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Sunday, January 16
EXPLORING IOWA NIGHT SKIES
by
Molly Regan
on Sun 16 Jan 2005 01:29 PM CST
 EXPLORING IOWA NIGHT SKIES
SMITH'S ILLUSTRATED ASTRONOMY lists the planets as "Mercury, Venus, the
Earth, Mars, (Fifty-seven Asteroids or small planets,) Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus, and Neptune." It asks, " What is the body called
upon which we live? It is called the Earth, or World. What idea
had the Ancients respecting the shape of the earth? They believed
it was an extensive plain, rendered uneven by hills and mountains…
They believed it extended much farther from east to west than from
north to south. It is more probable that the Earth is in motion than it
is at rest." These are just a few of the statements in Lesson I from an
1864 version of an astronomy book created for teaching. It is a
valuable resource in that the illustrations were painstakingly hand
drawn and they give us a glimpse into the past. Pluto had not
even been discovered yet.
Much of our knowledge has been updated since then. We have
excellent teachers, extensive libraries, public television, and
students along with many adults who thirst for more information about
our planet and its companions that share the universe. In the
late 1970's, CARL SAGAN presented to us the book and television series
"COSMOS". His compelling descriptions and homey storytelling
contributed to the lay person understanding the motion of our own Earth
and all else out there. SAGAN'S narrative style made you feel as
though you were in a big comfy chair with your feet propped up holding
a fantastic vision within your being.
Swirling mist, gigantic red and yellow and green colored gas clouds,
colliding atoms….these are just part of the "COSOMS" lesson.
Another, the legend of the black basalt ROSETTA STONE included the
deciphering of it by JEAN FRANCOIS CHAMPOLLION. When he was
young, Champollion of France, was a boy genius in oriental languages,
and went on to become an expert in translating Egyptian
hieroglyphics. The Rosetta Stone was composed of a message
written in GREEK at the bottom, in cursive hieroglyphic called DEMONIC
at the middle, and on top, in HIEROGLYPHICS (meaning sacred carvings).
The Rosetta Stone had been "uncovered in 1799 by a French soldier
working on the fortifications of the town of NILE DELTARASHID, which
the Europeans, largely ignorant of Arabic, called Rosetta". In
1828, then 38 year old Champollion "set foot in Egypt, the land of his
dreams, and sailed upstream from CAIRO, following the course of the
Nile, paying homage to the culture he had worked so hard to
understand. It was an expedition in time, a visit to an alien
civilization:
The evening of the 16th we finally arrived at DENDERA. There was
a magnificent moonlight and we were only an hour away from the Temples:
Could we resist the temptation? I ask the coldest of you mortals! To
dine and leave immediately were the orders of the moment: alone and
without guides, but armed to the teeth we crossed the fields…the Temple
appeared to us at last. One could well measure it but to give an idea
of it would be impossible. It is the union of grace and majesty in the
highest degree. We stayed there two hours in ecstasy, running through
the huge rooms…and trying to read the exterior inscriptions in the
moonlight. We did not return to the boat until three in the morning,
only to return to the Temple at seven…
What had been magnificent in the moonlight was still so when the
sunlight revealed to us all the details…We in Europe are only dwarfs
and no nation, ancient or modern, has conceived the art of architecture
on such a sublime, great, and imposing style, as the ancient Egyptians.
They ordered everything to be done for people who are a hundred feet
high." These were the words of Champollion as he embarked on the
greatest journey of his life, and as retold in Sagan's wonderful book.
So find your binoculars, your telescope, your family, your friends and
get thee outside. Yes, it may be 4-degrees Fahrenheit, but as you
look up at other worlds, just remember, some of them may be 450-degrees
below Fahrenheit! You can live with a little cold IOWA
weather. Check our your local colleges, universities, high
schools, and yellow pages for an observatory near you. BETTENDORF
HIGH SCHOOL in Scott county as well as THE WAPSIPINICON ENVIRONMENTAL
CENTER on the border of Scott/Clinton counties both have public viewing
places. In Linn county south of Mt. Vernon, the CEDAR AMATURE
ASTRONOMY CLUB'S site is also a wonderful location for viewing overhead
vistas. Take the time. Discovery is fun. Exploration
can change your life.
Don't forget to CPR: CONSERVE/PARTICIPATE/RECYCLE
For more information see: www.carlsagan.com
www.astronomy.com and www.skyandtelescope.com
Read "THE PLANETS" by David McNab and James Younger published 1999 by Yale University Press….see www.yale.edu/yup/
Friday, January 7
One Way To Promote Issues...
by
Chad Thompson
on Fri 07 Jan 2005 12:42 PM CST
 One Way To Promote Issues...
I
swore that I was going to post something about the upcoming Iowa
Legislative session, but was interrupted by the now-daily reminder of
corruption.
Today's item: paying for propaganda!
It seems that the NCLB program needed a few (*cough*) "independent
voices" to promote it. No better way to get those independent
voices than by offering cash!
From USA Today (via Atrios):
Seeking to build support among black families for its education reform law, the Bush administration paid a prominent black pundit $240,000 to promote the law on his nationally syndicated television show and to urge other black journalists to do the same.
The campaign, part of an effort to
promote No Child Left Behind (NCLB), required commentator Armstrong
Williams "to regularly comment on NCLB during the course of his
broadcasts," and to interview Education Secretary Rod Paige for TV and
radio spots that aired during the show in 2004.
Wow. What does Mr. Williams have to say about this?
Williams said Thursday he understands that critics could find the arrangement unethical, but "I wanted to do it because it's something I believe in."
It's not entirely clear if Mr. Williams was referring to NCLB, or the $240,000 payoff.
Sunday, January 2
EAGLES ON IOWA SHORES
by
Molly Regan
on Sun 02 Jan 2005 02:06 PM CST
 EAGLES ON IOWA SHORES
Last night on my way home it was raining & lightening. An odd thing indeed considering it was January 1st.
Many North American Indian tribes believe the THUNDERBIRD, or mythical
SUPER EAGLE is responsible for creating lightening and thunder by
flapping its wings. With so many BALDEAGLES (a.k.a.: Haliaeetus
leucocephalus) in this area of the MISSISSIPPI RIVER, their
explanation is not too far-fetched. For having a scientific mind,
I know how thunder and lightening are technically created, but the
Indians’ version sounds more intriguing.
Many of you may be marveling at the site of a BALD EAGLE these past
several weeks. If so, give a round of applause to DR. CHARLES
WURSTER. Back in 1970 he helped ban DDT which was proven to cause
many birds to have thin-shelled eggs resulting in lower numbers of
offspring. DDT is dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane. It
was developed to stamp out insect borne diseases and kill lice as well
as grasshoppers and other insects that could wipe out a crop
overnight. Dr. Wurster “wrote the key affidavit in a...1970
lawsuit…that halted the dumping of DDT in California waters.”
This is according to “SOLUTIONS”, the newsletter of
www.environmentaldefense.com. The November-December 2004, Volume
35, Number 6 version has more information. Bald Eagles as well as
ospreys and peregrine falcons were saved from extinction because of the
final banning in 1972 of DDT.
RACHEL CARSON's book SILENT SPRING published in 1962 by Houghton
Mifflin Company of New York, New York, goes into great detail about
DDT. The effects it had on humans and animals is
staggering. Today, some officials want it brought back in use
here in the United States, and it is actually being used by other
countries that have no or very little environmental controls... Now
back to the Eagle.
The Bald Eagle is one of over 100 birds common to IOWA. An adult
male Eagle has a dark brown-to-black body and wings set off by a pure
white head and tail. It has a large, curved yellow bill and yellow
feet. The female is the same, but is slightly larger. They
can have a 7-foot wing span and are approximately 31-37 inches
tall. They usually mate for life, have 2 off-white, unmarked eggs
per year, and come back to the same nest yearly which they both take
part in building. At about 4-5 years of age, the juvenile Eagle
loses its white speckles and gray bill to then look like its
parents. This information and more about Eagles and other birds
of IOWA can be found in BIRDS OF IOWA/FIELD GUIDE by STAN TEKIELA
(second printing 2000, published by Adventure Publications, Inc.)
Locally, next weekend SATURDAY, JANUARY 8th and SUNDAY, JANUARY 9th, get
thee to the BALD EAGLE DAYS at the QCCA EXPO CENTER, ROCK ISLAND (IL),
2621-4th AVE, 61201, (309) 788-5912. This is across the
Mississippi River from downtown Davenport. You will come
away knowing so much about Eagles and other birds, that you will dazzle
your friends! See if you can help bring your local school
children. If their budgets have been cut, help them out.
Have a bake sale Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Sell that old
stamp collection you’ve enjoyed long enough. Drive them
yourself. There is no finer reward than seeing sheer excitement
and joy on the face of a child when they’ve experienced the fascination
of exploration.
You can also call KEN FORDHAM of the Sierra Club (563) 285-5856
or email him at Kford81673@aol.com for more information. To
locate Eagle events in your area of the state go to
www.sierraclub.com. Pull down IOWA then see IOWA CHAPTER EVENTS
to find festivities near you.
One of the best and most beautifully photographed articles on Eagles is
in the JULY 2002 publication of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC. It quotes
poet WILL CARLETON from 1911: "But you were never made, as I,/On
the wings of the winds to fly!/ the Eagle said." When I look out
my east windows which face the Mississippi River and listen to the
Eagles screech at each other from the large tree outside, they may not
understand the significance of what was done by Dr. Wurster and others
to save them, but I do.
Go to www.nationalgeographic.com to view the text and photos.
If you look closely at the IOWA flag, you will see a beautiful, soaring
eagle holding a banner which proclaims, " OUR LIBERTIES WE PRIZE AND
OUR RIGHTS WE WILL MAINTAIN".
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