PUBLIC FORUM : EARTH TO READERS: IS THERE LIFE ON MARS?The NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. scientists' claim of finding ``evidence of primitive life on early Mars'' in an ancient meteorite meteorite, meteor that survives the intense heat of atmospheric friction and reaches the earth's surface. Because of the destructive effects of this friction, only the very largest meteors become meteorites. reflects more than just their desire for more prestige and job security through increased government funding. They, along with much of the intellectual community, have succumbed to the temptation to know it all - as opposed to learning little by little from the scientific method of observing, hypothesizing and testing. Science was invented by religious men to help them in their quest to understand God's works. Over the centuries, a rift developed between faith and empirical knowledge. The spirit was radically widened by Darwinism and the industrialism in·dus·tri·al·ism n. An economic and social system based on the development of large-scale industries and marked by the production of large quantities of inexpensive manufactured goods and the concentration of employment in urban factories. of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Evolution theory captivated cap·ti·vate tr.v. cap·ti·vat·ed, cap·ti·vat·ing, cap·ti·vates 1. To attract and hold by charm, beauty, or excellence. See Synonyms at charm. 2. Archaic To capture. secular scientists and their lay disciples not because it is a valid scientific hypothesis A scientific hypothesis is a hypothesis (a testable conjecture) which is used as a tentative explanation of an observation, but which has not yet been fully tested by the prediction validation process for a scientific theory. - anyone can plainly see that it isn't - but because it suited their atheistic a·the·is·tic also a·the·is·ti·cal adj. 1. Relating to or characteristic of atheism or atheists. 2. Inclined to atheism. a desire to eliminate God from the process of explaining nature. Even efforts to ``prove'' evolution by creating life in laboratories are, if successful, more supportive of creationism creationism or creation science, belief in the biblical account of the creation of the world as described in Genesis, a characteristic especially of fundamentalist Protestantism (see fundamentalism). than evolutionism ev·o·lu·tion·ism n. 1. A theory of biological evolution, especially that formulated by Charles Darwin. 2. Advocacy of or belief in biological evolution. - a point that scientists prefer not to think about. Now, by excitedly publicizing highly doubtful indications of unearthly life, scientists have completed a 360-degree turn back to religion. They have become high priests asserting that we must believe what they tell us, not because they offer convincing evidence, but because they say so. And, of course, we must continue placing our sacrificial tax dollars on their altar. - Bill Starr Burbank We must go to Mars, not to find out who the Martians are, but to find out who we are. Are we alone on the only inhabited planet in a vast, dead universe, or are we the natural product of any planet that finds itself a hospitable distance from a relatively stable star? If the latter, then we must prepare ourselves for the inevitable contact with other members of the community of worlds. - Donald P. Bennett San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. I think the American taxpayer has been ``stung'' by the industrial-scientific complex. It's just another well-hyped gimmick to extract dollars from the gullible and misled, not real science at all. I'm all for exploration of the solar system solar system, the sun and the surrounding planets, natural satellites, dwarf planets, asteroids, meteoroids, and comets that are bound by its gravity. The sun is by far the most massive part of the solar system, containing almost 99.9% of the system's total mass. , but it's probably best done by robots. I can appreciate the slow, honest collection and publication of intriguing findings, but I will not underwrite with dollars silly ``crash program'' to benefit only one group of privileged people in our struggling society. - Richard B. Cathcart Glendale It must be time to fund NASA, which I totally agree with. But what an underhanded way to get others to agree. The only question I am left with after reading about this is how good a job our educational system is doing and what we can expect from future scientist educated in this system? Also, where do they find these news anchors? ``We may all be Martians'' was the assertion from one ecstatic newscaster the other night. - Ron Badger Glendale I can't believe what I've read. NASA scientists resorting to quackery Quackery barber-surgeon inferior doctor; formerly a barber performing dentistry and surgery. [Medicine: Misc.] Dulcamara, Dr. . Life on Mars Scientists have long speculated about the possibility of life on Mars owing to the planet's proximity and similarity to Earth. It remains an open question whether life exists on Mars now, or existed there in the past. ! More missions! Shouldn't priority be placed on reducing the national debt or solving our social, economic and educational woes? Those rubes Rubes is a syndicated newspaper single panel cartoon created by Leigh Rubin in 1984. Leigh Rubin began making and distributing his own greeting cards in 1979 through his company Rubes. need their heads examined. Better yet, how about freezing their heads and let future doctors cure them of their greed and stupidity? Or do tests on them now to discover how they were born without a conscience. - Bela I. Szekely Burbank Can you believe the catatonic (jargon) catatonic - A description of a system that gives no indication that it is still working. This might be because it has crashed without being able to give any error message or because it is busy but not designed to give any feedback. Compare buzz. state so many people are falling into over the possibility that some form of life once existed on Mars? One need only grasp some basic information gleaned from Astronomy 101 or Buck Rogers This article is about the science fiction character. For other uses, see Buck Rogers (disambiguation). Buck Rogers is a fictional pulp character who first appeared in 1928 as Anthony Rogers, the hero of two novellas by Philip Francis Nowlan published in the magazine comic books to give some credence to this belief. We know that just one galaxy consists of untold billions of stars and planets and there are untold billions of galaxies, each one with billions of stars and planets. Why the gnashing of teeth? Our God, at least mine, is capable of creating life in more than one seemingly insignificant dot in the universe. Don't be gloomy. Rejoice at the possibility - no, the probability - of life elsewhere. - Paul Wasserman Northridge Certainly there will be much speculation and debate over the recent announcement that there may be evidence of life on Mars and hopefully the eventual outcome will show conclusively that life can form on planets, other that our own, even if this life is ancient and long extinct. The social impact upon humanity will be great and profound, showing that our common heritage bonds us more as a species and gives rise to the contemplation of our place here in the universe. But what strikes me as the most compelling is the 20th century's legacy to future generations. We have stood witness to an unprecedented array of discoveries, many good, some bad. Perhaps we should all reflect on our behavior and how we will be regarded by our descendants - much as we look back with wonder at ancient Greece The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. 750 BC[1] (the archaic period) to 146 BC (the Roman conquest). It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western Civilization. , the Egyptian Empire or the Renaissance. We and of all the countless who have lived before live in an age that will be remembered for as long as humanity continues to exist. This honor comes with an awesome responsibility that we should shoulder with pride and dedication. - George S. Scileppi Glendale Life in Mars - I don't think so. NASA can now submit a budget of $14 billion (our money) to research this great discovery. I think somebody sneezed and left a residue of bacteria on some rock they found and stuck under glass for all to see. - Jane Stoneman Van Nuys Do you suppose the reason President Clinton and NASA, with their willing media accomplices, teamed up to bring you this phony story at this time was to give you something else to think about, aside from the Republican Convention? - Frank Drewe Glendale I read somewhere that perhaps there was or could be life on Mars. Who cares! - Emmett Schoeberl Agoura Hills With the possible discovery of life being on Mars a long time ago, we are once again faced with the question of what life is. These scientist continually test for and look for carbon-based life This article is about the biochemistry term. For musical group see Carbon Based Lifeforms. Carbon forms the backbone of biology for all life on Earth. Complex molecules are made up of carbon bonded with other elements, especially oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen. forms because all life on Earth is carbon based This article is about the band. For the usage of this term in biochemistry, see Carbon-based life. Carbon Based is a hard dance and freeform hardcore band from Finland. The band was formed in 1996 and has been experimenting with different styles of electronica. . But we can't really be sure that extraterrestrial life “Green people” redirects here. For green people in fantasy fiction, see Goblinoid. Extraterrestrial life is life originating outside of the Earth. It is the subject of astrobiology, and its existence remains theoretical. will be carbon based. It could be ammonia based or based on some other compound. Life could be so different from us that we could be looking right at it and not even know it is there. The great Greek philosopher Aristotle, defined life as a thing which consumes, grows, moves and reproduces. By this simple definition we should be able to find life almost anywhere. Some people believe that the planet Earth (Gaia) is a life form itself. In short, in our search for extraterrestrial life, let us not assume that all life is like ours; nor that all intelligent life is humanoid. - Craig L. Kysar Sherman Oaks I am rather amazed at the speculation and theorizing regarding the meteorite that is assumed to have come from Mars. It is assumed that a huge asteroid collided with Mars about 15 million years ago and caused rocks from beneath Mars' surface to be projected into outer space. Apparently, no one has bothered to analyze the requirements for such an event to occur. If the event did not occur, then all the speculation is meaningless. The speed required for an object to escape completely from Mars is over five kilometers per second (J.M.A. Darby, Fundamentals of Celestial Mechanics celestial mechanics, the study of the motions of astronomical bodies as they move under the influence of their mutual gravitation. Celestial mechanics analyzes the orbital motions of planets, dwarf planets, comets, asteroids, and natural and artificial satellites ). This is equal to 3.1 miles per second or over 11,000 miles per hour. Furthermore, the force applied to the projected object due to the asteroid's impact will only last for a second or less. To achieve this escape velocity escape velocity, the velocity a body must be given in order to escape the gravitational hold of some other larger body, e.g., the earth, moon, or sun. A body given less than the escape velocity will fall back toward the surface of the larger body; a body given a , the applied force must have a huge magnitude, approximately equivalent to 500 g(s). Atmospheric drag will require the initial speed to beG even greater to achieve escape from Mars. The atmospheric heating of the projected object, starting from the surface of Mars at that high speed and re-entering the Earth's atmosphere “Air” redirects here. For other uses, see Air (disambiguation). Earth's atmosphere is a layer of gases surrounding the planet Earth and retained by the Earth's gravity. It contains roughly (by molar content/volume) 78% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0. will subject the object to very high temperatures. Assuming that the above conditions are all satisfied, the problem remains to impact the Earth. The projected object will leave Mars on a parabolic par·a·bol·ic also par·a·bol·i·cal adj. 1. Of or similar to a parable. 2. Of or having the form of a parabola or paraboloid. orbit or probably a hyperbolic hy·per·bol·ic also hy·per·bol·i·cal adj. 1. Of, relating to, or employing hyperbole. 2. Mathematics a. Of, relating to, or having the form of a hyperbola. b. orbit and probably assume an elliptical el·lip·tic or el·lip·ti·cal adj. 1. Of, relating to, or having the shape of an ellipse. 2. Containing or characterized by ellipsis. 3. a. orbit about the Sun. In order for the object to impact the Earth, the following conditions must be satisfied: 1. The escape speed from Mars and the direction of travel must have precise values to establish the correct elliptical orbit to intersect the Earth's orbit. It is possible that the elliptical of the projected object could remain outside the Earth's orbit around the Sun. 2. Mars and Earth must be at specific points in their orbits around the Sun at the time that the object is projected into outer space in order for the Earth to intercept the object as it intersects the Earth's orbit. 3. Any disturbing gravitational grav·i·ta·tion n. 1. Physics a. The natural phenomenon of attraction between physical objects with mass or energy. b. The act or process of moving under the influence of this attraction. 2. forces, such as from Jupiter, can influence whether or not the object impacts Earth. It is highly unlikely that an asteroid's impact on Mars could produce the necessary escape velocity to project an object into outer space. If such and event did occur, it is highly improbable the three conditions described above could be satisfied. - F.T. Smith Woodland Hills What is all of this controversy about life on Mars? Extraterrestrial life is obvious. They have been making our planet one of their prime vacation spots for thousands of years, as they are today. We are on the brink of a major revolution in the way we perceive ourselves and the universe and we should embrace this exciting moment accordingly. This discovery is as significant as the evolution of man and it definitely deserves more attention. - Dennis Chamberlain Hollywood We as a race ought to be paying more attention to our own sGigns of life. It is patently obvious that we do not understand enough about it. When we come up with a plan t help and improve this civilization on this planet, then and only then, should we concern ourselves with trying to understand others. - William H. Brady Reseda We should clean up our own backyard environmentally, economically and spiritually before even contemplating the existence of life on another planet. - Val McIntosh Van Nuys If they are there, they will come. - Shirley Thielman Reseda It's possible the Martian rocks were brought here by Martians, and we may be their decendants. We need to go back to Mars to find out if there is anywhere else to go when our environment is over-polluted. - James V. Hotz Chatsworth I'd advise all these scientists to pick up a good modern version of the Bible and read Chapter 1 - Genesis and God's creation. But, of course, you'd have to believe the Bible to understand. - Mildred Cook Simi Valley If there is or was life on Mars, could it be from Earth? And since life evolved on Earth, could we be Martians? - Charles F. Jacobson Panorama City |
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