Mountain Views News          Saturday, July 25, 2015

THE WORLD AROUND US Mountain Views-News Saturday, July 25, 2015 15 THE WORLD AROUND US Mountain Views-News Saturday, July 25, 2015 15 
INTERNET INVESTOR YURI MILNER COMMITS $100 MILLION TO SEARCH FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE 
The Breakthrough Prize Foundation and its founder,
internet investor Yuri Milner, have committed 
$100 million to a major escalation in the search forextraterrestrial intelligence, or SETI. This is aboutfive times the amount of money now spent worldwideon SETI. The foundation has contracted with UC 
Berkeley and other participating institutions fora project called Breakthrough Listen, the mostcomprehensive scientific SETI project yet.

The Breakthrough Prize Foundation has alreadycontracted with two of the world’s largest radiotelescopes—the 100-meter Robert C. Byrd GreenBank Telescope in West Virginia and the 64-meterParkes Telescope in New South Wales, Australia—todevote major telescope time to searching for signalsfrom other civilizations. 

The initiative was announced by Milner July 20 inLondon at The Royal Society, where he was joinedby physicist Stephen Hawking, Astronomer RoyalMartin Rees, SETI research pioneer Frank Drake,
UC Berkeley astronomy professor Geoff Marcyand postdoctoral fellow Andrew Siemion, andfoundation chairman Pete Worden. 

For the Breakthrough Listen program, UCBerkeley will build high-speed digital electronicsand high-bandwidth signal processing instrumentsto gather and analyze the radio and optical datacollected by the telescopes, and will train the nextgeneration of SETI scientists, said Dan Werthimer,
one of the leaders of the effort. 

OPTICAL LASER SEARCH. Could other 
civilizations be using optical laser beams instead ofradio for communicating? To answer that question,
a significant part of the Breakthrough PrizeInitiative will be the use of the Automated Planet 
Finder (APF) Telescope at Lick Observatory aboveSan Jose, California, to undertake a new deep andbroad search for optical laser transmissions fromnearby civilizations.

The APF is the newest telescope at Lick 
Observatory. It consists of a 2.4-meter automatedtelescope and enclosure, and the high-resolutionLevy spectrograph. It operates robotically on everyclear night of the year; its main emphasis to date hasbeen on discovering and characterizing extrasolarplanets.

With this new Breakthrough Prize Initiative,
the APF telescope and its Levy spectrometer willsearch 1,000 nearby stars and 100 nearby galaxiesfor visible-light laser emission from technologicalsources. Lasers may be used by other civilizationsfor communication between their home planet andsatellites, interplanetary spacecraft, or colonies onother worlds. 


The overall program will include a survey of thewhich might harbor life,” said Geoff Marcy, Professor1,000,000 closest stars to Earth. It will scan the of Astronomy and Astrophysics at UC Berkeley 
center of our galaxy and the galactic plane. Beyondthe Milky Way galaxy, telescopes will listen forYou can contact Bob Eklund at: b.eklund@ 
messages from the 100 closest galaxies.MtnViewsNews.com. 

“We learned from the NASA Kepler mission thatour Milky Way Galaxy contains tens of billions ofEarth-size planets at lukewarm temperatures, any of 

Such laser emissions will be distinguished from theemission from astronomical objects by the extremesingle-wavelength nature of laser emission, and bythe unresolved point source (a dot in the sky) fromwhich the emission originates. It may even be thatthe Milky Way contains a galactic internet of laseremission. If so, the APF may be able to eavesdrop ontheir transmissions. 


THE TALE OF ROADKILL BILL 

By Christopher Nyergessleeping in the open, occasionally getting washed

[Nyerges is the author away in the heavy rains when there was literally

of “How to Survive no where to go. And a lot of people saw him and

Anywhere,” “Guide to interacted with him over the years, because over

Wild Foods and Useful a hundred people showed up for a makeshiftPlants,” and other books. He can be reached at memorial that was held for him in the park.
www.Schoolof Self-Reliance.com.]I remember the last time I talked with him. I 

I knew a homeless guy who called himselfwas there with only two friends, and Roadkill sat atRoadkill Bill. He was also known as Wild Bill, but our table. We were sitting very close to his “home,”
he told me to just call him Roadkill. I never knewthough I did not know that at the time. He sharedhis real name until a few decades late, after he died. a few books that he was reading, and he began to

Along the way, I picked up fragmentary detailstell me about his major thesis, and belief. Thereabout his past. He was from the San Gabriel Valley,were police who helped him out, so he didn’t havewhere he attended local school. He was in the Army,a fear, or hatred, of police. But he said that when thefrom which he was discharged for some reason. Healiens began to land on earth in the last few decades,
had a family with whom he could have lived, but hethey began by taking over the bodies of police andchose not to. local politicians, and national politicians, and world

In the mid-1980s, I would encounter him alongpoliticians. He didn’t name names, but he said somethe trail in the local mountains. He always hadpriests were taken over too.
good gear and good clothes, and the word was thatBy “taken over,” he meant that the person wehe lived in that canyon, camping here and there asknew who occupied a particular body was no longerhe chose. When we happened to converse, if youin charge of that body, and that it was actually thecould call it a conversation, I was never sure what alien in charge, pretending to be that former person.
we were talking about. His responses were alwaysIt was very much like the theme of the movie whichvery unresponsive, about other topics, and his voicewas made in Sierra Madre, the original “Invasion ofwould grow agitated and aggressive. When thatthe Body Snatchers.” However, Roadkill said he’doccurred, I would quickly walk away from him innever even heard of that movie, but that he would 
another direction. try to see it.

When he was in an area, there were specificEven though Roadkill’s conversation was alwayscarvings that would appear on the trees. One of thedisjointed, with howling mixed in with normalrangers told me that the carvings were Roadkill’s,conversation, he was clear on this point that thethat he was drawing the faces of the aliens who werepeople we think we know are not those peopleinvading earth, which helped to seal his reputationanymore. The alien beings who intend to “takeas a “kook.” over” the world had taken over these key people. We

Occasionally, after he’d be in an area, someonelaughed, of course. But Roadkill was very seriouswould call the police or sheriff deputies to findabout it. When I asked him what we should do 
Roadkill, because “a violent man” had been about it, he would shrug, and say “Don’t get takenreported. To the best of my knowledge, he wasover.” 
never violent with anyone, though his rantings wereI have no way of knowing if this was just his wildaggressive and animated.fantasy, or some unique insight of the delirious

He’s usually be arrested as a 51-50, and releasedmind which sees the world in a way that “ordinary”
in a few days.people do not. In the few years since Roadkill died,

Years went by and I never saw or heard from him,I have periodically thought about his worldview,
and then I would occasionally notice him over inand wondered why leaders on all levels make 
one of the parks in the Arroyo Seco. He lived therethe decisions they do, often so contradictory tofor the last 10 years or so of his life.the common good. Why, for example, can our

This time, he no longer had good gear and goodSacramento leaders think it is OK to force parentsclothes. He clearly looked homeless, disheveled, andto vaccinate all children, or be subject to arrestwas widely regarded as “crazy.”or expulsion from schools? Why is it OK for

He would see me occasionally when I was atWashington politicians to tell us that we do notthe park teaching or class. We would exchangehave the right to know if our food is made froma few friendly words, and he would keep a goodGMOs, or even the very origin of the foods? Whodistance from the class. He would stand there at are they protecting? Whose side is Hillary Clintonabout 40 feet away and begin to howl, and laughactually on? Who side is President Obama actuallywildly. One woman said to me, “Can you get ridon? 
of him?” I told her just to carry on with our classI wonder if all the idiosyncrasies of our “leaders”
work, and to ignore him, that he was harmless.and politicians are the result of the love of moneyWhich he was. and power, and the desire to keep it, or whether

He must have a hard life living by begging, Roadkill was actually right. 


OUT TO PASTOR 

A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder 

THEN THE BIRTHDAY CARD ARRIVED 


When I was young, I alwaysTherefore, the birthday presents are gone fromlooked forward to my birthday. I could not waitmy list of “Gotta Have.”
until it came around and usually it was in theMy thought is, if I can ignore my birthday,
summer. I distinctly remember graduating fromthen it does not exist. After all, I have had 
the age of nine to the double-digit number of 10,enough birthdays, thank you.
I thought I had arrived.What I like to point out to people who argue

When I hit the age of 16 and got my driver’swith me on the subject is the fact that a birthdaylicense and started driving around, of course myis just a number. Some people are all caughtdriving around was contingent upon my fatherup with numbers; I only like numbers in myallowing me to borrow his car. When I turnedcheckbook. 
18, however, I bought my own car.I do not want to know or care about how old 

At 20, I thought I arrived and had becomeI really am. After all, you are only as old as youa full-fledged adult. Becoming an adult wasfeel and I must admit there have been times I felt 
important until I realized how expensive it was192. I guess everybody has been in that category.
to be an adult. Had I known that, I would have Age does not make much difference, exceptreverted to my sixth birthday.when I can use it to my advantage. Like when I

Now that I am well beyond that magical age ofgo to McDonald’s and get a senior coffee. Then I20, I am not so excited about birthdays. In fact,bank on my age. If my age can save me a nickel, II would like to forget my birthday completelywill use it. Beside that, I have little time for how 
and how old I really am. This year I was makingold I am. 
some good progress in this area.I am hoping good old Uncle Sam has also

My accomplice was the Gracious Mistress offorgotten my age. After all, when people reach athe Parsonage whose birthday is two days aftercertain age, and I am trying to forget that age, hemine. If we forget my birthday, she is countingwants them to retire. Bless my heart; retirementon me forgetting her birthday. It all works outis not in my plan. So, if I can keep my uncle frompretty well, except I’m not allowed to forget ourknowing how old I am he cannot talk me intoanniversary.some kind of early retirement. I plan to work

Everything was going quite well and if anybody inmyself to death.
any way suggested something about my birthday,I was doing quite well hiding my upcomingI always directed them away from the subject.birthday when an incident happened. The

For example, one friend approached me andmailman came and my wife went out to to picksaid, “Don’t you have a birthday this month?”up the mail. When she came back, she handed

Without missing a beat, I said, “What do youme a package and said, “Here’s a package fromthink of Donald Trump running for president?”your publisher.”

It had the intended effect. For the next half I was so excited, as you can imagine. That is,
hour, love him or hate him, my friend wentuntil I opened the package. It was a birthdayon and on about Donald Trump running forcard wishing me a happy birthday along with apresident. I discovered that if you want tobirthday present. Thanks, I thought to myself,
diverge attention away from one subject all youfor reminding me I am getting old. Now that catneed to do is introduce something political. Andis out of the bag and I am not sure what to do 
it worked for me. I guess politics does have itsnext. 
place in our society.Maybe I will celebrate my birthday with an

By the time he finished talking politics, heApple fritter representing each year of my age.
forgot his initial question. I had not and wasThis year I might be 100.
glad he had.I like what David said. “Now also when I 

I have now come to appreciate politics moream old and greyheaded, O God, forsake methan ever. Normally, I have little time or patiencenot; until I have showed thy strength unto thisfor politics or politicians, unless they can get megeneration, and thy power to every one that is toout of a jam. Most of the time these politicianscome” (Psalms 71:18).
are getting me into a jam but here is one time INo matter how old I get, God will always beout of a jam by using politics.faithful to His Word. 

The thing I have come to and I get no argumentRev. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Familyfrom my “Better Half,” if you ignore or by chanceof God Fellowship, PO Box 831313, Ocala, FLforget your birthday in any year that birthday34483. He lives with his wife, Martha, in Silver 
does not count. Springs Shores. Call him at 1-866-552-2543 or 

Believe me; I am not looking for any birthdaye-mail jamessnyder2@att.net or website www. 
presents. I have just about everything I want andjamessnyderministries.com. 
usually what people get me for my birthday issomething I cannot use or do not even want. 

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