Remember all these great space illustrations from your childhood: cities floating in space, generational starship sailing to the next solar system and moon stations. Although we finally get closer to creating these marvels the public is less and less enthusiastic about it. I guess it will change once there is the first zero-g brothel in orbit. Porn sells even science.

An interesting scientific article about the development of breasts. No easy reading, but excellent of you want to learn more about evolutionary biology.

Computed Tomography has been around since the early 70’s, but has made incredible advanced in recent years - thanks to amazing computer powers and new sensors.

This helps to avoid unnecessary surgery and reduced guesswork.

Compared to the good old X-Ray this is stoneage cave paintings versus Star Trek holograms.

Click any image to get an impressive view on Saturn.

I already envy future generations, who can jump into their spaceships and take a weekend trip around our solar system. Boy, I would love to fly by Saturn or Jupiter. That must be most amazing.

Bacteria are everywhere. They can live in the hottest and coldest of places (even on asteroids in outer space). No other life form on this planet has multiplied as much and conquered so many different places.

Bacteria also have made all other species their hosts - and we all depends on them.

Contrary to popular belief only one species of bees dies when they sting you (actually the quite common Honey Bee). But not to worry which ones they are - because if the bee dying continues they will be gone in a few years. And so will we if there is nobody to pollinate our crops.

The whole Colony Collapse Disorder really scares the honey out of me. Bees occupy such a specific niche in our ecosystem, that they can’t be substituted by any other insect.

Have a quick peek before flushing - might save you a trip to the doctors later … 

Your urine, stool and sweat are important indicators of your health. One would think that understanding your own bodily functions should be common knowledge and taught in school - like sex education.

The smell, consistency, amount, color and the shape (of stool) can tell you a lot about your health. Not to mention flatulence and constipation as other indicators of a sick digestive system.

And anyone how ever had a serious fever know that we literally ’sweat out’ the bad stuff. So how you smell is also a medical indicator.

But compared to the Middle Ages modern humans hardly care about their shit, sweat and piss anymore. One of the reasons is that feces and urine are no longer directly collected to reuse them for other purposes. Urine was once a well needed resource, before chemical factories arrived. Ammoniac was for example extracted from Urine - and used for example in the clothing industry.

Many Kings had doctors who had nothing else to do, but sniff out his majesties poop and check for illnesses. Drinking urine itself is considered a medical application itself.

You’ll never guess what I had for breakfast today …

So maybe next time you see your doctor - maybe ask him some questions about your excretions. And learn to watch your daily ‘exports’ for unusual indicators (most alarming is for example blood in your stool or urine).

Learn by constant observation how different diets change your excretions, your smell and most of all your moods and psyche. Your brain relies on certain chemicals and mood swings can be influence by a bad diet, bad digstion and lack of certain vitamins or other elements.

Hey, Hitler was constantly constipated - and you know what his bad mood lead to - right?

More? Some sweat info, more sweat, some about your urinary system, about Bowel movements, your digestive system, some stool advice from Oprah (of all people ;-), some really good tips for stool reading and about urine.

Simply mentioning the word ‘UFO’ either provokes a smile or some awe - depending on which side of the discussion you stand. There are four big camps here: the Esoteric UFO nuts, the Conspiracy Experts, the total Deniers and the serious Researchers.

Here are some thoughts about each group. And think about yourself: do you like UFOs, because you want some nice alien alternative to our earthly madness or do you deny their existence, because you are a super sceptic?

The Esoterics

Believing in UFOs has become a substitute religion for some people. Some odd cults followed leader either chosen by aliens or who have claimed they are aliens themselves. There is no coherent believe system in this group - it ranges from Inca gods to UFO references in the Bible. Anything goes.

I am the super intelligent life form from Sirius and here to save you my true believer …

Arguments: There is life out there. Aliens brought life to Earth. Aliens are our beloved cosmic ‘parents’ and watch over us.

Material: UFOs in the Bible (video), Erich van Däniken (video) and his Wikipedia entry

These are mostly people who want to believe ’something’. Aliens, Gods and Angels in shiny flying objects is just such a tempting vision not to resist. It is the perfect fantasy for a ‘nice’ future in your head.

A God’s Chariot in the Sky = Alien in a spaceship …

Most of all it’s religious escapism: someone will chose you and take you away from this miserable planet to the heavens. You are a true believer, therefore an Überbeing will reward your faith and give you something special no one else gets. Since ‘God is dead’ (thanks Herr Nietzsche) living aliens are the best ‘mental sugar to fulfil this desire.

Total Deniers & Debunkers

Hey, I am just a weather balloon!

The essence of this group can be easily summed up with one question: If Aliens would have visited us, why haven’t they simply made officially contact with us? It makes no sense to fly a gazillion kilometers through outer space to scare some Redneck in Arizona or mutilate cows in Texas.

There are also many serious people out there who have debunked many sightings are natural phenomena or simply aircraft sightings.

Argument: We want a complete UFO and Alien to dissect and study - anything else is not enough to prove their existence.

Material: UFO debunking website, Top Ten Alien encounters debunked, Larry King special with a ‘debunking battle’ at the end (video), fake alien autopsy (video), Roswell Wikipedia entry.

I personally strongly agree with a skeptical approach, since people often love to SEE things that are simply not there. Plus it’s always good to remember the literal meaning of UFO: unidentified flying object - simply something that flies in the sky and you don’t know exactly what it is. It does not automatically imply little green man or an alien god coming for you.

But the Anti-UFO camps often seems to eager to deny everything - that is why so many Conspiracy Experts like to label Debunkers as agent of the dark and secret government.

We need these skeptical minds, because people are willing to believe almost anything, especially the esoteric types and many of the mad conspiracy ideas need to be challenged most of the time.

Conspiracy Nerds

Heil Alien! (Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Alien!)

UFOs built by Nazis? The existence of UFOs well known and hidden by the Government? Secret technology abused by the rich and powerful to keep us mere mortals enslaved? The Government is building secret weapons based on alien technology?

Sounds all like an episode of the X-Files, right?

But you are in for a shock. Although some Conspiracy Nerds are nuts, some of their points are actually true.

Nazi Germany did experiment with many weird and outstanding technologies back then. The flying wing - like today’s B2 bomber -was one of these concepts.

The Gotha Horton was in the early design stages shortly before the war. It was way ahead of it’s time - and is the forefather of the B2 Bomber.

The same is true for flying saucers. The German Andreas Epp actually developed the concept of flying saucers for use as target drones for the German Luftwaffe.

This research was first used by the Russians and later by the Americans. So military flying saucers are no fiction, there were actually several declassified projects developed like the Cypher and the Avrocar.

But not all these points have a solid foundation like the Nazi flying saucer. A lot - and I mean a lot - of crazy ideas, suspicions and rumors get mixed together in this camp. Any wild idea ranging from Hitler’s secret bases in Antarctica, Freemasons on the Moon to Aliens disguised as humans in our Governments are included.

Some old construction plans from 1956 - based on work during the war.

These outrageous stories illustrate the biggest weakness of the Conspiracy Nerds - that they love to develop one big theory that explains and connects anything to everything. Their own vivid imagination is their biggest enemy. And there still is a big difference between connecting different theories and having definitive proof. Too often vague ideas seem more interesting to them than solid facts.

Arguments: We know that something is going on! We have figured it all out! The Government is hiding everything!

Material: Interview with Andreas Epp (video in German), German Saucer (video) and an article excerpt about the German saucer experiments. UFO conspiracy Wikipedia entry. Some more about Andreas Epp. If you have a lot of time then watch this hardcore video about “Nazi UFOs - how they fly” (video), which mixes Tessla Coils and Nazi UFOs together …

We do need these Nerds to dig deep and connect the wildest ideas and drive out in the desert to shot images of secret military projects. Only a nutty nerd would do that - normal citizens stay at home and watch American Idol.

Area 51 Warnings - a total Nerd magnet!

As much as we need the skeptical debunkers on one side, we need the overactive minds and patience of the Nerds to put all the pieces together. Even when many ‘results’ are weird or false, because sometimes they are right! And conspiracies DO HAPPEN. Sometimes Governments do lie and dangerous people in power will do anything to hold on to power or increase their influence. And it’s not just the Nazis that would do weird and evil stuff …

Serious Researchers & Witnesses

Hey, I saw something in the sky - and it was not a peanut!

In recent years there is a growing movement of ’serious’ people, who want the governments to more open about UFOs in general. First let’s look at my claim of ’serious’: one wouldn’t consider Shirley Maclain are serious expert, especially since she has been very ‘new age’ and hardly qualifies as an technical expert. But one would consider military and civilian pilots as well as former government officials as ’serious’ or experts on either Government dealings or things that fly.

But just seeing something unidentifiable in the sky is no proof of anything - especially not any government involvement. But these people often have seen unexplainable phenomena close up or on their radar screens - AND have experience their governments murky response to it (like denying it ever happening or confiscating documents). Any such behaviors fuels of course suspicions.

It looked like a flying triangle …

Many ‘Black Projects’ like the F-117 and the B-2 Stealth Bombers certainly look like flying saucers when viewed at certain angles. And they are supposed NOT to appear on the radar screen. So it would be no surprise that the American Government would deny or suppress any sightings or ‘proof’ of these once top secret weapon projects.

This is less about little green man, it’s more about Government secrecy.

Argument: We want some proof and the government to deal openly with this.

Material: former Pilots and Official ask the US Government for reopening UFO investigations (BBC News article) and video

Disinformation, secrecy and smokescreens are pretty normal political tools for any Government. We can’t expect the Government to be open about everything. Secrecy is important and black operations are needed to deal with enemies within and outside the country. But this is not a carte blanche to do anything.

Especially in our days and the hyped up fear about terrorism it’s necessary to watch all governments even closer. It doesn’t matter if it is about UFOs or something else, the people at the top need to be controlled, military projects and spending have to be regulated as well.

I am usually not much of a fashion person, but I do like T-Shirts (and other crap)  with a mission. Jeremy Kalgreen has created some cool designs and used the many shopping system on the intranets to sell his wares.

But I really do like the designs and humor behind them. If you gonna wear something wacky, than choose something good like this.

Buy here: http://wearscience.com/

Mankind has long feared lunar and solar eclipses. Often these events lead to fear and religious madness.

But it has to be said that a few wise man figured it all out and recognized that these were natural and predictable events (from Wikipedia):

Ancient Greek astronomers noticed that during lunar eclipses the edge of the shadow was always circular; they thus concluded that the Earth was spherical. In 499, Indian mathematician Aryabhata gave accurate calculations for both the solar eclipse and lunar eclipse. In 1504, while stranded on Jamaica, Christopher Columbus “predicted” a lunar eclipse (actually, he knew from celestial tables that he had brought with him that a lunar eclipse was to occur on February 29 of that year), thereby intimidating the island’s natives into continuing to provision him and his men and thus saving them from death by starvation.

Today we simply enjoy the spectacle! This weeks solar eclipse images: BBC and of course the corresponding Flickr Group

BBC News: Cement makers come clean 

Cement is one of our oldest building materials - it was already known and used by the Romans. By cement releases a lot of heat and CO2 while hardening. Cement makers hope to reduce the emissions and create a greener cement.

Excellent!

There is still so much that can be improved - like semitransparent concrete. I think this could be a great energy saver for industrial buildings. Great idea!

BBC News: Diet choices ‘written in genes’

Not you choose what to eat, but your cravings and your DNA have something to say about that as well. But it’s still no excuse to eat only crap. We might not have a completely free will - but we are not just mindless eating machines at all.

Every few weeks you can read about some new form of bacteria or virus getting immune against medical defenses. Penicillin ain’t the big cure it used to be. More and more little buggers get resistant - and we actually help them. Hospitals turn out be excellent breeding and training grounds. All kind of diseases, people and dugs meet for a big get together and exchange of ‘code’. Since evolution does happen - sometimes at an alarming rate - these buggers already kills thousands of people every year.

The big fear and real possibility is that one of these days one of them leaves the ‘lab’ and visits us all. If it’s just an influenza virus that would be bad enough - but it could also be something more lethal.

The thing about genetics that scares me most is that we could create creatures only serve our weird social and emotional needs. It’s already bad enough that we slaughter, abuse and eat most of them anyway. Cats and dogs should be enough for emotionally deprived humans.

source: humandescent.com

Who killed the electric car? Please go and visit the website of this upcoming documentation. What an amazing site and what a chilling insight into the workings of car manufacturers and oil magnates. The go and buy a big gun and shot the bastards!

Make also sure to watch the trailer first to get into the story.

A highly interesting article over at the Scientific American Mind. Neurosciene is still very young, we hardly know how our brains and minds work.

Although we have used wind for a long time, I don’t think it will play a huge role in our future. Windfarms are hard to build and work only in certain areas. Solar collectors are much easier to install and work even in less sunny areas.

Ok, the magnetic poles will change or even flip in the next few decades. But I am wondering if this will have other and nastier consequences then just making your compass useless.

Today we save all data on magnetic media. Can you imagine a global wipe out? What about the magnetic field that protects us? It would be pretty nasty if it would weaken or even fail during any changes.

Galactic Roast Beef anyone?

From the BBC:

Praying for patients undergoing heart operations does not improve their outcomes, a US study suggests.

A study found those who were prayed for were as likely to have a setback in hospital, be re-admitted, or die within six months as those not prayed for.

The Duke University Medical Center study of 700 patients, in the Lancet, said music, image and touch therapy did appear to reduce patients’ distress.

Heart experts said patients could benefit from feeling more optimistic.

Image: Sassoferrato - The Virgin in Prayer

Medicine has made huge advances in the last 100 years - compared to all centuries before today we can heal terrible diseases and injuries - and even replace parts of our bodies. Amazing!

More? How artificial hearts work

Wikipedia entry

The first of 41 satellites. One of the greatest achievements of mankind and one of the greatest PR move ever! America was shocked out of it’s wits by the Russian Beeper in space.

Some videos from that time: Russian Show reel, Dutch report, American reel and great BBC dramatization.

Happy Sputnik day!

I still find it highly amusing that a scientist from the Soviet era ‘discovers’ the conditioning reflex. Somehow rulers and animals trainers / breeders knew this before. But as a scientist he at least ‘proved’ it’s existence and documented it. Oh well …

From Wikipedia:

In the 1890s, Pavlov was investigating the gastric function of dogs by externalizing a salivary gland so he could collect, measure, and analyze the saliva produced in response to food under different conditions. He noticed that the dogs tended to salivate before food was actually delivered to their mouths, and set out to investigate this “psychic secretion”, as he called it. He decided that this was more interesting than the chemistry of saliva, and changed the focus of his research, carrying out a long series of experiments in which he manipulated the stimuli occurring before the presentation of food. He thereby established the basic laws for the establishment and extinction of what he called “conditional reflexes” — i.e., reflex responses, like salivation, that only occurred conditional upon specific previous experiences of the animal. These experiments were carried out in the 1890s and 1900s, and were known to western scientists through translations of individual accounts, but first became fully available in English in a book published in 1927.

Pavlov was a dextrous operator who was compulsive about his working hours and habits. He would sit down to lunch at exactly 12 o’clock, he would go to bed at exactly the same time each evening, would always feed his dogs at exactly the same time each night and he would always leave Leningrad for Estonia on vacation on the same day each year. This behavior changed when his son Victor died in the White Army — after which he suffered from insomnia.

Unlike many pre-revolutionary scientists, Pavlov was highly regarded by the Soviet government, and he was able to continue his researches until he reached a considerable age. Pavlov himself was not favorable towards Marxism, but as a Nobel laureate he was seen as a valuable political asset, and as such was lavishly funded. After the murder of Sergei Kirov in 1934, Pavlov wrote several letters to Molotov criticizing the mass persecutions which followed and asking for the reconsideration of cases pertaining to several people he knew personally. In later life he was particularly interested in trying to use conditioning to establish an experimental model of the induction of neuroses. He died in Leningrad. His laboratory in St Petersburg has been carefully preserved.

From BBC News: A method of creating super-nutritious but flatulence-free beans has been developed by scientists. Beans are a cheap and key source of nutrition especially in the developing world, but many people are thought to be put off by anti-social side-effects.

A Venezuelan team says fermenting beans with certain friendly bacteria can cut the amount of wind-causing compounds, and boost beans’ nutritional value. The research appears in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. Flatulence is caused by bacteria that live in the large intestine breaking down parts of food - such as soluble fibre - that have not been digested higher in the gut .

So - no reason anymore to blame your dog for anything!

Americas addiction to oil? Sure! After the OPEC oil shocks in the 1970’s people already thought about a more sustainable energy policy. Jimmy Carter tried to break new ground by installing a solar panel on the White House 1979. Smart move. Ronald Reagan had it removed a few years later. Neither Clinton, nor the Bush’s were seriously interested in alternative energy sources. Almost 30 years and hardly anyone has learned any lessons from the first oil shocks.