Why don't the GIMP maintainers just accept to take back control, then "update" the project by removing all the source code files and replacing them with funny cat pictures?

The big problem is that everyone will now remember the fake study and continue to believe it, because the rectification doesn't get nearly as much coverage. People are still refusing to vaccinate children because they're afraid of autism even though the author of that study actually confessed having made the whole thing up.

I like the way they start out by saying how hard it would be to land on Mars. You mean nobody has thought of that yet? Quick, somebody call Elon Musk and warn him before he sends over a rocket full of people with no way of landing there!

Also, they actually say they might have problems with plants producing too much oxygen. OK, hang on a minute there... Too much oxygen? On Mars? Somehow I don't think that will be such a major problem. Especially when combined with that other problem of not being able to make enough CO2...

I'm not saying it's going to be a picknick. It will be a hell of a challenge to just grow food and get breathable air. It just seems funny how the article emphasizes non-issues while disregarding much bigger problems.

Oh, and we shouldn't send over women because women live longer and are therefore more likely to develop cancer! Right, pick people with the shortest possible lifespan to maximize their... errr... oh, wait...

They'd better not send American citizens over there, because they'll actually have to keep paying taxes on anything they earn on Mars.

I've always been wondering about that. Why don't we make a moon base first? See how that works out? It certainly seems simpler than going all the way to Mars, you can even let people come back to earth. Or does the tiny bit of atmosphere on Mars make it so much easier to colonize?

Why don't we simply send those microbes over there already? We've got plenty of candidate lifeforms that "might" be able to survive on Mars. Just send samples of a bunch of those on a next rover mission to be scattered over some area, then see if any of them stick. Who knows, one of them might evolve into something that actually thrives on Martian soil and colonizes much of the planet. Let nature take care of the rest. Some people may not like the idea of "spoiling" the entire planet by importing life from earth (and possibly rendering the later discovery of indigenous life impossible), but if we can introduce life forms that reproduce exponentially, detoxify the soil and produce useful gases like oxygen, it will certainly make it (slightly) easier to colonize the planet once we're finally ready. Of course we won't be able to turn the planet into a giant forest, but it would be better than nothing. And we'd learn a hell of a lot about the evolution of life.

Also, if any catastrophic event happens here on earth, maybe something might come from those bacteria on Mars so life can go on. Maybe this already happened once on a different planet...

The problem is that, apparently, only two thirds of the females became male. If you would apply this method to a huge number of mosquitoes, there would be a temporary reduction in numbers followed by an explosion of mosquitoes that don't react to NIX. A single mosquito can lay quite a lot of eggs, so the numbers would be up to the old value again in a few generations. The number of mosquitoes is determined more by the environment than by the number of parent mosquitoes.

Exactly, and bats are extremely useful animals because they kill lots of mosquitoes. Oh, wait...

They simply enhanced it.

But how exactly does a planet "snatch" another object? The smaller object starts out at a huge distance from the planet, falls towards it (increasing its kinetic energy), passes by the planet (if it doesn't crash into it), and then... converts its kinetic energy back to the amount of potential energy it started out with, right?

Now if two different bodies would collide while close to the planet, some of the debris might just end up in orbit around the planet. But why would one small object not simply leave the planet again?

(Just an honest question, not saying anyone is wrong, just wondering how it works)

You can disable the Karma bonus. The problem with the bonus is that it adds one to the displayed score, but is not counted for achievements. Once you have a score:5 (which is really score 4 + 1 bonus), people stop modding you up so you never make it to a "real" +5. They can still mod you up one more point, but most people don't know so they don't. And this makes you miss achievements that require a "real" +5 (comedian, for example)

caveat: maybe they have changed the system in the mean time, but I remember it certainly used to work that way.

I believe that my God has laid out a story for me in which I don't believe in Him, so I have chosen to obey His will by being atheist. With any luck, I'll even be rewarded with 70 virgins.

Why don't they just use tolet-to-tap water in agriculture then? The plants surely won't mind. And people certainly seem to have accepted the fact that plants eat shit as fertilizer, so why not recycled toilet water?

Actually, my response would be that drinking large quantities of perfectly pure water is not very good for you and can even be dangerous. It strips away essential minerals from your body.