Lifeboat Foundation

More than 400 years ago, Galileo showed that many everyday phenomena—such as a ball rolling down an incline or a chandelier gently swinging from a church ceiling—obey precise mathematical laws. For this insight, he is often hailed as the founder of modern science. But Galileo recognized that not everything was amenable to a quantitative approach. Such things as colors, tastes and smells “are no more than mere names,” Galileo declared, for “they reside only in consciousness.” These qualities aren’t really out there in the world, he asserted, but exist only in the minds of creatures that perceive them. “Hence if the living creature were removed,” he wrote, “all these qualities would be wiped away and annihilated.”

Since Galileo’s time the physical sciences have leaped forward, explaining the workings of the tiniest quarks to the largest galaxy clusters. But explaining things that reside “only in consciousness”—the red of a sunset, say, or the bitter taste of a lemon—has proven far more difficult. Neuroscientists have identified a number of neural correlates of consciousness —brain states associated with specific mental states—but have not explained how matter forms minds in the first place. As philosopher David Chalmers asked: “How does the water of the brain turn into the wine of consciousness?” He famously dubbed this quandary the “hard problem” of consciousness.

Continue reading “Is Consciousness Part of the Fabric of the Universe?” »

NASA has announced an updated plan to continue New Horizons’ mission of exploration of the outer solar system.

Beginning in fiscal year 2025, New Horizons will focus on gathering unique heliophysics data, which can be readily obtained during an extended, low-activity mode of operations.

While the science community is not currently aware of any reachable Kuiper Belt object, this new path allows for the possibility of using the spacecraft for a future close flyby of such an object, should one be identified. It also will enable the spacecraft to preserve fuel and reduce operational complexity while a search is conducted for a compelling flyby candidate.

Hongkong Land’s Yorkville – The Ring by PH Alpha Design uses a revolutionary seven-level glass botanical garden design to accommodate hundreds of gravity-defying plants, creating a truly eco-friendly commercial space. A continuous skin sweeps around the mall to cohesively integrate a “Forest of light” within the interior space, which includes gardens, generous gardens and other activities.

Read more about the project here:

Architizer Project Page

With the growth of the commercial spaceflight business comes new ethical issues about human experimentation.

The expansion of the commercial spaceflight sector opens new avenues for scientific study in the unique environment of space.

However, it also raises ethical concerns about the conduct of scientific experiments and studies involving human volunteers on commercial spaceflights.

The International Space Weather Initiative (ISWI) promoted space weather research and serves as a testament to remarkable international cooperation.

NASA has updated its plan to decommission the International Space Station. The agency has decided not to use Russian Progress spacecraft.

Here’s What We Know

The federal agency will create a new spacecraft. Its development will be taken up by American companies. The decision is due to the deterioration of relations between the United States and the Russian Federation.

In a solar system called TRAPPIST-1, 40 light years from the sun, seven Earth-sized planets revolve around a cold star.

Astronomers obtained new data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on TRAPPIST-1 b, the planet in the TRAPPIST-1 solar system closest to its star. These new observations offer insights into how its star can affect observations of exoplanets in the habitable zone of cool stars. In the habitable zone, liquid water can still exist on the orbiting planet’s surface.

The team, which included University of Michigan astronomer and NASA Sagan Fellow Ryan MacDonald, published its study in the journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Scientists removed the outer lid of OSIRIS-REx’s sample canister on Tuesday (Sept. 26). But a full reveal of the mission’s asteroid sample is still two weeks away.

A metallic-looking rock that smashed through the roof of a residential home in New Jersey’s Hopewell Township earlier this week is indeed a meteorite — a rare one about 4.6 billion years old, scientists confirmed on Thursday (May 11).

“It was obvious right away from looking at it that it was a meteorite in a class called stony chondrite,” Nathan Magee, chair of the physics department at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), whose office was contacted by the Hopewell Township police soon after the rock was found on Monday (May 8), told Space.com.