Ledakan Sinar Gamma

Sinar Gamma adalah ledakan dengan kekuatan terdahsyat yang sudah diketahui di alam semesta saat ini, dan pengetahuan yang dipahami ilmuwan atas hal ini masih sangat terbatas.
Ilmuwan mendapati, bahwa sinar gamma (Gamma Ray Burst, GRB) yangberasal dari galaksi luar yang jauh, adalah energi yang dilepaskankembali setelah hancurnya 2 bintang tetap, energi pancarannya sangatkuat dan tak dapat diduga, kurang lebih seribu kali lipatnya matahari.

Sebelum perubahan besar ini terjadi, manusia sama sekali tidak dapatmengamati perubahan sesudahnya, sehingga dengan demikian juga tidaktahu bagaimana cara mengantisipasinya.
Jika terjadi, maka meski berada di tempat sejauh seribu tahun cahaya, dan meski pada malam yang biasanya cerah di sebuah tempat yang jauhnya tidak dapat Anda saksikan, ia juga akan terang secara tiba-tiba seperti matahari, kemudian melepaskan energi yang maha besar, dan menyinari bumi dengan pancarannya.
Meskipun lapisan atmosfer dapat melindungi kita terhindar dari serangansinar Gamma dan sinar -X, namun pancaran-pancaran berenergi tinggi inidapat membuat lapisan atmosfer menjadi panas dan menghasilkannitrogenoksida, yang dapat secara serius merusak ozonosfer (lapisanozon).
Yang lebih parah adalah ini dapat secara langsung mengacaukan prosesfotosintesis plankton di samudera (mereka dapat menyuplai oksigen bagiatmosfer), merusak ekologi sekaligus juga menghancurkan rantai makanan.
Jarak sinar gamma yang ditemukan saat ini sangat jauh dari kita, meskipengetahuan yang diketahui ilmuwan atas hal ini sangat terbatas, namundapat dibayangkan akibat yang mengerikan seandainya secara tiba-tiba iamenyinari bumi kita.

Bencana Yang Mungkin Ada Di Masa Depan

Selain banjir, senjata nuklir, polusi lingkungan, memburuknya iklim,dan lain sebagainya, menurut laporan majalah Discovery, AS, parailmuwan juga memperhitungkan puluhan jenis bencana alam atau ulahmanusia yang bisa mengakibatkan manusia mendekati kepunahan.
Jaman sekarang, setiap saat orang-orang menyebarkan informasi tentangkepunahan spesies, sehingga kita mulai menyadari bahwa ini bukan sebuahfenomena perputaran alam yang baik.

Para ilmuwan telah memperkirakan, bahwa rasio kepunahan spesiesorganisme sekarang adalah 1.000 kali lipatnya zaman fosil, menurutstatistik bahwa di atas bumi secara aktual terdapat 99% spesies beradadi ujung kepunahan.
Dan pembunuh-pembunuh yang menghancurkan spesies ini, sebagian besar disebabkan aktivitas peradaban manusia saat ini. Aktivitas-aktivitas ini menyebabkan berbagai jenis makhluk hidup di bumi, termasuk manusia sendiri secara perlahan-lahan menuju ke dalam kondisi yang kritis, ada beberapa kondisi yang mungkin dapat dialami dalam gerakan putaran alam.
Mungkin Anda akan menganggap bahwa peringatan di atas hanya imajinasisastrawan, namun di bawah pengamatan dan penyelidikan ilmuwan ditemukan bahwa dalam sejarah ratusan juta tahun, di atas bumi berkali-kalimenyisakan bekas-bekas dihancurkan.

Wow, Ditemukan Planet Yang Kondisinya Mirip Sekali Dengan Bumi

Planet pertama yang bisa dihuni dalam ukuran dan kondisi yang sama dengan Bumi, telah ditemukan dalam satu sistem tata surya luar, sehingga kembali memunculkan kemungkinan adanya kehidupan di planet-planet lain, ungkap para ilmuwan.

Planet yang belum diberi nama itu besarnya satu setengah kali Bumi dan lima kali lebih pejal, ungkap tim astronom Eropa di Observatorium Selatan Eropa di Garching, Jerman.
“Kami sudah menaksir bahwa suhu rata-rata super-Bumi ini antara 0 hingga 40 derajat Celsius, karena itu air dalam keadaan cair,” kata Stephane Udry dari Observatorium Jenewa.
“Model-model memberi perkiraan bahwa planet itu kemungkinan berbatu-batu seperti Bumi kita atau ditutupi samudera.” katanya kepada DPA.
Planet itu terletak di sekitar bintang yang disebut Gliese 581, sekitar 20,5 tahun cahaya dari sistem tata surya Bumi dan termasuk 100 bintang terdekat dari Matahari.
Walau planet itu lebih dekat kepada bintangnya dibandingkan dengan jarak Bumi ke Matahari, kedua planet sama mempunyai kondisi serupa karena Gliese 581, yang disebut “kurcaci merah”, ukurannya lebih kecil dan lebih dingin.
Satu tahun planet tersebut sama dengan 13 hari di Bumi.
“Kurcaci-kurcaci merah, cocok untuk mencari planet-panet sejenis karena mereka memancarkan cahaya lebih sedikit, dan mereka juga punya jarak yang lebih dekat ke zona yang bisa dihuni, dibanding matahari kita,” kata Xavier Bonfils dari Universitas Lisabon.
Lebih dari 200 “eksoplanets” – planet di luar tata surya Matahari, ditemukan dalam 12 tahun terakhir. Kebanyakan adalah gas padat yang sangat besar mirip Jupiter.
Xavier Delfosse dari Universitas Grenoble di Prancis mengatakan planet temuan baru itu dapat dihuni dan pasti menjadi sasaran bagi misi luar angkasa mencari mahluk luar angkasa di masa depan.
“Air dalam bentuk cair sangat penting bagi kehidupan,” katanya. ”Bagai peta harta karun, orang akan menandai planet ini dengan tanda X.”

Meganthropus

Meganthropus is a name commonly given to several large jaw and skull fragments from Sangiran, Central Java. The original scientific name was Meganthropus palaeojavanicus, and while it is commonly considered invalid today, the genus name has survived as something of an informal nickname for the fossils. As of 2005, the taxonomy and phylogeny for the specimens are still uncertain, although most paleoanthropologists considering them related to Homo erectus in some way. However, the names Homo palaeojavanicus and even Australopithecus palaeojavanicus are sometimes used as well, indicating the classification uncertainty. Of particular interest is that the finds were sometimes regarded as those of giants, although that is unsubstantiated.

After the discovery of a robust skull in Swartkrans in 1948 (SK48), the name Meganthropus africanus was briefly applied. However, that specimen is now formally known as Paranthropus robustus and the earlier name is a junior synonym.

Some of these finds were accompanied by evidence of tool use similar to that of Homo erectus. This is the reason it is often linked with that species.

300 Spartans: A Brief History of the Battle of Thermopylae

Spartan King Leonidas

Spartan warriors were elite fighting men. They are still praised today for their discipline, physical training, and strategic skills. Yet, out of all these elite Spatan warriors rose someone who even they considered to be extraordinarily brave, and heroic. That person was Spartan King Leonidas.

His background: he was one of the sons of king Anaxandridas 11 of Spartan and a descendant of Hercules. He succeeded his half- brother, Cleomenes 1, and married Cleomenes' daughter, Gorge.

In 480 B.C, during the Persian-Greco Wars, Leonidas lead 300 Spartans and thousands of allies in a mission designed to slow down the Persian military advance toward the heart of Greece. It was considered to be a suicide mission. When the battle seemed hopeless King Leonidas, dismissed their allies, leaving only him and 300 other Spartans to hold off thousands of Persian warriors, they were literally outnumbered one thousand to one.

Yet, they manage to hold the Persians at bay for days. By all historical accounts, the 300 Spartans and King Leonidas fought with their last breath, but was eventually overpowered and killed.

Facts about the Battle of Thermopylae

The Battle of Thermopylae took place September 17-19, 480 BC

The 300 hundred Spartans who fought along side Leonidas were an all-sire unit, which means that they all had sons who would carry on their bloodline if they were to die. They were also comprised of Leonidas own fighting unit. Some historians have reported that King Leonidas wanted to go to his death. Why? An oracle told him that Spartan only could be saved by the death of its kings and one from the lineage of Hercules. He fit the bill on both counts.

Origins of the Drum Kit

Drum kits, a grouping of various toned drums, originated in marching bands and parade bands in New Orleans. It was found that one drummer could play more than one drum simultaneously. This is known as double drumming. Cymbals and Tom Toms, which were invented in China, were added to drum kits. Percussion additives such as cowbells, wooden blocks, and chimes were incorporated as well. By the 1930's the standard drum kit had taken shape. The Kit consisted of a bass drum and foot pedal, snare, tom toms, hi-hat cymbal, and large hanging cymbals.

In the 1960's rock drummers began the expansion of drum kits that are the norm today. More toms and cymbals, as well as the addition of another bass drum to increase speed were added. Electronic drums were also developed to create sounds that traditional drums were unable to produce. These brought about the synthesized drum sounds used in many modern styles of music.

The History of the Bass - The Life and Art of Bass Playing

In the beginning there was a bass. It was a Fender, probably a Precision, but it could have been a Jazz - nobody knows. Anyway, it was very old ... definitely pre-C.B.S. And God looked down upon it and saw that it was good. He saw that it was very good in fact, and couldn't be improved on at all (though men would later try.) And so He let it be and He created a man to play the bass. And lo the man looked upon the bass, which was a beautiful 'sunburst' red, and he loved it. He played upon the open E string and the note rang through the earth and reverberated throughout the firmaments (thus reverb came to be.) And it was good. And God heard that it was good and He smiled at his handiwork. Then in the course of time, the man came to slap upon the bass. And lo it was funky. And God heard this funkiness and He said, "Go man, go." And it was good. And more time passed, and, having little else to do, the man came to practice upon the bass. And lo, the man came to have upon him a great set of chops. And he did play faster and faster until the notes rippled like a breeze through the heavens. And God heard this sound which sounded something like the wind, which He had created earlier. It also sounded something like the movement of furniture, which He hadn't even created yet, and He was not so pleased. And He spoke to the man, saying "Don't do that!" Now the man heard the voice of God, but he was so excited about his new ability that he slapped upon the bass a blizzard of funky notes. And the heavens shook with the sound, and the Angels ran about in confusion. (Some of the Angels started to dance, but that's another story.) And God heard this - how could He miss it - and lo He became Bugged. And He spoke to the man, and He said, "Listen man, if I wanted Jimi Hendrix I would have created the guitar. Stick to the bass parts." And the man heard the voice of God, and he knew not to mess with it. But now he had upon him a passion for playing fast and high. The man took the frets off of the bass which God had created. And the man did slide his fingers upon the fretless fingerboard and play melodies high upon the neck. And, in his excitement, the man did forget the commandment of the Lord, and he played a frenzy of high melodies and blindingly fast licks. And the heavens rocked with the assault and the earth shook, rattled and rolled. Now God's wrath was great. And His voice was thunder as He spoke to the man. And He said, "O.K. for you, pal. You have not heeded My word. Lo, I shall create a soprano saxophone and it shall play higher than you can even think of." "And from out of the chaos I shall bring forth the drums. And they shall play so many notes thine head shall ache, and I shall make you to always stand next to the drummer." "You think you're loud? I shall create a stack of Marshall guitar amps to make thine ears bleed. And I shall send down upon the earth other instruments, and lo, they shall all be able to play higher and faster than the bass." "And for all the days of man, your curse shall be this; that all the other musicians shall look to you, the bass player, for the low notes. And if you play too high or fast all the other musicians shall say "Wow" but really they shall hate it. And they shall tell you you're ready for your solo career, and find other bass players for their bands. And for all your days if you want to play your fancy licks you shall have to sneak them in like a thief in the night." "And if you finally do get to play a solo, everyone shall leave the bandstand and go to the bar for a drink." And it was so.

history of the classical guitar

The history of the classical guitar and its repertoire spans over four centuries, including its ancestor the baroque guitar. Throughout the centuries, the classical guitar has evolved principally from three sources: the lute, the vihuela, and the Baroque guitar. The popularity of the classical guitar has been sustained over the years by many great players, arrangers, and composers. A very short list might include Gaspar Sanz (1640-1710), Fernando Sor (1778-1839), Mauro Giuliani (1781-1829), Francisco Tárrega (1852-1909), Andrés Segovia (1893-1987), and John Williams (1941).