The Science & Entertainment Exchange blogs

How a Drawing Could Cure Cancer: Physics Diagrams as Modern Hieroglyphs

host — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 16:32:22 +0000

If you’re a fan of the TV series, The Big Bang Theory you're probably used to laughing at Penny and Sheldon's interactions, especially when Dr. Cooper tries to explain physics to his loveable blonde neighbor.

One such instance is captured in the picture below. If you look at it, you could easily imagine Sheldon saying something like: “See, Penny, this equation accounts for the branching ratio of a top quark decaying into a W boson and bottom quark, as depicted by the upper-left diagram.”

Do you think Sheldon took up drawing simply so he could flirt with Penny?

Not at all -- the pictograms on the whiteboard are a serious part of physics! They are known as Feynman diagrams, named after their inventor Richard Feynman, who first proposed their adoption in 1948 and later won the Nobel Prize for his work, including this invention, which provides a visual representation of particle physics.

Feynman was as much of an eccentric as his fictional colleague on the TV series. Do you remember the episode “The Werewolf Transformation”? In that episode, Sheldon goes “nuts” and wakes up Leonard by playing bongos in the middle of the night. Well, Feynman used to play bongos, too (in fact, that could be where the show’s writers got the idea).

But why would a scientist propose drawings to his colleagues? Were they bored? Did their minds wander? On the contrary, in the late 1940s, physicists were kind of stuck in their path to gain a better understanding of how the natural world works at an ever deeper level.

Roughly speaking, they needed to know where to go next and how to reach their destination. That's where the novelty of Feynman's genius was crucial. His diagrams provided the tools of a new language, making it easier for physicists to communicate with each other.

At a glance, Feynman diagrams bear a resemblance to Egyptian hieroglyphs. Just as hieroglyphs represented a wealth of information in a single sign, a Feynman diagram encapsulates the description of an interaction among particles in a very clear and concise fashion, making it possible to streamline the computation of the measurable effect that a certain physical process has. Knowing what to compute and how to do it were badly needed pieces of information at the time Feynman introduced his idea. The non-trivial advantage of adopting a common vocabulary lies in the universal standard of naming that this vocabulary provides; those who speak the same language are able to understand each other and then communicate among themselves, sharing meaningful information.

As time went by, something very interesting happened with Feynman diagrams and their adopters. As physicists discussed and studied possible interactions, they began to name configurations and diagrams of particles, just like what we do when we search for images of animals in the clouds. There are indeed particle interaction processes whose Feynman diagram resembles a bell, a sunrise, a tadpole, a seagull, or even a penguin! All this theoretical fun led physicists to the recent discovery of the Higgs boson, a.k.a., the God particle.

More than sixty years after their invention, Feynman diagrams are still largely employed in particle physics. They allow new insight and better precision in calculating both the astrophysical signal to be expected when black holes collide and the modeling of molecular dynamics. So, the next time you see Penny trying to interpret some enigmatic hieroglyph on Sheldon's whiteboard, think about these deep connections ... after you have laughed, of course.

You can find more information about Feynman diagrams here or here.

Follow The Exchange on Twitter @SciEntEx or Like us on Facebook, here.

To The Moon and Beyond, We Are The Explorers

host — Fri, 10 May 2013 14:36:06 +0000

What do you get when you mix NASA, Peter Cullen, the voice of Optimus Prime, historical footage, a group of passionate advocates and a crowdfunding campaign? Most likely, a really fantastic 30 second clip that will now be shown across the country.

The Aerospace Industries Association first set out to raise enough money to pay for the clip to air before Star Trek Into Darkness in a few select major markets. When they were greeted with unexpected enthusiasm and generosity, they soon set their sights on a bigger goal, 50 cities across the country.

Dan Hendrickson, of AIA, was at the helm of this innovative campaign, see what he has to say about the project and the future of space exploration!

Story Behind The Story: Argo

host — Fri, 03 May 2013 16:29:06 +0000

Unusual tales in Hollywood usually aren’t so unusual. But this particular story caught our attention because it’s about science; it’s about entertainment; and, most of all, it’s unusual.

The story begins with the highly successful movie Argo, the darling of the award show circuit, eventually winning the Oscar for best picture of 2012.

For those who haven’t seen it, Argo takes the audience through the steps leading up to the daring rescue of diplomats trapped in Iran after the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in 1979. Most of us weren’t aware of this footnote in recent history, including the imagination and heroism of CIA operative Tony Mendez, played by Ben Affleck in the movie. That was, until Mr. Affleck made Argo.

But, like most great Hollywood tales, there is a story behind this story. The story was pure Hollywood – with a little dash of science tossed in -- until Argo swooped onto the big screen.

It was Mendez' idea to use the making of a fake science fiction movie as a ruse to extract the hiding Americans from an increasingly untenable and hostile situation in Iran. To pull off his scheme, the fake movie had to reek with authenticity. Mendez and his accomplices had to convince the Iranians that Hollywood was indeed scouting out possible locations in Iran for shooting a movie called Argo. Mendez solicited the assistance of a CIA consultant named John Chambers (played by John Goodman in the movie) who happened to be an award-winning make-up artist in Hollywood. At the time, Chambers was involved in the making of another movie, what was supposed to be a science fiction blockbuster of Star Wars proportions, called Lord of Light, based on a 1967 novel of the same name by Roger Zelazny.

As it turned out, the script and preliminary artwork for Lord of Light eventually became the fake Argo.

Barry Ira Geller was the mastermind behind Lord of Light and he subsequently planned to erect a theme park with the same name. Geller envisioned that the park would act as a home for scientists and artists working together on technologies to benefit the world. Unfortunately, neither of Geller’s projects ever got off the ground and the story of what happened to Lord of Light and Science Fiction Land may have been destined for obscurity – were it not for the making and subsequent success of Argo.

But not all was lost for Science Fiction Land! Enter Judd Ehrlich, a successful documentary filmmaker. Ehrlich had spent several years working on a project called Science Fiction Land, the true story of what happened to Geller and his movie/theme park fiasco.

But Ehrlich lacked the resources to put the finishing touches on his documentary – until the success of Argo and the interest it generated about the real story behind Lord of Light.

Using Kickstarter, he was able to raise $50,000 for graphics, special effects, and additional footage and interviews. Now, the film’s completed and Ehrlich is shopping for a distributor. He’ll also be helming a panel on Science Fiction Land this summer in San Diego at Comic-Con. Naturally, Ehrlich also dreams of following in the footsteps of Ben Affleck -- all the way onto the stage of the Dolby Theater – to accept the Oscar in the Best Documentary category. That might never happen. But it could. There could also one day be a real Science Fiction Land, which would be ever the more unusual ending to an already unusual story.

Event Recap: How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love Science

host — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:08:55 +0000

Magic flying carpets, how to obliterate your enemy and the ability to see through walls; sound like something from your favorite science fiction movie? What if we told you that all of those things were technically possible?

According to Neil Gershenfeld, it’s true! All of the aforementioned technologies may be possible in the future, and the future may not be as far off as you may think.

The Science & Entertainment Exchange hosted an informal evening of science, snacks, and conversation last month, featuring esteemed professor, Neil Gershenfeld. Our gracious hosts, Janet and Jerry Zucker, opened their home to entertainers and science geeks alike, to talk about technology of the future.

Our guest of honor, Professor Gershenfeld, is no stranger to bringing the technologies of tomorrow, to our living rooms, today. Prof. Gershenfeld directs a unique center at MIT, the Center for Bits and Atoms. He also founded the fab lab network, which aims to break down the boundaries between the digital and physical worlds. What began as a single lab in Boston, Massachusetts now has locations as far as Afghanistan and Australia. Check out this video for more information about the fab lab, how it works and the innovative processes they employ.

So, back to the technologies of the future! The night was peppered with laughs and audience participation as Prof. Gershenfeld explained, in principle Star Trek's teleporter (with photon pairs entangled with trapped atoms) tractor beams (with an optical trap) and replicator (with a digital material assembler), the Terminator's shape-shifting cyborg (with coded folding), the Death Star in Star Wars (with antiparticle annihilation), Harry Potter's invisibility cloak (with electromagnetic metamaterials) and levitation spell (with dielectrics in a strong magnetic field gradient), Quicksilver from X-Men (with quantum superposition), flying carpets (with programmable surfaces), H.G. Wells' time machine (with closed timelike curves), how Doctor Frankenstein could create life (by synthesizing a genome), how Professor Xavier from the X-Men could read minds (with functional magnetic resonance imaging), and how to make Deep Thought from the Hitchhikers Guide (with asynchronous logic automata). Did your mind just explode? So did ours.

Want to see more event photos? Interested in getting involved? Shoot us an email, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook!

De-extinction: Bringing Back the Dodo?

host — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 16:29:28 +0000

Science fiction fans and movie-goers might be counting down the days until the 3D re-release of Jurrassic Park hits theaters on April 5th, but scientists and conservationists are now counting the ways that they could make the movie’s premise – in which the DNA of dinosaurs’ blood is preserved in a mosquito fossilized in amber – come to life.

It’s called “de-extinction,” and it already happened for the first time ten years ago.

When the last bucardo, a subspecies of the Spanish Ibex, died in 2000, it would be natural to believe that this was the end of the species. But thanks to an intrepid group of wildlife veterinarians, the DNA from the last remaining burcado, a female named Celia, had already been preserved.

In 2003, scientists put Celia’s preserved DNA into goats’ eggs, whose DNA had been wiped, and began the arduous process of bringing an animal back from extinction.

Once the egg had been fertilized, it was implanted into a surrogate mother , a cross-breed of a goat and a Spanish ibex – the bucardo’s close relative. The process was completed with the hope of delivering a baby clone bucardo – the birth of a ghost.

Sadly, the baby died only ten minutes later. But, if only for a brief moment, the scientists challenged the notion that “extinction is forever.”

Now, Australian scientists who have been working on bringing back two species of frogs have revived talk of de-extinction.

The gastric brooding frogs were unique in that they carried their developing eggs in their stomachs. Scientists announced in January that they created an embryo, spurring this secret society of real world John Hammonds and Dr. Alan Grants to come forward with their visions of Jurrasic Park.

How amazing would it be to see a herd of woolly mammoths? You could go on safari and photograph saber tooth tigers. What about extinction’s goofy spokes-species – the dodo?

On March 16th a cultural institution charity called The Long Now Foundation organized a TEDx event to bring the techniques and ethics of de-Extinction to the forefront of public consciousness.

Geneticists, paleobiologists, wildlife ecologists, and a “molecular paleontologist” seemed to agree that genetic manipulation – like the DNA mixing and cross breeding of the bucardo – would be the way to do it. Harvard Genetics Professor George Church introduced his CRISPR method in which one could select individual amino acids (represented by the letters AGTC) to alter a DNA chain to bring about specific traits that make the extinct species unique. Even if it appears to be just a matter of sequencing the entire genomes of these extinct species, we have a long way to go, and not everyone is on board.

Biologists and conservationists, like David Ehrenfeld of Rutgers University, believe that de-extinction would be a distraction from the battle to save species that are still here. Not all of these extinct species have a home to return to; if their extinction was due to hunting, loss of territory, disease, or pollution (like the Chinese river dolphin), why waste millions of dollars to bring them back, only to see them fall victim to the same demise?

Ethics aside, de-extinction is an exciting thought. A theme so popular, the original release of Jurassic Park grossed gross $356,784,000 at the box office in 1993

One things the scientists did agree on at the TEDx De-extinction event, however, is that dinosaurs are not on the table. The organic material that would preserve their DNA has all broken down. As the Chief Scientific Officer at Advanced Cell Technology Robert Lanza says, “You can’t clone from stone.”

But, he also gave his talk with a piece of petrified amber, so “hold on to your butts.”

Adam Spencer is a filmmaker and journalist specializing in wildlife and conservation. He has traveled throughout South and Central America and West Africa as a volunteer, producing educational and promotional videos for non-profit organizations whose work ranges from eco-tourism, sustainable energy solutions, and education. His current film about conservation on Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea features never-before-seen footage of the wild Bioko Island drill.

Find him on the web, here and here or follow him on Twitter @Spencer_adam

Robots, Aliens and Pilot Season, Oh My!

host — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 19:16:27 +0000

It’s pilot season, that time of the year when first episodes are filmed and TV network executives make crucial decisions as they place bets on which new series are likely to attract large audiences. Of course, the number of new shows that make it past the pilot stage is extremely small. Only a select few will receive a network order for additional episodes. Nevertheless, it’s fun to read about new ideas and see who’s been cast to play lovable, smarmy, smart, dumb -- or just plain evil – on the small screen.

Every year the Exchange takes a look at the Complete Guide to TV Pilots on a quest to discover which of these potential new shows may incorporate science (or maybe even math) in their story-telling.

Last year, pilot season featured a couple – not many, but at least one or two, characters who were clearly identified as scientists. Unfortunately, those shows weren’t picked up. This year, we had a harder time finding a pilot with a strong science lead. Now, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any – only that it’s not clear from the pilot that any of these potential new shows will have strong, science-themed storylines.

As the title of this piece suggests, we did find a few robots and aliens. And, it’s likely that these shows will delve into scientific themes – and may even require a science consultant – if they get picked up.

Here’s a list of the dozen pilots we spotted as quite possibly having something to do with science: Gothica, Influence, S.H.I.E.L.D., Super Clyde, Anatomy of Violence, Intelligence, Second Sight, The Surgeon General, The Hundred, Oxygen and The Tomorrow People. All of these seem to be one-hour projects. What happened to the sitcoms? Did we miss any? Let us know what you think. We’ll let you know if any of our choices get picked up and land in our living room this fall.

Lincoln V. Lincoln

host — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:40:45 +0000

More than 148 years after President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, he continues to make his mark on American society, with this year being no exception. Here at the Science & Entertainment Exchange, we have a particular affinity for good old Abe, and this week our pride swells even more than usual. March 3, 2013 marked the 150th anniversary of the National Academy of Sciences, which was signed into existence by none other, than Abraham Lincoln, himself!

In honor of Abraham Lincoln in all forms, both historical and theatrical, we thought we’d bring your attention to a few interesting facts about man, the myth and the legend in the stovepipe hat. Try to guess if we’re being truthful, or if we’re pulling your (possibly wooden) leg!

True or False: Lincoln director, Steven Spielberg dressed as Abe Lincoln for the entirety of the filming. Including, but not limited to, a fake beard and historically accurate stovepipe hat.
Verdict: False. While we love the image of Steven Spielberg in a stovepipe hat, it sadly isn’t true. But don’t worry, not all is lost! It has been cited that Spielberg did choose to wear a suit and tie during filming

"I think I wanted to get into the role more than anything else," Spielberg said. "Because we were creating a part of history, and I didn't want to be the shlubby baseball-cap-wearing 21st century guy. I wanted to be like the cast."

True or False: Spielberg affectionately referred to Daniel Day Lewis as Abe throughout filming.
Verdict: Sort of true. Spielberg took method directing to a new level, and reportedly only referred to Daniel Day Lewis as "Mr. President" while on set and on the call lists. Even Lewis’ fictional wife, played by Sally Field, got in on the action. The director reportedly called her "Mrs. Lincoln" or "Molly" on set.

True or False: Abraham Lincoln’s son, Robert Todd Lincoln, was also known as his good luck charm.
Verdict: Super false! Robert Todd Lincoln was actually quite the presidential death magnet. While he was not present when his father was killed, he was an eyewitness to Garfield’s assassination and at the same World’s Fair where McKinley was assassinated.

True or False: Robert Todd Lincoln, the death magnet, was actually saved by his father’s assassin’s brother. Try to say that 10 times fast!
Verdict: Freakishly true. Robert Todd Lincoln fell between the platform and a train at a rail station. Just as the train began to move, he was pulled from the tracks by none other than Edwin Booth, John Wilkes Booth’s brother.

True or False: Lincoln was a tastemaker of the time. Some might even call him a fashionista!
Verdict: True, but we won’t force you to call him fashionista. Lincoln was the first president to sport a beard, and we are a big fan of his stovepipe hat, which he also used to store all kinds of goodies!

What’s your favorite Lincoln fact? Share it with us on Facebook or Twitter

Dive Into the Ocean and Learn the Secrets of the Brain

host — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:57:26 +0000

The Exchange played cruise director for a diverse group of entertainers who gathered together in La Jolla, California, to tour the Salk Institute of Biological Studies and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Among their ranks were producers, writers, directors, and educators who came together to learn about the newest and most exciting scientific innovations that southern California has to offer.

The group was split in two after breakfast. Much like a movie where twins are separated at birth, both groups went on similar tours throughout the day, mirroring the other’s experience. While one group toured the Salk Institute, the other half went to explore what lies deep below the ocean surface.

At the Salk Institute, head scientist, Ricardo Gil da Costa, led the group around the expansive and beautiful campus that is perched right on the shoreline. Established in 1959 by Jonas Salk, the Salk Institute boasts an impressive array of scientific innovations.

The majority of the labs contain technology that can been seen only on the Salk campus, nestled along the shoreline of the Pacific Ocean, and many experiments seem as if they are ripped straight from the silver screen. The Salk Institute focuses its research on biological studies and on this tour our group received a special look inside the brains of the Salk scientists, literally.

Film and new media producer, Diana Williams and director, Jon Amiel bravely volunteered to partake in what is known as a functional MRI. Functional MRI technology allows scientists to see a real-time picture of what is happening within a patient’s brain.

While inside the machine, Diana and Jon were asked to do a series of tasks, including lying still, relaxing, tapping their fingers, and also visualizing themselves playing tennis against an opponent. These tests allowed the scientists to view which parts of the brain were active during each activity. When Diana found herself creaming her fictional tennis opponent, the motor cortex of her brain lit up on the screen! This demonstration certainly gave a whole new meaning to the saying “I want to pick your brain.”

While the morning tour could have easily been enough to fill an entire day, the team marched on to check out some of the amazing work that is being done just down the street.

The Scripps Institution of Oceanography is easily one of the most beautiful places to work that we have ever seen. Similar to Salk, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography has beautiful sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean, rife with surfers trying to catch the next best wave.

Among the "ooh's" and "ahh's" our group of entertainers got to learn a little bit about what lies beneath the surface of the crashing ocean waves. Doug Bartlett was the chief scientist on James Cameron's expedition to the Mariana Trench last March. He spoke to us about the expedition and what it was like to explore the deepest part of the ocean floor. Talk about vacation photos that you actually want to see!

One of the most exciting parts of the tour was when an intrepid group of students welcomed us into their nearly pristine laboratory to give us a glimpse of some of their experiments.

Full of life and incredibly knowledgeable, these students explained the ins and outs of their experiments that center on a phenomenon known as ocean acidification. Ocean acidification occurs when ocean water absorbs an excess amount of carbon dioxide from polluted air. The excess carbon dioxide leads to an imbalanced PH level in the ocean water. This can in turn have a direct impact on the deterioration of the beautiful coral reefs that many of us love to view during our family vacations and snorkeling excursions.

The Exchange had a great time exploring the southern California coast! If you would like more information about upcoming tours or to see more photos of our trip, visit us on Facebook or Twitter @SciEntEx

Valentine's Day Science Showdown: Gift Edition

host — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:17:53 +0000

February 14, 2013 – We’ve all been there, standing in front of a Valentine’s Day display at the shop on the corner, you can feel a cold sweat coming on. The barrage of pink and red is almost too much for your brain to process! You have to make it out of this situation with the perfect gift for your valentine, and of course, you’ve waited until the last possible second to pick something up. The candy seems too sweet. What happens if they have an aversion to nougat? A giant card, perhaps? You decide against it after picturing yourself lugging it home on the bus, plus, it would be too hard to get it past the front door without detection.

After your senses have had a moment to acclimate to the display, you finally narrow it down to two choices, a sizeable plushy stuffed lion (they do love The Lion King) and a bouquet of flowers that’s giant, but will still allow you to pay your rent this month. Which one do you choose? Well, why don’t you let science help you make that decision!

Option #1, you choose flowers
Science Says: Good choice!

A study from Rutgers University showed that people who gave flowers to another person were generally perceived as successful and caring. Specifically, women who gave flowers were seen as being more appreciative of beauty and nature. While both men and women who gifted flowers to another person, regardless of the recipient’s gender, were perceived as happy, achieving, strong, capable and courageous. Not bad for a gift that won’t break the bank!

Option #2, you choose to go with the stuffed Simba
Science Says: She’ll treasure it forever!

Studies show that children can form attachments with physical items, such as a blanket or stuffed animal. Having these items close by may actually lead to lower stress levels in overly stimulating situations, such as a trip to the doctor’s office. But toddlers aren’t the only ones who may love a stuffed antelope! A study published in 2010 in the Journal of Cognition and Culture, asked participants to cut up a photo of a cherished item while the research team monitored their galvanic skin response, a measure of minute changes in sweat production on the skin. More sweat equals a greater level of agitation.

The study showed that participants went nuts (not a scientific measure) when they were asked to cut up a picture of their beloved childhood teddy bear, compared to cutting up a photo of a box of chalky Sweethearts candy, or a box of giraffe shaped chocolates, also known as emotionally neutral items.

Moral of the story? Either way, you’ll make your valentine the happiest human in the world. But hurry up, you’re wasting precious time on your computer!

Science Valentines For Your Sweetie

host — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 19:44:17 +0000

Valentine’s Day crept up on us out of the bleary February fog and now it’s heart-shaped existence is staring us straight in the face. Whether you’re hitched, betrothed or still searching for your prince, or princess, everyone loves getting a valentine! It’s practically a scientific fact, heavy emphasis on practically.

We’ve scoured the web to find you some of the best valentines to send to your science-loving sweetie! (Or your science-hating frenemy, we won’t judge) Which one will you be sending?

IronicSans.com

JacksOfScience.com

Learn to create this realistic valentine at CheekyMagPie.com

Phil Plait of BadAstronomy

Download these cards at OODLES BY STEPHOODLES Etsy shop

From ScienceBlogs.com

The Science & Entertainment Exchange blogs

How a Drawing Could Cure Cancer: Physics Diagrams as Modern Hieroglyphs

Tags:

To The Moon and Beyond, We Are The Explorers

Tags:

Story Behind The Story: Argo

Tags:

Event Recap: How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love Science

De-extinction: Bringing Back the Dodo?

Robots, Aliens and Pilot Season, Oh My!

Tags:

Lincoln V. Lincoln

Tags:

Dive Into the Ocean and Learn the Secrets of the Brain

Tags:

Valentine's Day Science Showdown: Gift Edition

Tags:

Science Valentines For Your Sweetie