#Tycho Science

[dishnufu]

okay bye

[gaynaxing]

Diebuster illustration by Shin Itagaki for gainax.net.

[therosecrest]

[pedroam-bang]

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

[lindahall]

Tycho Brahe – Scientist of the Day

Tycho Brahe, a Danish astonomer, died in Prague on Oct. 24, 1601, at age 54.

read more...

[materialsscienceandengineering]

In the Middle Ages, alchemists were notoriously secretive and didn't share their knowledge with others. Danish Tycho Brahe was no exception. Consequently, we don't know precisely what he did in the alchemical laboratory located beneath his combined residence and observatory, Uraniborg, on the now Swedish island of Ven. Only a few of his alchemical recipes have survived, and today, there are very few remnants of his laboratory. Uraniborg was demolished after his death in 1601, and the building materials were scattered for reuse. However, during an excavation in 1988-1990, some pottery and glass shards were found in Uraniborg's old garden. These shards were believed to originate from the basement's alchemical laboratory. Five of these shards -- four glass and one ceramic -- have now undergone chemical analyses to determine which elements the original glass and ceramic containers came into contact with.

Read more.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

The Boys are Back in Town

Most of the X-Wing series focused on either Wraith or Rogue squadron in their full capacities and on standard missions. That is NOT this book. This book focuses on Wedge Antillies, Wes Janson, Tycho Celchu, and Derek "Hobbie" Klivian as they slide inexorably from a diplomatic mission to something that Padme Amidala would unquestionably describe as "aggressive negotiations." Let's talk Starfighters of Adumar.

When you have a planet that has evolved outside of either imperial or republic influence that reveres pilots to an arguably unhealthy degree and you can't drag Luke Skywalker out of whatever he is currently doing, you get Wedge "I blew up two Death Stars, you don't scare me" Antilles. Wedge then puts together a crack team of his three best pilot buddies to hammer out a treaty between Adumar and the New Republic (I'd be LYING if I told you I was picturing anything other than Adam Sandler casting his best friends and taking them on epic vacations and incidentally making a movie for this bit).

As per usual, things go pear-shaped basically before they even get boots down on Adumar, because among its other problems, Adumar loves the HELL out of dueling. To the death. Usually with starfighters. Some asshole decides to try to increase his personal clout by shooting Wedge down as they fly in. This doesn't work, but hot damn does it set the tone...

The toxic dueling culture is not limited to snubfighters, however. Cheriss ke Hanadi (the undisputed queen of duels with blastswords) guides Red Squadron through the twists and turns of Adumari culture. That does not stop Wes from getting in a duel at the diplomatic reception, though. This duel is incredible because it's Wes giving an object lesson in how to humiliate the living hell out of an overly cocky opponent with a blastsword while functionally unarmed. This fight is glorious, and it's a beautiful follow-up to the "getting ready for the ball" scene our boys get to have where Wes lights up like a kid at Christmas when he discovers that blastswords are basically "blaster[s] that you have to hit people with."

Cheriss gets done a wee bit dirty by this book, because she basically develops a crush on Wedge, and when she finds out that he and Iella have gotten together, she sets herself up to get murdered by fighting a stupid number of duels in a row. The rest of Red Squardon steps in though, and as an added bonus, the New Republic medics give her a medication for her chronic vertigo to allow Cheriss to become a pilot. This series literally is not here for anyone who isn't a New Republic pilot, so I don't love Cheriss's arc, but honestly it could have been a lot worse, so I'm not complaining too hard.

The draw for this book though, is unquestionably the character work in our four protagonist pilots. The plot of the novel is pretty simple, all things considered, so Allston takes the opportunity to really dig into character for our boys, and getting to follow them on a somewhat nontraditional mission and using their skills as best they can is just FUN. As a friend says, this book is delicious candy fluff, and the characters are the candies.

Even when the mission goes directly to hell and Red Squadron has to run the gauntlet for their lives, the choices and twists and turns are largely character-driven. That makes what could have been a run-of-the-mill climactic escape into a really tense, well-constructed series of choices and consequences that are just FUN because of the characters who have been dropped into the situation.

There's objectively not too much substance to this book, but it ties Wraith Squadron as my favorite X-Wing book because of the character work and focus on the top four New Republic pilots. Plus, it's a little adorable that this is where Wedge and Iella really get together, and I am HERE for legends continuity legacy families.

[dwcmarshalarts]

Not sure that Tycho cares what the morning brings.

Original art and story by DWC Marshal Arts

[the-lincyclopedia]

(One of the many possible expressions of) true love is writing a parody of "Footloose" (the song, not the whole musical) with your partner and making it about Tycho Brahe and his drunken pet moose.

[sitting-on-me-bum]

A close-up of the Tycho Crater, a large impact crater located on the south end of the moon. Captured with the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia, this is one of the highest-resolution images of the lunar surface ever taken from Earth.

(Image credit: Raytheon Technologies.)

[lion8898]

What is Tycho Crater The Bright Jewel of the Moon

[dishnufu]

信じて未来へ行こう

[therosecrest]

[newtonian-tragedy]

Omake Manga from 決してマネしないでください。(Please Do Not Attempt, Never.) by 蛇蔵 (Hebizou)

I can't get enough of historical figures fanboying over each other, and everybody (except Ben) being traumatized by Newton.

[borgiabeacon]

Stars and Moose: Tycho

You’ve heard of Tycho Brahe, the eccentric 16th-century Danish astronomer. He was known to own a few exotic pets, including a tamed elk that freely roamed his observatory.

Legend has it that during a lavish banquet, Brahe’s curious moose wandered into the banquet hall, surprising guests. 

The sight of a moose dining alongside nobles and scholars became the talk of the town, showcasing Brahe’s peculiar tastes and eccentric charm.

[moltengarnet]

Album of the week #3

The Science of Patterns by Tycho