Science Special News

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Time capsule to be beamed from Teotihuacan

Mexico's Teotihuacan, once the center of a sprawling pre-Hispanic empire, is set to become the launch pad for an attempt to communicate with extraterrestrial life. Starting on Tuesday, enthusiasts from around the world will have a chance to submit text, images, video and sounds that reflect human nature to be included in the message. Those contributions--part of media company Yahoo's "Time Capsule" project--will be digitized and beamed with a laser into space on Oct. 25 from the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan, now an archeological site near Mexico City. Archeologists say a culture centered in Teotihuacan, known as the City of the Gods, dominated Mesoamerica for hundreds of years during the first millennium. It is unclear what led to the society's collapse. "We have this incredible ancient site and from that site we can project contemporary content," Srinija Srinivasan, Yahoo's editor in chief, told Reuters. "What is new is the ability to capture this information in such scale."

In the 1970s, astronomer Carl Sagan compiled a record with sounds and images, including a mariachi band and greetings in an ancient Sumerian language, to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth. His record was sent out with the Voyager spacecraft in the hope that extraterrestrial life forms would eventually find it.

[Rasputin]

Immortality via cryogenic suspension

Medical science has come a long way. It can prevent or thwart many diseases, reattach limbs, transplant vital organs, and, for better or worse, keep patients alive long after their use-by date. But we're still a long way from attaining what is arguably the holy grail of medicine: extending the human lifespan beyond its natural limit. While a lot of knowledgeable people have predicted how long we could live for; nobody is really sure. But this hasn't stopped a number of people opting into a process that they hope will give them access to future medical assistance far beyond our current capabilities: cryonics. Cryonics - often erroneously referred to as cryogenics - is what you might better remember as a convenient sci-fi plot device; think suspended animation or stasis, though neither is exactly comparable.

But rather than journeying to a distant planet, cryonic aficionados will stay on Earth in the hope that they can be revived in the future and cured of whatever ails them in this life. Or even better, that future medical science might have found a way to give them immortality.

[Rasputin]

[Rasputin]

Is Sardinia the lost island of Atlantis ?

Rome, October 13 - Top scholars have gathered in Rome this week to discuss the exciting and controversial idea that Sardinia is the lost island of Atlantis . The theory, developed in a book by the Italian journalist Sergio Frau, has drawn international acclaim but also fuelled heated criticism .Despite selling 30,000 copies in Italy, a detailed 20-point appeal by 250 academics has dismissed the book, claiming it sensationalizes Sardinian history .But the theory received a major boost last year, when the United Nations cultural heritage body UNESCO organized a symposium on the issue in Paris, suggesting the idea was worth serious consideration. Academics, archaeologists, geologists and historians from across Italy are now meeting in Rome's Accademia dei Lincei to look at the theory in closer depth and discuss possible paths of future research .The meeting has also been timed to coincide with the opening of an exhibition on Frau's ideas, originally shown in Paris last year. "Atlantika" uses Frau's book, "The Pillars of Hercules", as a springboard for exploring theories and ideas on the legendary island and its whereabouts. Neither the location nor the existence of Atlantis have ever been confirmed .The first documented mention of the island dates back to ancient Greek philosopher Plato - circa 427-347 BC - who said it was destroyed by a natural disaster, possibly a tsunami .

Traditional theories have placed it somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean because Plato said it was beyond the Pillars of Hercules which, according to another ancient writer, Erathosthenes, were at the Strait of Gibraltar .But Frau believes Erathosthenes, a librarian and geographer who lived in Alexandria in the third and second centuries BC, got it wrong and that the Pillars of Hercules were actually on Sicily .Frau had his brainwave after seeing a print of two maps of the Mediterranean as it was in the Bronze Age .One showed Tunisia and Sicily almost touching; the other, of the Straits of Gibraltar, was remarkably similar .Frau thinks Erathosthenes moved the pillars because in the 120 years between Plato's era and his, the Greek world changed dramatically, and the strait between Sicily and Africa was no longer at the outer reaches of the Empire .

[Rasputin]

Does the Sun have celestial siblings ?

Astronomers at the University of Illinois say that rather than being an only child, the sun could have hundreds or thousands of celestial siblings that are now dispersed across the heavens. The researchers conclusions could reshape current theories on how, when and where planets form around stars.The death of a massive nearby star billions of years ago offers evidence the sun was born in a star cluster, say astronomers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Rather than being an only child, the sun could have hundreds or thousands of celestial siblings, now dispersed across the heavens. In a paper accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, astronomy professors Leslie W. Looney and Brian D. Fields, and undergraduate student John J. Tobin take a close look at short-lived radioactive isotopes once present in primitive meteorites. The researchers conclusions could reshape current theories on how, when and where planets form around stars.Short-lived radioactive isotopes are created when massive stars end their lives in spectacular explosions called supernovas.

Blown outward, bits of this radioactive material mix with nebular gas and dust in the process of condensing into stars and planets. When the solar system was forming, some of this material hardened into rocks and later fell to Earth as meteorites.

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[Rasputin]

Where is the mythical Ithica ?

A UK-led team is challenging cherished ideas on Greek mythology by proposing an alternative site for Ithaca. The island was said to be the home of Odysseus, whose 10-year journey back from the Trojan War is chronicled in Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Most people think the modern-day Ionian island of Ithaki is the location. But geologists are this week sinking a borehole on nearby Kefalonia in an attempt to test whether its western peninsula of Paliki is the real site. The scientists hope to find evidence that the peninsula once stood proud, separated from Kefalonia by a narrow, navigable marine channel. It is only in the last 2,500-3,000 years - and after Homer's time - that the channel has been filled in, the team contends. "We can't prove the story of the Odyssey is true, but we can test whether Homer got his geography right," said Edinburgh University geologist Professor John Underhill, who is supervising the drilling operation.

At issue are a few lines of hotly debated text, in which Homer describes Odysseus' native land. He talks of low-lying terrain, furthest out to sea and facing dusk. The team, which includes geologists, classicists and archaeologists, argues that modern-day Ithaki does not fit this description. It is dominated by high ground and, being on the eastern side of the Ionian arc of islands, actually looks - if anywhere - towards "dawn and sun". "This has always been a contentious issue since antiquity," said James Diggle, a professor of Greek and Latin and fellow of Queens' College, Cambridge.

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Boeing develops airborne laser weapon

Boeing has begun flight testing in New Mexico of the concept of an aircraft-mounted tactical combat laser that could eventually be used against ground targets. The low-power tests at White Sands Missile Range involve a laser mounted on a belly of a C-130 and are part of the Advanced Tactical Laser (ATL) Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration. The low-power solid state laser is a stand-in for the high-power chemical laser designers believe can be deployed to attack ground targets, particularly in crowded urban settings or against moving targets where a high degree of precision is required. "ATL will transform the battlefield by giving the warfighter a speed-of-light, precision engagement capability that will reduce collateral damage dramatically," Boeing Vice President Pat Shanahan said Friday. "The start of flight and laser testing shows that Boeing is making solid progress toward making this revolutionary capability a reality." The oxygen-iodine chemical beam produces an effect similar to a blow torch that can easily cut through metal, and is effective as distances up to 9 miles, making it possible to be used both out of sight and earshot of the enemy.

Boeing said in a release that the beam is precise enough to hit the tire of a moving vehicle without risking a hit on the fuel tank or passenger compartment. The chemical laser was fired for the first at a site in Albuquerque last month and will continue ground tests through the fall. It will be installed in a small turret on the C-130 next year for mission simulation flight tests.

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UFO expert gets a shot on the Sci Fi Channel

When his friends learned that Rich Dolan of Rochester would host a Sci Fi Channel show on mysteries, legends and the paranormal, they worried about his reputation as a scholar. "I have no reputation," Dolan cracks. "I write about UFOs."The show, Sci Fi Investigates, airs at 10 p.m. Wednesdays on the Sci Fi Channel (cable channel 59). The first of six episodes, on voodoo, appeared Oct. 11. Others in the series will investigate Bigfoot, Mothman (who allegedly appeared 40 years ago in West Virginia), paranormal hotspots, the afterlife and the Roswell, N.M., site of an alleged crash of alien spacecraft. Dolan, who has done dozens of interviews and narrations on UFOs on other cable channels, was approached last spring by the Sci Fi series' producers. He is one of four hosts. The others include an archaeologist, a crime scene investigator and "Boston Rob" Mariano, billed as "the skeptic," who began his celebrity career as a contestant on the CBS series, Survivor. He later married Amber Brkich, the winner of Survivor All-Stars and last year the two of them were contestants on CBS' The Amazing Race. Why Rich Dolan?

"I have an interest in weird things," he says. If the ratings are decent, the show could be renewed. Already he's been approached by producers considering similar types of shows. "But in TV, nothing is for sure until it happens." Dolan, 44, is a trained historian, who attended Oxford University and later studied American Cold War diplomacy at the University of Rochester, where he earned a master's degree. His book, UFOs and the National Security State, is the first of two volumes that provides a chronology of what he calls the national security dimensions of the UFO phenomenon from 1941 to 1973. A second volume, due out in early 2007, will describe events from 1973 to the present.

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[Rasputin]

Radical Stonehenge solution proposed

After over 20 years of argument and countless millions spent on consultants and planning inquiries over the state of Stonehenge, a leading expert last night proposed a radical solution: do nothing. The government's long overdue decision on the roads which strangle the world's most famous prehistoric monument is ardently awaited by archaeologists and local residents alike, after two public inquiries and last summer's lengthy public consultation. Last night Professor Peter Fowler, an internationally acknowledged expert on the Stonehenge landscape and on World Heritage Sites management, washed his hands of the whole argument.The A303, a main artery to the south west that narrows to a grinding two-lane traffic jam where it passes the stone circle, should be closed and replaced with a tunnel, and the smaller A344 which actually clips the heel stone of the monument, should also go, he said, adding, "But since no sort of a tunnel is going to be built, the A303 should be kept exactly as and where it is, because neither widening it nor allowing it to career off sinuously to north or south is an option."

Instead of the expensive and ambitious plans for a new visitor centre, car parks, paths across the downland and a land train for people who can't walk so far, currently being pursued by English Heritage which manages the site, and the National Trust which owns thousands of acres of surrounding land, Prof Fowler advocated low tech interpretation at several perimeter points, encouraging walkers, cyclists and horse riders to explore the whole site and its myriad monuments, not just the stone circle itself. Prof Fowler was giving the keynote address last night at a Council for British Archaeology event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Stonehenge and nearby Avebury becoming a World Heritage Site. Since then argument has never stopped over the site, and its squalid visitor facilities, damned by the parliamentary public accounts committee as "a national disgrace" in 1989. When the most recent public inquiry recommended replacing the road with a long tunnel, the government rejected this on cost grounds and instead called for renewed consultation on all the options.

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[Rasputin]

Human species 'may split in two'

Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said. Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge.The human race would peak in the year 3000, he said - before a decline due to dependence on technology.People would become choosier about their sexual partners, causing humanity to divide into sub-species, he added.The descendants of the genetic upper class would be tall, slim, healthy, attractive, intelligent, and creative and a far cry from the "underclass" humans who would have evolved into dim-witted, ugly, squat goblin-like creatures. But in the nearer future, humans will evolve in 1,000 years into giants between 6ft and 7ft tall, he predicts, while life-spans will have extended to 120 years, Dr Curry claims.Physical appearance, driven by indicators of health, youth and fertility, will improve, he says, while men will exhibit symmetrical facial features, look athletic, and have squarer jaws, deeper voices and bigger penises.Women, on the other hand, will develop lighter, smooth, hairless skin, large clear eyes, pert breasts, glossy hair, and even features, he adds. Racial differences will be ironed out by interbreeding, producing a uniform race of coffee-coloured people.However, Dr Curry warns, in 10,000 years time humans may have paid a genetic price for relying on technology.Spoiled by gadgets designed to meet their every need, they could come to resemble domesticated animals.

Social skills, such as communicating and interacting with others, could be lost, along with emotions such as love, sympathy, trust and respect. People would become less able to care for others, or perform in teams.Physically, they would start to appear more juvenile. Chins would recede, as a result of having to chew less on processed food.There could also be health problems caused by reliance on medicine, resulting in weak immune systems. Preventing deaths would also help to preserve the genetic defects that cause cancer.Further into the future, sexual selection - being choosy about one's partner - was likely to create more and more genetic inequality, said Dr Curry.The logical outcome would be two sub-species, "gracile" and "robust" humans similar to the Eloi and Morlocks foretold by HG Wells in his 1895 novel The Time Machine.

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Astronomer captures UFO, Moon atmosphere

Charles Olsen, 52, believes his "exclusive" photograph will challenge popular science with proof of extraterrestrial beings and prove there's atmosphere on the moon. "I have the evidence," he says, revealing a series of photos which he took one cold October evening nearly two years ago. He learned through the evening news a rare lunar eclipse was set for cosmic alignment that very evening. "I knew this was going to be a big deal, a big opportunity," he said, adding a full lunar eclipse only occurs every 120 years.So Olsen was right when he assembled his camera gear and headed to the pumphouse located on the outs***ts of town. Exposed to the wide-open night sky, he aims his 35-mm camera towards the heavens, unaware of what he would capture.As the planetary masses aligned, Olsen said there was unexplained energy in the air.

"It was spectacular," he recalled, describing it as an "unexpected intergalactic extravaganza.""I was up most the night."Fortunately, Olsen's exposures caught it all. On reflection he says they are undeniable evidence of UFOs and of a lunar atmosphere.