Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, do you have chill?, happiness, Thoughts, Writers on December 14, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Apologies for the clickbaity title, but I actually do have a weird trick. It’s simple to do but a little hard to explain.
The trick is to close my eyes and relax my focus (literal, not figurative) from “out there” back to the approximate plane of my nose. I know it’s working when I break into an involuntary grin.
It’s a small thing that only takes a second, but some days a little trick is all I need.
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Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, space on December 13, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Did this post start out life as a path to a map of sci-fi story locations in space? It did, and then I realized that in my haste, I’d picked a draft I’d already posted before.
It happens, especially on days when one is juggling not one not two not three but four big projects, and one has absolute reams of notes in the “blog post ideas” folder.
So now I’m here with an update, still space-related but also experiential. It has to do with the Geminid meteor shower.
Bundle up and look to the sky: It’s time for one of the best meteor showers of the year
The shower will be at its peak on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning, though you’ll likely see some meteors in the nights before and after…
“The meteors will seem to shoot out of the constellation Gemini (hence the name) but could streak across pretty much any part of the sky,” Wiegert said. “So if you can find a dark place, with a good view of the sky in any direction, you could get a good view of the Geminids.”
Happy hunting!
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, cats, Thoughts, Tuesdays, unpredictability on December 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »
You as a person also have to understand that there are things in this life you cannot control, and one of those things is a cat.
— Ella Cerón
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Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, astronomy, inspiration, Orion, science, sky on December 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Want to see a rare astronomical event tonight? (And really, why wouldn’t you?)
The extremely rare Betelgeuse occultation by asteroid (319) Leona
For a very short time, we will see the legendary Orion constellation without its famous, orange shoulder, as it will be in the distant future, once Betelgeuse will have exploded as a supernova and faded to black.
Hey, I like Orion! What’s this all about?
Watch an asteroid eclipse the puzzling red giant star Betelgeuse tonight live online
At at 8:17 p.m. EST Monday (Dec. 11) (0117 GMT, Dec. 12), an asteroid will pass in front of the curious red star Betelgeuse, eclipsing it from our vantage point here on Earth and blocking it from view for up to 15 seconds in an event known as an occultation. The asteroid is known as 319 Leona, a main belt object that orbits the sun between Mars and Jupiter. Shaped roughly like an egg, 319 Leona measures some 50 by 34 miles (80 x 55 kilometers) in size.
Here’s a link to live coverage of the event.
So Orion’s loss is temporary, and will also help scientists better understand both the asteroid’s shape and the star’s characteristics. No Tim Burton movie required!
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Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, inspiration, science, Thoughts, Writers, writing on December 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it, we go nowhere.
— Carl Sagan
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, history, inquiring minds, Thoughts, time travel, Writers on December 9, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Mr Man and I had a lot to do today but (straight talk) didn’t get to most of it. That’s fine, because we were short on sleep and needed to recharge before we tackled anything big. It’s good to be prepared.
With that in mind, here’s a bit of helpful advice for writers and adventurers.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, art, creativity, inspiration, music, productivity, Writers, writing on December 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »
I was feeling pretty not terrible about closing in on three years of daily posts here, but this guy! Writing, recording and releasing an album every day? Seriously impressive.
‘Like brushing my teeth’: how Michiru Aoyama writes, records and releases an album every day
For two years, the Kyoto musician has risen at five, watched football, then made an eight-track album of super-deep ambient music – while fitting in a two-hour walk.
I’m still feeling not terrible about my streak, but this gives me an extra dose of inspiration. Win win!
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, genre fiction, Thoughts, Writers, writing on December 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, Thoughts, Writers on December 6, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Truth is incontrovertible. Panic may resent it. Ignorance may deride it. Malice may distort it. But there it is.
— Winston Churchill
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Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, astronomy, inspiration, learn-astronomy, science, space, studying-space on December 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Why isn’t there any sound in space? An astronomer explains why in space no one can hear you scream
In space, no one can hear you scream.
You may have heard this saying. It’s the tagline from the famous 1979 science fiction movie “Alien.” It’s a scary thought, but is it true? The simple answer is yes, no one can hear you scream in space because there is no sound or echo in space.
I’m a professor of astronomy, which means I study space and how it works. Space is silent – for the most part.
University of Arizona Distinguished Professor of Astronomy Chris Impey explains the science behind the Alien tagline, showcases slinkies as sound waves, and discusses why humans can’t speak across space but phenomena like galaxies and black holes can.
Also, a fun fact I did not know: “The word vacuum comes from the Latin word for empty.”
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