Explaining the explosion: rate of white dwarf mergers matches frequency of type Ia supernova Measuring vast distances in the Universe requires standard candles, objects with a known intrinsic brightness. Type Ia supernovae (SN Ia) are the brightest standard candles we know of, so they are useful for measuring the accelerating expansion of the Universe, as honored by the 2011 Nobel Prize in physics. Most astronomers agree that type Ia supernovae have something to do with white dwarfs—compact remnants of stars similar to our Sun. However, the exact mechanism for turning these stars into a supernova is not at all certain. Now, a study of white dwarfs by Carles Badenes and Dan Maoz indicates that the frequency of white dwarf mergers is very close to the rate of SN Ia events in spiral galaxies. White dwarfs are the cores of stars that were once similar to our Sun, but have since used up their hydrogen and helium fuel that makes them shine. However, if enough mass is added, the degeneracy pressure will not be able to overcome gravity.
5 Insane Ways Words Can Control Your Mind On some level we already know that language shapes the way we think. We're automatically more afraid to fight a guy named Jack Savage than somebody named Peewee Nipplepuss, even if we've never seen either of them before. It's totally illogical, but you probably run into an example of that every day, and don't notice it. While we tend to think words are just sounds we make to express ideas, science is finding that language is more like a fun house mirror, warping what we see in mind-blowing ways. For instance ... Speaking English Makes Us More Likely to Blame People Let's say your roommate Steve is jumping on your bed. How will you answer? Keep in mind, Steve pulls this shit all the time. The answer largely depends on what language you speak. Stanford scientists did experiments on this, by having speakers of various languages watch videos featuring, in various situations, people breaking eggs or popping balloons, sometimes on purpose, sometimes on accident. Will nothing stop his madness?
What the Sony breach means for security in 2015 The recent (and perhaps ongoing) Sony breach was certainly one of the worst corporate data breaches we have seen to date. As 2014 draws to a close, no one knows the details with certainty of who the perpetrator was. Even so, it’s undeniable that it’s a breach that will forever change the way Sony does business. [ Questions remain after FBI charges North Korea with attack on Sony Pictures ] As the year of information security ends in 2014, what does the Sony breach tell us about what will happen in 2015? This was yet another wake-up call – but many will still sleep through it. What does this mean for 2015? If the Farmer's Almanac did data breach predictions; then it would certainly forecast 2015 as a devastating year. A good CISO is important; great security architects are critical – while a CISO may get the glory; security architects are what most organizations need.
Solar eclipse of May 20, 2012 Visibility[edit] North America It was the first annular eclipse in the continental U.S. since the solar eclipse of May 10, 1994 which was also the previous eclipse of this series Solar Saros 128. Photo Gallery[edit] Asia Related eclipses[edit] Solar eclipses 2011-2014[edit] Each member in a semester series of solar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the moon's orbit. Note: Partial solar eclipses on January 4, 2011, and July 1, 2011, occur in the previous semester series. Saros 128[edit] It is a part of Saros cycle 128, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, containing 73 events. Series members 52-62 occur between 1901 and 2100: Metonic series[edit] The metonic series repeats eclipses every 19 years (6939.69 days), lasting about 5 cycles. This series has 21 eclipse events between May 21, 1993 and May 20, 2069. Notes[edit] References[edit]
The 6 Most Badass Murder Weapons in the Animal Kingdom Pistol Shrimp's Laser Claw Do not be deceived by the small size of this creature--that lumpy shape by the pistol shrimp's head is its claw. It's specially modified to blow the shit out of its opponent by snapping shut so quickly it produces a flash of light and a blast of sound reaching 218 decibels, which science says is louder than a damned gunshot. Wait, What? The sound isn't caused by the claws snapping together, but rather a jet of water which is shot at 60 mph. How Badass is That? Wait, it gets weirder. In theory this means if you could train a bunch of these shrimp to shoot at each other they could cook and prepare themselves as a meal. The Palm Salamander's 18,000-Watt Tongue Meet the palm salamander, who science has awarded with the title of "owner of the fastest muscle in the world." Wait, what? The palm salamander can fully extend its tongue (which is about half the length of its 18-centimeter body) in about seven milliseconds. It's like a freaking magic trick. Fucking ouch.
Partners Project Learning Tree For 35 years, Project Learning Tree (PLT) has been taking kids outside to learn. How? Each year, 30,000 educators attend 1,500 PLT professional development workshops around the country to learn the many ways they can get their students outdoors and learning about nature, while also meeting state and national academic standards. PLT is a program of the American Forest Foundation. THE DARK SITE OF PSYCHIATRY In this page you'll find links to articles and critical documents on biological-psychiatry. Biological-psychiatry's official theory describes psychological or personal problems as having a biological origin caused by genetic or chemical 'imbalances' to be corrected by drugs and other interventions like Electro-Convulsive Therapy [ECT] or insulin shock. These widely used but controversial methods in official medicine have been for many years amply invalidated, showing clearly that they are absolutely unscientific, that they tend to alienate patient's rights, are unable to solve the problems presented, are dangerous for one's health, and are submissive to pharmaceutical companies.
6 Badass Tricks You Can (But Shouldn't) Do With Electricity Make a Thunderstorm In Your Microwave Everyone knows that if you put metal in a microwave, fun happens. Awesome, face-burning fun. Those "eye of the storm" gadgets from Spencer's Gifts and other stores that sell birthday cards with fat naked women are pretty cool, but what if there was a way to make them cooler? How? Just put the ball in the microwave, turn it on and wait for extremely dangerous awesome to occur. No Shit? The plasma ball works normally by filling the inner ball with electricity, which then travels through neon or some other gas that glows to the outer globe and discharges. You might want to note that the video mentions that they took out three microwaves before this successful try, so, you know, make sure you have alternate means for heating burritos. With electricity we tend to over-emphasize its awesome ability to fry the shit out of things, but downplay its equally awesome ability to make shit explode. Have you ever seen what happens when lightning strikes a tree?
SALT 'N' PEPA LYRICS - Let's Talk About Sex (Punch it, Hurb Yo, I don't think we should talk about this Come on, why not? People might misunderstand what we're tryin' to say, you know? No, but that's a part of life) Come on Let's talk about sex, baby Let's talk about you and me Let's talk about all the good things And the bad things that may be Let's talk about sex Let's talk about sex Let's talk about sex Let's talk about sex Let's talk about sex for now to the people at home or in the crowd It keeps coming up anyhow Don't decoy, avoid, or make void the topic Cuz that ain't gonna stop it Now we talk about sex on the radio and video shows Many will know anything goes Let's tell it how it is, and how it could be How it was, and of course, how it should be Those who think it's dirty have a choice Pick up the needle, press pause, or turn the radio off Will that stop us, Pep? Ladies, all the ladies, louder now, help me out Come on, all the ladies - let's talk about sex, all right[repeat] Visit www.azlyrics.com for these lyrics.
Newfound exoplanet may turn to dust: Planet's dust cloud may explain strange patterns of light from its star Researchers at MIT, NASA and elsewhere have detected a possible planet, some 1,500 light years away, that appears to be evaporating under the blistering heat of its parent star. The scientists infer that a long tail of debris -- much like the tail of a comet -- is following the planet, and that this tail may tell the story of the planet's disintegration. According to the team's calculations, the tiny exoplanet, not much larger than Mercury, will completely disintegrate within 100 million years. The team found that the dusty planet circles its parent star every 15 hours -- one of the shortest planet orbits ever observed. "We think this dust is made up of submicron-sized particles," says co-author Saul Rappaport, a professor emeritus of physics at MIT. The group's findings, published in the Astrophysical Journal, are based on data from the Kepler Observatory, a space-based telescope that surveys more than 160,000 stars in the Milky Way. A curiously stellar case A dusty idea
The 7 Most Terrifying Rejected TV Ads Speculative ads are commercials which, like mogwai, are momentarily delightful but never intended for general release. Some specs are prepared by ad firms to convince clients their new life insurance mascot should be a woman slathering peanut butter on her knees. Others were forged by the gods to punish humanity for discovering fire. Most, however, are attempts by directors to showcase their talent. Put on your waders and lock down your psychosexual neuroses -- we're about to get weird with seven such sexy specs. Brian Bolland / RebellionI WILL PUT THE LAW INSIDE YOU #7) Skittles -- "Newlyweds" Yep, she's a keeper Since your office probably frowns on both sex and laughter, I'll walk you through it. Now, I'm not the kind of man to tell people how they should spend their wedding night, but that's because they're usually too startled when I step out of the bathroom. And then things get weird: He ejaculates Skittles--by my count, five bags of them, and she takes them like a champ. Pretty high.
Neuroscience For Kids - stroop effect The famous "Stroop Effect" is named after J. Ridley Stroop who discovered this strange phenomenon in the 1930s. Here is your job: name the colors of the following words. Do NOT read the words...rather, say the color of the words. For example, if the word "BLUE" is printed in a red color, you should say "RED". Try this Interactive Stroop Effect Experiment. [Run Experiment] Also available: print out Stroop Test Mini Cards. Why? The words themselves have a strong influence over your ability to say the color. Speed of Processing Theory: the interference occurs because words are read faster than colors are named.Selective Attention Theory: the interference occurs because naming colors requires more attention than reading words. I think that this puzzle would be easier for a very young child than for older children or adults. My scores: Test #1 = 10.1 seconds; Test #2 = 22.4 seconds It took me more than TWICE the amount of time to read the "confusing" words. More experiments to try: