astrotastic:

tastysynapse:

Zen Pencils Comic: 100. CARL SAGAN: Pale blue dot

excuse me, no one is allowed to make me cry like that

Gotta smile through those tears…

(via project-argus)

Source: tastysynapse

quantumaniac:

A Video Game that Utilizes the Fourth Dimension

Miegakure is a video game set in four spatial dimensions: specifically, the dimension that goes out to the sides, like your keyboard; the one that goes up, like a tree; the one that goes out deep, like a dog fetching a stick… and that other dimension, the one you can’t point to unless you’ve got 4D fingers.

Think of it another way. This is like the Mario from Super Mario Bros., who lives in a flat 2D world, being told that the 3D Super Mario 64 exists and being told he can play it…. one 2D slice at a time. Except you’re Mario. You’re 3D. And the “Super Mario 64” we’re talking about is 4D.

Cool, huh?

Speaking of Mario, this game’s a platformer. You’re jumping around, pushing blocks, exploring a world.

It’s been two years since designer Marc Ten Bosch first showed me Miegakure and convinced me that a game set in four spatial dimensions is possible. The math allows it… all you have to do is take any point in our three-dimensional understanding of space (x,y,z) and add a fourth coordinate to locate its position in a fourth dimension. And if the math allows it, a computer can plot it. If a computer can plot it, we can run through it. And if we can run through it… voila! Video game.

Marc shows us a simple level of the game in the video here, which we shot at PAX East. He also showed us a tougher level, but asked that we not show it off, head-hurtingly interesting as it was. He only wants you to see the game at its most polished. So, enjoy the one level we’ve got for you.

Miegakure will be out “when it’s done” on PC (Steam, probably) and a console.

UPDATE: Since a number of readers are clearly hungering for more explanation about how a spatially-4D game world works in a game that is displayed in three dimensions, I’m adding the following from ten Bosch’s own description of the game:

Think about a two-dimensional character living on a horizontal, flat two-dimensional plane. To this character, height would be a foreign concept. A number of actions we three-dimensional beings take for granted feel like absolute magic to this two-dimensional character.

For example, if there is a wall in the shape of a circle around an object in 2D, it is essentially closed-off, since to reach it one would have to leave the 2D plane. It is also impossible for an outsider to know what is inside.

But us 3D beings can see the object from above, and also simply lift it off the ground to move it outside, essentially teleporting it. Now by analogy a four-dimensional being could perform many similar miracles to us living in only three-dimensions. This game allows you to perform these “miracles.”

Marc ten Bosch is a really cool guy.

jtotheizzoe:

hydrogeneportfolio:

Minimal Posters - Muslim Scientists Who Changed The World.

Honoring the contributions of Muslim scientists from history to the modern era, with this always-awesome collection from Hydrogene.

As always, these posters only give us a ‘pop sci.’ snapshot of these scientists’ work (which doesn’t take away from the fact they look great!). For true appreciation, it’s worth having a read around the different topics!

Source:

Scientists Deduce The Existence Of Vast Reservoirs of Water on Mars Claims of water being present on Mars have existed since 1870 with the first quantities of water actually being detected in 2003 by the Mars Odyssey spacecraft.  Now, according to an article published yesterday in the journal Geology, there is evidence that Mars is home to vast reservoirs of water in its interior as well. The utility of this evidence comes in the prospects of extraterrestrial life (no, not full fledged aliens) and future human colonisation. The research itself did not require any samples from Mars; rather, by analysing the water content of two meteorites ejected roughly 2.5 million years ago, they were able to determine that Mars has somewhere between 70 to 300 parts per million of water in the mantle - a figure that is not too far from that of Earth’s 50 to 300 parts per million. If all of this can be deduced from two meteorites that crashed on Earth over a century back, only time will tell what future missions to Mars could yield.
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Scientists Deduce The Existence Of Vast Reservoirs of Water on Mars

Claims of water being present on Mars have existed since 1870 with the first quantities of water actually being detected in 2003 by the Mars Odyssey spacecraft. 

Now, according to an article published yesterday in the journal Geology, there is evidence that Mars is home to vast reservoirs of water in its interior as well. The utility of this evidence comes in the prospects of extraterrestrial life (no, not full fledged aliens) and future human colonisation.

The research itself did not require any samples from Mars; rather, by analysing the water content of two meteorites ejected roughly 2.5 million years ago, they were able to determine that Mars has somewhere between 70 to 300 parts per million of water in the mantle - a figure that is not too far from that of Earth’s 50 to 300 parts per million.

If all of this can be deduced from two meteorites that crashed on Earth over a century back, only time will tell what future missions to Mars could yield.

Source: smithsonianmag.com

ikenbot:

What Space Looks Like to Kids

Space, Art, Education.. Three of my favorite things in life mixed into one gallery? Yes, yes please. Here’s an awesome look at one of Wired’s photo galleries featuring various space themed artwork done by students for an art contest.

This year’s Space Foundation Student Art Contest attracted 1,500 prekindergarten to high school students from the U.S., Pakistan and Turkey with the theme “Space is Infinite – Explore.” Astronauts will present the 36 winners at the 28th National Space Symposium later this month in Colorado Springs.

From stargazing in sleeping bags to shuttle launches and science fiction landscapes, students made drawings, paintings and mixed-media pieces depicting space. Here are some Wired favorites from the winners.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” - A. Einstein

(via scinerds)

Source: Wired