My philosophical wonderings of illumination
Sep/09Comments
Back in high school, I worked with a man who wrote on a small, scrap piece of paper “Light in the absence of eyes illuminates nothing.” At the time I did not think much of it, but that saying has remained with me for quite some time.
Lately, I’ve wondered about the authenticity of such a bold claim. A light, after all, provides illumination. As light falls upon a subject, it makes that subject visible. On the surface, it would seem like such a statement is clearly and entirely false.
But what is “illumination” exactly? Isn’t a subject illuminated only if viewed with eyes? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word illuminate as: “brightened with light”. A fairly generic definition, for sure. I am not at all convinced that it provides much clarity to this discussion.
I suppose this question comes down ultimately to how you define illumination. Without eyes, can something truly be illuminated?
GOES-O satellite blasts into space from Cape Canaveral
Jun/09Comments
Here’s a nice shot of the GOES-O satellite riding aboard a Delta IV rocket blasting into space that will end up more than 22,000 feet above the earth’s surface. The satellite was built to provide the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) with weather and environmental data.
Delta IV rocket blasts into space (NASA)
From Wikipedia’s description of GOES-O, “The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (or GOES) program is a key element in United States’ National Weather Service (NWS) operations. GOES weather imagery and quantitative sounding data are a continuous and reliable stream of environmental information used to support weather forecasting, severe storm tracking, and meteorological research. Evolutionary improvements in the geostationary satellite system since 1974 (the launch of the first Synchronous Meteorological Satellite, SMS-1) have been responsible for making the current GOES system the basic element for U.S. weather monitoring and forecasting. Spacecraft and ground-based systems work together to accomplish the GOES mission.”
What’s up with the recent high profile deaths?
Jun/09Comments
McMahon, Fawcett, Jackson and Mays
The last month or so sure has been a deadly one for high profile American personalities. The first to die was late-night announcer Ed McMahon, then “Charlie’s Angels” star Farrah Fawcett sucummed to her battle with cancer. Next in line was the “King of Pop”, Michael Jackson, who apparently died of a heart attack. And finally, this morning, television pitch man Billy Mays was found dead in his Tampa, Florida home.
So, what’s going on?
McMahon suffered a series of ailments recently including a neck injury. He was hospitalized earlier in the year with a case of pneumonia. He was said to have died “peacefully” in a hospital bed.