MuseBlog

Piggy’s description:

We could share factoids we’ve read, advice from personal experience, observations about the world, what-have-you. Everyone learns something new every day, and I’d like a place to share.

Continued from the original thread.

The experiments scheduled to be launched on tomorrow’s space shuttle mission include one by students at the University of Florida called

.

See www . universetoday . com/85175/several-student-led-experiments-to-fly-on-endeavour/ .

The great work begins!

The author of Howl’s Moving Castle, the Chrestomaci series, and many other books died on March 26. MuseBlog mourns the passing of one who brought so much magic to the world.

Suggested by Piggy. His description:

We could share factoids we’ve read, advice from personal experience, observations about the world, what-have-you. Everyone learns something new every day, and I’d like a place to share.

Look carefully at the feet of this runner preparing to compete in Friday’s Tokyo Marathon.
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For whatever it’s worth, the American Pie Council (www . piecouncil . org/) has declared every January 23 National Pie Day. Although the APC seems to focus mainly on eating pies rather than, you know, we think this new holiday is a peach of an idea (peach pie — yum!) and encourages MBers of all lands to embrace it wholeheartedly. Those who can’t will get another chance when Pi Day rolls around on March 14.

Pie stories, anyone?

Okay, as promised, long World Science Festival post, with pictures!

The whole area around NYU was a street fair, with booths set up for different organizations. The NASA area was CRAZY. I met up with my friend Erin, and we did moon jigsaw puzzles, looked at a Mars panorama through 3-D glasses, laid down and had a rover climb over us, and signed a shuttle tire!
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agrrrfishi requested this thread after attending an assembly at her school, probably prompted by the case of Phoebe Prince, a 15-year-old girl in Massachusetts who was bullied for several months and finally committed suicide. Here is what agrrrfishi says:

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Sorry to have started this thread so late — things have been a little busy here in GAPA-land.

Many of your favorite books, movies, and TV series take place there. Meanwhile, in the here and now, America’s space program is about to make a sharp change of course. This seems a good time to talk about what James T. Kirk called “the final frontier.”

[Note: We had an earlier space thread in 2008.]

By popular request, here’s an antidote to the Rants and Complaints thread: a place to talk about things you’re happy about. We could all use a little good news.

Attention, MBers within driving distance of Morgantown, West Virginia: West Virginia University will hold its 22nd annual Pumpkin Drop on Friday, October 30.

What’s a Pumpkin Drop? Nancy Kangas and her son Aaron can tell you. So can Purple Panda and her family. They’ve all dropped pumpkins in previous years.

You can find more information at www . mae.cemr.wvu . edu/news/news-details.php?item=1272 .

And you can see how Pan & Co. did it right here on the blog.

The 82nd Scripps National Spelling Bee is in full swing in Washington, D.C., just a block and a half from Robert’s office. We don’t know whether any Musers are in it, but At least one Muser is competing this year, and there may be more; it’s the kind of place where they hang out (witness emmatheduck and speller73 of yore). So warm wishes to all contestants, and good luck to any orthographoMusers in the pack.

Progress reports, anybody?

At least one MBer will be in Washington, D.C., for it, and we’re looking forward to his reports. But even those who are far from the capital are welcome to post their thoughts. What are they saying about it in Europe and New Zealand?

It’s amazing that we’ve never had a thread on this topic before. Requested by Syllabub.

We think the discussion deserves a new chapter (and a location other than the Random Thread).

Here’s the conversation from the Welcome thread:

152. ⚡☽Luna the Lovely☾⚡ (7 Potterpoints!) | October 11th, 2008 at 12:14 pm

150, 151–i understand you guys aren’t fond of Palin for whatever reasons, but as governor, at least, she really hasn’t been bad. Overall, she has been a pretty good governor. Admittedly, I don’t know that she would make a good VP–I don’t really think she has any national experience to speak of. But as far as AK goes, she really hasn’t been a bad governor.

153. Armada (17 piepoints) | October 11th, 2008 at 5:56 pm

152-You have a point. But she’s a Republican. I don’t think we need all that much of an additional reason to not like her.
Hey, you’re eighteen, aren’t you? Who’re you voting for? Sorry, maybe that’s too personal a question, but you’re a Democrat, aren’t you?
Now that I’ve said this, you’re probably seventeen. What the heck. Sorry.
This discussion should probably move to the Hot Topics thread.

154. ⚡☽Luna the Lovely☾⚡ (7 Potterpoints!) | October 11th, 2008 at 7:02 pm

153–Yes, I’m 18. As far as whom I’m voting for, and whether I’m a Democrat….well, to the latter, I really don’t know what I would classify as. I honestly don’t really think of myself in terms of Republican/Democrat, when I registered to vote, I registered as undeclared, although undecided might have been closer to the truth. My family is definitely Republican (not that they wouldn’t ever vote for a Democrat, but they tend to be pro-Republican)….

Honestly, I don’t like either of the candidates. However, from what I’ve heard (admittedly, mainly from my parents/sister/grandmother) McCain seems like the lesser of two evils. But like I said, I don’t think I like either. But I will probably end up voting for McCain. *dodges rocks thrown by the bulk of MBers* Sorry, I know most (many) of you are democratic leaning, but…..

As far as disliking Palin just because she’s a republican, well to me that seems just as bad as the people who completely dislike/will never vote for someone just because they’re democratic. For me, I think it would be more based on individual policies, rather than solely on a person’s political leanings. but, to each one’s own.

Sorry, luv, I know that’s probably not the answer you were hoping for.

155. YodaShmoda | October 11th, 2008 at 7:16 pm

154- i sooo agree with you. i’ve kinda been thinking that maybe McCain might be a bit better but just for like one term. of course i cant vote so that’s just an opinion that will never be voiced.
which reminds me… has anyone seen the play VOTE? i watched it with my QuEST group (don’t ask) it was really good, somtimes it was sorat chessey but mainly it talked about how important it is to vote. The girl gets sent bact to during the Reveloutionary times when no one votes then to the womans sufferage when woman couldn’t vote then to MLK times when technicaly blacks could vote but people made it hard for them to do so and then to the Vietnam war era when 18 year olds wre sent to war without a choie and they couldn’t even voice their opinions about the war because they vote, but so anyways it was really really really good.
but if i could vote i would vote for Kokopelli!

156. YodaShmoda | October 11th, 2008 at 7:29 pm

can i start by saying that sorry bout the last post and the many spelling erroers and that i meant in the theird to last line “they couldn’t even voice their opinions about the war because they couldn’t vote” pay most attention the the added couldn’t.
and also i have a neopyteish question. Is there a poetry thread? and if so how do i find it?

157. Armada (17 piepoints) | October 11th, 2008 at 7:50 pm

154-Oh. Hmph. I suppose that’s true (about Palin), but how is McCain the lesser of two evils? If I was undecided, I would probably vote for Obama, because he’s more concerned about the enviroment (that’s what I’ve heard, anyway), and– you’re probably going to not agree with me on this– he’s black. I know you’re probably going to give me a lecture about how it’s not a good idea to vote for someone based on what gender or color they are, but, since I’m democratically inclined anyway, I think it’s awesome that there’s finally a black candidate running.
Though, if Hilary hadn’t lost, I would have been torn.
Not that my opinion matters anyway. Yet, that is.

*coughcoughhottopicthreadNOWcough*

158. YodaShmoda | October 11th, 2008 at 7:29 pm

can i start by saying that sorry bout the last post and the many spelling erroers and that i meant in the theird to last line “they couldn’t even voice their opinions about the war because they couldn’t vote” pay most attention the the added couldn’t.

159. The Man For Aeiou | October 11th, 2008 at 8:12 pm

154- She sounds more idiotic then Bush

He may no longer be writing for Muse, but you can still read his “Mathematical Tourist” columns on the website of his now-employer, the Mathematical Association of America.

A perpetually hot topic. Continued from version 2007.2.

It’s called “Raw Materials,” and he posts it on a blog on the Discovery Channel’s Web site. It’s like “Peanuts” for nerds. Check it out!

This isn’t Muse-related, but it’s worth knowing:

Today, the journal Nature publishes the first map of the platypus genome. It turns out that this strange and wonderful animal is strange and wonderful on the inside, too. Google “platypus genome” to find out more (and notice how artfully news reporters avoid writing the plural of “platypus”).

All new for the new year! Continued from version 2007.5.

A perpetually popular topic. Continued from version 2007.4.

It’s today, November 5. In Britain, they say “Remember, remember the Fifth of November” and celebrate by trundling scarecrows from door to door and burning them on bonfires with fireworks bursting all around them — all to commemorate an explosion that famously did NOT happen there in 1605.

MuseBlog notes the occasion every year. Here are our threads from 2005 and 2006.