February 2006 - UVAA - mailman.xmission.com

Next Frontiers of Science Lecuture Wed. 8 March 2006 7:30 p.m.
by Richard Tenney 27 Feb '06

27 Feb '06

Frontiers of Science Lecture A Cool Early Earth This event will feature John W. Valley, professor of geology and geophysics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His presentation will focus on the climate and geology of the young planet Earth, and how life grasped a beginning on the planet. Date: Wednesday, March 8, 2006 Time: 7:30 p.m. Location: Aline Wilmot Skaggs Biology Auditorium, University of Utah campus 275 South 1430 East Admission: FREE and open to the public! Contact Info: (801) 581-6958 jdegooyer(a)science.utah.edu www.science.utah.edu Frontiers of Science lecture: A Cool Early Earth with Professor John W. Valley When the Earth was formed, some 4.5 billion years ago, it was an inferno of boiling metals, minerals and gases. Red-hot oceans of molten rock, massive meteorite strikes, and even brimstone in the atmosphere justify calling this time period the Hadean. These extreme conditions had to subside before continents could form, before the dense atmosphere could pool as liquid water, and before the first primitive life could survive and evolve. But when was the end of the hellish Hadean period? Evidence from rocks has placed the Hadean boundary at about 3.8 billion years ago. The oldest sedimentary (low temperature) rocks and hints of life are dated to 3.8 billion years, and the earliest known fossils are 3.5 billion years old. Recently, however, the discovery of crystals of the mineral zircon, as old as 4.4 billion years old, from isolated localities in northwestern Australia has provided evidence that the Hadean ended far sooner than previously thought Â perhaps by 400 million years! These zircons are exceptionally robust, and were separated from parent rocks by chemical weathering, dispersed across the Earth as wind-blown dust, and deposited in sand and gravel bars that are now solid rock. They carry chemical clues in the form of mineral inclusions, trace elements, and isotopes of uranium, lead, oxygen, and hafnium. The study of these tiny Âtime-capsulesÂ is driving new technology and each new result is avidly debated. While extreme opinions exist on both sides, a moderate suggestion is that small continental land masses existed by 4.4 byr, that oceans hospitable to life existed by 4.2 byr, and thus the Hadean ended before 4.2 byr. This concept of a cool early Earth represents a major departure from traditional ideas of how the Earth evolved. Valley earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in geophysics at the University of Michigan , Ann Arbor in 1977 and 1980, respectively. He spent three years at Rice University in Houston as an assistant professor before accepting a faculty position at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1983. He was promoted to a full professor in 1989, and is currently the Charles R. Van Hise Professor of Geology and Geophysics at UW-Madison. Professor Valley was elected a Fellow of the Geological Society of America in 1992, and a Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America in 1993. He is now the President of the Mineralogical Society of America. He has served as Associate Editor of the Journal of Geophysical Research, and Associate Editor of the American Journal of Science. In 2003, Valley received the N.L. Bowen Award, presented by the American Geophysical Union for his work on zircons from early Archean rocks of northwestern Australia. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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Fwd: Directions for Tues. evening lecture downtown SLCC
by Richard Tenney 27 Feb '06

27 Feb '06

In case any of you are interested in attending the SLAS meeting tomorrow night with Dr. Palen (UVAA "members" are always welcome!), here are some specific directions: --- Lowell Lyon <bolide(a)sisna.com> wrote: > From: "Lowell Lyon" <bolide(a)sisna.com> > To: "Richard Tenney" <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: Re: [slastronews] News, 27 FEB 2006 > Date: Mon, 27 Feb 2006 09:15:55 -0700 > > Rich: > > The downtown campus of Salt Lake Community College > is in an office building > on the east side of Main Street between 1st and 2nd > South. The exact > address is 115 S. Main. Take the elevators to the > second floor, turn to > your left and you can't miss it. Many of us park at > the ZCMI Center parking > garage just a half block north. Hope this helps. > Thanks and look forward > to seeing you there. > > Lowell > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Richard Tenney" <retenney(a)yahoo.com> > To: <patrick(a)slas.us> > Cc: "Lowell Lyon" <bolide(a)sisna.com> > Sent: Monday, February 27, 2006 8:34 AM > Subject: Re: [slastronews] News, 27 FEB 2006 > > > > Patick > > > > Where exactly in the SLCC downtown building is the > > meeting? Or is it a one-room schoolhouse? Sorry, > > I've never been there, have no idea what to > expect. > > > > Thanks, > > Rich > > > > --- Patrick Wiggins <patrick(a)slas.us> wrote: > > > >> SLAS Meeting Tomorrow > >> > >> SLAS's monthly public meeting will be held > tomorrow > >> (Tuesday) beginning at 7:30 p.m. Dr. Stacy > >> Palen from Weber State University's Ott > Planetarium > >> will be the featured speaker. Her talk is > >> entitled "Dark Energy, The Accelerating Universe > and > >> the Cosmological Constant". > >> > >> The meeting will be held at the Salt Lake > Community > >> College's downtown building. > >> > >> http://slas.us/location.htm > >> +++++ > > > > > > __________________________________________________ > > Do You Yahoo!? > > Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam > protection around > > http://mail.yahoo.com > > > > > > > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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SLAS general meeting Tuesday, February 28th
by Lowell Lyon 27 Feb '06

27 Feb '06

Hello Everyone: At the general meeting this Tuesday, a special guest speaker will be announced for Friday, April 14th at the University of Utah. The project manager for NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope will be presenting a free pubic lecture to be sponsored by the Salt Lake Astronomical Society and the University of Utah Physics Department. Also, SLAS has official word that the group campsite at Capitol Reef National Park is reserved for a weekend in August. The exact dates will also be announced at the general meeting on Tuesday. Kim Hyatt also will be announcing a star party at Great Basin National Park for Memorial Day weekend. Please arrive early to get good seats for our guest speaker, Dr. Stacy Palen. Thank you!! Lowell Lyon

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Important new site
by Richard Tenney 24 Feb '06

24 Feb '06

I've been meaning to post this for a while... The Jan. '06 issue of S&T made mention of this, and I've now added a link from the UVAA webpage for it, but in case you missed it, Anthony Arrigo (of Utah Skies fame) has opened up a new online business for selling dark-sky friendly lighting. In the past, anytime IDA advocates would sell a contractor or city official on the idea of installing good outdoor lighting, we were left in the lurch when asked where someone could actually purchase such lights. No more! Anyway, he's not paying me to write this, I just felt compelled to share in case you want to be the first on your block to have a "proper" porch light! :o) You know, practice what you preach! Anyway, check it out: http://www.starrynightlights.com/ -Rich __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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Reminder - Frontiers of Science Lecture Tonight, 7:30pm, U of U
by Richard Tenney 15 Feb '06

15 Feb '06

FRONTIERS OF SCIENCE LECTURE The RNA World: Forerunner of Our DNA World? Lecturer: Raymond F. Gesteland, distinguished professor of human genetics, University of Utah Date: Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2006 (TONIGHT!) Time: 7:30 p.m. Place: Aline Wilmot Skaggs Biology Building Auditorium, University of Utah FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC In our modern biological world, all the functions of life are carried out by cells. The core machinery is made of proteins that direct the cellsÂ complex chemistry and behavior by precisely triggering chemical reactions within the cell. Proteins are synthesized by particular components of the cellular machinery (made mostly of proteins themselves) that take their instructions from the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of genes. The DNA, in turn, is copied by other components that also are made of proteins. Thus, each kind of primary, large biological molecule Â protein and DNA Â depends directly on the other for its existence, and cells need both, working together, to grow, divide and function normally. This absolute interdependence between proteins and DNA in modern life gives rise to a profound chicken-and-egg problem: How could our DNA-and-protein world have evolved if neither DNA nor protein can exist without the other? The answer may be found in ribonucleic acid (RNA). RNA is similar to DNA, and like DNA it can carry genetic information. But it can also fold into complex shapes and act as a catalyst Â like proteins do Â to trigger chemical reactions. This makes it a candidate for solving the chicken-and-egg problem. Many lines of reasoning and evidence suggest that an RNA world early in EarthÂs 4.5-billion-year history could have supported the gradual evolution of both DNA and proteins. Although this theory may help solve the chicken and egg problem, it does not explain how the RNA world itself might have arisen. Gesteland earned his Ph.D. in biochemistry at Harvard University in 1965 and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Geneva, Switzerland. In 1967, John Cairns hired him to work at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York, where he became assistant director for research with James Watson, who received the Nobel Prize in 1962 for his discovery of the DNA double helix. Gesteland was attracted to Utah in 1978 as a full professor of biology. In 1984, he accepted a faculty appointment in human genetics and became a distinguished professor in 1996. Gesteland is currently the vice president for research at the University of Utah, as well as a distinguished professor of human genetics and the recipient of the Helen Lowe Bamberger Colby Presidential Endowed Chair in Human Genetics. He has nearly 200 publications and is a member of the RNA Society and the American Academy of Microbiology. University of Utah College of Science 1430 E. Presidents Circle, Room 220 Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-0140 (801) 581-6958 fax: (801) 585-3169 www.science.utah.edu __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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Fwd: Frontiers of Science Feb. 15
by Richard Tenney 03 Feb '06

03 Feb '06

Frontiers of Science Lecture The RNA World: Forerunner of Our DNA World? Raymond F. Gesteland / Wed, February 15, 2006 In our modern biological world, all the functions of life are carried out by cells. The core machinery is made of proteins that direct the cell's complex chemistry and behavior by acting as highly specific and precise catalysts. Proteins are synthesized by particular components of the cellular machinery (made mostly of proteins themselves) that take their instructions from DNA, while DNA, in turn, is copied by other components that are also made of proteins. Thus, each kind of primary biological macromolecule (protein and DNA) depends directly on the other for its existence, and cells need both, working together, to grow, divide and function normally. Date: Wednesday, February 15, 2006 Time: 7:30 p.m. Location: Aline Wilmot Skaggs Biology Auditorium, University of Utah campus. 275 South 1430 East (map) Admission: Free and open to the public! Contact Info: (801) 581-6958 jdegooyer(a)science.utah.edu www.science.utah.edu Frontiers of Science lecture: The RNA World: Forerunner of Our DNA World? This absolute codependence of proteins and DNA in modern life gives rise to a profound chicken-and-egg problem: How could the DNA-and-protein world have evolved, if neither side can exist without the other? In modern cells, RNA plays many key roles. RNA is similar to DNA, and like DNA it can carry genetic information. But it can also fold into complex shapes and act as a catalyst, like proteins. This makes it a candidate for solving the chicken-and-egg problem. Many lines of reasoning and evidence suggest that an RNA world could have supported the gradual evolution of both DNA and proteins. Although this theory may help solve the chicken and egg problem, it does not explain how the RNA world itself might have arisen. Frontiers of Science lecture: The RNA World: Forerunner of Our DNA World? __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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