science page

a place for all my stupid science stuff.

[duchesspeggy]

HAPPY ROTATION DAY PLUTO, YOU’RE DOING AMAZING

[did-you-know]

In hopes of inspiring younger generations, NASA created this series of gorgeous retro travel posters that encourage you to imagine a future where common space travel is a legitimate possibility. Source

[veggiezombiex]

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THEM!

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/galleries/visions-of-the-future

[science-prevails]

Loved this article by Science Alert about some new tetra quarks and some basic info on quarks.

https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-just-discovered-four-new-subatomic-particles-all-tetraquarks

Physicists Just Found 4 New Subatomic Particles That May Test The Laws of Nature

This month is a time to celebrate. CERN has just announced the discovery of four brand new particles at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in G

[creativespacetime]

Source: Physics World

[sunnycosmology]

[science-prevails]

Our Roots in Space

We all know of the 1969 moon landing, and most of us know that Yuri Gagarin was the first to orbit the earth in the Vostok 1 April 12, 1961.

But before that, there was animals in space. So on this day we remember Laika, who died on this day, 63 years ago.

Laika was a Soviet space dog, and the first animal to orbit earth. Laika completed her journey in Sputnik 2. She dies in a few hours after launch.

Laika was a stray dog on the streets of Moscow, then chosen to embark on a paw-th to space. (I know cheesy puns, I’ll stop.)

In 2008 a rocket statue with a dog standing on top was unveiled, a tribute to Laika.

[science-prevails]

My mother is working overtime and extra shifts at the children's hospital.

She works in cardio and looks at kids who have had covid every single day.

These kids are having strokes. They have heart problems.

These won't fade.

These kids will have heart problems the rest of their lives.

These kids won't recover fully.

Don't think your kids are safe. They're not.

Wear a fucking mask.

[dxmedstudent]

Here’s a Lancet article about stroke in young people, and covid. And here’s discussion of a paediatric case. Here’s a research article on paediatric mortality with covid-19. Given how long children and young people would have to live with potentially life changing conditions, I was relieved that they are less likely - as far as we currently know - to die or suffer serious effects than adults. It’s not wrong to state that the risks to children are much lower, because they are. But ‘lower’ is not zero, and doesn’t mean that precautions shouldn’t be taken wherever possible. But even if they are a lot less likely, the chances of children dying or having serious problems due to covid-19 are not zero. WE know covid-19 is having a wide range of effects on the human body, some of which potentially cause lasting damage or symptoms - though we are still learning exactly what is going on, and why.  I felt short of breath for ages after I had covid-19, and I have no idea if there will be longterm effects on my body from this virus. Which means in a pandemic, when millions, potentially billions, of kids encounter the virus, some of them will get very sick, and some will die. It’s a function of the numbers at play here - even though most kids face mild disease, some do not. And as cases climb, we’re going to see more young lives tragically affected by something that may have been preventable. There’s a lot of talk about balancing the harm caused to growing children through lack of socialisation, lack of education etc vs. the risks of the virus - and I won’t go into that here. Every government is trying to balance the needs of kids with the risks - though sending kids back to school is often influenced by governments’ needs to get their parents back in the workforce, so it’d be disingenuous to suggest governments only think about childrens’ benefits. However, even if some risks are being taken (like sending kids to school or nursery), that doesn’t mean families and people as a whole can’t take other precautions to try to decrease transmission. We can’t guarantee we won’t catch this virus. But please, take all reasonable precautions, even if you are young. Wash your hands. Wear a mask. Follow guidance for what to do if you have the symptoms of coronavirus.  Socially distance - avoid physical contact and sharing space with people who are not in your household, and teach your kids good basic hygeine - as best as you can depending on their age.

[science-prevails]

@dxmedstudent thank you very much for the links. Rebloging for new information.

[the-wolf-and-moon]

Stardust of Orion

[drnikolatesla]

“When I was 9 years old I built a turbine in a mountain stream on my father’s land and connected it up with bolts to all sorts of machinery. I told my uncle, ‘Some day I’m going to America and I will run a big wheel at Niagara Falls.’ I had read about Niagara Falls and it fascinated me. My uncle didn’t take it seriously. ‘You’ll never see Niagara Falls,’ he told me.“

“But I did come to America, and I did put a big wheel in Niagara Falls.

–Nikola Tesla

“Tesla, 76, Reports His Talents At Peak.” New York Times, July 10, 1932.

[freepalest1ne]

[sipnsyphe]

Nope.

[chandrar-nalaar]

when your teacher is trying to teach you how to cast fireball

[gservator]

+3 to Intellect

[teampokepals76]

If anybody’s wondering what’s happening here, this clip made it onto Outrageous Acts of Science, and they explained that this teacher was demonstrating the Leidenfrost effect, which is basically when you place a droplet of a liquid on a surface that’s far hotter than its boiling point. The part of the drop touching the hot surface turns into vapor and forms a cushion that the rest of the drop rests on top of, which causes it to skid across the floor so quickly. The substance the teacher uses in the video is liquid methane. But methane has a really low boiling point. Like, about −160 °C low. So once it touches the comparatively hot floor, the Leidenfrost effect comes into play, and it slides across the floor. The issue is though, methane is colorless, so you can’t normally see it. Thankfully (in this demonstration), methane is also very flammable, so he sets it on fire before dumping it onto the floor so you can see it as it moves. Definitely a cooler demonstration of the Leidenfrost effect than dropping a little water in a hot pan. Or hotter, if you like puns.

[paint-the-sky-lilac]

THANKS FOR EXPLANATION SCIENTIFIC SIDE OF TUMBLR

[dihydrogenmonoxideawareness]

Why would anyone want to consume it!?

[etherealastraea]

I teach my 7th graders about the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide.

I bring in a graduated cylinder of it and we talk about how it’s used in nuclear power plants and gmo crops. How inhaling even the small amount I’m holding can lead to suffocation or even death. It’s found in vaccines and cancer cells, but also in infant formula and pet food. It is a huge component of acid rain, can cause severe burns, and has been found in places that were thought to be the most pristine and unpolluted locations on earth.

We talk about how there are little to no regulations on this chemical. No bans, no warning labels, and most manufacturers don’t even have to disclose their use of it in their products.

My students are outraged. We talk about what we can do. Create posters and flyers to spread awareness. Contact our senators with petitions to ban DHMO. Spread this information all over social media.

Then I explain that the real problem with dihydrogen monoxide is that….when I am thirsty…there is just nothing else as refreshing, and then I watch their looks of absolute shock and horror as I drink the entire vial down.

[bluegone]

I. Fucking. Love. This.

This is how misinformation works. How propaganda works. How manipulation works.

[nerdy-pharmacy-daydreams-deacti]

may our education be stronger than fake news

[darthlenaplant]

Amen.

[chubby-aphrodite]

To those who don’t get it:

“Dihydrogen monoxide” is the chemical name for water, AKA H2O.

[mod2amaryllis]

another important element of understanding the joke is understanding how pH levels work

yup.  that’s a higher number alright.

[youngalientype]

“Everyone who has ever touched or consumed this chemical has died”

[dzamie]

Most people, technically.

[previouslysaltyfandombrat]

Facts: everyone who has consumed this chemical has or will die at some point

[whitepeopletwitter]

[mariaalenkoshepard]

Helpful info on that

Stay safe everyone

[weirdsciencefacts]

Scientific Equations That Changed The World

[mytearsrricochet]

this morning NASA abandoned their mars rover Opportunity (aka Oppy) because it (she) got hit by a storm on Mars and it knocked her camera and wheels out and her last words to the team were “my battery is low and it is getting cold”. I know she’s a machine but I’m devastated. Oppy is the one who discovered water on Mars. RIP oppy ily space baby

[mevsthhighway]

they didn’t abandon her!! they tried eight months to reach her!!!! as their last farewell to her yesterday they played her “I’ll be seeing you” by Billie Holiday:

“I’ll find you in the morning sun

And when the night is new

I’ll be looking at the moon

But I’ll be seeing you”

They love her so much and they tried so hard!!!

[stickmanbrandon]

Oh man, It doesn’t end there.

This isn’t the first song NASA sent Opportunity. They had a playlist:

https://www.space.com/41434-mars-rover-opportunity-wakeup-music-playlist.html?fbclid=IwAR3uL6q4tOmLQTIEhiwYegGc99nv4N01HQKItpCLQiQYIptBOevNN6uIyT8

It’s on Spotify, it’s called “Opportunity, wake up!“

This is what’s great about NASA and it’s what’s great about people. These are world-class engineers. When they sent a rover to another planet they could have easily looked at it as just another scientific tool. But people don’t do that. We can and will get emotionally attached to the most inanimate of objects. We can and will anthropomorphize anything. And frankly Opportunity’s camera mast looks like a little face with eyes and everything, so why not?

So they started calling it her.

They nicknamed her Oppy.

They told her to take a selfie not long ago.

After 15 years of Oppy flipping the double bird to her original 90 day life expectancy, when a planet-spanning dust storm finally knocked her out and she stopped responding to the engineer’s wake-up messages, they started playing music for her.

And after 8 months and almost 1000 unanswered wake-up messages, when it was finally clear that Oppy was never going to wake up, the last thing these world-class NASA engineers did for their little rover on another planet

Was play her a love song

[abbeydoesthings]

oh my gosh… sometimes I recognize that Humanity kind of sucks… But I live for content and feelings like this. Thank you, NASA.

[colorful-bees]

I hope God is merciful enough to let this rover into heaven.

[science-prevails]

My mother is working overtime and extra shifts at the children's hospital.

She works in cardio and looks at kids who have had covid every single day.

These kids are having strokes. They have heart problems.

These won't fade.

These kids will have heart problems the rest of their lives.

These kids won't recover fully.

Don't think your kids are safe. They're not.

Wear a fucking mask.

[jonbutter]

Heartbreaking Simpsons Moments 1/∞: Bart Gets an F

[songofages]

I never understood why it’s an F if he gets more than half out of 100? Unless it’s more than 100. If you get more than half the answers right how is it an F?

[i-aint-even-bovvered]

You must not be from America. Here, grading is fucked up.

[heruut]

Average American Grading Scale: A+- 97-100 A - 94-96 A- - 90-93 B- 80-89 C- 70-79 D- 60-69 F- 59 and under

[well-metaphoricallyspeaking]

And in some places in America it goes by a 7 point scale, so it’d be A - 100-93 B - 92-85 C - 84-78 D - 77-70 F - 69 and below

[flameoflight-blog1]

Now you understand why American kid’s feel like there’s no point to school. If you have a 100 question text, and get 79 of them correct, that’s a C. That mean’s your Average Intelligence on this particular subject. And it get’s even worse when you have only like… a 10 question quiz. If you get two wrong? that’s a B. 80 fucking %. Now tell me again why American school’s are easier? 

[gouthesupermanager-archive]

No wait but whats the grading system in other countries?

[thecerisequeen-archive]

UK Grading Scale

100-70: A

69-60: B

59-50: C

49-40: D

Below 40: F

[carolxdanvers]

next time you try to tell americans that we’re stupid

i’m gonna remind you

that our “average” is your “A”

[80s-blue-lightning]

#is that true? Yep I was shocked when I heard this in a different post but a Google search pulls up a ton of sites backing this up. Shit son I woulda passed College Algebra with an A in the UK. And I spent the end of the semester in perpetual fear that I would fail and have to retake the class.

[keylimepie]

And basically as an American you’re expected to get 80 or higher. Technically 70s are considered ‘average’ but there is such a level of pressure to get a B or higher, that Cs have become equal to Ds. Basically anything under 60 you might as well gotten a 0, and anything between 60-80 is considered practically failing. So basically schools have to be designed to make sure majority of students are getting 80s or higher on specific topics, which means you’re spending all your time going over a few choice facts a billion times and there is very little room to teach anything else. Which explains why American schools are of such low quality. The insane demand on the students ends up wrecking their education. Not only do you not have time to teach them anything, but they end up hating learning. Even outside of school your life is dedicated to memorizing these few dumb facts because your homework ends up taking hours of your time. A teacher from one subject says they expect you to spend 2 hours every night on their homework. And if you’re studying 5 subjects and they all demand that 2 hours? Good fucking luck, because if you don’t have straight all 80s or higher you’re not getting into a good college and college degrees have somehow become the minimum requirement for getting jobs.

[samwellwinchesterthebrave]

I spent most of my junior year of high school in a state of constant panic that I was going to get a C in Honors Physics much less fail the class. If I got a C on my report card, I was grounded until the next one. I lost count of the times I’d wake up at five in the morning to take the early bus to go in for zero hour before school actually started for the day

[miathermopolips]

File this under the exact reason so many Americans detest going to school.

[geeky-jez-deactivated20231025]

This. All of this. Now add to that a set of parents who look at an all A+ report card (save for one subject) and ALL they can focus on is how *horrible* it is that you’re “slipping” in Biology for having an A-. #true story

[salembinchtrials]

Where do I find a group of people who are also disappointed in everyone around them not taking Covid seriously