I Can be Your Best Fantasy... Or Your Worst fear

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Fri, 01 Mar 2013 22:13:32 -0500

thehazeydaisey:

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 01:06:39 -0500

thehazeydaisey:

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Wed, 13 Feb 2013 01:06:02 -0500

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Mon, 24 Dec 2012 14:05:37 -0500

warped-temptress: Master T where u at?

Fri, 21 Dec 2012 23:39:09 -0500

warped-temptress:

Master T where u at?

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Fri, 21 Dec 2012 23:38:42 -0500

aftonalmaraz: Second snowstorm of the season falls over Harlem...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:27:11 -0500

aftonalmaraz:

Second snowstorm of the season falls over Harlem in New York City.

ikenbot: NASA Eyes Mission to Jupiter Moon Europa Though...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:27:04 -0500

ikenbot:

NASA Eyes Mission to Jupiter Moon Europa

Though NASA is devoting many of its exploration resources to Mars these days, the agency still has its eye on an icy moon of Jupiter that may be capable of supporting life as we know it.

Last week, NASA officials announced that they plan to launch a $1.5 billion rover to Mars in 2020, adding to a string of Red Planet missions already on the docket. The Curiosity rover just landed this past August, for example, and an orbiter called Maven and a lander named InSight are slated to blast off in 2013 and 2016, respectively.

But NASA is also thinking about ways to investigate the possible habitability of Europa, Jupiter’s fourth-largest moon. One concept that may be gaining traction is a so-called “clipper” probe that would make multiple flybys of the moon, studying its icy shell and suspected subsurface ocean as it zooms past.

“We briefed NASA headquarters on Monday, and they responded very positively,” mission proponent David Senske, of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., said here Dec. 7 at the annual fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union.

The $2 billion unmanned Europa Clipper, which could be ready to launch by 2021 or so, would also do vital reconnaissance work for a potential lander mission in the future, Senske told SPACE.com.

Intriguing Europa

Astrobiologists regard Europa, which is about 1,900 miles (3,100 kilometers) wide, as one of the best bets in our solar system to host life beyond Earth.

The moon is believed to harbor a large ocean of liquid water beneath its icy shell. Further, this ocean is likely in direct contact with Europa’s rocky mantle, raising the possibility of all sorts of interesting chemical reactions, Senske said.

The irradiation of Europa’s surface and tidal heating of its interior also mean the moon likely has ample energy sources — another key requirement for life as we know it.

NASA has long been interested in exploring the icy moon and its ocean. Several years back, the agency drew up an ambitious mission concept called the Jupiter Europa Orbiter (JEO), which would have made detailed studies of Europa and the incredibly volcanic Jupiter moon Io.

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Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:26:45 -0500

paradise-crazy: I just love this pic

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:26:15 -0500

paradise-crazy:

I just love this pic

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Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:25:54 -0500

phytos: Danny Jones

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:24:46 -0500

phytos:

Danny Jones

landscapelifescape: Saentis, Switzerland Sunrise at the Säntis...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:24:23 -0500

landscapelifescape:

Saentis, Switzerland

Sunrise at the Säntis (by Thierry Hennet)

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Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:23:44 -0500

hkangela: this cat is so famous on the internet someone tell me...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:22:57 -0500

hkangela:

this cat is so famous on the internet someone tell me who is it?

Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder shot by Herb Ritts for Edward...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:21:54 -0500

Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder shot by Herb Ritts for Edward Scissorhands, 1990

jtotheizzoe: When do we stop seeing the animal, and start...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:21:36 -0500

jtotheizzoe:

When do we stop seeing the animal, and start seeing ourselves?

Photographer Tim Flach challenges you with that question, in his new book More Than Human. Every single one of his photos, from scary bats to naked chickens, is breathtaking.

We are becoming aware of more examples of animal intelligence, from the language of whales to the self-awareness and empathy of the great apes. Whereas one’s emotional response to what appears to be a ponderous panda used to be thought of as folly, we are now able to appreciate a wider spectrum of animal thought and processing.

It does not mean that there is deep thought in those eyes, but it blurs the lines of where our stare stops and theirs begins.There is something. What? Who knows?

We would do well to remind ourselves not where animals are like us, but perhaps where we are like them. These photos do that for me.

See more at Brain Pickings.

lygophilia: Geminide night (by Børge Wahl)

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:20:34 -0500

lygophilia:

Geminide night (by Børge Wahl)

galasai: Ralph Gibson

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:20:22 -0500

galasai:

Ralph Gibson

allaboutthepast: Marilyn Monroe and Lauren Bacall on the set of...

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:20:04 -0500

allaboutthepast:

Marilyn Monroe and Lauren Bacall on the set of How to Marry a Millioniare, 1953