Have an excellent weekend. See you bright and early Monday morning.
Friday, August 21, 2026
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Doubt
"Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt." William Shakespeare
"Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will." Suzy Kassem
"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." Bertrand Russell
"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." Vincent van Gogh
"If you would be a real seeker after truth, it is necessary that at least once in your life you doubt, as far as possible, all things." René Descartes
"Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is an absurd one." Voltaire
"Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will." Suzy Kassem
"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." Bertrand Russell
"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." Vincent van Gogh
"If you would be a real seeker after truth, it is necessary that at least once in your life you doubt, as far as possible, all things." René Descartes
"Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is an absurd one." Voltaire
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
Tuesday, August 18, 2026
Yeats
A Drinking Song by William Butler Yeats
Wine comes in at the mouth
And love comes in at the eye;
That’s all we shall know for truth
Before we grow old and die.
I lift the glass to my mouth,
I look at you, and I sigh.
Wine comes in at the mouth
And love comes in at the eye;
That’s all we shall know for truth
Before we grow old and die.
I lift the glass to my mouth,
I look at you, and I sigh.
Y2Y
Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative AKA y2y.net: Help us connect and protect the Yellowstone to Yukon region
"Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative (Y2Y®) is a collaborative effort between a U.S. non-profit organization and a Canadian public charity that together connect and protect habitat from Yellowstone to Yukon so people and nature can thrive.""Recognizing that communities thrive when everyone has fair access to opportunities, Y2Y values a broad range of perspectives, fosters a culture of respect and belonging, and upholds principles of fairness, environmental responsibility, and social justice. We oppose actions and policies that undermine these commitments within the projects and work that we do in advancing the Y2Y vision on the ground."
Galactic
From AI Gemini:
It takes the Sun approximately 225 to 250 million Earth years to complete one full orbit around the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. Astronomers call this massive time frame a Galactic Year (or Cosmic Year).
A Few Mind-Boggling Numbers
- Speed: The Sun and our entire solar system travel at a speed of around 500,000 mph (roughly 828,000 km/h or 220 km/s) relative to the galactic center.
- Distance: Even at that speed, the orbit takes a long time because the Sun sits about 26,000 light-years out from the center, located in the Orion-Cygnus arm (or Orion Spur) of the spiral disk.
- Perspective in History: The last time our solar system was in this exact position in the Milky Way, the very first dinosaurs were just beginning to emerge during the early Triassic period.
- Total Laps: Over its entire ~4.6-billion-year existence, the Sun has only made about 20 full revolutions around the galactic core.
——
The supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way is named Sagittarius A* (pronounced Sagittarius A-star), often abbreviated as Sgr A*.
Key Facts About Sagittarius A*
- The Name: It gets its name because it is located in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius when viewed from Earth. The asterisk ($\text{*}$) was added by astronomers to denote that it is an "excited" (intensely bright in radio emissions) astronomical source.
- Mass: It is a true heavyweight, containing approximately 4 million times the mass of our Sun compressed into a region smaller than the distance from the Sun to Mercury.
- First Image: In May 2022, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration captured the very first direct image of the glowing gas ring surrounding Sgr A*'s shadow, proving its existence visually.
Despite its enormous mass, it is actually quite "quiet" compared to supermassive black holes in other galaxies, consuming relatively small amounts of interstellar gas and matter.
——
Unlike moons orbiting planets or solar systems orbiting a galactic core, the Milky Way doesn't revolve around a single central object. Instead, it moves in response to the shared gravitational pull of its neighbors and larger cosmic structures.
1. The Local Group's Center of Mass
The Milky Way is part of a neighborhood of over 80 galaxies known as the Local Group.
The two dominant giants in this group are the Milky Way and the larger Andromeda Galaxy (M31). Together, they contain most of the cluster's mass. Rather than orbiting Andromeda, the Milky Way and Andromeda orbit a shared center of mass (barycenter) located in the space between them—while simultaneously falling directly toward each other. They are scheduled to merge in about 4.5 billion years.
2. The Virgo Supercluster & Laniakea
Zooming out further, our Local Group isn't static—it is being pulled through space:
- The Virgo Supercluster: The Local Group is part of a massive collection of galaxy groups spanning ~110 million light-years, bound toward the dense center of the Virgo Cluster.
- Laniakea: The Virgo Supercluster itself is just a minor appendage of an even grander "supercontinent" of galaxies called Laniakea (Hawaiian for "immense heaven"), containing roughly 100,000 galaxies.
3. The Ultimate Target: The Great Attractor
Everything in our local region of the universe—including the Milky Way, Andromeda, and surrounding clusters—is hurtling at roughly 1.3 million mph (600 km/s) toward a massive gravitational anomaly known as the Great Attractor.
Located about 150 to 250 million light-years away in the direction of the Centaurus constellation, the Great Attractor is a massive focal point of dark matter and concentrated galaxy clusters that acts as the regional gravitational drain for our slice of the universe.
——
Our solar system is located in the Laniakea Supercluster.
Depending on how fine-grained you look at the cosmic map, astronomers describe our home in two stages:
1 The Virgo Supercluster (Local Supercluster): Historically, astronomers classified our galaxy as part of the Virgo Supercluster—a massive collection of galaxy groups spanning about 110 million light-years.
2 The Laniakea Supercluster (Our Grand Home): In 2014, scientists remapped the local universe based on how galaxies actually move through space rather than just where they sit. They discovered that the Virgo Supercluster is just a small lobe or "sub-branch" of a vastly larger home called Laniakea (Hawaiian for "immense heaven").
Our Cosmic Address from Small to Large
To trace our exact position in the cosmos, here is the full hierarchy from earth out to the supercluster level:
1. Solar System: Earth and 7 other planets orbiting the Sun.
2. Orion-Cygnus Arm: The local spiral arm of our galaxy.
3. Milky Way Galaxy: Our home galaxy of ~100–400 billion stars.
4. Local Group: A neighborhood of over 80 galaxies dominated by the Milky Way and Andromeda.
5. Virgo Supercluster: Our immediate cluster region (spanning ~110 million light-years).
6. Laniakea Supercluster: Our overarching supercluster, home to ~100,000 galaxies flowing toward a central gravitational watershed (spanning 520 million light-years).
It takes the Sun approximately 225 to 250 million Earth years to complete one full orbit around the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. Astronomers call this massive time frame a Galactic Year (or Cosmic Year).
A Few Mind-Boggling Numbers
- Speed: The Sun and our entire solar system travel at a speed of around 500,000 mph (roughly 828,000 km/h or 220 km/s) relative to the galactic center.
- Distance: Even at that speed, the orbit takes a long time because the Sun sits about 26,000 light-years out from the center, located in the Orion-Cygnus arm (or Orion Spur) of the spiral disk.
- Perspective in History: The last time our solar system was in this exact position in the Milky Way, the very first dinosaurs were just beginning to emerge during the early Triassic period.
- Total Laps: Over its entire ~4.6-billion-year existence, the Sun has only made about 20 full revolutions around the galactic core.
——
The supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way is named Sagittarius A* (pronounced Sagittarius A-star), often abbreviated as Sgr A*.
Key Facts About Sagittarius A*
- The Name: It gets its name because it is located in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius when viewed from Earth. The asterisk ($\text{*}$) was added by astronomers to denote that it is an "excited" (intensely bright in radio emissions) astronomical source.
- Mass: It is a true heavyweight, containing approximately 4 million times the mass of our Sun compressed into a region smaller than the distance from the Sun to Mercury.
- First Image: In May 2022, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration captured the very first direct image of the glowing gas ring surrounding Sgr A*'s shadow, proving its existence visually.
Despite its enormous mass, it is actually quite "quiet" compared to supermassive black holes in other galaxies, consuming relatively small amounts of interstellar gas and matter.
——
Unlike moons orbiting planets or solar systems orbiting a galactic core, the Milky Way doesn't revolve around a single central object. Instead, it moves in response to the shared gravitational pull of its neighbors and larger cosmic structures.
1. The Local Group's Center of Mass
The Milky Way is part of a neighborhood of over 80 galaxies known as the Local Group.
The two dominant giants in this group are the Milky Way and the larger Andromeda Galaxy (M31). Together, they contain most of the cluster's mass. Rather than orbiting Andromeda, the Milky Way and Andromeda orbit a shared center of mass (barycenter) located in the space between them—while simultaneously falling directly toward each other. They are scheduled to merge in about 4.5 billion years.
2. The Virgo Supercluster & Laniakea
Zooming out further, our Local Group isn't static—it is being pulled through space:
- The Virgo Supercluster: The Local Group is part of a massive collection of galaxy groups spanning ~110 million light-years, bound toward the dense center of the Virgo Cluster.
- Laniakea: The Virgo Supercluster itself is just a minor appendage of an even grander "supercontinent" of galaxies called Laniakea (Hawaiian for "immense heaven"), containing roughly 100,000 galaxies.
3. The Ultimate Target: The Great Attractor
Everything in our local region of the universe—including the Milky Way, Andromeda, and surrounding clusters—is hurtling at roughly 1.3 million mph (600 km/s) toward a massive gravitational anomaly known as the Great Attractor.
Located about 150 to 250 million light-years away in the direction of the Centaurus constellation, the Great Attractor is a massive focal point of dark matter and concentrated galaxy clusters that acts as the regional gravitational drain for our slice of the universe.
——
Our solar system is located in the Laniakea Supercluster.
Depending on how fine-grained you look at the cosmic map, astronomers describe our home in two stages:
1 The Virgo Supercluster (Local Supercluster): Historically, astronomers classified our galaxy as part of the Virgo Supercluster—a massive collection of galaxy groups spanning about 110 million light-years.
2 The Laniakea Supercluster (Our Grand Home): In 2014, scientists remapped the local universe based on how galaxies actually move through space rather than just where they sit. They discovered that the Virgo Supercluster is just a small lobe or "sub-branch" of a vastly larger home called Laniakea (Hawaiian for "immense heaven").
Our Cosmic Address from Small to Large
To trace our exact position in the cosmos, here is the full hierarchy from earth out to the supercluster level:
1. Solar System: Earth and 7 other planets orbiting the Sun.
2. Orion-Cygnus Arm: The local spiral arm of our galaxy.
3. Milky Way Galaxy: Our home galaxy of ~100–400 billion stars.
4. Local Group: A neighborhood of over 80 galaxies dominated by the Milky Way and Andromeda.
5. Virgo Supercluster: Our immediate cluster region (spanning ~110 million light-years).
6. Laniakea Supercluster: Our overarching supercluster, home to ~100,000 galaxies flowing toward a central gravitational watershed (spanning 520 million light-years).
Monday, August 17, 2026
Teraborsuk - 'Diskotéka'
The band is from Slovakia.
From Wikipedia - Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. source
From Wikipedia - Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. source
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