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Eugenics: What is the meaning of eugenics and what does it have to do with nepotism? – GQ India
In his apology to Kangana Ranaut over the IIFA controversy, Saif Ali Khan said it was easy to confuse nepotism with genetics. Maybe, he said, There is something in the genes too that makes many of Raj Kapoors descendants actors or Pataudis cricketers. I think its actually eugenics and genetics thats coming into play. Obviously you wanted to know what the meaning of eugenics is and just what it had to do with nepotism. But youve had a long week and youre too lazyto look it up yourself. So we did.
Thanks to the good folks over at Merriam Webster Dictionary we now know that eugenics refers to the study of improving population through controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics. In simple English, it is a belief that discourages the mating of people who have genetic defects and encourages reproduction between fit people so as to improve the genetic quality of a group of individuals
While the first recorded use of eugenics can be dated to the late 1800s, the concept itself goes back to ancient Greece. Plato, the Greek philosopher, had suggested selecting mating so as to build a class of warriors.In fact the word itself has Greek roots and is derived from the Greek word eu suggesting well or good) and genes meaning born. And so eugenics can be loosely translated as well-born.
The word was coined by one Francis Galton, who would have for ever lived in the shadow of his far famous half-cousin Charles Darwin until the time hesuggested that that desirable human qualities were hereditary traits. Galton wanted to extendDarwinstheory (which essentially seeksto explain the development of animal and plant species) and apply it to human beings. Darwin, of course, disagreed with this elaboration. A year after Darwins passing, in 1883, Galton went ahead and named his research, eugenics.
What made eugenics controversial in modern times was the idea that human character was affected purely by genes and ones surroundings and education had almost nothing to do with how a person turned out.
Like with all things, arguments can be made for and against the belief. Negative eugenics suggests eliminating those who are deemed undesirables through abortions and sterilisations. These could includepeople who are morally, mentally or physically deviant. The Holocaust is the most apt example of negative eugenics that involved the mass murder of not just homosexuals and the physically disabled but also attempted to wipe out an entire race of people.
Positive eugenics is usually aimed at creating a genetically advantaged race of people through processes such as in vitro fertilization and egg transplants. AndRobert Klark Graham, the optometrist who made his millions for inventing plastic eyeglass lenses, is a classic example of positive eugenics. Graham, who hoped to create a master race of intelligent children, started a sperm bank that only accepted donations from Nobel Laureates. 217 children were born out of the programme and some, whove revealed their identity, have displayed remarkable intelligence. The programme was shut down soon after Grahams passing away. (ALSO READ The oddest and most unnecessary things of the worlds richest people have done)
On that, we are as clueless as Saif Ali Khan is in the picture above.
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Eugenics: What is the meaning of eugenics and what does it have to do with nepotism? - GQ India
New Rauner hire compared abortion to Nazi eugenics in blog post – Chicago Sun-Times
One of Gov. Bruce Rauners new communications aides has argued that abortion is being used to rid the world of disabled and other unwanted persons comparing it to Nazi Germany.
Communications specialist Brittany Carl has also taken on organized labor in her on-line posts, contending that teachers unions should be dissolved.
Carl, a $45,000-a-year communications specialist was hired this week as part of sweeping changes within Rauners administration. Carl, who goes by Brittany Clingen Carl or Brittany Clingen in online articles, is listed as the editor and publisher of Reclaiming Feminism, a conservative blog.
In an April blog post, Carl commented on a Huffington Post article about a Catholic high school in Canada that had been criticized for screening an anti-abortion video that compared the procedure to the Holocaust.
Certainly nothing matchesthe atrocity of the Holocaust, but its undeniable that abortion is being used to rid the world of disabled and other unwanted persons a fact the Left and their pro-abortion allies dont want discussed, Carl wrote.
Carl also wrote about parents aborting babies diagnosed with Down syndrome: Attempting to rid the world of people with Down syndrome simply because they are different constitutes the dangerous and morally reprehensible practice ofeugenics not entirely unlike what was practiced in . . . Nazi Germany.
In a story posted oneagnews.orgin May 2013, Carl wrote about a Stanford University professor and author who said teachers unions have created insurmountable problems for effective schools and should be stopped.
Its clear that the faster the teachers unions are dissolved, the faster we can begin to restore the education system and ensure its benefits for those whom it was created for the children, Carl wrote.
Asked about the posts against abortion and unions, a Rauner spokeswoman said they are Carls personal opinions.
Any of the writing Brittany did before she worked for the state reflect her personal opinion, not the opinion of the administration, said Laurel Patrick, Rauners new communications director in an email. If youre going to quote from her past writing, she asks that you please quote accurately and with full context.
Rauner last week began a series of firings, including all of his communications team. Employees of the conservative-leaning think tank the Illinois Policy Institute have now taken key posts in Rauners administration.
The transition has not gone smoothly. On Monday, the governor fired Ben Tracy, his handpicked body man, after his staff found a series of homophobic and racially insensitive remarks on Tracys Twitter account.
The governor has always portrayed himself as a social moderate, focused more on fiscal issues than social ones. Rauner and first lady Diana Rauner have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to abortion rights groups jointly and through their familys not-for-profit foundation.
But the shift in Rauner administration employees shows hes moving further to the right. Many staffers who were either fired or resigned were moderate Republicans and said they were able to get Rauner away from an anti-union and right-to-work agenda to focus on attainable reforms.
A Republican operative said Diana Rauner should be concerned. I would like to know, the first lady, who is a known pro-choice advocate, how she feels about this, the operative, speaking on condition of anonymity, said. Really she should be weighing in.
Carls husband is Jared Carl, who is listed as vice president of development for the Illinois Opportunity Project on his LinkedIn page.Rauneron Mondaynamed that groups president Matthew Besler his new campaign chief, following the exit of Mike Zolnierowicz.
The free market Illinois Opportunity Project is co-founded by conservative radio talk show host Dan Proft, a Rauner ally.
Personal PAC, an abortion rights group that took aim at the Rauners earlier this year, blasted them on Wednesday for the recent hires.
This is just further evidence as to what a complete fraud Governor Rauner and Diana Rauner truly are. They have spent tens of millions of dollars lying to Illinois voters about being pro-choice and moderate, Terry Cosgrove, Personal PAC CEO said in a statement. Hiring racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic right-wing activists to run Illinois government puts them on a race to the bottom in competition with Donald Trump as to who can be the most destructive.
The local chapter of the Anti-Defamation League also called on Carl to retract her statement.
Any analogy comparing the Holocaust to the national debate over abortion is historically inaccurate, inappropriate and offensive especially to survivors and their families, regional director Lonnie Nasatir said in a statement.
But Illinois Right to Life dubbed Carl a strong intelligent pro-life woman, and called attacks on her a discriminatory smear campaign.
Our state is on the verge of financial collapse and pro-abortion Democrats are standing knee deep in dredging up abortion quotes rather than fixing our states current financial crisis, the anti-abortion groups executive director Emily Troscinski said. Democrats seem more upset that Gov. Rauner didnt consult them when hiring his new, well qualified staff than with the real problems facing Illinois.
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New Rauner hire compared abortion to Nazi eugenics in blog post - Chicago Sun-Times
Cyborg on UFC 214 Evinger fight: ‘The way I see it, it will be a title defense’ – Bloody Elbow
With UFC 214 on the horizon, much of the attention is focused on the hotly-anticipated main event rematch between Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones. But while the light heavyweight title is what most will presumably be attending and tuning in for, another great fight on the card is getting less fanfare.
After some quick shuffling following Germaine de Randamie being stripped of the featherweight title, Cristiane Justino was scheduled to fight the woman that indirectly inherited her title - Invicta featherweight champion Megan Anderson. Anderson was then unable to compete, leading to Invicta bantamweight champion Tonya Evinger to step up in her place.
Throughout this entire period, Cyborg has been open to competing against any and all of the fighters shes had put in front of her. And in a recent chat with Brazilian journalists, she addressed her mindset coming into this fight for the vacant belt (courtesy of Fernanda Prates of MMAJunkie):
Actually, the way I see it, this fight to me is a title defense, Justino said during an online chat with Brazilian reporters. I didnt lose my belt. I left it vacant. The way I see it, it will be a title defense. In the eyes of some people, its more valuable than the belt I already carried. But, for me, its yet another defense.
It is worth noting that Justino had five bouts in Invicta, winning the inaugural title after defeating Dutch pioneer Marloes Coenen at Invicta FC 6 in July of 2013. However, she was stripped of her Strikeforce title after testing positive for performance enhancing drugs after defeating Hiroko Yamanaka at Strikeforce: Melendez vs Masvidal.
Cyborg also shared some thoughts about the woman that most expected her to initially fight, UFC inaugural and former featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie:
Maybe she wanted to go back to her division, get the 135-pound belt, be the first one to get the two belts, Justino said. She acted in bad faith. She knew shed have to fight me to defend the belt.
You see it happening a lot in MMA over the past two or three years, a lot of people who are right there to fight for the belt are being held back. I dont think thats fair. I think if youre the champ, you need to face whomevers prepared to fight for the belt.
Justino may not be fighting De Randamie any time soon, but will still have her hands full with Evinger at UFC 214. An eventual match with Megan Anderson could also be in her near future, as its something that both have been clamoring for for some time.
UFC 214 takes place July 29th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. The card will be headlined by another title fight in Jon Jones vs Daniel Cormier and welterweight champion Tyron Woodley taking on Demian Maia.
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Cyborg on UFC 214 Evinger fight: 'The way I see it, it will be a title defense' - Bloody Elbow
Outrage as sex robot company sells ‘frigid’ cyborg that ‘can be RAPED’ – Daily Star
A SEX robot firm have sparked disgust by producing erotic cyborgs that are "barely 18 and waiting for you to teach her" have created one that users can RAPE.
True Companion have created $9,995 hyper-realistic "Roxxxy" dolls which come with a range of personalities from "Wild Wendy" to "S & M Susan".
The firm claims it can "listen, talk, carry on a conversation and feel your touch", "has moods during the day just like real people" and "can even have an orgasm".
But one of the personas, called "Frigid Farrah", can be raped and is described on the company's website as "reserved and shy".
The website states that if you touch Farrah in a private area, more than likely, she will not be to appreciative of your advance.
GETTY
Can you tell the difference between these dolls and real girls?
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Noel Sharkey, a professor of artificial intelligence and robotics at the University of Sheffield, told New York Times there are ethical arguments within the field about sex robots with frigid settings.
The idea is robots would resist your sexual advances so that you could rape them, Professor Sharkey said.
Some people say its better they rape robots than rape real people. There are other people saying this would just encourage rapists more.
GETTY
Victoria Wild the 30-year-old blonde bombshell spent 30,000 GBP transforming herself into a human sex doll that wants men to worship her.
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Victoria Wild the model spent the equivalent of 30,000 GBP turning herself into a human sex doll
Despite the advances of Artificial Intelligence, the model lacks the ability to reproduce consent.
Because of this the company says their robots "allow everyone to realise their most private sexual dreams".
According to US media, Frigid Farrah is not alone in allowing her user to have sex with a replica of a human partner without the complication of consent.
It states that according to the Lumi Dolls website, dolls allow the user to set the limits and she will let herself be taken along for the ride shes the perfect submissive partner.
The new "Frigid Farrah" doll has sparked fury with people on social media, with many taking to Twitter to voice their shock.
One user wrote: "Frigid Farrah - reserved & shy' Yeah, let's rape the frigid c*** - that's sick as f***..."
Another said: "I would venture to say that Farrah is not quite a #sexrobot rather this is an intentionally designed rape mode."
Other Tweets include "so they built a rapist training robot..." and "should be illegal...its like "school for rapists" The other personalities offered by True Companion are the heavily criticised "Young Yoko" who is described by the website as: oh so young (barely 18) and waiting for you to teach her.
The New York Times reports Roxxxy is the ninth version of the companys sex robots after they developed their first Trudy in the 1990s.
Daily Star Online have contacted True Companion for comment.
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Outrage as sex robot company sells 'frigid' cyborg that 'can be RAPED' - Daily Star
Arkansas Beaches – Arkansas Swimming – Beaches in Arkansas
Lake Charles State Park
When planning a beach vacation, land-locked Arkansas rarely jumps to the top of the list. It's surprising to most that Arkansas indeed does have lake and river beaches, with no jellyfish, no crabs or sharks. Instead we have crystal clear waters surrounded by beautiful forested scenery.
We have huge U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes and U.S.D.A. Forest Service lakes. Several state parks are located on lakes or rivers. There are city parks and we have privately owned lakes and swimming holes. As you can see, Arkansas has plenty to choose from. Some are fully developed, others are more rustic.
Of the 23 state parks that have water access, eight offer Arkansas beaches. These are DeGray Lake, Lakes Catherine, Charles, Dardanelle and Ouachita, Village Creek, Woolly Hollow and Crowley's Ridge, along with Jacksonport on the White River.
Greers Ferry Lake
Fifteen U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes in Arkansas have sandy shores of some sort. The crystalline blue waters of Beaver, Bull Shoals, Greers Ferry, Norfork, and Table Rock Lakes are all tucked away in the mountains in the northern half of the state. Three of the sparkling Diamond Lakes -- Ouachita, DeGray, and Greeson -- are Corps impoundments. Lakes Catherine and Hamilton, two privately owned bodies of water round out the five gems.
Eight watery playgrounds are located in the confines of the tree-shrouded Ozark and St. Francis National Forests. Cove, Spring, Horsehead and Shores Lakes, plus Lake Wedington and Long Pool are located in the Ozarks. The St. Francis in the eastern part of the state boasts Bear Creek and Storm Creek Lakes. In the Ouachitas, Albert Pike, Charlton, Jack Creek, Knoppers Ford recreation areas are on the banks of mountain streams and small lakes. Lake Sylvia and Shady Lake are popular Ouachitas Arkansas swimming destinations.
Don't think you have to head to the hinterlands for swim beaches in Arkansas. Some of the best Arkansas swimming destinations here are city-owned properties such as Lake Leatherwood in Eureka Springs, Beaverfork Lake in Conway, and Hill Wheatley Park on Hot Springs' Lake Hamilton, so you can dive right in to a bit of summer fun without having to spend half your day in the car.
Lake Bennett at Woolly Hollow State Park
Some of the Arkansas beaches have user fees. Be sure to contact and check with the agency that oversees the lake and/or river for information about hours, usage policy and more.
Pack your swimsuit, inner tubes and other floatable toys, and a picnic lunch, and come splash the summer away on an Arkansas beach or swimming hole.
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A Definitive Guide to LA’s Best Beaches – Thrillist
Its summer in LA, and while we may take it for granted, every other city is losing their mind wishing they could spend their time on our beaches. Weve got excellent water, excellent food, excellent bars, and excellent-looking people in bathing suits, which is exactly why we should be beach bumming it as often as we can. Happy summer everybody: Here are the shoreline spots you need to hit in and around Los Angeles, and the things you should be eating while youre there.
For those of us who may actually be a little sick of the summer/borderline oppressive heat, a northern beach like Oxnard is a dream. Its generally at least 15 degrees cooler and the vibe is unbelievably relaxed. It's only an hours drive from LA and theres a ton of fun stuff to do in Oxnard that ranges from jet ski rentals to backpacking trips through the Channel Islands. Thinking of renting a beach house for a weekend somewhere? Youll find plenty of beaches along Oxnards coast, but Oxnard Beach itself might be the prize. The waves here are absolutely stunning, and its just adjacent to Oxnard Beach Park, which is wonderful for lounging/bringing the kids/creepily staring at other peoples dogs.
Where to eat/drink: If you skip Carnitas El Rey, youre doing it wrong. The move here is, of course, the carnitas, which are just about as good as anything youll find anywhere. Theyre also the only thing on the menu, so it stands to reason theyd be good. Fishermans Catch is a perfect spot for fresh seafood on the water, and the home of some truly life-affirming clam chowder.
Bonfires are illegal in Los Angeles for the most part, but Dockweiler gives nary a care about that, because you can bonfire it up all you want over here. Grab your gear and hit one of the many bonfire pits laid out along the beach, but be warned: They tend to fill up fast, so arriving early is key. If youre looking for a challenge, take your BBQ game on the road -- grab some meats from Belcampo on your way up, and set up a makeshift grill over the fire.
Where to eat/drink: Theres not much near Dockweiler (unless youre trying to eat at LAX), so its gonna be a BYO picnic kinda day. Because of the aforementioned law enforcement, we absolutely do NOT endorse the idea of you bringing fast-food cups and filling them with liquids of your choosing. We would never, ever say to do that.
Arguably Malibus premier surfing destination, Zumas the type of place people from the Midwest picture when they think of Los Angeles beaches -- in other words, they shot a whole lot of Baywatch here. Zumas one of the biggest beaches in all of LA, so despite its popularity you should still be able to settle into a nice spot; its also where youll find Point Dume, a gigantic bluff that juts into the ocean. If youre a rock climber, get yourself to the top for a truly magical view.
Where to eat/drink: Any wonderful Malibu day needs to begin (or end) at Malibu Wines -- its the gold standard for day drinking in Los Angeles. The grounds are completely gorgeous, and the clientele even moreso. If youve got the cash to burn, grab dinner at Nobu for an omakase tasting menu experience you wont forget from perhaps LAs most storied chef.
A little farther up the coast from Oxnard sits Ventura Beach, a coastal town that somehow manages to retain a quiet and easygoing vibe despite its larger-than-a-town population -- the beaches are some of cleanest and loveliest youll find, especially Surfers Knoll. The surfing is extremely choice here, but even if you dont surf, the Knoll is a beautiful spot to lounge and even go beachcombing if thats your thing. Every summer you can get all up in the Ventura County Fair, too: its just like the county fairs you know and love, except its by the ocean, so its infinitely better. If youre a watersports maniac, kitesurfing and kiteboarding are big here. Oh yeah, and one more thing theres free parking. Nuff said.
Where to eat/drink: Spencer Makenzies Fish Company is an elite-level spot for cold beers and fish & chips (dont skip on the fish tacos either). Ventura is also home to the dog-friendly Poseidon Brewing, and its Grapefruit IPA is absolutely something you need in your life. For a Nepalese meal thatll rock your bones, make Himalaya a part of your trip. That Sherpa Curry Chicken is out of this world. And whatever you do, dont skip out on great tapas and even greater wine at local haunt The Cave.
Is Santa Monica touristy? Yes. Is it generally overpriced? Yes. Is it full of attractive people and also a fun roller coaster and Ferris wheel that you just cant hate no matter how hard you try? Also yes. The gorgeous water paired with gorgeous people present all along the beach is the number one thing Westsiders have on Eastsiders. Santa Monica also manages to be cleaner and all around more pleasant than the neighboring Venice, so just skip Venice. We wont tell.
Where to eat/drink: Start your day at Jimmys Famous American Tavern for a top-tier brunch that includes the legendary Meal Mary: a beastly bloody mary garnished with a blue cheese olive, pepperoni, jack cheese, shrimp, pepperoncini, and a deviled egg. Do your lunching at Curious Palate for some tasty sandwiches and a solid beer list, and make sure you end your day at Cha Cha Chicken: a BYOB Jamaican restaurant whose spicy jerk sauce is simply too delicious to be real. Chances are youve already been to Bay Cities for the Godmother -- a timeless front-runner for best sandwich in LA -- but if you havent, nows the time.
Rosies Dog Beach, were happy to say, is just what youre imagining it to be. Completely off-leash, youll find it in the Belmont Shore area of Long Beach. Rosies plays host to lots of fun dog events too, so any time youve ever received a Facebook invite for something like Corgi Beach Day, chances are it was at Rosies. Its for sure the only place where you can actually enjoy a wet dog.
Where to eat/drink: Long Beach, which is technically LA county, has a surprising number of grand slams in the eating and drinking department. Any craving for Mexican food should lead you to Lolas: its extremely hyped, but deservedly so because the food is terrific. If youre of the drinking on a rooftop persuasion (and lets be honest, who isnt?), Bo-beau Kitchen + Rooftopis for you: board games, live music, great beer, and impossibly crispy Brussels sprout flatbreads await.
The sunsets at Hermosa are nearly impossible to top, and you can catch them from the edge of the long pier -- take somebody you love, and we can confidently say things will go well. Hermosa Cyclery is a great place to start your day if youre in the mood to rent some bikes and enjoy the sea breeze. If youre a comedy or magic fan, Hermosa Beach also has the Comedy & Magic Club, where Jay Leno still makes regular Sunday night appearances.
Where to eat/drink: Hermosa Beach is riddled with top-notch food and drink, especially Barans 2239 (try the Indian Egg), and Palmilla Cocina Y Tequila (grab a cucumber jalapeo margarita). For a one-stop shop for all your various needs, hit Abigaile: the place starts as a brewery and restaurant downstairs, and turns into a rooftop dance rager upstairs.
Not to be outdone by Hermosa, Manhattan Beach will also showcase some crazy colors in the sunset department. Its not hard to fill up a day with activities here, what with the Marvin Braude Bike Trail, Polliwog Park (a superb place to disc golf), and Sand Dune Park, which is exactly what it sounds like. People use the huge hill for exercise, but you know whats more fun than exercise (besides everything)? Sandboarding.
Where to eat/drink: Manhattan Beach Post is a heavyweight brunch champion, with enough bacon cheddar biscuits and chimichurri skirt steak to defeat any hangover. Fishing With Dynamite is another must, thanks to what might be the best raw bar in the city.
The trip to Catalina begins with a ferry ride from Long Beach, which is always a winning start, and ends with a day on a beautiful island, which is always a winning finish. Since its an island, the beach is essentially in every direction, and you have prime real estate to set up shop anywhere and just lie on the sand. The Descanso Beach Club is a primo beach lounging spot, with rentable cabanas and a full bar. Theres plenty of more active stuff, too, like zip-lining with Zip Line Eco Tours, helicopter tours with Island Express Helicopters, and of course, dolphin-searching boat tours with Ocean Runner Dolphin Tours.
Where to eat/drink: Mt. Ada was once a palatial retreat owned by the Wrigley family, but now its been turned into a friendly little B&B; spend the night, and youll have access to a fully stocked butlers pantry with wine, beer, Champagne, hard liquor, and more. Oh, and you cant consider your Catalina trip a success unless youve had some Buffalo Milk, which is sort of a Catalina icon (its basically just an alcoholic milkshake). Find em at the Descanso Beach Club, or basically anywhere else.
Newport Beach is pretty much the quintessential Orange County beach: You can whale watch, peep some seals from the Newport Pier, and even go all Point Break on the waves during a storm at The Wedge. Fishermen/fisherwomen/fisherpeople are also in luck, as deep-sea fishing is a big deal in Newport -- and consequently, boat rentals are a big deal here as well, so get ready to start living that #yachtlife. Or, if all else fails, just take in the majesty of the place where they shot lots of Arrested Development.
Where to eat/drink: The food from Wildfish Seafood Grille has probably popped up in your Instagram feed at some point, but thats a good thing since the dishes are picturesque as hell, and even better tasting (be sure to order something from the raw bar). To amp up your nightlife experience, hit Johnnys Saloon: an outstanding dive bar with both a killer whiskey menu and some extremely dank pizza. Its pretty hard to top.
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Wilder Shaw is an LA native, which means he honestly just prefers camping in the woods. Tell him a what jabronie he is on Twitter and Instagram.
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Tanning Salon in Conway, AR – Palm Beach Tan Conway
July 16, 2017
5/ 5stars
July 12, 2017
4/ 5stars
Good experience but I go to the most expensive bed & the water spritzer has been out for over a month now. No one knows when it will be fixed. That was part of the reason I chose that bed.
July 11, 2017
5/ 5stars
The staff is always so friendly!
July 2, 2017
5/ 5stars
every one was very friendly and alwas very helpful
June 30, 2017
5/ 5stars
June 27, 2017
5/ 5stars
Always a pleasure tanning here. great beds and great employees.
June 17, 2017
5/ 5stars
Everyone is super nice and helpful!!
June 15, 2017
5/ 5stars
Always friendly and nice. Usually I am the only male in the place.
June 14, 2017
5/ 5stars
June 9, 2017
5/ 5stars
Great! I love the ladies at PBT in Conway
June 3, 2017
5/ 5stars
Friendly, helpful and clean.
May 28, 2017
5/ 5stars
I always have wonderful experience when I come here! I love this place
May 28, 2017
5/ 5stars
the Lady was very help full she walked me throu every thing and made sure I understood everything. cant wait to go back would tell all my friends.
May 25, 2017
5/ 5stars
May 24, 2017
5/ 5stars
Everyone is very friendly, never a long wait! Very clean! And jennifer always makes you feel like family!
May 23, 2017
5/ 5stars
Very helpful, offering of best services to different individuals.
May 23, 2017
5/ 5stars
Best manager and team! Everyone is friendly and willing to answer any question you may have.
May 17, 2017
5/ 5stars
Love my tanning salon .. girls are always nice and helpful . Only negative , there are a few girls who are to salesy ... I get tired of someone trying to sell me products every visit . If you can see that I just bought lotion , there is no need to tell me about your latest lotions that are " so great " .. ? Love the Manager Britta , she is fabulous !!
April 30, 2017
5/ 5stars
Very kind and helpful!
April 12, 2017
5/ 5stars
I LOVE the staff! They are so sweet! Also AWESOME beds and spray tan booths!
April 12, 2017
5/ 5stars
Palm Beach Tan has friendly staff and a convenient location so it's easy to tan on my lunch break. Wonderful lotion selection as well!
April 11, 2017
5/ 5stars
April 10, 2017
5/ 5stars
Friendly staff . Willingto show and help . An will explain in detail all bout each and everything to you.
March 29, 2017
5/ 5stars
The staff are always friendly and the beds are clean! Specifically Lydia and Jen and another girl that I can't think of her name... but they are the sweetest people even if I see them outside of pbt. They know my name and I enjoy coming in the see them!
March 27, 2017
5/ 5stars
I love PBT & all the employees that work at my location! They're always very helpful and insightful when I have questions and I feel are genuinely looking out for me, so that I get the best tan possible, when it comes to product recommendations.
March 19, 2017
5/ 5stars
Palm beach tanning is awesome ! I always have a relaxing time at both of them in Conway Arkansas
March 15, 2017
5/ 5stars
I love the staff!! They are always so helpful
March 15, 2017
5/ 5stars
The girls that work are always super friendly and helpful. The beds and rooms are always very clean and kept nice.
March 12, 2017
5/ 5stars
Excellent service! Very helpful with all of my questions.
February 24, 2017
4/ 5stars
Great, ckean, friendly place to tan. Appreciate the choice of locations, but I do wish the selection and quality of beds from one branch to the other would be more equal. One location's beds are much, much better than the other's.
February 24, 2017
5/ 5stars
Britta & Ashley are super at the salon on Donaghey in Conway AR
February 9, 2017
4/ 5stars
February 8, 2017
5/ 5stars
Everyone is always kind and helpful.
February 2, 2017
5/ 5stars
All the staff are amazing! I absolutely love the fun atmosphere when I walk through the door. It's a great feeling when PBT knows me by name and has casual convo about daily life.
January 29, 2017
5/ 5stars
January 18, 2017
5/ 5stars
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Mysterious, Yellow, Sponge-Like Globs Are Fouling French Beaches … – Atlas Obscura
Recently, on Frances western coast, thousands of sponge-like balls have been appearing, strewn across 18 miles of beaches, from Boulogne-sur-Mer to Le Touquet. And no one seems to know where they are coming from.
The balls, which are not pieces of marine sponges, have disturbed locals, though officials have said that they are not toxic or dangerous.
According to BMFTV, a clean-up is now underway. The president of a French environmental organization telling the broadcaster that sponges smell like an oil product, and could be the scattered remains of some kind of building material.
Alternatively, as Gizmodo points out, the sponges could be the result of some minor environmental disaster: Sea foam created when water and air are bound together by some kind of human-generated stuff in the waters off the coastlike a detergent of some sort, or raw sewage.
Whatever it is, itll surely ruin your day at la plage.
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Mysterious, Yellow, Sponge-Like Globs Are Fouling French Beaches ... - Atlas Obscura
Sponge-Like Debris Is Washing Up on France’s Beaches, and No One Knows What It Is – Mental Floss
Baseball may be America's favorite summer pastime, but across the pond, a unique, no-hands sport reigns supremeand we're not talking about soccer.
Toe wrestlingyes, toe wrestlingis such a popular pastime in Northern England that there's an entire championship centered on this sport every summer. Since its inception in 1976, the Toe Wrestling Championship has taken the Derbyshire community near Manchester by storm.
The sport got its start when a group of friends at the Ye Olde Royal Oak Inn lamented England's lack of dominance in athleticsthey wanted a sport where Brits could reign supreme, and somehow, toe wrestling became the chosen activity. (Ripleys, however, notes that a Canadian visitor won the third annual championship, putting an early damper on the British preeminence of the sport.)
After 40 years and many toe tangos, the sport of toe wrestling continues to gain traction, even if the International Olympic Committee has refused to accept it as an official Olympic sport. Though it might not be a competition on the global stage, toe wrestling definitely attracts interest from around the world. Wendy Livingstone, general manager and events coordinator for Toe Wrestling Championship venue Bentley Brook Inn, notes she gets interest from various international media. In fact, one U.S. film company is shooting a mockup of the competition this summer with long-time champion Alan "Nasty" Nash.
Nash, known for his intimidating "strong man" physique and even more intimidating big toes, has made quite a name for himself in the toe wrestling space. According to ESPNwhich profiled him in 2011Nash won the title on his first try in 1994. Since then, he's won a dozen titles, including perhaps his most triumphant event in 1997 when he broke four toes in the semifinals, then popped them back in and took home the gold. The toe wrestling titles also led Nash to a stint on this year's Britains Got Talent show for his attempt to regain the title of "Most eggs crushed with the toes in one minute." (Spoiler: He succeeded.)
Toe wrestling is a competition between two participants. With their bare feet in a square ring, opponents sit on the floor, lock their big toes, and then battle in an arm-wrestle style to wrangle the others foot to the sideboard of the designated wrestling area. The art of toe wrestling is more skill than strength; opponents are required to keep non-competing feet in the air with hands flat on the ground.
Its a best-of-three competition that typically lasts one hour, and fear not: Toe hygiene is a priority. Nurses inspect all toes for fungus and hidden weapons prior to competition. Livingstone says they see about 10 to 30 participants annually. Winners move on through the bracket until the leaders go toe-to-toe in the final tournament.
To win at toe wrestling, Livingstone recommends developing those toe muscles however you can.
"The champion, Nasty Nash, invented his own 'toe exerciser' to make his toes the strongest!" she tells Mental Floss. (His exerciser essentially looks like a mini resistance band that he uses across his flexed big toes.)
But even Nash knows strength can only get him so far. He pairs strong toes with extreme intimidation to take home the victory.
"My technique ... is to hurt the first person that comes into the ring with me; hurt them bad and terrify everyone else," Nash told Reuters.
Speaking of injuries, the Toe Wrestling Championship is not for the frail. Livingstone notes in the past, toes have been broken (Nash broke nine as of 2012) and shes seen a few strained ankles. It also takes a toll on the back, so she advises those with back or spine issues to stay in the crowd.
Chomping at the bit to lock toes with a stranger? You're in luck. Participants can enter up until the day of for the August 19 Toe Wrestling Championship. There are two divisions: male and female. For those seeking pre-tournament prep, the Royal Oak Inn (the birthplace of toe wrestling) in Ashbourne, England, has a Toe Wrestling Charity Fundraising Event on July 15. Nash will be in attendance, and kids are also invited to put a toe in the ring with the 2017 Kids Championship.
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Sponge-Like Debris Is Washing Up on France's Beaches, and No One Knows What It Is - Mental Floss
How a little bird is keeping some Hilton Head residents off a big stretch of beach – Island Packet (blog)
How a little bird is keeping some Hilton Head residents off a big stretch of beach Island Packet (blog) A federally protected shorebird is at the center of a dispute between some Port Royal Plantation residents and Hilton Head town officials over access to a large chunk of beach. More than nine acres of beach encompassing the north end of the plantation ... |
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Worst beaches for parking in New Jersey – New Jersey 101.5 FM Radio
(Lou Russo, Townsquare Media NJ)
Its bad enough we have to pay to get on the beach in New Jersey, except for Wildwood and Atlantic City. To add insult to injury, we also have to pay to park. Nothing like fishing for quarters when youre finally lucky enough to get a space or dealing with a machine that simply wont take your cash while the line of people piles up behind you.
Many a time Ive come back to my car to find a ticket to add even more expense to my trip. NJ.com has printed a list of the beach towns most likely to give you a ticket while you are getting a tan. I would have bet Pt. Pleasant would be number one since I get the feeling that they really dont want you there in the first place, they came in sixth. To my surprise it was Asbury Park, a boardwalk I had such a great time at on July 3rd, that lead the way with 28,964 tickets issued in a one year period. Thats a 61% increase over the prior one year period followed by another great boardwalk where my boys and I were the first to ride Hydrus Seaside Heights came in second with 8,242 tickets.
It may be time to ask the governor if we could borrow his helicopter!
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Worst beaches for parking in New Jersey - New Jersey 101.5 FM Radio
Wagener County Park Beach is now open – Huron Daily Tribune
HURON COUNTY Wagener County Park Beach has been deemed safe for swimming and is now open.
According to test results released Wednesday, the water there had 14.5 E Escherichia coli (E. coli) colonies per 100 ml. of water.
Local health officials on Tuesday closed the beach after test results found unsafe levels of E. coli.
According to information released by Environmental Health Director Tip MacGuire, Wagener County Park Beach had 517.2 Escherichia coli (E. coli) colonies per 100 ml. of water in samples taken Monday.
A Huron County beach is closed when a composite sample of the three samples collected in 3 to 6 feet of water exceed 300 E.Coli colonies per 100 ml of water.
Beaches are opened if bacteria counts improve to acceptable limits.
The beaches at Bird Creek County Park, Harbor Beach City Park, Jenks County Park, Veterans Village Park and Wagener County Park were tested Monday. The other eight beaches are scheduled to be tested Thursday.
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What is Astronomy? Definition & History – Space.com
Mankind has long gazed toward the heavens, searching to put meaning and order to the universe around him. Although the movement of constellations patterns imprinted on the night sky were the easiest to track, other celestial events such as eclipses and the motion of planets were also charted and predicted.
Definition of astronomy: Astronomy is the study of the sun, moon, stars, planets, comets, gas, galaxies, gas, dust and other non-Earthly bodies and phenomena. In curriculum for K-4 students, NASA defines astronomy as simple the study of stars, planets and space. Astronomy and astrology were historically associated, but astrology is not a science and is no longer recognized as having anything to do with astronomy. Below we discuss the history of astronomy and related fields of study, including cosmology.
NGC 7026, a planetary nebula, lies just beyond the tip of the tail of the constellation of Cygnus (The Swan).
Historically, astronomy has focused on observations of heavenly bodies. It is a close cousin to astrophysics. Succinctly put, astrophysics involves the study of the physics of astronomy and concentrates on the behavior, properties, and motion of objects out there. However, modern astronomy includes many elements of the motions and characteristics of these bodies, and the two terms are often used interchangeably today.
Modern astronomers tend to fall into two fields: the theoretical and the observational.
Observational astronomers in the observational field focus on direct study of stars, planets, galaxies, and so forth.
Theoretical astronomers model and analyze how systems may have evolved.
Unlike most other fields of science, astronomers are unable to observe a system entirely from birth to death; the life of worlds, stars, and galaxies span millions to billions of years. As such, astronomers must rely on snapshots of bodies in various stages of evolution to determine how they formed, evolved, and died. Thus, theoretical and observational astronomy tend to blend together, as theoretical scientists use the information actually collected to create simulations, while the observations serve to confirm the models or to indicate the need for tweaking them.
Astronomy is broken down into a number of subfields, allowing scientists to specialize in particular objects and phenomena.
Red spots on Jupiter, photographed on Feb. 27, 2006.
Planetary astronomers, for instance, focus on the growth, evolution, and death of planets, while solar astronomers spend their time analyzing a single starour sun. Stellar astronomers turn their eyes to the stars, including the black holes, nebulae, white dwarfs, and supernova that survive stellar deaths.
Galactic astronomers study our galaxy, the Milky Way, while extragalactic astronomers peer outside of it to determine how these collections of stars form, change, and die.
Cosmologists focus on the universe in its entirety, from its violent birth in the Big Bang to its present evolution, all the way to its eventual death. Astronomy is often (not always) about very concrete, observable things, whereas cosmology typically involves large-scale properties of the universe and esoteric, invisible and sometimes purely theoretical things like string theory, dark matter and dark energy, and the notion of multiple universes.
Astronomical observers rely on different wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum (from radio waves to visible light and on up to X-rays and gamma rays) to study the wide span of objects in the universe. The first telescopes focused on simple optical studies of what could be seen with the naked eye, and many telescopes continue that today. [Celestial Photos: Hubble Space Telescope's Latest Cosmic Views]
But as light waves become more or less energetic, they move faster or slower. Different telescopes are necessary to study the various wavelengths. More energetic radiation, with shorter wavelenghts, appears in the form of ultraviolet, x-ray, and gamma-ray wavelengths, while less energetic objects emit longer-wavelength infrared and radio waves.
This large field-of-view image of sunspots in Active Region 10030 was observed on July 15, 2002. Researchers colored the image yellow for aesthetic reasons.
Astrometry, the most ancient branch of astronomy, is the measure of the sun, moon, and planets. The precise calculations of these motions allows astronomers in other fields to model the birth and evolution of planets and stars, and to predict events such as eclipses, meteor showers, and the appearance of comets.
Early astronomers noticed patterns in the sky and attempted to organize them in order to track and predict their motion. Known as constellations, these patterns helped people of the past to measure the seasons. The movement of the stars and other heavenly bodies was tracked around the world, but was prevalent in China, Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, Central America, and India.
The image of an astronomer is a lone soul at a telescope during all hours of the night. In reality, most hard-core astronomy today is done with observations made at remote telescopes on the ground or in space that are controlled by computers, with astronomers studying computer-generated data and images.
Since the advent of photography, and particularly digital photography, astronomers have provided amazing pictures of space that not only inform science but enthrall the public. [All-Time Great Galaxy Photos]
Astronomers and spaceflight programs also contribute to the study of our own planet, when missions primed at looking outward (or travelling to the moon and beyond) look back and snap great pictures of Earth from space.
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"Alien megastructure" star may be a sign of a dying world – Astronomy Magazine
In 2015, reports of an unusual signal observed around a distant star spurred suggestions of the presence of an alien megastructure. But new research suggests that the bizarre discovery could instead be the sign of a destroyed world.
While most planets orbit their stars from a safe distance, some see their suns up close and personal. Orbiting far closer than Mercury, these worlds experience extreme temperatures that cause their atmospheres to expand. If the planet is too small, with too little gravity to hold on to the growing atmosphere, it can wind up losing it. A handful of worlds have been spotted with the remnants of their atmospheres trailing along behind them.
Disintegrating planets can reveal extremely important compositional information, which is the primary reason we are interested in them, Jake Hanson, a doctoral student at Arizona State University, told Astronomy by email. Hanson, who is studying how exoplanets lose their atmospheres, presented his research in April at the Astrobiology Science Conference in Mesa, Arizona.
A look inside When scientists see an atmosphere flowing behind its planet, its unlikely to be the one the world was born with. That atmosphere was likely lost soon after the planet began its close residence to its star. Instead, Hanson said the molten surface of a disintegrating planet most likely resupplied the atmosphere, as gases escaped from the overheated landscape.
Depending how much of the planet has already evaporated, we could be looking deep into the remnants of a giant planet or near the original surface of a rocky planet or near the core of a rocky planet, for that matter, he said.
Even the best instruments can only peer at the upper layers of the atmosphere surrounding a world beyond the solar system. But these melting worlds may provide the first look at whats going on deeper down, at the surface.
To help understand whats happening on these worlds, Hanson first modeled how an exoplanet might look if it was steadily losing its atmosphere at a consistent rate. He found that it was difficult to drain an atmosphere from a planet by the same degree over time. Its more likely that atmospheres on these worlds build up in large quantities, then suddenly blow off in massive chunks.
The rock is vaporized into an atmosphere and then, BAM! Bulk ejection, Hanson said in his presentation. Then reboot and restart.
The unusual signal could provide a way to detect worlds too small to be spotted with current instruments, he said. The four disintegrating worlds known to date are small, estimated to have diameters within the size of Earth and the Moon, while their massive comet-like tails suggest they are losing roughly an Earth-mass of atmosphere every billion years.
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Pioneering probe for gravitational wave observatory ends mission – Astronomy Now Online
Artists illustration of the LISA Pathfinder spacecraft. Credit: ESA
The European Space Agencys LISA Pathfinder spacecraft, now sailing around the sun on a trajectory away from Earth, was deactivated Tuesday after a nearly 18-month mission testing previously-untried lasers, vacuum enclosures, exotic gold-platinum cubes and micro-thrusters needed for a trio of gravitational wave observatories set for launch in the 2030s.
Stefano Vitale, principal investigator of the LISA Pathfinder missions core instruments, sent the long-planned command to passivate the probe at 1800 GMT (2 p.m. EDT) Tuesday from the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.
The end of LISA Pathfinders mission Tuesday marked another turning point in gravitational wave research, a field of astrophysics reinvigorated in the last two years by two major advances, according to Paul McNamara, the missions project scientist at ESA.
First came the launch of LISA Pathfinder on Dec. 3, 2015. Three months later, scientists announced the first confirmed detection of gravitational waves, ripples in the fabric of spacetime produced by the movement of massive objects in space, such as immense supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies.
The gravitational waves, first predicted more than a century ago by Albert Einstein, were discovered by scientists crunching data gathered in September 2015 from a ground-based observatory called LIGO, which has antennas positioned 1,800 miles (3,000 kilometres) apart in Hanford, Washington, and Livingston, Louisiana.
Gravitational wave research requires huge detectors spread of thousands or millions of miles because the ripples are observed at very low frequencies as they travel through the Universe at the speed of light. Astronomers say the waves, which can be triggered by violent phenomena such as black hole mergers, reveal a new way of studying the cosmos impossible with conventional optical telescopes.
The back-to-back breakthroughs catapulted gravitational waves to the forefront of astronomical journals and space mission planning.
Was it a big step forward? Absolutely, because up to this point there were two doubts, McNamara said in an interview this week with Spaceflight Now. One doubt was gravitational waves dont exist, and then LIGO comes along and detects them.
Then we launched LISA Pathfinder, and we demonstrated the hardware in space, he said. So the two big questions do they exist and can we detect them? both were answered within three months of each other.
LISA Pathfinder was named for a follow-on mission dubbed the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna, which was formally selected by ESAs science planning board June 20 to move into the next phase of mission planning after decades of starts and stops.
With the astonishing success of LISA Pathfinder, we now know how to build a mission like LISA, said Vitale, a researcher at the University of Trento and the National Institute for Nuclear Physics in Italy.
Launched from French Guiana aboard a Vega rocket, the hexagonal space probe is about the size of a small car. LISA Pathfinder reached an operating point at the L1 Lagrange point nearly a million miles (1.5 million kilometres) from Earth in January 2016, lurking near a gravitational balance point between in a direction toward the Sun.
In March 2016, on the first day LISA Pathfinder was in full science mode, ground controllers confirmed the mission had already met its minimum success requirements.
Two gold-platinum test cubes launched inside the LISA Pathfinder spacecraft were released from their launch restraints, a complicated procedure involving needle-like appendages that carefully pulled away from the cubes each 1.8 inches (46 millimetres) on a side and with a mass of 4.4 pounds (2 kilogrammes) to avoid disturbing them with electrostatic forces.
The crux of the mission was to prove the test cubes could be kept in a constant state of nearly perfect free fall during LISA Pathfinders mission.
Two sets of low-impulse thrusters essentially steered the spacecraft around the free-floating test masses suspended inside two vacuum enclosures placed 15 inches (38 centimetres) apart on the satellite.
Accelerometers aboard LISA Pathfinder precisely tracked its movements, and a control computer sent signals to the low-thrust rocket packs outside the probe to continuously correct to keep the test cubes from contacting the walls of their chambers.
A high-precision laser interferometer constantly measured the range between the two test cubes, and that device also exceeded requirements, measuring the relative motion of the test masses with a precision of a femtometre, or one quadrillionth of a metre.
LISA Pathfinder is 10,000 times more stable than any satellite flown on a previous science mission, officials said, demonstrating that it was possible for the test masses to remain virtually motionless with respect to each other.
ESA said the test masses had a relative acceleration of only ten billionths of a billionth of Earths gravity, an achievement made possible by a tedious accounting of every component of the spacecraft that could influence the floating metallic cubes.
Many of the lessons learned from LISA Pathfinder were not in how to build a space-rated gravitational wave detector, but how to operate it, McNamara said. Even the switch-on of a transponder or star tracker added noise to the instrument beyond acceptable limits.
This is such a sensitive instrument that it responds to anything changing whatseover, NcNamara said. Weve learned that, for LISA, we have to assume if you make any changes on-board its going to take you time to recover back into equilibirium. If you turn any unit on, you turn any heater on, or do anything on the spacecraft to put it in a slightly different orientation, itll take you a week to get back to operational status.
Such precision is needed because gravitational waves have an amplitude of a few millionths of a millionth of a meter over a distance of a million kilometres (621,000 miles). Any larger movement of the test masses would mask the gravitational wave.
The LISA Pathfinder mission cost nearly 500 million, a figure that includes contributions from ESA, NASA and other institutions scattered across Europe.
LISA Pathfinder was conceived to prove a gravitational wave mission was technically feasible.
People just didnt think it was possible, McNamara said. Thats why LISA Pathfinder came into being. It was just to see could we build an instrument which was quiet enough.
The concept for the LISA mission selected by ESA last month calls for three spacecraft similar to LISA Pathfinder to launch in 2034 into an orbit around the sun that trails the Earth.
The LISA spacecraft will fly in a triangular formation more than 1.5 million miles (2.5 million kilometres) apart, linked by lasers to track the exact distances between the nodes, which will each contain two free-floating test masses. Sensors will watch for tiny variations in the range between the craft as gravitational waves pass through the solar system.
With gravitational waves, its a completely new endeavour were taking on, McNamara told Spaceflight Now. This idea of flying three spacecraft separated by millions of kilometres, and you have to be able to measure the distance to a hundredth the size of an atom.
We have exceeded not only the requirements set for LISA Pathfinder, but also the accuracy required for LISA at all frequencies: we are definitely ready to take the next step, said Karsten Danzmann, a LISA Pathfinder co-investigator, the lead proposer of the LISA mission, and director at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics in Germany.
ESA expects the LISA mission to cost more than 900 million (more than a billion euros), not including support from NASA.
Paul Hertz, director of NASAs astrophysics division, said Wednesday that the U.S. space agency wants to contribute technology and hardware to the LISA mission roughly equivalent to around 20 percent of the missions total cost.
NASA and ESA originally planned a larger, more ambitious LISA mission, but NASA dropped out of the partnership in 2011 due to budget constraints. ESA pressed on with a scaled-back gravitational wave observatory, which received prioritisation from the agency in 2013 ahead of the LISA concepts selection last month.
European officials want ESA to lead the LISA mission to avoid falling victim to another failed partnership, but NASA will still be a significant contributor. After discussions in the last few years for NASA to be a 10 percent partner, the U.S. stake in the LISA mission is now likely to be closer to 20 percent.
We are talking about a more substantial contribution than a 10 percent share, Hertz said. ESA has welcomed us as a very major partner.
NASA might develop lasers and telescopes for the LISA observatory, or the missions charge management system. Another potential U.S. addition to the mission could be the micro-thrusters needed to deftly control each of the LISA spacecraft, which will be assembled in Europe.
LISA is third in ESAs Cosmic Vision line of large-class billion-euro space science missions.
A robotic spacecraft that will orbit Jupiter, and then circle Jupiters largest moon Ganymede, is on schedule for launch aboard an Ariane 5 rocket in 2022, followed by liftoff of the Athena X-ray astronomy observatory in 2028.
Then it will be LISAs turn.
Before shutting down LISA Pathfinder, controllers fired its thrusters to nudge it out of its post at the L1 Lagrange point in April to head into a heliocentric orbit around the sun. The maneuver minimized the chance the spacecraft will return to Earths vicinity.
LISA Pathfinders science mission officially ended June 30, and engineers spent the final weeks practicing procedures to recapture the test masses inside their housings, which might be necessary if problems develop on the LISA mission. Other final tasks included monitoring the instruments behaviour when the spacecrafts thrusters were turned off, and tracking the test masses response to a coronal mass ejection from the sun.
Scientists were eager to see how the spacecraft responded when it was zapped by ionizing energy from a solar eruption last week. In particular, mission officials wanted to know whether the instrument would still provide useful science data when the test masses were hit by charged particles. Reviews of that data are still ongoing, McNamara said.
The final commands uplinked to LISA Pathfinder turned off the crafts transponder and corrupted the memory files of the probes primary and redundant computers by filling the processors with the names of scientists and engineers who worked on the mission.
This is a celebration, and its certainly not a sad moment, Vitale said moments before sending the order that silenced the spacecraft.
LISA Pathfinder has done everything and more that we could have asked of it, McNamara said. And its allowed LISA to go ahead, so yes, were sad thats going away and its ending, but were very happy LISA is taking off.
Its another 17 years to go before that one launches, so well exercise our patience.
Email the author.
Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.
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Pioneering probe for gravitational wave observatory ends mission - Astronomy Now Online
Upcoming solar eclipse inspires astronomy viewing night – Kansas State Collegian
The Flint Hills Discovery Center, in collaboration with the department of physics at Kansas State University, hosted an astronomy viewing July 14. The event was free to the public and focused on educating attendees about the night sky.
The event allowed local residents to view the moon, planets and stars through 8-inch reflecting telescopes and 4-inch refracting telescopes. The major planets the attendees viewed included Jupiter and Saturn.
This is making science real, and people are actually able to experience it, Jonathan Mertz, event supervisor at Flint Hills Discovery Center, said. Its not something in a book; its not something in a big city. Its something here in Manhattan where people can come together and experience science and something really great thats going to be happening.
Stephen Bridenstine, curator of education at Flint Hills Discovery Center, said the event was inspired by the upcoming solar eclipse occurring Aug. 21.
I think one of the most important things it does is it gets people excited about science, Bridenstine said. Its a free program. Theres no cost to come and experience this tonight. Its a way that we can fulfill our mission of serving the Manhattan community and providing some great opportunities to experience the natural world around them, including the night sky.
The astronomy viewing was led by Chris Sorensen, distinguished professor of physics at K-State and local astronomy enthusiast.
What you hope is some of these kids will realize there are things they cant see normally, Sorensen said. If they take special effort, theres a lot of hidden secrets in the universe, and theyre pretty neat and beautiful.
The astronomy viewing provided a unique learning experience for those in attendance.
Were strong advocates for what we call informal education, Bridenstine said. That means grabbing a telescope and looking at the night skies, hiking through the prairie and looking at the rocks and the flowers. Its learning out in the world around you. Not all learning happens in the classroom.
Sorensen used his personal, handmade telescope for the event. He said he began building the telescope when he was about 12 years old but was forced to stop after being unable to grind some of the parts into shape. Sorensen said he resumed the project when he was about 14 or 15 years old, and the telescope took less than a year to finish after that.
It was a very difficult thing to do, Sorensen said. I had to read books on how to do it. I probably learned tenacity building that telescope, and thats done me well throughout my career.
The event was educational for people of all ages, especially newcomers to astronomical observation.
Its family-friendly. It brings out a lot of people who have never been here before, Bridenstine said.
Sorensen said he was pleased to see so many people in attendance.
Its heartening to see that, Sorensen said. You realize theres a lot of people who want to broaden themselves up in all kinds of ways. Its good to seewe have a viable community.
The event demonstrated the effectiveness of local educational outreach, especially for younger audiences.
You know whats great about this event? Anyone can be a scientist, Bridenstine said. I think Chris Sorensen is a great example of why and how at a young age you can become interested in something, and you can make it your career or you can keep it a hobby.
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Upcoming solar eclipse inspires astronomy viewing night - Kansas State Collegian
Study determines microscopic water bears will be Earth’s last survivors – Smithsonian Insider (blog)
ByMegan Watzke
The worlds most indestructible species, the tardigrade, an eight-legged micro-animal, also known as the water bear, will survive until the Sun dies, according to a new Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Oxford University collaboration.
The worlds most indestructible species, the tardigrade, an eight-legged micro-animal, also known as the water bear, will survive until the Sun dies, according to a new Harvard-Smithsonian Center forAstrophysics and Oxford University collaboration.
The new study published in Scientific Reports, has shown that the tiny creatures will survive the risk of extinction from all astrophysical catastrophes, and be around for at least 10 billion yearsfar longer than the human race.
Although much attention has been given to the cataclysmic impact that an astrophysical event would have on human life, very little has been published around what it would take to kill the tardigrade, and wipe out life on this planet. The research implies that life on Earth in general, will extend as long as the Sun keeps shining. It also reveals that once life emerges, it is surprisingly resilient and difficult to destroy, opening the possibility of life on other planets.
Tardigrades are the toughest, most resilient form of life on earth, able to survive for up to 30 years without food or water, and endure temperature extremes of up to 150 degrees Celsius, the deep sea and even the frozen vacuum of space. The water-dwelling micro animal can live for up to 60 years, and grow to a maximum size of 0.5 mm, best seen under a microscope.
Researchers from the Universities of Oxford and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, have found that these life forms will likely survive all astrophysical calamities, such as an asteroid, since they will never be strong enough to boil off the worlds oceans.
Three potential events were considered as part of the research, including; large asteroid impact, and exploding stars in the form of supernovas or gamma-ray bursts.
Asteroids: There are only a dozen known asteroids and dwarf planets with enough mass to boil the oceans, these include Vesta and Pluto, however none of these objects will intersect the Earths orbit and pose no threat to tardigrades.
Supernova:In order to boil the oceans an exploding star would need to be 0.14 light-years away. The closest star to the Sun is four light years away and the probability of a massive star exploding close enough to Earth to kill all forms of life on it, within the Suns lifetime, is negligible.
Gamma-Ray bursts:Gamma-ray bursts are brighter and rarer than supernovae. Much like supernovas, gamma-ray bursts are too far away from earth to be considered a viable threat. To be able to boil the worlds oceans the burst would need to be no more than 40 light-years away, and the likelihood of a burst occurring so close is again, minor.
Without our technology protecting us, humans are a very sensitive species. Subtle changes in our environment impact us dramatically. There are many more resilient species on earth. Life on this planet can continue long after humans are gone, says Rafael Alves Batista, co-author and post-doctoral research associate in the Department of Physics at Oxford University. Tardigrades are as close to indestructible as it gets on Earth, but it is possible that there are other resilient species examples elsewhere in the universe. In this context there is a real case for looking for life on Mars and in other areas of the solar system in general. If tardigrades are Earths most resilient species, who knows what else is out there.
David Sloan, co-author and post-doctoral research associate in the Department of Physics at Oxford University, said: To our surprise we found that although nearby supernovae or large asteroid impacts would be catastrophic for people, tardigrades could be unaffected. Therefore it seems that life, once it gets going, is hard to wipe out entirely. Huge numbers of species, or even entire genera may become extinct, but life as a whole will go on.
In highlighting the resilience of life in general, the research broadens the scope of life beyond Earth, within and outside of this solar system. Abraham Loeb, co-author and chair of the Astronomy Department at Harvard University, said: It is difficult to eliminate all forms of life from a habitable planet. Organisms with similar tolerances to radiation and temperature as tardigrades could survive long-term below the surface in these conditions. The subsurface oceans that are believed to exist on Europa and Enceladus, would have conditions similar to the deep oceans of Earth where tardigrades are found, volcanic vents providing heat in an environment devoid of light. The discovery of extremophiles in such locations would be a significant step forward in bracketing the range of conditions for life to exist on planets around other stars.
A paper detailing this work appeared on July 14, 2017 in Scientific Reports, an open, online journal from the publishers of Nature.
Tags: asteroids, astronomy, astrophysics, extinction, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
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Study determines microscopic water bears will be Earth's last survivors - Smithsonian Insider (blog)
Meet the 20-year-old astrophysics student with Asperger’s hoping to be a Tory councillor – Gazette Live
Asperger's will not stop Sam Linley in his bid to become Stocktons youngest councillor.
The 20-year-old astrophysics student was diagnosed 10 years ago after tell-tale signs of the disability were spotted by his primary school teacher.
But now Sam is looking to fight the conditions stereotypes and represent his home town as the Conservative candidate in Thursdays Billingham North by-election.
Its something that youre born with. You cant change it. I have it for life, said Sam.
Sometimes social interaction is a problem. But I think I have come on a long way.
I have come from a shy kid to being able to just go up to a door not knowing whos behind it and strike up a conversation.
Sam, who aced his GCSE maths with an A* aged just 14 before going on to study at the University of York, said his disability will provide a new perspective to the council.
We need a broad church on the council. We need people from all parts of society.
When debates come up on provisions for disabled people its good to have people who know about them first hand rather than people who dont really understand the issues.
And in the traditional Labour stronghold of Billingham, he thinks hes got a good chance of winning with a back to basics campaign.
The keen violin player said: Originally when I came into it, I was thinking theres no chance.
If you had told me that we would be in with a serious chance I would have laughed. I would have laughed in your face.
But the response I am getting on the doorstep is positive. Im getting my name out there. People know who I am.
Sam said he wants to be a friendly face focused on hot-topics such as litter and dog fouling.
He also wants a fairer deal for Billingham: I have lived in Billingham all my life. Its a lovely place to live.
Its given me a lot over the 20 years I have lived here and I want to give back to it.
I am just fighting for more money for Billingham. A lot of residents see Stockton getting money but Billingham just left the scraps.
Labours Paul Weston is looking to defend the Billingham North seat following the resignation of Stephen Parry in June.
Independent Jennifer Apedaile, Mark Burdon of the North East Party, and David Minchella of the Liberal Democrats will also contest the seat.
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Neil deGrasse Tyson: fighting science denial starts with people, not … – The Guardian
Tyson is in Australia to promote his new book, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. Photograph: Desiree Navarro/WireImage
Albert Einstein has been called many things: a genius, a pioneer, a Nobel prize winner. Neil deGrasse Tyson just calls him a badass.
I think it fits, right? Its not a stretch, he tells Guardian Australia before his appearance in Melbourne on Saturday night. The dudes a badass.
This description of the father of modern physics is one of many notable turns of phrase in Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, the latest book from the astrophysicist and host of the StarTalk podcast. He is currently touring Australia with Think Inc to promote the book and talk about the science of the universe, with shows in Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Sydney.
The book has had an extraordinary global reception, placing in the top five of the New York Times bestseller list for 10 weeks. Its success reflects a broader appetite around the world for science told with passion and conviction, outside of high school textbooks.
Tyson stresses, though, that if youre not in a hurry you really shouldnt buy it.
If youve found time to read other books on astrophysics, youre not in a hurry, he says. Put this book down and read the other stuff. Im very serious about this: dont buy the book if youre not in a hurry.
The book is not quite astrophysics for dummies; while it is simplified, it is not simple. It is more a collection of the best and most thrilling moments; astrophysics greatest hits.
Its astrophysics handpicked for the most mind-blowing things that exist in the universe, Tyson says.
It is also the first time Tyson has recorded an audiobook; those in a hurry, after all, dont always have time to sit down and read. One particular benefit of this, he says, is to make the book available for those stuck in traffic in Los Angeles and also for those stuck in traffic in Australia, a situation he nevertheless finds highly improbable.
Why there is traffic in Australia, I have no idea, he says. Hardly anybody lives here. I dont know what the hells wrong, yall got to figure that one out.
Within a 30km radius of where I live are more people than the country of Australia. And you guys have traffic. Maybe its just an inescapable law of the universe.
Tysons mission as a science educator is not without obstacles. In Australia and around the world, the denial of scientific truth is very real, sometimes at the very highest levels of government. But how do you fight and challenge these kind of ideas? Tyson has a different view to some: the focus shouldnt be on the politicians, he says, but on the people themselves.
I dont concern myself much with politicians, he says. In an elected democracy, they represent an electorate. So if an electorate votes for somebody who denies what science is and how it works, then the issue is not with the politician but with the electorate.
Im an educator and I feel a certain duty to educate the public so that, when they vote, their vote can be as informed as it possibly can, with whatever political leanings they might have. Thats what makes the richness of a diverse political system.
While the descriptions of black holes and anti-matter Tyson sets out in his book can sometimes sound like science fiction, he stresses that many of the ideas in the genre reflect the science of the real world.
I dont turn to sci-fi in the way most people do, he says. Most people do it to escape. For me, just [by] doing my job Im escaping. The universe itself is a form of escapism.
Warped space, black holes, wormholes: all of this comes from us.
The near future of astrophysics promises to be particularly exciting: like science, it is driven by data, and for astrophysics that often involves space missions to gather information from the distant cosmos.
Tyson says that the understanding of dark matter may be one of the key developments over the next 10 years. And there is, of course, the possibility of finding life on another planet.
Could the world handle that?
If you had some philosophy that precluded life from existing elsewhere and then we find it, youre probably not going to say, OK, were wrong, everything we taught is wrong, everything we preach is wrong, lets close up shop, Tyson says.
What is more likely is that it will simply be absorbed into our understanding of the universe.
He recalls the aphorism that every great truth passes through three phases: First, they say its not true. Second, they say it conflicts with the Bible. Third, they say theyve known it all along.
Neil deGrasse Tyson: A Cosmic Perspective is on in Perth on 22 July, Brisbane on 23 July and Sydney on 29 July
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Neil deGrasse Tyson: fighting science denial starts with people, not ... - The Guardian