Comments on: Best Science Blogging of 2006

By: John Phillips

John Phillips — Sat, 20 Jan 2007 01:47:15 +0000

Whenever I reread your Science Fare blog I always get a shiver as it is truly inspirational and represents exactly how I feel. I think it should be a de rigueur foreword to any school or popular science book.

By: Irishman

Irishman — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 17:32:20 +0000

Michael, the 2006 is intending to show the year released, not the year of all the writings. The book was intended as a summation of best articles in blogs for the conference going on this month (last weekend?). They started talking about doing it every year, and maybe for those the content will be limited to the year in question, but since this is the first, they felt free to include works predating 2006.

By: Kaptain K

Kaptain K — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 19:11:19 +0000

spacewriter,

Danger Will Robinson!!!

Maybe your “verification” did not include a bank account and PIN number!

Or maybe I’m just paranoid.

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 18:27:58 +0000

I’m not entirely sure why a book subtitled “The Best Writing on Science Blogs 2006″ starts off with a post from May, 2005. Anyone else catch that?

By: Gary Ansorge

Gary Ansorge — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 17:59:14 +0000

Your science fair post is most excellant. The excitement of discovery is one of the greatest feelings we can entertain. I would love to see your post included in the forward of every science book used in our schools. It’s one of the most eloquent I’ve ever read.

Gary 7

By: Lorne Ipsum

Lorne Ipsum — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 16:23:22 +0000

BA,

Congrats! The science fair piece is one of your best. Ever thought of starting a “greatest hits” category for posts that have been particularly well received?

Lorne

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 16:17:19 +0000

Of course you should be number one!!! At least in this book you are appreciated, not like certain “awards” where you were screwed out of the number one spot by the creatures who shall not be named.:)

By: spacewriter

spacewriter — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 16:16:57 +0000

Science Blogs is a great read and I’ll check out the book.

Interestingly, I got an email from someone purporting to be “OF” Science Blogs, inviting me to add my blog to the listings. When I tried to reply, I got a white-list reply, asking me to verify myself. So, I did — and it bounced back saying my email was bounced for lack of verification. I tried again — no luck. Didn’t follow up, but probably should have.

By: Nic

Nic — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:56:41 +0000

Wow. Somehow I missed the ‘Science Fare’ post the first time.. That is good stuff. How long did it take you to write?

Nic

By: Astrogirl

Astrogirl — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:31:10 +0000

I loved the science fair post! Carl Sagan would be proud of it. It was written so eloquently, and it is so true. I only wish EVERY child could hear that speech read to them at a science fair, or in a science class.

By: Christian Burnham

Christian Burnham — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 06:03:44 +0000

Your science fair piece deserves to be reprinted for many years to come!

By: Keith Thompson

Keith Thompson — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 05:59:09 +0000

I just read your “Science Fare” post for the first time. It’s a thing of beauty.

But in the interest of science …

I know a place where the temperature is 15 million degrees, and the pressure would crush you to a microscopic dot. That place is the core of the Sun.

According to one source, the density at the core of the Sun is about 160 g/c^3, about 10 times the density of lead, and 160 times the density of water, or of a human body. Assuming your body would be compressed to the same density, I think that what’s left of it would be quite visible (a person weighing 160 pounds would end up roughly the size of 1 pound of water, about a pint). The human body is largely made up of heavier elements than the hydrogen and helium that dominate the solar interior, so perhaps your density would be a bit greater, but not enough to make you microscopic.

Though I must admit I can’t be certain of this, since I have not yet procured sufficient funding to try the experiment.