Most Hated

Its been said that they're ancient,
A merchant of fear when they're seen
Those seeds planted early
Yet they precede, the dominant who owns prominence
Endeavors of knowledge in order to understand
Maybe to replicate their genetic strand
So we can up our standing in life.
Complex yet simple,
Longevity unmatched,
The extent of their survival ability untapped
Interesting creatures with features we'd love to have
Yet when seen our first instinct is to smash
The dichotomy of fear and admiration
The focus point of this conversation
A man once said mankind fears what they don't know
So, would that fear subside if we understood what made them go
What makes them tick, the intricacies of their behavior
Could it change our own,
So that then we would be able to accept them
Instead of hurling stones
I wonder

The Do-ocracy

As I read through Biopunk there was one quote from one of the people interviewed in the book that really stuck out to me.  The quote in the book involving Meredith Patterson is "she told me she would like to live in a "do-ocracy" : a society where people have the knowledge and the means to build anything they need for themselves." (Wohlsen 37)

My first thought was that I could never survive in that kind of society.  I began to think about everything I use on a daily basis and how I wouldn't of been able to build it. I don't have that type of mind.  Now I can be creative within a system, but in terms of creating a system I don't think I would be very successful.  But Patterson's statement is open to interpretation.  When she says people have the knowledge and means she most likely means that on an individual basis.  But I could also see someone interpreting that as like the general public sans any government input or funding.  I would certainly prefer the latter as like I said earlier, I would be doomed in Patterson's individual "do-ocracy".

Thankfully I don't even think her "do-ocracy" is even feasible.  Can you imagine the amount of time it would take you to develop every single bit of technology that you use everyday?  I certainly can't and I wouldn't even know where to start with 95% of it.  So thankfully this "do-ocracy" is just a fantasy.

Biohackers

The idea of everyday citizens doing genetic experiments in their own home is not something that I thought was possible a week ago, but after the readings so far in BioPunk my perception has changed.  It would be an interesting scenario if my roommate decided to start his own genetic experiments in our apartment. I'd have to say that my main concern first and foremost would be that he would keep the experiments confined to his room for the most part, so as to keep the apartment tidy.

As for how I would personally feel about his decision to partake in this experiment, I would probably be supportive. I never realized how it was everyday people instead of scientists and engineers who took the early computer and made the first steps to what would become the types of personal computers that we have today.  If that was possible by non-scientists then there are all kinds of possibilities with genetics outside of the official laboratory.  So I would be very interested in the experiments and results that my roommate was recording and I would possibly participate.  Though I would probably have a minimal role, since I barely have time to do my work now, let alone for something that is completely optional.

Now this isn't to say I would be ok with everything that my roommate would be doing with these experiments.  If he decided to start bringing in animals from the street and killing them for research purposes, then I would likely object. An experiment in good taste and a clear hypothesis would be something I would support.

The Last Frontier

There are endless possibilities that exist in the universe.  It's a space of practically endless size that we will most likely never fully understand but that hasn't stopped the pursuit of that knowledge.  People have spent most of their lives trying to learn about the universe and it's not only scientists and astronomers, but also regular citizens.  Citizens are able to help uncover information about space by using websites like zooniverse.org.  A project that I tried to participate in through this site was called Planet Hunters.  When doing this people are measuring the brightness of stars to see if there are any major drops.  When drops occur, it indicates that a planet has passed in front of the star.  Honestly when I attempted to gather data through this project I was overwhelmed with what I was supposed to be trying to see.  I think given more time I would be able to understand the data more clearly and be able to give a more meaningful contribution to this project.

The Clash of the Fantastic

In one corner you have the lovers of science-fiction, and in the other you have the lovers of fantasy.  There may be one corner that you lean to, or maybe you like both equally.  Or maybe still you don't care for either of these genres of entertainment.  I enjoy content from both of these genres and I'm not sure that I could pick a favorite, but it seems that sci-fi authors such as David Brin believe that many people today prefer the possibilities that fantasy offers, rather than the possibilities of science-fiction.

The one main reason why I think that there is this gravitation towards fantasy, is because of its accessibility.  It doesn't take much to grasp the concepts that fantasy stories relay.  Vampires, zombies, and wizards; its not very hard to understand what these things are and how they came to be.  Juxtapose that with the possibilities of time travel and all the physics that come along with that and it would be a little bit more complicated to fully understand.  Also I think that the time of introduction plays a critical part in the popularity of fantasy stories.  We're introduced to zombies, elves and the wolf man, etc at an early age where our imaginations are much more active.  I think the bonds that were built with these creatures then would have been able to persist to the point of prominence that they have reached in some of our lives.

What Could've Been

The Wonderful Future That Never Was is centered around imagining what kind of technology mankind would be able to implement in the future.  One thing that stuck out to me about the book was the section about the cities of the future.  It seems that the people in the 20th century were infatuated with the ideas of cities reminiscent of Coruscant, with towering skyscrapers and flying cars.  I think the people of that time certainly had the "bigger is better'"attitude. Something that sticks out to me quite prominently is the 1928 prediction of cities with different levels.  There was a separate level for restaurants, schools, offices, aircraft landing fields, pedestrians, slow motor traffic and fast motor traffic.    This is something that would be cool to see in reality, though I don't know how plausible the underground levels would be with todays cars because of the risk associated with exhaust fumes.  

Doom

The broadcast of War of The Worlds is unique because I feel like it has elements of both science fiction and science fact.  On the science fiction side, I feel that the advanced nature of the extraterrestrials lends itself to this category.  The time it took for the aliens to reach Earth seemed like science fiction as well.  I assume that the explosions on Mars that the story mentioned, were the launch of the alien creatures.  From the time of the explosions and the arrival of the alien cylinders, it seems that they moved through space at a speed of which we have no scientific capability.  Another science fiction item mentioned would have to be the heat rays that the aliens were using.

I think one of the only times that I can recall that science fact comes through is the observation of Mars. It makes sense that there would be people watching Mars for strange phenomenon, as there is a space rover on Mars right now searching the planet.  Whether there is life on the planet remains to be seen, but it would certainly be an exciting discovery if it were to be true.

A Land Before Time

Before reading about Crystal Palace I had no idea it existed.  It must of been a time of great fascination for the people involved in its inception and it had to of been exciting to see in person.  One thing that stood out about the Crystal Palace dinosaurs is that they didn't look much like the dinosaurs that we know today.  Though it was a step in the right direction, the dinosaurs that Benjamin Hawkins depicted were not very accurate.  Most of that probably has to do with the lack evidence that Hawkins had at the time rather than incompetency.  Charles Knight would correct some of these mistakes with his depictions of dinosaurs in the early 20th century.

My first experience with dinosaurs that I remember was through the Land Before Time movies.  The films center around the adventures of an Apatosaurus named Littlefoot and his band of friends.  I think most people my age would be familiar with this film franchise.  My next encounter with dinosaurs had to of been via the Jurassic Park films, which still are some of my favorite movies.  I've always been fascinated with dinosaurs since childhood and still am to this day.  A common sentiment that most people share today and most likely did back in the 1800's is that dinosaurs lived far before humans ever existed.  This is an idea that I do not hold to as I have done some reading on the subject and have found information to the contrary.  I won't go too deep into the subject (maybe a blog post for another time) but I will leave you with a few tidbits.

Paleontologist Mary H. Schweitzer discovered soft tissue in the bones of a Tyrannosaurus Rex in 2005.  Most scientists would tell you that it is impossible for soft tissue to survive in bones after thousands of years let alone millions.  Schweitzer has concluded from this discovery that soft tissue can indeed survive for millions of years under the right conditions.  I conclude from this, that dinosaurs were probably around much more recently than 65 million years ago.  A renegade thought indeed.  The last thing I will leave you with is a resource.  Dragons Or Dinosaurs by Darek Isaacs is a book that tackles this idea that dinosaurs and humans are separated by millions of years.  A great read if you're interested in this subject as Isaacs can explain his stance more eloquently than I could.

An Eye Toward the Stars

For my true nomination for the Fred Jones Museum of Art, I chose this portrait of John Winthrop.  Winthrop was a professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at the University of Harvard and like myself, was interested in Astronomy.  I chose this picture because of the telescope and it's significance to space and astronomy.  Winthrop tried to learn more about the distance between the Earth and Sun by observing the transit of Venus in the morning.  The previously mentioned event is referenced in the portrait by way of the hills in the background.  Those hills are where Winthrop and his team set up their instruments to observe Venus.

As a tour guide I would certainly mention the connection between the hills in the portrait and Winthrop's observation of Venus.  I would also mention that Winthrop received the first ever honorary doctorate laws (whatever that means) granted from Harvard.

Naga

I choose to nominate this majestic portrait of "Naga" for consideration of being added into the Fred Jones Museum of Art. Naga is a polar bear dog originating from the cartoon "Legend of Korra"   The setting of the portrait is one big reason why I chose her , as  I enjoy cold weather, so seeing snowy mountains in the background is relaxing to me.  As a tour guide I would be sure to point out Naga's species type as a chimera.  Chimera's are linked to the science of Alchemy which also makes this portrait relative to our class.

The Mad Scientist

Albert Einstein, one of the smartest if not the smartest person to ever live was certainly an interesting individual.  I think this is one of the more subdued pictures that you can find of Einstein and in this photo you can find minor hints from where the views of scientists have originated in popular culture.  The main thing that stands out about this is Einstein's hair, which looks very crazy.  I think this is where the idea of the "mad scientist" comes from.  I've seen countless cartoons which depict a an evil/mad scientist with hair that resembles Einstein's hairstyle, and I'm confident that it was on purpose.  In another nod to science, the hair reminds of what it would look like if someone were to be electrocuted.  I wonder what other stereotypes applied to scientists, could be linked to Einstein.