Archive for the ‘General Sciences’ Category
Exploring the Stars with KStars Planetarium Software
I’ve always been a big fan of backyard astronomy, and now that the weather is warming up (well, depending on where you live) I’ll be spending more time stargazing. For Linux users, KStars is a fantastic celestial navigation aid that offers tons of custom features. Designed to be easy for beginners, yet powerful enough to satisfy serious astronomy fans, this desktop planetarium package really delivers. Here’s the default start view, from my geographic location in Atlanta, GA. Read the rest of this entry »
Introducing Celestia: Open Source Astronomy
Parents and teachers looking for a fun new way to reinforce basic astronomy concepts need look no further than Celestia. This free planetarium software package allows students to explore the universe in three dimensions, freeing them from the monotony of standard science texts. Available for Windows, Mac, and Linux (the screenshots shown here were captured under Ubuntu Linux), Celestia is open source software designed to please any astronomy buff.
Update (March 26, 2009): I’ve posted a Celestia video that shows what this application can do.
Inside the New Science of Neuroengineering
Wired brings us a look into the world of neuroengineering, the science of hacking the brain to improve its function. Dr. Ed Boyden is the director of MIT’s Neuroengineering and Neuromedia Lab, focusing on innovative methods of physically altering neuroanatomy for various purposes. As useful as discoveries in the field may be, the work certainly raises moral and ethical questions. From the article: “‘If we surgically or electrically modify someone’s personality… that raises many questions about personal identity, (of) who we are at our core,’ says Dr. Debra Matthews of The Berman Institute of Bioethics. ‘We place ourselves in the mind and therefore the brain. (Mood-altering surgery) feels like fundamentally modifying who a person is.’”
Edit – March 3, 2009: I submitted the Wired article as a Slashdot story, which was picked up today on their front page. There’s some good commentary on the issues surrounding technological enhancement of cognition going on over there.
