Naked Eye Astronomy: Sky Pretty Late November 2008

Whether your an amateur astronomer or just a casual star-gazer, right now is a beautiful, near conjunction of Jupiter and Venus in the constellation Sagittarius. What I like to call a sky pretty. Here’s a chance to get your kids interested in astronomy or just impress your date with a little sky knowledge.

Where to look
South West (SW), right about where the sun is setting or better, just has set. The scene should be the same for anyone in the 30^°N latitudes.

When to look
Just as the sunsets. As of this posting that should be just around 1730 hours (5:30 PM) local time.

What to look for
The two bright objects about a hand’s width above the horizon. You really can’t miss them.

What you are seeing
The brighter object, closer to the horizon is the planet Venus, Earth’s nearest neighbor. She has magnitude of -4.02 and is the third brightest object in our sky, out shown only by the Sun and the Moon. Just above Venus is our solar system’s largest planet, Jupiter. The king of the planets has a magnitude of -1.59.

This close conjunction is taking place in the constellation Sagittarius, the hunting centaur. The magnitude 2.05 star below Venus is Nunki (sigma Sgr). This sky pretty is bright enough to be enjoyed with the naked eye. Using a good pair of binoculars may reveal some of the Jovian details, but don’t count on Venus showing you what lies beneath her skirt. One reason Venus is so bright is her highly reflective, dense atmosphere which masks any surface details. If you have access to even a small telescope, you’ll have no trouble seeing the four Galilean moons of Jupiter: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.

While you’re out, look around for these other bright objects. Up and to the right (slightly west) of Venus and Jupiter, is the star Altair (alpha Aql). Altair is the brightest star (mag. 0.75) of the constellation Aquila, the eagle. Continue west and slightly higher than Altair to find Vega (alpha Lyr) the zero magnitude and brightest star in the tiny constellation Lyra, the lyre.

Continue turning north and you may be able to spot the Little Dipper (Ursa Minor) about half way between Vega and the horizon while facing due north. Alpha Umi, is more commonly known as Polaris, the North Star.

This sky pretty will peak on 1 December 2008 when the two planets will be closest together and joined by the crescent moon. Keep your eyes on the sky.

Plagiarist of the Day 15 Nov 2008

http://www.everymine.com/member-788-finance.html

Lots of stolen content, mostly from Associated Content. Better check it out.

Update on the Latest Plagiarist

Just an update on the blogger who was raping content from Associated Content (see 12 Nov post). It turns out that it was just a rogue blogger (http://video.blogmas.com ) not the entire site. It’s funny what some people will do for a few AdSense pennies.

The blogger’s account was pulled so now we all move on to finding the next asshole. Keep an eye out.

More Plagiarism of AC Content

Better check and see if your articles are the victims of the latest pilferer of AC content. The bandit is http://blogmas.com or it may just be http://video.blogmas.com who is doing the thieving.

According to WhoIs, Blogmas appears to be a Danish blackhatter (according to the phone number). There appears to be no way to reach the sight owners, so most likely, you will have to deal with their hosting company, TURNKEYINTERNET.NET.

What do you do if you find your articles stolen? Check out a previous post here, Dealing with Plagiarism for details about how to handle the situation based on your content’s rights (exclusive v. non-exclusive). There is a link on the right side-bar to a very helpful site, Plagiarism Today if you need some DCMA templates.

Let’s hope they are shut down soon.

More Holidays, More Holidays.

‘Tis the season and in the spirit of green living (take a bath you dirty hippies), I’ve recycled a couple of articles for the November holidays. U.S. only. Bugger off other nations. Oh, not you Canada. I love you, Canada. Please come back, Canada. You’re my favorite foreign chick. I promise to stop consuming cheap plastic products from China until I stumble home at 3 AM and smack you around.

First up, a serious piece. “What?” you say, “He writes serious stuff?” Of course I write serious stuff. In the words of John Merrick, “I am a human being!” I’ve been known to wax historically or philosophically. This one was something that I wrote in memory of my Dad, but it applies to all our troops. Honestly folks, go find a veteran and give them a big hug.

When Veteran’s Day is Personal
Soldiers are a breed apart. We would not enjoy our freedoms without their sacrifices. One day of remembrance each year is not enough. I remember my soldier 365 days a year. Here is why.
Read the rest. It’s the best. »

This next article kind of got away from me. It was supposed to be a “How to” and I guess it is in its own way. Here it is again in plenty of time for the US Thanksgiving and the Canadian Thanksgiving, too. Feel free to apply these tips as needed.

A Handy Guide to Surviving Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving can be exhausting, but these tips will get you through the day especially if family is coming. Memories, food, and fuzzy memories of Thanksgivings past and probably yet to come.
Read the rest. It’s the best. »

Change for America: A Few Things I’d like to See Barack Obama Change

Ah! Morning in America. Why do I feel like I need coffee and lots of it for the next 4 years? The American voter has spoken. “We want change!” is the cry. OK, change this. Make the Federal government more efficient. Cut the fat and excise the bloat.

There is a great piece of artwork called Death & Taxes. It’s a real eye-opener possibly better than your triple-shot, extra-foam, cappuccino. After taking a look, I decided there are a few things that need changing.

Do get health insurance and the tobacco corporations out of each others pockets. Why don’t health insurance companies pay for smoking cessation drugs/programs. I’ve never been able to figure this one out. Smoking costs health insurance companies millions of dollars every year, but they won’t pay for preventative medicine. What kind of pictures are in the vault at Altria headquarters? Some really raunchy stuff from the Humana Xmas party, I assume.

Do away with the Department of Education. Cut my taxes that go to support the DoEd so I can happily pay them to my local schools. No child left behind. Are you kidding me? Washington mandates this junk and doesn’t send near enough money to pay for it. Let the locals handle their own. Besides, I know a kid or two that needs to be left behind or at least dropped off at the vo-tech.

Read the rest. It’s the best. »

Just a few thoughts on change.

Wednesday Morning Election Quarterbacking on Monday

Whether you agree with Obama’s ideas or not, you have to admit, he brought something to this year’s campaign that is the key to getting elected for any office. He brought enthusiasm. He infected the populace with enthusiasm. Early voter turnout is higher than any election in history. I offer this as evidence that people are enthusiastic about voting this year. I say, “people,” but I really mean Democrats. ¹

Most of the early voters supposedly have been Democrats voting for Obama. Republican early voting is about the same as in past years. The logical conclusion is Democrats are enthusiastic about the election while Republicans have a very “Meh?” attitude. The attitude of Republican voters can be attributed to the fact they were given their fifth-string choice by their party’s primary process. How can you get excited about your candidate when you really didn’t want him eight months ago?

Pollsters and pundits are still saying the race is close. However, while Republicans are sitting home Tuesday grumbling about how they really wanted Romney, Huckabee or even Ron Paul, Democrats will turn out in record numbers. If you go vote, be prepared for the hoard of zombie-like Democrats surrounding the polls and chanting, “Change. Change. Change.”

It doesn’t matter what Obama’s policies are. It doesn’t matter where he might take us. It isn’t about idealism, practicalism, or any other -ism. It’s just about the common man being fed up, as usual, with politics as usual. Apparently we just want change, what ever that change might be. The candidate who can effectively promise any kind of change can generate enthusiasm. Enthusiasm makes people go vote. That is the fact. Throw around whatever -ism you want, in the end, it’s all about the -asm…enthusiasm about the untenable; orgasm about the candidate; the spasm to vote.

My election day wish is, “May we all get the change we deserve.” Whether you vote or not is not my concern. Hell, I may just write in Ron Paul.

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¹ Democrat [dem-uh-krat]: a sub-genome of the zombie race bent on universal health care therefore ensuring your brain is nice and juicy when they come to eat it.

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