Genetically Altered Animals & Cultured Meat

Please Note: This is an old blog post that I transferred here from a website of mine that I recently deleted. The original date of this post is September 7th, 2012. 

…This particular subject dawned upon me today, after re-reading a brief blog post that I wrote in the past (about 1.5 years ago) about the "Chupacabra – Goat Sucker" on a Myths, Legends, & Folklore Blogspot. While perusing over this old material, I was trying to not get hit broadside with folklore while I kicked the legends and pushed the myths far away. …This left me in a critical thinking mode, and I no longer needed some mythical creature as a focal point, as it was plain as day that we have our own genetically altered animals of today that beckons for a closer look. To make this even more troublesome, we got people trying to grow meat products in a laboratory, hence forth the “cultured meat” part of the title for this post.

Before I provide any related links and information about this subject, please get this simple word embedded into your brain, which is MONEY! Yep, the true culprit for these bizarre genetic experiments is about money, no matter what lovely reason of utter humanitarianism they try to feed you.

Anyway, the first article I’m about to link to, speaks about genetically modified animals.

It starts off by saying how it is a slow and tedious process that needs a lot of money to get off the ground. Oh, but ain’t the sole purpose of this to make a lot of money? Remember the old saying, “ya gotta spend money to make money.” Think about it: If you can grow meat in a lab along with animal-based organs for human transplant, wouldn’t that be a mega-money maker? Who cares about our health and/or if it is natural or how much antibiotics and growth hormones these “things” are pumped with or where it comes from, as if we can sell this crap in bulk, we got some rich folks in the making…

At any insane rate, after that article mentioned how this “genetically altered animals” stuff was a slow process, they went on to say: “Behind the scenes, though, a quiet revolution has been taking place. Thanks to a set of new tricks and tools, modifying animals is becoming a lot easier and more precise. That is not only going to transform research, it could also transform the meat and eggs you eat and the milk you drink.”

Toward the end of that page, they sort of spilled the beans by asking this question: So, in 20 years will GM (genetically modified) animals be as widespread as their botanic counterparts are now? “Technologically, nothing is standing in our way,” says Fahrenkrug. “Really, the issue is coming down to: what are you going to make?” You can read more about this, here: http://www.brainwaving.com/2010/07/28/genetically-modified-animals/

I think most of you will find that last article to be somewhat interesting, but not necessarily in a good way.

Hey, just think of the possibilities! Do you want a cool pet that glows in the dark? You want some cheap prime cuts of beef that was grown in a petri dish via not-so-natural methods? Yada-yada… They also tend to blame some of this type of research for the long journeys that space flights may have in the future, but I know that is one big load of baloney. I mean, NASA doesn’t have to provide their astronauts with a never-ending supply of lab-grown steaks, right? Get real…

I planned on covering more ground about the genetically altered animals, but I see (I sort of write as I go) that the main concern of mine at the moment, when concerning this subject, is this cultured meat stuff. I went to the glorious Wikipedia to get additional info and terms, and they seem to mainly call this junk “in vetro meat” but they mentioned how it is also called “cultured meat,” “laboratory-grown meat” and “shmeat” which is short for sheet meat, so go figure…

Back to NASA, Wikipedia states: “Modern research into ‘in vitro’ meat arose out of experiments conducted by NASA, attempting to find improved forms of long-term food for astronauts in space. The technique was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1995, and NASA has been conducting experiments since 2001, producing ‘in vitro’ meat from turkey cells. The first edible form was produced by the NSR/Touro Applied BioScience Research Consortium in 2000: goldfish cells grown to resemble fish fillets.”

You know, in a way, I could say “good for y’all.” Personally, I don’t want Lab Meat that has to be pumped full of growth hormones and antibiotics, just so they can mass produce it and make tons of money while neglecting our health risks. Yes, they have admitted to that, as well, and you can read about it, here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_vitro_meat [link is no longer active, but as the years went by, it now re-directs to this URL with modified information, here: Cultured meat - Wikipedia]

To make a long complaint short, everything that man has done to the food that isn’t natural, has never been good. Artificial this, artificial that, chemical injection here, a word I can’t pronounce in the ingredient list there, etc. Hell, when you think about it, cakes, pies and “junk food” aren’t natural either [I can hear the moans now…], as I have never seen a twinkie or cupcake grow from the ground yet; ha! I’m not trying to come off as a technology hater, but some things need to be left to Mother Nature. It is hard enough now, to find quality meat & produce that hasn’t been totally abused by human input. The last thing we need right now is genetically altered animals and stupid cultured meat that was grown from a petri dish.

Maybe I’m the oddball here, but what do you think?

At times, a Petri Dish is best when it's empty...

Image Credit: perpendicularity.org/blog/ [link is no longer active]

---End of Post "Genetically Altered Animals & Cultured Meat"

Has the Earth’s Axis Shifted? Polar Ice Melting...

Please Note: This is an old blog post that I relocated here from another website of mine that I recently deleted. The original date of this post goes way back to January 18th, 2013.

A lot of folks are out there searching for answers about a possible polar shift at hand that will bring many cataclysmic events, along with various ways to detect whether or not the Earth’s axis has shifted or not, and how severe and/or negative the effect will be for us humans as the polar ice melts, and so on.

There are many things that can cause the Earth’s axis to shift, but minor tilts or changes that causes the Earth to wobble a tiny bit differently is not a problem, as negligible changes happen all throughout the year, every year, without much concern. I will say this, though, as I’m a little concerned about the effects that the melting of our planet’s polar ice caps may have, as simple math will dictate a massive change in the way the weight is distributed on this planet, could very well cause a shift in the Earth’s axis, which can definitely affect weather and much more, depending on the severity of the shift and whatnot.

I’ll give you a few examples of what I’d consider negligible amounts of change for the Earth’s Axis, below:

A couple years ago, the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that hit Japan shortened Earth’s day by just over one-millionth of a second (1.8 microseconds to be exact), according to NASA. It also shifted the Earth’s axis by about 6.5 inches. The reason why I consider that to be a small amount, is because a microsecond equals one millionth of a second. You can read about several examples online, such as the one that happened 3 years ago, which was the massive earthquake that struck Chile. The magnitude 9.1 earthquake in 2004 that generated a killer tsunami in the Indian Ocean, supposedly shortened the length of days by 6.8 microseconds. One could easily say that all of these events add up, but it also works the other way around, as certain shifts of mass can also lengthen days, in a microscopic sort of way, as well. I’m not going to list all of the events, such as earthquakes that have had a minuscule effect on Earth’s axis, as this planet has been shaking and quaking for quite a long while, to say the least!

Without any overly complicated data or extra technology involved, as many of you know, the Earth’s axis tilt, which is roughly 23.4 degrees +/-, is the reason for the seasons on Earth. …So any type of major shift or a bunch of minor ones that accumulate over time, will definitely have a major impact on this planet’s weather and seismic activity, no matter what some people may try to tell ya! I don’t know about you, but there seems to be less transitional periods between Summer time and Winter time, than it used to be. Basically, what I’m saying is, there seemed to be longer Spring & Fall times, in the past – at least where I live. Then again, the weather changes like our moods and last year’s winter was rather mild in my area, but it was a little colder this year, so go figure…

Now, what about all of this polar ice that continues to melt? It seems that this major event has been getting swept under the rug for the last couple of decades. I’ve even read in the past, how a lot of polar imagery has been censored by the government, but I don’t know how true that claim is. However, after reading my post about Antarctica (Lake Vostok – Mystery at the Center of Antarctica) [Link is temporarily inactive since I haven't re-posted it yet], for example, there may be exposure to some of those cool alien underground facilities or hidden bunkers down there, but who knows… right? But in all seriousness, “sea ice is always melting near one pole while growing around the other, but the overall trend year to year (at least the last several years) is dramatically less ice in the Arctic and slightly more in the Antarctic.” You can read more about that on an article entitled “Antarctic Sea Ice Growth Pales in Comparison To Arctic Losses,” which you can find, here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/10/antarctic-sea-ice_n_1955662.html [link is no longer active]

I once wrote a web page that was a parody about the polar shift, and it involved a humorous weight displacement theory along with a proportional imbalance from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere, that could cause a polar shift. Well, when you factor in all the weight that we are losing up top via the melting of ice, this theory may hold true after all. Within that post, though, I was comparing overweight Americans getting balanced out by large mammals from Africa, etc., as a joke; ha!

At any rate, changes to the Earth’s rotation are not only caused by massive earthquakes, as supposedly larger effects are seen with oceanic currents and atmospheric winds, but lets not leave out my concern (among many others) about the changes brought about by the melting of polar ice along with the mass redistributions in the mantle. Also, in addition to this, we should all know that a major impact from a comet or a large asteroid would also affect the tilt of Earth’s axis, but why add to the doom & gloom chatter, eh?

Of course, the gravitational pull of other celestial bodies could also impact our axis and cause an ongoing shift that disrupts our weather, rotation, etc. 

If any Planet X/Nibiru Guru wannabes land on this post, please try to not wet yourself in the comment field while typing about all the swill & slop you have read on conspiracy theorist-type websites and/or how Planet X is the cause for every problem on Earth and/or how hordes of Barbarians from Planet Ogo are coming soon to take over the Hollow Earth and the new leader will rise from the south pole and cast wrath upon thee; blah, blah…  LOL! 

Anyway, I would type more, but since this is one of those subjects that is better left for the comment field, I’ll leave it at that. I must remind you, though, regardless of this crazed, shifted notion by way of the precarious Earth’s axis, if the melting of the ice caps truly gets out of hand, we might find a lot of flooding issues and water contamination going on, so use some common sense and think of ways to filtrate, purify and store clean drinking water, if ya get my drift … or was that shift? Ha!

Now, if you’d like to read a more complicated version of this subject, I’ll provide a couple additional links below:

The Seasons and the Earth’s Orbit: https://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/seasons_orbit

Axial Tilt: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axial_tilt

Image Credit: Creative Commons as is provided in the Wikipedia link above.

---End of Post "Has the Earth’s Axis Shifted? Polar Ice Melting..."

Black Holes & Spiral Galaxies

This is an old blog post that I transferred here from another website of mine that I recently deleted. The original date of this post is January 9th, 2012.

Well, I’ve just been running into debatable subjects all week it seems, like I mentioned on my last post about Altruism & Conscience.  I never thought there was much to debate about on whether or not black holes exist, but that the questions would be more about understanding them and how they work.  One of the biggest questions non-scientific people often ask doesn’t really have to do with the concepts behind it, by what scientists theorize.  That question would be:  What is on the other side of a black hole?  Of course, a creative science fiction answer would be:  Another dimension or perhaps another universe.  Sounds great, but is that true? [Nah, probably not. Sure, there could definitely be other dimensions and universes, but a "black hole" is a doubtful portal to such.]

Well, it seems more like black holes create or shall I say “form” spiral galaxies for this 3-dimensional universe, and that black holes are formed from large dying stars.  It sounds more like a recycle bin, galactic garbage can, and a galaxy creator, if ya ask me.  I noticed many years ago, before I ever heard such talk (before the Internet was available and everybody was a genius or a feign online scientist), while looking through my space books and encyclopedias, that spiral galaxies appeared as if they were spiraling down a toilet, as if a hole or vacuum formed it, etc.  Now, many years later, scientists are openly stating such things.  Damn, all I did was look at the pretty pictures, and came to that conclusion as a kid.  Well, I’m not going to blog about the joys of intuition, as that would be another subject; ha!  

The universe is so vast that the sheer size of the cosmos is beyond our comprehension, as we can only theorize, use deductive reasoning, logic, and rational thoughts to a certain point.  …And after a while, it all becomes land of the woo-woos for us humanoids, but ain’t it fun, though? 

Now, back to this black hole stuff…  Here’s an excerpt from NASA’s website: “Don’t let the name fool you: a black hole is anything but empty space. Rather, it is a great amount of matter packed into a very small area – think of a star ten times more massive than the Sun squeezed into a sphere approximately the diameter of New York City. The result is a gravitational field so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. In recent years, NASA instruments have painted a new picture of these strange objects that are, to many, the most fascinating objects in space.”

I mentioned earlier that they are formed from large dying stars, going by what I have read and studied in the past.  Personally, I haven’t buzzed around the cosmos lately, since my high-tech flying saucers are all out of order at the moment and in desperate need of repair.  But, as NASA states on their website: “Most black holes form from the remnants of a large star that dies in a supernova explosion. (Smaller stars become dense neutron stars, which are not massive enough to trap light.) If the total mass of the star is large enough (about three times the mass of the Sun), it can be proven theoretically that no force can keep the star from collapsing under the influence of gravity.”  Sounds good to me…  You can read more about this subject, here:  https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/black-holes/ 

Anyway, one of the main reasons why I’m doing this post, is because some clown (along with several others) that was on a discussion forum while claiming to be knowledgeable in all subjects related to science, space, astrophysics, etc., said that black holes are fairy tales and voodoo for stupid mathematicians.  WTF?  This is the same guy that also has to “Google” everything for most of his replies, but somehow got lost in his/her own black hole on that particular subject.  Once again, the word “hole” is what screws some people up, as it does sound like they are describing something that rips a hole through the fabric of space and whatnot, but that’s not what they mean – at least at the moment, but then again, scientific understandings of the universe tend to change over time, so who really freakin’ knows?  

Now, back to this multiple dimension stuff… If we are talking about a possible way to travel through the cosmos by way of a shortcut and/or possibly into another universe, dimension, whatever, I would at least use a theory involving wormholes, artificial or natural, but not black holes, unless I just felt like being funny and wanted to get in touch with my inner science fictional fantasies…

I suppose there is no reason for me to delve into the land of wormholes, since there is, at the time I’m writing this, no observational evidence for such, just theory, etc.   If you’re interested, just do what a lot of these self-professed gurus do online and perform Internet searches for it so you can be an expert within minutes and can call yourself a “scientist,” as well.  After you copy & paste some material into the comment sections and/or use ’em for forum replies, you can achieve the credit that took some people years to learn.  Ha-ha!  Okay, enough jokes about that asinine crap…

Spiral Galaxies…  What a beauty they are to look at, thanks to NASA.  Another good thing about their images, is that they are not copyright material and can be posted and shared by anyone.  Speaking of such, I was going to end this post with a few images of these spectacular spiral galaxies.  Oh, by the way, in case you’re really young or not very educated, we live within a spiral galaxy called the Milky Way, just saying…  LOL!

Oh, and one more thing before I drop down the galactic depictions:  If you’re interested in a book that elaborately covers several topics related to black holes, wormholes, and time warps along with many other interesting subjects, all in an easy-to-understand fashion, go here: “Kip S. Thorne – Black Holes & Time Warps – Einstein’s Outrageous Legacy – The Book” [link is no longer active]

Images of Spiral Galaxies via NASA; click to enlarge:

Related Blog Link: “Galactic Cluster – Images from the Cosmos” [link is no longer active]

Image Credits: NASA - Not under copyright - Free to Share & Use

---End of Post “Black Holes & Spiral Galaxies”

Solar Storms & Flares – NASA Video

This is an old blog post that I moved here from another website of mine that I recently deleted. The original, exact date of this post is lost, but it was sometime during the fantastic year of 2012.

Well, many of you have most likely heard a lot of talk about doomsday, end of the world babble, Mayan Prophesies, Dec. 21, 2012 chatter, and a lot of other verbiage concerning global disasters, mega earthquakes, storms, solar flares, a polar shift, and the works.

Now, before we get too excited, one must realize that the weather is about as unpredictable as a woman (Ha-ha!  Just kidding…).  No matter what year it is, natural disaster can strike, and cataclysmic events can occur.  This “end of the world 2012” talk has sort of got hyped up by the media and uneducated drama queens, for example.  On this post, I’m not getting into any of that other stuff, as this particular blog entry is intended to be a quick video post via NASA, about solar storms and flares.

Now, you may ask:  Should I be worried about major solar flares and/or storms from the sun during the next several months?  Well, I would say that it isn’t a bad idea to be prepared for an electrical blackout, if the worst-case scenario takes place.  You know, like stock up on canned goods, ammunition for your guns, alcohol (if you like booze), etc.  Most likely, since we have the technology to detect the flares and solar storms while knowing when they are coming to Earth a couple days before impact, we will have a better chance for taking preventative measures that may help protect our power grids, etc.

But, in fact, scientists are warning that when they hit, if large enough, they could potentially knock out power grids, GPS satellites, airline communications and incite nuclear meltdowns. The solar flare cycle occurs about every 11 years and is expected to reach its peak of activity (on this current cycle) around June 2013 or thereabouts.  The cycle starts with the flares slowly calming down, becoming relatively dormant, then picking back up until it peaks near the end of its 11-year cycle.  This has been going on, as long as we can tell, for a very, very long time.

Here’s an example of the effect they can have:  In 1989, a solar flare damaged a power grid in Quebec, Canada, cutting power for hours to millions of people.  [Blog Insert: Do they make bicycle-based generators?] But, it could have been worse…

The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory spacecraft captured this image of a solar flare as it erupted from the sun early on Tuesday, October 28, 2003. This was the most powerful flare measured with modern methods. Credit: NASA/SOHO:

Okay, well, NASA says that “killer solar flares are a physical impossibility,” but they can obviously cause major problems if they are big enough in today’s world.  I’m sure we have had some really big ones down through the history of mankind, but there wouldn’t have been much of an effect then, since we didn’t have all that technical stuff, electrical devices, communication systems, and so on, back then. One good thing, when it comes to solar storms, is that we have a fairly thick atmosphere that protects us from outside radiation.

Anyway, instead of reading about what I may have to say about this tempestuous/stormy subject, check out the video from NASA, below:

Related External Links: “Solar Flares threaten to disrupt devices…” [link is no longer active] and “NASA – 2012: Killer Solar Flares Are a Physical Impossibility”

Semi-related Blog Link: “The Mystery of Fire – who in the hell discovered it?"

---End of Post “Solar Storms & Flares – NASA Video”

The Mystery of Fire – who in the hell discovered it?

This is an old blog post from a website of mine that I recently deleted. The original date of this post is sometime during the year 2011. All of the images below are my own. But anyway, let's get on with it...

Who in the hell, first discovered fire?

A campfire encountering a blaze of glory...

It is a simple question, in a way, but cloudy at the same time. It is not clear who, what or when fire was first discovered, but there are many estimated conjectures out there…

First of all, let's clear up one commonly misphrased question. A lot of people, and even many an article has been written with the terms or subject line: “who invented fire?” You can’t invent something that happens naturally. Anyway… It’s a debatable matter and somewhat of a mystery, but some of the earliest evidence of fire usage dates back 1.5 to 1.9 million years ago, thereabouts. Scientific data suggest that it was used in Africa by the early humans, ‘Homo erectus’ – the hominid before our beloved race of today’s raging, rifely rampant Homo sapiens with radical rhetoric. But was it controlled way back then (1.9 +/- million years ago) or was it maintained from natural causes?

With Homo erectus often getting credit for being the original fire starters, it brings many questions, like I mentioned above, as to whether they made fire or if they found it and/or discovered it and simply preserved it. By ‘finding’ it, I mean to find it in natural form…as fire cannot be invented since it can also occur naturally. And by ‘preserving’ it, I’m implying that they could have transported hot embers from place to place, to re-start new fires – hey, some hunter-gatherers in the past, did this.

But, as the old story goes, it was some caveman rubbing sticks together…maybe clashing stones or rocks, seen a spark and got the idea about the relations between friction & heat; who in the hell knows? The point is, nobody really has a definite answer when it comes to how this mystery of scorching bliss started or how it came into use for light, heat sources, and for cooking methods; it just happened, I suppose…

Like I’ve said in the past, maybe some aliens, from long ago, came down in a spaceship and displayed some pyrotechnics, then provided some know-how on how to start a fire – for these primitive beings. When it comes to aliens or an “outer entity” being the origin of this self-made version of a flaming heat source for Earth’s inhabitants, it can be proven about as much as any other fire-starting theory. Lightning could have simply struck a tree around these primates, or maybe the mythical god “Zeus” dropped down and got pissed off at what he seen, shot some bolts of fury and left. Hmm, that sounds familiar, ha-ha! You tell me…

For more humorous suggestions, incorrect info, and fantasy data, etc., go here: http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Fire [link is no longer active] But just remember, that last link was for entertainment purposes only, as they sure as hell aren’t correct…

Now, for the real reason and motive behind this post: Have you ever wanted to make a primitive ‘fire ring’ consisting of real riverbed rocks or creek rocks, placed in a circle? I don’t mean a modern fire pit with bricks & mortar, I mean one that even a caveman could have built, back in the day. I’ve done it and also have a couple pictures below to display. It is not that hard to do, albeit this does require a little effort. If you have the land space, simply clear out a circle, dig a small pit, add the rocks around it, and presto…let's make a fire.

I think most people enjoy the campfire scenes. But, after thinking about the history of it all, maybe we enjoy it in such a way that we don’t even consciously realize…sort of like we’re subconsciously getting back in touch with our primitive roots, perhaps? Either way, a toasty flame is always nice during the cold winter months. Some people like to roast food over it, but nearly all of us enjoy the view – as long as we are not inside or within the hellish inferno, LOL!

Caveman’s Fire Ring – Pre-ignition:

An encirclement of creek rocks, to bound the future fires...

Caveman says, “I want winter fire, now!” 

It was a frigid day, so I started a furious fire amid the snow. Okay, I cheated; I used gasoline, ha-ha! 

Image Credits: My own photos. Feel free to use or share these images as long as you provide a link back to this blog. Thanks!

---End of Post "The Mystery of Fire – who in the hell discovered it?"

Semi-related Posts:

* Who first discovered popcorn?

* How did Christopher Columbus discover America?

Will Humans ever Colonize Outer Space? Colonization of Mars?

This will be a 2-part post. Please note, both of these are old articles that I wrote years ago on another website of mine. Since I recently deleted that website, I decided to move some of the content amid multiple blogs of mine. On this particular post, Part 1 was written back in 2012, and Part 2 was from early 2013. 

Part 1: "Will Humans ever Colonize Outer Space?"

Original Post Date: 9-23-2012

Personally, I’m almost tired of hearing about space colonization, which just adds to the reasons why this latest “Curiosity Mission” featuring a big rover on planet Mars searching for microbial life and whatever else, interests me about as much as an article written about hemorrhoids.

Even as a small child, I remember reading and thinking about space stations being set up for humanoid advancement, but yet, after all this time, still no advancement has been made – even though billions of dollars are constantly being wasted on asinine research that is about as useful as finding a way to help a Bonobo scratch his/her genitalia in a more effective fashion. Sure, you can read about life on the ISS (Internation Space Station), but that is not what I mean by advancements. I'm talking about sustainable living conditions where you can grow enough food for a colony, provide your own oxygen, be energy independent, extract and mine for all of your water & resources and build from there.

This subject recently came to mind, when I was talking to some conspiracy theorist online that basically told me that we are not allowed to have manned spaceships in space (in certain areas) due to some type of alien law… WTF? Is that really the reason? Maybe the cost of building massive outer space colonies and the fact that we, HUMANS, are not biologically built for deep space travel are partly to blame – and that all the travelling required for the betterment of mankind is right here on Earth, for the time being. I mean seriously, the mind is a universe in itself, so why not use it!?

To make this a little more interesting, let's go ahead and bring up the fact that we, humanoids, might also have a problem procreating on a space station due to the cosmic radiation, so WE (as much as I hate to say it) better temporarily pull the plug on science fiction and figure this thing out for real, if we are serious about living in deep space. By the way, would constant exposure to the factors of outer space also turn our muscles into spaghetti? I actually made a comment on that cosmic spaghetti post a couple years ago, #20th comment under the name "perpendicularity" and it was funny that I found it still there today. [link: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/08/19/a-trip-to-mars-could-reduce-astronauts-muscles-to-spaghetti/]

At any rate, do common folks really think these issues are easily overcome by simply hitting a button or flipping a switch? This ain’t cell phone technology, and your I-Pod can’t save you, as I’m talking about living in Outer Space, outside of Earth, for the rest of your pathetic lives…

Now, back to the procreation point:

Researchers at the agency’s Ames Research Centre in California found that without effective shielding on spacecraft, powerful proton particles would probably sterilize any female embryo conceived in deep space – in addition to the probability that male fertility was also likely to be negatively affected (due to a negative impact on the sperm count). Unless we advance to greater speeds, travel to distant planets is likely to take decades, centuries or longer, and this could make any mission to colonize other environments a non-starter. The scientists noted that space-shield technology is currently not sufficiently advanced enough to offer an ample amount of protection from this type of radiation.

Here’s a quote from this page (http://theweek.com/article/index/212267/why-humans-will-never-colonize-space), here: Why couldn’t humans colonize outer space?

“Because any child conceived and born in space is likely to be born sterile. Scientists at NASA say that the high levels of radiation in space would kill any female fetus’ lifetime supply of eggs, while males in the womb would likely become sterile. The child could also suffer “mental and physical defects” from exposure to harmful radiation.”

We need an atmosphere to protect us, is the bottom line. Sure, if we could somehow inhabit Mars and find a way to make it work, then yes, we could most likely procreate without the ill effects of damaging radiation, but I wouldn’t bet money on it! I’m totally an original series Star Trek fan, but unless we get some serious help from an alien race (one can only guess the motive), then it looks like it is going to take a little longer than expected!

---Side Note: If I was a conspiracy theorist, I’d be having a ball with this post and would fill the comment field full of interesting junk that is featured from today’s most popular reject websites…

Anyway, when it is all said and done, we let ourselves get ahead in thought before practicality, albeit I still favor imagination and intuition. …This is normal, but many of us shoot for the stars before we are able to properly hit the targets here on this planet (or is that called “shooting yourself in the foot?”). Even though the main question on this post is “Will humans ever colonize outer space?” – an even better question may concern the query as to whether or not we can co-exist with Mother Nature. Ha! What do you think?  No, never? During the next 10 years?  Anywhere from 10 to 40 years? Or perhaps you couldn’t care less about fully self-sufficient space stations or what we colonize, either way. Ha!

Whether or not you believe that humans will have success even within our own solar system, have you ever heard of this crazy book: “Interplanetary Travel: Secret Journey to Planet Serpo“

---End of Part 1: "Will Humans ever Colonize Outer Space?"

Part 2: "Will the Colonization of Mars be possible for Humans?"

Original Post Date: 3-4-2013

This article will act as a sequel to the one I wrote a while back, entitled “Will Humans ever Colonize Outer Space?”

…Going by the current poll results from that page, after analyzing the data from the massive 15 votes it received, it seems that 40% of the people think that outer space colonization will be possible in 10 to 40 years via space stations. 33% says that they couldn’t care less about stupid space stations and are still thinking about procreating on Earth. 20% simply say “no” and 7% of those voters say that it will be less than 10 years from now, but hold on to your seats, as the votes are still pouring in… [The Poll is no longer available]

Wow! With this particular piece of data that I have recently collected, I am now ready to become an aspiring author and write a book that describes the possible birth defects of space babies, only to be followed up with a wonderful novel that entails cattle mutilations & cow abductions from UFOs and why the aliens are displeased with McDonald’s version of 100% beef burgers… Just think, I’ll be rich way before these Earth-bound humanoids get the space stations built… Hurrah!

At any less than insane rate, I am getting way off track here. This post is about planet Mars and the not-so-far-fetched idea of human colonization on the Red Planet.

I’m sure that many of you have heard about the project “Mars One.” If everything goes as planned, from the time I’m writing this, they say that certain humans from this planet will land on Mars 10 years from now, during 2023. For those of you that are not aware of this project, check out the short video, below: [Video is no longer available. Hmm... I wonder what happened? Ha!]

Of course, for these “Mars One” folks, it is a one-way trip; if you journey to Mars, you shall stay until you die. I know they will have plenty of volunteers sign up that meet the requirements to go, that is, if this project unfolds as predicted, but that is one boat I would never get on. Unless I knew for a fact that this planet was about to be blasted into mass extinction, (Where is the Hollow Earth Theory when you need it?) etc., I would not go. Anyway, that is what they are saying now, but if everything goes successfully and they can sustain life on the Red Planet, then you know dang well they could come back to Earth, no matter what they claim within their program.

Okay, whether or not we should be concentrating on doing this or not, let's focus on the “why” and what good could spawn from it and/or how it could help humanity. Personally, I’m not interested in hearing about that little rover thingy they got buzzing around Mars at the moment, especially since one of the main goals NASA is currently speaking about is how they are seeking out evidence for Martian microbial life from planet Mars. WTF? I would hope that all the ungodly amounts of money spent on NASA’s Mars rover “Curiosity,” was for a little more than dusting rocks, taking crappy images, and wandering around aimlessly while looking for signs of microbial life. It would at least make more sense if it was an extensive study to help safeguard future trips and provide us with better insight, if and/or when humans decide to try and land on Mars or even colonize the place, for that matter.

Now, back to the “why” part of the equation. First, I’ll provide a couple links that cover this subject somewhat elaborately, in case you need something else to peruse over before forming an opinion, but either way, you can always tell me why you think we should or shouldn’t try to colonize Mars in the future by utilizing the comment field below.

* http://www.redcolony.com/features.php?name=whycolonizemars [Why Colonize Mars?]

* http://www.nss.org/settlement/mars/zubrin-colonize.html [The Case for Colonizing Mars]

[Update: It appears that neither of those links exist anymore in the year 2022.]

The reason why the colonization of Mars by humans is something to take somewhat seriously, is firstly because of the surface conditions, such as the availability of frozen ground water. Even though the Moon, due to its close distance from Earth, has been proposed as the first location for human colonization, lunar gravity is only 16% that of Earth’s while the gravity from our Martian Red Planet is a more substantial 38%. There is more water present on Mars than the Moon, and Mars has a thin atmosphere. These factors give Mars a greater potential capacity to host organic life and human colonization than the moon, and definitely looks like a more productive, quicker option than the fantastical space stations we once dreamed about, at least for now…

There are loads of possibilities that come with the notion of colonizing Mars, including the mining of minerals & resources for easy transport back to Earth and the ability to have other means to produce food from another planet to help feed an overly populated one, such as Earth, if we continue to thrive without a massive population decline due to severe cataclysmic events, etc. (Feel free to read about the Terraforming of Mars, here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terraforming_of_Mars)

Plus, we would be even closer to the asteroid belt, so there should be lots of goodies to explore there, as well. On the downside, challenges such as low gravity, solar radiation and space weather, retaining atmosphere and water, etc., make the terraforming of Mars a little more difficult than slapping down a few positive remarks on paper and whatnot.

I suppose there is too much to cover on this subject for one post, so I’ll stop right here…

So, what do you think?  Will it be possible for us crafty little humans to succeed in the colonization of Mars?

—End of Part 2: "Will the Colonization of Mars be possible for Humans?" (Date 3-4-2013)

Image Credits: perpendicularity.org/blog/ [link is no longer active]

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Satire: Reasons for the Polar Shift – Revealed!

Please Note: This is an old post from a website of mine that I recently deleted, so I decided to transfer it here. I wrote this way back during the time period when the terms "polar shift" was a popular, semi-debatable thing, especially amongst the throngs of conspiracy theorists and the 2012 end-of-the-world specialists. Either way, I decided to make a parody and/or satire of this subject during those times. The original date of this post was April 3rd, 2012. Yep, that was nearly 10 years ago...

Hold on to your seat, folks; we are in for a new awakening!

I’m about to tell ya what the Mayans and ancient prophets never knew…

Pay no attention to the scientists, as they seem to become more clueless by the day.

If you fear that the end is coming, think not, as there is still hope, if we act fast!

No, I’m not charging you $19.95 for a secret pamphlet that reveals all the answers via all-knowing knowledge of nothingness, as what I’m about to tell you came from the greatest prophet known to man, which is a French Fry guy at McDonald’s that took a couple hits of LSD during the process! Yes, true awakening is at hand…

I keep hearing all of this talk about an upcoming Polar Shift at the end of 2012 and how the ultimate Doomsday is upon us…

Well, let me explain, and without you paying me anything, the true global secrets shall be revealed!

Put down your Big Macs and say “hold” on the super-sized French fries at your local fast-food joint, as that is part of the freakin’ problem!

Excessive amounts of lipids got you down? Well, Mother Nature feels the same way…

Ya see, dear mortals, the upcoming Polar Shift is not due to some cosmic event or from some gravitational misalignment by way of Planet X, Planet Nibiru, Eris or some other foreign celestial body of mass heading this way, it is simply because of the “weight displacement theory” of mankind.

As we should all know, obesity is a big problem in America and in a lot of other areas in the Northern Hemisphere, and things are about to turn on its side in due time!

The large mammals from the southern hemisphere like the Hippos, Elephants, Rhinoceroses, etc., have been acting as a counterbalance for thousands of years. …And now that the American diet has plagued not only America, of course, it has also spread to China, Europe, etc.

Well, you see, we got too much weight up here on the Northern Hemisphere, folks!

Even the mighty land mammals down south, are having a hard time balancing this thing out! Please, back away from the table, fellow gluts; put the fork down, and start eating less junk, folks, before we turn the deserts into the arctic tundra, and the jungle into barren land!

We have this globe-like thingy, an Earth, if ya will, that spins life around the sun at a constant rate. Mother Nature is awesome in all its glory, but has never been able to grow candy bars, pies, and cakes from the ground, for example. Humans constantly make these things SHE cannot, which pisses her off, so Mother Nature factors in the French Fry guy’s “polar shift via weight displacement theory” from a local McDonald’s, and she is thinking about making it happen. She says, “look, dear bitches, bastards and beloved heathens, along with the lovely gluts and flatulent f*cks, if ya keep eating what I don’t provide, I’m going to let this thing shift as it wants; it is your world and so be it.”

Well, ladies and gentlemen, there you have it. The reasons for the possible Polar Shift have been revealed!

You didn’t need to go to Bible college, study ancient history or have a science degree after all, just a little common sense about weight displacement and obesity… We got too much weight up here on the top half of the planet, so please treat those Elephants, Rhinos, and other large mammals down south, with a little extra care, eh? …As they are the only beings that are currently keeping the possible polar shift and erratic Earth wobble, somewhat in check. Cheers! LOL!

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