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36
Pets, animals & nature / Oldest Living Things Are 5,000-80,000 Years Old
« on: June 15, 2017, 04:41:25 PM »
A Sweet Chestnut tree in the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, is 300 years old.
A well-known way of measuring the age of a tree is by counting the rings in its trunk: one ring per year of growth. The problem with that is, counting rings normally involves cutting down the tree.
Arboriculturalists get around this by using an increment borer, a drill that allows them to take out a core, and count the rings without fatally damaging the tree. But in the 1960s, one scientist's drill broke off inside the bristlecone pine tree he was sampling. The kit is expensive, so to recover his lost tool, a they cut cut down the tree. Once felled, the tree could be easily aged, and was found to be 5000 years old.
They've found a sacred fig tree in Sri Lanka that is at least 2,222 years old.
There's a Patagonian cypress tree in Chile which, at 3,627 years old, is as old as Stonehenge.
A Great Basin bristlecone pine in California's White Mountains is 4,850 years old. But the oldest tree is an unnamed bristlecone pine from the same location, has a core suggesting it is 5,067 years old. That has lived through the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. It was already growing when the Ancient Egyptians started building pyramids.
In Fishlake National Park in Utah in the US lives a Quaking Aspen tree that most people would struggle to see as "a tree".
It's a clonal tree called "Pando", from the Latin meaning "I spread", and for good reason.
It is so large that it is easy to mistake for a forest. However, Pando, despite being the size of Vatican City, has all sprung from one seed, and, over the years, has grown a single vast rootstock supporting an estimated 50,000 tree trunks. It's more like a giant bush than a tree. Estimating how old it is, is problematic, says geneticist Prof Karen Mock from Utah State University, who works on the aspen.
"There have been all kinds of different estimates but the original tree is almost certainly not there,"
Clonal trees grow in all directions and regenerate themselves as they go. This means taking a core from a trunk will not give you the age of the whole tree.
Scientists try to get around this problem by equating size to age. It's an inaccurate process and Pando's estimated age ranges from a few thousand to 80,000 years old.
A well-known way of measuring the age of a tree is by counting the rings in its trunk: one ring per year of growth. The problem with that is, counting rings normally involves cutting down the tree.
Arboriculturalists get around this by using an increment borer, a drill that allows them to take out a core, and count the rings without fatally damaging the tree. But in the 1960s, one scientist's drill broke off inside the bristlecone pine tree he was sampling. The kit is expensive, so to recover his lost tool, a they cut cut down the tree. Once felled, the tree could be easily aged, and was found to be 5000 years old.
They've found a sacred fig tree in Sri Lanka that is at least 2,222 years old.
There's a Patagonian cypress tree in Chile which, at 3,627 years old, is as old as Stonehenge.
A Great Basin bristlecone pine in California's White Mountains is 4,850 years old. But the oldest tree is an unnamed bristlecone pine from the same location, has a core suggesting it is 5,067 years old. That has lived through the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. It was already growing when the Ancient Egyptians started building pyramids.
In Fishlake National Park in Utah in the US lives a Quaking Aspen tree that most people would struggle to see as "a tree".
It's a clonal tree called "Pando", from the Latin meaning "I spread", and for good reason.
It is so large that it is easy to mistake for a forest. However, Pando, despite being the size of Vatican City, has all sprung from one seed, and, over the years, has grown a single vast rootstock supporting an estimated 50,000 tree trunks. It's more like a giant bush than a tree. Estimating how old it is, is problematic, says geneticist Prof Karen Mock from Utah State University, who works on the aspen.
"There have been all kinds of different estimates but the original tree is almost certainly not there,"
Clonal trees grow in all directions and regenerate themselves as they go. This means taking a core from a trunk will not give you the age of the whole tree.
Scientists try to get around this problem by equating size to age. It's an inaccurate process and Pando's estimated age ranges from a few thousand to 80,000 years old.
37
Science, Astronomy, & Physics / Gold Rush in Space
« on: May 23, 2017, 10:49:56 PM »
In March, Goldman Sachs announced to investors that a single asteroid containing $25 billion to $50 billion of platinum could be mined by a spacecraft costing only $2.6 billion.
In April, NASA selected Trans Astronautica Corp., for $3.25 million in technology study grants. Among TransAstra’s NASA-approved projects: an asteroid-hunting telescope whose stated mission is “to start a gold rush in space & search for other precious metals.”
Goldman Sachs has claimed mining asteroids for precious metals is a “realistic” goal.
It is believed an asteroid the size of a football field could be worth up to $30 billion.
However, bringing that much platinum back to Earth is likely to crash the precious metal market - and probably the rest of the economy with it.
Earlier this year, NASA said it was planning a mission to an asteroid worth $10,000 quadrillion, according to Lindy Elkins-Tanton, lead scientist on the mission.
It is called 16 Psyche and is a massive hunk of the iron and nickel with some precious metals mixed in.
The mysterious "metal world" was formed during the turbulent birth of our solar system.
CHINA plans to build a base on an asteroid and begin mining billions or even trillions of dollars worth of precious metals.
A top Chinese scientist revealed plans to land an unmanned craft on a space rock, potentially putting Beijing’s asteroid miners in direct competition with American space prospectors.
The asteroid will then be mined or even used to piggyback probes into deep space.
Ye Peijian, a deep-space exploration expert at the China Academy of Space Technology, told an asteroid exploration forum that 900 space rocks zoom past Earth every year.
Many of these priceless asteroids contain vast amounts of metals such as platinum, iridium or rhodium.
“In the near future, we will study ways to send robots or astronauts to mine suitable asteroids and transport the resources back to Earth,” he said.
“In the long term, we will consider using resources from asteroids to build facilities in space or to provide materials to support interstellar travel.”
The asteroids could also be used on deep space missions and serve as “bases for interstellar exploration”.
The Chinese scientist suggested an unmanned probe could hitch a ride on the asteroid and then travel off into deep space, which would drastically cut down on the amount of fuel needed to power the probe.
In April, NASA selected Trans Astronautica Corp., for $3.25 million in technology study grants. Among TransAstra’s NASA-approved projects: an asteroid-hunting telescope whose stated mission is “to start a gold rush in space & search for other precious metals.”
Goldman Sachs has claimed mining asteroids for precious metals is a “realistic” goal.
It is believed an asteroid the size of a football field could be worth up to $30 billion.
However, bringing that much platinum back to Earth is likely to crash the precious metal market - and probably the rest of the economy with it.
Earlier this year, NASA said it was planning a mission to an asteroid worth $10,000 quadrillion, according to Lindy Elkins-Tanton, lead scientist on the mission.
It is called 16 Psyche and is a massive hunk of the iron and nickel with some precious metals mixed in.
The mysterious "metal world" was formed during the turbulent birth of our solar system.
CHINA plans to build a base on an asteroid and begin mining billions or even trillions of dollars worth of precious metals.
A top Chinese scientist revealed plans to land an unmanned craft on a space rock, potentially putting Beijing’s asteroid miners in direct competition with American space prospectors.
The asteroid will then be mined or even used to piggyback probes into deep space.
Ye Peijian, a deep-space exploration expert at the China Academy of Space Technology, told an asteroid exploration forum that 900 space rocks zoom past Earth every year.
Many of these priceless asteroids contain vast amounts of metals such as platinum, iridium or rhodium.
“In the near future, we will study ways to send robots or astronauts to mine suitable asteroids and transport the resources back to Earth,” he said.
“In the long term, we will consider using resources from asteroids to build facilities in space or to provide materials to support interstellar travel.”
The asteroids could also be used on deep space missions and serve as “bases for interstellar exploration”.
The Chinese scientist suggested an unmanned probe could hitch a ride on the asteroid and then travel off into deep space, which would drastically cut down on the amount of fuel needed to power the probe.
38
Pets, animals & nature / Planet tears -- Collapsing glaciers
« on: February 22, 2017, 09:31:11 PM »
The largest glacial collapses ever recorded live. Awesome! Glaciers well over the size of Manhattan, & ice blocks over 600 feet tall rising out of the ocean. This is in 2 parts -- enhanced, & super enhanced with color boost in slow motion.
Since the year 2000, we've lost more global ice than in the past 100 years!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx0voyHxyv4[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx0voyHxyv4
The more fresh water ice that falls into the ocean, it reduces the ocean's saltiness. Salty oceans absorb heat & spread it around the world. If the oceans are less salty because of glacial ice falling into it & melting, it will slow or stop ocean currents. Most of the UK, N. Europe, Canada, & NW America will eventually turn into an arctic wasteland like Siberia.
Short term global warming seems like a good idea, & big oil want maximum profits now.
Long term, the weather can become so unstable we can't feed anybody or survive to old age because we're breathing bad air. As less plants can grow, we will have less O2 to breathe. Plants are our ONLY source of Oxygen on the planet!
But the billionaires think they can survive anything, & let anybody die. 8 billinaires have more wealth than half the world. You can bet to get that high up, they don't care about you, me, or the planet. Whatever happens they'll still survive & do whatever they want to. It's like an addiction when you're worth that much.
They have their own world, & can pay into other worlds --- even beyond the "top secret" & forbidden to to rest of us. To be in the top 1% means you rule the world & beyond what the rest of us even would know or imagine about.
Since the year 2000, we've lost more global ice than in the past 100 years!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx0voyHxyv4[/youtube]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx0voyHxyv4
The more fresh water ice that falls into the ocean, it reduces the ocean's saltiness. Salty oceans absorb heat & spread it around the world. If the oceans are less salty because of glacial ice falling into it & melting, it will slow or stop ocean currents. Most of the UK, N. Europe, Canada, & NW America will eventually turn into an arctic wasteland like Siberia.
Short term global warming seems like a good idea, & big oil want maximum profits now.
Long term, the weather can become so unstable we can't feed anybody or survive to old age because we're breathing bad air. As less plants can grow, we will have less O2 to breathe. Plants are our ONLY source of Oxygen on the planet!
But the billionaires think they can survive anything, & let anybody die. 8 billinaires have more wealth than half the world. You can bet to get that high up, they don't care about you, me, or the planet. Whatever happens they'll still survive & do whatever they want to. It's like an addiction when you're worth that much.
They have their own world, & can pay into other worlds --- even beyond the "top secret" & forbidden to to rest of us. To be in the top 1% means you rule the world & beyond what the rest of us even would know or imagine about.
39
Paranormal, Aliens, & UFOs / Astronauts, scientists, & military speak about UFOs
« on: February 16, 2017, 02:28:18 AM »
"Yes there have been crashed craft, and bodies recovered. We are not alone in the universe, they have been coming here for a long time." - Apollo 14 Astronaut, Air Force Captain and Founder of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, Dr. Edgar Mitchell
------------
"Decades ago, visitors from other planets warned us about the direction we were heading and offered to help. Instead, some of us interpreted their visits as a threat, and decided to shoot first and ask questions after. Trillions of dollars have been spent on black projects which both congress and the commander in chief have deliberately been kept in the dark."
"In one of the cases during the cold war, 1961, there were about 50 UFOs in formation flying South from Russia across Europe. The supreme allied commander was very concerned and was about ready to press the panic button when they turned around and went back over the North Pole. They decided to do an investigation and they investigated for three years and they decided that with absolute certainty that four different species, at least, have been visiting this planet for thousands of years. There's been a lot more activity recently, especially since we invented the atomic bomb." - Paul Hellyer, Former Canadian Defense Minister
------------
"There is abundant evidence that we are being contacted, that civilizations have been monitoring us for a very long time. That their appearance is bizarre from any type of traditional materialistic western point of view. That these visitors use the technologies of consciousness, they use toroids, they use co-rotating magnetic disks for their propulsion systems, that seems to be a common denominator of the UFO phenomenon" - Dr. Brian O'leary, Former NASA Astronaut and Princeton Physics Professor
------------
"In my opinion I think they were worried that it would panic the public so they started telling lies about it. And then I think they had to tell another lie to cover their first lie, now they don't know how to get out of it. Now it's going to be so embarrassing to admit that all these administrations have told so many untruths, it would be embarrassing getting out of it. There are a number of extraterrestrial vehicles out there cruising around." Gordon Cooper, Former NASA Astronaut, Aeronautical Engineer and test pilot. One of the seven original Astronauts in Project Mercury, the first manned space program of the United States
------------
"Behind the scenes, high ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense" Former head of CIA, Roscoe Hillenkoetter, 1960
------------
"There is a serious possibility that we are being visited and have been visited for many years by people from outer space, by other civilizations. Who they are, where they are from, and what they want should be the subject of rigorous scientific investigation and not be the subject of "rubishing" by tabloid newspapers." Lord Admiral Hill-Norton, Former Chief of Defence Staff, 5 Star Admiral of the Royal Navy, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee
------------
"This thing has gotten so highly-classified, it is just impossible to get anything on it. I have no idea who controls the flow of need-to-know because, frankly, I was told in such an emphatic way that it was none of my business that I've never tried to make it to be my business since. I have been interested in this subject for a long time and I do know that whatever the Air Force has on the subject is going to remain highly classified" - Senator Barry Goldwater , Chairman of the Senate intelligence committee
------------
"As the F-4 approached a range of 25 nautical miles it lost all instrumentation and communications. When the F-4 turned away from the object and apparently was no longer a threat to it, the aircraft regained all instrumentation and communications. Another brightly lighted object came out of the original object. The second object headed straight toward the F4." - U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency
-----------
Former Sen. Mike Gravel (D-Alaska), and 2008 presidential candidate said that there is "an extraterrestrial influence that is investigating our planet. Something is monitoring the planet and they are monitoring it very cautiously."
-----------
In 1965 General Benjamin Chidlaw made a shocking admission in a public statement that resonates to this day, and confirms the suspicions of many historians who have archived many UFO incidents on behalf of US military records. In his statement the general stated that UFO pursuits were taken very seriously and that many men and aircraft had been lost as a result. General Chidlaw pointed out that 18,662 accidents had occurred as a result of aerial pursuits of UFO's over the continental United States. The Air Defense Commander further commented that from 1952 to 1956 one US jet fighter per every reported UFO had been lost, a ratio of 1 to 1.
------------
In a 1965 biography about Curtis LeMay written by McKinnlay Cantor, the author asked for his opinion on the subject of UFO's. The general was quite candid: "However, we had a number of reports from reputable people (well-educated, serious-minded folks - scientists and flyers) who surely saw something".
"There is no question about it: these were things which we could not tie in with any natural phenomena known to our investigators. " And repeat again: there were some cases we could not explain. Never could."
Barry Goldwater, had tried to gain access into Wright Patterson AFB to see the infamous Hangar 18 where bodies of UFO aliens had been supposedly stored and preserved under refrigeration. After he had contacted General LeMay about entering Wright Patterson, General LeMay supposedly cussed out Goldwater and threatened him never to mention the subject again.
------------
According to author, Colonel Phillip J. Corso retired, his immediate superior, General Arthur Trudeau, was instrumental in resurrecting the long hidden Roswell artifacts (wreckage) from their hiding place within a Pentagon basement. In his book "The Day After Roswell" General Trudeau then encouraged Colonel Corso to introduce components of the Roswell debris to defense contractors for technical analysis that would yield major breakthroughs in fiber optics, lasers, silicon chips, electro magnetic propulsion, and wireless pilot to aircraft control systems in years to come. Without making a public statement on his views, General Trudeau helped quietly advance the state of the art in military and civilian applications through his secretive direction.
Rosewell crash - July 1947. Invention of the transistor (primary component of microchips) - Nov.-Dec. 1947.
Within about a week after the Roswell crash, the National Security Act was passed, bringing into existence the CIA, the National Military Establishment, the National Security Council and, shortly afterward, the Department of Defense.
-------------
------------
"Decades ago, visitors from other planets warned us about the direction we were heading and offered to help. Instead, some of us interpreted their visits as a threat, and decided to shoot first and ask questions after. Trillions of dollars have been spent on black projects which both congress and the commander in chief have deliberately been kept in the dark."
"In one of the cases during the cold war, 1961, there were about 50 UFOs in formation flying South from Russia across Europe. The supreme allied commander was very concerned and was about ready to press the panic button when they turned around and went back over the North Pole. They decided to do an investigation and they investigated for three years and they decided that with absolute certainty that four different species, at least, have been visiting this planet for thousands of years. There's been a lot more activity recently, especially since we invented the atomic bomb." - Paul Hellyer, Former Canadian Defense Minister
------------
"There is abundant evidence that we are being contacted, that civilizations have been monitoring us for a very long time. That their appearance is bizarre from any type of traditional materialistic western point of view. That these visitors use the technologies of consciousness, they use toroids, they use co-rotating magnetic disks for their propulsion systems, that seems to be a common denominator of the UFO phenomenon" - Dr. Brian O'leary, Former NASA Astronaut and Princeton Physics Professor
------------
"In my opinion I think they were worried that it would panic the public so they started telling lies about it. And then I think they had to tell another lie to cover their first lie, now they don't know how to get out of it. Now it's going to be so embarrassing to admit that all these administrations have told so many untruths, it would be embarrassing getting out of it. There are a number of extraterrestrial vehicles out there cruising around." Gordon Cooper, Former NASA Astronaut, Aeronautical Engineer and test pilot. One of the seven original Astronauts in Project Mercury, the first manned space program of the United States
------------
"Behind the scenes, high ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense" Former head of CIA, Roscoe Hillenkoetter, 1960
------------
"There is a serious possibility that we are being visited and have been visited for many years by people from outer space, by other civilizations. Who they are, where they are from, and what they want should be the subject of rigorous scientific investigation and not be the subject of "rubishing" by tabloid newspapers." Lord Admiral Hill-Norton, Former Chief of Defence Staff, 5 Star Admiral of the Royal Navy, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee
------------
"This thing has gotten so highly-classified, it is just impossible to get anything on it. I have no idea who controls the flow of need-to-know because, frankly, I was told in such an emphatic way that it was none of my business that I've never tried to make it to be my business since. I have been interested in this subject for a long time and I do know that whatever the Air Force has on the subject is going to remain highly classified" - Senator Barry Goldwater , Chairman of the Senate intelligence committee
------------
"As the F-4 approached a range of 25 nautical miles it lost all instrumentation and communications. When the F-4 turned away from the object and apparently was no longer a threat to it, the aircraft regained all instrumentation and communications. Another brightly lighted object came out of the original object. The second object headed straight toward the F4." - U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency
-----------
Former Sen. Mike Gravel (D-Alaska), and 2008 presidential candidate said that there is "an extraterrestrial influence that is investigating our planet. Something is monitoring the planet and they are monitoring it very cautiously."
-----------
In 1965 General Benjamin Chidlaw made a shocking admission in a public statement that resonates to this day, and confirms the suspicions of many historians who have archived many UFO incidents on behalf of US military records. In his statement the general stated that UFO pursuits were taken very seriously and that many men and aircraft had been lost as a result. General Chidlaw pointed out that 18,662 accidents had occurred as a result of aerial pursuits of UFO's over the continental United States. The Air Defense Commander further commented that from 1952 to 1956 one US jet fighter per every reported UFO had been lost, a ratio of 1 to 1.
------------
In a 1965 biography about Curtis LeMay written by McKinnlay Cantor, the author asked for his opinion on the subject of UFO's. The general was quite candid: "However, we had a number of reports from reputable people (well-educated, serious-minded folks - scientists and flyers) who surely saw something".
"There is no question about it: these were things which we could not tie in with any natural phenomena known to our investigators. " And repeat again: there were some cases we could not explain. Never could."
Barry Goldwater, had tried to gain access into Wright Patterson AFB to see the infamous Hangar 18 where bodies of UFO aliens had been supposedly stored and preserved under refrigeration. After he had contacted General LeMay about entering Wright Patterson, General LeMay supposedly cussed out Goldwater and threatened him never to mention the subject again.
------------
According to author, Colonel Phillip J. Corso retired, his immediate superior, General Arthur Trudeau, was instrumental in resurrecting the long hidden Roswell artifacts (wreckage) from their hiding place within a Pentagon basement. In his book "The Day After Roswell" General Trudeau then encouraged Colonel Corso to introduce components of the Roswell debris to defense contractors for technical analysis that would yield major breakthroughs in fiber optics, lasers, silicon chips, electro magnetic propulsion, and wireless pilot to aircraft control systems in years to come. Without making a public statement on his views, General Trudeau helped quietly advance the state of the art in military and civilian applications through his secretive direction.
Rosewell crash - July 1947. Invention of the transistor (primary component of microchips) - Nov.-Dec. 1947.
Within about a week after the Roswell crash, the National Security Act was passed, bringing into existence the CIA, the National Military Establishment, the National Security Council and, shortly afterward, the Department of Defense.
-------------
40
Technology, Computers, & Electronics / Customs forces NASA scientist to unlock his phone
« on: February 15, 2017, 07:52:54 PM »
Sidd Bikkannavar flew back into the United States after spending a few weeks abroad in South America. An employee of NASA, Bikkannavar had been on a personal trip, pursuing his hobby of racing solar-powered cars.
Bikkannavar says he was detained by US Customs and Border Patrol and pressured to give the CBP agents his phone and access PIN. Since the phone was issued by NASA, it may have contained sensitive material that wasn?t supposed to be shared. Bikkannavar?s phone was returned to him after it was searched by CBP.
Bikkannavar?s entry into the USA should not have raised any flags. He a natural-born US citizen, & he?s also enrolled in Global Entry, a program through CBP that allows individuals who have undergone background checks to have expedited entry into the country. He hasn?t visited the countries listed in the immigration ban and he has worked at NASA for 10 years. There, he works on ?wavefront sensing and control,? a type of optics technology that will be used on the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope.
A CBP officer escorted Bikkannavar to a back room, and told him to wait for additional instructions. About 40 minutes went by before an officer appeared and called Bikkannavar?s name. ?He takes me into an interview room and sort of explains that I?m entering the country and they need to search my possessions to make sure I?m not bringing in anything dangerous,? he says. The CBP officer started asking questions about where Bikkannavar was coming from, where he lives, and his title at work. It?s all information the officer should have had since Bikkannavar is enrolled in Global Entry. ?I asked a question, ?Why was I chosen?? And he wouldn?t tell me,? he says.
The officer explained that CBP had authority to search his phone. Bikkannavar did not want to hand over the device, because it was given to him by JPL and is technically NASA property. He even showed the officer the JPL barcode on the back of phone. Nonetheless, CBP asked for the phone and the access PIN. ?I was cautiously telling him I wasn?t allowed to give it out" says Bikkannavar. ?I told him I?m not really allowed to give the pass code... I have to protect access. But he insisted they had the authority to search it.?
Courts have upheld customs agent's power to manually search devices at the border. More importantly, travelers are not legally required to unlock their devices, although agents can detain them for significant periods of time if they do not. ?In each incident that I?ve seen, the subjects have been shown a Blue Paper that says CBP has legal authority to search phones at the border, which gives them the impression that they?re obligated to unlock the phone, which isn?t true,? Hassan Shibly, chief executive director of CAIR Florida, said. ?They?re not obligated to unlock the phone.?
Bikkannavar was not allowed to leave until he gave CBP his PIN. The officer insisted that CBP had the authority to search the phone. The document given to Bikkannavar listed a series of consequences for failure to offer information that would allow CBP to copy the contents of the device. ?I didn?t really want to explore all those consequences,? he says. ?It mentioned detention and seizure.? Ultimately, he agreed to hand over the phone and PIN. The officer left with the device and didn?t return for another 30 minutes.
Once he arrived in Los Angeles, he went to NASA and told his superiors what had happened. He says the cybersecurity team at JPL was not happy about the breach. NASA employees are obligated to protect work-related information.
He?s left wondering the point of the search, and he?s upset that the search potentially compromised the privacy of his friends, family, and coworkers who were listed on his phone. He has since gotten a completely new device from work with a new phone number.
He said, ?It was not that they were concerned with me bringing something dangerous in, because they didn?t even touch the bags. They had no way of knowing I could have had something in there,? he says. ?You can say, ?Okay well maybe it?s about making sure I?m not a dangerous person,? but they have all the information to verify that.?
Bikkannavar says he was detained by US Customs and Border Patrol and pressured to give the CBP agents his phone and access PIN. Since the phone was issued by NASA, it may have contained sensitive material that wasn?t supposed to be shared. Bikkannavar?s phone was returned to him after it was searched by CBP.
Bikkannavar?s entry into the USA should not have raised any flags. He a natural-born US citizen, & he?s also enrolled in Global Entry, a program through CBP that allows individuals who have undergone background checks to have expedited entry into the country. He hasn?t visited the countries listed in the immigration ban and he has worked at NASA for 10 years. There, he works on ?wavefront sensing and control,? a type of optics technology that will be used on the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope.
A CBP officer escorted Bikkannavar to a back room, and told him to wait for additional instructions. About 40 minutes went by before an officer appeared and called Bikkannavar?s name. ?He takes me into an interview room and sort of explains that I?m entering the country and they need to search my possessions to make sure I?m not bringing in anything dangerous,? he says. The CBP officer started asking questions about where Bikkannavar was coming from, where he lives, and his title at work. It?s all information the officer should have had since Bikkannavar is enrolled in Global Entry. ?I asked a question, ?Why was I chosen?? And he wouldn?t tell me,? he says.
The officer explained that CBP had authority to search his phone. Bikkannavar did not want to hand over the device, because it was given to him by JPL and is technically NASA property. He even showed the officer the JPL barcode on the back of phone. Nonetheless, CBP asked for the phone and the access PIN. ?I was cautiously telling him I wasn?t allowed to give it out" says Bikkannavar. ?I told him I?m not really allowed to give the pass code... I have to protect access. But he insisted they had the authority to search it.?
Courts have upheld customs agent's power to manually search devices at the border. More importantly, travelers are not legally required to unlock their devices, although agents can detain them for significant periods of time if they do not. ?In each incident that I?ve seen, the subjects have been shown a Blue Paper that says CBP has legal authority to search phones at the border, which gives them the impression that they?re obligated to unlock the phone, which isn?t true,? Hassan Shibly, chief executive director of CAIR Florida, said. ?They?re not obligated to unlock the phone.?
Bikkannavar was not allowed to leave until he gave CBP his PIN. The officer insisted that CBP had the authority to search the phone. The document given to Bikkannavar listed a series of consequences for failure to offer information that would allow CBP to copy the contents of the device. ?I didn?t really want to explore all those consequences,? he says. ?It mentioned detention and seizure.? Ultimately, he agreed to hand over the phone and PIN. The officer left with the device and didn?t return for another 30 minutes.
Once he arrived in Los Angeles, he went to NASA and told his superiors what had happened. He says the cybersecurity team at JPL was not happy about the breach. NASA employees are obligated to protect work-related information.
He?s left wondering the point of the search, and he?s upset that the search potentially compromised the privacy of his friends, family, and coworkers who were listed on his phone. He has since gotten a completely new device from work with a new phone number.
He said, ?It was not that they were concerned with me bringing something dangerous in, because they didn?t even touch the bags. They had no way of knowing I could have had something in there,? he says. ?You can say, ?Okay well maybe it?s about making sure I?m not a dangerous person,? but they have all the information to verify that.?
41
Science, Astronomy, & Physics / A new Hubble repair mission?
« on: February 15, 2017, 07:25:37 PM »
The Hubble space telescope probably has done more science, & we gained more knowledge from it than anything else or anybody we have ever sent to space. It's sad that we can launch probe to Pluto & other planets, but we can't build a spacecraft to carry a repair mission beyond the very low orbit of the space station to maintain this very excellent & important scientific device.
But that may change someday. There is now at least a slight possibility of there being another maintenance mission to Hubble.
According to a report, the servicing would provide an insurance policy in case the James Webb Space Telescope, fails or malfunctions.
Sierra Nevada, a private spaceflight company, has worked for years on a miniature space shuttle called the Dream Chaser, based on older designs generated in the early days of NASA. The craft is only cleared for automated flights and may resupply the ISS as soon as 2019. The Hubble mission would require a human-piloted variant relying on infrastructure that already exists in the ship's design.
The possibility is currently in the (very) preliminary stages. It would represent a public-private venture that would drive down federal government costs by teaming up with private spaceflight companies, a model that is expected to be utilized in the administration in general.
Along with the Webb telescope, NASA has two telescopes based on modified versions of the Hubble design donated by the National Reconnaissance Office. One such mission, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, will be utilized as an exoplanet and dark matter hunter to be launched in the mid-2020s. Plans for the other telescope have not yet been announced.
But that may change someday. There is now at least a slight possibility of there being another maintenance mission to Hubble.
According to a report, the servicing would provide an insurance policy in case the James Webb Space Telescope, fails or malfunctions.
Sierra Nevada, a private spaceflight company, has worked for years on a miniature space shuttle called the Dream Chaser, based on older designs generated in the early days of NASA. The craft is only cleared for automated flights and may resupply the ISS as soon as 2019. The Hubble mission would require a human-piloted variant relying on infrastructure that already exists in the ship's design.
The possibility is currently in the (very) preliminary stages. It would represent a public-private venture that would drive down federal government costs by teaming up with private spaceflight companies, a model that is expected to be utilized in the administration in general.
Along with the Webb telescope, NASA has two telescopes based on modified versions of the Hubble design donated by the National Reconnaissance Office. One such mission, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, will be utilized as an exoplanet and dark matter hunter to be launched in the mid-2020s. Plans for the other telescope have not yet been announced.
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Paranormal, Aliens, & UFOs / I saw my dead relatives
« on: February 15, 2017, 04:50:08 PM »
Had a strange dream this morning. I dreamed that I was sleeping in my bed, woke up, but couldn't move, or speak. At the foot of my bed stood my brother, who just passed away last year. But not like I remember him. He was well dressed & looked at least 10 years younger. I tried to speak to him but couldn't move or speak. His only message seemed to be just to acknowledge that he still existed & was fine, but it all was too short. My cat decided to take that moment to jump on me & wake me up... which they never do anymore when I'm sleeping. When I woke up, the cat was staring in the direction my brother was standing in the dream.
I fall back to sleep. I start dreaming again that I'm in bed sleeping, & can't move or speak. My brother shows up at the foot of the bed again looking the way he did before, & still dressed the same. But this time he was there with my other brother too, who passed away a few years ago. He also was well dressed & looked at least 10 years younger than when I saw him last.
Shocked, but unable to move or speak, I managed to just barely slowly whisper out the words, "I thought you were dead!". My brother smiled & said, "We are".
Suddenly there were loud crashing/banging noises. I woke up because the dumpster truck outside was emptying the dumpster in back, making lots of loud metal banging noises. That was supposed to be done yesterday morning, so he was a day late. When I woke up, the cats were sitting beside me staring in the direction I just saw my brothers in the dream.
I dreamed about my Mom this weekend, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't remember any details about it. That time when I woke up, I had to go to the bathroom bad. With the kitties blocking me on the way, & wanting to play while I have to go, I lost almost all memory of that dream by the time I was done.
I wonder what's going on or will go on, for me to suddenly dream about them. Breathing pretty bad the past few days with my COPD. It made me think about my own mortality, & that I don't have much time left on earth. Maybe those thoughts triggered something.
I fall back to sleep. I start dreaming again that I'm in bed sleeping, & can't move or speak. My brother shows up at the foot of the bed again looking the way he did before, & still dressed the same. But this time he was there with my other brother too, who passed away a few years ago. He also was well dressed & looked at least 10 years younger than when I saw him last.
Shocked, but unable to move or speak, I managed to just barely slowly whisper out the words, "I thought you were dead!". My brother smiled & said, "We are".
Suddenly there were loud crashing/banging noises. I woke up because the dumpster truck outside was emptying the dumpster in back, making lots of loud metal banging noises. That was supposed to be done yesterday morning, so he was a day late. When I woke up, the cats were sitting beside me staring in the direction I just saw my brothers in the dream.
I dreamed about my Mom this weekend, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't remember any details about it. That time when I woke up, I had to go to the bathroom bad. With the kitties blocking me on the way, & wanting to play while I have to go, I lost almost all memory of that dream by the time I was done.
I wonder what's going on or will go on, for me to suddenly dream about them. Breathing pretty bad the past few days with my COPD. It made me think about my own mortality, & that I don't have much time left on earth. Maybe those thoughts triggered something.
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