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The MECA story, A place for speculation
Stu
post Jul 31 2008, 10:22 PM
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Seriously, hasn't anyone else got any thoughts (dismissive or otherwise) on the "Have you briefed the President's Science Advisor?" (re MECA) question by C Covault? I am NOT going all woo-woo here, don't worry, I just thought it was an odd thing to ask... To my ears it sounded like C C was suggesting, subtly, to the panel that he had heard "something" about the MECA analysis and wanted them to comment. The question was brushed aside - rather uncomfortably I thought - and the discussion quickly moved on, but it seemed like a bit of a Moment to me. He actually began, if I remember correctly, by asking where the "MECA guys" were, asking if they had "been hidden under the table"... cue uncomfortable laughs from the panel...

Again, I have to stress, in case anyone thinks I'm 'suggesting' anything, I'm not getting all Muldur here, I was just struck by how out of the blue the question was, and wondered if anyone has any thoughts on it...


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nprev
post Aug 2 2008, 12:54 PM
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Stu, when I used the term UMSF before I wasn't talking about our forum, and your observations were right on; the folks here are absolute bloodhounds with PhDs when it comes to separating fact from fancy in all respects during times like this! I was actually referring to the planetary science community itself, which as we all know struggles for support & funding at all times.

Thus far at least, the wider media doesn't seem to have picked up on the story-to-be, which IMHO is good news. Speculation's run wild even within our little community, and I shudder to think of what might happen if the speculation goes wideband. As an example, here's a headline from the New Jersey Trentonian shortly after the ALH84001 announcement, verbatim:

"Mars Poop No Cause For Alarm"

(Nope; that's not a joke. Wish it was. sad.gif )


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Stu
post Aug 2 2008, 01:32 PM
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QUOTE
Stu, when I used the term UMSF before I wasn't talking about our forum... I was actually referring to the planetary science community itself, which as we all know struggles for support & funding at all times.


Ah, gotcha! Makes sense now.

QUOTE
Thus far at least, the wider media doesn't seem to have picked up on the story-to-be...and I shudder to think of what might happen if the speculation goes wideband.


Shudder away. The story is on NASAWATCH, and that usually feeds other big sites, so start your engines... ohmy.gif

No, seriously, c'mon guys, everyone, lighten up smile.gif This isn't necessarily a bad thing, you know? I mean, so far everyone has done everything right: NASA hasn't announced anything too early, or dumbed anything down; people here have been analytical and restrained; CNN and the BBC aren't scrolling bright red, flashing "Breaking News! Life Found On Mars!!!" tickers and we're talking seriously here about a scenario where very, very important results come back from a Mars mission, and even if those results don't come back from this mission then one day - hopefully - we'll be here discussing a confirmed detection of Something Interesting.

Try to think of this as a test of the system, and the test worked. No forum frenzy, no premature announcements on White House lawns, no sensationalist tabloid coverage, and everyone here is now a lot more savvy with MECA and Phoenix hard science.


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Paul Fjeld
post Aug 2 2008, 06:06 PM
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QUOTE (Stu @ Aug 2 2008, 08:32 AM) *
Shudder away. The story is on NASAWATCH, and that usually feeds other big sites, so start your engines... ohmy.gif

Not only is the story there but Doug got Cowinged! This "smug elitist" (hahaha) "BBS" got criticized with Cowings' renowned side-dish of bile. Badge of Honour, Doug!
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Posts in this topic
- Stu   The MECA story   Jul 31 2008, 10:22 PM
- - elakdawalla   I've heard some very vague rumor to the effect...   Jul 31 2008, 10:31 PM
- - dmg   A) My take on Craig Covault's question about M...   Jul 31 2008, 10:34 PM
- - ElkGroveDan   QUOTE (Stu @ Jul 31 2008, 02:22 PM) He ac...   Jul 31 2008, 10:36 PM
|- - Stu   QUOTE (ElkGroveDan @ Jul 31 2008, 11:36 P...   Jul 31 2008, 10:40 PM
|- - mars loon   QUOTE (ElkGroveDan @ Jul 31 2008, 10:36 P...   Aug 1 2008, 12:15 AM
- - Stu   Thanks Emily, that's very interesting. I can...   Jul 31 2008, 10:39 PM
- - Sunspot   Presidential advisor's eh??? All very mysterio...   Jul 31 2008, 11:16 PM
- - jmjawors   Alright... stupid question time. What difficultie...   Jul 31 2008, 11:31 PM
- - belleraphon1   Agree the MECA team has not had serious problems. ...   Aug 1 2008, 01:37 AM
|- - 1101001   I put a notice of this in the MECA topic, but Cova...   Aug 1 2008, 08:34 PM
- - Stu   Thanks 01 (is it ok if I call you "01"? ...   Aug 1 2008, 09:26 PM
- - TheChemist   Hmm, the plot thickens... Did they found indicati...   Aug 1 2008, 09:33 PM
- - nprev   Can I call you by your decimal equivalent, "1...   Aug 1 2008, 09:35 PM
|- - ilbasso   QUOTE (nprev @ Aug 1 2008, 05:35 PM) Can ...   Aug 2 2008, 02:19 AM
|- - Aussie   QUOTE (ilbasso @ Aug 2 2008, 03:19 AM) Hi...   Aug 2 2008, 02:43 AM
|- - Paul Fjeld   Covault is a real professional who has earned some...   Aug 2 2008, 03:32 AM
|- - djellison   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 2 2008, 04:32 AM)...   Aug 2 2008, 08:34 AM
- - nprev   Fred, to answer your question...no, it's not c...   Aug 1 2008, 09:57 PM
- - djellison   Lots of speculative posts in various threads. A ...   Aug 1 2008, 10:42 PM
- - Oersted   WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!! Oops,...   Aug 1 2008, 11:23 PM
- - nprev   Well, as I just mentioned to a noted forum member,...   Aug 1 2008, 11:34 PM
- - PDP8E   my best guess ** methane ** the natural output...   Aug 1 2008, 11:37 PM
- - jmknapp   Here's an MP3 clip of Craig Covault's ques...   Aug 1 2008, 11:44 PM
|- - 1101001   QUOTE (jmknapp @ Aug 1 2008, 04:44 PM) Do...   Aug 2 2008, 12:43 AM
- - nprev   I would be extremely cautious about reading more i...   Aug 2 2008, 01:00 AM
|- - 1101001   QUOTE (nprev @ Aug 1 2008, 06:00 PM) Bott...   Aug 2 2008, 01:17 AM
|- - nprev   QUOTE (1101001 @ Aug 1 2008, 06:17 PM) Ma...   Aug 2 2008, 01:28 AM
|- - Stu   QUOTE (nprev @ Aug 2 2008, 02:28 AM) This...   Aug 2 2008, 05:57 AM
- - vjkane   Check out http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewnews.ht...   Aug 2 2008, 02:35 AM
- - nprev   Mmm...seems like a pretty good analysis from here,...   Aug 2 2008, 03:46 AM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (nprev @ Aug 1 2008, 11:46 PM) Didn...   Aug 2 2008, 04:14 AM
|- - nprev   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 1 2008, 09:14 PM)...   Aug 2 2008, 04:26 AM
- - Pavel   I guess it's a nitrogen compound. Ammonia per...   Aug 2 2008, 03:56 AM
|- - nprev   That sure sounds like a good guess, Pavel. AFAIK, ...   Aug 2 2008, 04:11 AM
|- - Reed   QUOTE (Pavel @ Aug 1 2008, 08:56 PM) I gu...   Aug 2 2008, 07:02 AM
- - bcory   maybe they found an amino acid.. Or just an amine...   Aug 2 2008, 04:20 AM
|- - Paul Fjeld   One other point re: the press conference. Personal...   Aug 2 2008, 04:41 AM
|- - djellison   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 2 2008, 05:41 AM)...   Aug 2 2008, 08:26 AM
||- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (djellison @ Aug 2 2008, 03:26 AM) ...   Aug 2 2008, 03:02 PM
||- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (djellison @ Aug 2 2008, 03:26 AM) ...   Aug 2 2008, 03:16 PM
||- - fredk   QUOTE (djellison @ Aug 2 2008, 09:26 AM) ...   Aug 2 2008, 03:53 PM
|- - jmknapp   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 1 2008, 11:41 PM)...   Aug 2 2008, 11:19 AM
- - jmjawors   Nitrogen was my thought as well. They specificall...   Aug 2 2008, 04:28 AM
- - nprev   Hmm. Your comment kicked my brain, Jim. How do N...   Aug 2 2008, 04:47 AM
- - Stu   I may be in a minority here (no change there then...   Aug 2 2008, 09:29 AM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (Stu @ Aug 2 2008, 04:29 AM) And ag...   Aug 2 2008, 03:21 PM
- - nprev   Stu, when I used the term UMSF before I wasn't...   Aug 2 2008, 12:54 PM
|- - Stu   QUOTE Stu, when I used the term UMSF before I wasn...   Aug 2 2008, 01:32 PM
|- - mcaplinger   QUOTE (Stu @ Aug 2 2008, 06:32 AM) The st...   Aug 2 2008, 06:05 PM
||- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (mcaplinger @ Aug 2 2008, 01:05 PM)...   Aug 2 2008, 06:07 PM
||- - djellison   QUOTE (mcaplinger @ Aug 2 2008, 07:05 PM)...   Aug 2 2008, 07:00 PM
||- - dvandorn   QUOTE (djellison @ Aug 2 2008, 02:00 PM) ...   Aug 2 2008, 09:21 PM
||- - PFK   One minute it was all about ice delivery to ovens,...   Aug 2 2008, 09:26 PM
||- - Stu   QUOTE (PFK @ Aug 2 2008, 10:26 PM) One mi...   Aug 2 2008, 09:34 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (Stu @ Aug 2 2008, 08:32 AM) Shudde...   Aug 2 2008, 06:06 PM
- - imipak   Talk about admin headaches - it can't be much ...   Aug 2 2008, 04:18 PM
- - nprev   Good post, Fred. No, I don't blame Covault (th...   Aug 2 2008, 04:41 PM
- - Stu   Coverage of this story on Universe Today...   Aug 2 2008, 05:21 PM
- - nprev   Er....let's not add to the admin's headach...   Aug 2 2008, 06:31 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (nprev @ Aug 2 2008, 02:31 PM) Star...   Aug 2 2008, 07:12 PM
- - Stu   That's a great shame, because I find NASAWATCH...   Aug 2 2008, 06:47 PM
- - stevesliva   I was enjoying both the speculation and the meta c...   Aug 2 2008, 07:15 PM
- - centsworth_II   Scientists face increasing pressure from intereste...   Aug 2 2008, 08:08 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (centsworth_II @ Aug 2 2008, 04:08 ...   Aug 2 2008, 09:07 PM
|- - centsworth_II   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 2 2008, 05:07 PM)...   Aug 2 2008, 09:52 PM
- - djellison   One thing's for sure - it's going to be an...   Aug 2 2008, 08:25 PM
- - nprev   ...good one, PFK! In a way, I'm honored.....   Aug 2 2008, 09:34 PM
- - gpurcell   Just saw a post on this on the general political d...   Aug 2 2008, 09:39 PM
- - nprev   Oh, crap. Probably not long at all; propogation ti...   Aug 2 2008, 09:41 PM
- - Stu   Well, it's no huge surprise is it? Once the me...   Aug 2 2008, 09:51 PM
|- - jmknapp   QUOTE (Stu @ Aug 2 2008, 05:51 PM) Well, ...   Aug 3 2008, 01:39 AM
- - belleraphon1   For myself, I was just surprised by Craig Covault...   Aug 3 2008, 01:14 AM
- - dvandorn   I dunno... a long time ago in a galaxy far, far a...   Aug 3 2008, 01:49 AM
- - andrea   Nasawatch.com comments on the phoenix twitter: ...   Aug 3 2008, 06:16 AM
- - CosmicRocker   Hehe! It's so much fun to speculate about...   Aug 3 2008, 07:19 AM
- - Sunspot   Well the twitter page seem to refute ALL of this s...   Aug 3 2008, 10:17 AM
- - djellison   QUOTE Reports claiming there was a White House bri...   Aug 3 2008, 10:48 AM
|- - nprev   QUOTE (djellison @ Aug 3 2008, 03:48 AM) ...   Aug 3 2008, 01:29 PM
- - marsbug   I go away for one week to move house and everyone ...   Aug 3 2008, 11:57 AM
- - Stu   Oh, definitely hype, but hype of a mysterious, shi...   Aug 3 2008, 02:01 PM
- - nprev   I completely agree. It's going to be intere...   Aug 3 2008, 02:24 PM
- - jmjawors   Has anyone seen any of these news reports implying...   Aug 3 2008, 02:36 PM
- - Stu   I think it's just the same story but spun a li...   Aug 3 2008, 02:59 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   I just read this on Keith's site: "Of co...   Aug 3 2008, 03:22 PM
- - nprev   Of course there's life on Mars. Chuck Norris i...   Aug 3 2008, 03:04 PM
- - jmjawors   Actually, Chuck Norris has already been to Mars; t...   Aug 3 2008, 03:17 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (jmjawors @ Aug 3 2008, 11:17 AM) m...   Aug 3 2008, 03:30 PM
|- - Paul Fjeld   QUOTE (Paul Fjeld @ Aug 3 2008, 10:30 AM)...   Aug 3 2008, 04:14 PM
- - tasp   {Let me point out I have no inside information, an...   Aug 3 2008, 03:20 PM
- - nprev   Well...let's just put it in perspective: Is an...   Aug 3 2008, 03:33 PM
- - Greg Hullender   Does anyone have a feel for how significant it is ...   Aug 3 2008, 03:51 PM
|- - nprev   QUOTE (Greg Hullender @ Aug 3 2008, 08:51...   Aug 3 2008, 05:04 PM
- - imipak   Well, who knows. If there's anything more to t...   Aug 3 2008, 04:46 PM
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