Saturday, July 04, 2009

Happy 4th: Why We Celebrate


Before you fire up the grill, remember why we celebrate. From ushistory.org:

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Monday, March 16, 2009

A Few Thoughts on Pluto

...the dog.  No, just kidding.

I read this article on space.com today about Pluto's planetary status.  In particular, it discusses the continuing debate on whether Pluto deserved to lose it's status as the 9th planet in our solar system.  In 2006 there was outrage when the International Astronomical Union (IAU) declared that there are 8 planets in our solar system, and that Pluto was now called a  "dwarf planet."

There are a number of reasons for the disagreements with this decision, but the one I want to address is what I'll call the sentimental value arguement.  This is made by those who say that since they learned in school that Pluto was a planet, so it can't be demoted to something else.  To all 1.6 million in the Facebook group "When I was your age, Pluto was a planet" I say GET OVER IT.

For this is not the heart of the issue.  It's "emotion" rather than sense.  In the words of Dr. Spock, it is "not logical."  The fact is, now "America's favorite planet" is now part of an even more select group of 5 dwarf planets, including the troublesome Eris.  Eris is estimated by astronomers to be larger than Pluto and even farther from the sun.  According to Wikipedia it was touted briefly as the 10th planet.  The other 3 are not quite so large - but the IAU couldn't justify upping the planet count to 13 (and potentially more as the Kuiper Belt is explored more closely), because Pluto couldn't be demoted.

The creation of a new class of dwarf planets makes sense because Pluto, Eris, Ceres (actually in the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter), Haumea, and Makemake are so relatively small, even to Mercury, that they don't have much in common with the rest.  It's estimated that many more dwarf planets may exist, astonomers just haven't found them yet.

To those who are still saddened by Pluto's reclassification, take heart that Pluto can still be enjoyed, and that soon it will be the first among many newly discovered heavenly bodies.


Kal

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Happy Pi Day

(a.k.a. Cue the cleanup hitter)

Time to tie up some loose ends -- or rather, comment on some previous topics.  First things first, though.  Happy Pi Day (the day formerly known as 3/14).  We're celebrating by visiting Eric and Jill for homemade pizza pi.

Anyway, to follow up on the January post "On Public Smoking Bans," Monday was significant because Gov. Kaine actually got the deal done.  Yes, Virginia, starting December 1, 2009, the home state of Philip Morris USA, and the worlds largest cigarrette factory, smoking in bars and restaurants (with a few exceptions - private parties, patios, separate ventilation systems) will be PROHIBITED.  This one's for you, Gov. Kaine.

And, while NASA's Kepler spacecraft had a successful start to its mission, the Shuttle Discovery is having issues getting off the ground.  There's a leak in one of the hydrogen fuel lines that they just can't get fixed.  Next launch window is tomorrow...after that we're looking at April.  Here's hoping that we don't have to wait. Every delay makes our space program look older.  Where's that shuttle replacement when we need it?   Oh, here it is...just, you know, it isn't built yet, it's British, and it won't be designed for manned missions (at least to start...).  Anyway, this one's for you, Kepler Spacecraft -- I'm following you on twitter:  @NASAKepler

-Kal

Saturday, March 07, 2009

Kepler is Away!

You may have not even heard, but there was an important launch last night from Cape Canaveral. NASA launched the Kepler spacecraft into orbit around the sun.

NASA's Kepler Portal

The Kepler spacecraft will follow Earth's orbit around the sun (it's "year," though, will actually be 371 days). It's mission is to seek out Earth-like planets orbiting other stars with it's camera, which sports an astounding 95 million megapixel array.

While Kepler won't be able to seek out new life, nor will it boldly go...anywhere, it will be able to tell us if planets like Earth -- rocky planets with an atmosphere and liquid water, able to support life as we know it -- are common. Are we unique in the galaxy? Kepler should be able to tell us.

Ultimately, if Earth is not unique, what does this mean? If there are other potentially habitable planets, especially nearby, I think that this could should spark a renewed interest in space exploration. Perhaps with Kepler's findings, we will be prompted to boldly go where no man has gone before.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

If You Can't See Venus -- It's Cloudy

I was driving home about an hour ago and I saw a bright star in the western sky. There is one problem with that...we can't see stars in Alexandria, there is too much light pollution. This is weird to adjust to, but once you are used to a blank sky (except for the moon), it's really weird to actually see something.

Anyway, tonight I saw an incredibly bright object, and it turns out it's Venus! Venus is much brighter than anything else in the night sky (except the moon) by a wide margin. As Space.com's NightSky report for February said:

If you go out as it gets dark and look to the west any early evening this month, and do not see Venus -- it's cloudy!
So grab your telescope and check it out! Saturn is also visible in the night sky but I haven't been able to pick it out yet...if I can, with all of the light pollution.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Getting Spaced on Twitter

As some of you may know, there's a "micro-blogging" website called Twitter that has been building momentum for the last few years. It's called micro-blogging because posts can only contain 140 characters or fewer.

Once dominated by geeks, like Leo Laporte (@LeoLaporte), it has grown with the adoption of "tweeting" by celebrities and news organizations, and in the recent election cycle when both the Obama and McCain campaigns posted updates to Twitter. It's worth noting that both have largely gone dormant since the election (@BarackObama has just 2 tweets leading up to the inauguration, @JohnMcCain has not posted since Oct 24).

Anyway, I mention this because Twitter not only gives you the opportunity to follow people, but also news organizations, radio shows (@GrandyandAndy is my favorite), and as it pertains to Kal in Space, select NASA/JPL programs.

NASA and the Jet Propulsion Lab have 4 main twitter characters: The Mars Phoenix Lander (@MarsPhoenix), Cassini Spacecraft (@CassiniSaturn), Spirit and Oppy (@MarsRovers), and the new Mars Science Lab rover (@MarsScienceLab). I call them characters because the JPL did something unique with Mars Phoenix, in that it the person who provided the updates did them in first person. It was like Mars Phoenix had a personality that you could interact with. In fact, in June 2008 when it was first confirmed that there was in fact H2O ice on Mars, it was announced first on Twitter with this:

Are you ready to celebrate? Well, get ready: We have ICE!!!!! Yes, ICE, *WATER ICE* on Mars! w00t!!! Best day ever!!
We who follow MarsPhoenix on twitter watched as the rover's mission got an extension when the rover miraculously regained enough power to continue a few months beyond the original projection.

The other twitter characters aren't written in the first person, but they do provide great updates on what is going on around Saturn and on Mars, and they frequently answer questions that are sent via twitter.

Check them out!

-Kal
(@KalMiller)

Monday, February 02, 2009

Love Affair with Toaster Ovens

I love toaster ovens. My senior year in college, my roommate Jason had a big, old toaster oven that he brought to our apartment. I was skeptical at first: We already had a toaster, and an oven. Why do we need a frankenstein of the two?

However, I quickly learned to love this peculiar device. You can make anything in one. I frequently would make batches of cornbread muffins or cornbread loaves (those didn't work out so well). Worked great for things like Pizza Rolls and other tasty snacks. But one of the best uses is reheating pizza.

Microwaves make reheating pizza a mushy affair. Use a toaster oven, though, and it's crispy and almost as tasty as if it were just made fresh. However, why not just make fresh pizza in your toaster oven? That's right, it heats up faster than a conventional oven and will cook a personal size pizza in no time!

Today, I contemplated that very thing. I brought some homemade pizza for lunch today. Pizzeria Miller Pizzas don't reheat well in the microwave, at least not as well as the pizza-chain delivery kind. Problem: No Toaster Oven at work. Heck, we don't even have a toaster. (Makes enjoying pop tarts a bit difficult...) Impolitic Solution: Buy toaster oven, and put it on my desk. Reheat Pizza.

However, I then asked myself: Why reheat pizza when I could just make my own FRESH in the toaster oven? BRILLIANT! I'm sure this would make even more people jealous than reheating homemade at my desk. But making people jealous isn't the goal. Tasty pizza is. So what do I do? Do I continue to suffer through mushy microwave pizza, or do I infuriate our facilities department by making delicious, fresh pizza at my desk?

I report, you decide. (Oh, wait...that's Fox News...never mind.)

Kal