The good news: The confused and constantly-rebooting Mars Rover pipes up after a two-day vacation (although apparently it still has major issues.) The better news: The Mars Express confirms the existence of water on the red planet. Houston, we’re still a go.
Category: Science
Silent Cal.
Jack Beatty of the Atlantic Monthly surveys the effects of a Great Depression on Calvin Coolidge.
Um, Creative Title Here.
A new German study finds sleep is essential for creativity. Hmm, well that explains a lot over in these parts.
Laying the Groundwork/Snoopy Come Home.
NASA sets its sights on an Apollo-based Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) to replace the earlier space plane idea, and the Mars rover begins scrounging for water. Meanwhile, the search continues for the missing Beagle.
Red Rover.
W00t. I was on holiday break when the Beagle disappeared on Christmas Day, so now I’m doubly pleased that the Mars Rover has successfully landed on the Red Planet. Not only is it great for space exploration in general, but NASA needed a success in the worst way.
Voyage of the Beagle.
A flurry of probes, headed by the ESA’s Beagle 2, prep for christmas on Mars. Let’s hope they fare better than the ’99 wave.
Viagra in every Pot.
“From gratefully accepting a basic level of assistance back in the early decades of Social Security, America’s elderly have come to expect everything their durable little hearts desire.” Steve Chapman of Slate examines the growing problem of the “greedy grandparents”. As I said after passage of the GOP Medicare bill, it’s ridiculous that we’re even considering a prescription drug benefit for the nation’s wealthiest generation, when so many Americans don’t even have basic health insurance yet. And, as Chapman notes, with the retirement of the Boomers, things are going to get worse before they get better.
L&T 2003.
“Those who think AIDS is over are dreaming. It is one of the most serious epidemics the world has ever faced, and we need to really, really get serious about it.”
– Kofi Annan
[2002]
Holding the Line.
In the most recent skirmish against the machine chessmasters, human contender Garry Kasparov tied X3D Fritz in a four-game series. He fights for us.
Riddles in the Dark.
In celebration of a quarter-century of Science Times, the paper ruminates on the 25 questions currently driving science, while Alan Lightman ponders the motivations that fuel scientists. I’m not sure if the likes of Stephen Hawking are really contemplating Atlantis, but there’s some intriguing stuff here.