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| News Briefs - September-October - Page 3 |
Pluto Now a ‘Plutoid’
The former planet known as Pluto
is now being called a plutoid,
according to the International
Astronomical Union. Plutoids will
be defined as celestial bodies in
orbit around the Sun farther away
than Neptune and must have a
near spherical shape and not
have swept up other smaller
objects in their orbits. Eris is
another plutoid.—Yahoo News
Reuters (6/11/08)
Mercury is Shrinking
Mercury is not only the solar
system’s smallest planet, now that
Pluto has been demoted to a
plutoid, but Mercury also appears
to be shrinking. New
measurements by NASA’s
Messenger spacecraft indicate
the planet has shrunk by more
than a mile in diameter over its
history. Scientists attribute this
shrinkage to the cooling of the
planet’s core.—Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel (7/9/08)
Some Scientists Fear
The New Atom-Smasher
The most powerful atom-smasher
ever built could make some major
discoveries, but it is also creating
fears among some critics that it
could spawn a Earth-swallowing
black hole or spit out particles that
could destroy the planet.
Scientists supporting Switzerland’s
Large Hadron Collider, 17 miles in
circumference and buried 330
feet underground, said these
fears are ridiculous. Set to begin
test runs in August, it is expected
to take months before ramping up
to full power. The collider will hunt
for signs of “dark matter”, “dark
energy” and even extra
dimensions.—(Racine) Journal
Times (6/29/08)
The former planet known as Pluto
is now being called a plutoid,
according to the International
Astronomical Union. Plutoids will
be defined as celestial bodies in
orbit around the Sun farther away
than Neptune and must have a
near spherical shape and not
have swept up other smaller
objects in their orbits. Eris is
another plutoid.—Yahoo News
Reuters (6/11/08)
Mercury is Shrinking
Mercury is not only the solar
system’s smallest planet, now that
Pluto has been demoted to a
plutoid, but Mercury also appears
to be shrinking. New
measurements by NASA’s
Messenger spacecraft indicate
the planet has shrunk by more
than a mile in diameter over its
history. Scientists attribute this
shrinkage to the cooling of the
planet’s core.—Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel (7/9/08)
Some Scientists Fear
The New Atom-Smasher
The most powerful atom-smasher
ever built could make some major
discoveries, but it is also creating
fears among some critics that it
could spawn a Earth-swallowing
black hole or spit out particles that
could destroy the planet.
Scientists supporting Switzerland’s
Large Hadron Collider, 17 miles in
circumference and buried 330
feet underground, said these
fears are ridiculous. Set to begin
test runs in August, it is expected
to take months before ramping up
to full power. The collider will hunt
for signs of “dark matter”, “dark
energy” and even extra
dimensions.—(Racine) Journal
Times (6/29/08)
Travelers at Airport Can
Avoid the Patting Down
Travelers at the Phoenix Sky
Harbor International Airport now
have the option of passing
through security without having to
be patted down. They can choose
to walk through a full-body
screening machine that uses
radio-waves to produce 3-D scans
of passengers’ bodies that can
also show metals, plastics, and
liquids between the skin and
bodies. The downside of the
invention: the images reveal every
part of the person’s body as well
as intimate medical details such
as colostomy bags.—Discover
(May, 2008)
Tiny Spy Plane Planned
An engineering professor at the
U. of Florida is working on a very
small unmanned spy plane that
will be less expensive to build and
maintain and, more important,
less easy to spot than its bigger
brothers. The 4½-inch wide plane
would have flexible wings that can
keep it on a steady course even
in gusty winds. Its main
downside—it can fly for only 15
minutes before its battery needs
recharging.—Discover (June,
2008)
Funeral Web casts
Become More Common
Web casts of funerals are
becoming more common across
the United States and in other
countries in order to
accommodate those who for some
reason cannot physically attend
the services. All that is needed is
a camera, computer, specialized
software and a high-speed hook-
up to the Internet. Viewers must
know a password to be able to
access the funeral.—Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel (6/18/08)
Avoid the Patting Down
Travelers at the Phoenix Sky
Harbor International Airport now
have the option of passing
through security without having to
be patted down. They can choose
to walk through a full-body
screening machine that uses
radio-waves to produce 3-D scans
of passengers’ bodies that can
also show metals, plastics, and
liquids between the skin and
bodies. The downside of the
invention: the images reveal every
part of the person’s body as well
as intimate medical details such
as colostomy bags.—Discover
(May, 2008)
Tiny Spy Plane Planned
An engineering professor at the
U. of Florida is working on a very
small unmanned spy plane that
will be less expensive to build and
maintain and, more important,
less easy to spot than its bigger
brothers. The 4½-inch wide plane
would have flexible wings that can
keep it on a steady course even
in gusty winds. Its main
downside—it can fly for only 15
minutes before its battery needs
recharging.—Discover (June,
2008)
Funeral Web casts
Become More Common
Web casts of funerals are
becoming more common across
the United States and in other
countries in order to
accommodate those who for some
reason cannot physically attend
the services. All that is needed is
a camera, computer, specialized
software and a high-speed hook-
up to the Internet. Viewers must
know a password to be able to
access the funeral.—Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel (6/18/08)
California City
Withstands Earthquake
Chino Hills, California withstood a
magnitude-5.4 earthquake in July
with almost no damage despite
the fact it was only a few miles
from the epicenter. This young
city of 80,000 consists mostly of
buildings constructed within the
past 10 years to strict earthquake
standards. Since the 1930s
California has gradually increased
its building standards which now
require such things as reinforced
sheetrock walls, a new way of
welding steel to make it less likely
to crack, and a height limit of four
stories in most commercial
buildings. The new rules appear
to have paid off.—(Racine)
Journal Times (7/31/08)
U.S. Still No. 1
In Science, Technology
The U.S. is still No. 1 in science
and technology, according to a
RAND Corporation report that
also admits the country gets a big
boost from foreign students,
scientists and engineers. Along
with Europe and Japan, the main
competitors of the U.S., China,
India, and South Korea all showed
rapid growth in S&T (science and
technology), but they all still trail
America. The U.S. accounts for
40% of global spending on
scientific research and
development, employs 70% of all
Nobel Prize winners, and boasts
3/4 of the world’s top 40
universities.—www.abc news.go.
com (6/12/08)
Withstands Earthquake
Chino Hills, California withstood a
magnitude-5.4 earthquake in July
with almost no damage despite
the fact it was only a few miles
from the epicenter. This young
city of 80,000 consists mostly of
buildings constructed within the
past 10 years to strict earthquake
standards. Since the 1930s
California has gradually increased
its building standards which now
require such things as reinforced
sheetrock walls, a new way of
welding steel to make it less likely
to crack, and a height limit of four
stories in most commercial
buildings. The new rules appear
to have paid off.—(Racine)
Journal Times (7/31/08)
U.S. Still No. 1
In Science, Technology
The U.S. is still No. 1 in science
and technology, according to a
RAND Corporation report that
also admits the country gets a big
boost from foreign students,
scientists and engineers. Along
with Europe and Japan, the main
competitors of the U.S., China,
India, and South Korea all showed
rapid growth in S&T (science and
technology), but they all still trail
America. The U.S. accounts for
40% of global spending on
scientific research and
development, employs 70% of all
Nobel Prize winners, and boasts
3/4 of the world’s top 40
universities.—www.abc news.go.
com (6/12/08)
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