Stannous Flouride's Book of Truthiness

NGC 4762: A Galaxy on the Edge 
Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA

Explanation: Why is there a bright line on the sky? What is pictured above is actually a disk galaxy being seen almost perfectly edge on. The image from the Hubble Space Telescope is a spectacular visual reminder of just how thin disk galaxies can be. NGC 4762, a galaxy in the nearby Virgo Cluster of Galaxies, is so thin that it is actually difficult to determine what type of disk galaxy it is. Its lack of a visible dust lane indicates that it is a low-dust lenticular galaxy, although it is still possible that a view from on top would reveal spiral structure. The unusual stellar line spans about 100,000 light years from end to end. Near NGC 4762’s center is a slight bulge of stars, while many background galaxies are visible far in the distance. Galaxies that appear this thin are rare mostly because our Earth must reside (nearly) in the extrapolated planes of their thin galactic disks. Galaxies that actually are this thin are relatively common — for example our own Milky Way Galaxy is thought to be about this thin.

This is the sort of psycho-behavioral study that I find fascinating. It poses many more questions, such as why it evolved or how does it apply to social interaction.

Scientists from the University of Bern have developed a novel substance for the treatment of severe bacterial infections without antibiotics, which would prevent the development of antibiotic resistance.

A team of international scientists has tested a novel substance, which has been developed by Eduard Babiychuk and Annette Draeger from the Institute of Anatomy, University of Bern in Switzerland. This compound constitutes a novel approach for the treatment of bacterial infections: the scientists engineered artificial nanoparticles made of lipids, “liposomes” that closely resemble the membrane of host cells. These liposomes act as decoys for bacterial toxins and so are able to sequester and neutralize them. Without toxins, the bacteria are rendered defenseless and can be eliminated by the cells of the host’s own immune system.

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2014-11-alternative-antibiotics.html#jCp

A huge geoglyph shaped like a moose was discovered using Google Earth satellite images in 2011. It was built by an entire community, including the children some 6,000 years ago.

Visit the Zeugma website here:
http://www.zeugmaweb.com/zeugma/english/engindex.htm

Moon and Earth from Chang’e 5-T1

Image Credit: Chinese National Space Administration, Xinhuanet

19th-century Holmes stereoscope3D images have been around almost since before the invention of photography. The earliest known stereoscope was invented in 1838.

These devices, like modern 3D, show a slightly different image to each eye. As with our perception of the actual world, our eyes see the separate images but our brains combine them into one scene with perceived depth.

I wonder why the Rethuglicants hate America so much that they want to corrupt and destroy what made it so special.