Comments on: Science Friday: Rockets, Planets, Stars & Bears…oh my

By: Melllvar

Melllvar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:39:22 +0000

The Batmobile is cool as!!

By: Hat Rick

Hat Rick — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 06:23:44 +0000

The next logical step would be to use electrohydrodynamics to push water through a garden hose, thereby freeing municipal water pumping stations to do more important things, whatever they may be. Of course, it might take thousands of times more energy per household to accomplish this task, but at least it’s inventive, right?

As I said before — Dyson sphere, yes! Dyson bladeless fan, um … pass.

Mind you, I admire the concept, and the energy savings, of a bladeless fan. It’s just that it may be solution in search of a problem. After all, a little buffeting air never hurt anyone outside of an aircraft.

By: AmaTrekPhysicist

AmaTrekPhysicist — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:13:33 +0000

So, to quote the “bladeless” fan video, “a motor driven rotor, hidden inside the base, blows air up into the hoop.” Forgive me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that just mean they hid the blades in the base? I figured that was the design, but it’s been bugging me for a week. How do you push a fluid without a turbine? My answer: if they really want it to be bladeless, they should ionize the air and blow it with an inductor.

By: Hat Rick

Hat Rick — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 01:54:05 +0000

Probably thinks it’s un-bear-able. ;-)

By: Praetor Tal

Praetor Tal — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 18:31:21 +0000

I wonder how Stephen Colbert is going to feel about this massive safe haven for bears?

By: Hat Rick

Hat Rick — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:47:48 +0000

One amazing thing about humanity is that it often snatches defeat from the jaws of victory.

If Obama goes back on his promise to explore the final frontier and screws up the Constellation program, I do not believe I will ever forgive him.

By: Son of a Maui Portagee

Son of a Maui Portagee — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:19:09 +0000

17. Kayla Iacovino once parenthetically expressed “I’m not going to argue a mute point”.

Welcome back.

As a point of clarification, by “mute point” did you mean “an unspeakable point” or did you mean one of the meanings of the phrase “moot point” which, itself, has two possible meanings?:

1. an issue which is subject or open to debate.

2. a point of which the discussion would be purely academic, and otherwise of no practical significance.

By: MC1 Doug

MC1 Doug — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:03:08 +0000

All of the news about the discovery of new planets is extremely exciting! It almost makes one wonder how far we are from first contact.

By: MC1 Doug in Washington, D.C. (again)

MC1 Doug in Washington, D.C. (again) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:01:08 +0000

Tanner, to accept your statements on your word alone would simply be preposterous. I want evidence… and for now…

There seems to be overwhelming evidence that something detrimental is happening to our Earth.

Notice I did not say the Earth is warming (but I do believe it is possible, perhaps even likley).

I remember in the 1970s some scientists were claiming our planet was heading towards an ice age. To some degree, some might say that scienctists can easily be swayed.

Clearly, Antarctica and the Arctic Ocean are both are experiencing something horrendous and the sad fact the indigenous animals are being adversly affected is a disaster in the making… and most likely human-initiated.

By: DJT

DJT — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 08:17:04 +0000

That is a bad-ass Bat-mobile! Gotta keep saving my money though. I still think someone should pick up the X-33 project and run with it. It’s like friggin’ 2009 already.