Feli: GOING FOR SCIENCE EVEN IN TIME OF CRISIS

These days, when the media are constantly talking about economic problems and euphorically celebrating the success of Spanish football at the European Cup, I would like to highlight other news, actually scientific news that have been of great importance for humanity, such as the discovery of the Higgs particle.

       

The truth is that I do not understand much about these extensive studies, but I have read several articles about them with enormous interest.

       

The same theoretical physicist Peter Higgs, now aged 83, who in the 60s, based on previous work, proposed this theory to explain the origin of the mass and in whose honor this particle is named, said the day the news was made public: “I am extremely impressed by what you have achieved. Congratulations to everyone involved in this incredible achievement and it´s been a joy to live to know it”.

     

The so-called “God particle”, a boson, refers to the ultimate nature of the components and basic interaction of the physical world. This discovery is not an ultimate target, on the contrary, the beginning of a project to explain the universe.

     

Cayetano López, general manager of the “Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas” (CIMAT) said: “Yesterday, 3 July 2012, a historic discovery was announced which has been a giant step in understanding the physical world, and surely its analysis will lead us to explore the nature of the universe, its properties and history”.

     

This conquest has been an immense labor of international research and a contribution that will bear fruit in the future.

     

I have always admired researchers and the outstanding values that support their work, for example, their patient perseverance, their unfailing hope and dedication, their teamwork ability … , so this event is not an exception.

     

Science, in any of its specializations, is a path of no return and we must continue to invest in it even in times of economic crisis.

     

Countries that invest in science are always in the vanguard of development and their citizens will always be the first to enjoy its magnificent benefits.

Elena Herrero: GALILEO, WAS HE REALLY THE FIRST?

Hi folks! Do you want to know a bit more about Galileo?

In 1609, Galileo Galilei turned his own version of a kind of telescope towards the sky, using a magnification of just 30. He decided that the earth moved around the sun and not vice versa; as you know, as a result of this, he was accused of heresy by the Church, since they could not hold back science.

Galileo is supposed to have been the first human being to see the moon´s craters, as well as Venus, Jupiter or the stars of the Milky Way, but was Galileo really the first?

For centuries, the Italian scientist was considered the first man to have used a telescope to study the heavens, but nowadays new evidence has appeared which suggests that Galileo was actually the second person to achieve this scientific breakthrough. Research that has recently come to light shows that Thomas Harriot, an unknown English astronomer, had drawn some maps, never published before, with drafts of the moon, Jupiter´s satellites, sunspots and even Halley's Comet, five months earlier than Galileo´s drawings. 

But Galileo was also on the news some years ago because of another macabre reason: Some Italian scientists were trying to exhume Galileo´s body in order to access his DNA, in an attempt to understand how the astronomer was able to developed his revolutionary theories about the universe, bearing in mind that he was gradually going blind, because he suffered from a degenerative eye disease. It might explain some of the mistakes he made in his drawings.

Well, I´ve attached a couple of great YouTube clip related to Galileo. Enjoy them!

Thank you so much once again, dear Elena. Your post suitably supplements the reading about the famous Italian astronomer in unit 2. Very enlightening indeed!

Flu attack!

Don't panic, this is not a warning of an imminent alien virus attack or the title of the latest Hollywood blockbuster, but simply the topic of the clip which Marina sent with her email, remember? I was telling her that I find the thing a bit scary, all the more these days when I'm in two minds whether to take the flu vaccination, which I've never done in my entire life, to get protected against the disease.
Fair enough. Down below is the YouTube clip on the subject of viruses attacking our oft fragile body:

I wish you all a healthy, virus-free autumn and winter! Cheers mates!