Peter Smith, principal investigator for the Phoenix Mar’s Mission, reports that the new results from the Mission’s MECA test laboratory show that the surface layers of the martian soil are very inhospitable to life. These new results directly conflict with the first MECA results that indicated the soil was hospitable for life.

These findings from the MECA team come directly on the heals of those rumors I mentioned before. What’s surprising is the Smith himself in email correspondence with SPACE.com stated that no one from NASA had contacted the White House regarding results from the mission, or the possibility of life.

Smith may be releasing these results to dispel the rumors, but know that the rumors are out there it is only somewhat likely that the release of these results is designed to throw us off any qualms we had before.  What’s interesting is how Smith mixes words.  He states the upon “further analysis [there is an] un-Earthlike aspect of the soil chemistry.”  What I find interesting is that I wouldn’t consider a whole new experiment to be further analysis, this would suggest that there was something wrong with the first analysis, otherwise this is new analysis.  The point is small but it gives us an insight into how Smith is thinking here.  If it is further analysis, it is less likely to be compared side-by-side with the previous analysis, but if it is new analysis that is a polar opposite of the old analysis then there is an opening for debate and discussion.

Interesting things to watch, supposedly there is a press conference today relating to the the new results.  All-in-all, impressive bungling of the news again, by NASA.

Leonard David of LiveScience.com seems to be on the uppity regarding some “buzz” about what’s going on off-world, namely on the world of Mars.  He reports that the buzz is related to some “provocative new news” regarding life on the planet.  Provocative enough to warrant alerting the White House to new evidence for the “potential for life,” as reported by Craig Covault AW&ST, and noted by David.

The potential for the life definition that is floating around the various mission control and analysis centers seems to be two-fold. 

• Are the basic building blocks of life existent, in a usable capacity, by some known organisms operating is such similar harsh conditions on Earth?

- Or -

• Can we simply skip the building blocks all together and provide evidence that life did exist or does exist on Mars? The former being through fossilized remains or certain life proving signatures in the experiments.

The conditions upon which NASA sent Phoenix to Mars, specifically to the polar region, seem to warrant the latter of the above two conditionals.  David phrases it this way, that the data sent to the White House:

“…relates to why the Phoenix Mars lander was sent to its arctic landing spot in the first place: To learn about whether or not Mars could be or has been an address for life.” (Emphasis mine)

Though this all seems rather hush-hush for some life-altering current affairs (life-altering because life, or such, on Mars means with certain definitiveness that Life exists in the Universe).  David notes that it’s not being reported and being kept under-wraps by the Mars scientists because of an upcoming paper “and press release that appears likely to pop out of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and its Science magazine.”  There are a few things that lead me to believe that the scientists are only looking at the building blocks of life, though; which would still be significant but where there are building blocks, the question remains is there a maker?

One point is the fact that they are waiting to publish their findings in a journal.  All-in-all peer review for experiments conducted millions of miles away isn’t exactly doable.  But with the aftermath of the 1996 Mars Arctic Rock findings, I commend NASA and colleagues for going so far as to wait for the Journal publication.  But if there is or was life on Mars, I can believe the White House notification, but waiting for a Journal entry seems like one jump to many for such a finding… either there is or there isn’t; the question of life cannot be left to circumstantial evidence that needs to be “reviewed.”

Which ever the case may be - building blocks to life, or life itself, I’m sure that the buzz is warranted and time will tell.  If the White House has already been alerted to the evidence, the paper, and more so “press conference” are already in the works, an announcement should come quite soon.  Can we expect an 8.8.8 announcement?  Would NASA risk such an announcement against the better judgement and letting the ‘well-scheduled’ Olympics play out?  If NASA had better judgement I’d say that’d be a moot point, but we all know how that one ends.

I’ll soon be setting up a Wordpress to handle my photographic side.  You can see most of my shots at my Gallery, and on my Flickr, but if I could handle photographs the same way I can handle my blog that would be a nice new pinnacle.

Wordpress is an easily used package that performs well.  As a Content Management System I believe it could perform just the same.  The problem is, when one is designing for Wordpress, and wants to use Wordpress to their benefit for non-contemporary executions, you have to think outside the box.

I’ll be setting up my site over at Photography.PresidenToor.  Currently the site just redirects to a gallery where you can place orders for some of my works.

Overall what this means is that the Wordpress platform can be used outside the realm of blogging, which is really exciting.. it’s like web 3.0.  This is a generally new area, using blogging technologies for non-blogging musings, all the while enhancing communication and trying to reach as many people as possible.

Before Obama went on his Tour of the World (a.k.a running for President of the World), the McCain Campaign stated it would use the week, rid of Obama, to focus on domestic issues.  But not everybody in the McCain campaign had the same idea, namely John McCain.

The week began alright (namely just the first day in the week) but as Tuesday started and progressed things were not going as planned as McCain started veering “off-topic” for the weeks original goal.  As his campaign staff (in all their flustered glory) attempted to re-route and just plainly route John McCain towards domestic issues the man at the top, himself, began dipping his toes into Foreign Policy issues.  At PRessers McCain would take questions from every reporter, most would ask for McCain’s reactions to what the future President of the World was saying overseas which would get McCain talking it up on Foreign Policy and really just blatantly bashing Obama, pretty much as bad as McCain’s ads are, which makes me wonder who’s really doing the talking (is that a run-on?).  His campaign obviously stepped in Wednesday when the Campaign revoked his press availablity.

But McCain, or God, would have none of it, and canceled a planned trip to an offshore oil rig in Louisiana (which would obviously help shine light on some of that Domestic Policy - stuff).  The event was canceled due to weather, like a large frick’n hurricane system in the area.

Now his plans to show up in Columbus, Ohio, tomorrow are said to be scrapped.  It just so happens that Barrack is planning his big campaign rally over in Berlin, Germany that same day (where he’ll explain to the German’s why he would be the best President for Earth). 

It also just so happens that the week started with the greatest zing-banger of them all - senial, treason-worthy, blind, hit-and-runnerBob Novak reported that a senior McCain campaign aide (likely senior here means that the aide was over 65) told him that McCain would likely choose a Vice President running mate this week.

(And just a little bit about the piece of trash Novak is:

“David Bono, the bicyclist who witnessed the incident, told The Associated Press that the pedestrian was hit in a crosswalk and was splayed across Novak’s windshield.”

And Novak said:

Novak told WJLA-TV he was cited for failing to yield the right of way. He said he didn’t realize what happened and continued driving until a bicyclist stopped him.

Really?)

The news media took the Novak scoop to the streets, and the streets didn’t really care.  Why?  Because frick’n Obama is flying around the world, man… duh.

McCain, however, couldn’t stick to the plan.  He brazenly leaked to the press that he may choose a VP this week in a tactic to minimize Obama’s coverage on the networks.  He arrogantly ignored the advice of just about everybody, including his staff, and refused to stop answering questions on Foreign Policy, and to focus on Domestic Policy, in an attempt to weaken Obama (even though whatever McCain says can only ever measure up to a twig, trying to hit a stone).  And now, he plans a surprise on Thursday, maybe?  Or maybe not.

Do we really want a brazen and arrogant man as President?  Why the hell not! I’m an American and I’ll do damn well what I please.

We’ll see.

Pictured here is Joint Chief of Staff Admiral Mullen sporting the new Navy Uniform.  I must say that the uniform is quite spiffy.  A nice throwback to the WWII era, but I have to say that it’s not different enough.  I am of the opinion that all the armed services need a major overhaul of it’s uniform system.

In any case it is a welcome change.

What amazes me is when people take one issue, build a pedestal and put it on there.  Then they dance around it beating some drawn sheep skin drum, shaking violently, and making all sorts of noises.  Case in point, each one of Obama’s policies.

In the beginning Obama said we need to sit down and talk to Iran, and what has the Bush Administration decided to do?  Sit down and talk to Iran.

In the beginning Obama said we need a timetable for the withdrawal from Iraq.  He stated that the troops have done their job and it was time for the Iraqis to stand up.  Apparently the much heralded Prime Minister of Iraq thinks so to.  However he also thought the same before, after he said all that we had the First Iraqi Civil War, who knows what will happen this time.  But the Bush Administration thinks it’s going to be all right.  They’re setting horizons.  Oh yeah.  That’s right, horizons.  Because they don’t need no stinken timetables.

He was, however, dead wrong when it came to having opposition towards the surge.  The surge by it’s very name relegates any concoction of such a thing to be at the very mosta bad tasting and overly priced energy drink.  But, by whatever name it goes, the increase in troops has effectively won the war. 

Overall though, 2 out of 3 ain’t bad (it’s better then the 1 out of 3 for McCain, on these same issues).  Any rational, logical, sane, fair-minded, independent, grounded individual would take a look at this and say who wins?  Who’s the better candidate?  And surely any sane, grounded person would choose Obama.  And surely, in America, there are some sane people left.

Below is a fundamental opinion of the Supreme Court that is resounding, in its implication. The quote comes from the concurring majority opinion delivered in the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center Case heard by the Supreme Court during their Spring ‘08 session.

The necessary implication of the
argument is that by surrendering formal sovereignty over
any unincorporated territory to a third party, while at the
same time entering into a lease that grants total control
over the territory back to the United States, it would be
possible for the political branches to govern without legal
constraint.

Our basic charter cannot be contracted away like this.
The Constitution grants Congress and the President the
power to acquire, dispose of, and govern territory, not the
power to decide when and where its terms apply. Even
when the United States acts outside its borders, its powers
are not “absolute and unlimited” but are subject “to such
restrictions as are expressed in the Constitution.”

The opinion of this editor is that several “agreements” we have with other nations would violate this declaration of the Sp. Ct. For example extra-ordinary rendition would violate this, as the techniques used in areas where the United States “acts” are most assuredly violating the “restrictions as expressed in the Constitution.” Agents acting in the name of the Country (and Constitution) are violating the basic natural rights granted to all human beings but on a legal precedence they are violating the 8th Amendment (of course if they disavowed their loyalty to the homeland and repeated the acts they could be prosecuted within the homeland but no restrictions could be placed upon them without a warrant).

Interesting indeed, it would be, to see what cases might arise in the future that would use this prcedence in their favor.

Most assuredly the world will soon end…

- In the Ocean.  Proponents of oil drilling say that by drilling off the shores of America we will boost the homeland supply of oil.  This is true, but you kinda have to have an oil platform over the oil deposit.  These deposits are also hard to get to, thousands of feet below the sea, and once they are tapped the natural gas needs to be separated from the crude oil (among other things that need to be separated).  It’s all well and good, though; the oil may be hard to get to, and the parsing may take much resources, but over all it’s costly.  So, yes you’ll boost the amount of homeland oil supplies but each barrel will cost more as it costs more to produce.

The idea is that if Congress allows for more drilling on the continental shelf, or if States take such action irrespective of Congressional rule, speculators in the market will lower the price of oil futures and therein lower the prices at the pump - believing that because the future oil supply will be greater, it’s price should therein be less.  However, if each barrel of future oil pumped has a higher production cost, costs that we can’t even begin to estimate today, then speculators will not lower the price on future oil because companies will simply not sell it unless there is a “typical” profit, whatver typical may be in the future.  We don’t know exactly if this theory will hold up as the future draws near, but it’s not called speculation because there is an inherint amount of trust in that which one speculates upon.  No oil speculator would simply “believe” that future oil barrels will be produced efficiently when today’s oil producing companies flatly state the worlds oil supplies are getting harder to get to with less of a redeemable quality with each step farther into the Earth.

But perhaps you do find a prospectable oil field off our sea shores, all you need is for the State or Congress (which brings up a whole Federalism issue, I don’t know if it’s been resolved at this time) to open up drilling on the continental shelf.  You still need that oil platform, which don’t just appear miraculously over the oil deposit at the flick of the governmental pen.  They are costly to build and repair, the more of them the more they cost to repair, plus mother nature doesn’t seem to be taking a break any time soon.  What’s most important, though, is that Oil Rigs need to be transported to the site by way of a really big ass barge.  Barges are in short supply to say the least, and as more order for rigs come up, more barges will undoubtedly be built but not within the next 2 years at minimum.

Before you even get a barge to transport your rig over some oil deposit, you need another ship to drill and cap that deposit.  These oil drilling ships costs hundreds of millions of dollars (surprisingly Samsung is a leader in Oil Drilling Ship market) and currently 75% of all drilling ships being built are already contracted out till 2010, meaning they already have jobs on the line, and nearly 100% built ships are in use.  This high demand for drilling ships isn’t though due to the prospect that their may be more drilling of U.S. shores.  These ships are contracted to work in far out places as most governments today are unwilling to open up their coasts, many of them enjoy the high profits garnered from keeping a strict oil supply.  So, if the U.S. did open up it’s shores, there would be no guarantee that a drill could get over here within the next 2 years at the least.

Not to mention a lack of drill ships and transport ships, but there is also a lack of refineries in the U.S. with most refineries here working at a nearly 97% production level.  I would surmise that an increase in homeland oil supplies would fill that usable part of the remaining 3%.  New refineries are planned but they take years to get approved, mostly due to the environmental impact studies that need to be completed.  Furthermore, all of this oil producing equipment uses raw materials that are already in high demand and high in price, mainly steel.  To top it off, the American roadway infrastructure is in bad need of repair, which would use more oil, as asphalt (among things like paint) use oil.  Our health care system needs to start treating more people (especially if we start giving it to them for free), which means the increase in use of medical materials which is made from oil would drive up the demand.

I shed a tear for you…

The pace at which knowledge is changing, evolving, and expanding these days is overwhelming.  Over at Standford they have UAVs that mimic the really stable dog.  You hit it and it reacts to keep itself stable.  It can avoid obstacles and work with other UAVs in the area, operating within the same parameters, to accomplish a certain mission.

Some scientist have pieced together clues strewn across North America together what may have caused the massive extinction during the last Ice Age and what caused the mini Ice Age (the Younger Dryas period) after it.  The supposition rests in the diamonds, apparently.  Scientists have shown through chemical tests that diamonds found across the Eastern United States are related to the diamonds and other precious minerals found in Northern Canada, a modern day hot bed for the diamond and gold mining industry.  The team of scientists believe that because the two materials are related and span thousands of miles only two means of transportation for such a scattering.  Either a huge comet broke apart in the atmosphere and spread debris from its majority impact site in Northern Canada across to the lower Eastern United States or the massive heat generated by the comet impact/burst would have melted the Ice Age topography and carried the diamonds from the North to the South.  Either way if the comet broke apart or not, the severe melting caused by the heat would have ended the Ice Age and lit forest fires across the Eastern half of North America, possibly destroying the Stone Age Clovis culture and leading to the extinction of some main mammal species of the time.  The melting would have cause a huge amount of fresh water to enter the Atlantic therein plunging us into the Younger Dryas period.  All from the diamonds.

Where do we go next?  Intel says that they’ll have 10nm processors in 10 years [the Vice President or some head honcho over there admitted they already have a plan, they just need that much time to make it affordable], Prius is integrating solar panels into their cars next year (at least I think it’s the Prius), then there’s that iPhone…, and have you seen Wall-E?  Just imagine if that same animation could be processed real time to visual the innards of your patient, or the battlefield, or another planet…