September 2008 Archives

Maybe it's the upcoming election and the potential change that it portends. Or perhaps it's the Large Hadron Collider, bogged down with electric failures, that has ceded the science-news space to other subjects. In any case, the last week has seen a slew of exciting, weird, and prescient science news too exciting to ignore, and too varied to all discuss in depth.

For one, the impersonal blackness of space welcomed a new nation as the Chinese launched their much-anticipated Shenzhou VII spacecraft, manned with three "taikonauts" trained for the country's first spacewalk. Technologically speaking, it's not a huge deal -- Russia and the United States conducted their first spacewalks in 1965 -- but for a country that has never dabbled in space exploration before, it's kind of like going from zero to hero. It's a beautifully symbolic, albeit dated, gesture; during the Cold War, space exploration was a status venture, and planting a flag on the moon (which the Chinese plan to do) an iteration of national strength. It's apt that a post-Olympics China is now rediscovering these cachet-earning gestures. I genuinely hope that the Chinese discover the same side effects of national space exploration as we did back in the sixties: awe, fear, hope, and the humility of seeing our tiny pea of a planet from space. We need a good dose of that these days.

On Earth, however, Japan is cobbling together an entirely more ambitious plan, and perhaps one which will eventually eclipse rockets and flag-planting altogether: they are seriously considering building the world's first space elevator. I've written about space elevators before (hey, Brian!), but it seemed like such a theoretical, dreamy concept then ("the space elevator is concrete, as though humankind were reaching its own tentative arm into the great beyond"); now the Japanese are looking at the idea with characteristic pragmatism, talking carbon nanotubes and shuttle payloads, throwing around ideas like "bullet train to space." This is something to watch, scouts.

Meanwhile, NASA is just bungling everything, as usual.

In other exciting news, longtime readers of this website will know that Universe has had several manifestations, both in print and online, as a mutable science column. I'm especially proud to announce that a new such version has arisen (this may explain the recent silence at this URL) over at GOOD magazine's website, where I've been doing a syndicated mini-Universe for the better part of a month, on subjects like commercial space travel, aquanauts, and the Large Hadron Collider. I'm really excited about this collaboration, and I encourage everyone to visit their well-designed website and travel through all the consistently awesome content (and toss a few "GOODmarks" my way).

It always tickles me when people email me to ask my opinion of pressing science issues, and I've decided to start posting selected exchanges for the benefit of all my readers. Remember, if you have any questions, concerns, or just want to jaw at me about all things science, feel free to write.

On Sep 9, 2008, at 4:39 PM, Christian Oldham wrote:

Hi Claire,
I'm wondering what your opinions are on the whole idea of the Large Hadron Collider and the possibility of the creation of miniature black holes.

<5,
Christian Oldham

On Sep 9, 2008, at 4:53 PM, Claire Evans wrote:

Hi Christian,

How awesome of you to ask me.

I think that the LHC is the most important and exciting thing to happen in science since quantum mechanics. I think a lot of enthusiastic things about it, but I definitely don't think that it's going to cause any miniature black holes. Tens of thousands of scientists all over the world wouldn't support something so whole-heartedly if there was the remotest chance it might destroy the entire planet, and billions of dollars would not have been spent. Human beings don't normally do things this extravagant in large numbers, working together in spite of war and economic recession, if they think they're going to kill us all. Obviously, right? But I guess I understand the romance of doomsday; it was pretty fun to get all worked up about Y2K, too. But, like, the Earth isn't flat, and we need to take a big step into the unknown every once in a while if we're going to find out about this Universe of ours.

I for one feel incredibly blessed to have been born when I was, so that I would the age that I am when this is happening.

Besides, the whole point of the LHC is to recreate an environment like that of the Universe mere moments after the Big Bang. If a black hole is what happens when that environment is created, then we wouldn't be here in the first place. Feel me?

Love,
Claire L. Evans
Universe