Trivia!

This forum is for discussing space science topics related to Stardust@home.

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Sharqua
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Trivia!

Post by Sharqua »

Something to keep us entertained while we patiently wait for the green light. :wink:

The person who posts the first 10 correct answers gets to come up with the next 10 questions! EVERYBODY is eligible (even you folks from Berkeley) because if you win, you get to add more interesting questions!

All of these questions have something to do with our project OR with astronomy.

Here goes!
  • 1. What was the name of the comet sampled for the Stardust@Home project?
    2. What is the "Pioneer Anomaly"?
    3. What is a "sungrazer"? Be specific, not just a 1-word answer!
    4. What is the Spacewatch Project and why might it be important to me?
    5. What is the "Cosmic Light Horizon"?
    6. What is the nickname for the craft used in the Reduced Gravity Research Program?
    7. Who (give person's name) likely sent the "STENDEC" morse code signal and from what craft was it sent? (Second response must have something to do with our project)
    8. Who was Norman Carl Odam? (Response must have something to do with our project)
    9. In what year does Comet Halley reappear?
    10. What is "Termination Shock"? (Nothing to do with losing one's job, sorry!)
Good luck!
DustTrailFinder

Post by DustTrailFinder »

1. Wild-2
2. The unexplained deviation of the trajectories of Pioneer 10 and 11 as they travel through the outer edge of our solar sytem.
3. A comet that passes extremely close to the Sun.
4. A project at the University of Arizona to locate and study asteroids and comets. Besides identifying objects that may be of interest for scientific study, it also identifies potential objects that might collide with the earth.
5. That part of the universe that is furthest from us and still observable by our best available detection instruments.
6. Vomit Comet.
7. Dennis Harmer from an airplane named Stardust that crashed in the Andes in 1947.
8. A country musician who called himself the "Legendary Stardust Cowboy."
9. 2061 - 2062.
10. It is the fluctuating boundary marking the limits of our sun's influence, where the solar wind slows to less than the speed of sound.
Sharqua
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Location: Bradenton, FL

Post by Sharqua »

Nice. Very nice. I hope you're working on your 10 questions, Dusty, 'cause you're next. ;D

I learned something researching these, and I hope others learn something from the answers. Fun!

-Shar
DustTrailFinder

Post by DustTrailFinder »

You're one smart researcher!

I do have my questions already decided, but they have more to do with the members in this forum, rather than the good questions you posed. So, here they are:

1. Who illustrated the Starship Enterprise trapped in aerogel?
2. Who wrote "Dust in the gel?"
3. Who illustrated "Dust Bunnies" for this project?
4. Who wants to make the Stardust@home project into a scout project?
5. Who thinks that a discovered particle might be named "Little bang" or "Itsy bitsy, Teeny weeny, Yellow polka dot?"
6. What member is doing a college paper on the Stardust probe?
7. Who has two daughters aged 30 and 28, "older than most of you?"
8. Who asked the question: "Bosniac, are you my neighbour ( i am croat), or its just nick?"
9. Who lamented about not receiving an email from Stardust@home: "Alas, still nothing but spam in my mailbox. Think i will fry an egg with it?"
10. Who is studying agriculture in Amman Jordan and plans to begin working toward a Masters in soil science later this year?

And "tag, you're it" if you answer the questions correctly.
fjgiie
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Post by fjgiie »

.
1. Who illustrated the Starship Enterprise trapped in aerogel? PeteSeeker
2. Who wrote "Dust in the gel?" Sharqua
3. Who illustrated "Dust Bunnies" for this project? DustBuster

4. Who wants to make the Stardust@home project into a scout project?Nikita
5. Who thinks that a discovered particle might be named "Little bang" or
"Itsy bitsy, Teeny weeny, Yellow polka dot?" tigertim
6. What member is doing a college paper on the Stardust probe? Aquila Hawk
7. Who has two daughters aged 30 and 28, "older than most of you?" joecor99
8. Who asked the question: "Bosniac, are you my neighbour ( i am croat),
or its just nick?" the martian

9. Who lamented about not receiving an email from Stardust@home:
"Alas, still nothing but spam in my mailbox. Think i will fry an egg with it?" Wolter
10. Who is studying agriculture in Amman Jordan and plans to begin working
toward a Masters in soil science later this year? my friend tareq

I hereby bequeath the privilege to ask the next ten questions to Aquila Hawk.
DustTrailFinder

Post by DustTrailFinder »

Congratulations, fjgiie! You're "it" and tagged Aquila Hawk, who's now "it."
fjgiie
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Location: Hampton, SC, US

Post by fjgiie »

Image

1. Name the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way. (One billion stars)
2. Most distant galaxy cluster. (500 trillion solar masses)
3. Common name of M87, and how many light years away?

4. What size are stardust particles expected to be?
5. How many particles do you think we will find by completion of Stardust at Home?
6. What is Dr. Peter Tsou’s title in this program?
7. Is it difficult to photograph a million movies?

8. How far is it from the real “Pearl of the Orient” to Penang Malaysia?
9. What lesson did Ellie learn from the letter from her mother in the book CONTACT by Carl Sagan?
10. What’s that picture above these questions?

Edit: You need only answer nine of these to get credit for ten, as I will answer the other question myself. (about the book Contact)
Last edited by fjgiie on Mon Jun 12, 2006 6:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sharqua
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Location: Bradenton, FL

Post by Sharqua »

<laugh>

That photo is another view of what's on the desktop of my computer! ;) I have the reddened version of it.

Ain't dat Purrrrty!

-D
fjgiie
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Question #9 Ellie and the book CONTACT

Post by fjgiie »

note: This came at the very end of the book Contact. page 428

Ellie loved her father, Ted Arroway, very much, and hated her step-father, John Staughton,
because he could not replace her real father. After Ellie's mother died, John Staughton gave
the following letter from Ellie's dead mother to her:

"My sweet Ellie,
Now that I'm dead, I hope you can find it in your heart to
forgive me. I know I committed a sin against you, and not just
you. I couldnt bear how you'd hate me if you knew the truth.
That's why I didn't have the courage to tell you while I was
alive. I know how much you loved Ted Arroway, and I want
you to know I did, too. I still do. But he wasn't your real father.
Your real father is John Staughton. I did something very
wrong. I shouldn't have and I was weak, but if I hadn't you
wouldn't be in the world, so please be kind when you think
about me. Ted knew and he gave me forgiveness and we said
we'd never tell you. But I look out of the window right now and I
see you in the backyard. You're sitting there thinking about
stars and things that I never could understand and I'm so
proud of you. You make such a point about the truth, I
thought it was right that you should know this truth about
yourself. Your beginning, I mean.
If John is still alive, then he's given you this letter. I know
he'll do it. He's a better man than you think he is Ellie. I was
lucky to find him again. Maybe you hate him so much because
somethiing inside of you figured out the truth. But really you
hate him because he isn't Theodore Arroway. I know
There you are, still sitting out there. You haven't moved
since I started this letter. You're just thinking. I hope and pray
that whatever you're seeking, you'll find. Forgive me. I was
only human.
Love,
Mom"

For me, the movie left out the whole lesson or purpose for writing the book. Ellie had
"studied the universe all her life, but had overlooked its clearest message: For small
creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love."
sb126k
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Post by sb126k »

<sniffle>
Last edited by sb126k on Fri Jun 16, 2006 11:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
You rang?
Sharqua
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Post by Sharqua »

I'm still waiting for somebody to take the time to figure out those questions. :) Some good ones, there.

That last comment on Contact left me reminded of another one: "If we were the only ones in this whole universe, that would be an awful waste of space." (or something to that nature)

-Shar
DiamondGirl
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Post by DiamondGirl »

I absolutely love that movie, Sharqua. One of my all time favorites. I love that they don't just talk about it an insinuate the answer, they actually take us there.

Anyone else? Contact - love it or hate it?
sb126k
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Post by sb126k »

Definitely love it! :D
You rang?
Wolter
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Post by Wolter »

OK then, here goes..

1. Name the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way. (One billion stars)
- the Canis Major dwarf galaxy - http://astro.u-strasbg.fr/images_ri/canm-e.html

2. Most distant galaxy cluster. (500 trillion solar masses)
- XMM-XCS 2215-1734 - http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish ... 8_aas.html

3. Common name of M87, and how many light years away?
- Virgo A, 60 millon light years - http://www.seds.org/Messier/m/m087.html

4. What size are stardust particles expected to be?
- 0.1 to 1 micron - http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/science/de ... #interdust

5. How many particles do you think we will find by completion of Stardust at Home?
- about 40 particles - http://www.planetary.org/programs/proje ... ustathome/

6. What is Dr. Peter Tsou’s title in this program?
- Deputy Principal Investigator - http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html

7. Is it difficult to photograph a million movies?
- Yes, otherwise we would be going through the movies allready ;) - http://www.planetary.org/news/2006/0426 ... t_JSC.html

8. How far is it from the real “Pearl of the Orient” to Penang Malaysia?
- 0 km. they are the same. - http://www.geographia.com/malaysia/penang.html

9. What lesson did Ellie learn from the letter from her mother in the book CONTACT by Carl Sagan?
- - ;)

10. What’s that picture above these questions?
- Cat's eye nebula in it's halo - http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031101.html

And now i have to search again for the next 10.... :)
Just dusting... Image
fjgiie
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Way to go Wolter ! ! !

Post by fjgiie »

Hi Wolter,
There was another person right on your heels :cry: and I can't believe you got them all correct.

Your answer #8 is same as mine, though who knows where the real Pearl of the Orient is... 2070 miles from Shanghai, 1490 miles from Hong Kong.

So... very good.
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