Category Archives: sciences

the economic puzzles of rivers

New Scientist: Europe’s worst ever floods linked to poor land management: Engineers have channelled all the major rivers that flooded this month – draining wetlands, straightening meanders and cutting them off from their flood plains with high banks. The aim … Continue reading

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tall buildings

James Lileks says several right things about the WTC. It’s not cowardice to suggest that there might be difficulty renting the upper floors of two 110 story towers; I can imagine myself as someone looking for office space, standing in … Continue reading

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do as I suggest, not as I am constrained

Steven den Beste, in “An act of faith”, puts words in the mouth of an anonymous blogger: . . . I, myself, do not admit to holding those opinions to those around me because I’m afraid of the consequences. But I believe … Continue reading

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sad

The lonely death of Robert Burnham Jr, author of the Celestial Handbooks. (Cited by Ron Campbell.)

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a perfect sphere would be so ordinary.

Satellites Reveal a Mystery of Large Change in Earth’s Gravity. In the last five years, Earth has grown more oblate, reversing a trend since the Ice Ages. Amazing what they can measure nowadays, eh?

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freeze-frame

Where the asteroids are. I did not know that the inner edge of the Belt is so close to Mars. This chart also shows diffuse extensions of the main Belt toward both Trojan clusters, and toward Anti-Jupiter: perhaps these are … Continue reading

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dinosaurs safe for now

Asteroid 2002NT7 won’t hit us in 2019, but may hit us in 2060. (Later: Nor then.) I’ve been hearing (on the Foresight Exchange lists) that minor impacts like Tunguska probably happen about once a century, going unnoticed without modern communications.

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