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Magnetic Portals Connect Sun and Earth

MaxwellEdison writes "Scientists have discovered evidence of magnetic portals connecting the Earth and the Sun every 8 minutes. 'Several speakers at the Workshop have outlined how FTEs form: On the dayside of Earth (the side closest to the sun), Earth's magnetic field presses against the sun's magnetic field. Approximately every eight minutes, the two fields briefly merge or "reconnect," forming a portal through which particles can flow. The portal takes the form of a magnetic cylinder about as wide as Earth. The European Space Agency's fleet of four Cluster spacecraft and NASA's five THEMIS probes have flown through and surrounded these cylinders, measuring their dimensions and sensing the particles that shoot through.'"

170 of 235 comments (clear)

  1. Another misleading headline by mbone · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "Magnetic Portals Connect the Solar Wind and the Earth's Magnetosphere" would be much better.

    1. Re:Another misleading headline by thatskinnyguy · · Score: 1

      I agree. My first impression was "If this were true, why hasn't the atmosphere boiled-off yet?"

      --
      The game.
    2. Re:Another misleading headline by Tottec · · Score: 2, Funny

      RTFA

    3. Re:Another misleading headline by strider200142 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Sorry, headline is correct. The Earth's magnetic field lines and the Sun's field lines are connecting every 8 minutes. The fact that they connect allows a stream of the solar wind into the Earth's magnetosphere and/or atmosphere. The article clearly states that the magnetic field of the sun and the earth become coupled every 8 minutes. Since this is an article posted on nasa.gov I'd like to assume that it isn't just another example of bad science journalism. Especially since it makes sense ;)

    4. Re:Another misleading headline by MrNaz · · Score: 2, Informative

      It'd be a scale model if you were talking about a pea and an exercise ball.

      Although, yes, you are right, the OP has absolutely no appreciation of scale if he thinks that our action has any effect on the Sun's activity.

      --
      I hate printers.
    5. Re:Another misleading headline by kchrist · · Score: 2, Funny

      I'd rather see "Magnetic" changed to "Magic". That's how I read it at first and it sounds much better.

  2. Well-done, NASA! by TrekkieTechie · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now you're thinking with portals!

    1. Re:Well-done, NASA! by tcolberg · · Score: 5, Funny

      Speedy solar particles go in, speedy solar particles come out!

    2. Re:Well-done, NASA! by lattyware · · Score: 1

      Possibly the funniest thing I've seen in some time.

      --
      -- Lattyware (www.lattyware.co.uk)
    3. Re:Well-done, NASA! by Archon-X · · Score: 1

      They do what they must, because they can...

    4. Re:Well-done, NASA! by Jarjarthejedi · · Score: 3, Funny

      This next magnetic field configuration is impossible...

      --
      There are two kinds of fool One says 'This is old therefore good' Another says 'This is new therefore better'- Dean Ing
    5. Re:Well-done, NASA! by MRe_nl · · Score: 1

      And, I might add
      "there ain't no such thing as a free portal"

      --
      "Kill 'em all and let Root sort 'em out"
    6. Re:Well-done, NASA! by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 1

      For the good of all of us. Except the ones who are dead.

    7. Re:Well-done, NASA! by Lordnerdzrool · · Score: 3, Funny

      Nonsense. They are only in it for the cake at the end.

    8. Re:Well-done, NASA! by Glyphstream · · Score: 5, Funny

      Congratulations. You euthanized your NASA test module more quickly than any test subject on record.

      --
      Sig unrelated.
    9. Re:Well-done, NASA! by rolandog · · Score: 1

      But there's no point crying over every mistake.

    10. Re:Well-done, NASA! by alexandreracine · · Score: 1

      The cake is a lie!

      --
      No sig for now.
  3. 8 light-minutes by Megahard · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Is the Earth-Sun distance. Coincidence?

    --
    I eat only the real part of complex carbohydrates.
    1. Re:8 light-minutes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      There is probably some form of resenace effect going on after all magnetic fields propagate at the speed of light so a coincidence seems unlikely.

    2. Re:8 light-minutes by Molochi · · Score: 1

      I prefer anthropic to coincedence. Though it could be both.

      --
      "The Adobe Updater must update itself before it can check for updates. Would you like to update the Adobe Updater now?"
    3. Re:8 light-minutes by MrNaz · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Magnetic fields do *not* propagate at the speed of light, and I cannot believe fyou got marked "insightful" despite the obviousness that you have no idea what you are talking about. You are talking about astrophysical dynamics, yet you can't even spell "resonance".

      --
      I hate printers.
    4. Re:8 light-minutes by raynet · · Score: 1

      At what speed do they propagate, in vacuum?

      --
      - Raynet --> .
    5. Re:8 light-minutes by seann · · Score: 2, Funny

      Maybe we can use a large sphere or ring shaped device made up of a super strong magnetic metal that can create its own gravity field.

      With this device we may be able to travel at the speed of light to the sun!

      In fact, if we increase the magnetic s of this device and focus it on another "sphere" or ring device, maybe we can travel faster than the speed of light! We could have instantaneous travel!

      Wow. Somebody should make a movie or tv show about this. We could call it Sphere Gate or The Ring .

      --
      I'm a big retard who forgot to log out of Slashdot on Mike's computer! LOOK AT ME.
    6. Re:8 light-minutes by thogard · · Score: 1

      The propagate at a metric foot (29.979 246 cm) per nanosecond.

    7. Re:8 light-minutes by TrnsltLife · · Score: 1

      http://www.physlink.com/Education/AskExperts/ae445.cfm

      The speed of electromagnetic waves is certainly known and is defined to be exactly 299,792,458 m/s in vacuum (same as the speed of light).

    8. Re:8 light-minutes by raynet · · Score: 1

      I see a problem here, well, two actually. First, if the speed really is metric foot per nanosecond, the field is moving faster than speed of light or if we use the cm/ns value you gave, the field is moving as fast as light, which conflicts with the parent who said they dont propagate at the speed of light.

      --
      - Raynet --> .
  4. The Summary by sokoban · · Score: 5, Funny

    Is a lie.

    --
    09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0 is the magic number.
    1. Re:The Summary by MrMista_B · · Score: 3, Funny

      Okay, that's good to know. Care to elaborate on why?

    2. Re:The Summary by MrMista_B · · Score: 3, Informative

      Was modded 'informative' earlier.

    3. Re:The Summary by cryptoluddite · · Score: 1

      No, it wasn't a lie it was a triumph... no spelling errors, grammar mostly correct (except "Workshop" isn't a proper noun), working links -- almost like it had been edited by some kind of editor. Now, back to work; there's science to do, for the good of all of us.

    4. Re:The Summary by sumdumass · · Score: 1

      Well, Workshop can be a proper noun if the name of the workshop is Workshop. However, your right in that is doesn't appear to be used that way in the summery. Unless the author though it would be proper to drop the word plasma from the name "Plasma Workshop".

      And yes, I probably made more errors in my post.

    5. Re:The Summary by cryptoluddite · · Score: 1

      It as my attempt at portal humor... apparently "it was a triumph" and "there's science to do" and "for the good of all of us" and "back to work" should have been in italics or something...

  5. THEMIS Probes by sokoban · · Score: 5, Funny

    Naw them ain't probes, them is aliens.

    --
    09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0 is the magic number.
  6. STARGATE!!!! by Macrat · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now we just need to find Daniel Jackson.

    1. Re:STARGATE!!!! by FudRucker · · Score: 3, Informative

      i rather find Jack Daniels :D

      --
      Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing
    2. Re:STARGATE!!!! by Culture20 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Can't be. The Sun isn't covered in Canadian forests.

    3. Re:STARGATE!!!! by Phrogman · · Score: 1

      Some day we will finally visit other star systems with inhabitable planets and discover the truth - all alien plant life looks identical to a Canadian Forest, except for the parts that look like Californian deserts of course.

      Oh and all alien cities will look like LA, just like all North American cities look like some part of LA.

      --
      "The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
    4. Re:STARGATE!!!! by oprahwinfree · · Score: 1

      i rather find Jack Daniels :D

      How is that marked informative?

    5. Re:STARGATE!!!! by RDW · · Score: 1

      As Daniel steps back from the board we SEE he has nearly completed the translation of the top part of the Tablets.

              DANIEL
      This should read, A MILLION YEARS INTO THE SKY IS RA, SUN GOD. SEALED AND BURIED FOR ALL TIME HIS...

      Then Daniel circles the last word.

              DANIEL (CONT'D)
      It's not DOOR to HEAVEN. The proper translation is...SUN PORTAL!

              O'NEIL
      Um, Daniel..my script says 'STARGATE'.

      There is an awkward silence. Then Daniel rounds furiously on O'Neil, the wild look in his eyes telling us that all sanity has clearly gone.

              DANIEL
      Stargate! Stargate! It's always about the frikkin' Stargate! Ten years of my life I gave to that frikkin' show and I still can't escape from it! Ten miserable years trudging through the same muddy forest in British Columbia! I've got PhDs in archaelogy, anthropology and philology and the bastards all speak English anyway! I even ascended to a Higher Plane and I still couldn't get away from it! They killed me more times than Kenny! And now they're making a frikkin' movie! Please, for the love of...

      With a resigned expression O'Neil raises his Zat gun and fires, stunning Daniel.

              O'NEIL
      OK Guys, looks like Daniel could use a bit of Sarcophagus time. Let's take ten minutes and try it again when he's rested.

    6. Re:STARGATE!!!! by DopplerSailer · · Score: 1

      How is that marked informative?

      someone read the sig and learned something new.

  7. Learn something new every day by Quarters · · Score: 5, Funny

    On the dayside of Earth (the side closest to the sun)

    Really? How fascinating!

    1. Re:Learn something new every day by zappepcs · · Score: 3, Funny

      Actually, I find this rather interesting. For me the next question is how can this, or how does this affect global climate?

    2. Re:Learn something new every day by TenDollarMan · · Score: 5, Funny

      I'm from the day side of the earth and am really getting a kick out of these replies.

    3. Re:Learn something new every day by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      On the dayside of Earth (the side closest to the sun)

      Really? How fascinating!

      I'm a cubist, you insensitive clod.

    4. Re:Learn something new every day by lysergic.acid · · Score: 5, Interesting

      we, the people of the night side of earth, object to the hotheaded policies of the day side government. despite all of your anti-nighttime propaganda, your DST ploy to temporally encroach on our borders is plain to see. thus you have broken the circadian treaty that has kept peace between our two nations. we will not stand for this diurnal threat to our coolheaded & peace-loving society.

      we declare war on the heathen sun-worshipers to, once and for all, bring an end to their sidereal tyranny. the crepuscular revolution has begun!

    5. Re:Learn something new every day by ozmanjusri · · Score: 3, Funny
      how does this affect global climate?

      It makes it warmer.

      --
      "I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
    6. Re:Learn something new every day by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 1

      You just killed a dozen pirates, you bastard!

    7. Re:Learn something new every day by tm2b · · Score: 4, Funny

      It makes it warmer.

      Every 8 minutes. We call the time 4 minutes later "mini ice minutes."

      --
      "It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
    8. Re:Learn something new every day by TenDollarMan · · Score: 1

      I, for one, welcome our nocturnal overlords!

    9. Re:Learn something new every day by Fluffeh · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It makes it warmer.

      Every 8 minutes. We call the time 4 minutes later "mini ice minutes."

      Lordy, MOD that PARENT up. That's utter gold!

      --
      Moved to http://soylentnews.org/. You are invited to join us too!
    10. Re:Learn something new every day by Assassin+bug · · Score: 1

      Diurnal dogma dominates!

    11. Re:Learn something new every day by jcuervo · · Score: 1

      Icing on the cake: modded +5 Interesting.

      --
      Assume I was drunk when I posted this.
    12. Re:Learn something new every day by whopub · · Score: 1

      I'm from the day side of the earth and am really getting a kick out of these replies.

      Crap, I must be somewhere in the middle. Things are pretty unstable around here!

    13. Re:Learn something new every day by aqk · · Score: 1

      I, for one, welcome my nocturnal emissions.
      .

       

  8. Point of the article by NigelTheFrog · · Score: 2

    From what I gather from one quote in the article, scientists always suspected these; it's the fact that it's not a constant connection that was news.

  9. Fact checking by Atari400 · · Score: 1

    I read the article in 3 minutes, that only gives a 37.5% chance of a magnetic portal.

    --
    IBM doesn't play chess with the Universe.
  10. FTE = Flus Transfer Event by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Please, for the love of Helios and Demeter, spell out throw-away acronyms in summaries. It's annoying to read "Several speakers at the Workshop have outlined how FTEs form", and not being told what an FTE is. I really shouldn't have to RTFA[1] to discover that FTE = "Flux Transfer Event". It throws me off track when I read "how FTE are formed", and my brain translates to "how Frozen Talking Elephants are formed".

    [1] If you need this acronym spelt out, perhaps you should be on digg.

  11. how about the moon? by nx6310 · · Score: 1

    wouldn't it be cool if the moon had the same effect?

    1. Re:how about the moon? by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 3, Informative

      The moon does not have a giant molten core of metal being continuously entagled in the sun's magnetic field and forced to rotate by the constant orbit of the earth around the sun to generate more heat and its own counter-field.

    2. Re:how about the moon? by sumdumass · · Score: 4, Funny

      But wouldn't it be cool if it did?

    3. Re:how about the moon? by illumastorm · · Score: 1

      Limburger probably is, it tends to repel.

    4. Re:how about the moon? by Sebilrazen · · Score: 1

      By Jove, we've discovered a naturally occurring monopole.

      --
      "There are no facts, only interpretations." --Friedrich Nietzsche.
    5. Re:how about the moon? by Tekfactory · · Score: 1

      One might then assume that the Earth's field would intersect the Moon's field, and the Sun's field would intersect the Moon's field, meaning we'd have 3 portals now...

      Sun - Earth
      Sun - Moon
      Earth - Moon

      All opening and closing on different intervals

    6. Re:how about the moon? by badkarmadayaccount · · Score: 1

      The physicist in me is thinking "thats gonna take the mother of all simulations to get right", and the sadist in me adds "thats why we have programmers for..." *ducks real low*

      --
      I know tobacco is bad for you, so I smoke weed with crack.
  12. Well at least we have by Troy · · Score: 3, Interesting

    the main plot device for next summer's blockbuster movie (tentatively titled "Star Portal").

    -T

    PS. Porno directors are already casting for the X-rated adaptation, tentatively titled "Star Hole"

    1. Re:Well at least we have by sunami · · Score: 1

      The red, blue, and pick with black arrows picture in the article looks like a decent enough visual for Star Hole.

  13. Who tagged "!ipods"? by CSMatt · · Score: 1

    What could this possibly have to do with iPods? How could it possibly be confused with them?

    1. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by camperdave · · Score: 4, Funny

      It doesn't have anything to do with iPods which is exactly why it was tagged NOT iPods.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    2. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by denzacar · · Score: 5, Funny

      Well... it is true at least, right?

      Lets add other fun !-tags.

      Lets see... !aardvark, !aardwolf, !aargau, !aare, !aaron, !aascu...

      --
      Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
    3. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by ZERO1ZERO · · Score: 1
      How does one add a tag to a story, anyway?

      And why do my posts never show up with the body of the post visible without clicking, whilst other users who post with a karma of 1 do have their posts show up with the body in view? I just browse at the default settings...

    4. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by Vexorian · · Score: 1

      Nice, I haven't loled this much in slashdot for a while.

      --

      Copyright infringement is "piracy" in the same way DRM is "consumer rape"
    5. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by CSMatt · · Score: 1

      Click the arrow next to the tags to add your own. You need to be a member for at least six months, but I assume that's the case seeing as your UID is lower than mine and I can add tags just fine.

    6. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by AmberBlackCat · · Score: 1

      !funny !worththetime !possibletodisabletags !again

    7. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by ZERO1ZERO · · Score: 1

      Sweet. I see now. But why are the tags on ~50% of the stories overlapping onto the text that reads 'Read More...' ?? Some times it seems to wrap onto 2 lines, avoiding the overlap, sometimes it just clashes.

    8. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by Aphoxema · · Score: 1

      But it has everything to do with iPods, where do you think they get their popularity from? It's not culture, and it's certainly not because
      they're particularly useful, it's because they're using the power of this 8 minute connection to alter people's brainwaves so everyone eventually falls into sweet, wonderful bliss with Apple.

      Clearly whoever made the !ipods tag was an Apple employee trying to get the best of us.

      Ugh... I suddenly feel sick... I think.. I need an iPod... all this talk about iPods is making me want one. Must.. get.. iPod... and an iPhone.. even though I already have an old G3 Powerbook I suddenly feel like I need a brand new one.

      --
      "Most people, I think, don't even know what a rootkit is, so why should they care about it?"
    9. Re:Who tagged "!ipods"? by teridon · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure if you're just trying to be funny... but you can *hide* the tags by using this stylesheet:

      @namespace url(http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml);
      @-moz-document domain("slashdot.org") {

         /* remove the tags */
         .tag-widget {
           display: none !important;
         }

      }

      --
      I hold it, that a little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing. -- Thomas Jefferson
  14. electric universe kooks by VisualFuture · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Can anyone point me to some info on WHY the electric universe people are kooks?

    Lately I find some of the EU theories easier to accept than "majick" dark matter, dark energy, and magnetic fields with no electric current.

    "Magnetic reconnection" really?

    Better hope other theoretical and imaginary lines don't start acting up!

    1. Re:electric universe kooks by JumperCable · · Score: 1

      Link to the Electric Universe Kooks Theory please.

    2. Re:electric universe kooks by John+Hasler · · Score: 1, Insightful

      > Can anyone point me to some info on WHY the electric universe people are kooks?

      I should think that would be self-evident: they enjoy it.

      > Lately I find some of the EU theories easier to accept than "majick" dark matter, dark
      > energy, and magnetic fields with no electric current.

      Perhaps it is time to review some basic physics.

      > "Magnetic reconnection" really?

      Wikipedia is your friend.

      --
      Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
    3. Re:electric universe kooks by VisualFuture · · Score: 2, Informative

      Wow. Another response lacking any hard information. What a complete surprise.

      > Perhaps it is time to review some basic physics.

      And electrodynamics. Remember Faraday? Maxwell?

      > Wikipedia is your friend.
      My friends have names like Andrea, and Jessica, and Bob. Maybe you should get out more.

      Seriously, can anyone answer the question?

      For the previous response:
      http://thunderbolts.info/

    4. Re:electric universe kooks by Jaazaniah · · Score: 1

      Permanent magnets are based on a local effect in each atom that makes electron orbits spin around a particular axis, when taken as a net effect across millions of atoms, you have a magnetic field whose net force on ferro- and ferri-magnetic materials seems to defy the difficult to measure current around each atom. (unless you're looking at X-Ray microscopy)

      As for 'theoretical' or 'imaginary' lines, neither applies. Everything from your digital wrist watch to slashdot's servers depend on, exploit, and sometimes must be designed to account for the magnetic forces of permanent and electro-magnets. Hell, we were using the 'imaginary' lines of force for navigation as early as the 3rd century B.C.! The lines they are talking about are quite real, so 'practical' is the word I would choose to describe them.

  15. Aurora Borealis? by collywally · · Score: 5, Interesting

    FTA:
    "the cylindrical portals tend to form above Earth's equator and then roll over Earth's winter pole"

    I wonder if that's why the aurora borealis seems to crawl across the sky. I seem to remember (from when I lived in the high north) that it happened in fairly regular intervals. The "every eight minuets" seems to ring true as the time between each pass of the light though I haven't been there in eight years so I might just be remembering it wrong.

    1. Re:Aurora Borealis? by Jarjarthejedi · · Score: 1

      8 minutes between portals...
      8 years since being far north (far from these portals)..
      A UID divisible evenly by 8...

      Hmm...

      --
      There are two kinds of fool One says 'This is old therefore good' Another says 'This is new therefore better'- Dean Ing
  16. 8.32 light minutes by Mal-2 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It is 93 million miles, or 8.32 light minutes, separating Sun and Earth (center to center) -- the magnetosphere will be slightly less. Coincidence? I hope they are investigating some sort of possible resonance or standing wave that is directly related to this distance.

    Mal-2

    --
    How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
    1. Re:8.32 light minutes by jd · · Score: 4, Interesting

      It struck me that there was a similarity between the timing of the portals and the distance, too. Now, we know of other planets in the solar system with a strong magnetosphere, so in addition to your suggestions, I'd also ask if NASA is looking to see if similar corridors exist for other planets and whether there is any similar correlation between their portals and distance.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    2. Re:8.32 light minutes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Gee, I bet it never crossed the collective mind of the astrophysicists who commissioned these probes and discovered this phenomenon, that there may be a possible correlation to the distance between Earth and Sun. Here's hoping they read Slashdot, or they may miss out!

    3. Re:8.32 light minutes by LingNoi · · Score: 1

      Do you think we should email them? You know.. just incase...

    4. Re:8.32 light minutes by NotNormallyNormal · · Score: 3, Insightful
      Unfortunately, this 8 minutes would have nothing to do with the speed of light. The magnetic field emanating from the sun (interplanetary magnetic field) is 'frozen-in' to the plasma streaming out from the sun (solar wind). The solar wind velocity is usually between 300 and 700 km/s - this makes the trip MUCH longer than 8 minutes.

      The frozen-in condition follows from Maxwell's equations. Data from the ACE satellite show this is exactly the case. Therefore, as the solar wind speed increases, the IMF will reach the Earth faster. In the case of major solar events - such as coronal mass ejections (CME) - the solar wind speed is usually very high and we see the effects of the magnetic field and particles about 1 day after the 'light' (X-rays, visible light, etc) reaches the Earth.

  17. I'll elaborate for you by apparently · · Score: 5, Funny

    O <-- this is the sun.

    WHOOSH <-- this is the WHOOSH going over your head.
    . <-- you.
    o <-- this is the earth.

    1. Re:I'll elaborate for you by Kamokazi · · Score: 1

      Obviously you haven't played Portal. I didn't think it was a huge deal at first, because the main gameplay element (portals) was as expected.

      What was not expected was the personality and mannerisms of GlaDOS, the computer running the tests. That pretty much is what changed the game (for me) from being a novel puzzle game into a very entertaining 6-8 hours of gameplay.

      --
      As our way of thanking you for your positive contributions to Slashdot, you are eligible to disable Slashdot 2.0.
    2. Re:I'll elaborate for you by svank · · Score: 1

      O <-- this is the sun.

      WHOOSH <-- this is the WHOOSH going over your head.
      . <-- you.
      o <-- this is the earth.

      These things keep getting more and more elaborate. Anyone remember the days when it was sufficient to just say "WOOSH"?

    3. Re:I'll elaborate for you by master5o1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      If I'm the dot, and the sun is the upper-case O, then you must be calling me fat you insensitive clod.

      --
      signature is pants
    4. Re:I'll elaborate for you by Jarjarthejedi · · Score: 1

      Woosh? I my day we just had to point and laugh conspiratorially!

      --
      There are two kinds of fool One says 'This is old therefore good' Another says 'This is new therefore better'- Dean Ing
    5. Re:I'll elaborate for you by sumdumass · · Score: 1

      Well, you have to sort of point it out when the jokes whizzing by aren't that obvious. In this case, the joke was more or less an inside joke because it dealt with an adaptation of a saying that is found within a game.

    6. Re:I'll elaborate for you by WeblionX · · Score: 2, Funny

      It's a rounding error.

      --
      (\(\
      (=_=) Bani!
      (")")
    7. Re:I'll elaborate for you by dodongo · · Score: 1

      Wow, and here I was thinking I just lived way the fuck above sea level despite living in Oakland, CA, the shore of which is... sea level.

      But you're right! That bastard called us all fat! That's way more important accuracy-wise :)

    8. Re:I'll elaborate for you by master5o1 · · Score: 1

      Great! We've just figured out the cause of obesity! It's not MacDonalds / fast food / crap food / food.. It's rounding errors with sun-earth-human size ratio models expressed in ASCII art form. Thanks for clearing that up!

      --
      signature is pants
    9. Re:I'll elaborate for you by MrNaz · · Score: 1

      Youngster. In my day we had to point and laugh uphill. Both ways. In the snow. Wearing nothing but edible underwear.

      Now get off my lawn.

      --
      I hate printers.
    10. Re:I'll elaborate for you by LearnToSpell · · Score: 1

      He's in metric, and the sun's in imperial... or is it the other way around?

    11. Re:I'll elaborate for you by aqk · · Score: 1

      He is in Verdana and the Sun is in Tahoma, you dolt!

      And that, dear fellow, is why more people spend their winter vacations in Tahoma than in either Verdana or Trebuchet.
      (BTW, Trebuchet is a disgusting place- full of drunken skinheads and starving waifs-
      but I digress)

  18. Planets Aligned by Dersaidin · · Score: 5, Interesting

    So something cool might actually happen when all the planets are aligned? Portal from Sun to Neptune?

    1. Re:Planets Aligned by TenDollarMan · · Score: 1

      Yeh.

      But I'm gonna wait for the portal to Uranus.

    2. Re:Planets Aligned by morgan_greywolf · · Score: 1

      Like, oh, say, around the winter solstice in 2012? Nah. That's just a coincidence. The Mayans were just crazy. Nothing to see here, move along.

    3. Re:Planets Aligned by MRe_nl · · Score: 1

      Well, the planets of the solar system are going into planetary alignment (Which occurs every 5,000 years), and I can tell you that a secret society called the Illuminati is seeking an ancient talisman that gives its possessor the ability to control time ; ).

      --
      "Kill 'em all and let Root sort 'em out"
    4. Re:Planets Aligned by aaron+alderman · · Score: 1

      More like a portal from the Sun to URANUS.

    5. Re:Planets Aligned by Cassius+Corodes · · Score: 4, Funny

      Why is it always a trinket that gives you powers - why is it never a pair of pants or a left shoe.

      --
      Control is an illusion, order our comforting lie. From chaos, through chaos, into chaos we fly
    6. Re:Planets Aligned by aproposofwhat · · Score: 1

      My thinking is that the end of the world will come when all the lost socks suddenly pop back into existence, smothering the entire population of Earth.

      --
      One swallow does not a fellatrix make
    7. Re:Planets Aligned by Dunbal · · Score: 2, Informative

      Since Pluto is no longer a planet, its portal privileges have been revoked.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    8. Re:Planets Aligned by CptNerd · · Score: 1

      That's okay, because we're secretly breeding hordes of vicious anti-sock wire hangers in closets all over the world.

      --
      By the taping of my glasses, something geeky this way passes
    9. Re:Planets Aligned by SlowMovingTarget · · Score: 1

      Cloth can't hold an ethereal charge, you need metal, crystal, or creatures. So your left shoe could certainly be imbued with power were you willing to spend on the bling to get the blam. +1 Boots of Buttkicking (For Good-ness!).

    10. Re:Planets Aligned by ignavus · · Score: 1

      Why is it always a trinket that gives you powers - why is it never a pair of pants or a left shoe.

      You mean, something like the Bra of Power?

      There are plenty of movies made about that.

      --
      I am anarch of all I survey.
    11. Re:Planets Aligned by badkarmadayaccount · · Score: 1

      Because a amulet handed down from father to son doesn't sound as bad as a pair of underwear handed down from father to son. It's a hygiene thing... *checks address bar* - oh, never mind.

      --
      I know tobacco is bad for you, so I smoke weed with crack.
  19. let me be the first to say by circletimessquare · · Score: 3, Funny

    <keanureevesvoice>

    "whoa"

    </keanureevesvoice>

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
    1. Re:let me be the first to say by TubeSteak · · Score: 3, Funny

      And the sequel:

      <keanureevesvoice>

      "whoa"

      </keanureevesvoice>

      --
      [Fuck Beta]
      o0t!
  20. Particles straight from the sun, by DragonTHC · · Score: 3, Funny

    and I'm still alive.

    In the sun's magnetic portal,

    and I'm still alive.

    --
    They're using their grammar skills there.
  21. The explanation is a lie by tepples · · Score: 5, Informative

    This article is about magnetic portals. Portal is also the title of a first-person adventure game for PC developed and published by Valve. One of the catchphrases from Portal is "The cake is a lie!", hence sokoban's comment "The summary is a lie".

    1. Re:The explanation is a lie by Moleculor · · Score: 1

      This article is about magnetic portals. Portal is also the title of a first-person adventure game for PC developed and published by Valve. One of the catchphrases from Portal is "The cake is a lie!", hence sokoban's comment "The summary is a lie".

      Yes. Which the above poster obviously knew, given his usage of the phrases "it was a triumph", "there's science to do" and "for the good of all of us", all phrases that appear in similar or identical form in the end credits song of the aforementioned game. I'm not entirely sure why people are trying to explain the joke when he so obviously got it.

    2. Re:The explanation is a lie by valeranth · · Score: 1

      Except portal wasn't developed by valve, it was a senior year project for digipen...

    3. Re:The explanation is a lie by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Except portal wasn't developed by valve, it was a senior year project for digipen...

      Not exactly. The precursor to Portal (Narbacular Drop) was developed by Digipen students. Valve subsequently hired said students to develop the game commercially using the Source engine, and Portal was born.

      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
  22. I guess that makes these two heavenly bodies by davidsyes · · Score: 1

    "On the dayside of Earth (the side closest to the sun), Earth's magnetic field presses against the sun's magnetic field. Approximately every eight minutes, the two fields briefly merge or "reconnect," forming a portal through which particles can flow. The portal takes the form of a magnetic cylinder about as wide as Earth."

    "VERSATILE"!!!! LOL!!!

    --
    Previously: "Linux... Toward the Sunrise..." Now: "Linux... Toward the-- No, now, part of Every Sunrise"
  23. Yes, but... by jd · · Score: 4, Insightful

    (a) this is Slashdot, and (b) this is Halloween. How on Earth do you expect to find a sensible summary given a juxtaposition like that?

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    1. Re:Yes, but... by ScreamingCactus · · Score: 1

      What does Halloween have to do with it? This being Slashdot is all that is needed to justify a bad headline. And wouldn't "doorway" or "window" be better than "portal"?

      --
      The path to enlightenment is truly through homemade drugs!
    2. Re:Yes, but... by jd · · Score: 1

      Portals == Demons and Chuloid Creatures that Should Not Be == Halloween Material.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  24. Hmm... by bpsbr_ernie · · Score: 1

    So... is it the orange portal or blue portal... and where do you come out?

  25. I would advise them against... by SupremoMan · · Score: 1

    stepping through the portal.

    1. Re:I would advise them against... by morgan_greywolf · · Score: 2, Funny

      Dude. You've been watching wayyy too much SG-1. Really.

  26. Can we use this to make energy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I imagine this is a long shot. But, if these are magnetic. Could we in some conceivable fashion use them to make energy?

  27. Re:how long... by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 2, Funny

    i.e. to shoot your ass into the sun at the speed of light and prevent your stupid ass from breeding?

  28. Re:what can I say... by mattycole · · Score: 1

    I wonder how this looks through the smelloscope.

    --
    I'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS!!
  29. Re:how long... by Jesus_666 · · Score: 1

    Until Wednesday.

    --
    USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
  30. Still crap. by surfcow · · Score: 1

    I suppose the other planets might have these portals too. Makes me view the new-age beliefs about "harmonic convergence", celestial alignment and astrology in a different light.

    Still crap, but mildly more interesting crap.

  31. (c) Headline too long. by Xenographic · · Score: 3, Insightful

    > (a) this is Slashdot, and (b) this is Halloween. How on Earth do you expect to find a sensible summary given a juxtaposition like that?

    (c) That headline is too long.

    It's (c) that kills a lot of good headlines, honestly, but there's only so much space on the front page for those headlines to fit.

    1. Re:(c) Headline too long. by MrNaz · · Score: 1

      Perhaps writing it in 150pt instead of 200pt would allow them to add the extra words that make it actually accurate.

      I don't know about you, but reading 10 words instead of 6 doesn't cause me to get a headache. Cue Slashdot joke about reading.

      --
      I hate printers.
    2. Re:(c) Headline too long. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Perhaps writing it in 150pt instead of 200pt would allow them to add the extra words that make it actually accurate.

      I don't know about you, but reading 10 words instead of 6 doesn't cause me to get a headache. Cue Slashdot joke about reading.

      It does matter. I for one just visit /. occasionally, quickly browse down the page for headlines that seem interesting, tab them and close the mainpage. If the 20 headlines per page were 10 words each instead of 6 words each and all in smaller font, it would make it less attractive to browse through a few pages.

      And as someone who works in internet marketing, I can be pretty confident when I tell you that making headlines half longer and in smaller fonts would significantly lower reader amounts on each individual article, believe it or not.

    3. Re:(c) Headline too long. by aqk · · Score: 1

      I for one just visit /. occasionally, quickly browse down the page for headlines that seem interesting,

      ..etccc

      Well, /. is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't wanna live there.

  32. Don't be silly by 10101001+10101001 · · Score: 1

    The summary can't be the cake because the cake is a lie!

    --
    Eurohacker European paranoia, gun rights, and h
  33. Worst pick-up line ever. by fahrbot-bot · · Score: 1

    Approximately every eight minutes, the two fields briefly merge or "reconnect," forming a portal through which particles can flow.

    I'm going outside and talk to the Earth about: "no glove, no love".

    --
    It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
  34. Portals or a series of tubes? by Camel+Pilot · · Score: 2, Interesting

    These portals I suspect are just a series of tubes.

    The sun is just like a big truck that dumps particles into these tubes and it can be an enormous amount of material.

    This message approved by the corrupt and out of touch Republicans for science

  35. As Suspected... by shrilaku · · Score: 1

    m/(FTE|TheForce|Terramagnetoscope.net|Portal2Vega)/i

  36. Teleportation by Translation+Error · · Score: 2, Funny

    I predict this is the key that will finally unlock the secret of teleporting matter! Unfortunately, it will only allow us to teleport things directly to the sun...

    --
    When someone says, "Any fool can see ..." they're usually exactly right.
    1. Re:Teleportation by kge · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Maybe we can use it to teleport our nuclear waste to the sun?

    2. Re:Teleportation by stile99 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Really? *runs off to patent teleporting things to the sun as a means of trash disposal*

    3. Re:Teleportation by Landshark17 · · Score: 1

      Yeah, but we'd never have to worry about politicians again.

      --
      This sig is false.
    4. Re:Teleportation by evilviper · · Score: 1

      Absolutely not! There is a limited supply of radioactive material on Earth, and even though the partially depleted variety isn't particularly desirable right now, it's highly likely it will become extremely valuable in a few short years, as demand for non-fossil fuels expands, and reprocessing technologies are developed.

      --
      Slashdot gets worse every day... Pipedot: News for nerds, without the corporate slant
  37. Re:how long... by Firehed · · Score: 3, Funny

    That would be a terribly depressing eight minute journey. Unless you became a human comet and smashed into Mercury or something, which would just be badass.

    --
    How are sites slashdotted when nobody reads TFAs?
  38. which one? there 4 days sides to the earth by circletimessquare · · Score: 3, Funny

    you don't believe Dr. Gene Ray, Cubic and Wisest Human? don't tell me you are an academic deified Queer

    <size 36 red font>

    It is impossible for an academic
    deified Queer ONE god to give
    birth to, or breast-feed a Baby.
    Bible fraud will destroy fools,
    and they will eat one another.
    Adam and Eve never existed.
    Without profit, there is no god.
    Believers will actually eat dung
    before they will ever measure
    their queer Godism for Cubic
    Creation Truth. Just the other
    Day in the NEWS, they were
    worshipping their god image
      in Vomit.

    </size 36 red font>

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
    1. Re:which one? there 4 days sides to the earth by Sebilrazen · · Score: 1
      Well, if he's endorsing McCain, maybe I should have a second look.

      At the risk of my life, I must issue a GRAVE WARNING to my fellow Americans - about a potential Civil War between millions if Obama, the Black candidate, is elected President of the United States, displacing the white president - inducing America to become a Black Nation. There are some whites who cannot accept this, especially during the drastic hardtimes ahead, and will initiate a spark of violence that will spread over the Earth like a wildfire. The World is now on the verge of such a threat, and the World condition is highly volatile. This is most likely the test Biden mentioned. Neither candidate mentioned RACE for its beyond their expertise - so they just let it happen - slaughter like never seen before. I fear if Obama wins, America will lose. Now, what will you do to avoid such a hell?

      Dr. Gene Ray, Cubic and Wisest Human.

      Hmmm... Look it's Gene the Cubic, or Gene the Wisest Human.

      But honestly, if this doesn't convince you to vote - the knowledge that there are people out there like this that will - nothing will.

      --
      "There are no facts, only interpretations." --Friedrich Nietzsche.
  39. Thanks for straightening this out.. by glitch23 · · Score: 3, Insightful
    for us:

    On the dayside of Earth (the side closest to the sun),

    --
    this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom. -- Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
    1. Re:Thanks for straightening this out.. by jesset77 · · Score: 1

      Bah, I would rather see that rapid disclaimer in TFA than a hundred "why does this only happen on the dayside? der deher" comments in here. :P

      --
      People willing to trade their freedom of expression for temporary entertainment deserve neither and will lose both.
  40. But The Discovery by sakonofie · · Score: 1

    This was a triumph.

  41. Timecube?! by blacklabelsk8er · · Score: 1

    "When the Sun shines upon Earth, 2 - major Time points are created on opposite sides of Earth - known as Midday and Midnight. Where the 2 major Time forces join, synergy creates 2 new minor Time points we recognize as Sunup and Sundown." Hate to say it but Gene Ray is sounding less and less bat-shyte as science learns more. :P

  42. Use for planet detection? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Exactly!

    Could this be used to detect planets (which have a magnetic field)? The delay between subsequent magnetic portal anomalies should give approximate distance from central Sun to the planet.

    And do other planets (with magnetic fields) exhibit this magnetic portal as well? Then the Sun should somehow contain a magnetic "signal" which is a superposition of all of those. With Fourier analysis we should be able to make out the components, thus finding out how many planets (with magnetic fields) there are and their distances from the central star.

    And a bit more sci-fi idea: could we use this for communication purposes - make the Sun or the portal "ring" with our message? Kind of like lighting a big enough lamp to be seen from a further distance.

    And something to think about: how do binary stars behave... Are they in resonance?

  43. Practice Safe Astronautism by dontmakemethink · · Score: 1

    The European Space Agency's fleet of four Cluster spacecraft and NASA's five THEMIS probes have flown through and surrounded these cylinders, measuring their dimensions and sensing the particles that shoot through."

    Were they wearing adequate protection?! What's the Vatican's position on astro-bortion?! Even astro-slut portals have rights!

    --

    War as we knew it was obsolete
    Nothing could beat complete denial
    - Emily Haines
  44. yet another missing mod option by doti · · Score: 1

    -1 Joke ruiner

    --
    factor 966971: 966971
  45. I was thinking of a stargate time warp by cheekyboy · · Score: 3, Funny

    And if you combine with a solar flare at the right time do we get to go back to 1969 in the age of cheap intel shares, and cheap pot and free lsd?

    --
    Liberty freedom are no1, not dicks in suits.
    1. Re:I was thinking of a stargate time warp by empaler · · Score: 1

      I live in Denmark. If I was so inclined, cheap pot would be easier to scrounge up on a saturday night than a gallon of milk.

    2. Re:I was thinking of a stargate time warp by h4rm0ny · · Score: 1


      It's the decent LSD that's harder to get hold of.

      --

      Aide-toi, le Ciel t'aidera - Jeanne D'Arc.
  46. Research from 1979 by AikonMGB · · Score: 2, Informative

    Looks related to this research done in the late seventies.

    C.T. Russell and R.C. Elphic. ISEE observations of flux transfer events at the dayside mangetopause. Geophyiscal Research Letters, vol. 6, pp.33-36, 1979.

    Aikon-

  47. Steve Bell and the Pants of Power by Kupfernigk · · Score: 1

    The British political cartoonist Steve Bell has always used the Superman reference (if Superman is so smart why does he wear his pants(i.e. US underpants) outside his trousers) - he represented the Prime Minister John Major as wearing his underpants outside his trousers so as to try to be like Superman. When Blair become PM, Bell drew him as wearing "the pants of power". So, here in the UK, it is indeed a pair of pants that convey (political) power.

    --
    From scarped cliff or quarried stone she cries "A thousand types are gone, I care for nothing, no not one."
  48. 8 Minutes Sun/Earth at c by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 1

    There are many unanswered questions: Why do the portals form every 8 minutes?

    Light travels from Sun to Earth (and a tiny amount reflects in the opposite direction) for 8 minutes at c, lightspeed. If the portal's cycle period varies the same way that the distance varies, 93-97 million miles from perigee to apogee, there's more clearly a relationship between the two phenomena.

    If not, it's an uncanny coincidence. Like how the Sun and the Moon, each very different in size and in distance from the Earth, coincidentally appear to be about exactly the same size in the sky, as we see during total solar eclipses.

    --

    --
    make install -not war

  49. Bad Wolf by davie · · Score: 1

    I'm sure the Daleks are behind this.

    --
    slashdot broke my sig
  50. i didnt see that. ill file that under al qaeda for obama. endorsements no one wants

    --
    intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
  51. Re:Portal = Hole by TrnsltLife · · Score: 1

    FTFA: "The portal takes the form of a magnetic cylinder about as wide as Earth."

    I think that qualifies as "large and imposing".

  52. in other news... by SlowMovingTarget · · Score: 1

    Sibeck also predicts we'll find god in the center of the galaxy. Let him take your pain away...

  53. Protection by oldCoder · · Score: 1

    We'll all need tinfoil hats every 8 minutes...

    --

    I18N == Intergalacticization
  54. WOW! by mmwithpeanuts · · Score: 1

    Every eight minutes because of the speed of light taking that time to get here. This is happening constantly, as our sun is always shining. Perhaps (E)Magnetics play a bigger role than mere gravity in tying us together?

  55. Every 8 minutes _now_ but what about before? by fygment · · Score: 1

    Is this something new? Is this what's changing the climate? And before you start with the "No because ..." bear in mind that the real answer is ... we don't know.

    From the article:

    "Ten years ago I was pretty sure they didn't exist, but now the evidence is incontrovertible."

    "We used to think the connection was permanent and that solar wind could trickle into the near-Earth environment anytime the wind was active," says Sibeck. "We were wrong. The connections are not steady at all. They are often brief, bursty and very dynamic."

    "Passive FTEs may not be very important, but until we know more about them we can't be sure."

    --
    "Consensus" in science is _always_ a political construct.
  56. Re:Well-done, NASA! And thru a rare medium too! by aqk · · Score: 1

    Possibly the most grippingly magnetic thing I've seen in some time.
    .

  57. Re:8 light-minutes ? We ned an ARBITER by aqk · · Score: 1

    Gentlemen, gentlemen- PLEASE!

    Let us have some decorum here!

    Perhaps we need an arbiter.
      I suggest the distinguished author of The Timecube!

    Are we all agreed?
        Now then, which one of us will contact him?
    ..

  58. So it's a series of tubes? by eigenstates · · Score: 1

    Was Stevens the Al Gore of the deep space magento-net?

    --
    quis custodiet ipsos custodes