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Dave Kreskowiak wrote: The math, as we know astrophysics today, says that it's impossible for it to happen as our star only has about 60%(?) of the mass required to kick off a supernova. This minimum is known as the Chandrasekhar Limit[^].
The Chandrasekhar limit is the cutoff point for a stellar remnant being able to remain a white dwarf instead of collapsing farther to a neutron star or black hole. As a solo star (there are processes that can detonate a white dwarf in a binary system - SN type Ia) the sun is at least 4 and almost certainly 8 times too small to supernova due to heavy mass loss during the red giant stage. Stellar evolution models require a minimum initial size of ~ 8 solar masses to trigger a conventional supernova. There's a theoretical, but never observed, supernova mode that could occur for stars of 4-8 solar masses in size; but the evolutionary models predict, and the lack of observations appear to confirm that any star in that initial mass range will shed enough mass via stellar wind during the red giant/super giant stages to end as a white dwarf.
Did you ever see history portrayed as an old man with a wise brow and pulseless heart, waging all things in the balance of reason?
Is not rather the genius of history like an eternal, imploring maiden, full of fire, with a burning heart and flaming soul, humanly warm and humanly beautiful?
--Zachris Topelius
Training a telescope on one’s own belly button will only reveal lint. You like that? You go right on staring at it. I prefer looking at galaxies.
-- Sarah Hoyt
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Awesome,I've followed a couple other posts and this is an extraordinary event.
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what a disapointment I thought is was a new brew from stella artois
just kidding, wouldn't touch the stuff
You cant outrun the world, but there is no harm in getting a head start
Real stupidity beats artificial intelligence every time.
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AKA 'punch up in a glass' would have though a man of breading would stay clear of that
Quote:
just kidding, wouldn't touch the stuff
Well that's a relief... back to video card heck!
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Great. Fantastic event !
And things like "so the supernova explosion did happen 12 million years ago, that light just now reaching Earth" make it even more special...
~RaGE();
I think words like 'destiny' are a way of trying to find order where none exists. - Christian Graus
Do not feed the troll ! - Common proverb
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What is interesting is the galaxy the star is in has purple "ejecta" cones on top and bottom, and from what I have gleaned on documentaries on the subject, it indicates the galaxy is relatively "young". The cones are created because the super massive black hole at the center of the galaxy is eating so much material it can't consume it all and some is being ejected at "the poles" of the galaxy.
Must be a turbulent place to live anywhere there.
2 cents.
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M82 is about 40,000 light years across. The jets are even longer than that.
A few hundred million years ago, M82[^] had a close encounter with the nearby M81[^], triggering a mass of new star formation in both galaxies. Most likely, the gravitational jostling in M82 sent stars in previously stable orbits around the central black hole into death spirals.
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Gregory.Gadow wrote: jets
Quasar[^], that's what it's called, just remembered, I guess quasars are the brightest objects in the sky and that galaxy has a quasar at it's center so that makes the brightness of the nova even more interesting since it has to compete with the quasar.
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By definition, quasars are extremely distant, and the nearest one we know of is about 600 million light years away; they seem to have been very common in the youth of the universe when galaxies were first forming and far less common in recent epochs. M82 is only 12 million light years away, and has no known quasar.
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Is it just me or someone else too does feel small looking at astronomical events? It was beautiful, BTW.
"Bastards encourage idiots to use Oracle Forms, Web Forms, Access and a number of other dinky web publishing tolls.", Mycroft Holmes[ ^]
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Just arrived home from 'out there'. Didn't think was going to get home today because of the wind. Also had to get a fixed wing out of Sumburgh as well, so that was another first for me in my offshore career!
Anyway, arrived home to find a nice cardboard box. In this cardbox was an even nicer plastic box. On this plastic box was the words 'Oculus Development Kit'. 
For a Dev Kit, this must be one of the best presented I have seen.
Need to go plug it in now and see what it is like, the roller coaster demos I've seen on youtube should be good......... 
http://www.oculusvr.com/[^]
I feel an article may be on the horizon.
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Congats for escaping that platform.
Oh... if i had something like that i will be playing at work and noone will ever know about it
Microsoft ... the only place where VARIANT_TRUE != true
modified 24-Jan-14 8:36am.
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Ooo keep us posted, looking forward to an article!
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Why do I see a PI controlled Oculus coming...  Please let the rest of us know what it's like...
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Dr Dick Swaab[^]
I know that on here there are people who have suffered from, and in some cases even survived, every injury and ailment known to man (and for a few of you known to cattle or sheep). So I was wondering if anyone has any practical experience of amnesia and memory problems.
For those who don't follow my life closely, a recap[^].
For about four weeks after the accident I suffered with a lot of concussion type symptoms, confusion, inability to do simple problem solving, couldn't make decisions, couldn't cook, typed nonsense at times without realising (real nonsense, not just pointless crap). That seemed to clear up.
I was off work from 11th November to 30th December, largely due to the back problems, because of that I didn't really go very far, didn't really do very much, avoided the computer.
I began to notice however, chiefly in conversation with my daughter, that I couldn't remember things that I know have happened, in my childhood, in her early life. Then my wife showed my a picture from out holiday three years ago and I couldn't remember any of that holiday. It is a very odd felling trying to access these older memories, like the pointer to them is there but something deflects me away from accessing them, and it is very unpleasant to try to battle through to them.
When I returned to work and began traveling more widely I noticed other things, people I knew I recognised but had no idea who they were or why (one woman turned out to have worked in the same office as me for 4 years), place names I have driven through hundreds of times I could not recall, songs I would hear on the radio and recognise but have no idea at all who they were by or what they were called. In these cases it is like my brain goes straight for the information but the file is blank so my brain just stands there staring at it. If I am in conversation when this happens I just pause for a long time, I am unable to think around the problem because I am stuck at a dead end.
And processes and things at work I cannot remember either. Things I know I wrote but cannot remember my way around them, I am having to work things out all the time rather than just doing things. Although stuff must still be in there, because on a few occasions I have written code, not understood what I am writing and then when run it has produced the desired effect, quite unexpectedly. My typing seems faster too, as if I have finally given up thinking where my fingers are going and just let them get on with it.
Simple mental tasks that I used to find easy are also now far more difficult, or even impossible at times. One day last week I needed to meet my wife at lunchtime. I knew exactly where I was, I knew where I needed to be, about 8 miles away. I have been there and all places around many, many times. I could not work out how to get there from here, couldn't do it at all. Just drove in the right direction and the way kind of revealed itself as I went along. I have always had a superb sense of direction, if I went anywhere once I could know my way back from almost anywhere else.
Simple maths is also beyond me, the numbers game on Countdown for example, I cannot get close to the answer without pen and paper and I used to be able to do those or at least now how to get to the answer every time.
It isn't just old memories that are missing either. I've had to buy a new car, the old one got written off, I'm trying to work out how the fuel consumption is going so when filling up last week I tried to remember the previous time I had done (less than a week earlier) and had no memory of it at all. Couldn't remember the garage I'd used, what day it was, time of day, what else I had been doing before or after. Nothing at all.
And on Tuesday I left the house and according to my wife forgot to shut the door.
I've seen my GP, and a private neurologist who is sending me for a brain scan on Monday, but I don't really feel as like anyone is taking it very seriously, and I don't like it. I don't like it at all.
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Obviously the scan is the main thing but you also need to try and get as compete a picture as possible (which is, obviously difficult as it relies on memory) for example:
1) Any change in your sense of smell or taste?
2) Dizziness / balance issues?
3) Vision issues?
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1) Not that I have noticed
2) No
3) Initially I did think some at distance, but not so sure now. Should probably have a check at the opticians to compare against how I was before.
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#1 - IANAD
#2 - Ok, that's good news - and I am assuming "The other thing driving me crazy ever since is tinnitus." is known to your GP.
How's your attention span/ability to do detail stuff?
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The only problem I've noticed there is that if I get distracted then I completely forget what I was doing and don't drift back to it on my own if that makes any sense. If I stop doing something then I need something to remind me to go back to it like an email coming in or as has just happened I closed a window and noticed one I had been using about 3 hours ago and was in the middle of doing something with.
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I feel for you - hope the scan shows something (and it's easily fixable). ![Rose | [Rose]](https://codeproject.global.ssl.fastly.net/script/Forums/Images/rose.gif)
I've never had all your symptoms, but Morphine has a similar effect on me: it destroys my short term memory for a couple of weeks after I've been given it. (My mother had the same problem after she broke her wrist and assumed it was Alzheimer's setting in) At one point, I was at home on my own with Classic FM on the TV, and The Opera Band started singing Unchained Melody - but I couldn't understand it and thought I'd forgotten English... (Buggers were singing in Italian  )
I didn't like it at all - suddenly you can't trust your own brain and that's not a good feeling at all.
Hope it goes well - I'll be thinking of you.
Those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it. --- George Santayana (December 16, 1863 – September 26, 1952)
Those who fail to clear history are doomed to explain it. --- OriginalGriff (February 24, 1959 – ∞)
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OriginalGriff wrote: suddenly you can't trust your own brain and that's not a good feeling at all.
Yeah, doubting yourself is not a good place to be.
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Given the severity of the impact you may have sustained some brain trauma or a concussion. It is like the brains file allocation table has been corrupted. The good news is that most people recover, however it does take time, up to 6 months.
Brain injury can be difficult to diagnose Talk with your GP, the scan is a good start. You may want to do a little research as well.
This an American site, there probably a UK version, but it does contain some good resources for you to look into. http://www.biausa.org/mild-brain-injury.htm[^]
Good luck and wishing you quick recovery.
It was broke, so I fixed it.
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I think the woman who hit me was doing about 60 mph. I don't think I hit my head but obviously there was a very sudden acceleration and the brain does rattle around somewhat.
The other thing driving me crazy ever since is tinnitus. It has been gradually receding but is so irritating, especially when things are quiet.
Had a letter from the police about it the crash yesterday, they are offering the woman some sort of driver awareness course instead of prosecution, which seems reasonable to me.
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