Entries from TED Blog tagged with 'Carolyn Porco'
01 August 2009
Supercomputer visualizations show the guts of exploding stars
Scientists at Argonne National Laboratory are using the IBM Blue Gene supercomputer to model supernovas, and New Scientist has published a gallery of snapshots from the fiery visualizations. The images uncover the beautiful symmetry -- and chaos -- flowing through these explosive events.
TEDTalks stars Carolyn Porco, Brian Cox and George Smoot also use powerful computers to model big bangs and other phenomena in astrophysics.
(Look for Henry Markram's talk from TEDGlobal 2009 on TED.com in the coming weeks. Markram uses the Blue Gene supercomputing architecture for a different purpose: modeling the intricate workings of the brain.)
24 May 2009
The week in comments
Whether influenced by Mary Roach and the infamous "pig video" or Yves Behar and Forrest North's easy banter, there was a definite cheeky lilt to the comments this week. Here's a quick look at the fun:
On Dan Ariely's talk: Are we in control of our own decisions?:
So where's that slightly uglier version of myself ; D ? -- Evelyn via facebook
On Mary Roach's talk: 10 things you didn't know about orgasm:
.. and that's why we have swine flu. Good God Man, put on some gloves! -- Brenda via facebook
Disclaimer: That pig video does not represent the view of all Danes. ;-) -- Klaus
Mary Roach makes pig insemination fun -- rutila via Twitter
On Carolyn Porco's talk: Could a Saturn moon harbor life?:
So? IS THERE OIL THERE?! ;) -- Tom via facebook
On Yves Behar's talk on supercharged motorcycle design:
They should make these with baseball cards in the spokes. -- Mayo via facebook
But how about ending things on a sweeter note?
On the exclusive content provided to facebook fans after reaching 100,000 members:
Thank you for daily inspiration and my Master's thesis topic. Thank you for helping me blow minds, challenge preconceptions and change the world. I'm not ready yet, but someday I'd like to present my research at TED, I would consider it a lifetime accomplishment. -- Spencer via facebook
21 May 2009
Could a Saturn moon harbor life? Carolyn Porco on TED.com
Carolyn Porco shares exciting new findings from the Cassini spacecraft's recent sweep of one of Saturn's moons, Enceladus. Samples gathered from the moon's icy geysers hint that an ocean under its surface could harbor life. (Recorded at TED University 2009, February 2009, in Long Beach, California. Duration: 3:29.)
Watch Carolyn Porco's talk from TED University 2009 on TED.com, where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 400+ TEDTalks.
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08 March 2009
4 great talks for International Women's Day
To celebrate March 8, International Women's Day, we suggest these four TEDTalks gems from some amazing speakers -- artists, scientists and economists who think deeply about the role of women.
Author and activist Isabel Allende discusses women, creativity, feminism -- and the power of passionate thinkers and doers:
The former Finance Minister of Nigeria, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, talks about one key opportunity to grow African economies -- by investing in women and the businesses they start:
(For more, watch Jacqueline Novogratz >>)
Scientist Nalini Nadkarni explores the world of the forest canopy -- and shares her findings with the world below, through dance, art and bold partnerships. She's working to inspire the next generation of women scientists:
The wonderful Nellie McKay sings "Mother of Pearl" (with the immortal first line "Feminists don't have a sense of humor") and "If I Had You" from her sparkling set at TED2008:
Find these four and many more astonishing women (including the legendary primatologist Jane Goodall, oceanographers Sylvia Earle and Tierney Thys, games theorist Brenda Laurel, Zipcar inventor Robin Chase ... ) on TED.com >>
01 August 2008
The Lonely Interplanetary guide to scuba diving
Bored with Earthly beach destinations this summer? Does the word "Carribbean" not ring exactly, well, "exotic" these days? With this week's news that (highly acidic) water has been tasted on Mars and an ethane lake has been discovered on Saturn's moon Titan, perhaps it's time to investigate otherworldly destinations for fun in the surf. Grab your ultraviolet-shielded swimming gear and a good beach read (say, Project Orion by George Dyson, who spoke at TED in 2003), hop aboard Virgin Galactic's newly unveiled SpaceShipTwo, and cruise to these astonishing natural satellites orbiting Jupiter and Saturn, where summer never comes:
Tidally bound to face its mother planet, Europa consistently offers breathtaking views of Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere, while its breezy hardly-there chemise of molecular oxygen is delicate enough to leave the magnificent sight unobstructed. (But, beware the occasional barrage of comets yanked in by Jupiter's gravity.) Adventurers wishing to forgo Europa's "spa experience" will be at home, too: drill through miles of icy crust to access this satellite's vast subsurface ocean of liquid saltwater -- and whatever may lurk there.
Unlike visitors to other Jovian moons, sailors to Callisto can leave their ionizing radiationscreen at home: though excessively pockmarked by impacts, its outer orbit saves it from the effects of Jupiter's monstrous magnetosphere. Hiking enthusiasts can traverse its gigantic basin of concentric rings, Valhalla, spanning 600 kilometers, kicking through wisps of condensed oxygen. This moon's lack of tectonic activity makes for easy access to its likely ocean of liquid saltwater. (Robert Ballard has made the case that Earth's own oceans are still deeply mysterious.)
Athletes and thrill-seekers delight at Enceladus' suite of extreme winter features and low gravity: spirally slalom the slopes of its unforgettable impact craters; gawk at the ivory, propane-scented violence of erupting cryovolcanoes as the panorama of Saturn's rings sets below the horizon; bobsled along thousand-mile escarpments of fresh chemical ice. Meanwhile, geology geeks can enjoy exploring this highly reflective moon's incredible tectonic scars and stripes. But let divers beware: the existence of a liquid subsurface is only speculative.
Titan's atmosphere, unique among moons, makes it a mysterious entity among other natural satellites and an attractive destination for Saturn-bound families seeking an exotic experience without patent danger (asteroid strikes are rare). Visitors willing to endure its unusual weather -- the nitrogen-humid nights with the sky awash in orange; monsoons of methane and other hydrocarbons -- will be rewarded by its Earth-like terrain: newly discovered lakes of ethane, vast sand dunes, a probable ocean of water-ammonia under the surface, and perhaps even microbial life. (Get your vaccinations!)
Our solar system is truly a cornucopia of enchanting and enigmatic phenomena. Make sure your frequent-flyer miles go to good use on your next trek by studying TEDTalks by Carolyn Porco, Bill Stone, George Dyson, Freeman Dyson and other adventurers. -- Matthew Trost
12 March 2008
Cassini buzzes Enceladus today, closer than ever
The Cassini mission to Saturn (see Carolyn Porco's stunning TEDTalk on this mission) today makes its closest flyby yet of Enceladus, a geologically active moon. With its frozen surface and plumes of ice, Enceladus is a fascinating body, and the Cassini probe will be imaging the moon in several areas with many different instruments. From the mission notes:
At 17:40:12 UTC ... UVIS will scan across the disk of Enceladus to measure the ultraviolet albedo of the surface and look for oxygen in the environment around Enceladus which may have dissociated from water molecules in the plumes.
The Cassini probe is set to pass through one of Enceladus' ice plumes as it passes closest to the surface of the moon -- flying by at about 70 km, or 50 miles up.
17 January 2008
Porco awarded, Antonelli promoted
TED speaker Paola Antonelli (watch her TED 2007 talk) has been promoted to senior curator of the New York Museum of Modern Art's department of architecture and design. The promotion was announced by MoMA's director Glenn Lowry. Paola is currently preparing "Design and the Elastic Mind", an exhibition on science, design and innovation that will open at MoMA on February 24.
Carolyn Porco, leader of the imaging team for the Cassini space mission to Saturn and the opening speaker at TED 2007 (watch her talk), will be the recipient of this year's Isaac Asimov Science Award, given by American Humanist Association. Porco will receive the award in June in Washington.
To both, congratulations!
02 January 2008
Edge question 2008: What have you changed your mind about? Why?
Many TEDTalks speakers have answered the 2008 Edge Foundation question: What have you changed your mind about? Why?
Among the more than 160 essays from leading thinkers -- scientists, philosophers, artists -- look for Wired's Chris Anderson, Nick Bostrom, Stewart Brand, Richard Dawkins, Aubrey de Grey, Juan Enriquez, Helen Fisher, Neil Gershenfeld, Daniel Gilbert, Daniel Goleman, Kevin Kelly, Steven Pinker, Carolyn Porco, Martin Rees, Michael Shermer and Craig Venter. Block out some time to sample these -- it's an addictive read.
14 November 2007
Earth-rise and Earth-set
Consider it a bonus track to the great speech by Carolyn Porco last March at TED07, when she showed amazing images of Saturn and its moons. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) has just released video footage taken by the the onboard high-definition camera of their spacecraft Kaguya, showing extraordinary images of the Moon's surface and the Earth "rising" and "setting" beyond the Moon's horizon. (Clicking on the link on their page opens up a second window: let the whole video download -- it takes a while -- before watching it).
Earth-rise:
Earth-set:
(Cross-posted on LunchOverIP)
16 October 2007
Celebrate 10 years of Cassini-Huygens with new views of Saturn
The Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn and its moons celebrates its diamond anniversary this week by releasing a new collection of images, movies and maps. If you could not get enough of Carolyn Porco's images from her talk at TED2007, head over to the CICLOPS site for new and just-posted archival images, as well as a new set of 9 holes -- the Outer Links -- for the Flash game Golf Sector 6.
Photo, released Oct 15, 2007: On the Final Frontier: Saturn sits nested in its rings of ice as Cassini once again plunges toward the graceful giant. Courtesy CICLOPS.
09 October 2007
Saturn's mysterious black-and-white moon
Carolyn Porco's Saturn imaging team has found "tell-tale clues" to a centuries-old mystery surrounding Saturn's moon Iapetus -- why is it stark white on one side, coal black on the other? It's a striking oddity in a sky full of gray rocks. As the CICLOPS site reports, the white side of this moon is covered with brightly reflective ice, while sunlight has melted the ice on the dark-colored side, revealing the moon's surface. Watch Carolyn Porco's 2007 TEDTalk to learn more about this intriguing planet and its moons.
02 October 2007
Flying to the moons of Saturn: Carolyn Porco on TED.com
Planetary scientist Carolyn Porco says, "I'm going to take you on a journey." And does she ever. Showing breathtaking images from the Cassini voyage to Saturn, she focuses on Saturn's intriguing largest moon, Titan, with its deserts, mudflats and puzzling lakes, and on frozen Enceladus, which seems to shoot jets of ice. Could one of these places harbor water -- or life? (Recorded March 2007 in Monterey, California. Duration: 17:21.)
Watch Carolyn Porco's talk on TED.com, where you can download it, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances.
Read more about Carolyn Porco on TED.com.
07 March 2007
TED2007: Day one wrap-up
Quotes of the day:
Cassini imaging team head Carolyn Porco: "So there are possibly liquid water, organic materials and excessive heat on Saturn and its moons. Which means that Saturn could be a place were life is possible. If we can demonstrate that Genesis has happened not once (Earth) but twice (Saturn) then we can infer that it has happened hundreds of thousands of times across the solar system. If we can demonstrate that Genesis has happened not once [on Earth] but twice [including Saturn] in the solar system, then by inference that means it has occurred a staggering number of times across the universe in its 13.7 billion year history".
Nobel prize of physics Murray Gell-Mann: "In fundamental physics, beauty is a very successful criterion for choosing the right theory".
Psychologist Steven Pinker: "The truth is that our ancestors were far more violent that we are, and today we are probably living in the most peaceful times in history".
Computer scientist Jeff Han: "We basically have to un-teach people what they have learned so far about computing, and convince them that they can use several fingers, that several people can work on the screen at once".
Architect Philippe Starck: "I believe in general that my job is absolutely useless; but now, after Carolyn and these guys, I feel like shit".
Statistician Hans Rosling: "Bring me my sword!" (Rosling is a serious demographer but he is also -- another deadly serious activity -- one of the few sword-swallowers active in Sweden, and he ends his speech swallowing a Swedish bayonette).
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