And Now For the News...

[Shapley]

Astronomers to vote today, Pluto's fate hangs in the balance

Things look bleak for the smallest planet, apparently about to be demoted to also-ran status.

I guess they could take a lesson from baseball's records keepers: retain it in the books but give it an asterisk. It guess that's how us sentimental fools deal with progress, we don't deny change, but we still like to keep our old friends around, even if their place in history has been left in the wake of new knowledge and events.

Farewell, it seems, to our old friend Pluto!

V/R
Shapley

[Shapley]

And this just in: Pluto Demoted - Once a planet, now just a rock

<sniff> You'll forgive me if I'm a loss for words... <sniff>

I guess this means Colin Manchester's addition to Holst's work will similarly be discarded...

I think I'll request that piece for today, as a tribute to a one-time planet now lost amid the debris of space.

[jamiebk]

I suppose the school textbook publishers are ecstatic over the thought of now having to rewrite (and re-sell/replace) all those textbooks. Time to buy stock I think.

[barfle]

Here, Pluto! C'mon boy!

[DavidS]

Firesign Theatre once released an album called Everything You Know Is Wrong. Perhaps they were more accurate than they knew...

Sort of like:
"Everything you're li'ble,
to read in the Bible -
it ain't necessarily so"...

[DavidS]

Here, Pluto! C'mon boy!

Exactly: Pluto had a good innings, but why weren't Goofy and Butch given a chance?

[BigJon@Work]

I suppose the school textbook publishers are ecstatic over the thought of now having to rewrite (and re-sell/replace) all those textbooks. Time to buy stock I think.

Textbook makers concerned with outdated infomation.

[piqaboo]

Every name I learned for dinosaurs in school is now out of date with the exception of trex.
Why not add a planet or two?

What was a lot of fun was immunology class in teh early 80s, where the prof would tell us daily that everything we learned would be outof date in a year.

[Shapley]

Every name I learned for dinosaurs in school is now out of date with the exception of trex.

I think Dimetrodon and Iquanadon are still around. Iquanadon had his nose horn moved to his thumb, but I think he's still kicking. Although I think both have been demoted. They're still around but they aren't classed as 'dinosaurs', merely prehistoric reptiles. I'm not sure how that classification works.

V/R
Shapley

[GreatCarouser]

At least its not a 'politically correct' move. Had it been one then surely the target would have been Uranus.

[Catmando]

At least its not a 'politically correct' move. Had it been one then surely the target would have been Uranus.

Frankly, I'm quite surprised that they haven't changed the name of the planet Uranus, especially considering how ridiculous political correctness has gone over the last decade or more.

[Shapley]

Since Plutonium was named after the planet, will we have change it's stature as an element? I'm not sure the astronomers thought this thing through all the way.

BTW, Iquanadon is still a dinosaur, I checked. It's just Dimetrodon that got the boot.

V/R
Shapley

[Shapley]

Frankly, I'm quite surprised that they haven't changed the name of the planet Uranus, especially considering how ridiculous political correctness has gone over the last decade or more.

No, they've just changed the way they pronounce it. It used to be pronunced like Your-Anus, now it's pronouned like Urine-us.

Hmmmm, come to think of it, that doesn't sound much better...

V/R
Shapley

[navneeth]

I don't visit this thread often, but something told me that the current topic would be connected to the "Planetary Debate," and I was right!

Glad that astronomy and mathematics are getting attention in the papers these days, even though it's for all the silly reasons.

[Shapley]

Navneeth,

We try to keep this thread open for any news item that doesn't seem to fit anywhere else. We moved it to the 'Debate Team' forum in order to broaden the range of postings that would fit here.

I read about Grigori Perelman a while back, but I couldn't remember if I had posted a link to the article or not. Apparently not. I'm glad to see it get some news coverage, and I'm glad you posted a link to it here.

V/R
Shapley

[jamiebk]

I suppose the school textbook publishers are ecstatic over the thought of now having to rewrite (and re-sell/replace) all those textbooks. Time to buy stock I think.

Textbook makers concerned with outdated infomation.

Your are right...they don't care about content, but it gives them a good excuse to come out with "new and improved" versions so they can sell more books!

[Shapley]

Hitler's Cross restaurant to change name

A new name hasn't been chosen yet. Perhap's a few suggestions:

Stalin's Table

Idi Amin's Kitchen

Pol Pot's Pantry

[Marye]

Shap...

Pol Pot's Pantry..

[Shapley]

I rather liked that one myself.

I also considered The Genocide Gourmet, but I was trying to stick with proper names.

V/R
Shapley

[analog]

It's an eatery ? "Tasteless".