Category: Planetology

The Fallacy of Moss Always Growing Upon the North Side of Trees

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Moss does not only grow on the north side of trees, as it is commonly believed by many. Moss typically grows on the north side but this rule only applies in the northern hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere, moss mostly grows on the south side of trees. The reason for this inversion is that in the northern hemisphere, because of the tilt of the Earth on its axis, the sun almost always appears to be a little south of directly overhead. That’s why rooms with windows facing south are brighter than rooms with windows facing north. This is important for moss because the north sides of trees within the northern hemisphere are shadier and therefore wetter. The south sides of trees get more sunlight, so water evaporates faster there

The Country With the Most Vegetarians Per Capita and the First Notation of Vegetarianism Within Western Literature

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The country with the most vegetarians per capita is India, with 39% of the country identifying as vegetarian and/or vegan, a value which equates to 276,000,000 (276 million) people. This is primarily due to the dominant religion within India which is Hinduism, a faith which 79.8% of the country subscribes to, and to a lesser extent, Sikhism, a faith which promotes vegetarianism and is subscribed to by 1.7% of the country. Mexico trails India for the second spot internationally with 19% of the country identifying as vegetarian and Brazil takes the third spot with 14% having adopted this diet. The first time vegetarianism is mentioned within recorded western history is by the Ancient Greek mathematician Pythagoras around 500 BC, however it is unclear if this is the first recorded text worldwide

How Ocean Wind Turbines Produce Electrical Energy

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Wind turbines run upon a simple engineering principle which is that of wind causing the blades to turn which rotates a shift within the turbine, with this shaft producing energy for the electrical generator. This electrical energy is pumped downward, 300’ below the water surface, and into cables buried below the seabed which connect to offshore substations which then connect to onshore power stations and finally residential homes and industrial and commercial buildings. Ocean wind turbines are typically 600’ high in altitude, with spinning fiberglass blades which are approximately 240’ long, with each blade weighing up to 30 tonnes. Because of this immense size, measurements (e.g. angle of blades etc.) are crucial during the construction phase to maximize efficiency and energy output. A single revolution of a wind turbine can generate enough electricity to power an entire family home for 24 hours

American Theoretical Physicist Robert Oppenheimer’s Reaction to the First Successful Nuclear Weapon Detonation

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After the Trinity nuclear launch test which occurred on July 16, 1945, the first nuclear detonation in human history, when Manhattan Project lead Julius Robert Oppenheimer was asked about the reaction of himself and others on that fateful day Oppenheimer responded, “we knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture the Bhagavad Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multiarmed form and says, Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds. I suppose we all thought that one way or another” (this phrasing/sentence structure while confusing in English, is the correct direct translation from Sanskrit)

The Mass Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Sighting in Nuremberg, Germany During the Renaissance

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In 1561, a mass unidentified aerial phenomena sighting was documented above Nuremberg, Germany. Witnesses report observing a large black triangular object and spherical crafts falling from the sky, producing clouds of smoke. Hundreds of spheres, cylinders, and other various shaped crafts jostled erratically for 1 hour before departing. The event was described as a “battle”

The Parasol and the Advent and Evolution of the Umbrella

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Parasols, the precursor to the umbrella, were initially comprised of tree leaves, specifically eucalyptus and palm branches. The original intent of the parasol was to stop ultraviolet radiation from the sun, from penetrating the skin and causing it to become tan. The term “parasol” is derived from the French term “para” which means “to shield from”, from the root Latin term “parare” (pronounced “pah-rah-ray”), and the French term “sol”, which means “sun”. Parasols and umbrellas can be separated by their appearance as parasols are typically colorful and lively whilst umbrellas are generally solid, muted colors (e.g. black, grey, white etc.). It was not until the 1750’s when English philanthropist Jonas Hanway began carrying an umbrella in public with the intent to avoid rain that the idea caught on as a social trend and a new technology. Umbrellas up until the 19th century were heavy, weighing approximately 10 lbs. as they were comprised of whale bone with wooden rods setup to support the canvas. In the 1920’s, Hans Haupt helped usher the next generation of umbrellas in by inventing the foldable umbrella, the same kind of umbrella used during the modern day

Tudor Period Mining and Metal Smelting

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During the Tudor period, lead was utilized to build roofs and windows because it was easily mailable and resistive to corrosion. Farmers would mine for lead during the summer months when their crops did not need tending to in order to generate additional income. Mining during the summer months could earn an extra £5.00 which equates to £25,000 as of 2012 when accounting for inflation. Entire families often worked within the mines because 50 barrels worth of ore and soil would be extracted per day to meet the quota of what was required to be profitable. Smelting involved the use of white coal which is effectively dried wood from a kiln and was always setup upon windy hilltops or mountains because the wind would cause the fire blaze with more intensity therefore reaching higher overall temperatures. The best wood to make white coal is oak. Kilns must be airtight, so gaps were filled with clay. Knowing a kiln to be airtight was easily verifiable by searching for smoke as if smoke only came out of only the front entrance, the kiln was considered airtight. Ore was smashed into small pieces to help it smelt more rapidly which yielded approximately an 80% return upon investment. Metals were then refined using a secondary kiln, and smelted to remove any ash or impurities. The first burn removes ore from the rock, and the second burn removes impurities with the main impurity being sulphur. Molds were constructed using sand and wood to create divots which allowed the ore to be molded into blocks much the same as a modern day bar of gold. The sand gives the mold an indentation which archeologists use to identify Medieval bars of smelted ore

The Reason Scientists Can Calculate the Distance and Velocity of Galaxies and Stars

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Scientists understand the immense distance between galaxies and stars because of American astronomer Edwin Hubble’s theory of the expanding universe, as it is now understood that galaxies drift from the observer proportional to their distance, meaning the further a star is, the faster it continues to move away from the observer. This phenomenon is referred to as “Hubble–Lemaître’s Law”. Astronomers can calculate how fast a star is moving away from the Earth by observing the Doppler shift of the light it projects, as yellow light becomes red light as a star moves away and yellow light becomes blue light as it approaches closer. A formulae is then used to calculate the distance from the source point. Redshift is observed throughout the universe which confirms that the universe is indeed expanding at a phenomenal rate of speed

The Reason the Summer Solstice and Winter Equinox Were Important Within the Ancient World

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The sun rises and sets at different points of the horizon throughout the year, which is what causes days to become longer or shorter. This process slows down during mid-summer and mid-winter, and for a few short days, the sun appears to rise and set at the same points of the horizon, causing most people during antiquity to believe that the laws of nature had been suspended for a short period of time. It was commonly believed that during this short window, human beings and the supernatural could interact with one another

Civilizations Mastery of Metal By Manipulating Fire

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The more carbon rich a fuel is, the more heat it produces. Typical wood fires burn at 700 degrees Celsius, however 6000 years ago, ancient people discovered the adaptation of burning wood in a low oxygen environment, only partially burning, but in doing so creating a much purer carbon rich fuel; charcoal. Charcoal can burn at temperatures upwards of 1100 degrees Celsius, hot enough to melt ore out of rock. The mastering of metal produced tools, finance, and weaponry, forever changing the evolutionary story of human beings. By the Middle Ages, the production of charcoal for metal smelting and metal work was a major industry