The Lounge

I need to know some decent books/authors for the following topics: 1. Astronomy and Cosmology Phsics 2. Modern and Theoretical Physics 3. Relativity 4. And...why not, maybe one about Genetics. I would really appreciate some books, or some famous Science authors to look for. I prefer to read books than to connect various information across the internet. Make sure they are not advanced books, im new to Physics.

Don't forget to add a second onto your timepieces at midnight GMT. Apparently we have to do this so that high noon won't be at 1 pm in a few hundred years.

SFN has hit a new milestone in the usage of our blogs:

As of today, January 4th (well, it's still today here...), I've been a member on SFN for five years. Wow. Back when I joined I knew practically nothing about science, hardly understood the conversations on the forum, and of course made about 25 posts per day. (I still hate reading old threads that I posted in. You can tell I was clueless.) In the time since, I've learned enough that I can actually participate and sound somewhat intelligent (at least I think), become a member of staff, turned 17, and learned how to manage a complex Linux server. Without the existence of SFN, I would never have learned as much about science or been nearly as interested in it…

What is your life number? It’s basically your Date of Birth! If you are born on the 21st, then its 2+1 = 3, if 19th = 1+9 = 10 so 1+0 =1. Curious to see if there is a common no in this forum!! ------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 (10/1, 19/1) The Life Path 1 suggests that you entered this plane with skills allowing you to become a leader type rather easily. Your nature is charged with individualistic desires, a demand for independence, and the need for personal attainment. Many of our military generals, corporate leaders, and political leaders are men and women having the Life Path 1. When you display positive 1 traits your…

Hi everybody, my name is Farid and I am new to this forum because of this question I have. My question is, where does consciousness come from when we are all made from atom, which seems to be unconscious? This seems like putting piece of cloth together and getting a conscious being, is it possible? I might get answers such as the brain or even heart, but are they too not made of atoms? Thank you.

Here's a video of people paying with pennies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsz__5aium0 Enjoy

Firstly Happy New Year to all forum users. I've just watched the film 'Superman Returns' (for the physics mistakes of course!) which was on over the holidays and noticed that when Superman carried the "kryptonite island" off into he space he gave it an almighty push and off went the island into space however Superman stayed where he was. Wouldn't Superman have been propelled backward with an equal force to that which he gave the island, or are we to assume that Superman has infinite inertia?

Here is a theory. I don't mean any insult by it although it could be taken the wrong way in terms of PC sensitivity. If you look at the profile of the average serial killer, it includes white male. What this implies, under the same inducing conditions, the rest of the demographics are not affected the same way as the white male. At a social level, the white male is sort of put on a pedestal since equality laws are designed for the rest of the demographics to balance the field. What this seems to imply is the white male has the furthest to fall (subjectively within). In other words, if one is put down and sees their place in the pecking order subjectively lower the f…

I've been trying to find something decent that would help me grip more knowledge on science. I need extremely beginner lessons/information. Some of these words in the forum i have never seen in my life. Im in public schooling high school though...so i have an excuse! I'd really prefer books or webpages. Forums are alright, I will probably attempt to come back here in the future, but most likely if I stayed I would just embarras myself, heh. And one last heads up, i don't know any of the "sections" of science either, so i do not know which i would be more interested in, which is why i want a more open-sided information that can display all science. Thank y…

im starting this tread just so people can post how they came across SFN and science, good luck, youll need it

This thread exists for the sole purpose of calling out those who need to change their avatar for various reasons. Dudde, my man, it's time. You've had that avatar for years.

I would love to make some biofuel for myself using vegetable oil, ethanol and a catalyst due to the prohibitively high cost of fuel at the moment and the probability that the cost will remain high in the future. The question is, will it be economical to do so or is it not worth the hassle?

I wish Google Earth would broadcast videos with live webcams, it would be so expansive today, i know, but still it is a matter of the nearest future. Imagine you can view anything live anywhere in the world. There is an privacy issue though that would be hard to solve. On the other hand crimes and illigal business would diminish:cool:

What the hell inspired your name?

I just wondered if the Mods could set something up which will enable members of this Forum to participate in an experiment where the results can be displayed online? I can think of an experiment: all members of the Forum should try to influence the outcome of a coin tossing exercise. Each person tosses a coin in the air twenty times and tries to focus their attention on "Heads" as an outcome each time. The results are then totalled and sent to the Mods for compilation. We can then examine the probability of the outcome and list it as an online experiment. Obviously there will be problems with extenuating factors that would involve the outcome of the experiment but…

I mean, aren't we humans supposed to be the most intelligent creatures on this planet? And I am not talking about morality here, I mean really the scientific aspect of it. Why do things like genocide, serial killers, sex crimes, tons of really weird 'philias', and much more, happen mostly among human beings? I just remembered a song by Roberto Carlos which mentions somehting like "I would really like to be civilized like the animals", it makes you stop and think...

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2008/12/16/2008-12-16_happy_birthday_adolf_hitler_boy_with_naz.html Of course, in American culture, maybe he will become a famous "celebrity" like Paris Hilton.

awesome video made by dechha1981 dechha1981 is not me

So, do we need a "philosophy" forum? I keep looking for a good place to put these questions, but I haven't found it. First, I will apologize if someone thinks this post begins inappropriately, but I think it necessary to demonstrate the intent of my question. Philosophers have wrestled with a problem of logic involving "properties". To say that something has a property entails that something else does not have that property. For example, to say that a geometric figure is "square" because it has four sides implies that a triangle is "not square" because it has three sides. This seems trivial at first, but this logical principle has been used in some very intere…

Hello all, From all the Muslims and myself in the world I would like to wish all you, a very happy Christmas and wishes of a wonderful new year!. Merry Christmas;)! Hopp in on the peace train! ChemSiddiqui

hi guys and gals(if any) please post u r age and sex and country... nothing serious but just eager to know the stats of what age group dominates the forums

Even though I have already posted a few threads earlier today, I thought it would be appropriate to post the official I'm Back thread. So here it is; I'm Back! After a 6 month hiatus. During that time I have been pursuing other interests and as such decided that I needed a break from all forums for a while. Over this summer I completed an internship, and pursued a new hobby known as youtubing (I don't have any videos of my own yet, just collaborated on a few...) and help run a game server (i.e. for ZombiePanic Source, the greatest FPS ever, until I get tired of it...). As well, I ascended among the ranks of my college chess club and am now it's vice president; w…

I wasn't sure where else to post this so forgive me. I've noticed many students with digital recorders in my classes this semester. There are so many different models and brands; I'm not sure where to start. I want something that works well, but at a resonable price. Good battery life and excellent sound quality are my primary concerns. I'm sure many of you own DSRs and I want to know what to check out and what to avoid. Treat this as a poll and share your experience. Thanks, CSR

For All Those Who Get a Little Verklempt Around the Holidays... ...You're not alone. Thanks to each of you for being. It's really amazing the power inherent in the sense of community. This is just a statement of thanks, and appreciation. It's often humbling to read the contributions here, but always educational and usually enriching. Happy Holidays, everyone... regardless of your personal mythology or secularity.