Community lilikoi
Community
45
Forum Replies Created
-
45
182
2
1
0
In hindsight, I think these were ways we introduced robotics: remote control vehicles or toys (car, boat, plane, R2D2, drone). Also dji robomaster (expensive but some building involved). Building wooden animatronics. That said, neither child has shown a deep interest in robotics.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you, will check it out
-
45
182
2
1
0
Cool! Not too long ago we got to see Europa thanks to a sidewalk astronomer. It was mind boggling to learn that NASA is planning a mission here in 2024, that it will take about six years to reach Europa, and to wonder if signs of life will be found! An article about the mission: https://europa.nasa.gov/news/54/nasas-europa-clipper-spacecraft-kicks-assembly-into-high-gear/
Some facts from NASA’s Europa sticker backing: “Europa – one of Jupiter’s moons – is one of the most intriguing bodies in our solar system. Sandwiched between its icy outer shell and rocky mantle flows a global salty ocean that is twice the volume of all Earth’s oceans combined. Why does that matter? On Earth, wherever we find water, we find life. While Europa’s surface is cold, the moon generates enough internal heat as it is tugged and flexed by Jupiter’s gravity to keep the ocean from freezing. This tidal flexing also generates stresses that can fracture and deform the surface, creating Europa’s ridges, bands, and disrupted iceberg-like areas. Europa’s astonishing geology and astrobiological potential make it a fascinating destination for Exploration.”
-
45
182
2
1
0
Currently reading Benjamin Franklin bio by Walter Isaacson and Pauahi bio by George Kanahele. About 3/4 done with Franklin and 1/2 done with Pauahi. Both really, really good! There’s discussion about education that might be of interest to others on the Network.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you for your reply! Well that’s quite embarrassing about Golding and LOTF! I thought it was British and then I did a quick online search to double check and could have sworn I read American so I typed what I did in my post. LOL. I don’t even know how that happened because I just tried looking up my search history and nothing. I guess that just goes to show how important it is for me to be more careful about my web researching and critical thinking about what I read online! Yikes! Reminds me of the time I read something online, misunderstood, and then wrote an essay giving a politician credit for creating the internet. Thank goodness it was not the main point of the essay, more a passing comment, but my professor had a really good laugh. Thank you for the two book recommendations, will definitely check them out!
-
45
182
2
1
0
Cool video explaining how the Parker Solar Probe keeps its cool: http://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/Multimedia/ApprovedMedia/Videos/Mission-Videos/originals/Parker_Solar_Probe_Keeping_Its_Cool.mp4
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you for sharing this! My kiddo’s response: whoah, is it still in tact?! And then when I said yes, and wondered what it was made out of he smiled and said vibranium. Does anyone know how it could get so close to the sun? Definitely not made of wax. 🙂
-
45
182
2
1
0
Good points and more options is always good! We just watched the first episode of Foundation and I was thinking about this post – maybe by the time we are ready to colonize Venus for more than just the first astronauts we will have the ability to project the night sky and beyond. It reminded me of Vegas though, some people are perfectly content with the copies (you can see it all and only need to travel to one place!) and for others it’s cool but will never be the same. If you can trick your brain into thinking you’ve felt sunshine, heard the roar of waves, and smelled ocean spray, does it matter if you’re not really there? To me, the answer is yes. It matters. And I can only hope that the future will include real experiences that may be different but just as profound as being seaside. I just looked up Phosphine gas – beginnings of life in the clouds – noxious extermination – yikes. One article said it might be sulfur dixoide though. Thanks for getting me thinking about all this stuff.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Cool. I never thought about this before other than to wonder why Mars was picked by NASA/JPL for its rovers and SpaceX for its rockets. I did quick research on Mars, Mercury, and Venus and think I have better understanding on why. My answer to your question is that I think Venus colonization is not ideal. It would mean being in a spaceship constantly orbiting in Venus’ atmosphere. Cabin fever is real – as sadly evidenced by this pandemic. Maybe some people are better suited at being in that enclosed environment. Maybe being able to look out the window or exploring the atmosphere in a spacesuit is enough variation (what do you see in Venus’ atmosphere?). Or maybe we will have virtual worlds that provide enough stimulation by this point. But it still feels like there is more mental/physical variation to be able to leave a biosphere and swim around under the ocean or explore Mars’ surface in a rover or spacesuit. And if we are content with solely virtual stimulation, could we just orbit around in space rather than Venus’ atmosphere?
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you for your reply! I hadn’t heard of that one, but it sounds interesting, will look it up.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you for your reply! Orwell’s 1984 was a read that I enjoyed in school, and I’ll have to look into those other two books. Twain’s book sounds especially promising. Another American dystopian book is Fahrenheit 451. For books that are young-adult focused: Lord of the Flies (I had to look up if it was American or English, and it is BRITISH), A Wrinkle in Time (American sci fi). Red Badge of Courage also comes to mind, and that is American. Maybe Kafka’s Metamorphosis (German speaking Bohemian author) would fall into this group, but it’s been a long time since I’ve read that story. I finished Botchan, and to me it was more like A Catcher in the Rye than Huckleberry Finn with regard to accessibility of the story for children. Now I’m reading Bushido. It is not young adult focused, but someone recommended it for a Japanese perspective. It’s not fictional, but it has a really interesting story behind why it was written and who wrote the book. The Japanese author desired to write something about the moral instruction of Japan’s people for a Western audience. I think morality perspectives is underlying what’s prompted my interest in finding young adult books from other countries/cultures to share with my children. Bushido is short but densely packed, in a good way. I’m enjoying it a lot, but I think its accessibility would be more for adults or perhaps older teens. Please let me know about any Turkish book recommendations! It doesn’t have to be dystopian or futuristic. But ideally it would be a fictional classic targeted toward young adults in this very amorphous category I’ve described. ???? Thanks again!
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thanks for the reply! We watched an episode of that series and I found it fascinating how they depicted the simulated world. The thought behind finding books similar to Enders Game (American author) from other countries/cultures geared toward young adults was to try to view another perspective on problem solving, approaching challenges, life, growing up, etc. If you’re not a fan of Card, is there an author/book that you do like that is in this vein? After some searching around online, I came across Botchan by Natsume Soseki. Looked at several translations, and decided to go with the one by J. Cohn (Penguin Classics version). The Cohn translation made the book the most easy to read and funny for a native English reader. The hope is that my children might pick it up to read next so I wanted it to be as humorous as possible. Botchan was described as a beloved humorous novel in Japanese lit, similar to “coming of age stories” like Huckleberry Finn and Catcher in the Rye. I’m about half way through and there are some laugh out loud moments, and some interesting perspectives. The book is short so I might read the one translated by Umeji Sasaki (Tuttle version) next. Cohn has excellent credentials and his book was even highlighted as a great translation within the Tuttle forward, but it would be interesting to see how a native speaker’s translation is different. If anyone has another country/culture book to recommend for this thought experiment, please do! 🙂
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thanks for the reply! Will have to check out Alvin Maker.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Oh my! Hostile, Open, Notorious, Continuous, and Exclusive control for what period of time? And what body would have the authority to decide it’s been met? Hopefully, we can come up with a more cooperative and systematic (not haphazardly created) set of rules because it involves so many countries. And everyone is affected regardless of their presence in space! We didn’t read the whole treaty but the article says countries who signed have agreed that no one can own parts of space. I’m assuming that extends to their individuals and corporations. But it did make me wonder about that man who created his own floating “country” off the coast of Europe (Italy? I forget details) so that laws/taxes didn’t apply to him – could that happen in space? A rabbit hole not wanting to think about because there are already so many issues here on Earth, but it was an interesting diversion while we were learning about ancient civilizations and how they expanded and contracted.
-
45
182
2
1
0
Thank you! ????