797551
submission
phobos13013 writes:
On this day in 1958, the United States Public L. 85-568, National Aeronautics and Space Act, was signed by President Eisenhower to create NASA. In the fifty years since its creation, NASA has made manned missions landing on the Moon, put a space station in orbit, launched numerous unmanned missions to the Moon, Mars, the solar system, and beyond, as well as launch reusable manned space crafts in orbit. Of course, there have been some tragedies including the loss of two manned space crafts and its crew as well as the loss of the Apollo 1 crew during a training mission. Although the future of the organization is in question, Americans, and the world, are looking forward to another fifty years of progress including a return trip to the Moon and an eventual manned mission to Mars.
755465
submission
phobos13013 writes:
An article just in time for the fourth in the ACS's Chemical and Engineering News talks about the hazardous chemicals in modern fireworks displays. Perchlorate is currently the oxidizer of choice in fireworks but is also known to be a thyroid blocker; since perchlorates are easily water soluble anions, they dissolve into groundwater quickly. A study performed last summer over a lake in Ada, Oklahoma showed that in less than a day from the fireworks display, chlorate levels in the lake jumper over 1,000 ppm of their baseline concentration. Subsequently, it took weeks for the levels to drop back down to their baseline. On the other hand, heavy metals are used to produce the pretty colors typically associated with the best fireworks. The trend is to start using nitrogen-based oxidizing fireworks, they produce less smoke which means less colorizing agents can be used in displays.
Since C&EN is a subscription-based magazine, the article will likely only be available for a few weeks, a condensed article is available at Science Daily.
743883
submission
phobos13013 writes:
Recent evidence released is showing the North Pole ice is melting at the highest rate ever recorded. As a result, the Pole may be completely ice-free at the surface and composed of nothing by open water by September. As reported in September of last year, the Northwest Passage was ice-free for the first time known to man. The implications of this, as well as the causes, are still being debated. Are global warming experts just short-sighted alarmists? Are we heading for a global ice age? Or is the increase in global mean temperature having an effect on our planet?
347709
submission
phobos13013 writes:
Trolltech announced this week that they will discontinue development on their Greenphone platform. The Greenphone was advertised to be the first phone with a user-modifiable environment. Trolltech CTO, Benoit Schilling, stated that they are not really a hardware company and so will focus it's efforts on FIC's Neo 1973, now available. However, FTA, a future wifi-enabled endeavor (possibly a VOIP phone) was hinted at by Schilling.
