NancyM's Tumblelog

Photo

Sun, 26 May 2013 02:45:51 +0100

Sat, 25 May 2013 22:41:26 +0100

staceythinx: Forms in Nature by Hilden Diaz is a light...

Sat, 25 May 2013 20:28:00 +0100

Forms in Nature by Hilden Diaz is a light sculpture that casts shadows resembling tree branches on the surrounding walls.

sendintheclownswithoutadash: A dog’s seeing eye dog “Lily is a...

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:05:43 +0100

sendintheclownswithoutadash:

A dog’s seeing eye dog

“Lily is a Great Dane that has been blind since a bizarre medical condition required that she have both eyes removed. For the last 5 years, Maddison, another Great Dane, has been her sight. The two are, of course, inseparable. “

le-jolie: “My mother fought cancer for almost a decade and died...

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:59:44 +0100

le-jolie:

“My mother fought cancer for almost a decade and died at 56. She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms. But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was. I decided to be proactive and to minimize the risk as much I could. I made a decision to have a preventive double mastectomy.

Life comes with many challenges. The ones that should not scare us are the ones we can take on and take control of” - My Medical Choice by Angelina Jolie, New York Times (14 May, 2013)

fatty-fitty: I’ve learned more about health, fitness and how to love myself more on tumblr than I...

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:55:15 +0100

fatty-fitty:

I’ve learned more about health, fitness and how to love myself more on tumblr than I have in 15 years of school and I think that’s a little bit fucked up.

bjornstar: Yahoo Sloth, Tumblr Cat

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:44:06 +0100

bjornstar:

Yahoo Sloth, Tumblr Cat

the-science-llama: ikenbot: The 4th dimension in our case is...

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:29:27 +0100

the-science-llama:

ikenbot:

The 4th dimension in our case is where the 3D structures including this very Universe combine and exist within changing time frames. 4D structures can’t exist within 3D ones but 3D structures can exist in a 4D just like your drawings exist within that flat paper as lines and points but couldn’t exist in our 3D world by itself. Extra dimensions work the same, like a Matryoshka doll that loses and or gains properties the further you go.

Image: 3D projection of a tesseract undergoing a simple rotation in four dimensional space.

In mathematical physics, Minkowski space or Minkowski spacetime (named after the mathematician Hermann Minkowski) is the mathematical space setting in which Einstein’s theory of special relativity is most conveniently formulated. In this setting the three ordinary dimensions of space are combined with a single dimension of time to form a four-dimensional manifold for representing a spacetime. [**]

In physics, spacetime (also space–time, space time or space–time continuum) is any mathematical model that combines space and time into a single continuum. Spacetime is usually interpreted with space as existing in three dimensions and time playing the role of a fourth dimension that is of a different sort from the spatial dimensions. From a Euclidean space perspective, the universe has three dimensions of space and one of time. By combining space and time into a single manifold, physicists have significantly simplified a large number of physical theories, as well as described in a more uniform way the workings of the universe at both the supergalactic and subatomic levels. [**]

But my favorite explanation of extra dimensions in general is Carl Sagan’s version. His version was based on Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions which is an 1884 satirical short story by Edwin Abbott Abbott:

The story is about a two-dimensional world referred to as Flatland which is occupied by geometric figures. Women are simple line-segments, while men are polygons with various numbers of sides. The narrator is a humble square, a member of the social caste of gentlemen and professionals in a society of geometric figures, who guides us through some of the implications of life in two dimensions. The Square has a dream about a visit to a one-dimensional world (Lineland) which is inhabited by “lustrous points”.

He attempts to convince the realm’s ignorant monarch of a second dimension but finds that it is essentially impossible to make him see outside of his eternally straight line.

He is then visited by a three-dimensional sphere, which he cannot comprehend until he sees Spaceland for himself. This Sphere (who remains nameless, like all characters in the novella) visits Flatland at the turn of each millennium to introduce a new apostle to the idea of a third dimension in the hopes of eventually educating the population of Flatland of the existence of Spaceland. From the safety of Spaceland, they are able to observe the leaders of Flatland secretly acknowledging the existence of the sphere and prescribing the silencing of anyone found preaching the truth of Spaceland and the third dimension. After this proclamation is made, many witnesses are massacred or imprisoned (according to caste).

After the Square’s mind is opened to new dimensions, he tries to convince the Sphere of the theoretical possibility of the existence of a fourth (and fifth, and sixth …) spatial dimension.

The depiction above is a 4 dimensional figure as represented by 3 dimensional cubes within cubes to visualize how 4th dimensions may work.

Related: Carl Sagan explains extra dimensions

Mind = Blown
The Tesseract is a 3D shadow of a 4D cube being rotated. Just as if you were to rotate a glass cube’s shadow onto a piece of paper. o_0

the-science-llama: Super Moon— June 23, 2013Be sure to look out...

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:27:32 +0100

the-science-llama:

Super Moon
— June 23, 2013

Be sure to look out for the Moon these next few months as it approaches Perigee, because the full moons during these times will appear exceptionally large. The Moon will be at its Perigee, or closest approach, in June 23 and it will reach full moon only a few minutes after it passes this point in its orbit.

These ‘super moons’ not only appear larger because they are physically closer but, combined with a full moon, the mind can play tricks on you to think they are much larger. This phenomena is called the Moon Illusion. Try to catch these full moons as they rise/set because the illusion works when there is an object in the foreground, like a tree, building or mountains.

Stargazing Events for 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:22:15 +0100

Hungary Destroys All Monsanto GMO Corn Fields

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:54:43 +0100

Hungary Destroys All Monsanto GMO Corn Fields:

Hungary has taken a stand against biotech giant Monsanto and genetic modification by destroying 1000 acres of maize grown with genetically modified seeds.

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:48:44 +0100

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:47:36 +0100

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:57:55 +0100

nikolawashere: Stunning crop art has sprung up across rice...

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:20:38 +0100

nikolawashere:

Stunning crop art has sprung up across rice fields in Japan. But this is no alien creation - the designs have been cleverly planted. Farmers creating the huge displays use no ink or dye. Instead, different colours of rice plants have been precisely and strategically arranged and grown in the paddy fields.

As summer progresses and the plants shoot up, the detailed artwork begins to emerge.

otpglobal: Boycott Monsanto: A Simple List of Companies to...

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:07:28 +0100

otpglobal:

Boycott Monsanto: A Simple List of Companies to Avoid

#MarchAgainstMonsanto

humansofnewyork: Neat moment at the Webbys last night. Fresh...

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:07:10 +0100

humansofnewyork:

Neat moment at the Webbys last night. Fresh off the $1.1 billion sale of his company, David Karp was there with his mother, Barbara. Though I’d never met her before, Barbara came over to my seat and gave me the world’s biggest hug. She kept saying: “I am so, so proud of you.”
I said to David: “Your mom just made me feel like the most special guy in the world.”
He said: “That’s how she’s made me feel my whole life.”

nbcnews: Before and after: Tornado cuts devastating path...

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:31:48 +0100

nbcnews:

Before and after: Tornado cuts devastating path through Oklahoma

(Top photo: Bing, Bottom photo: AP)

Briarwood Elementary School, bottom right in Oklahoma City, Okla. before (top) and after (bottom) the tornado hit on May 20.

See more photos.

moviepass: REVIEW: MoviePass Temporarily Removes Wait List, In...

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:28:03 +0100

moviepass:

REVIEW: MoviePass Temporarily Removes Wait List, In Advance Of Busy Memorial Day Weekend

- thewrap.com: The Netflix-like unlimited-movie-ticket service will allow some 30,000 hopeful customers to join without delay.

Those people will have the option of joining the service without having to put up with a wait, but the offer expires at the end of the day Friday.

Spikes said it remains to be determined how many of the people on the waiting list will use the window to sign up.

The move comes as Hollywood gears up for Memorial Day, a holiday weekend that is among the biggest box-office events of the year for the movie business. This year, Memorial Day onces again promises to be a major weekend for the industry, with studios debuting such major films as “Fast & Furious 6,” “Epic” and “The Hangover Part III.”

To access MoviePass, users pay $25 to $40 a month, based on geography, for which they can see one 2D movie a day at 93 percent of theaters nationwide.

- moviepass

Photo

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:35:26 +0100