25 Years Later, Challenger & Teacher McAuliffe Still Remembered 

I was about 20 years old when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded soon after takeoff. I used to live not too far away from Cape Kennedy, where they launch the shuttles, and would often drive up to Cocoa beach to watch the shuttles take off, especially the night time launches. Way cool... 

I remember that I happened to be in an auto-supply shop when I first heard the news, and we all rushed out side to look up. I still feel a chill when I remember seeing the erratic plume of smoke and debris, and just not believing that it could happen. 

At the time, teaching was not in my master plan, but we all new of Christa McAuliffe, the teacher who was going into space. We all died a bit inside when that happened, but at the same time, I know that many of us felt great pride that a normal person, not too different than me, had "the Right Stuff," and she has always inspired me, to this day...

 

Dog Might Provide Clues on How Language Is Acquired

From the New York Times.com

Chaser, a border collie who lives in Spartanburg, S.C., has the largest vocabulary of any known dog. She knows 1,022 nouns, a record that displays unexpected depths of the canine mind and may help explain how children acquire language.

Cass Sapir/Nova Science Now

Cass Sapir/Nova Science Now

Chaser belongs to John W. Pilley, a psychologist who taught for 30 years at Wofford College, a liberal arts institution in Spartanburg. In 2004, after he had retired, he read a report in Science about Rico, a border collie whose German owners had taught him to recognize 200 items, mostly toys and balls. Dr. Pilley decided to repeat the experiment using a technique he had developed for teaching dogs, and he describes his findings in the current issue of the journal Behavioural Processes. 

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Jan. 15, 1929: Birth of a Moral Compass, Even for Science

from Wired.com 

1929: Martin Luther King Jr. is born. Though his work for civil rights and peace will become widely known, he will also deliver an important warning on the perils of technological amorality. King delivered a lecture at the University of Oslo, Norway, on Dec. 11, 1964, the day after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. He argued that progress in science and technology has not been equaled by “moral progress” — instead, humanity is suffering from a “moral and spiritual lag.”

At 35, King was then the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He was recognized for using nonviolent methods, including civil disobedience and the boycott (as well as the power of his oratory), to fight racial segregation and advance the civil rights movement in the United States.

King, a Baptist minister who was the son of a Baptist minister, preached that material advancement was meaningless without an accompanying moral structure. A visit with Mahatma Gandhi’s family on a trip to India only reinforced this conviction, while at the same time strengthening King’s commitment to nonviolence as an instrument of change.

In his Oslo lecture, King acknowledged the advances made by science and technology, but said that growing abundance was undermining the human spirit. “The richer we have become materially, the poorer we become morally and spiritually,” he said. “We have learned to fly in the air like birds and swim in the sea like fish, but we have not learned the simple art of living together as brothers.”

Placing too much value on material advantage while ignoring what he called the “spiritual lag” was a path fraught with peril, King said.

“Enlarged material powers spell enlarged peril if there is not proportionate growth of the soul. When the ‘without’ of man’s nature subjugates the ‘within,’ dark storm clouds begin to form in the world.”

King was killed by a sniper’s bullet on April 4, 1968, as he stood on a motel balcony in Memphis, Tennessee. He had gone there to lend support to striking city garbage workers.

Scientists at Work... in Madagascar

Through Mud, Sand and Water, the Long Road Home

 Two days with only light rain at night have provided us a window to make our way out. The obstacles will be mud, sand and water. But we are ready. Our vehicle recovery kit includes the following tools I would recommend to anyone traveling in Madagascar: We have a high lift jack (for lifting the car up, so you can shove rocks underneath a stuck wheel), jacking plate, three lengths of towing straps, two U-clamps, two pulleys, two shovels, two spare tires, two sand ladders and, most important, a winch. If you don’t bring a helicopter to the field with you, your next best miracle tool is a winch. I can’t tell you how many times the winch has come to our rescue, saving us from another night in the mud.

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Welcome new & old students to Block III!

As we discussed in class, this is my science and stuff blog. At least once a week, usually more often, I will post a link to a story, video,or image that I think you may find interesting. 

To get extra credit, all you have to do is visit the link, come back to the blog page, and comment on the link (see the comment button below), making sure to include your name and class period in the comment. As an alternative, you can send me an email at: jgiacobbe_southpoonte@cox.net again being sure to list your name and class period in the email.

For today, all you have to do is visit the blog, and just leave a message telling me you were here, and you earn 25 extra credit points! Piece of cake!

As an added incentive, please find below a scene from my hometown beach, so imagine you're kicking back and enjoying the waves, dudes...