orbits of geosynchronous satellites. During its closest approach at 19:26 UTC it should be visible in the sky to amateur telescopes (but not the naked eye), becoming as bright as an 7th- or 8th-magnitude star.

Radar observatories will be watching 2012-DA14 during the days leading up to and following its approach in an attempt to better determine its size, shape and trajectory. NASA’s Goldstone facility will have an eye — er, dish — on DA14, but it won’t be visible to Arecibo. Stay tuned for more info!

Read more about 2012-DA14 on the JPL Near-Earth Object Program page here.

Click here to watch the video

Credit: NASA/JPL, Jason Major/Universe Today

(via abluegirl)

abcstarstuff:

When a planet behaves like a comet

ESA’s Venus Express has made unique observations of Venus during a period of reduced solar wind pressure, discovering that the planet’s ionosphere balloons out like a comet’s tail on its nightside.

The ionosphere is a region of weakly electrically charged gas high above the main body of a planet’s atmosphere. Its shape and density are partly controlled by the internal magnetic field of the planet.

For Earth, which has a strong magnetic field, the ionosphere is relatively stable under a range of solar wind conditions. By comparison, Venus does not have its own internal magnetic field and relies instead on interactions with the solar wind to shape its ionosphere.

The extent to which this shaping depends on the strength of the solar wind has been controversial, but new results from Venus Express reveal for the first time the effect of a very low solar wind pressure on the ionosphere of an unmagnetised planet.

The observations were made in August 2010 when NASA’s Stereo-B spacecraft measured a drop in solar wind density to 0.1 particles per cubic centimetre, around 50 times lower than normally observed; this persisted for about 18 hours.

As this significantly reduced solar wind hit Venus, Venus Express saw the planet’s ionosphere balloon outwards on the planet’s ‘downwind’ nightside, much like the shape of the ion tail seen streaming from a comet under similar conditions.

“The teardrop-shaped ionosphere began forming within 30–60 minutes after the normal high pressure solar wind diminished. Over two Earth days, it had stretched to at least two Venus radii into space,” says Yong Wei of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Germany, lead author of the new findings.

The new observations settle a debate about how the strength of the solar wind affects the way in which ionospheric plasma is transported from the dayside to the nightside of Venus.

Usually, this material flows along a thin channel in the ionosphere, but scientists were unsure what happens under low solar wind conditions. Does the flow of plasma particles increase as the channel widens due to the reduced confining pressure, or does it decrease because less force is available to push plasma through the channel?

“We now finally know that the first effect outweighs the second, and that the ionosphere expands significantly during low solar wind density conditions,” says Markus Fraenz, also of the Max Planck Institute and co-author on the paper.

A similar effect is also expected to occur around Mars, the other non-magnetised planet in our inner Solar System.

“We often talk about the effects of solar wind interaction with planetary atmospheres during periods of intense solar activity, but Venus Express has shown us that even when there is a reduced solar wind, the Sun can still significantly influence the environment of our planetary neighbours,” adds Håkan Svedhem, ESA’s Venus Express project scientist.

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