SciSchmoozing the Good Life
Hello again, student of reality,
Wow, what a life to celebrate. Daughter of the town mayor, dancer, singer, model, actress, and for most of us, Lieutenant Uhura on Star Trek. Nichelle Nichols had roles on stage, television, and in more than 25 movies. She worked to interest children in science and she recruited a number of astronauts for NASA including Sally Ride and the first African-American astronaut, Guion Bluford. Sadly, she lost her younger brother who died with 38 others in the Heaven’s Gate debacle. I had the pleasure of meeting her at a 100-Year StarShip Symposium in Houston. A summary of her life can be found on Wikipedia. Given that we only have one life to lead, she certainly set a sterling example for living it fully. Thank you, Nichelle.
“The Russians are going, the Russians are going” from the International Space Station but not for a couple of years. In less than 9 years now, the ISS will be “deorbited” and replaced by a ‘commercially-built’ space station.
This December will mark 50 years since people walked on the Moon and we have been working on solutions to the difficulties encountered back then - like dust. Lunar dust has sharp glass particles and it clings to earthlings and our equipment due to electric charges. It is destructive and unhealthy. So here is what we’ve been doing to surmount lunar dust attacks.
A huge advance in the biological sciences was unveiled this week: a database of how 200 million proteins (likely) fold has been released for all to use. This is a big deal. For decades, biologists have been able to learn the amino acid sequences of proteins, but the biological function of a protein is closely tied to its shape. As a protein string is manufactured one amino acid at a time, the string folds over on itself. Furthermore, the emerging protein can be modified by other proteins. I used to volunteer time on my computer to “Predictor@home” that strived to predict protein shape. The game has changed. “DeepMind” is a Google-owned London-based lab that used Artificial Intelligence to guess the shape of nearly every protein known to science. They do not claim to be correct for every protein, but they have been proven correct many times.
I listen to Science Friday with Ira Flatow most weeks. Along with their SciFri Book Club, they’ve been exploring female anatomy. Their current book is Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage by Rachel E. Gross, “a deep dive into the under-researched part of human anatomy … the vagina, uterus, clitoris, and their companion organs.”
If you are deeply bothered - as am i - by the current assault on a woman’s right to an abortion and even the right to use birth control, i hope you can enjoy a bit of wry humor.
¿How hot is too hot? For us, it is too hot when we can no longer regulate our core body temperature. ¿How do you know when that happens? You swallow a radio-thermometer and walk on a treadmill in a warm laboratory. The accepted maximum has been a wet-bulb temperature of 35°C, which translates to 95°F at 100% humidity, or 115°F at 50% humidity. The folk at Pennsylvania State University came up with significantly lower figures. The research article is behind a pay-wall, so i don’t know how much cold beer the subjects were drinking.
Here’s a short video on bananas and bee stings.
Allison L. won the model James Webb Space Telescope kit. This time we’re offering a coffee mug - sort of. It is a glass 450ml beaker with the chemical formula for caffeine and it works nicely as a coffee mug. Just send an email to david.almandsmith@gmail.com (only one) before noon Friday with an integer between zero and 1,000. We will then use a random number generator to select the target number and mail the mug to the person who chose the closest number.
Picks of the Week:
1st Dark Matter Search Results: LUX-ZEPLIN Experiment - Livestream, Monday 3:30
1st Friday: Far Out - 6-10pm Friday, Oakland, Chabot Space & Science Center, $
Music / Galaxy Formation - 7pm Saturday, Lick Observatory Mt. Hamilton, $
Last week i was scanning the ‘net for a Joe Manchin voodoo doll, but then he agreed to climate legislation! ¿Did he have a premonition of the evil magic i was about to release on him? Regardless, i came across this short video on Antarctic glacier research and implications for sea level rise.
Fritz Haber won the 1918 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. His work developing a nitrogen-rich crop fertilizer helped the world avoid a Malthusian catastrophe. The full story is far more interesting.
I have always been fascinated with things that fall up. I even sometimes refer to myself as a ‘helium head.’ So i’m intrigued at the announcement of a Spanish regional airline that plans to buy several 100-passenger airships. You know, like overgrown GoodYear blimps. I’m skeptical. No lighter-than-air transport has ever been profitable. ¿And where will they get the helium needed?
Allow me to leave you with a few entertaining videos:
Strive to live this week fully,
Dave Almandsmith
Bay Area Skeptics
True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating things new.
-Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900 - 1944) Writer and aviator
Upcoming Events:
Click to see the next two weeks of events in your browser.
Monday, 08/01/2022
First Dark Matter Search Results from the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Experiment - Livestream - 08/01/2022 03:30 PM
SLAC Colloquium
The nature and origin of dark matter are among the most compelling mysteries of contemporary science. There is strong evidence for dark matter from its role in shaping the galaxies and galaxy clusters that we observe in the universe. Still, for over three decades, physicists have been trying to detect the dark matter particles themselves with little success.
LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) is a dark matter direct detection experiment located at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota. The LZ detector consists of a dual-phase xenon Time Projection Chamber with an active volume of 7 tonnes, shielded by an active liquid xenon skin region, an active gadolinium-loaded liquid scintillator veto, and an ultrapure water veto.
The LZ collaboration recently published the results for its first search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) with an exposure of 60 live days using a fiducial mass of 5.5 tonnes. The detector achieved world-record sensitivity to a vast range of dark matter particles, setting new limits on spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross-sections for WIMP masses above 9 GeV.
This talk will give an overview of the LZ detector, a description of the first results, and a brief look at the broad dark matter and neutrino science program that is now accessible with the experiment.
Speakers: Maria Elena Monzani, Tomasz Biesiadzinsky, and Alden Fan, SLAC
See weblink for Zoom information
Tuesday, 08/02/2022
Two StorageX Tech Talks - Livestream - 08/02/2022 10:00 AM
Stanford Energy
Investigating the Cyclability and Stability at the Interfaces of Composite Solid Electrolytes in Li Metal Batteries
Speaker: Sarah Holmes, Stanford University
An Operando AFM Understanding of Solid Electrolyte Interphase Growth in Lithium Ion Batteries
Speaker: Harry Thaman, Stanford University
Register at weblink to attend
Thursday, 08/04/2022
Nightlife - 08/04/2022 06:00 PM
California Academy of Sciences San Francisco
Calling all creatures of the night: explore the nocturnal side of the Academy at NightLife and see what's revealed. With live DJs, outdoor bars, ambiance lighting, and nearly 40,000 live animals (including familiar faces like Claude the alligator with albinism), the night is sure to be wild.
Step inside the iconic Shake House and our four-story rainforest, where you can explore the Amazon's treetops surrounded by free-flying birds and butterflies. Reservations for these exhibits are no longer required. However, please note that the last entry into the rainforest is 7:30 pm - our animals need their sleep.
Venture into our latest aquarium exhibit Venom to encounter live venomous animals and learn the power of venom to both harm and heal.
Bask in the glow of one of the largest living coral reef displays in the world: our 212,000-gallon Philippine Coral Reef tank.
Take in the interstellar views from the Living Roof, then grab a bite from the Academy Cafe and head to the West Garden outdoor bar to drink and dine under the stars. For adults 21+.
After Dark: See for Yourself - 08/04/2022 06:00 PM
ExplOratorium San Francisco
The Exploratorium is your playground after dark. Wander the galleries, sip a cocktail, and let a DJ from Hip Hop for Change set the vibe. The coldest winter you ever spent was a summer in San Francisco, but do you know how the Exploratorium stays warm? Looking into the Bay Water Room from Moore Gallery 4, you can get a peek behind the scenes at the heating and cooling system the museum uses to stay temperate and save over two million gallons of potable water per year!
D Eye Y: Cow Eye Dissection With the Visitor Experience Facilitators 8:00 - 8:30 and 8:30 - 9:00 p.m. Bechtel Gallery 3, Classroom 1606 Tickets at Moore Gallery 4 Explainer Demo Station
Please note: Capacity is limited to 4 groups of 4 people for each time slot and availability is first come, first served. Tickets will be passed out at the Explainer Demo Station in Moore Gallery 4.
For decades, the Exploratorium has been dissecting cow eyes and teaching visitors about the similarities between their eyes and our own eyes. If you've ever wondered what that's like, you're in luck. Tonight, you will have the chance to step into the shoes of an Exploratorium Explainer and dissect a cow eye yourself!
The Visitor Experience Facilitators are a cohort of informal educators who help guests understand, question, and experience the museum on a deeper level.
Cell Phone Miniscope 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. Crossroads
We invite you to open your eyes to the amazing world of the ultra-tiny! Be sure to grab a miniscope kit and directions - then convert your cell phone into a portable, picture-taking miniscope using a simple plastic lens from a laser pointer. Use it to see the Exploratorium at its smallest scale, then take it home to continue exploring new environments!
NightSchool: Field Guide to Field Guides - 08/04/2022 07:00 PM
California Academy of Sciences
What's in a field guide? The perfect mix of science, art, and collaboration. Join us for a closer look into these intricate, stunningly illustrated nature-ID'ers. Ages 21+
Friday, 08/05/2022
First Friday: Far Out - 08/05/2022 06:00 PM
Chabot Space and Science Center Oakland
Look into deep space we learn about NASA's James Webb Telescope!
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is the most advanced and complex instrument ever in space. How does Webb compare with other space telescopes, including the Hubble Space Telescope, and how will the mission extend our understanding of the Universe? Bring your curiosity for an evening of astronomical exploration.
Evening with the Stars at Lick Observatory - Sold Out - 08/05/2022 08:00 PM
Lick Observatory Mt. Hamilton
Astronomy Speaker: Brian Day
Saturday, 08/06/2022
Music of the Spheres at Lick Observatory - 08/06/2022 01:00 PM
Lick Observatory Mt. Hamilton
Artist: Fire and Grace
Astronomy Speaker: Sarah Loebman, UC Merced
See weblink.
SLAC Community Day - Canceled - 08/06/2022 04:00 PM
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Menlo Park
Mt Tam Astronomy Lectures - Canceled - 08/06/2022 07:30 PM
Mt. Tam Astronomy
Speaker: Andrea Antoni, UC Berkeley
See weblink for Zoom information
Monday, 08/08/2022
Decoding the Mystery of Dark Matter Using Galaxy Clusters - 08/08/2022 07:30 PM
California Academy of Sciences San Francisco
One of the main challenges faced by astronomers today is to understand the existence and behaviors of dark matter, which accounts for about 80% of the entire matter content in the Universe. Despite many theories of this mysterious substance, we have yet to achieve a full understanding of its nature and distribution throughout the universe, especially in the absence of signals from direct-detection experiments. At present, the search for dark matter has largely shifted back to the field of astrophysics. For instance, clusters of galaxies provide an excellent laboratory to study the characteristics of dark matter. By studying merging clusters, we can place upper limits on the cross-section of dark matter scattering. Learn how astronomers use galaxy clusters to study various aspects of dark matter, and what other exciting discoveries we are making by studying the largest gravitationally bound systems in the cosmos.
Speaker: Dr. Taweewat Somboonpanyakul, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, Stanford University
Tuesday, 08/09/2022
Weekday Morning Hike at Rancho Cañada del Oro - 08/09/2022 09:00 AM
Rancho Canada Del Oro Open Space Preserve Morgan hill
Wednesday, 08/10/2022
Wonderfest: Humanity's New Gravitational Sense - 08/10/2022 08:00 PM
Wonderfest
Thursday, 08/11/2022
Coastal Walk at Pillar Point Bluff - 08/11/2022 10:00 AM
Pillar Point Bluff Moss Beach
After Dark: Move - 08/11/2022 06:00 PM
ExplOratorium San Francisco
What Does Evidence Do? - Livestream - 08/11/2022 07:30 PM
Bay Area Skeptics
Saturday, 08/13/2022
Science at Cal - Detecting Disinformation and Deep Fakes - 08/13/2022 11:00 AM
Valley Life Sciences Building Berkeley
Dirt: The Bio-Design Work of Mary Lempres - 08/13/2022 01:00 PM
Marinship Studios Sausalito