tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post2519099619692695703..comments2024-03-28T02:54:46.537-04:00Comments on The TOF Spot: Twinkle, TwinkleTheOFloinnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14756711106266484327noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-73570775798736008542013-07-18T09:23:28.366-04:002013-07-18T09:23:28.366-04:00What I find most interesting about that graph is t...What I find most interesting about that graph is that the supernova rate correlates so strongly with the <i>total number</i> of marine genera, rather than the rate of new genera coming into being. My expectation would've been that the downturns in supernova rate wouldn't have correlated as tightly with the total number as the upturns, as many existing genera that originated during the upturn would adapt rather than go outright extinct. That seems to suggest that rather than being a direct cause, the supernova rate sets some sort of upper limit on marine biodiversity, with the more direct causes generating or maintaining biodiversity up to that level.The Deucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09664665914768916965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-17069298356323529152013-07-13T08:24:58.442-04:002013-07-13T08:24:58.442-04:00Interesting. The abstract doesn't mention the ...Interesting. The abstract doesn't mention the connection I first thought of: an increase of radiation correlating to a greater number of mutations, hence more species.<br /><br />Another blow to the over-specialization in modern science.Toddhttp://catholicsensibility.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-45216921649846267082013-07-09T10:18:05.543-04:002013-07-09T10:18:05.543-04:00Eek. A new argument for a) population control and...Eek. A new argument for a) population control and b) clear-cutting rain forests!TheOFloinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14756711106266484327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-92160706927274061022013-07-08T22:25:18.967-04:002013-07-08T22:25:18.967-04:00So, obviously, biodiversity drives supernovae. Lif...So, obviously, biodiversity drives supernovae. Life on Earth causes nearby stars to commit suicide. Am I reading that right?Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17109095347818446088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-60492255477918594492013-07-08T19:35:12.965-04:002013-07-08T19:35:12.965-04:00Well do I remember that gorgonopsid skull, photogr...Well do I remember that gorgonopsid skull, photographed in the Karoo where it had been lying since South Africa was south of the Antarctic Circle...<br /><br />Undergrad palaeontology at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, was fascinating. We were taught by James Kipling, a rare old, self-taught fossil hound with an Afrikaans accent you could cut with a knife (God rest him).<br /><br />Anyway, it's an interesting idea. I read some time ago that the end of the Permian was marked in Russia by thick deposits of decaying vegetation, with abundant fungal spores. Just how heavy did that Cosmic Ray bombardment have to be, to trigger cloud formation that would cut out the sun for up to a year?! It seems a little tenuous.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-38836620704093019212013-07-08T07:09:46.512-04:002013-07-08T07:09:46.512-04:00Looking at that graph, how can anyone possibly ref...Looking at that graph, how can anyone possibly refute evolution? I suppose the most stubborn of the stubborn could say the black and blue lines don't match up perfectly, but come on...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-447603865959500290.post-55885175826473580432013-07-06T23:04:27.357-04:002013-07-06T23:04:27.357-04:00Read this to my wife. Her comment: That is freakis...Read this to my wife. Her comment: That is freakishly, wonderfully great!<br /><br />Yep. Joseph Moorehttp://yardsaleofthemind.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com