Philosophy
A few nights ago the local PBS station began to rebroadcast NOVA's four part series called Origins that attempted to explain the origins of the solar system with emphasis on Earth. Like the majority of these type of programs of popularization of science it provided all the "bells and whistles" that a computer could generate for illustration. I lost count...how many comets and asteroids were depicted hitting the Earth? Nevertheless, the host was a good choice. Neil deGrasse Tyson exhibits enthusiasm and skill in presentation. There were two interesting items: The formation of the moon and the possibility of Earth's water delivered by nearby icy comets. The former includes an interesting hypothesis by William K. Hartman; that the Earth was struck some 4.5 billion years ago by solar system forming debris where the debris was absorbed and a large chunk was displaced--the moon. And that the gravitational interactions of the two plus the initial collision force tilted the Earth's axis--thus the seasons. Hartman has deduced that the Moon was quite closer at one time and is slowly moving away. [Maybe this will be more of a concern than being hit by an asteroid or alien invasion.] The Earth's water origin hypothesis is interesting too; that local comets of ice struck Earth's surface, vaporized, and eventually condensed into areas of liquid water. Interesting to note is the emphasis on "local comets" for the water on Earth contains very little "heavy water" content which is not common in nearby comets and quite common in very distant comets. Overall, a series worth watching.
Since the death of Carl Sagan, a vacuum was left when it came to popularizing science, but there are new individuals on the horizon. There is Brian Greene and now Neil deGrasse Tyson [Astrophysicist and Director of the Hayden Planetarium, New York City]. Like Greene, Tyson is quite qualified academically and has a fine smooth persona of presentation. His on camera presentations are flawless and professional and avoid the pedantic. The "voice overs" are clear and carry the pipes of a professional radio personality/announcer. Neither Greene nor Tyson, as of yet, has achieved the status of "charm" that Sagan had, but they nevertheless do a fine job in popularizing science. And he will be hosting the second season of NOVA Science Now in the Spring of 2008.
As Neil Tyson said about Origins:
Transcripts:
"Earth is Born"
"How Life Began"
"Where Are the Aliens?"
"Back to the Beginning"
Neil deGrasse Tyson's home page with biography and selected papers
NOVA's Origins
The Origin of the Moon
Popularization of science
Book:
The Origin of the Moon [Papers presented at the Conference on the Origin of the Moon, held in Kona, Hawaii, October 1984]
edited by
W.K. Hartmann, R.J. Phillips, G. J. Taylor
ISBN 0-942862-03-1
- "cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey"...a Review
Overall, the program was a dismal failure. It wasn't even an hour long being interrupted by dozens of commercials. Why didn't PBS pick up on this science program? I like Neil deGrasse Tyson but his presence as narrator simply failed to illuminate...
- Nova's "pluto Files"
Tonight on most public broadcasting stations NOVA will offer a program entitled Pluto Files. Since its discovery in 1930, Pluto has held a warm place in the public imagination. So, when the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium...
- "pbs Science Programs" Poll
Do you watch PBS science programs? Yes...2 No...0 Sometimes...3 PBS is probably the most common source of science programs with free access. For the most part they are informative and thoughtful. Two recent good programs were "Absolute Zero" and "The...
- "living Popular Scientist" Poll
Who is your choice for living "popular" scientist? Brian Greene...0 Freeman Dyson...3 Lawrence Krauss...0 Neil deGrasse Tyson...2 Stephen Hawking...3 Somewhat surprised. I suppose Hawking would lead...he is quite an icon. I expected Krauss to be at the...
- Pluto, Tyson, Cnn Lecture
From CNN: "The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet" Neil deGrasse Tyson talks about the controversy over re-classifying Pluto as a comet. New York's American Museum of Natural History, where this talk was held, was the...
Philosophy
Neil deGrasse Tyson...new representative
A few nights ago the local PBS station began to rebroadcast NOVA's four part series called Origins that attempted to explain the origins of the solar system with emphasis on Earth. Like the majority of these type of programs of popularization of science it provided all the "bells and whistles" that a computer could generate for illustration. I lost count...how many comets and asteroids were depicted hitting the Earth? Nevertheless, the host was a good choice. Neil deGrasse Tyson exhibits enthusiasm and skill in presentation. There were two interesting items: The formation of the moon and the possibility of Earth's water delivered by nearby icy comets. The former includes an interesting hypothesis by William K. Hartman; that the Earth was struck some 4.5 billion years ago by solar system forming debris where the debris was absorbed and a large chunk was displaced--the moon. And that the gravitational interactions of the two plus the initial collision force tilted the Earth's axis--thus the seasons. Hartman has deduced that the Moon was quite closer at one time and is slowly moving away. [Maybe this will be more of a concern than being hit by an asteroid or alien invasion.] The Earth's water origin hypothesis is interesting too; that local comets of ice struck Earth's surface, vaporized, and eventually condensed into areas of liquid water. Interesting to note is the emphasis on "local comets" for the water on Earth contains very little "heavy water" content which is not common in nearby comets and quite common in very distant comets. Overall, a series worth watching.
Since the death of Carl Sagan, a vacuum was left when it came to popularizing science, but there are new individuals on the horizon. There is Brian Greene and now Neil deGrasse Tyson [Astrophysicist and Director of the Hayden Planetarium, New York City]. Like Greene, Tyson is quite qualified academically and has a fine smooth persona of presentation. His on camera presentations are flawless and professional and avoid the pedantic. The "voice overs" are clear and carry the pipes of a professional radio personality/announcer. Neither Greene nor Tyson, as of yet, has achieved the status of "charm" that Sagan had, but they nevertheless do a fine job in popularizing science. And he will be hosting the second season of NOVA Science Now in the Spring of 2008.
As Neil Tyson said about Origins:
Origins is the attempt to bring to the public, really for the very first time, a synthesis of all the branches of science that have relevance to answering the question, 'What is the origin of our place in the cosmos?'
Transcripts:
"Earth is Born"
"How Life Began"
"Where Are the Aliens?"
"Back to the Beginning"
Neil deGrasse Tyson's home page with biography and selected papers
NOVA's Origins
The Origin of the Moon
Popularization of science
Book:
The Origin of the Moon [Papers presented at the Conference on the Origin of the Moon, held in Kona, Hawaii, October 1984]
edited by
W.K. Hartmann, R.J. Phillips, G. J. Taylor
ISBN 0-942862-03-1
- "cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey"...a Review
Overall, the program was a dismal failure. It wasn't even an hour long being interrupted by dozens of commercials. Why didn't PBS pick up on this science program? I like Neil deGrasse Tyson but his presence as narrator simply failed to illuminate...
- Nova's "pluto Files"
Tonight on most public broadcasting stations NOVA will offer a program entitled Pluto Files. Since its discovery in 1930, Pluto has held a warm place in the public imagination. So, when the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium...
- "pbs Science Programs" Poll
Do you watch PBS science programs? Yes...2 No...0 Sometimes...3 PBS is probably the most common source of science programs with free access. For the most part they are informative and thoughtful. Two recent good programs were "Absolute Zero" and "The...
- "living Popular Scientist" Poll
Who is your choice for living "popular" scientist? Brian Greene...0 Freeman Dyson...3 Lawrence Krauss...0 Neil deGrasse Tyson...2 Stephen Hawking...3 Somewhat surprised. I suppose Hawking would lead...he is quite an icon. I expected Krauss to be at the...
- Pluto, Tyson, Cnn Lecture
From CNN: "The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet" Neil deGrasse Tyson talks about the controversy over re-classifying Pluto as a comet. New York's American Museum of Natural History, where this talk was held, was the...