NASA and the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) just conducted a joint exercise named the “Apophis Campaign”, in order to test the operational readiness of our global planetary defense capabilities. The result of the exercise was published in the Planetary Science Journal on May 31. — The exercise focused on the already detected asteroid Apophis, who gained a record high level 4 rating on the Torino Scale in 2004, and briefly caused a lot of attention. It has since then been downgraded but there is still a risk that the flyby in 2029 can alter the…

The story about immortal Benjamin is not only a fictional work with Biblical signs, it is also a scientist’s philosophical play with the concept of time and what the end of the expanding Universe might look like. — The little known masterpiece “The Ark” tells the story of the merchant Benjamin, who was granted eternal life by the Babylonian god “Marduk”. The story stretches from the beginning of time, through the Biblical age around the time of Noah, through the present age and all the way into the…

The US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) recently overturned Roe v. Wade, ending nearly 50 years of women’s constitutional right to abortion. The reason for this decision is nothing but religious conviction, hidden in a dim curtain of punchlines and legal technicalities. — The decision has fueled an old debate between essentially right-wing Christians and non-Christians. Christian right-wing Americans often want to twist the subject to be about pro-life vs pro-choice, hence building the case that life is not a matter of choice.

Scientists have for decades considered a spine-chilling possibility known as space tunnels, which could be used for time travels. As for now, we do not have the technology to travel in time, but advanced coexisting civilizations could already be using a network of space tunnels. — In the theory of relativity there seems to be a possibility of "tunnels" in the empty space, connecting different places in the universe. An extremely advanced civilization may be able to create space tunnels that make it possible to travel quickly between different areas of a Milky Way. Space tunnels…

For religious scholars it is all about the details within their narrow field of expertise. If you get it wrong, you are ignorant. The scholar next door, with his own set of details and his own local truths, seems to be of less importance. After all, he is a scholar as well. — You better get it right, or you may go to hell: the exact words from the prophet, the fundamental meaning of a certain part of a scripture, the rituals and ceremonials separating one fraction from another, the worshiping, the salvation, the food you eat, the phrases you speak and the…

The period between 30–100 AD is when the Church Fathers laid the foundation to what would later emerge as the world’s biggest religion. Most of what happened during the first decades is shrouded in mystery, but we do know that during this stormy period in history, Christianity spread rapidly across the world. — The first century Palestine was a chaotic and deeply religious place. The country had been thrown into a long period of political turmoil, violence and religious disorder ever since the death of King Herod the Great. Rome controlled the territories by local kings or governors.

Theoretical concepts of infinity can rarely be translated into meaningful and understandable equivalents in the physical world. Many geometrical figures, concepts and paradoxes can serve as examples of mathematical truths losing their meaning when they are transferred to the world of physics. — Scientists, philosophers, poets, theologians and mathematicians have been pondering over infinity for centuries and will continue to do so for a long time to come. Infinity touches similar concepts such as immortality, eternity, timelessness and transcendence. …

The Russian chain of command for a potential nuclear strike is linked to the central military command — the General Staff. The purpose is to allow for senior-level decisions on nuclear weapons employment, but the General Staff as well as the whole Russian military have suffered from corruption for decades. What would happen if Putin gave the order? — The background The old nuclear order, established in the outcomes of the Cold War, existed long before Russia invaded Ukraine. Now, it is giving way to a looming era of disorder and unrest that hasn’t been seen since the beginning of the atomic age.

There is an Earth-like planet in our neighborhood, located just 4 light years away. It orbits in the habitable zone around our closest star, the red dwarf Proxima Centauri. How much time would it take us to travel there using today’s and future technologies? — Playing with numbers in Drake’s Equation has showed us that intelligent life forms may be few and far between. The nearest civilization may be thousands of light years away — if we are lucky. Finding a candidate among our closest neighbors must be considered extremely unlikely. But a planet may…