Scientisits Discover a New Planet

By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer Tue Nov 6, 5:32 PM ET

LOS ANGELES - A new planet was discovered orbiting a sun-like star 41 light years away, making it the first known planetary quintet outside our solar system, astronomers said Tuesday.

The newfound planet joins four others circling the nearby star 55 Cancri in the constellation Cancer. Although it resides in the star's so-called habitable zone, a place where liquid water and mild temperatures should exist, it is more like Saturn than Earth and therefore not likely to support life.

Still, scientists have not ruled out the possibility of finding an Earth-like planet within the system as technology improves.

"It's a system that appears to be packed with planets," said co-discoverer Debra Fischer, an astronomer at San Francisco State University.

Ranked fourth from 55 Cancri, the latest planet is about 45 times the mass of Earth and has an orbit of 260 days. It was detected after nearly two decades of observations by ground-based telescopes using the Doppler technique that measures a planet's stellar wobble.

The other planets in the 55 Cancri system were discovered between 1996 and 2004. The innermost planet is believed to resemble Neptune, while the most distant is thought to be Jupiter-like.

Scientists have detected about 250 exoplanets, or planets orbiting a star other than the sun. The 55 Cancri star holds the record for number of confirmed planets. Only one other star is known to have four planets, while several others have three or less.

"We can now say there are stars like the sun that have many worlds around them," said planetary scientist Jonathan Lunine of the University of Arizona, Tucson, who had no role in the discovery.

The research will appear in a future issue of the Astrophysical Journal. It was funded by NASA, the National Science Foundation and the University of California.

The latest discovery shows that our solar system is not unique, scientists said.

"When you look up into the night sky and see the twinkling lights of stars, you can imagine with certainty that they have their own complement of planets," said astronomer Geoff Marcy of the University of California, Berkeley, who was part of the research.

___

On the Net:

NASA: http://www.nasa.gov

We Are All Teachers

I am very happy to see more students sharing their knowledge with others in class. Here James is using the end of the broken yardstick to point out an example of what erosion and weathering would look like.


I am also happy to see how well these offers to help are so well received. Here Katie is helping Kristen understand a reading concept.









We are all teachers in this class. Only together will we all succeed.

H.O.P. Approvals

As of October 25, 2007, the ONLY slide shows I have approved are Nick's and James'. If you need help and I am unavailable, you may ask one of these two fine gentlemen for assistance.

Key Points

1. Be sure to have the correct titles on all eight slides.

2. Include your weakest reading skill(s) on at least one of the slides.

3. If possible, include one weak area in math and science.

Points 2 & 3 are extra, and would make your presentation extra special......But you are extra special, so why not make your slide show the same?

Today's Focus

By now I fully expect you to know your greatest needs in READING, MATH and SCIENCE. As our morning song is playing ("Birth, School, Work, Death")* reflect on what these are, as well as the ideal way you would like to turn these weaknesses into strengths today.

Last Week's Photos

Learning can be fun, as long as learning is really happening.


This is always a risk when you choose to teach this way.

It has been proven that the more you are enjoying the process, the more real learning that is going to occur.



As long as you are demonstrating high intra- and interpersonal intelligence, and producing high quality work, I will let you learn in the most fun ways possible.

Open Arms = Open Minds

I AM OPEN AND RECEPTIVE TO ALL THE GOOD AND ABUNDANCE IN THE UNIVERSE.

~THANK YOU LIFE!~

(*from Luise Hay's, You Can Heal Your Own Life)

Come to school with open arms, knowing there is NOTHING that you cannot become.

As you open you arms, you open your mind, opening up the size of your world.

~ Mr. Stuart

Monday Photos ~ The Power of Imagination

IMAGINATION

"Live out of your imagination, not your history." -- Stephen R. Covey

"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere." -- Albert Einstein

"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." -- Mark Twain

"This world is but a canvas to our imaginations." -- Henry David Thoreau

***You all have the ability to add your name to the list of people who change the world for the better. Do you see it like I do? Do you have the Big Dream?

Now......do you have the Big Do.....in order to Do Big?

Be Big my young friends....it all starts in your imagination.