Thoughts from a Thinker

Happy Anniversary!

2011-02-25T09:39:00.002-07:00

February 25, 1995!

MESA, ARIZONA!

LDS TEMPLE!

On this day, in 1995, was one of the greatest events in the history of my life. Other days are close, but the day that I was married for all eternity to my beautiful wife Shari, has to be the best event. I can not even begin to express how much I love her and how important she is to me. She is the greatest person that I could have ever met. She and I enjoy every moment of time together. Some may say they enjoy every second with their spouse, but not me. I will take this to the very extreme to show my love for her. She will understand! BARE WITH ME! This is actually truly heartfelt! (dang keyboard just had some salty discharge, hang on a moment) I have enjoyed every Planck unit of Planck Time! Allow me to explain.

Every Second=one second PLEASE! VERY WEAK!

Millisecond=one thousandth of a second WEAK!

Nanosecond=one billionth of a second LESS WEAK! But still no good!

Yoctosecond=one quadrillionth (in the long scale) or one septillionth (in the short scale) of a second. (which scale you prefer does not matter) Close, but still not good enough for my Shari!

ONLY PLANCK UNITS CAN EXPRESS MY LOVE FOR HER! This is shortest or earliest meaningful interval of time that theoretical physics can describe and consequently the youngest the known universe can be measured. ≈ 5.4×10−44 s.

If I could take each moment of our time together and enjoy every moment with her in slow motion and every frame in the slow motion was a Planck Unit this would show how much I enjoy spending time with her. So, when someone says they enjoy every moment or every second with someone. Think about how much I enjoy spending time with my wife. I enjoy every moment of Planck Unit of Planck Time with her. NOW THIS IS LOVE! REALLY!

Now, this was on the negative orders of magnitude and showed how I enjoyed every small moment of time with her. What about the years to come? 16 years have passed! How can I show how long I will love her and how long I will be with her? We have not even reached into the positive orders of magnitude! WAIT!!!!!!! This one is very, very simple. My love for her in eternal and infinite. I will be with her for all eternity. This is what is great about being married for eternity. Time will go on forever!

I LOVE YOU SHARI! THANKS FOR LETTING ME EXPRESS MY GREAT LOVE FOR YOU IN SUCH A VERY SPECIAL WAY!

I HAVE ALWAYS SAID IT BEFORE, I LOVE YOU, INFINITY!
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

SPEEDING? IS IT WORTH IT?

2010-04-30T18:45:00.005-06:00

If you're driving at the speed of light and get pulled over by one of your local police officers... What kind of fine are you gonna pay?? And believe me you are gonna pay... He/she isn't going to buy the line... "669,600,000 mph!! That's impossible, my car shimmies at 500,000,000 mph!"

And they are not going to believe the excuse that you didn't realize how fast you were going... "Didn't you notice the Blue Shift, son?"

Let's say your city charges $1 for every 1 mph over the speed limit. So if you were pulled over for doing 669,600,000 in a 35 zone you would be charged $669,599,965 + a (let's say) $33 court fee = $669,599,998. This does not include such subsequent fines as reckless operation, not wearing a seat belt, and DWI (Let's face it if you stopped for an officer while doing light speed, you'd have to be drunk. You'd be out of their jurisdiction in 0.00001 seconds)

A couple of other stats concerning a car capable of light speed. You'd flip the odometer in .537 seconds and need to change the oil every .053 seconds. I don't even want to get into the amount of gas it would use and at the current gas prices maybe a ticket isn't your first concern.

But just think... You'll be able to answer all those complicated questions... Such as...

If you're driving at the speed of Light and you turn your headlights on... What happens?

Turn your radio on... What station do you get?

Hit an on coming freight train?

Stick your head out the window?

Turn on the windshield washer jets?

Honk your horn?

Downshift into first?

Be the first to own a light-speed car...

Albert Einstein vs. Isaac Newton

2010-02-11T21:53:00.007-07:00

Once all the scientists die and go to heaven. They decide to play hide-n-seek.
Unfortunately Einstein is the one who has the den. He is supposed to count
upto 100 and then start searching. Everyone starts hiding except Newton.
Newton just draws a square of 1 meter and stands in it, right in front of
Einstein.
Einsteins counting ....97,98,99,100, opens his eyes and finds Newton
standing in front. Einstein says "Newtons out, Newton's out."

Newton denies and says I am not out. He claims that he is not Newton. All
the scientists come out and he proves that he is not Newton. how?

scroll down...

scroll down... further....

His proof:

Newton says:
I am standing in a square of area 1m square..
That means I am Newton per meter square..
Hence I am Pascal.

Since newton per meter square = Pascal

Heaven is hotter than Hell

2010-01-15T17:15:00.002-07:00

It is perhaps worth pointing out that Heaven is actually hotter than Hell. My full source for this is a book called "A Random Walk in Physics", published by the UK Institute of Physics, but apparently the original is in Applied Optics, II, A14 (1972).
In summary, the argument uses Isaiah 30:26 "The light of the Moon shall be as the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days." After various complex arguments (and using the Stefan-Boltzmann fourth-power law, which is familiar to you all, I'm sure) this gives the equation:
(H/E) ** 4 = 50, where H is the temperature of Heaven and E is the temperature of Earth.
This implies the temperature of Heaven is 525 deg. C. By contrast, the temperature of Hell must be less than 445 deg. C, the temperature of the lake of boiling sulphur (see Rev 21:8.) If it were any hotter, the sulphur would be a gas, not a lake. Thus Heaven is hotter than Hell.

"Goldilocks and the Three Planets" (Repost from January 16, 2009)

2009-12-08T19:37:00.003-07:00

(Image: Venus - ESA, Earth - ESA, Mars - ESA Â© 2007 MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/ RSSD/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA)

Once upon a time there were three planets that lived in the the Orion Arm of the Milky Way galaxy. The first planet was Venus, the second was Earth, and the third was Mars. As these planets moved on with their own orbital variations a Small Solar System Body or comet named Goldilocks broke free, gravitationally, from the Kuiper Belt.

While on her journey through the inner Solar System and before being thrown out into interstellar space, Goldilocks decided to pass by each of these three planets. Upon her visit by Venus she found that it was much too hot there for her nuclei consisting of loose collections of ice, dust and small rocky particles. Venus was much too close to the sun, her water would never be able to flow freely, it would turn into a gaseous state and would just evaporate into the atmosphere. She also found the atmosphere to be too thick and heavy. She would never be able to live on this planet and help support life. It was like a sauna. It was “Too Hot!” She then moved on to pass by Mars, because of her orbit she would have to come back later to visit Earth. While on her pass by Mars she found that it was too cold there. Once again her water would never be able to flow freely. The atmosphere there was too thin, because Mars has no continental drift. This causes all the particles in the atmosphere to become trapped within the surface of Mars. All of her water would remain in a solid or frozen state. She would never be able to help support life there. It was “Too Cold!” Now it was time to visit Earth. Upon her pass by Earth she found that the temperature was just right and her water was able to flow freely in a liquid state. There was also continental drift there on Earth. This allows particles from the atmosphere that become trapped on the ground to be brought back, once again, to the atmosphere through volcanic activity. The Earths medium sized atmosphere was just right. It allows for perfect temperatures and the ability to support life. It was “Just Right!”

As Goldilocks moved on before being thrown out into interstellar space she hoped that by chance that she might pass close enough to massive Jupiter in hopes of being influenced, gravitationally, on her trajectory. She hoped to be nudged just enough to one day return close enough to Earth and to be pulled into its atmosphere and burn up upon entry and release her nuclei and help support live on a planet that is “Just Right.”

"TWILIGHT"

2009-11-19T22:19:00.004-07:00

I posted this in December 2008, but I felt the need to post again! Enjoy!

"Twilight" (1820) by Caspar David Friedrich

I have something I need to get off of my chest. I have always been interested in "Twilight." Please do not let my wife know, she will never let me live this one down. Although, she reads my blog and will most certainly find out, please DO NOT let her know. It could damage the town. Twilight is very interesting to me. It even reaches farther than we know, even into other planets. and galaxies. That is how far reaching "Twilight" is.

There are many versions of "Twilight." My wife has all of these on our bookcase. I see them every day and wonder which version is best. Technically, there is only one truly defined "Twilight", but there are three established and widely accepted subcategories of twilight: civil twilight (brightest), nautical twilight and astronomical twilight (darkest). Civil twilight begins in the morning when the geometric center of the Sun is 6° below the horizon and ends at sunrise. Evening civil twilight begins at sunset and ends when the center of the Sun reaches 6° below the horizon. Nautical twilight is defined as the time beginning when the geometric center of the Sun is exactly 12° below the horizon and ending when the sun's center is exactly 12° below the horizon. Astronomical twilight is defined as the time beginning when the center of the Sun is exactly 18° below the horizon and ending when the sun's center reaches exactly 18° below the horizon. I prefer the version "Civil Twilight in the Morning," but my wife prefers another version of "Twilight."

"Twilight" can have varied durations of time, depending on the latitude of the observer. In the Arctic and Antarctic regions, twilight (if at all) can last for several hours. I know that at my geographic location, "Twilight" can last all night and keep me awake for many, many hours. There is no twilight at the poles within a month on either side of the winter solstice. I am going to enforce this rule at my house, this sounds like a great idea. At the poles, twilight can be as long as two weeks, while at the equator, it can go from day to night in as little as twenty minutes. "Twilight" even reaches the Martians. Twilight on Mars is longer than on Earth, lasting for up to two hours before sunrise or after sunset.

I know that "Twilight" will continue around my house for quite some time, but I guess I should be very grateful that "Twilight" is not continuous. Within the polar circles of Earth, twilight literally lasts for weeks in the polar fall and spring. Poor men. What makes me most grateful is that it could be much, much worse. There is a planet in a distant solar system, the name escapes me, that continually faces its sun. By doing this there is one side that is continually light and the other side is continually dark. Yes! you guessed it. Poor, Poor men, if any there. There is an area on this poor planet, roughly 200 miles wide, from pole to pole, that is in continuous never ending "Twilight." This sounds like a planet that my wife and many of her friends would like to visit, but not me. I will be happy with intermittent "Twilight" here at my geographic location.

Quotes that make you THINK!

2009-11-13T13:57:00.004-07:00

I love quotes! Especially ones that make you think! Ones that inspire you to strive to become a better person. Listed below are some of my favorite quotes from some of my favorite thinkers and leaders.

"It was said of old that he who governs himself is greater than he who takes a city."
- Gordon B. Hinckley

"May you live your life as if the maxim of your actions were to become universal law."
- Immanuel Kant

"There are many things that I believe that I shall never say but I shall never say those things I do not believe." - Immanuel Kant

"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use." - Galileo Galilei

"Long experience has taught me this about the status of mankind with regard to matters requiring thought: the less people know and understand about them, the more positively they attempt to argue concerning them, while on the other hand to know and understand a multitude of things renders men cautious in passing judgement upon anything new." - Galileo Galilei

"We knew of old that God was so great that he could make all things; but, behold, he is so much greater even than that, that he can make all things make themselves."
- Charles Kingsley

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."
- Albert Einstein

"Truth is what stands the test of experience." -Albert Einstein

"If A is success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut." - Albert Einstein

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity." - Albert Einstein

"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones." - Albert Einstein

"Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity." - Albert Einstein

"Any man whose errors take ten years to correct is quite a man." - J. Robert Oppenheimer (speaking of Albert Einstein)

"Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." - J. Robert Oppenheimer (speaking of the atomic bomb)

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."
- Aristotle

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Plato

"Ignorance, the root and the stem of every evil." - Plato

"I detest that man who hides one thing in the depths of his heart, and speaks for another."
- Homer

"A generation of men is like a generation of leaves; the wind scatters some leaves upon the ground, while others the burgeoning wood brings forth - and the season of spring comes on. So of men one generation springs forth and another ceases." -Homer

"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." - Isaac Newton

"Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful." - Samuel Johnson

"It's not the hours you put in your work that counts, it's the work you put in the hours."
- Sam Ewing

"Men show their characters in nothing more clearly than in what they think laughable."
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"Many a man's reputation would not know his character if they met on the street."
- Elbert Hubbard

"This art of resting the mind and the power of dismissing from it all care and worry is probably one of the secrets of energy in our great men." - Captain J. A. Hadfield

"Latter-day Saints...do not deny that an evolutionary process, a reflection of the gospel law of progression, may be one of the methods of the Lord's labor in the universe." - John A. Widtsoe

"Man's best possession is a sympathetic wife." - Euripides

"If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything." - Mark Twain

"If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it." - Herodotus

"If you do not wish to be prone to anger, do not feed the habit; give it nothing which may tend to its increase." - Epictetus

Is 186,000 Miles Per Second The Speed Limit? (REPOST)

2009-07-09T22:12:00.006-06:00

I realize this is a repost, but it is something that I ponder often. I assure you that I have an "ULTRA" post in the works.

Back in September (2008) I posted about the speed of light and how there is nothing faster. Ever since I posted that I have been wondering if that is true. I know, that is really something that most people worry about, but it keeps me busy thinking about. I know scientifically and theoretically that there is nothing faster. That has been proven by the calculations of Albert Einstein with his theory of special relativity. We know that light travels at, roughly, 186,000 miles per second or 299,792,458 meters per second. Since then we have found that the speed of light can be manipulated. Light can slow as it is refracted passing through much denser materials, such as water, glass, and much slower through diamonds. We can also temporarily speed up light. One experiment in 2000 made the group velocity, or speed, of laser beams travel for extremely short distances through caesium or cesium atoms at 300 times the speed of light, WOW! now that is fast.

Now let me let you in on what I have been thinking about. We use many wavelenghts of nonvisible light for communication purposes. Most common is radiowaves and microwaves, no not ovens, but that makes me hungry. There is another form of communication that many use each day. This may get a little deep in thought so bare with me. Prayer! Prayer, what is the mechanism used to transfer our thoughts and words in prayer? Is it some sort of wavelenght of light? Perhaps, but it all depends on how far our prayers need to travel to be heard and then the time it takes for our answers to travel back. We do not know the exact location of our Heavenly Father, but it is probably pretty far. Let's just say we probably know that it is farther than our sun. Our sun is roughly 93 million miles from Earth. Using a wavelenght of light for communication and using the distance of our sun as our prayers destination, that would take our prayer 8.31 minutes to arrive and then an additional 8.31 minutes to return if answered immediately. I know that I have had prayers answered almost instantly. So, probably not a wavelenght of light, since we know that the speed of light is constant, but could caesium surround us while we pray? (I am joking here) That could speed up our prayers, I sure hope not, that could be very dangerous. Caesium is highly reactive and is highly explosive when it comes in contact with water. I don't know about you, but I have often cried while praying, so that could be deadly.

This is what makes me wonder, what is the mechanism used to transfer our thoughts and words in prayer. Whatever this mechanism is, our Heavenly Father has it all worked out and I do believe that it is much faster that the speed of light. It all depends on where are prayers are going and how far that really is. Or could it be that we all live in very close proximity, just in a different dimension perhaps? After all the veil is very thin at times between this world and others, but that is just going WAY TOO into things. That is another thing I think about, but I will just leave it at this point. The point is that I believe that the speed of light is theoretically the fastest, but I also believe that this mechanism that transfers our prayers is much faster that the speed of light, how fast? Who knows, but science can not measure this. THINK ABOUT IT!

Global Warming? AGAIN!

2009-03-29T18:42:00.004-06:00

Due to the recent strange weather events across the nation I thought I would re-post something that I wrote a couple of months ago. I feel that many people do not understand the real "Global Warming" issue. It frustrates me when people develop an opinion without researching it first and obtaining the facts first. I hope that by reading this that some will open their minds a little more to the issue and understand it a little better. Read this with an open mind and think about this subject. Do not make this a left vs. right issue.

Why else would the Lord have told us to be stewards over the Earth? This Earth was created for our use and we are to care for it. I ultimately feel that the changing climate here on Earth is part of the plan of the Creation. The Earth will take care of itself and it will be renewed again! The Earth is angry!

ORIGINAL POST: JANUARY 29, 2009

Global Warming? Think for a moment… Is it real????? Hmmmm! Yes! WAIT! Don’t leave! Take a few moments and read this one. It is a little long, but trust me, I have shortened this, REALLY! And this is right up my alley; I studied this extensively in school, so give it a chance!!!! And please do not argue with me with anything that you heard from Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity. I like them both, but they are not scientists, just conservatives like me, but I however understand the Earth System Processes, well more than they do!Temperatures on a global average have been on the rise. (Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 100 years ending in 2005) This is a fact! No, I do not like Al Gore. His work is flawed and inconsistent. And he has bad hair. Does this mean that everyone is experiencing a warming? No. Some places are cooling and some are warming. This is an “average” global temperature increase, “average.” And yes, I know some of you are thinking, I am really cold right now. Yes! It is winter. HELLO! Really though, this is what happens when there is a climate shift, weather begins to see extremes. When a climate begins to change, bad things can happen. (I really like this, but then again, I am a natural disaster “FREAK,” as long as nobody gets injured or killed) If you have noticed in the past few years there has been an increase in extreme weather events. I know my friends in Arkansas thinks so. So when it gets colder than usual and you say, Wow! Global Warming huh! You are correct! When it snows in June you say, Wow! Global Warming huh! You are correct again! There are those that may say, well I thought they said back in the 70’s and 80’s that we were going into an ice age? Yes, this is the pattern that the earth should be going into. (This is what is great about science; new discoveries are made, let’s see what we can figure out next!) Does this mean an Earth covered in ice? No! Although, here in Utah this could be very bad, anyone remember the great prehistoric pluvial lake, Lake Bonneville, from the Pleistocene? I don’t, I was not around yet, but our mountains and shorelines remember. Take a look sometime if you are in the area, remarkable!There are cycles that the Earth goes through called Milankovitch cycles, named after a Serbian civil engineer and mathematician, Milutin Milanković, that helped to determine these various orbital variations. These orbital variations are eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession of the Earth's orbit and they are very complicated, so I will not bore you with them. Feel free to read about them if you can’t fall asleep. Talk about "moving!" These cycles show that we should be headed toward what looks like an ice age, but we are not. We are warming! (Sorry Phoenix! It is getting hotter!) This is where the confusion begins.There is a direct correlation with warming to the industrial revolution. Also, there is a direct correlation to the increased amount of CO2 in the atmosphere with the industrial revolution. By the way, the levels of CO2 have been measured from the top of Mount Kīlauea, Hawaii. Far away from any heavily polluted areas. It is very hard to ignore this evidence. So, Yes! global warming is happening. Now this is where the argument about global warming can begin.Since it is a fact that temperatures have been on the rise, now we need to ask why. Is it anthropogenic? (Dang humans!) Perhaps! This is where there is such a debate. This is where I feel the real question should be. Is Global Warming Man Made? I personally believe that we have had some sort of an impact on climate change. To what extent? I am not sure. To actually know how much is very hard to track. Could there be some variable that we do not know? Yes! Could we, as humans, have just set off a tipping point and caused the warming to occur, or a climate shift to occur? Perhaps! There are just too many variables to consider. Whatever has caused this to happen may never be known. On the flip side we have also been helping to cool our planet with the sulfates we have been releasing into the atmosphere. This was discovered through methods called pan evaporation. (Cool Huh!) Pans of water are measured for the amount of evaporation that occurs over time. Evaporation is related to temperature and solar insolation or sunlight. The temperature has been increasing over the past years, but the amount of evaporation has been decreasing. Long story short, this has been because of the amount of sulfates that have been releases into the atmosphere. These sulfates block the amount of solar insolation the Earth receives. Now, could we have actually been slowing the rate of warming, very likely! Can you say, “Global Dimming!” (Very interesting study performed the day after 911 when all the planes were grounded, let me give you a little hint, no vapor trails!)
So, as you can see there are so many factors to consider. Since we do not know how much man has contributed to global warming, it is hard to say what we need to do, or if anything. My problem with these global warming extremists is that they think that we can fix this with no problems. They also paint a very dim picture of our future. It has taken a long time for this problem to happen and it is going to take a very long time to correct the problem. I personally feel, too little too late! I believe we are past the point of no return. The damage has been done. I am not an extremist when it comes to the global warming issue, but if we know we are contributing then it is our responsibility to do what we can to stop polluting our atmosphere. Even though I feel. it is too late, let's be good stewards of our Earth. Ultimately, the Earth will fix itself as it has done many, many times in the past. We will probably not be around to see this, but Earth will take care of this problem. Think About It!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!

2009-03-22T13:39:00.008-06:00

I would like to wish my father, Lloyd William Schempp, a Happy Birthday. I truly feel that he is the greatest father that anyone could be blessed to have here upon the face of this Earth. I would like to start with a couple of paragraphs from the autobiography of my father. These two paragraphs should and will shed a little bit of light on my thought process. It should give you an indication of why I think the way I do. GENETICS?

"Lloyd William Schempp was born on 22 March 1940 at Alamosa, Alamosa County, Colorado. I was born at the Alamosa Community Hospital and delivered by our family doctor, Dr. Sidney Anderson. I came into the world at 12:30 a.m. on the morning of Good Friday."

"The 22nd of March is the earliest date upon which Good Friday can fall. Are you ready for this. Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon. The Paschal full moon is the 14th day of a lunar month occurring on or following the next day after March 21. Anyway with Good Friday occurring the Friday before Easter, Good Friday, on a March 22, is a once in a lifetime happening. Between the years 1940 AD and 2041 AD, March 22 occurs on Friday only 15 times and only once does it occur on Good Friday. I won't even get into the equinox for 1940, aren't you glad?" - Lloyd William Schempp

"KARL, I AM YOUR FATHER!" (In a deep breathing voice)

Now, I hope this give you a little indication of why I am the way I am. (For the better, I feel) I am a very lucky person to have such a great man as a father. He is one of the smartest men that I know. I have learned many things from just growing up around him. I have also learned many things from the example that he has set for me. I would have to say that the greatest thing that I have learned for my father is not anything scientific or anything to do with a thought process. The greatest thing that I have learned from my father is how to treat your wife and mother. My father treats my mother with the greatest respect of anyone that I know. My father grew up without his mother. She passed on to the next stage of life on April 21, 1940. I have always wondered if this is why he treats my mother with the greatest respect. By not having a mother, growing up, I feel that he perhaps he has taken the love and respect that he would have shown to his own mother and carried it with him until he was married and expressed this love for mothers and gave my mother, his wife, an extra appreciation of love and respect. This is the greatest example that he has shown for me.

My father has always been there for me through the years and continues to be there for me to this day. I love just being around my father. He is just fun to be around. As I grow older I can see that I am a lot like my father. I can see many things in me that I have either learned or inherited from my father. There is one thing that we do not see eye-to-eye on though! BYU vs. Utah. I can not think of a greater example of a father, than my own father, to follow here upon this Earth.

I usually try to not give the age of any of my family members on their birthdays, but this one was given in the beginning. It was too great to pass up the opportunity in showing how I came to be the way I am. I am looking forward to spending many more equinoxes with my father. If you are wanting to know about the equinox, read my previous post. Don't worry! I did not get into the equinox of 1940 either. But, I will say that it does involve two points of view. Heliocentric or Geocentric! THINK ABOUT IT!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY! I LOVE YOU!

*If you want to read more about my father see http://sonofathinker.blogspot.com/2008/12/quotes-from-my-dad.html

What a Great Day for Equality here on Earth!

2009-03-20T10:51:00.005-06:00

True equality only happens twice a year on Earth. People try to equal in many ways. Boys want to be equal to girls and girls want to be equal to boys, but this can never really be achieved. There is only one way that we can achieve true equality here on Earth. And today is one of those lucky days that we have equality. Today at 11:44 UTC the Earth reached an equinoctial point. This happens twice a year. This is a point where the Earth's axis is inclined neither away or toward the sun. The sun's solar isolation is directed directly at the Earth at the equator. (No, the sun is not only shining on the equator!) This happens twice a year at the vernal point (no, not Vernal, Utah) and the autumnal point. The names given to these days are the vernal equinox and the autumnal equinox. The term equinox is derived from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night). This is exactly what occurs. The the night and day are approximately equally long.

Summer is my favorite season, but the first day of spring has to be one of my favorite days. Even though it is not as warm as summer, I like to look at it this way. From this point moving into summer, each day we will be blessed with an increasing duration of sunlight. (unless you are reading this from the southern hemisphere, SORRY!) And if you have not caught on by now, I LOVE THE SUN AND SUNLIGHT! (There are many, many reasons that I love the sunlight that I will not go into now(Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD)) From this point we will be able to enjoy the blooming plants and trees. We will see an increasing activity of life, both in human and animal forms (also an increase of mosquitoes from where I chose to live in close proximity too, thanks Utah Lake) I love the increasing sunlight! There is nothing greater than the light we receive from the sun. We would not be here without it.

Whenever I feel the increasing sunlight it always bring to me a feeling of renewal and life. I am thankful for such a great and marvelous Creation. I often think of this passage of scripture when I feel the warming sun upon my skin.

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life. JOHN 8:12

So, on the great day of equality on Earth, be thankful for this day, a day of renewal and optimism. THINK ABOUT IT!

As a side note I would also like to add a link to something very interesting thay my mother sent me.

http://www.ldsmag.com/sci_rel/090318star.html

Further reading also at

http://www.space.com/spacewatch/090313-ns-venus-fading.html

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHARI!

2009-03-18T23:21:00.004-06:00

Shari in Germany

On this day, March 19th, a very special individual was brought into this World. It was a beautiful Tuesday in Mesa, Arizona when Shari Loree was sent from Heaven to start her journey here on Earth. Shari was chosen to be sent to Earth at a specific time. She was chosen to be sent to Earth at this time so magical things could happen in her life. She was chosen to be sent, at the time she was, so she could best influence those around her. As she grew she was able to touch the lives of many as she traveled around the world in her young age. Even at this young age she was able to influence and touch peoples lives for the better. Her outgoing personality, that has been handed down to her own daughter, has always been a great characteristic that has been used for the best. Shari, just like most that have been sent to Earth, has had many trials and struggles in her life. She has faced these challenges in her life and carried on. Many people would have not been able to take on the challenges that she has. But, because of her great strengths and abilities she has always been able to put these trials behind her and learn from them and help others with trials in their life. Shari has blessed the lives of many people in her life, but I personally feel that I am the one that has been most blessed by having met her.

Shortly after meeting her, in the Fall of 1993, I knew I was in love. I knew that she was the one that I wanted to spend eternity with and we were married in February 1995. After we were married I continued to learn more about my wife and saw what a great example she was to those around her. She always makes people around her feel very comfortable. She has always been one that people are attracted to. And for good reason, she is an amazing person. Like many couples, as you continue in your relationship things change as you pass through the different stages of your life. Shari has only done one thing as we have known each other and that is, she continues to progress and become a better person.

Many years after being married we were blessed to have our first child, Cruz. I was able to see many changes in Shari as she became a mother. She was a natural at being a mother. Soon came our second, Kenyon then Mara our third. Within days we will be blessed to have our fourth child, a boy, join us here on Earth. Her children, as well as I are very lucky to have a woman so great as her. Once again, Shari was chosen to be sent at a specific time here in Earth. She was chosen to be sent so she could mold her children's lives for the better. As you look around at the world, it is filled with much good, but also there is a lot of evil around. Shari was chosen to be sent here on Earth at this time in Earths existence to be a guide, a leader, a teacher, and a mother for these special children. She is truly the greatest woman that I know. I am very thankful to have met her and to be married to her for eternity.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHARI!

I LOVE YOU!

Now, It would not complete and it would not be me if I did not add a little bit of thought into the whole thing. How old is she? Well, she is younger than me! Let's do it like this. Let us find her age by counting the successful revolutions around the sun of my second favorite planet in our solar system. It is my second favorite for many reasons. One being a comet magnet! Thanks (PLANET) I love you for this! Well, you guessed it! It is a Jovian planet! It is also the third brightest object in our night sky with an apparent magnitude of -2.3. (Which in just a few nights the Space Shuttle docked with the International Space Station will also have this same apparent magnitude YES! Can't wait!) It is the fifth planet form the sun and the largest of the planets within our solar system. Yes, Pluto! DOH! Pluto is not a planet. Sorry Pluto, but you had this coming. Pretending to be something you are not. COME ON! YES! JUPITER! So, if we were to start counting from the moment she was born, which I actually did on this day, March 19th of a certain year, the planet Jupiter has made roughly 2.95129519697 successful solar passes. I never knew until just this moment why I started counting the orbits Jupiter was making around our sun. So, you can do the math if you want, but, I hope that she is around for a few more passes of this Jovian planet. And Shari, like this planet, you are out of this world!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I LOVE YOU!

99942 Apophis!

2009-03-16T22:39:00.007-06:00

The coming attraction has arrived! Well, not really! I have been wanting to post information on the asteroid Apophis, but could not condense all the information I wanted to present. (Shari has informed me that I present too much information and too detailed) I am sure that you are happy. ( I am trying to do better, REALLY!) I thought for this post that I would let my favorite astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson, present this information to you in his very entertaining way. I feel, somewhat, that I have taken the easy way out on this post and have not given you all the information that I wanted to. But I know that this clip will present the basics of this asteroid. ENJOY!

BE SURE TO MUTE MY PLAYLIST (MUSIC) AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE BEFORE STARTING THE VIDEO.

Happy Birthday Sandy!

2009-03-10T00:09:00.000-06:00

Sandy, top left 1974

On this day many years ago my oldest sister was born not too far from where I currently live. Sandra Lynne Schempp was born in Provo, Utah. She was born on........well, I am not going to give this to you. You are going to have to figure this out if you really want to know. First I want to wish her a Happy Birthday!

I usually make it too easy in giving away the ages of my siblings or parents on their birthdays. I usually indicate how many successful solar passes they have made. WAY TOO EASY! Well, not this time. I will say she was born many years before Neil Alden Armstrong first set foot on the moon. I will also let you know that she was born before the assassination of President John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy! I will make you work for the rest. My sister Sandy has been on the Earth long enough that the fifth largest satellite in our solar system has made 615.018315015 revolutions around her. I will not give you any further information. Well, I will let you know that the satellite that I have referred to is a natural satellite with a mean radius of 1,737.10 km or 1,079.383 898 miles. GOOD LUCK!

Sandy is the oldest of six Schempp children. She is the only one of the Schempp children born in Utah, but now all but one of the Schempp children currently reside in Utah. Sandy was always a quiet person, but she made up for this with her athletic ability. She is a very, very good softball player. I know this personally, YES! PERSONALLY! When I was five years old all of the Schempp kids, minus Kelly, were playing ball out in the backyard of our home in Omaha, Nebraska while our parents were out. (At a church function, if I remember correctly) Well, it was Sandy's turn at bat. Did I mention that Sandy was a very good softball player? And I think I failed to mention that playing softball requires swinging a bat. (SWING BATTER!) Anyway, as Sandy was batting a certain five year old, named Karl, decided to move into close proximity to his sisters batting area. You guessed it! POW! This is why I told you that I knew from personal experience that Sandy was a good softball player and could swing the bat very well. Let's just say she is so good that this required a few stitches on the top of my head to repair. OUCH!

I was still in elementary school when my sister Sandy was married. I don't have as many memories of her as I do some of my other siblings. I can remember her always studying and reading the scriptures in her room. I can remember her always attending church and all of her church activities growing up. This was a great example to all of the younger siblings in our home. I am very grateful to have her as a sister. She is currently studying to be a nurse and I know personally how hard it is to go to school and raise a family at the same time. I know that she will be wonderful nurse and help many people with her skills. I love you very much Sandy and hope that you have a Happy Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I LOVE YOU!

YOUR MIDDLE LITTLE BROTHER!

COMING ATTRACTION!

2009-03-05T13:46:00.000-07:00

99942 APOPHIS

Friday the 13th!

Impact on Earth?

Impact on the Moon?

Gravitational Keyhole!

450 metres (1,500 ft)!

Coming soon to a Galaxy (or a blog) near you!

One of the Greatest Events in History!

2009-02-25T13:37:00.001-07:00

Today is the anniversary of one of the greatest events in history. Everyone has an event in history that they feel may qualify as the greatest event in history. Some may say sliced bread, but come on, how great was this? Really? Others might say the lunar landing on July 20, 1969. Pretty good, but still not the greatest. The chlorination of public drinking water is another great event, even though some may feel this is bad. I am sure the individuals involved in the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak in London would have loved to have had chlorinated water. Still, a very great event, but not the best. One that comes in close, is the discovery of penicillin. This has to be a close second at the time for me. After having a body core temperature over 39.5 degrees Celsius for the past few days. Does not sound too bad does it. Well! Perform this unit conversion and it will tell a different story. [°F] = [°C] × 9 ⁄ 5 + 32 Two days after starting my intake of a form of Penicillin my temperature in now normal again! WHEW! Now I can take care of my wife and kids again!

WHAT IS THE EVENT?

February 25, 1995!

MESA, ARIZONA!

LDS TEMPLE!

On this day, was one of the greatest events in the history of my life. Other days are close, other events may may come close, but the day that I was married for all eternity to my beautiful wife Shari, has to be the best event. I can not even begin to express how much I love her and how important she is to me. She is the greatest person that I could have ever met. She and I enjoy every moment of time together. Some may say they enjoy every second with their spouse, but not me. I will take this to the very extreme to show my love for her. She will understand! BARE WITH ME! This is actually truly heartfelt! (dang keyboard just had some salty discharge, hang on a moment) I have enjoyed every Planck unit of Planck Time! Allow me to explain.

Every Second=one second PLEASE! VERY WEAK!

Millisecond=one thousandth of a second WEAK!

Nanosecond=one billionth of a second LESS WEAK! But still no good!

Yoctosecond=one quadrillionth (in the long scale) or one septillionth (in the short scale) of a second. (which scale you prefer does not matter) Close, but still not good enough for my Shari!

ONLY PLANCK UNITS CAN EXPRESS MY LOVE FOR HER! This is shortest or earliest meaningful interval of time that theoretical physics can describe and consequently the youngest the known universe can be measured. ≈ 5.4×10−44 s.

If I could take each moment of our time together and enjoy every moment with her in slow motion and every frame in the slow motion was a Planck Unit this would show how much I enjoy spending time with her. So, when someone says they enjoy every moment or every second with someone. Think about how much I enjoy spending time with my wife. I enjoy every moment of Planck Unit of Planck Time with her. NOW THIS IS LOVE! REALLY!

Now, this was on the negative orders of magnitude and showed how I enjoyed every small moment of time with her. What about the years to come? 14 years have passed! How can I show how long I will love her and how long I will be with her? We have not even reached into the positive orders of magnitude! WAIT!!!!!!! This one is very, very simple. My love for her in eternal and infinite. I will be with her for all eternity. This is what is great about being married for eternity. Time will go on forever!

I LOVE YOU SHARI! THANKS FOR LETTING ME EXPRESS MY GREAT LOVE FOR YOU IN SUCH A VERY SPECIAL WAY!

I HAVE ALWAYS SAID IT BEFORE, I LOVE YOU, INFINITY!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

Which would you rather be killed by?

2009-02-24T20:14:00.000-07:00

Tyrannosaurus rex vs. Tyrannosauripus pillmorei

I would like to thank the ten of you that voted on my poll question. I apologize for my delay in posting the explanation to my poll question. I have been feeling a little bit beneath an atmospheric phenomena . Thank you for voting even if you did no research into the question at all. The question was, "Would rather be killed by Tyrannosaurus rex or Tyrannosauripus pillmorei?" If you were able to do any research you may have put a little more thought into your fictional death. The numbers came out even on this poll. GREAT JOB!

This may have been a little bit of a trick question. This was why I wanted you to try to research it a bit. (Dang Homework!) Your actual decision was on your manner of death rather than what killed you. Because it is hard to be absolutely sure which animal made a particular footprint, track fossils are given slightly different genus names, and completely different species names, from the animal presumed to have left them. So, if you decided that you would rather be killed by Tyrannosaurus rex you decided that you would rather be killed by being eaten alive. If you were the lucky other half, you decided that you would rather be killed by Tyrannosauripus pillmorei (a much cooler name I think) you chose to be stepped on and smashed to death. Either way, it does not sound like too much fun. I believe I would rather be eaten alive. I am sure the power of these massive jaws and the sharpness of these large teeth would support a very sudden and painless death. Being stepped on could leave you in the mud for hours before you finally succumbed to your injuries (BONUS!then your fossil could be named in with the track fossil left behind!). But when all is said and done, you all chose to be fictionally killed by Mr. T. Rex!

Top of the Atmosphere! Satellite!

2009-02-20T21:59:00.000-07:00

Click on image if you want a better view!

For those of you that were interested in finding out the location of the satellite in the previous post, well here it is. (Thanks mama for looking!) You needed to click on the image for a larger view to be able to view it. It was right in front of my favorite satellite, the Moon! No, it is not a star, it is a satellite. There are no stars or other planets in front of our Moon that I am aware of.

Top of the Atmosphere!

2009-02-18T00:27:00.000-07:00

(image: http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS013&roll=E&frame=54329 )

I ran across this picture and just had to post it. It was taken from the International Space Station at an altitude of 181 nautical miles (335 km). (Click on the image for a better view and see if you can spot a satellite) (other than the moon!)

WHAT A VIEW!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTINE!

2009-02-17T09:50:00.000-07:00

Christine around 1985

I would like to wish one of my three sisters, Christine or "Chi Chi", a Happy Birthday! I would like to start by addressing her nickname. This is a name that I called her for years and still do, but I am careful where and when I address her by this name. I am not really sure where the name came from. I think it might have come from one of our nieces when they were younger and could not pronounce Christine. Anyway, it was not until we moved to New Mexico and found out that her nickname was also a term used to describe a certain anatomy of a woman. WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT This anatomical feature is located on the anterior end of the transverse plane and on the ventral end of the coronal plane. I will not get anymore graphic than this in describing these anatomical objects. So, you can see why I am careful when and where I address her by this nickname.

Christine and Karl on Summit Peak, Colorado elevation 13,300ft. 1986.

Congratulation Christine on another successful solar pass. I believe that you have now completed 42 of these revolutions around our sun. Remember, I have not told anyone how old you are. I will allow those who want to research your age or even ask you your age to do so.

Those of you that know Christine know that she is a very caring person. She is the most selfless person that I know, well maybe equal to my mother. She will do anything for you at anytime. I know that she has done so many things for me that I would not be able to enumerate them. I am very thankful that I have a sister with these qualities.

Just like many of us, she has had many trials in her life. She has always been able to confront these challenges and put them behind her. She is truly a greater woman for having gone through these challenges in her life. I admire her for her abilities in overcoming trials in life.

Christine and Karl in New Mexico 1992.

I can not end without telling any stories about my sister Christine. She too, like my sister Lisa was a little naive growing up. I can remember while living in New Mexico we were driving to Santa Fe. We had just entered Santa Fe and has just stopped at a red light. I looked over at the driver parallel to us and noticed that he had an alcoholic beverage in an aluminum container (a beer). I told Christine to look over at him. She was outraged! She wanted to call the police and let them know that there was a man drinking while he was driving. Well, welcome to New Mexico. Sorry, but things like this go on all the time. I know this was a little bit of a shock for her, but it was also a little bit of an eye opener as well to the world around us. (I can also drive a pretty mean Mustang GT Turbo through a snowstorm, sliding down the mountain, but she does not remember this!) But I am very thankful that my sisters were more sheltered in their younger years. I am thankful that they did not have to view many of the things that I did. I am a little tougher in that area than they were. It also allowed me to help protect them from some of the dangers out there in the world.

Christine! Christine, like I stated earlier, is the most selfless person that I know. She is also the most giving person tat I know. If you want to be full after a dinner or a family event. Go to Christine's house. If she holds a BBQ and you leave hungry, this is your own fault. I can remember one Thanksgiving at her house and she had enough pies for everyone. I mean, she had enough "PIES" for everyone. I can not remember the exact amount, but I think there were enough pies there for everyone to have at least a pie to themselves if not more.

Chrisine right in the middle 1974.

Christine, I love you! You are a great sister. I am very thankful that I have you as a sister. Thank you for the many years of fun. I hope to enjoy many more solar passes with you. (Even though you have quite a head start!) LOVE YA!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

EARTH!

2009-02-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

EARTH! Is there any greater place? At this class at this level, NO! What I mean to say is, at this time in my life and stage in my eternal realm, Earth is the greatest place to be. Earth, Terra, World, Terran, or whatever you want to call it, Earth, this is home to me.

I have studied the Earth for many, many years. I continue to be amazed at the marvelous Creation of Earth. The process of the Creation is still ongoing. Mountains continue to rise toward the Heavens, rivers continue to carve great canyons on their journeys to the seas. New lands are formed as they rise from the depths of the oceans. This great Earth is amazing to me.

As I look back on my studies of the Earth, they began as a young child. I can remember just looking at rocks and collecting rocks. I can remember just loving to be outside. I would walk in the woods viewing the vegetation and wildlife, play around ponds admiring the aquatic life (some very dangerous, cottonmouth or water moccasin), and stare at the stars (even though not part of the Earth, I would have to peer through Earth's atmosphere to view these lights).

My academic studies allowed me to study the Earth in a variety of ways. I have studied Earth's geology. This allowed me to study the Earth up close, touching and handling the Earth. Environmental Studies allowed me to also handle the Earth physically by measuring wells, calculating water flow (hydrology, YIKES! Don't want to be a hydrologist, TOO MUCH MATH!), and taking water samples to test for contamination. As I moved my focus into Geography (Physical Geography), "The Mother of All Sciences" as it is often referred to as, I gained a greater understanding of the Earth System Processes. Geography allowed me to study wildfires and wildfire behavior, natural and technological hazards and disasters (plate tectonics, landslides, volcanoes, hurricanes, etc...), climate changes throughout Earth's History, and study Earth as home to man. Geography also allowed me to use many tools that aid in the understanding of our Earth. Satellite imagery and using different wavelengths of light allow the study of Earth to reach great levels. In a way, as we get further from Earth, the more we can understand Earth. As I studied Earth and always looking down I realized that this was only the beginning in trying to understand our Earth. LOOK UP! Many great mysteries of Earth have been revealed by looking up! This is where I am at in my own personal studies, looking up, now that my formal education is behind me, for the moment! I hope to continue my education, but I want someone else to pay for this!

Looking up is where I have been concentrating my personal studies. I have noticed as I look toward the stars, in study, that I always fall back toward Earth. (Dang Gravity! Hey! Isn't there suppose to be less of a pull toward Earth the further distance you get?) As I study the Universe and the great Creation beyond Earth, I always find something that brings me back to Earth! I really enjoy researching the Universe, but Earth is the best. I really do have a love for this place called Earth.

Ultimately, I am so very grateful for our Heavenly Father and all who created this Earth for us to live for a time. I look at all that I know about Earth and Space and am amazed at what has been created for not only for us, but throughout the Universe. Everything on Earth was made for a specific purpose. Everything that was created and now is in the past was created for a specific purpose. Everything that is yet to be created, will be created for a specific purpose. The same can be said for our amazing Universe, but to a greater extent! This Creation of our infinite Universe is beyond capacity of our minds. As I learn more and more about this Creation, I gain a greater love for our Heavenly Father and the love that he has for us. All that He has created and will create for us shows us how important we are to Him. I am very grateful for all He has done for us.

There is a children's song or Primary song that brings a tear to my eyes every time that I hear it or read it. I can not sing this song to my children, or sing in Church without getting a tear in my eye and a lump in my throat. As I hear the words to this song, I look at the words in great detail and think of the actual Earth Processes that need to occur in order for these things to happen. I look way to in the biology, physics, meteorology, and all around Earth Processes involved. I will leave you with the lyrics to the song below. Try not to shed a tear as you read this and Think About It!

Whenever I hear the song of a bird Or look at the blue, blue sky, Whenever I feel the rain on my face Or the wind as it rushes by, Whenever I touch a velvet rose Or walk by our lilac tree, I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me. He gave me my eyes that I might see The color of butterfly wings. He gave me my ears that I might hear The magical sound of things. He gave me my life, my mind, my heart: I thank him reverently For all his creations, of which I'm a part. Yes, I know Heavenly Father loves me.

"Killed by Asteroid" or "Killed in an Airplane Crash"

2009-02-01T18:49:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank those (all 7 of you) who voted on my poll question. The question was, "Which do you think is more likely to be engraved on your tombstone?" "Killed by Asteroid" or "Killed in an Airplane Crash." After the voting was complete 14.28571% (to be exact!) of you voted, "Killed by Asteroid." The other 85.71428% voted "Killed in an Airplane Crash."

I know the suspense is "killing" you so I will get to the answer to the question, but before I do, there actually is statistical evidence to back up the answer to the question. So if you happen to have voted for the correct answer, well, congratulations! You were correct!

The chances that your tombstone will have engraved upon it, "Killed by Asteroid" or "Killed in an Airplane Crash" are about the same. Congratulations to all seven of you, you were correct! There have been about 2 dozen people killed by asteroids falling from the sky in the past 400 years, but there have been thousands of people killed in airplane crashes during the relatively brief history of passenger air travel. So how can this comparative statistic be correct and true? No problem! The asteroid impact records show that after the end of 10 million years, when the total of all airplane crashes has killed roughly 1 billion people (assuming a death-by-airplane rate of 100 per year), an asteroid is most likely to have hit the Earth with enough energy to kill 1 billion people. What is interesting about this comparison is that while airplane crashes kill people a few at a time, an asteroid might not kill anyone for millions of years. But, when an asteroid does hit, it will take out hundreds of millions of people instantly and many more hundreds of millions in the wake of global climactic upheaval.

I hope that I have not raised too many fears of an asteroid impact or air travel! The asteroid and comet impact rate has declined dramatically since the early life of our solar system. Whew! Look to the moon and you will see numerous impact craters, look at Earth, not so many visible. But this does indicate that Earth has not been hit in the past. We have been hit many, many times with grave consequences, just ask Tyrannosaurus rex, ooops! He is no longer around. Wonder why? The moon has no atmosphere, plate tectonics, wind, water, or any of these great features that Earth does. This allows the craters on the moon to remain undisturbed. Well, maybe Neil Armstrong stirred up some dust, but hey! Earth, however, has all of these factors that erode the impact sites and craters. Lucky Us! Really! Some of these craters have been recycled within the Earth due to the plate tectonic activity of subduction. You know, "SUBDUCTION LEADS TO OROGENY!" Sorry, but this is a great joke, research it and think about it. After all, there is no preserved oceanic crust older than about 180 million years old. (I know, that was just what you were thinking!)

There are many impact sites that are still visible. There is one in the state of Arizona that I have been to see. It is quite the site to view. (And this is a relatively small impact crater in comparison to the Chicxulub Crater in the Yucat'an Peninsula, that I have not seen!) While viewing the crater left in the ground you can imagine the force of the impact. (Actually, not too big, only about 2.5 megatons of TNT, Chicxulub was about 100 teratons of TNT, yes teratons, just a little bit more!)

Even though there have not been any major impacts to Earth in recent history we need to look to the skies and watch. Well not everyone! There is an asteroid that is coming! Apophis! This will make two very close passes by Earth. Possibly, on the second pass around, make contact with EARTH!

First Pass, April 13, 2029! Friday the 13th!

Second Pass, 2036, IMPACT?????

THINK ABOUT IT!

GLOBAL WARMING? GLOBAL DIMMING?

2009-01-29T00:40:00.000-07:00

Global Warming? Think for a moment… Is it real????? Hmmmm! Yes! WAIT! Don’t leave! Take a few moments and read this one. It is a little long, but trust me, I have shortened this, REALLY! And this is right up my alley; I studied this extensively in school, so give it a chance!!!! And please do not argue with me with anything that you heard from Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity. I like them both, but they are not scientists, just conservatives like me, but I however understand the Earth System Processes, well more than they do!

Temperatures on a global average have been on the rise. (Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 100 years ending in 2005) This is a fact! No, I do not like Al Gore. His work is flawed and inconsistent. And he has bad hair. Does this mean that everyone is experiencing a warming? No. Some places are cooling and some are warming. This is an “average” global temperature increase, “average.” And yes, I know some of you are thinking, I am really cold right now. Yes! It is winter. HELLO! Really though, this is what happens when there is a climate shift, weather begins to see extremes. When a climate begins to change, bad things can happen. (I really like this, but then again, I am a natural disaster “FREAK,” as long as nobody gets injured or killed) If you have noticed in the past few years there has been an increase in extreme weather events. I know my friends in Arkansas thinks so. So when it gets colder than usual and you say, Wow! Global Warming huh! You are correct! When it snows in June you say, Wow! Global Warming huh! You are correct again! There are those that may say, well I thought they said back in the 70’s and 80’s that we were going into an ice age? Yes, this is the pattern that the earth should be going into. (This is what is great about science; new discoveries are made, let’s see what we can figure out next!) Does this mean an Earth covered in ice? No! Although, here in Utah this could be very bad, anyone remember the great prehistoric pluvial lake, Lake Bonneville, from the Pleistocene? I don’t, I was not around yet, but our mountains and shorelines remember. Take a look sometime if you are in the area, remarkable!

There are cycles that the Earth goes through called Milankovitch cycles, named after a Serbian civil engineer and mathematician, Milutin Milanković, that helped to determine these various orbital variations. These orbital variations are eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession of the Earth's orbit and they are very complicated, so I will not bore you with them. Feel free to read about them if you can’t fall asleep. Talk about "moving!" These cycles show that we should be headed toward what looks like an ice age, but we are not. We are warming! (Sorry Phoenix! It is getting hotter!) This is where the confusion begins.

There is a direct correlation with warming to the industrial revolution. Also, there is a direct correlation to the increased amount of CO2 in the atmosphere with the industrial revolution. By the way, the levels of CO2 have been measured from the top of Mount Kīlauea, Hawaii. Far away from any heavily polluted areas. It is very hard to ignore this evidence. So, Yes! global warming is happening. Now this is where the argument about global warming can begin.

Since it is a fact that temperatures have been on the rise, now we need to ask why. Is it anthropogenic? (Dang humans!) Perhaps! This is where there is such a debate. This is where I feel the real question should be. Is Global Warming Man Made? I personally believe that we have had some sort of an impact on climate change. To what extent? I am not sure. To actually know how much is very hard to track. Could there be some variable that we do not know? Yes! Could we, as humans, have just set off a tipping point and caused the warming to occur, or a climate shift to occur? Perhaps! There are just too many variables to consider. Whatever has caused this to happen may never be known. On the flip side we have also been helping to cool our planet with the sulfates we have been releasing into the atmosphere. This was discovered through methods called pan evaporation. (Cool Huh!) Pans of water are measured for the amount of evaporation that occurs over time. Evaporation is related to temperature and solar insolation or sunlight. The temperature has been increasing over the past years, but the amount of evaporation has been decreasing. Long story short, this has been because of the amount of sulfates that have been releases into the atmosphere. These sulfates block the amount of solar insolation the Earth receives. Now, could we have actually been slowing the rate of warming, very likely! Can you say, “Global Dimming!” (Very interesting study performed the day after 911 when all the planes were grounded, let me give you a little hint, no vapor trails!)

So, as you can see there are so many factors to consider. Since we do not know how much man has contributed to global warming, it is hard to say what we need to do, or if anything. My problem with these global warming extremists is that they think that we can fix this with no problems. They also paint a very dim picture of our future. It has taken a long time for this problem to happen and it is going to take a very long time to correct the problem. I personally feel, too little too late! I believe we are past the point of no return. The damage has been done. I am not an extremist when it comes to the global warming issue, but if we know we are contributing then it is our responsibility to do what we can to stop polluting our atmosphere. Even though I feel. it is too late, let's be good stewards of our Earth. Ultimately, the Earth will fix itself as it has done many, many times in the past. We will probably not be around to see this, but Earth will take care of this problem. Think About It!

TAGGED

2009-01-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking of many different topics to post. Asteroids! Comets! Jupiter! Global Warming! Global Dimming! Extinction! But, I do not have any of these ready yet. Lucky You! So, since my wife tagged everyone on her blog with these questions, I will participate.

8 TV Shows I enjoy watching:

1. The Universe (The History Chanel)

2. That 70's Show

3. Dr. Who

4. CHiP's

5. Supernova (comedy on PBS, hard to find)

6. Jimmy Neutron

8. Glenn Beck

8 Things that happened yesterday:

1. Did laundry

2. Vacuumed

3. Took the kids to the library

4. Cooked breakfast, lunch, and dinner

5. Had a beach party at home with the kids (see http://everythingschempp.blogspot.com/ )

6. Cleaned house

7. Read "T. REX and the CRATER of DOOM"

8. Wrestled with kids

8 Things I am looking forward to:

1. My "DREAM JOB"

2. April 13, 2029, Asteroid, "Apophis" And YES! FRIDAY the 13th!

3. 2036, Asteroid, "Apophis" BACK AGAIN! This is the time to really watch or feel!

4. Betelgeuse, a red super giant, to go "supernova"

5. March 20, 2009 Vernal Equinox (close enough!)

6. April 2009, Koen

7. September 5, 2009 Utah Football!

8. My wife to have Koen and feel much better and get out of the bed. I LOVE YOU SHARI!

8 Things on my wish list:

1. Telescope

2. New laptop

3. New Desktop

4. A masters degree

5. A Ph. D.

6. Greater mathematical abilities

7. Greater Scriptural knowledge

8. Global Warming! It is cold out there!

Goldilocks and the Three Planets

2009-01-16T20:47:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time there were three planets that lived in the the Orion Arm of the Milky Way galaxy. The first planet was Venus, the second was Earth, and the third was Mars. As these planets moved on with their own orbital variations a Small Solar System Body or comet named Goldilocks, broke free, gravitationally speaking, from the Kuiper Belt.

While on her journey through the inner Solar System and before being thrown out into interstellar space, Goldilocks decided to pass by each of these three planets. Upon her visit by Venus she found that it was much too hot there for her nuclei consisting of loose collections of ice, dust and small rocky particles. Venus was much too close to the sun, her water would never be able to flow freely, it would turn into a gaseous state and would just evaporate into the atmosphere. She also found the atmosphere to be too thick and heavy. She would never be able to live on this planet and help support life. It was like a sauna. It was “Too Hot!” She then moved on to pass by Mars, because of her orbit she would have to come back later to visit Earth. While on her pass by Mars she found that it was too cold there. Once again her water would never be able to flow freely. The atmosphere there was too thin, because Mars has no continental drift. This causes all the particles in the atmosphere to become trapped within the surface of Mars. All of her water would remain in a solid or frozen state. She would never be able to help support life there. It was “Too Cold!” Now it was time to visit Earth. Upon her pass by Earth she found that the temperature was just right and her water was able to flow freely in a liquid state. There was also continental drift there on Earth. This allows particles from the atmosphere that become trapped on the ground to be brought back, once again, to the atmosphere through volcanic activity. The Earths medium sized atmosphere was just right. It allows for perfect temperatures and the ability to support life. It was “Just Right!”

As Goldilocks moved on before being thrown out into interstellar space she hoped that by chance, orbitally speaking, that she might pass close enough to massive Jupiter in hopes of being influenced, gravitationally speaking, on her trajectory. She hoped to be nudged just enough to one day return close enough to Earth and to be pulled into its atmosphere and burn up upon entry and release her nuclei and help support live on a planet that is “Just Right.”

Waning gibbous Moon or Neil deGrasse Tyson

2009-01-14T22:34:00.000-07:00

Neil deGrasse Tyson is my favorite astrophysicist (because I have so many) will be on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." He will be on Monday, January 19th. I have read many of his books, journal articles, and essays. I have also watched many interviews with him, documentaries, and television shows he has appeared on. He is a very interesting and entertaining man with a great sense of humor. I actually try to emulate his style when I blog. I try to make what most people may find boring a little more entertaining and fun. So, if you have nothing else to do on Monday night, (which you should not, because the full moon is waning and all visible passes of the International Space Station with magnitude -2.3 will already have occurred earlier than evening) watch Jay and his interview with Neil. You will not be disappointed!

Make your decision what you will do, watch a waning gibbous moon or Neil deGrasse Tyson.

WHAT ELSE IS THERE TO DO? REALLY!

The Biggest and Brightest!

2009-01-11T16:29:00.001-07:00

Did you miss it?

Did you see it?

Do you Care?

Saturday night was the biggest and brightest full moon of the year 2009. You had to be on top of it this year. Just as in December 2008 the moon was very close, relatively, to Earth on Saturday night. It appeared about 14 percent bigger in our sky and 30 percent brighter than some other full moons that will occur during 2009. And just in case you were wondering, Yes! on Saturday night the moon was at perigee, the closest point to us on this orbit. See, you are learning from my blog. Hey! It could win you a game in Jeopardy!

But, just in case you were not able to view this event I captured, the best I could, the bright full moon rising over Mt. Timpanogos in Utah County, Utah. I was a little irritated with some sort of atmospheric phenomenon, visible mass of droplets, or frozen crystals floating in the atmosphere, but I did the best I could. Enjoy! (To see images in better detail, click on the image!)

Don't tell me, "PLEASE!"

2009-01-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

In the 1980's I moved to Los Alamos, New Mexico with my family where my father took a job with Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). LANL is the birthplace of the atomic bomb. LANL is very secure and secret facility, a government facility run by the University of California. They do a great deal of research that is very secret and for very good reasons, mostly national defense. My father is a very, very smart man. He has a B.S. in mathematics and a M.S. in Nuclear Engineering. Well, my father worked in nuclear power for many years before working at LANL. When he took the job a LANL he received a very intense background check to gain employment. My father worked with nuclear weapons while working for LANL. My father was never able to tell us what he did, just that he worked with nuclear weapons. He often stated, "If I told you what I did, I would have to kill you." This show how important these secrets were and are. My father is now retired from LANL and still keeps his vault closed. I know he will continue to do this because of his integrity. Now that I have rambled I will get to the point of this post.

As many of you may know I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Sometimes we are referred to as LDS or Mormon. (Feel free to visit http://www.mormon.org/ or http://www.lds.org/ if you have any questions) Some of you may know that we believe in the Bible and also believe and use other scriptures as a Testament of our Saviour Jesus Christ. Well, the other day while reading in the scriptures, I came across a scripture that has become my new favorite. This passage is when God is speaking to Moses about the creation of the Earth (one of my favorite topics) and many other worlds. This scripture is in the Book of Moses in the "Pearl Of Great Price."

"Wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the flesh on the earth." (Moses 1:5)

When I read this the first thing I thought of was when my father would joke with me about, if he told me what he did at work, he would have to kill me. Well, I believe this to be a little bit bigger than me and my father. This is the "ultimate" I can't tell you everything I do without having to kill you. Not that either my father or God would have killed either Moses or myself, but it shows you how important things can be on this Earth and throughout the universe. Mostly how important Gods Creations are.

WOW! What a wonderful creation this Earth is and not to mention all the "creations" throughout the universe. I am sure Moses thought the same as I did, "Don't tell me, PLEASE!"

HAVING A "BAD" DAY?

2009-01-08T12:54:00.000-07:00

(Image: Don Davis/NASA)

Have you ever had one of those days where nothing seems to go your way. You just can not seem to get going. I am sure that we all have at one point in our life. Well, I hope I can help. I can assure you that things could be worse. I will have you put yourself in the place of someone else or time for a few moments and perhaps this will help you when you are having a bad day.

Imagine you are some creature (you get to chose what you want to be, Tyrannosaurus Rex is a good choice),

(Artwork by Publiphoto/Photo Researchers, Inc.)

or pre-human living (I will let you chose this for imaginations sake. Pretend you went back in time) on Earth near the end of the Cretaceous period, nearly 65 million years ago. You are going on with your day, hunting for food (prehistoric grocery shopping), sending the offspring off to history class (Jurassic Period 1010), or getting ready for work at the angiosperm nursery or Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta farm (it is your imagination call it what you want). It is a clear warm day (duh! it's the Cretaceous, only about 18 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than current temperatures) and things are going pretty well for you and you family. It is very easy to breath the air that is very rich with oxygen, some 150% more than modern levels, and there is a good global warming on right now (some 6 times pre-industrial levels of carbon dioxide SWEET!), life could not be any better. You are strolling along with you significant other, claw in claw, or hand in hand, depending on your evolutionary progress, along the beach the warm waters near the the swamps of what is modern day eastern Utah.

(Image: Unite States Geological Survey, http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/continents/cretaceous.jpg)

You are gazing across the warm shallow seas(modern day Colorado/Kansas) toward the east in hopes of a magnificent sunrise. Suddenly, to your surprise you see an asteroid around 10 km (6 mi) in diameter heading to Earth (better look fast).

(Image: Joe Tucciarone, http://www.dinosaurfact.net/Cretaceous.php)

Within seconds this impacts Earth near the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico and releases 400 zettajoules of energy, Yes! this is a lot. This is 2 million times more powerful than the most powerful man-made explosive device ever detonated, the Tsar Bomba (dang Soviet Union, you just had to be bigger huh!), this was only, only, 50 megatons (weak! well, not really). Okay, so now what do you do? Run? Perhaps. Cry? Perhaps. Dig a hole? this would be best (lucky subterranial creatures, you moved on). Whatever you do, you are about to have the worst day ever. No matter where you are on Earth, you are in for a very bad day. The impact would have caused some of the largest megatsunamis in the world (sorry Indonesia, you ain't got jack!), reaching over thousands of feet high. A cloud of super-heated dust, ash and steam would have spread from the crater, as the impactor burrowed underground in less than a second. Excavated material along with pieces of the impactor, ejected out of the atmosphere by the blast, would have been heated to incandescence upon re-entry, broiling the Earth's surface and possibly igniting global wildfires; meanwhile, enormous shock waves spawned global earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The emission of dust and particles could have covered the entire surface of the Earth for several years, possibly a decade, creating a harsh environment for living things to survive in. The shock production of carbon dioxide caused by the destruction of carbonate rocks would have led to a dramatic greenhouse effect. Another consequence of the impact is that sunlight would have been blocked from reaching the surface of the earth by the dust particles in the atmosphere, cooling the surface dramatically (BRRRR, and I thought Utah was cold). Photosynthesis by plants would also have been interrupted (no more salads), affecting the entire food chain. As you can see, not a good day.

So, I hope that I have helped anyone that might have been going through a hard day. Think about it! Things could always be worse. Try to look at the brighter side of things, unless the brighter side is an asteroid! Have a Great Day! Things are pretty good on Earth right now.

Oh! And by the way. We could have and event happen similar to this, but not on such a grand scale, happen off the coast of California in the year 2036. Stay tuned! Can you say,

"APOPHIS!"

(Image: Science Photo Library)

Could this be another story? Think About It!

ESPN, THANK YOU!

2009-01-07T19:35:00.000-07:00

"FIND ME ANYBODY ELSE THAT WENT UNDEFEATED. THIRTEEN-AND-ZERO. BEAT FOUR RANKED TEAMS. WENT TO THE DEEP SOUTH AND SEAL-CLUBBED ALABAMA IN THE SUGAR BOWL."

(Rick Reilly, Writer for ESPN magazine and ESPN.com)

(read the full story at http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3815656 )

Utah! That's the way we "ROLL"

2009-01-04T21:31:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Utah! My Utes did it! They "Rolled" the Alabama, "Roll Tide." Should they be considered for a number "1" ranking? YES! What else do they have to do. They completed a perfect regular season. They went to a BCS bowl game (Again). They received a great opponent Alabama, who by the way was ranked number 1 for 5 straight weeks. They "Rolled" them 31 to 17, much more that Florida was able to do when they ended Alabama's perfect season. They are 13-0 this season and deserve to be number "1." Although they will probably not give it to them, we know that they deserve to be number "1" after all that they have accomplished.

CONGRATULATIONS COACH WHITTINGHAM AND THE UTAH, UTES!

SUGAR BOWL CHAMPIONS! BCS BUSTERS! PERFECT SEASON! 13-0! GREAT JOB!

GO UTAH!

2009-01-02T13:14:00.000-07:00

Let's go Utah. Let's "Roll" the "Rolltide." Good luck today. You are Mountain West Conference Champions 2008. You are the original BCS Busters. This is your second BCS Bowl game. You have a perfect 12-0 season. AGAIN! You have a 10-3 bowl game record, which is the highest percentage in the nation for teams who have been to more than 10 bowls. You have won 26 conference championships. GO UTES! OH! And if you do lose, it won't be to a unranked 7-5 team.

25 Things About Me

2008-12-31T12:19:00.000-07:00

I have a friend that posted 25 things about him and he challenged me to do the same. I tried to think of things about me that most would not know or that might be interesting. ENJOY!

1. I have lived in 8 different states. The western states are better. Sorry!
2. I attended 10 different schools growing up, including 3 different high schools. Once again! The western schools are better. Sorry!
3. I have ran a mile in 4:50, many years ago. My goal was to break 5 minute. I DID IT!
4. I have jumped off a cliff over 85 ft high into water, OUCH! My pants split open. Luckily the only girl there was my sister Christine. Whew!
5. I drove my dad’s car to 125 mph in high school (His first turbo, he has a much faster and nicer one now, but I will not take this one to 125). My father suspected something when the gas mileage was way down. My sister Lisa later told on me, years later. DOH!
6. I drove my first car a Mustang GT Turbo, yes turbo (they only made these one year) to 135 mph coming out of Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Yes! I won the race. Looking back, hmmmm, DUMB!
7. I drove my bullet-bike (Suzuki Katana 600) to a speed of 140 mph, Yes! I just had to take it faster than my car. And Yes! 140 mph on a bike is quite intense. I know it would go faster, but this was enough. Can you say, ROAD KILL!
8. I have run across a field with burned crosses with one of my friends in Arkansas. Can
you say KKK. We are sure there was a gathering the night before. SICK!
9. I have chased a shoplifter in a store in New Mexico. I almost caught him, but he threw a table at me. AAAAARRRRGGGGG! I did write down his plate number on my hand though. They caught him later, about a year later. He ran to Mexico for a while.
10. I was involved in a couple of scuffles in New Mexico in my 20’s. I had a good friend that taught me how to handle myself in New Mexico. Yes! This is important if you are going to hang out in Espanola as a white guy. One in Espanola and one in Los Alamos. Yes! I was victorious in both. I knocked the guy in Espanola “out cold.” The one in Los Alamos was a fight with a large group. Sorry, but I guess they will think twice before they mess with someones Mustang GT Turbo again.
11. I have never done any drugs, but I have been on a drug deal with a biker named “Chongo” in Espanola, New Mexico. And yes he did have the “Chongo” bars on his Harley. DUDE!
12. I have been asked out by both genders. Sorry, but I only went out with the women. I did try to ask one girl out during college in New Mexico that just never showed much interest. I found out years later that she was interested in my wife. I wonder why she did not show interest in me? Just Wondering!
13. President Thomas S. Monson spoke at my commencement at the University of Utah. He is also Utah Alumni.
14. I graduated in the top 2.5% of my class with a 3.935 GPA from the University of Utah. I think I had less than a 2.0 in high school. Perhaps I was bored in high school.
15. I have driven a Porsche 911 Twin Turbo, YES! VERY FAST! 0-60 in about 3 seconds. After driving this Porsche my bullet-bike seemed slow. DANG GERMANS!
16. I have run from the police with my Mustang GT in New Mexico. It was night and yes, I got away. ADRENALINE! Let’s just say I was going more than double the speed limit and I was in a 55 zone. I am sure this would have been bad news. He was going the other way. He turned on his top lights!!!!!What a head start! SEE YA!
17. I can ride a wheelie on my motorcycle for just about as long as I want. No, not my bullet bike, my dirt bike I had growing up. I liked to keep both wheels of my Suzuki Katana 600 on the ground. Call me CRAZY!
18. I have had my foot caught on the rope behind a motor boat, OUCH! Luckily the rope broke, because my sister Lisa and her friend Jennifer driving the boat did not know I had gone down until they heard the rope snap. LUCKY! I do remember thinking to take a breath before I went under, GOOD THING!
19. The first time I went to kiss my wife I missed and kissed her nose. Good thing she did not have a cold.
20. I lived in the ghetto in Russellville, Arkansas. South Houston! Scary for there! I have been to a real ghetto since. South Phoenix, Arizona. Russellville don’t worry, you are just fine.
21. I rode in a helicopter before an airplane. Completely different!
22. I have seen a Grizzly bear in the wild. ROAR!!!!
23. I attended 3 different colleges and graduated with 187 credit hours, most people do around 120-125. I should have a Ph.D, but only a B.S. Lucky Me! Doe anyone want to buy them??????
24. I have been “stalked.” NOT FUN!

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
25. And best of all!!!!!! I married a Princess in the LDS Arizona Temple, Mesa Arizona, on February 25, 1995.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2008-12-24T09:42:00.000-07:00

I love the Christmas Season. I am so very grateful for the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. I love the joy and peace that most of us enjoy this time of year. I wish that the world could feel this joy and peace all through the year.

You probably saw this coming, but I will not bore you at this time with technical details of my thoughts. I will save this for a later post. You probably know by now, by reading my blog, that I love to think about very detailed and head spinning ideas. Having a strong background in the Earth sciences I love to research items relating to the Earth's history and Earth system processes as related to religion. The more that I research and study these processes the more fascinated I become with the Creation of this wonderful Earth and the creation of the Universe. I know that our Heavenly Father uses laws and rules as to how He and others created this great universe. As I continue to learn and study the universe and our Earth, I gain a further respect for how great this Creation is. My faith grows as I continue to learn and try to understand such a grand design.

There is something that I think about at Christmas time pertaining to miracles here on the Earth. I will just mention this and leave it for a future post, perhaps! Could the Star of Bethlehem been a Type Ia/Ic Supernova in the Andromeda Galaxy? Perhaps, not that this matters, but very interesting to think about. What is so great to think about at Christmas is how not just the Earth, but the Universe was in obedience to the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Whatever this event was perhaps a conjunction of planets, stars, moon and sun, or "just" a supernova, it does not really matter. It was the star that signified the birth of the Saviour. This event was so great that the Universe changed and obeyed in order for such a great event to occur.

So this Christmas, I hope that I leave with you a little something to think about. The birth of our Saviour was probably the greatest event here on Earth, but stop and think, this event was so great that it caused things to change in the Universe. This helps me to gain a greater understanding as to the importance of this event. His life is very important to us here on Earth, but it is greater than this, it has significance throughout the Universe. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Happy Birthday Lisa

2008-12-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

Lisa and Karl 1972

Tuesday December, 23rd is my sister Lisa's birthday. She is one of my three sisters. I wanted to wish her a "Happy Birthday" and share a little bit about my sister. I will never tell you her age, but I will let you know that she is older than me. While she has been here on Earth there have been 7 different Presidents of the United States of America, also the same number of Presidents of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Although she was not born when Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon, she was "In Utero." On Tuesday she will have completed roughly 39 successful solar passes of our sun, while here on Earth. Once again, I have never stated how many years of age she is.

Lisa and Karl 1972

My sister Lisa is a very kind and caring person. She is probably one of the most innocent and honest persons you could know. Growing up she was very popular in high school and there was a lot of things going on around her that she had no idea about. She would ask me about boys that would show interest in her and wonder what I thought of them. Well, a lot of these boys were not for her. I would just tell her not to worry about that certain boy. I would just say that I hear stuff in the locker room and you don't want to go out with them. She really was very naive in high school and I think to an extent that really was better for her. I know that she set a very good example to her friends around her in high school. I also think by being naive in high school it also protected her from some negative influences. By not really knowing what was going on I am sure this helped her to be such the great person she is.

Lisa and Karl 1973

I wanted to end with just a few trivial facts about my sister Lisa. She has killed two dogs at once while driving her dads car. She can belch "LOUDER" than anyone I know, but she refuses to perform this task now. She has dated "Rednecks" in the past, thank goodness! She can not eat a salad gracefully, as far as I know. And best of all, she was a car hog of a 1986 Mazda 626 GT Turbo in high school, according to her older sister Christine, even though Christine had nowhere to go.

Lisa and Karl 1975

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LISA! I LOVE YOU!

Lisa and Karl 1975

"Quotes" from my Dad

2008-12-20T10:44:00.000-07:00

I thought that I would do a little different post this time. My father is a very smart man. I have learned many things from him, by example, through the years. Growing up I was always "the flashlight holder." This may not sound like fun, but it was. I would always help my father by holding the flashlight when he was fixing things such as cars, trucks, televisions, and many other items. These were very valuable experiences. I learned many things while holding this flashlight, Thank You Dad. I hope to be able to pass this on to my boys by having them help me fix things. Some of you may know this, but my father was a nuclear engineer and worked many years in nuclear power, but later in his career he worked with nuclear weapons, much more exciting, at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in Los Alamos, New Mexico. This was the location of the making of the first atomic bomb. Growing up my father would explain to us how a nuclear power plant functioned and in "great" detail. I really enjoyed listening, but some of my siblings would lose interest quickly. The thing I did not like about him telling us about work came later in his career. Yes! Los Alamos. My father could not tell us anything, other than he worked with weapons. Even now that he is retired, he can not tell us anything. I would really like to hear stories, but I understand the security behind this all. What I would like to do now is share some of my favorite quotes from my father over the years and perhaps by these quotes you might receive a little understanding of how I received a thinking mentality. I am thankful for having such a great father. And mother, "Look Out" you are next and in the works. Enjoy! These quotes may not be exact words, but close.

When speaking of why he could not sleep one night. "I could not sleep last night, because of the 10 to the 6th dogs barking, that's one million, by the way." (Sorry for the incorrect scientific notation, the blog does not allow superscripted exponents)

When speaking of rain. "I perceive that moisture has commenced to precipitate earthward."

When speaking of when the Sh!t hits the fan. "There is going to be a fecal-velenatory collision."

When speaking to me. "Do you know if you park your car facing north and south, it will be longer that when you park it facing east and west, but don't bother to measure it, the tape measure will do the same."

While visiting my grandmothers he knocked some nuts (nuts and bolts) off of the counter and as he picked them up he said to me, "It hurts when your nuts hit the floor."

When speaking of using his cars. "You can run them out of gas, but don't run them out of oil."

When working on an old Zenith Television set, back in the late 70's. Yes! I was holding the flashlight. "Don't touch the back of the picture tube, it has a lot of stored electricity and will shock you." ZZZAAAAAAPPPPPP! "Sh!t." As my fathers arm brushed up against the back of the picture tube.

There are many others, but I will leave it at these. Thank you for the fun times Daddy.

Full Moon, Earthquake????

2008-12-13T10:11:00.000-07:00

Last night I enjoyed viewing a very bright and full moon. Beautiful! And if you thought perhaps it was a little closer and larger than normal, it was (Of course you were!).The moon's average distance from us is about 238,855 miles (384,400 km). Friday night it was just 221,560 miles (356,567 km) away (Wow! 17,295 miles closer). It was 14 percent bigger in our sky and 30 percent brighter than some other full moons during the year. This was the closet the moon has been to Earth in nearly 15 years. So, is there any significances to the moon being so close to Earth, well yes.

Earth's oceans are pulled by the gravity of the moon and the sun. So when the moon is closer, tides are pulled higher. These tides are named perigean tides, because the moon's closest point to Earth is called perigee. The farthest point on the lunar orbit is called apogee. Sorry, back to the point. Beaches are more polluted during full moon, owing to the higher tides. And also people go crazy during full moons, well there is no scientific evidence of that, but it sounds good. More women give birth during a full moon? Well, Shari is still pregnant, so thank goodness for that not being true.

The new theory I would like to discuss is full moon causing earthquakes. Can full moons and the pull of gravity cause earthquakes? Lets start off by using some statistics to make it look as this is very true. Of the only magnitude 9.0 or greater earthquakes in our Earth's recorded history, 3/4 of them occurred during a full moon. The Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami in 2004 occurred at full moon and yes, this was one of the greater than magnitude 9.0, it was a magnitude 9.1. A group of Applied Geologists at Madras University in Chennai, India predicted the 2004 earthquake with minor deviations of 150 km and missed it by 30 minutes. Could they be onto something, perhaps. Russian scientists and others have observed that probability of major earthquakes is high at or 1 to 3 days after full or new moon when the line of gravitation crosses close to the tectonic plates boundaries. These Chennai scientists sent their prediction of the 2004 Sumatran earthquake to several institutions such as US Geological Survey, International Union of 'Geodesy and Geophysics' and NASA, but were not taken seriously and they did not receive any reply.

There is no research to conclude that a "full" moon contributes to earthquakes, however there are indications that a planetary alignment could contribute to tectonic disturbance. I will leave it at this, I will bore you no more with planetary alignments. I am in no way saying that these scientists in India have this thing figured out, but with science we need to continue to research and try to find answers. After all, people thought Nicolaus Copernicus was crazy for thinking that the Earth revolved around the Sun instead of everything revolving around the Earth.

The Earth and the Heavens above are a miraculous creation and we do not know it all, but by research we are able to understand these things better. THINK ABOUT IT!

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning." - Albert Einstein

"TWILIGHT"

2008-12-10T21:55:00.000-07:00

"Twilight" (1820) by Caspar David Friedrich

I have something I need to get off of my chest. I have always been interested in "Twilight." Please do not let my wife know, she will never let me live this one down. Although, she reads my blog and will most certainly find out, please DO NOT let her know. It could damage the town. Twilight is very interesting to me. It even reaches farther than we know, even into other planets. and galaxies. That is how far reaching "Twilight" is.

There are many versions of "Twilight." My wife has all of these on our bookcase. I see them every day and wonder which version is best. Technically, there is only one truly defined "Twilight", but there are three established and widely accepted subcategories of twilight: civil twilight (brightest), nautical twilight and astronomical twilight (darkest). Civil twilight begins in the morning when the geometric center of the Sun is 6° below the horizon and ends at sunrise. Evening civil twilight begins at sunset and ends when the center of the Sun reaches 6° below the horizon. Nautical twilight is defined as the time beginning when the geometric center of the Sun is exactly 12° below the horizon and ending when the sun's center is exactly 12° below the horizon. Astronomical twilight is defined as the time beginning when the center of the Sun is exactly 18° below the horizon and ending when the sun's center reaches exactly 18° below the horizon. I prefer the version "Civil Twilight in the Morning," but my wife prefers another version of "Twilight."

"Twilight" can have varied durations of time, depending on the latitude of the observer. In the Arctic and Antarctic regions, twilight (if at all) can last for several hours. I know that at my geographic location, "Twilight" can last all night and keep me awake for many, many hours. There is no twilight at the poles within a month on either side of the winter solstice. I am going to enforce this rule at my house, this sounds like a great idea. At the poles, twilight can be as long as two weeks, while at the equator, it can go from day to night in as little as twenty minutes. "Twilight" even reaches the Martians. Twilight on Mars is longer than on Earth, lasting for up to two hours before sunrise or after sunset.

I know that "Twilight" will continue around my house for quite some time, but I guess I should be very grateful that "Twilight" is not continuous. Within the polar circles of Earth, twilight literally lasts for weeks in the polar fall and spring. Poor men. What makes me most grateful is that it could be much, much worse. There is a planet in a distant solar system, the name escapes me, that continually faces its sun. By doing this there is one side that is continually light and the other side is continually dark. Yes! you guessed it. Poor, Poor men, if any there. There is an area on this poor planet, roughly 200 miles wide, from pole to pole, that is in continuous never ending "Twilight." This sounds like a planet that my wife and many of her friends would like to visit, but not me. I will be happy with intermittent "Twilight" here at my geographic location.

Is 186,000 Miles Per Second The Speed Limit?

2008-12-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

Back in September I posted about the speed of light and how there is nothing faster. Ever since I posted that I have been wondering if that is true. I know, that is really something that most people worry about, but it keeps me busy thinking about. I know scientifically and theoretically that there is nothing faster. That has been proven by the calculations of Albert Einstein with his theory of special relativity. We know that light travels at, roughly, 186,000 miles per second or 299,792,458 meters per second. Since then we have found that the speed of light can be manipulated. Light can slow as it is refracted passing through much denser materials, such as water, glass, and much slower through diamonds. We can also temporarily speed up light. One experiment in 2000 made the group velocity, or speed, of laser beams travel for extremely short distances through caesium or cesium atoms at 300 times the speed of light, WOW! now that is fast.

Now let me let you in on what I have been thinking about. We use many wavelenghts of nonvisible light for communication purposes. Most common is radiowaves and microwaves, no not ovens, but that makes me hungry. There is another form of communication that many use each day. This may get a little deep in thought so bare with me. Prayer! Prayer, what is the mechanism used to transfer our thoughts and words in prayer? Is it some sort of wavelenght of light? Perhaps, but it all depends on how far our prayers need to travel to be heard and then the time it takes for our answers to travel back. We do not know the exact location of our Heavenly Father, but it is probably pretty far. Let's just say we probably know that it is farther than our sun. Our sun is roughly 93 million miles from Earth. Using a wavelenght of light for communication and using the distance of our sun as our prayers destination, that would take our prayer 8.31 minutes to arrive and then an additional 8.31 minutes to return if answered immediately. I know that I have had prayers answered almost instantly. So, probably not a wavelenght of light, since we know that the speed of light is constant, but could caesium surround us while we pray? (I am joking here) That could speed up our prayers, I sure hope not, that could be very dangerous. Caesium is highly reactive and is highly explosive when it comes in contact with water. I don't know about you, but I have often cried while praying, so that could be deadly.

This is what makes me wonder, what is the mechanism used to transfer our thoughts and words in prayer. Whatever this mechanism is, our Heavenly Father has it all worked out and I do believe that it is much faster that the speed of light. It all depends on where are prayers are going and how far that really is. Or could it be that we all live in very close proximity, just in a different dimension perhaps? After all the veil is very thin at times between this world and others, but that is just going WAY TOO into things. That is another thing I think about, but I will just leave it at this point. The point is that I believe that the speed of light is theoretically the fastest, but I also believe that this mechanism that transfers our prayers is much faster that the speed of light, how fast? Who knows, but science can not measure this. THINK ABOUT IT!

"Earthshine" not "Moonshine"

2008-11-30T21:05:00.001-07:00

EARTHSHINE

MOONSHINE

If you know me very well, you know that I like to keep my eyes on the skies. On this Monday evening you might want to take a look to the sky toward the southwest. You will be able to view two planets and also my favorite satellite, no not the International Space Station, but the moon. The two visible planets are Venus, the much brighter one, and also Jupiter. Venus is very bright this time of year. You might even try to go out just before sunset and try to view Venus in the sky, it is that bright. During World War II, aircraft spotters sometimes mistook Venus for an enemy airplane. There were even cases in which Venus drew antiaircraft fire.

The moon will also be highly visible, but only a crescent moon, but there is more to the story. What will make this viewing so great is what is called, "earthshine." This vision is sometimes called "the old moon in the young moon's arms." Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was the first to recognize it. Earthshine is when the light from the sun reflects off of the Earth an additionally illuminates the moon. The crescent part of the moon will be much brighter, this is the light from the sun. The rest of the globe of the moon will be illuminated from light reflected off of the earth, this will be in a more blueish-gray color. Viewing the two planets plus the moon in this form will be a great sight to behold. If you have the chance I recommend taking the time to view our amazing Universe.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2008-11-27T09:02:00.001-07:00

"The First Thanksgiving"

painting by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris (1863–1930).

Utah 48 BYU 48/2 = 24

2008-11-22T23:49:00.000-07:00

Sean Smith

Brother Paul Kruger (Return Missionary)

What a great game, if you are a Utes fan. I must say, I really like Max Hall. I think he is a great quarterback. I do not think it was his fault that BYU lost. It was the Utes defense. I feel that Max has not felt the pressure of a Ute defense this year. They threw things at him that he was not ready for. And do not blame him for running with the ball, it was what he was forced to do. But, in the end the best team did win this game. Great job Utes! perfect season, 12-0 and BCS bound, AGAIN!

"Great Men"

2008-11-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

President Thomas S. Monson (Utah Alumni) speaking
at my commencement.

Rivalry week only comes around once a year here in Utah. I really enjoy the rivalry. As some of you may know I am the "Black (or red) Sheep" of my family. My father graduated from BYU, my mother attended BYU, my older brother and two of my older sisters graduated from BYU. I did not. I graduated from the University of Utah. So this makes for fun times when it comes to Utah and BYU.

One of my sisters who is a BYU fan made a comment on one of my posts and I responded to her comment, but I felt with it being rivalry week I would share my response. She commented on which school was holier. I responded with this answer.

"As for who is holier I will not cast stones, but there have been some GREAT! men that have attended the University of Utah. President Thomas S. Monson, President Gordon B. Hinkley, James E. Faust, Robert D. Hales, Henry B. Eyring, Karl B. Schempp, Bruce R. McConkie, Russell M. Nelson, M. Russell Ballard, Joseph B. Wirthlin (Wirthlin played football as a running back for the University of Utah), David O. McKay, George Albert Smith, and many others. This place must be pretty good if such great and smart men have attended there."

Rivalry week is great. We have a lot of fun here in Utah with this. Although, some get pretty ugly with it, but I am glad that at least our families have fun with it. I have heard listening to local sports radio that many families get into it so bad that they will stop talking, WOW! Afterall, it is just a game. And yes BYU fans, Thomas S. Monson did attend BYU also, but he a Ute at heart, because he did come to my graduation.

Almost!

2008-11-17T21:44:00.000-07:00

I almost won tickets to Utah vs. BYU, almost. I often listen to a local radio station here in Utah, Kall 700 AM radio. This station had a contest today to win tickets to the "Holy War." The contest was to e-mail a game day checklist for a BYU fan or a Utah fan. The fun in this was that you were to make the game day checklist for the other fan. So, I being a Ute fan was to make a game day checklist for a BYU fan. The contest was to end at 6:00 pm, so I hurry and put a quick list together a little after 5:00 pm. The idea was to be very creative so I did my best with the short notice. The rules were that if they read your entry over the air you would be in the running at the end of the hour. They had a group of about six that were going through the e-mails. Just a few minutes after sending my entry, my entry was read. I wish I could had recorded the audio, because the person reading it was cracking up, but in the end they went with another entry. But, for your enjoyment and because of rivalry week I will post my entry. ENJOY!

BYU game day checklist

Friday 21, November

4:00pm Begin fast for the cougars.

Saturday 22, November

7:30 am Oh My Heck! I woke up late this morning because our Elders Quorum had to set up chairs at church on Friday night because we will be too upset after the loss on Saturday night to set them up.

7:45 am Go to service project for lonely Utah Ute (SINNER!) fan in our ward this morning, laid sod. Hopefully doing service for a Ute fan will help the Cougars win. “Do Good things off the field.”

9:00 am Took a load of old personal items to DI. Service again!, it can only help the Cougars.

10:00 am Go to Wal-Mart. Need to go early today it is game day. Need to pick up jello and some carrots and caffeine-free Dr. Pepper for the game. Have to take the kids. The wife is gone to a shower.

12:00 pm Iron my white shirt for church. I really wish we could wear blue shirts to church. Fetch!

1:00 pm Go home-teaching. 100% this month, November only. Hopefully this will bless the cougars to win today.

2:00 pm Make jello with shredded carrots for game day. Mothers recipe from Relief Society Cook Book.

3:00 pm Pray for the cougars and pray that the next prophet will not have attended the University of Utah like the last two have.

4:00 pm End fast for the cougars.

4:00 pm Watch the the Fetchin Utes beat our Cougars.

9:00 pm Pray for forgiveness for all the fetchin words I said during the game. Promise to do my home teaching every month next year to help the Cougars win next year.

10:00 pm Get Primary lesson ready for church. I hope I get released soon.

Karl Schempp
Utah Ute Fan
Lonely Ute fan in Utah County

"The Holy War"

2008-11-16T15:14:00.000-07:00

The Holy War is a college football rivalry game played between the University of Utah Runnin' Utes and the Brigham Young University Cougars. The term Holy War, rather than its common reference to a war between religions, in this context refers to a battle between BYU and the University of Utah, the flagship and secular institution of higher education in the state of Utah.

This is one of the oldest rivalries in college football. The battle between these two teams is always a good one. The game this year should be an even greater one. Both teams are ranked in the top 25 this year. BYU is coming in ranked 14th in the BCS with a record of 10-1. Utah is coming in ranked 7th in the BCS with an impressive 11-0 record. Even if you are not a fan of either team, this will be a great game to watch.

Being a Ute fan I must set the record straight.

The Utes lead the all time series 53-33-4.

Coach Whittingham selects Cruz.

2008-11-10T18:03:00.001-07:00

Create Fake Magazine Covers with your own picture at MagMyPic.com

"BLACKOUT"

2008-11-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

Most blackouts are not welcomed or something that one wants to occur. These blackouts often occur unexpectedly. Well, Utah recently experienced a blackout. This blackout occurred intentionally and was wanted by most in the general area. There were a few people visiting from out of town that were not too happy about this blackout. I will speak for most in Utah when I say that we were not sorry for any inconvenience that this may have caused for any visitors from the Fort Worth, Texas area. The blackout area was concentrated on the campus that I am proud to be a graduate of, the University of Utah. The blackout was mostly in the area of Rice-Eccles Stadium. During this blackout there was a football game at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Utah was playing TCU and at the end of this blackout, the final score was, Utah 13 and TCU 10. It was amazing to watch this game even though it was played during a blackout.

Utah quarterback Brian Johnson passing during the blackout

WAY TO GO UTES! Lets make it a perfect season and get the recognition that we deserve. We did it in 2004 and became the original BCS busters and spanked Pittsburg 35-7 in the Fiesta Bowl in January 200o5. We did not get a shot at the title then so let do it again and see if they will give us a shot. Kyle Whittingham deserves it. WAY TO GO COACH WHITTINGHAM!

Cruz with autographed cap from Utah Coach Kyle Whittingham

"The Greatest Snow on Earth"

2008-11-05T18:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, we do have the greatest snow on Earth here in Utah. And the mineral that we use to battle the snow on our roads actually helps to create this greatest snow. Sounds strange, but it is true. Salt makes snow melt, right? Salt also lets water reach a lower temperature before freezing or to not freeze at all (well, not at absolute zero, but hey we would not be here if that happened). Here in Utah we receive very little precipitation a year. In the Salt Lake City area we receive about 15 inches on average, not much huh. So how can we have the greatest snow on Earth? Yes, we may receive most of our precipitation in the winter, but that is not the main reason. We have "The Greatest Snow on Earth" because of the Great Salt Lake. GREAT isn't it! The Great Salt Lake is a remnant of Lake Bonneville, a pluvial lake that covered a large area of Utah, Nevada, and Idaho some 14,500 years ago. This lake formed in an area termed North America's Great Basin. The Great Salt Lake drains neither to the Pacific or Atlantic Ocean like other water bodies. The Great Salt Lake stays in this basin and evaporates and when water evaporates it leaves behind the salts (Great name huh!). So, how does this salt help with the snow? The Great Salt Lake has a very high salinity content. The salinity range of the Great Salt Lake runs between 5-27% depending on location of the lake. The oceans are on average 3.5%. Since the Great Salt Lake has this high of salinity it never freezes. This is where we get into the greatest snow. The lake remains relatively warmer than the air in the winter and especially after a cold front moves in. When the cold front moves in, especially from the northwest, this causes the warmer lake water to evaporate into the atmosphere and then increase snowfall in close proximity to the Great Salt Lake. This process is termed a lake-effect snow. Some areas of the Wasatch Mountain Range in the path of the lake effect see up to 500 inches per year. These lake-effect snows can be very geographic. Just this morning we received about 6 inches of snow, but as I went just a few miles to the west there was only a couple of inches. We were in the path of a lake-effect snow and further west was not.

I would now like to point out that this is evidence of a Great Creation. Imagine if here in Utah we did not receive most of our precipitation during the winter. We would not have water here in the summer running down from the snow packed mountains. The Great Salt Lake would completely dry up during the summer months. Also, it is great that we can take these salt from the lake and use to place on our roads to help with winter driving. It is almost like there was a Creator who came up with this wonderful design. As I have studied the Earth System Processes and continue to do so, I gain a greater understanding the creation of this Great Earth. I am amazed continually of the Creation that has been made for us. I am very grateful for a Creator that would design such a great place for us to live, EARTH.

I would like to end with a little observation I have made with respect to tithing and the lake- effect snows here in Utah. Without the added lake effect snows here in Utah we would have much less water. Some 10% of the precipitation we receive here in the Salt Lake area is from the lake-effect. Hmmmm! Sounds like a tithing blessing if you ask me. Blessing from tithing are not always monetary. THINK ABOUT IT!

"The Old West"

2008-10-20T19:19:00.000-06:00

Cruz and I continued the new tradition that I have started with my kids. I take each child on Fridays and we do something fun for each of them. The week before, Kenyon and I visited a cave in Saratoga Springs, Utah. Cruz viewed these pictures of the cave and decided that he wanted to go to this cave also (see Kenyon and the Giant Short-face Bear cave post). Cruz and I decided to see if we could find easier access to the cave. We parked the van at the end of a paved road behind the cave and began to hike up the back side of the mountain. On this day there was a cold front moving in from the north and kicking up quite a bit of dust. Cruz said to me, "This is like the old west." I assume he has seen a western movie that has the dust blowing around and we were in the old west. I thought this was quite funny. The batteries on the camera died while we were at the cave so we do not have any picture to document the event, but I know I will remember this in my mind for years to come. While inside we searched for any aquatic fossils that may have been left behind from Lake Bonneville, but did not find any. We only found webs and soot from a recent campfire.

These are the times that create memories. I really enjoy the time I spend with each of them. By spending time with each of them I get to see better their own personalities are little bit better. I know that I enjoy each time I spend with them, but I mostly do this to create memories for them. I hope that they will be able to remember the times that they have spent with their father and the good times we had together. I have only been a father for just shy of seven years, but know that these times go by way too fast. I hope by continuing these dates that, perhaps, this may give the illusion to slow time down a little. If only I could bring Albert Einstein back and we could work on finding a way to pause or slow down the space time continuum.

International Space Station

2008-10-19T17:12:00.000-06:00

This post may not be interesting for most, but it is something that goes on above our heads all the time, so give it a chance, you might enjoy this. And sorry for those not living in Utah near 40.3920 latitude, -111.8500 longitude, altitude 1390 meters, but if you are in close proximity to Lehi, Utah you are in luck. There is going to be a visible pass of the International Space Station with a magnitude -2.3 (yes this is very bright, relatively) on the morning of October 23rd at 07:27:29 (7:27 am). I wanted to give adequate warning so you could make plans to view this event. This may not sound very interesting, but it is very fascinating to view such an event. The International Space Station makes 15.77 orbits around Earth in one day. Depending on the suns angle, height of the space station, time of day, and location of the space station and location on Earth, it can become highly visible. So, if you are not on this general area at this exact time and location, don't worry the space station is visible at any location. But, do not forget, the space station moves with exactness just like any other celestial sphere. It moves with perfect time as the planets and stars do. So make sure your watch is set to the accuracy of an atomic clock. An atomic clock is accurate to 10 to the 9th seconds per day. To set your time accurately see http://www.time.gov/ and select your time zone.

This pass of the space station is going to be a very bright pass in terms of magnitude. Magnitude is the measure of the brightness of a celestial object. The lower the value, the brighter the object. The sun has a magnitude of -26.7, full moon -12.7, and Venus at brightest -4.4. I will not bore you with any further details, but I hope you get the idea that this is going to be a highly visible pass. If you are interested in viewing this event you will need to be very punctual, because as stated earlier the space station moves as celestial object and they were set by our Heavenly Fathers laws and they have to obey them. On the morning of Thursday, October 23rd you will need to look to west, southwest at 07:25:29 and begin the watch the horizon for this is when the space station will pass over the horizon. Those of this in this area will not see this until later because of some strange masses of dirt/rock named mountains. Continue to scan the sky looking for an object that resembles a bright star moving in an exact straight line. At 07:27:29 the space station will be at 10 degrees in the sky, location west, southwest (The horizon is 0 degrees and straight above your head is 90 degrees). At 07:30:18 the space station will be at maximum altitude at 66 degrees at a location roughly northwest. At 07:33:22 the space station will drop below 10 degrees at a location roughly northeast. Basically what you will want to do is look to the west, southwest at 7:25 am and look in this area for what looks like a star moving in a straight line from the west, southwest to the northeast. !!!!!!!!!WARNING!!!!!!! Remember to be very punctual.

If you do not view this pass there will be many more to enjoy (If you want just ask me for information on how and when to view these events in your location). This one is just going to be relatively bright. My favorite passes are the ones when the space shuttle are near docking or have just released and are in close proximity to the station. These are interesting because you view two objects moving across the sky in concert with one another. And you are in luck. Th e next Shuttle mission will be STS-126 to the International Space Station. Launch is scheduled for November 14th.

As I view these passes I like to remember that you are watching a man-made object with humans aboard flying around our Earth with only gravity moving them, nor form of propulsion. The only thing better than watching them pass overhead would be to see the view from their vantage point in space, watching the beautiful creation of Earth pass below. Enjoy!

Mara and flowers

2008-10-04T11:00:00.000-06:00

Mara and I went out on a date last Friday. We went to a large field of wild sunflowers and took some pictures. She loved spending time looking for the perfect place to take pictures. She would tell me that she did not like a certain spot and wanted to move locations. After spending about an hour taking pictures we went to McDonald's and she received a toy from The Wizard of Oz. She really liked just being with her dad, but I think her dad enjoyed this much more than her. Sorry I did not tie anything to earth science to this blog. Well, we were on a large alluvial fan, sorry I could not resist.

Kenyon and the Giant Short-face Bear cave

2008-10-04T10:36:00.000-06:00

Kenyon and I continued the date day with each one of the kids on Fridays. Kenyon wanted to hike up a small mountain to go into a small cave, a small increase of around 300 feet. He informed me that he thought this was a cave where the now extinct giant short-faced bear. We hiked up this hill and we found a chair along the trail. Kenyon really thought this was funny. Along the way we hiked through blooming sagebrush and Kenyon informed me that mammoths consumed yellow grass. He knows anything and everything about dinosaurs, animals and anything that is now extinct The last 50 feet or so up to the cave was very steep and full of small lose rocks. At this time he wanted to return back to the car, but I encouraged him to make it to the cave. We made it and he really enjoyed it. On the way back he was able to see a jackrabbit, lizard, and many large spiders (duh! spiders, we were in Saratoga Springs). Kenyon let me know that it was hard work climbing mountains. I am glad that he stuck to it. Kenyon also informed me that he noticed Utah Lake was big and he also said it was long too. He is correct. Utah Lake is around 5-8 miles across the east-west axis and around 22-26 miles long across the north-south axis depending on the year and amount of evaporation and precipitation. We really enjoyed out time together. By the way, we were below the old Lake Bonneville shoreline.

SPEED LIMIT 186,000 miles per second

2008-09-17T21:46:00.000-06:00

Call me crazy, but I like to think about things that make your head spin. I can remember when I was younger my father telling me that if you park your car north to south that it is longer that if you parked it east to west. But, do not bother to measure this, because the device you use to measure the length of your car will be affected the same. Makes you think.

I have been reading about Albert Einstein and many of his contributions to science. I have read a few books on his special and general theory of relativity and they are all a little bit hard to understand. One was written by Einstein specifically for those with lesser mathematical abilities. Well, even that was a little confusing. I have found that if you read a little on these theories in physics, astronomy, and physical science texts first, it become a little easier to understand. Einstein made great contributions to the understanding of light. Growing up I always wondered if you were traveling at the speed of light and you had a flashlight in your hand and turned it on, would the beam of light proceed out at twice the speed of light? I always thought that this would be the case. After all, if you are driving in your car at a steady rate of 40 mph and threw a ball out of the car forward at 40 mph the ball would travel at 80 mph relative to the ground. After reading Einsteins work on relativity he has proven that the speed of light is the cosmic speed limit. Nothing can travel faster than light. So, if I travel at the speed of light and turn my flashlight on, my light will not travel twice the speed of light. So, the speed limit is 186,282.397 miles per second or 983,571,056.4 feet per second. Pretty fast huh!

Last night I began to think about light and light speed, as I think we all often do at night. I took my thoughts on the flashlight a little further. What if I were traveling at the speed of light, as you can see I often think about doing this, and I had a little hand mirror with me. While traveling at the speed of light I place the mirror in front of me to view my reflection. Will I see my reflection in the mirror? Think about this for a moment. ?????????????? What to we view when we look at something or someone? We see the reflection of light off of the object we are viewing. So, the answer would be no. The light would not be reflected from your face toward the mirror in front of you because of this cosmic speed limit. Think About it!

Y"IKE"S!

2008-09-12T20:08:00.000-06:00

Get the hell out of there! Why do people think that they can fool with "Mother Nature?" Nature's furry is more powerful than most think. As I have studied natural disasters I have gained a great respect for the power of the Earth. Also having studied emergency management issues I have seen many disasters and the death and injury that comes with these events. Many deaths and injuries could have been avoided if individuals had taken evacuation measures seriously. I am amazed at how stupid (see photo below) some of the people in the path of hurricane Ike are. (Hurricane Ike is a very large storm in area. The photo above can show you scale. This image is take from the International Space Station. Yes, that is the curve of the Earth at the top of the photo. ) I believe that the media makes the category of a hurricane the most important issue. Yes, the category is important as far as wind speed goes, but the most destructive part of a hurricane is the storm surge and the flooding that this causes. Not only is water forced in by the winds of a hurricane on the northeast side of the eye, but also the oceans are actually elevated because of the intense low air pressures associated with hurricanes. The air pressure is so low in a hurricane that there is actually a dome of water that lifts up under a hurricane (cool huh!). This also aids in the flooding of land. What is particularly concerning about Ike is that it is very similar to a hurricane in Galveston in 1900. This hurricane basically wiped Galveston off of the map. This hurricane started to flood Galveston before the storm surge hit. Ike started to do this while it was still some 140 mile off of the coast. Yes, they have elevated Galveston some 15 ft and built a seawall, but we are no match for the power of "Mother Nature." The Earth is in charge. If it wants to move something it can and will.

There is a group of people at a bar in Galveston that are going to ride the storm out close to the shore. (see photo above) They have been warned by the National Weather Service that if they stay they will most likely die. I am happy to think that these individuals will most likely be so drunk that this will help to ease their pain in death. Others in the area said they were going to ride the storm out, but soon changed their minds when the winds began to blow water in ahead of the storm surge. These are the lucky ones. There is a point of no return. There is a point where if you have not left, well, say a prayer and hang on you are pretty much screwed. Individuals need to take evacuation orders seriously. Emergency management officials do not order evacuations just to see if they can tie up roads and cause panic. These are given well in advance and ordered to save lives. Yes, many evacuations have turned out to be not needed, but better safe than sorry. I know this is why many people do not evacuate, they feel it is a false alarm. We saw not long after hurricane Katrina that most of the people in the Houston area took the evacuation orders seriously for hurricane Rita, but turned out to not to be so bad. I hope that this is the case with Ike, but conditions are not looking good. GOOD LUCK! for those who have chosen to stay.

I tend to get a little fired up about these issues. After all, this is what I went to school for and what I do. I am intrigued and fascinated my natural and technological hazards and disasters, but I do not like to see people get injured and killed by these events. I love to watch volcanoes erupt, tsunamis crash on shore, tornadoes tuchdown, but not death. These events will continue and will increase with magnitude and intensity. This is why I started my business in emergency and disaster planning. I understand the earth science behind theses events and know what can be done to help reduce injury and death by preparing and planning for such events. It does not matter where you live, there is something that nature or man will throw your way. Get prepared.

Let me, if you will, tell you of the "Perfect Storm" that could happen from this hurricane Ike. The chances of this are very small, but just humor me and "Think About It." You may not know, but there is a tropical storm "Josephine" in the Atlantic moving WNW at 5 mph (lookout). That could possibly turn into a hurricane. We also have Ike of course that will move onto land and move up through Texas and into Arkansas. As Ike move onto land dumping large amounts of rain it is also meeting a large cold front moving in from the west. Well, cold air and warm moist air are not a good combination. This will bring even more rain and more intense thunderstorms and tornadoes. Lets forget about the tornadoes and just focus on the rain. Well, this is going to cause flooding across Arkansas, Missouri, Louisiana, and some other states. These states all have something in common. All of these states waterways drain into the Mississippi river. The Mississippi river drains into the Gulf of Mexico right near a city, that in my opinion, people should not live there. Yes, New Orleans should be used for shipping, oil, industry, and agriculture, but not for living. Something about living below sea-level that close to the ocean just concerns me, call me crazy. Okay, back to my scenario. All of these flood water is going to drain down the Mississippi river just as Josephine gains strength into a category 5 hurricane, not that the category matters, and the eye hits just west of New Orleans. WOW! All of that flood water combined with the surge of hurricane Josephine will make Katrina look like the fictional Coriolis force on the flush of your toilet. All of this floodwater will be backed up from the storm surge and cause catastrophic flooding and damage. And the Mississippi river will be set free once again as in many years past to choose its path of least resistance and flow freely along the Gulf of Mexico. Yes, this is very, very unlikely to happen, but that would make for a great Hollywood movie. But, then again New Orleans, strike one Katrina, strike two Gustav, and strike three Josephine and "Your Out!" Think About It.

Winter? Where is fall?

2008-09-01T14:19:00.000-06:00

We woke up to snow in the mountains today. Not unusual for Utah this time of year, but it sure lets you know that the seasons are changing. This was taken from my back yard in Lehi, Utah looking toward the east to Mt. Timpanogos. Better that a hurricane though.

GO UTES

2008-08-30T21:31:00.000-06:00

The Utes got it done today. They beat Michigan 25 to 23, even though they played like BYU toward the end and tried to lose, they got it done in the "Big House." GO UTES! They also have the best record for a non-BCS team for beating BCS teams. Also they are tied for the most consecutive bowl game wins. Can you tell I am a little happy? Congrats to the Cougars who also won. Perhaps the Mountain West will get some recognition this year, probably not, but we can only hope. Good luck to BYU. I hope BYU can win all but two games this year. I attended both the University of New Mexico and the University of Utah. So I hope you know which two games I hope BYU does not win.

Moral Decay

2008-08-24T21:30:00.000-06:00

If case you have not noticed, the world is a mess. There is still a lot of good in the world, but the world is going downhill fast. I am currently reading a book written by one of my hero's, Albert Einstein. This book talks about some of his inner thoughts and also some of contributions to science (of course this is my favorite). One of the sections talked about moral decay. I must remind you that the writings in this book took place between 1934-1950. Even back in these days he was able to see that there was some moral decay. I can not even start to think what he would have to say if he saw our society today.

A couple of days before I started reading this book and came across the chapter on moral decay my wife Shari and I were able to go on a date with some free movie tickets that we had received. We decided to go see the new batman movie (for those of you in Utah, we did not leave our kids in the car, another case of moral decay). This movie was rated PG-13, not that that is good these days, so we thought it might be a good movie. We had heard from so many people how good it was. Well, in our opinion it was a very dark and evil movie. Many of the previews at the beginning of the movie gave me the creeps and a very dark feeling. During many of the murder scenes in the movie you could hear people laughing at these scenes. During this movie I began thinking about how the morals in the world were decaying. I know that this is a fictional movie, but the situations and the graphics in the movie are nothing to laugh at. I think that many people these days become very numb to the movies that they watch. I know that Hollywood is aware of this too. They reel you in little by little. You get a little taste of the violence and then you want more and more. I believe that this is just a small fraction of the reason for moral decay in this world. If you do not agree with me about the batman movie then perhaps you have become numb to what you are watching (the truth may hurt a little).

I have seen many people close to me go down this road and that are going down this road, the slippery slope. Satan does not take you all at once. He takes you a little at a time. You can clearly see this in movies. Many people will try to justify what they watch and say, well it is PG-13, but that is not safe. One movie may be a little much for you to take and then you get home or talk with friends and then you may feel okay with it, but what next? One that is even worse and the slippery slope has begun. Since viewing this movie I have wondered what rating this movie would have had received just 10 years ago. I would bet an R rating. Satan is not stupid, he knows what he is doing.

Moral Decay. I can see it all around. I know that times are going to get worse, but look around. IT IS BAD RIGHT NOW. As I have talked about the numbing we get by watching movies, we also get this numbing by the world we live in. We watch the violence all around the world and in our own towns. We hear about it all the time and then it does not shock us anymore. Stop and take a look at what is going on. Put up your walls around your homes. If you do not put up these walls and keep the evil out, it will get in. Once it is in, it is harder to get it back out.

I could go on and on on this subject, but I urge everyone to look at the world around them and take an inventory of the evil and good around them. Yes, there is a lot of good, but please be aware of the moral decay that is around. I said it before, the world is going to get a lot worse, but it is bad right now. Don't be fooled or tricked with what is out there. There are too many people being taken, great people that are being tricked and taken down the wrong path.

I have really been thinking about the moral decay of our world since reading Einsteins chapter on the subject. I think of what my kids are going to have to face and deal with. I hope and pray that they will be able to handle all that comes their way. I will do everything to teach them how to fight these temptations. I urge everyone again to look around and not ignore what is around, but do whatever you need to do to put up your walls to fight this decay that will continue. Think about it!

College Girl

2008-08-18T21:33:00.000-06:00

There is something that has been on my mind for a few weeks. I feel that I need to get this out in the open. I have been having a relationship with a college girl for quite some time now and things went a little far. I hope everyone does not think different of me after I tell you what has happened. Well, I have gotten a college girl pregnant. Some may think that this is not something that a man in his late thirties should do, but things happen. I have talked with my kids and they are okay with it and are quite excited. I have even talked with my parents about this situation and surprisingly they too are okay with it and are also quite excited. As for Shari my wonderful wife, she has been a little sick over the whole situation, but I guess she has a good reason to be sick. The baby will be due sometime in April. I hope that everything works out for the best. Please pray for us and the baby. Oh! by the way I forgot to mention that Shari starts back to school on the 27th.

Light Experiment

2008-08-03T20:53:00.000-06:00

I have been feeling a little under the weather the past few days, but still wanted to post something for those of you who just can't wait to see what I have to say. I feel that some of you may not have grasped the idea on visible light (my first post). For those of you that don't really get it I have a simple experiment for you, also those that do get it can try just for fun. Once again our eyes can only view the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum, but some other lenses can aid us in viewing other wavelenghts. For this simple experiment you will need a digital camera, or even a camera phone and a remote control device. This can be for a television, stereo, or just any remote. Take your remote and point it at your camera while you are viewing the remote through your camera. As you view the remote through your camera press any button on the remote and hold it down. You will be able to take a glimpse into the world I speak of in viewing all wavelenghts of the electromagnetic spectrum. CAUTION! This can be very addictive. And who knows, years down the road may even cause cancer of the retina. Think about it.

Happy Birthday Mama

2008-07-26T11:26:00.000-06:00

I would like to wish my wonderful mother a Happy Birthday. I would like to congratulate her on making 67 successful solar passes. I also would like to inform her on a possible hypothesis for why she becomes light-headed often. As we all know the Earth makes one revolution in a 24 hour period giving us one day, or an average of 23 hours 56 minutes and 4.096 seconds, but we will use 24 hours to make it easy. (I am not even going to account for leap years, aren't you glad) As the Earth rotates it does this at the rate of 1,700 kilometers per hour or roughly 1,056 miles per hour. Also as it orbits the sun it moves at the rate of 110,000 kilometers per hour or 68,350 miles per hour. With the combination of these two simple orbital movements we can see that this could possibly cause one to become dizzy. And to think that she has completed roughly 24,455 revolutions on Earth. If we could only work on an over-the-counter medication to combat these universal gravitational forces. Perhaps the Dramamine company can come up with a special formula for such individuals. I hope that I have helped my mother understand why she gets light-headed and have not shed any light on her age, after all I never actually said how old she is.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! She is the greatest mother that anyone could have. To show an example of what a great mother she still is. I work outside and one day before I was to start working she called me to inform me that it was going to be cooler that day and that I should be sure to take a jacket. But, the greatest example is that she has not had a child-free house in 45 years. When I was 11 my younger brother Kelly was born with Downs Syndrome. She continues to care for him everyday without complaining and will always do this. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Rainbows and Moonbows

2008-07-20T21:25:00.000-06:00

Have you ever seen a rainbow on a completely cloudy day? Probably not. But, most of us have viewed spectacular rainbows during the day and some may have been lucky enough to view a rainbow at night, or known as a moonbow. To view these beautiful refractions of light all we need is the correct solar zenith, around 40 to 42 degrees (no this is not temperature) and rain, ice crystals or some form of moisture. What we need is the correct angle of sunlight to pass through drops of rain to refract the light so we are able to view the prism of light. Most of us view rainbows when we are facing east. The sunlight needs to be at our backs and rain to our front to view rainbows. Some of us may have viewed rainbows facing west, of course all of us know this would only be possible in the morning. Well, maybe not, but rainbows viewed in the east are in the afternoon or evening depending on the time of year and rainbows viewed in the west are in the morning when the sun is at our backs. An interesting thing to think of when viewing rainbows is the weather associated with these rainbows. Most mid latitude storm systems pass from west to east, so when you see a rainbow in the east it is most likely indicating the weather is improving. This is evident because of the sun shinning from the west void of cloud cover. Now when you view a rainbow in the west this would probably indicate that the weather on this day is going to involve some moisture.

Moonbows are not as viewed and well known. I have not viewed one but, would really like the chance to see one. I guess I will need to keep an eye out for partly cloudy, full moonlit, misty nights, but for some reason the weather forecast does not usually give me the indications for such events. This works with the same basic principles as a rainbow, but uses reflected sunlight from the moon to form the prism with rain. The moon needs to be relatively full or bright. You also need to have the same angle of light coming from the moon, around 40 to 42 degrees. Using the same principles as with rainbows your back must be facing the moon.

My favorite thing about rainbows is the double rainbow. Is this really two rainbows? Think about it. Do we have two suns? No, thank goodness, it is hot enough with one. A double rainbow is the reflection of the first rainbow. To prove this think about the colors and their order in the rainbow. We can use Sir Issac Newtons sevenfold red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Some of us may remember this by using the mnemonic, "Roy G. Biv." One rainbow will follow this color order. A second or double rainbow will not. The colors are in reverse clearly indicating a reflection of the first. Reflections are in reverse, this is why when you look at an ambulance in your rear view mirror you are able to read the words. The next time that you are lucky enough to view a double rainbow, take a closer look. You will be amazed.

If you do not want to wait for a rainbow you can make your own using a garden hose, sprinkler, or view one at a water fall. But, remember to have your back facing the sun. And try not to loose too much sleep waiting for a moonbow, but then again, I probably will.

Visible Light

2008-07-13T22:28:00.000-06:00

This is my opening thought for my blog. I am a thinker. If you know me you may think I am rather quiet. (Shari will tell you different) However, I am probably entertaining my mind with some interesting (to me) thought. This opening post will give you an idea of what goes on in my mind. Enter if you dare.

Have you ever thought what life might be like if we saw in more than just the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum? This is the rather large area of light that we can not view. Well, probably not. Let me tell you how lucky we are to just to be able to view just the rather cleverly named, "visible light." Your day would probably start out pretty rough. You roll over to turn off your alarm clock and view all the FM or AM waves being transmited in the air, but that is just the begining. As you make your way down the hall you would be able to see the thermal infrared being given off by everyone in the house, even pets if you have them. Lets say you decide to make breakfast using the microwave oven, WOW! I bet that would be a good light show to watch. If you decide to watch the television you will probably want to limit the use of your remote, I am sure that beam sent out of your remote might make you late for work. You might practice with this like it is your Jedi lightsaber. So, are you getting the idea of how lucky we are? We have not even stepped outside yet. You open your garage and back out of your garage, as you press the remote to close your garage you will see light being emitted from your remote. Now the fun begins. Imagine all of the many wavelengths of light tramsmitted through space and our atmosphere. Gamma, shortwave radio, microwaves, AM/FM radio, CB radio, cell communications, satellite television, short wave and long wave radiation, or many of the other wavelengths that you are now able to see. We would probably feel as though we were living in the 60's or 70's and having a bad acid trip, or good one depending on who you may talk to. I hope I have opened your mind to something else to be thankful for. So, when you kneel down tonight to say you prayers, please be thankful that you only view the visible light. I would say that there would be one day of the year that I would like to be able to view all the electromagnetic spectrum. This would be for just an hour on the 4th of July. Talk about your fireworks display. And all of this without the risk of fire and injury. Think about it.