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News Briefs 01-02-2008

Little bit late today. What can I say, I try to have a life every now and then…

Quote of the Day:

About the million dollar prize, I would be worried if I were you because of the fact that we have perinormal possibilities.

Richard Dawkins, to James Randi

Editor
  1. Electromagnetic rail gun. Could it be used for peace?
    I agree with you Greg. If it makes you feel better, maybe this technology could eventually be used to something far more benign, like space exploration.

    The first manned trip to the Moon was envisioned by Jules Verne as a projectile fired from a big-ass cannon. And I remember there was even an american scientist that had the dream of making a cannon powerful enough to send a payload to the Moon (unfortunately the only people that took him seriosuly was Saddam and the iraquis, eventually the man was killed although no one knows who was responsible: whether Mossad, the iraquis themselves, or the C.I.A., HBO made a movie about it some years ago).

    What I’m getting at is that an electromagnetic rail gun system could make the sending of payload to the ISS or even the Moon much cheaper than what we pay for today with multi-stage chemical rockets. At least I think it would be more feasible than the Space Tether, which is also a great idea, but one that would take many more years to accomplish.

    Unfortunately, many technologies we enjoy today had their origins with a military application in mind; the internet being the most obvious example of this 🙁

    —–
    It’s not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me…
    It’s all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!

    Red Pill Junkie

    1. First Moon trip
      Good morning Red,
      Most people think Verne was the first to envision a moon trip. But I think the accolade belongs to Edgar Allan Poe:

      http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hanspfall.html

      As with many genres, Poe is often ignored, yet he created the modern psychological thriller, twist in the tale, whodunit and the science fiction genre.
      My favourite writer by far.

      I’m fanatical about moderation

      Anthony North

      1. Balloons
        Hi Anthony,

        Well, we have to remember that Johannes Kepler and Cyrano de Bergerac also made works that could be considered science fiction today. The work of Cyrano “Other Worlds” depict his views of travels to the Moon and the Sun; But I think many people consider Verne as the father of the “hard” science fiction, the one that actually tried to find a plausible way to explain the science behind the fantastic things he imagined, like the submarine.

        However, I’m rahter intrigued by Poe’s story about those balloons. Could it be that he was inspired by the rumours of misterious “air ships” that were spotted over America by the end of the XIX century? Some people believe that Verne was also inffluenced by stories of USOs (Unidentified Submanrine Objects) when he wrote “20,000 fathoms…”.

        PS: What’s your favorite Poe’s story Anthony? I shamefully confess I haven’t read much of him 🙁 but that fortunately can always be corrected.

        —–
        It’s not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me…
        It’s all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!

        Red Pill Junkie

        1. Short story
          Hi Red,
          Yes, there are echoes of all genres in literature from the past – were Critias and Timaeus the first Sci Fi stories with Plato’s Atlantis? – but it was Poe who defined them into specific genre short stories.
          Conan Doyle is said to have perfected the detective story, but Poe’s Dupin trilogy has all the elements long before. Wells and Verne are accredited with sci fi, but other than Hans Pfaall, Poe gave us Some Words With a Mummy, first breaking the time barrier. And as for his Eureka essay – arguably Big Bang theory.
          Favourites? Far too many.

          The Black Cat
          The Tell Tale Heart
          The Fall of the House of Usher
          The Purloined Letter
          The Devil In the Belfry
          William Wilson
          The Masque of the Red Death

          Gotta stop … I’m grabbing a book …

          Anthony North

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