First up....Quidditch! I brought it up briefly in my previous post, but today I am going to pique your interest even more and entice you with pictures from our last practice.
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![](https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v28/squeakmachine/Blog/q10.jpg)
![](https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v28/squeakmachine/Blog/q8.jpg)
![](https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v28/squeakmachine/Blog/q7.jpg)
![](https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v28/squeakmachine/Blog/q4.jpg)
Doesn't that look fun? Well, it actually is! I am by no means a "sports person" but I have to admit that playing Quidditch is so much fun that I find myself wishing that we had practice more often. Hmmmm...I never thought I'd ever look forward to running around and getting...*gulp*...the "e"-word.
If you live in the Philadelphia area and want to join our team...let me know! I will be sure to send you some information on how to get involved.
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Also! I don't usually make blog posts about my site updates buuuuut...since I'm here and writing to you guys anyway, I figured I'd let you guys know that since yesterday was the 1st of the month, there are new updates on Squeakmachine.com! In case you didn't know, we update the site on the 1st of the month, every month.
This month we have new nail tutorials in the fashion section and a new essay about "Looking Young Forever" in the make-up essay area.
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And in more recent news...
I am very disappointed (and yet not surprised) to see the media taking a disparaging tone when announcing the subject matter of NASA's most recent press conference. Much like the asinine "NASA is blowing up the moon" headlines that littered the interwebs during the mission to confirm the discovery of water on the moon; I woke up this morning to see another barrage of "whoop-de-friggin-do" headlines. Now I realize that the discovery of an arsenic based life form may not be as significant as Cochrane's invention and testing of a warp drive engine that led to Earth's first contact with the species known as Vulcans. But A. that doesn't happen until April 5, 2063 (and yes, I know that date by heart...I didn't have to look it up) and B. those kinds of discoveries are found only in the world of science fiction and in actuality...are not likely.
I am not saying that we will never find intelligent life or be greeted by Vulcan ambassadors...but science generally works in small steps so let us not hold our breath.
![wink](https://dz3ixmv6nok8z.cloudfront.net/static/img/emoticons/wink.6a5555b139e7.gif)
In any case, this recent discovery changes a LOT!
Everything we look for when trying to find a Goldilocks Planet is now changed. This newly discovered life form means that we are now casting a much larger net. We may also have to take a closer look at the planets and moons within our own solar system. Titan (Saturn's largest moon), for example, has always been in question as to whether or not it could contain life and finding a new component of life could mean good news for scientist who study that moon.
I am going to post a quote that my friend John wrote on the Space and Time Group here on SG because I love what he commented:
OpticNerve said:
It's not ET, but it's a completely different form of life than any we've encountered on this planet. Taking the whole extraterrestrial angle out from this story, this is still a momentous find. The general public thinks we are at the pinnacle of our understanding of our existence, but Dr. Wolfe-Simon's finding shows that there are still places of exploration, both in the physical realm and in the intellectual realm, in which we're still taking tentative roaming steps. I was enraptured watching the news conference.
So please please please! Do not let yourself be swayed by the media's cynical and pejorative tone. NASA's recent discovery changes a lot in the world of science and it is very important for the public to show their interest and support. The government will only give NASA more funding if the public is interested in what they are doing and space exploration as a whole. It is no coincidence that back when all little boys wanted to be Astronauts and little girls wanted to marry Astronauts that we were making our biggest advances in the world of Astrophysics and space exploration. When the public loves Astronomy, the government will too!
Words that Word Warp for the iPhone can make from your name, 'cause I know you were wondering