Monthly Archives: July 2010

A TED talk: Astronomer Dimitar Sasselov and his colleagues search for Earth-like planets that may, someday, help us answer centuries-old questions about the origin and existence of biological life elsewhere (and on Earth). How many such planets have they found … Continue reading →

“Build a man a fire, and he’ll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life.” — Sir Terry Pratchett, author of the Discworld series of fantasy novels

I have found that most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. –Attributed to Abraham Lincoln in 1917 in How to Get What You Want, by Orison Marden

Space isn’t remote at all. It’s only an hour’s drive away if your car could go straight upwards. –Sir Fred Hoyle, British astronomer and science fiction author who coined the term “Big Bang.” He never liked that theory.

From the Huffington Post (by way of Instapundit), Down with Doom: How the World Keeps Defying the Predictions of Pessimists, by Matt Ridley: When I was a student, in the 1970s, the world was coming to an end. The adults … Continue reading →

You can’t make people happy by law. If you said to a bunch of average people two hundred years ago “Would you be happy in a world where medical care is widely available, houses are clean, the world’s music and … Continue reading →

If Men are so wicked as we now see them with Religion what would they be if without it? –Benjamin Franklin, letter to an unknown recipient, December 13, 1757

“The wise know their weakness too well to assume infallibility; and he who knows most, knows best how little he knows.” – Thomas Jefferson, The Proceedings of the Government of the United States, in maintaining The Public Right to the … Continue reading →

According to an article at ScienceNews.org, Stem cells from blood a ‘huge’ milestone by Laura Sanders: Blood drawn with a simple needle stick can be coaxed into producing stem cells that may have the ability to form any type of … Continue reading →

“What really is the point of trying to teach anything to anybody?” This question seemed to provoke a murmur of sympathetic approval from up and down the table. Richard continued, “What I mean is that if you really want to … Continue reading →