Mountain Views News          Saturday, February 19, 2011

14

THE WORLD AROUND YOU

 Mountain Views News Saturday, February 19, 2011


NASA Releases Images of Man-Made Crater on Comet

 NASA’s Stardust spacecraft returned new images 
of a comet showing a scar resulting from the 2005 
Deep Impact mission. The images also showed the 
comet has a fragile and weak nucleus.

 The spacecraft made its closest approach to Comet 
Tempel 1 on Monday, Feb. 14, at 8:40 p.m. PST at 
a distance of approximately 111 miles. Stardust 
took 72 high-resolution images of the comet. It also 
accumulated 468 kilobytes of data about the dust 
in its coma, the cloud that is a comet’s atmosphere. 
The craft is on its second mission of exploration 
called Stardust-NExT, having completed its prime 
mission collecting cometary particles and returning 
them to Earth in 2006.

 The Stardust-NExT mission met its goals which 
included observing surface features that changed in 
areas previously seen during the 2005 Deep Impact 
mission; imaging new terrain; and viewing the 
crater generated when the 2005 mission propelled 
an impactor at the comet.

 “This mission is 100 percent successful,” said 
Joe Veverka, Stardust-NExT principal investigator 
of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. “We saw a lot 
of new things that we didn’t expect, and we’ll be 
working hard to figure out what Tempel 1 is trying 
to tell us.”

 Several of the images provide tantalizing clues 
to the result of the Deep Impact mission’s collision 
with Tempel 1.

 “We see a crater with a small mound in the center, and it appears 
that some of the ejecta went up and came right back down,” said 
Pete Schultz of Brown University, Providence, R.I. “This tells us 
this cometary nucleus is fragile and weak based on how subdued 
the crater is we see today.” Engineering telemetry downlinked 
after closest approach indicates the spacecraft flew through waves 
of disintegrating cometary particles including a dozen impacts that 
penetrated more than one layer of its protective shielding.

 “The data indicate Stardust went through something similar 
to a B-17 bomber flying through flak in World War II,” said Don 
Brownlee, Stardust-NExT co-investigator from the University of 
Washington in Seattle. “Instead of having a little stream of uniform 
particles coming out, they apparently came out in chunks and 
crumbled.”

 While the Valentine’s Day night encounter of Tempel 1 is 
complete, the spacecraft will continue to look at its latest cometary 
obsession from afar.

 “This spacecraft has logged over 3.5 billion miles since launch, and 
while its last close encounter is complete, its mission of discovery 
is not,” said Tim Larson, Stardust-NExT project manager at JPL. 
“We’ll continue imaging the comet as long as the science team can 
gain useful information, and then Stardust will get its well-deserved 
rest.”

 Stardust-NExT is a low-cost mission that is expanding the 
investigation of Comet Tempel 1 initiated by the Deep Impact 
spacecraft. The mission is managed by JPL for NASA’s Science 
Mission Directorate in Washington. Lockheed Martin Space 
Systems in Denver built the spacecraft and manages day-to-day 
mission operations.

 You can contact Bob Eklund at: b.eklund@MtnViewsNews.com.


Tempel 1 Impact Site (unannotated) This pair of images shows the before-and-after 
comparison of the part of comet Tempel 1 that was hit by the impactor from NASA’s Deep 
Impact spacecraft. The left-hand image is a composite made from images obtained by 
Deep Impact in July 2005. The right-hand image shows the same region as viewed by 
NASA’s Stardust spacecraft six years later, on Feb. 14, 2011 Photo courtesy NASA


Ask jai……


Ask jai is a weekly column that will strive to honestly answer your job search questions relating 
to job searching techniques, networking skills, resume writing and interviewing. The employment 
situation is getting better, however, it is still a challenge finding were the jobs are located and how to 
get pass the “gate-keepers”. As an Executive Recruiter I was privy to working directly with Corporate 
Recruiters and understanding their process in selecting which candidates to interview and hire. I will 
candidly answer your questions, possibly bluntly answering you questions, but I will be totally honest. 
My objective is to help you achieve your employment goal.

STILL THE CHAMP

Q: I recently became unemployed and would like to take a breath and time-off before making a move 
back into employment. I would like to know your opinion on simply devoting my time to volunteering, 
especially in this economy. Elanore

I think it is great if you can take time to volunteer. I truly believe everyone should do it….. if they can 
afford it. Only you can make the determination. Becoming unemployed can be a little unsettling, however, 
it is an excellent time to take inventory and evaluate your career and life goals. This might be the right time 
to consider pursuing an industry, career or experience you have always wished you could. Well, here is 
your wish or the opportunity. Now is the time to pursue your dream job, develop a business, or volunteer. 
Volunteer only if you really have the money and time to do so. Volunteering can be very fulfilling in giving 
back or paying forward as they say. Your previous work experience and skills can be very valuable to any 
non-profit organization and possibly to a profit driven business. 

The process for volunteering is very similar to applying for employment with any organization. The 
justification for this is organizations, non-profits, or businesses want to be sure you are qualified and have 
the skills that will bring value to their organization. You will need a resume and a cover letter. The resume 
should include an objective line. That line might read: Director of Marketing seeking a Volunteer Position. 
The cover letter will be your essential document to address your passion and commitment regarding their 
social or business objectives. Include a paragraph that describes your accomplishments and how your skills 
and experience could assist their organization. You will need to address why or how you can volunteer 
your time. Be prepared that the screening process for volunteers can be very rigorous. These organizations 
have to be sure they will be working with very reputable and trustworthy volunteers. I have known some 
non-profits that have declined applicants for volunteer work. Looking for the right volunteer position can 
be just as time-consuming as looking for employment. As I always say do your homework, research the 
organizations or businesses before moving forward. Attend networking and non-profit events to build 
your prospective contact list. Then start e-mailing, calling or even cold-calling. Send your resume out to 
numerous organizations. Visit volunteering websites in your immediate area for information. Here are a few 
for you to start with: www.volunteermatch.org, www.volunterringinamerica.org, www.volunteerlosangeles.
com . Do not volunteer too long. The more time you stay unemployed the harder it will be for you to find 
employment. However, your volunteer experience could eventually result in employment.

 Everything you ever wanted to know about how to get a job…but did not know who to ask. Ask jai. Send 
your questions to: jai@resumeandcareerservices.com or visit the website at www.resumeandcareerservices.
com 

In computer news the big story this week appears to be the domination of 
a special tournament of Jeopardy that pitted 2 of the games all-time greats, 
Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, against a supercomputer running an Artificial 
Intelligence program called “Watson”. This program attempts to solve one 
of the most complex problems in computer programming and that is how 
does one successfully program a machine to respond to and correctly answer 
questions posed to it in natural language. Although the average computer 
can do calculations many times faster than the average human, turning those 
calculations into the equivalent of human thought has been an objective of 
computer scientists for years and has often thought to be unattainable. The IBM 
Watson project appears to have broken that barrier. This week’s special round 
of Jeopardy saw an impressive display of Artificial Intelligence programming 
as Watson simply dominated all rounds of play during the tourney. According 
to statistics compiled for the competition ,Watson answered more than 
95% of the questions it buzzed in on first correctly. On the first day of the 
competition although Watson made a strong showing ,it did have problems 
with deciphering some of the clues posed to it and crashed many times. It 
reportedly took over four hours to complete that days’ taping. Watson also 
missed a few questions that made it apparent to even non-computer experts 
that the supercomputer sometimes struggled . At one point in the match Ken 
Jennings was tied with Watson. But by the next day those problems had been 
cleared up and Watson never looked back. 

The Watson program had a few strengths that led it victory. As a computer 
Watson doesn’t forget anything it has ever learned and it also doesn’t get 
nervous. It can’t be bluffed because it’s not cueing in on emotional cues from 
other players in the game. And because Watson is a high-powered calculation 
machine, it’s pretty good at ….calculations. Watson is a statistical dynamo 
without human peer and uses its powers to wade through mountains of data 
in nanoseconds to arrive at the best statistical response to any query posed 
to it. And judging by the results of the match Watson is pretty darned good 
at coming up with the best statistically-advantageous answer. But there was 
one type of question where Watson performed poorly on both days of the 
competition but both human challengers did better than Watson. That type 
of question - the question where there was no clue - or as it’s better know “the 
wild guess”. 

So don’t worry if the events of the last few days may make it appear that the 
arrival of …”our new computer overlords” is nigh. We are still the champs of 
the wild guess and it doesn’t appear that anyone or anything will be taking our 
title anytime soon.


Happy Tails

by Chris Leclerc

Chris and Canyon Canine will be back next week. In the 
meantime, here’s a health tip for your best friend courtesy of 
Chris Leclerc and www.canyoncanine.com


ADDING CHERRIES TO YOUR DOG’S DIET CAN HELP HIPS

 

(NAPSI)—Good news for dogs and their people. Long walks may soon be 
more comfortable for both-thanks to a surprising fruit.

Research at Michigan State University’s Bioactive Natural Products and Phytoceuticals 
Laboratory found tart cherries are not only loaded with antioxidants, 
but they may help avoid discomfort by supporting the body’s normal 
inflammatory response associated with daily exercise and activity. 

These findings led to the development of new, all-natural, functional soft 
chews and baked treats for the active canine.

Overby Farm worked closely with university experts and practicing veterinarians 
to create Hip Bones-The Original Cherry Dog Treat, Hip Bones, Jr., 
and two soft chewable products: Hip Flex and Hip Flex Feline. They feature whole tart cherries, tart cherry 
concentrate, ground flaxseed, ginger, cinnamon, glucosamine and calcium in all-natural recipes supporting 
healthy hips, bones and joints. 

For more information and to request a free sample or to order products, visit www.overbyfarm.com or call 
888-628-8783. 

BE MINE OR ELSE!

 Did you have a nice 
Valentine’s Day? I hope 
so. I used to think that 
Valentine’s Day was a 
polarizing topic starkly 
dividing the loved from 
the lonely. It sure felt 
that way in junior high! 
While you’d hope everyone outgrew 
Valentine’s angst with puberty, sadly that’s 
not the case. Valentine’s movies use humor 
to remind us that some otherwise well-
adjusted adults harbor personal vendettas 
against the holiday. While we wish such 
melodrama were limited to the silver 
screen, I’m sure we all can name a couple 
friends who get very bitter around this time 
of year due to the lack of a significant other. 
Typically they either adopt a smug attitude 
that “love is overrated,” or they straight out 
decry their situation with all the salty tears 
of a Sarah Bernhardt tragedy “Here it is – 
another year alone!”

 In elementary school Valentine’s Day was 
still pretty fun. We decorated brown lunch 
sacks with doilies, sequins, and glitter and 
passed out little folded cards into other 
kids’ blinged bags. These valentines were 
often of superheroes or Disney princesses 
with equally cheesy messages. “Be my 
Wonder Woman & I’ll be your Super Man!” 
“To my beautiful friend, have a royal 
Valentine’s Day!” They came in boxes of 
25 or so, and there was usually an oversized 
card intended for the teacher. But kids 
sometimes used it to single out their BFFs 
or their crush. Once distribution was done, 
we’d go through our bags, set aside the 
cards from our friends, and then strip the 
rest of their sole redeeming value – candy. 
We’d always pick through the Sweethearts, 
looking for suggestive phrases (or what 
passed as suggestive to second graders in 
the 90’s). Sweethearts were never actually 
eaten. (Although I read they’ve changed 
the recipe to make them “softer.” But don’t 
worry if you’re loyal to the hard, chalky 
ones. Brach’s still makes those.) Then the 
boldest kids would ask their friends to pass 
this much-handled candy to his or her 
beloved. Giggles erupted as the recipient 
read “Let’s Kiss.” Yeah, it didn’t take much 
to make us blush back then. 

 There are some groups of happy Valentine 
adults out there, and I hope you are one 
of them. There’s usually at least one 
couple that always goes whole hog with 
roses, chocolate, and all the other familiar 
accoutrements. This is the woman who 
comes to work swooning about the floral 
arch her husband sent, their extravagant 
dinner at that exclusive new restaurant, 
and the Tiffany tennis bracelet whose 
weight seems to have already lengthened 
her arm. We are happy for her, but can’t 
deny that the narrative grates on you after 
the fourth telling.

 Then there are folks who view Valentine’s 
Day as a huge gimmick for the restaurant 
and greeting card industries (my husband 
and I belong to this group). Sure, we still 
buy cards and support the restaurants (take 
out, because service on Valentine’s Day is 
notoriously bad, and because it beats our 
own cooking). We’re not the easiest people 
to shop for, so we’re going to buy him a case 
for his phone and a purse for me that will fit 
my new “pocket” sized Bible. In some ways 
my husband lucked out marrying me (I 
wouldn’t know a Louis Vuitton if it wore a 
name tag). Sure, we might not be the most 
romantic, but at least we’re comfortable, 
and at the end of the day, isn’t that really all 
anyone wants on Valentine’s Day?