#physics time

[dragonsaffron]

Fun fact: while the exact dynamics are of course quite different, on a broad level the before-and-after of a gravity assist maneuver are exactly the same as if you'd literally bounced the probe off of the planet like a pool ball bouncing off a wall. You can only accelerate a probe by bouncing it such that it ends up traveling in the same direction as the planet's orbit.

There's this sort of anthropomorphizing that inherently happens in language that really gets me sometimes. I'm still not over the terminology of "gravity assist," the technique where we launch satellites into the orbit of other planets so that we can build momentum via the astounding and literally astronomical strength of their gravitational forces, to "slingshot" them into the direction we need with a speed that we could never, ever, ever create ourselves. I mean, some of these slingshots easily get probes hurtling through space at tens of thousands of miles per hour. Wikipedia has a handy diagram of the Voyager 1 satellite doing such a thing.

"Gravity assist." "Slingshot." Of course, on a very basic and objective level, yes, we are taking advantage of forces generated by outside objects to specifically help in our goals. We're getting help from objects in the same way a river can power a mill. And of course we call it a "slingshot," because the motion is very similar (mentally at least; I can't be sure about the exact physics).

Plus, especially compared to the other sciences, the terminology for astrophysics is like, really straightforward. "Black hole?" Damn yeah it sure is. "Big bang?" It sure was. "Galactic cluster?" Buddy you're never gonna guess what this is. I think it's an effect of the fact that language is generally developed for life on earth and all the strange variances that happen on its surface, that applying it to something as alien and vast as space, general terms tend to suffice very well in a lot more places than, like... idk, botany.

But, like. "Gravity assist." I still can't get the notion out of my head that such language implies us receiving active help from our celestial neighbors. They come to our aid. We are working together. We are assisted. Jupiter and the other planets saw our little messengers coming from its pale blue molecular cousin, and we set up the physics just right, so that they could help us send them out to far stranger places than this, to tell us all about what they find out there.

We are assisted.

And there is no better way to illustrate my feelings on the matter than to just show you guys one of my favorite paintings, this 1973 NASA art by Rick Guidice to show the Pioneer probe doing this exact thing:

"... You, sent out beyond your recall, go to the limits of your longing. Embody me. ..."

Gravity assist.

[icewindandboringhorror]

(also feel free in the tags to clarify Why you made the choice you made!! :0c)

[stronger-monsters]

early days ❤️ (they haven't quite figured out boundaries or compatible love languages or physical strength disparity, yet <3)

[canisalbus]

✦ Pebble ✦

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[ciil]

he is touching vik’s lil mole above his lip :3

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

being bisexual and academically interested in fashion is weird bc sometimes you'll see a person who is both attractive and well-dressed. which you think would make a fun combo! but actually it's a trick that sends my brain spiraling because what the heck parts am i supposed to be paying attention to

[handweavers]

also the 9-5 workday just does not work well in hot climates and i think it exacerbates these problems by concentrating the most activity to the hottest part of the day. the old approach of waking up early to labour before the sun is hottest, resting during the hottest hours of the day, and finishing your activities once the sun begins to set and into the evening makes a lot more sense and i think it would consume less energy overall and prevent illness in working people, children, elderly, and other vulnerable people due to heat exposure. people structured their days like this for a reason, prior to the widespread adoption of air conditioning, and even in a world with air con it just makes more sense esp as already hot climates get hotter and those who face the greatest consequences have the least protection from the heat

[evercelle]

it was all so simple then

[hinamie]

blue light overexposure dot png

[jellyfishforest135]

S1 and 2 Kanera are so touchy-feely and I love that for them

[silosbears]

i think alphonse would still experience depersonalization and dysmorphia even after getting his body back

[xpurplepiex]

grandpa torture hours

[cinnamon-flame]

Qibli and Winter annoying each other for fun

[389]

[dndspellgifs]

look, I know I've talked about this essay (?) before but like,

If you ever needed a good demonstration of the quote "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic", have I got an exercise for you.

Somebody made a small article explaining the basics of atomic theory but it's written in Anglish. Anglish is basically a made-up version of English where they remove any elements (words, prefixes, etc) that were originally borrowed from romance languages like french and latin, as well as greek and other foreign loanwords, keeping only those of germanic origin.

What happens is an english which is for the most part intelligible, but since a lot everyday english, and especially the scientific vocabulary, has has heavy latin and greek influence, they have to make up new words from the existing germanic-english vocabulary. For me it kind of reads super viking-ey.

Anyway when you read this article on atomic theory, in Anglish called Uncleftish Beholding, you get this text which kind of reads like a fantasy novel. Like in my mind it feels like it recontextualizes advanced scientific concepts to explain it to a viking audience from ancient times.

Even though you're familiar with the scientific ideas, because it bypasses the normal language we use for these concepts, you get a chance to examine these ideas as if you were a visitor from another civilization - and guess what, it does feel like it's about magic. It has a mythical quality to it, like it feels like a book about magic written during viking times. For me this has the same vibe as reading deep magic lore from a Robert Jordan book.