In Kurt Vonnegut’s 1959 novel The Sirens of Titan, one of the primary characters, Winston Niles Rumfoord, falls victim to a phenomenon known as a chrono-synclastic infundibulum. This made up word is described as “being everywhere at once” without being able to know everything at once. I thought of this book because it takes placeContinue reading “Chrono-synclastic Infundibulum”
Tag Archives: astro2110
One Strange Shield
About a year ago National Geographic released a television series titled “One Strange Rock.” It can be found on Disney+. This series looks at how life on Earth survives and thrives. It is especially interesting because it tells this story through eight astronauts (and Will Smith!) who have spent about 1,000 days in space. AnContinue reading “One Strange Shield”
The Moon’s Tug
Three weeks ago, for my Earth System Dynamics course, I listened to a Radiolab podcast about the distance between the Earth and the Moon. In “The Times They Are a Changin’” paleontologists talk about how coral shells taught us that the Earth used to have shorter days. Their shells have tiny bands, an alternating patternContinue reading “The Moon’s Tug”
Introduction
Welcome to Gator’s Guide to the Galaxy. Over the next four months I will be learning about the solar system and posting about things that I find interesting. I am not exactly sure what these posts will be about specifically, but I know that what they will all share in common is that they areContinue reading “Introduction”