tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post6917356382184192761..comments2024-03-28T14:07:18.682-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Science Fiction Media and Films -- Some hidden gemsDavid Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-48189217787568944892014-04-20T14:06:55.081-07:002014-04-20T14:06:55.081-07:00onwardonwardDavid Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-67157863926895575142014-04-20T12:11:16.801-07:002014-04-20T12:11:16.801-07:00LarryHart the main effect is gravitational. Very f...LarryHart the main effect is gravitational. Very few actual stellar collisions but lots of near passes at high velocities and stars sent hurtling in all directions. Many of them tossed out of both galaxies and many solar systems disrupted. Many others with they comet clouds perturbed enough to rain lots of comets onto planets.<br /><br />The second largest effect would be gas cloud collisions creating starbursts of new stars, many of them very large and resulting in supernovas.<br /><br />So sure, few collisions, but a rough time for the unlucky.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-19273845850374493082014-04-20T10:29:32.193-07:002014-04-20T10:29:32.193-07:00Serious question--as one who is not familiar with ...Serious question--as one who is not familiar with the science of galaxy collisions...<br /><br />Would a collision of two galaxies be destructive in its impact? Or do the stars just pass by each other and they keep going on their merry way, probably in greatly-altered orbits, but otherwise intact?<br /><br />If our galaxy were colliding with another right now, how would we earthbound human beings be affected?LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-6835037463012792672014-04-19T22:47:25.662-07:002014-04-19T22:47:25.662-07:00Robert,
"The problem is, in four billion year...Robert,<br /><i>"The problem is, in four billion years, where will the Sol system be in its revolution around the galactic core? The image may thus be inaccurate."</i><br /><br />In four billion years, the Earth won't be habitable. Within a billion years, the sun will be bright enough to trigger a run-away greenhouse effect. By 4 billion years, the oceans (and atmosphere) will have likely boiled away. Mercury, via Venus. So the position of Earth within its galactic year probably doesn't matter much.<br /><br />But I would expect more star formation during the early stages of the collision, when Andromeda's outer gas nebula reach the Milky Way's.<br /><br />[<a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andromeda_and_Milky_Way_collision_sequence.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andromeda_and_Milky_Way_collision_sequence.jpg</a>]<br /><br />(Also about 200-250myrs per rotation. So the sequence is 17 "GalYears" long. In theory the images could be taken from amongst the 17+ times our solar system is in the same position relative to Andromeda's approach.)Paul451https://www.blogger.com/profile/12119086761190994938noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-32235092081204188492014-04-19T22:28:14.322-07:002014-04-19T22:28:14.322-07:00& rudolf the radioactive-nose Caribou, who is ...& rudolf the radioactive-nose Caribou, who is only liked because of his mustang powers<br />David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-25699074204478590642014-04-19T22:27:48.170-07:002014-04-19T22:27:48.170-07:00Even as old as Moses.Even as old as Moses.Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-86111505952778428792014-04-19T20:15:07.753-07:002014-04-19T20:15:07.753-07:00locumranch:
And, finally, don't be so hard on...locumranch:<br /><i><br />And, finally, don't be so hard on the adolescent trope of the "I am a misunderstood undiscovered demigod/chosen-one who is being hemmed-in by authority". It's not about 'suspicion of authority'. <br /><br />We ALL feel that way until society deems us sufficiently 'mature' to apply our 'special purpose' to the appropriate 'peg' or 'hole'. <br /><br />It's all about sex.<br /></i><br /><br />Heh. <br /><br />But snark aside, it's a metaphor for teenagers feeling like they don't belong until finding that they do, and in fact do very well. In the heyday of the 1980s, the "X-Men" comics got huge by making "mutant" into said metaphor. But the story is as old as "The Ugly Duckling."LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-21176010292728042692014-04-19T17:50:55.321-07:002014-04-19T17:50:55.321-07:00Rob H. That's super cool animation of what wi...Rob H. That's super cool animation of what will happen in 4 billion years, when the Andromeda Galaxy collides with ours. Plus some highly evocative artists, conceptions of what the sky might look like, from the surface of Earth about that time. Of course, it takes our solar system over 200 million years to orbit the center of the Milky Way, so these scenes would be give or take a hundred million or so!<br /><br />PS As an undergrad I sat in the back at Caltech when the very first computer graphic of galaxies colliding was presented. Immensely crude by today's standards! And we were all enthralled.<br /><br />http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andromeda_and_Milky_Way_collision_sequence.jpgDavid Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-7330621092898729772014-04-19T17:21:25.423-07:002014-04-19T17:21:25.423-07:00By the way, Dr. Brin, given your scientific focus ...By the way, Dr. Brin, given your scientific focus toward the stars... I'd like your input on a picture that is making the rounds on the collision between the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies. There's a version up on Wikipedia as well.<br /><br />The problem is, in four billion years, where will the Sol system be in its revolution around the galactic core? The image may thus be inaccurate.<br /><br />http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andromeda_and_Milky_Way_collision_sequence.jpg<br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-46237093502957376612014-04-19T12:13:36.513-07:002014-04-19T12:13:36.513-07:00Jiminy. locum, keep eating/drinking whatever you&...Jiminy. locum, keep eating/drinking whatever you've been taking, lately.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-7281107714102129102014-04-19T12:08:30.566-07:002014-04-19T12:08:30.566-07:00The greatest threat to the future of the humanity ...The greatest threat to the future of the humanity may be, according to the trailers for both 'Transcendence' and 'Lucy', the continued presence of Morgan Freeman. <br /><br />Although brilliant, Lem is a tough sell because his satire strikes too close to home, especially if you are familiar with psycho-pharmacology.<br /><br />Terry Gilliam is 'crazy', a parodist extraordinaire, the fearless director of the underrated 'Brazil' and I look forward to his new production most of all.<br /><br />Click on the link below to see the trailer for 'Me', a wonderful SNL parody of the film 'Her' (2013), starring Jonah Hill:<br /><br />http://dailypicksandflicks.com/2014/01/26/me-snl-parody-of-spike-jonzes-her-video/<br /><br /><br />And, finally, don't be so hard on the adolescent trope of the "I am a misunderstood undiscovered demigod/chosen-one who is being hemmed-in by authority". It's not about 'suspicion of authority'. <br /><br />We ALL feel that way until society deems us sufficiently 'mature' to apply our 'special purpose' to the appropriate 'peg' or 'hole'. <br /><br />It's all about sex.<br /><br /><br /><br />Bestlocumranchnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-68374674637062147582014-04-19T11:18:16.388-07:002014-04-19T11:18:16.388-07:00"I am a misunderstood undiscovered demigod/ch..."I am a misunderstood undiscovered demigod/chosen-one who is being hemmed-in by authority figures who demand that I crush my uniqueness into their square-peg system, and BOY are they gonna be sorry when I find my true (rebel) friends and discover my hidden/latent talents!"<br /><br />Does that about sum up the core message of just about every teen exploitation film? <br /><br />The irony is so rich that almost no one ever actually groks or discusses it. That preaching romantic versions of Suspicion of Authority does not make free thinkers. It does not make independent-minded citizens. It makes bitter, angry people who will march to whatever drummer feeds their resentment.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-29359505483661596152014-04-19T08:51:11.968-07:002014-04-19T08:51:11.968-07:00Not sure if this counts on-topic or not, but as th...Not sure if this counts on-topic or not, but as the parent of a 12-year-old, I was looking forward to "Divergent", but found the movie disappointing. The plot was essentially unchanged from the book, but it somehow worked better <b>as</b> a book, but not so much as a movie. My sense was that watching the movie ammounted to watching someone read the book out loud--that it didn't substantially add anyting <b>as</b> film to the experience.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-24948643431026602532014-04-19T06:45:04.130-07:002014-04-19T06:45:04.130-07:00It will be interesting to see whether 'Is'...It will be interesting to see whether 'Is' lives up to expectations.<br /><br />Catching up on a few years worth of Girl Genius. Lift gas jokes aside, I think a live action movie would cost a lot in rubber suits and large gleaming dentures.Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-57345151459930223222014-04-18T22:13:00.628-07:002014-04-18T22:13:00.628-07:00Apparently Transcendence has been getting terrible...Apparently Transcendence has been getting terrible reviews - great visuals, but by the end the plot has devolved into gibberish.Doug S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/11918949543315280580noreply@blogger.com