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Neil deGrasse Tyson Pinpoints Superman's Home Star System

Posted by Soulskill on from the totally-not-fluff dept.

kmoser writes "Everybody's favorite astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson, makes an appearance in upcoming Superman #14, in which Superman visits the Hayden Planetarium to view his original planet. Meanwhile, back in reality, DC Comics explains that NdGT has used his 'astronomical' powers to select the red dwarf LHS 2520 as the most likely real-life red star to fit with Superman's back story."

17 of 102 comments (clear)

  1. NIce by geekoid · · Score: 4, Insightful

    More science stars please.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    1. Re:NIce by CRCulver · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'm not sure that science stars are all that helpful. Something they can be self-aggrandising publicity whores that, instead of really educating the public, obfuscate the sciences by offering vacuous factoids on fields they have only a passing acquaintance with. At the same time, science popularizing takes time away with their own research.

      Michio Kaku's a good example: once a fine research physicist, he has now become the media's go-to man whenever they want to look deep, even if it is on something outside his field like climate change or UFOs. (The signs of losing rigor were showing already in the early '90s with his first popular science book Hyperspace, which seemed curiously obsessed with -- and optimistic about -- humanity gaining "god-like powers").

      Some might counter that these folks do good in attracting young people to the sciences, but I would like to see some hard figures on that. I suspect the bureaucrats that quietly set educational policy, not media go-to scientists, can have a much, much greater effect.

    2. Re:NIce by Mr2cents · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I agree that Michio Kaku is a bit "way out there". But in regard to Neil Tyson, I have nothing but praise. Search youtube for his interviews, this man really knows how to spread scientific thinking and knows why it is important.

      --
      "It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
    3. Re:NIce by Guru80 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Going to have to disagree with you. Michio Kaku and Neil deGrasse Tyson are probably the best thing to happen to the various science fields in a long time when it comes to connecting with those outside the field. They give science a much needed boost in perception to those that see it as nothing more than a bunch of guys in white lab coats hunched over a microscope all day getting off on microbes or other invisible "stuff". They can explain everything from the unbelievably complex to the down right absurd in a way that no matter who you are you know exactly what they are talking about.

      Science only wins with those two, no matter what they are talking about. Tyson especially has the whole cool factor that transcends stereotypes.

    4. Re:NIce by Mr2cents · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Comparing Feynman to Kaku is a bit like blasphemy to me. Feynman was able to make rock solid arguments that silenced all opposition (see e.g. the Challenger accident investigation). Kaku, on the other hand seems to be fascinated by what-if scenario's, theoretical possibilities and the like. Not that it's not entertaining or thought-provoking, but it's not the same thing by far. Kaku doesn't explain current science well, he's just good at extrapolating.

      --
      "It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
    5. Re:NIce by Mr2cents · · Score: 3, Interesting

      If you like Feynman, I hope you have watched these lectures, the video quality isn't great but the content more than makes up for it.

      --
      "It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
    6. Re:NIce by WGFCrafty · · Score: 4, Interesting

      When Sagans's cosmos began it was the most watched show in the history of public television history. You need hard numbers to prove science popularization has done something to influence the public?

      The problem is many modern science shows emphasize effects over knowledge. Carl Sagans "apple pie" episode is so jam packed with essential knowledge it's ridiculous.

    7. Re:NIce by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 4, Funny

      Ya but what if Kaku had rock solid arguments?

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
  2. Scientists and fake science by Horshu · · Score: 3, Insightful

    What's with the trend of these guys spending time calculating fictional things? Wasn't there a mathematician last week who tried calculating some Cthulhu/wormhole fantasy? Waste...of...reputation.

    1. Re:Scientists and fake science by geekoid · · Score: 4, Insightful

      No it isn't.
      It gives actually science a venue into public discourse. It teaches scientists how to communicate to non scientists.

      Important, and frankly it should be something as many scientists as possible strive to do.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  3. Re:what they totally forgot by Black+Parrot · · Score: 3, Interesting

    If you look at the actual comic, they are trying to help Superman determine if his planet of origin, Krypton, is still intact or detectable.

    What they forget is that any light from Krypton's system is so many light years away that we would effectively be seeing Superman's homeworld *before* it was destroyed. NDGT didn't think of this?

    The Badass Tronomer's blog hints that that time delay plays a role in the plot.

    What I don't get is, if just a handful of kryptonite brings Superman to his knees, how did his parents survive on a whole planet of the stuff?

    --
    Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
  4. Re:what they totally forgot by vux984 · · Score: 4, Informative

    What I don't get is, if just a handful of kryptonite brings Superman to his knees, how did his parents survive on a whole planet of the stuff?

    I am not at all a comic-book-guy; however I was under the impression that kryptonite was radioactive chunks of his home planet created in the destruction of the planet.

    So there wasn't kryptonite on krypton while people lived on it.

    But I'm sure some comic-book-guy can give you half a dozen arguments about 'canon' and likely as it applies to various timelines or whatever given that they've retconned and rebooted the franchise plenty over the years.

    Me? I saw the first 3 movies with Reeves, the new one with Kevin Spacey as Lex, and read the comics casually for a couple years 20 years ago...

  5. Re:Tyson is definitely not my favourite astronomer by thestudio_bob · · Score: 4, Funny

    I have to post this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Me3-r5rsUSI

    "Hey at least I didn't declassify Pluto from planet status. Way to make a the little kids cry Neil. That make you feel like a big man?"
    ~ Dr. Rodney McKay

    --
    The real Sig captains the Northwestern. This one captains /.
  6. Re:what they totally forgot by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    In some versions of the story, Jor-El knows that his child will have vast powers under a yellow Sun, and selects a yellow Sun for that reason. (This begs the question of how Jor-El knows that.)

    Not long before the "52" reboot, there was a storyline with a bunch of aliens (who turned out to be police of sorts for an alien 'war crimes' tribunal) looking for a Kryptonian (who turned out not to be Kal-El). Seems that the Kryptonians had actually gotten out of their solar system at one point (not just to another planet in the same system), and they proceeded to do nasty, brutish, colonization and exploitation of worlds in yellow star systems. Then, for whatever curltural reason (xenophobia, like the Daxamites would also have?), they retreated to their own solar system, where they stayed (despite their space travel technology) until The End. Except for a few random ex-soldiers, mercernaries, etc. who had stayed on some of the colonized worlds, but who were MUCH-hated and hunted down like dogs whenever the locals had the opportunity...

  7. Re:what they totally forgot by alexander_686 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Jor-El, as a brilliant scientist, knew that the yellow sun would give his child super powers.

    Look, Superman been around for almost 75 years. During that time a lot of above average people have had these types of questions and the writers have answered them. Sometimes with poor science, sometimes they contradict themselves.

    On the flip side, there is some good stuff out there.
    James Kakalios is my favorite example. Physicist (PhD., Professor.) and lover of comic books. He has done some cool stuff.
    http://www.physicsofsuperheroes.com/intro-physics-book.php
    http://www.physicsofsuperheroes.com/videos.php

  8. Re:what they totally forgot by Black+Parrot · · Score: 3, Funny

    But I'm sure some comic-book-guy can give you half a dozen arguments about 'canon' and likely as it applies to various timelines or whatever given that they've retconned and rebooted the franchise plenty over the years.

    And once we've worked out the answer to this, we can get back on whether balrogs have wings.

    --
    Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
  9. Re:The comic is actually Action Comics #14 by witherstaff · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I had been reading comics around the reboot and just gave up on DC. Marvel does a variety of reboots to a point and restarts numbers at #1 on a near regular basis but that's a series not a whole continuity change. But the crossover mania, even not having to err.. pay much.. for comics got so it wasn't worth the time. Last year's Fear itself storyline was over 100 comics. That'd be a lot of money shelled out to follow one storyline.