A new planet: astronomer talks about his discovery

I heard this story, A new planet: astronomer talks about his discovery, on NPR.
You can read about this on Earth & Sky's website, http://www.earthsky.org/.
According to this story, Alex Wolszczan co-discovered the first extra-solar planet.

I also heard a presentation on extra solar planets at this month's Richmond Astronomical Society meeting.

2007 International SF/Fantasy Conference and 2007 Worldcon

Last weekend the 2007 International SF/Fantasy Conference was held in Chengdu, Sichuan, China. This conference was sponsored by the periodical Science Fiction World. Science Fiction World was first published in 1979. It once won the World Science Fiction Award for Best Periodical. It has now has a circulation of over 300,000 and is the most influential sci-fi magazine in China and is the largest circulation genre magazine in the world.
Next weekend the 2007 Worldcon will be held in Yokohama, Japan. This will be the first Worldcon held in Japan, the first in Asia for that matter. The guests of honor are Sakyo Komatsu, David Brin, Takumi Shibano, Yoshitaka Amano, and Michael Whelan. A unique aspect of this Worldcon is that it will be combined with the Japan National SF Convention.

The Brutal and the Beautiful Books About Storms and Lighthouses

I read this in the Richmond Reads section of the August 2007 issue of Fifty Plus magazine.
According to John Denniston, Chris Mooney examines both side of the issue of global warming in his book Storm World: Hurricanes, Politics and the Battle Over Global Warming.
According to John Denniston, Sare Werniel captures all of the essence of our attraction to Lighthouses in her book Lighthouses.

I enjoy reading about both topics and am looking for these books.

Nighthawk Sci Fi Club Meeting

There is a meeting of the Nighthawk Sci Fi Club scheduled for Sunday, 26 August 2007, at 2 PM Eastern Time.
Meetings are free and open to the general public.

Causal Dynamical Triangulation (CDT)

I read in Scientific American magazine that a new theory called causal dynamical triangulation (CDT) has emerged as a promising approach to solving the problem of unifying the laws of gravity with those of quantum mechanics. For 20 years the leading contender in this quest has been string theory. String theory sets minuscule strings of energy against a fixed background of spacetime. String theory does not generate the spacetime, only the particles and forces that inhabit it.
In the 1980's and 1990's loop quantum gravity was developed as another attempt to unify the laws of physics. Loop quantum gravity describes space as a network of tiny volumes. It does generate spacetime. It has achieved some successes, but has yet to show that the tiny volumes of the theory always come together to form the 4-dimensional spacetime of our everyday world. CDT, which constructs spacetime geometries from 4-simplexes (the equivalent of a tetrahedron, but in four dimensions) is less than 10 years old, but has already achieved this.
The next step for CDT is to incorporate matter into the model to see if it can simulate the full equations of general relativity. Lee Smolin, one of the pioneers of loop quantum gravity, has said that CDT may eventually yield testable predictions, such as slight changes in the speed of high-energy photons caused by the models' nonclassical geometry at small scales.

Shuttle Repair

I read in today's Richmond Times-Dispatch that NASA has decided not to repair Endeavor before it returns to Earth.

Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens's Star Trek Worlds In Collision

I just started reading this book, Star Trek Worlds In Collision, by Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens.
Looks like a Star Trek The Original Series book.

NASA Nears Decision on Shuttle Repair by David Malakoff

I heard this story, NASA Nears Decision on Shuttle Repair by David Malakoff, on NPR this morning.
A space walk and repairs will be done by members of shuttle crew to a deep gauge in the heat shielding on the bottom of the Space Shuttle on NASA's decision according to this story.

Metal "whiskers" -- electrical shorts

I recently read an article about something shocking that I'd never heard of before -- neddlelike metal crystals called whiskers. These whiskers can grow on metal surfaces and have caused electrical shorts that have knocked out guided missiles and communication satellites, shutdown a nuclear power plant, and caused pacemakers and computers to fail.
Whiskers have been studied for over 60 years, but for competitive and liability reasons companies have not publicized them.
Whiskers grow out of so-called whisker grains that form in metal films. Pure tin has gained the most notoriety for developing whiskers, but they can also grow from other metals, including cadmium, silver, and zinc. They are hard to see, even with a microscope. NASA's Goddard has a whisker website -- nepp.nasa.gov/whisker.
So the next time you think the gremlins have gotten into one of your electrical devices, you may want to think "whiskers" instead.

The Radiant Warrior by Leo Frankowski

I have almost finished reading the third book in the Conrad Stargard series by Leo Frankowski.
I am learning about Poland just before the Mongols attack.
It is a good book.

NASA Fuels Shuttle; Launch Plans Move Ahead

I am reading this article NASA Fuels Shuttle; Launch Plans Move Ahead on NPR's website.
Liftoff is scheduled for 6:36 PM ET.

'Phoenix' Land Rover Set for Red Planet Exploration by Joe Palca

According to this article, 'Phoenix' Land Rover Set for Red Planet Exploration, on NPR's website the University of Arizonia is leading a mission to Mars.

Human History Shows a Gift for Adaptability by Christopher Joyce

I heard this story, Human History Shows a Gift for Adaptability by Christopher Joyce, on NPR a few mornings ago.
You can listen to it on NPR's website if you like:
http://www.npr.org/