Topic: History of Science

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Earth Day 2013: 10 quotes about planet Earth

Earth Day is April 22. There is no shortage of famous musings on what Carl Sagan once called our 'pale blue dot.' Here are 10 of our favorite things said about planet Earth.
Man and Mars through history

A look back over centuries at man's attempt to uncover information about the 'Red Planet.'Sources: NASA, American Museum of Natural History, and Scientific American
4 mysteries with great locations, finely detailed plots

From 18th-century Sweden to contemporary Japan, these thrillers take readers around the globe.
Not just sexy Kim Jong-un: 5 times the Onion has fooled foreign media

When the People's Daily, the Chinese Communist Party's official newspaper, took as straight news The Onion's declaration that stout North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un was 2012's "Sexiest Man Alive," it became the biggest foreign media outlet to be fooled by the satirical American newspaper. But it is not the first. Here are several other foreign news sites that took Onion fiction as newsworthy fact.
Beyond SpaceX: Five companies seeking to change space travel

During the past 10 years, Presidents George W. Bush and Obama have directed NASA to turn the job of transporting cargo and crew to the space station over to the private sector. As that process gathers pace, here is a list of the key players.

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Russian rocket set to launch Tuesday with new crew

A Russian rocket is set to launch toward the International Space Station Tuesday carrying two American astronauts and one veteran Russian cosmonaut.
Yuck!!! Galileo's fingers go on display in Florence museum

In case you've always wanted to see two of Galileo's fingers (removed from his corpse by admirers), you can at Florence, Italy's Museum of the History of Science.
First test launch for new private rocket

The new Falcon 9 rocket has cleared its final hurdle and is on track to blast off from Cape Canaveral.
Obama's space plans ride on Falcon 9 rocket launch

President Obama wants commercial carriers to ship cargo and crew to the space station. The Falcon 9 rocket, set for a Friday launch, could show how far private industry has progressed.
American astronauts have been spacewalking for 45 years

American astronauts have performed 239 spacewalks, each of which typically lasted six hours or more.
In Pictures: Venus
In Pictures: Awesome photos of Jupiter
Neil Armstrong blasts Obama's plan for NASA

Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, blasted Obama's decision to cancel NASA's manned mission to the moon.
Space shuttle Atlantis embarks on its final mission

After this flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis there are only two space shuttle missions left before the orbiters are retired.
In Pictures: Space photos of the day: Vintage NASA art
First, last men on moon to testify before Senate

Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon, and Eugene Cernan, the last, will testify before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Wednesday, to discuss the future of NASA.
In Pictures: Space Photos of the Day: In Orbit
In Pictures: Asteroids
Remembering Guenter Wendt, Apollo-era 'pad führer'

Guenter Wendt was NASA's original launch pad leader – or 'pad führer,' as he was affectionately known – for the agency's manned space program and the last man the Apollo astronauts saw before launching to the moon. He died Monday.
Florida 'Space Coast' sees economic hardship in Obama plan

Local residents and former astronauts say Obama's decision to end NASA’s moon program will harm the Space Coast economy and put the US behind Russia and China.
Former astronauts pan Obama's proposal for NASA space program

In an open letter, 21 former astronauts and six others say Obama is ‘throwing away’ America’s dominance in human spaceflight. The president has outlined major changes to the NASA space program.
Once a science and technology powerhouse, Russia prowess wanes

The once-vaunted Russia science powerhouse is following the same downhill path of Soviet-era athletic prowess. Lack of funds and plummeting social recognition mean that few young people pursue science careers.
NASA moon astronauts say don't cancel Constellation program

Two former NASA astronauts criticized the recent decision to cancel NASA's moon landing program known as the Constellation program.
In Pictures: WASPs: Female pilots in World War II
In Pictures: Victorian Photocollage at the Met
King Tut: The science behind the discovery

The ground-breaking DNA study not only proved that King Tut wasn't murdered. It marks a new chapter in the application of modern science to ancient history.
Photos of the Day: Photos of the Day 02/16
Why are Galapagos sea lions moving to Peru?

A colony of sea lions from the Galapagos Islands recently migrated 1,000 miles southeast to Peru, say a Lima-based ocean group. Was this migration – and others like it – caused by climate change?
In Pictures: This Week in Weather 02/01 - 02/05
In Pictures: NASA's Space Shuttle