Wellingon Trip

One day I will write up a wee note on what I did in Wellington but today is not that day. Hope the photos will suffice for now.



by Cyanteal

12-12-12

I found this recently and just had to share it.

An excerpt from chapter 7 in Andronicos the Great's book 12-12-12

A few words on creation now follow.

There is no logical reason for the Universe to be as it is, nor the relative strengths of the forces such as gravity to be what they are. If gravity had been stronger - the universe would collapse and even worse would never have exploded into existence. If gravity had been weaker, the stars and planets would never have been formed or stuck together in the lumpy heavenly bodies that spin around the Cosmos. Why? Does random chance possess a sense of reason?

If the "strong" quantum force that holds tiny atoms together was weaker - the universe would be filled with only one element - Hydrogen. If it were stronger, the universe would probably be one big black humungous lump of matter. Why?

The magic number π (3.1426...) (or 3.1415962... I think is more like it) appears in weird and wonderful places throughout physics and mathematics. Why? Does random chance possess a Maths degree?

The number one followed by 40 zeros (10 to the power of 39) is roughly equal to the ratio of the electrostatic force between an electron and a proton to the gravitational force between them. It is also roughly the ratio of the radius of the known universe to the radius of the electron. 10 to the power of 39 x 10 to the power of 39 = 10 to the power of 78 which is approximately the number of particles estimated to be in the Universe! Why?

The moon, which is used extensively in religious calendars, fits exactly in front of the sun during an eclipse. Why? Does it not show the mischievous sense of humour of its designer? Who is saying "hello my little children, has the penny dropped down there yet?"

There are some pretty strange animals and plants which live on this planet. Pretty weird in fact. "Nature" appears very generous with its sense of humour to have "allowed" the gorilla, orangutang and chimp to come into existence. Why do all these exist? Does random chance possess a sense of humour?

Scientists are often too busy looking at details with their microscopes (yup, that so is me!) or telescopes (guilty again) so they miss the overall picture. It's a bit like standing inside a giant footprint which can only be seen in its entirety from a distance.

Ant Sauna

Ants have developed an unnerving affinity for the interior of my kettle. I have learnt to perform a visual check of it's contents before I put it on to boil (unless I'm paricularly going for that formicidaen taste).

August SMS Summary

Total sent: 36 (26 to my bro. 2 to Mum, 4 to Matt, 1 to Lewis, 1 to Renee, 1 to Debs and 1 to the Cancer Society)

Total received: 23 (18 from my bro. 2 from Matt, 1 from Sally, 1 from Debs, 1 from Vodafone and 1 from the Cancer Society)

My brother is the master of single word/sentence text messages. All of his texts to me last month exhibit this phenomenom (except the long one -but I think that was a bulk txt so it doesn't really count), here they are:

No po
Hv a cold right now
Exactly
7 7 7
Riiight... I think it might b
No
YAY!!!! I can now send txts from my computer via skype :D You should b able 2 reply and it should go to my mobile. go 2 skype.com4 moe info! :D HAV FUN! :D
Riiight... I think it might b
So?
Uh Huh
Yeah!
Wooo
ckeck ya emails.... :-)
Email me the details and il 2 wot i cn do
Oh and haha! :-)
Slefping
hhuh... Whooppee!... Had any food lately?
I c

Meteor over Canterbury

I certainly heard it. We were all sitting at our desks looking down our microscopes when we heard this loud eerie bang/rumble that made us simultaneously look up and out the window, definitely not a day for thunder. Some car alarms were set off so we thought it could be an accident on the construction site down the road. But it sounded bigger than that even. It was quite creepy too, like something was def. not normal; I think we were all poised to leap under our desks if it was the start of an earthquake. Well, it was all very exciting.

Jumping Jaws

Odontomachus bauri (the trap-jaw ant) makes the fastest self-powered predatory strike in the animal kingdom snapping it's mandibles shut at around 35 to 64 metres per second, (2000 times faster than a blink). Using a pair of huge muscles in the head it cranks the jaws wide open, and holds them cocked with a latch called the clypeus. Releasing the latch unleashes the stored energy, similar to a bow and arrow when fired.

http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2006/08/21_ant_video.shtml

This shows all 0.13 milliseconds of the strike (slowed down 1667 times for our benefit)

And when a predator threatens, the jaws serve a double purpose as an ejector-seat. When they strike a hard surface, the forces generated are strong enough to catapult the whole ant through the air. Resulting in the "escape jump," with upwards trajectory of about 8cm or the "bouncer defense jump" where it clears a greater horizontal distance of up to 40cm.

But just like the daddy-long-legs spider; O.bauri is no threat to humans. Despite it's ferocious looks, it's puny mouthparts can not penetrate human skin (any attempts to do so just bounce it right off).

"New Scientist" Nuisance

I wandered into the library to pass some time, as is my custom on Wednesnights. I usually read my own books or complete a crossword, something constructive, ya know, but this year I discovered copies of the daily newspapers from around the country hiding out in their designated area down the back. All well and good, but as of late I've been ensnared by the scientific journals section (which comes just before the newspapers). Especially the New Scientist it has such a compelling hold over my brain to be absorbed that as soon as my concentration lapses (remember, I'm mid-stride, on my way to read the news) and my eyes momentarily dart to the right, then they become transfixed and my hands reach forward to grasp the latest copy. This week: why humans get addicted. Oh the irony!

But, I should be cured, now that I have found the website:

www.newscientist.com

Prosopagnosia

We all (except me, of course) know the uncomfortable feeling of meeting someone familiar, and have a feeling we should know them from somewhere. But where? It gets worse; this time it's someone we know, but somehow can't extract their name from the cerebral filing cabinet.

Then along comes prosopagnosia (Pros-o-pag-no-sia) or face-blindness. As I read in the paper the other day.

In one of two forms: Primary prosopagnosia, which means ya born with it and Secondary prosopagnosia, which is accquired somehow through accident. What is it? A disorder of face perception where the ability to recognize faces is impaired, although the ability to recognise objects may be relatively intact. It was thought to be rare until recently but there is evidece to suggest that up to 1 in 50 people suffer and that it runs in families.

http://home.earthlink.net/~blankface/prosopagnosia.shtml
For more info from the perspective of someone with prosopagnosia

Some think that Capgras delusion may be the reverse of prosopagnosia. In this condition people report conscious recognition of people from faces, but show no emotional response, perhaps leading to the delusional belief that their relative or spouse has been replaced by an impostor.

I'm glad I have absolutely no problem with putting names to faces.