agribusiness: Spliced feed for The Science Network

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Spliced feed for The Science Network

New Harry Potter Trailer [Sciencebase Science Blog]

Posted: 02 Aug 2008 05:00 AM CDT

My son used to be sooooo into Harry Potter and I’m sure he’ll go to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince when it shows in the UK, in fact when I mentioned this post he was only too keen to see the trailer. Of course, sadly, long gone are the days when all go to the cinema together as a family, so I’m going to have to content my self with a cinematic surprise for Saturday, at least until it makes it to DVD (just in time for Christmas). So here’s the Harry Potter teaser, trailer, trail, what you will, complete with young Voldemort (played by Ralph Fiennes nephew, no less, thanks Zath)

So, what you may ask, is the science connection with today’s post? Well, there is none. It’s Saturday, it should be a day of fun. Of course, if you want to a connection between science, technology and magic, then you only have to turn to the inimitable Arthur C Clarke book of quotes:

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic

This quote was turned on its head by science fiction author and astrophysicist Gregory Benford:

Any technology that is distinguishable from magic is not sufficiently advanced

And, to quote Robert Persig from one of my favourite books (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance), in which the word technology might be switched for magic to bring us full circle in today’s Harry Potter theme:

There is an evil tendency underlying all our technology - the tendency to do what is reasonable even when it isn’t any good

New Harry Potter Trailer

Hinode satellite views August 1 solar eclipse [Earth & Sky Podcast]

Posted: 01 Aug 2008 04:08 AM CDT

August 1, 2008. Today is an eclipse day – a total solar eclipse – where the moon's dark shadow sweeps across Earth. EarthSky asked NASA senior astronomer Sten Odenwald of the Goddard Space Flight Center for more.