Astronomers discover planets that survived their star's expansion

ScienceDaily (Dec. 21, 2011) ? Astronomers have discovered two Earth-sized planets that survived getting caught in the red-giant expansion of their host star.

Steve Kawaler, an Iowa State University professor of physics and astronomy and a leader of the Kepler Asteroseismic Investigation, helped the research team study data from the Kepler space telescope to confirm that tiny variations of light from a star were actually caused by two planets of that star.

The findings are published in the Letters section of the Dec. 22 edition of the journal Nature. St?phane Charpinet of the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Plan?tologie in Toulouse, France, is the lead author and leader of the research team.

"This is a snapshot of what our solar system might look like after several billion more years of evolution," Kawaler said. "This can help us learn about the future of planetary systems and of our own sun."

Kawaler said the researchers have studied pulsations of the planets' host star (KIC 05807616, an old star just past its red-giant state and with an exposed core) for about two years. While analyzing the data, Charpinet noticed two tiny variations repeated in 5.76 and 8.23 hour intervals.

He asked other astronomers -- including Kawaler -- to analyze the original Kepler data and a subsequent set of data to see if they could also see the variations.

"We saw them in the same place and the same periodicity," Kawaler said. "So we knew they were real."

That led to the next question: "So what are they?"

Kawaler, working 26 years ago with the late Carl Hansen of the University of Colorado, had studied the fastest, and slowest, rates that stars could pulsate. Using that result, the team could conclude the variations seen by Kepler were too slow to be caused by the star itself. And so the astronomers started testing the idea that the variations were from two planets orbiting the star.

Astronomers believe the variations from the two planets -- KOI 55.01 and KOI 55.02 -- are caused by reflection of the star's light on the planets and by differences in thermal emissions from the hot day-sides and cooler night-sides of the planets.

The astronomers also report the two planets are 76 percent and 87 percent the size of Earth. That makes them among the smallest planets detected around a star other than our sun.

They further report the planets are very close to their host star, only .6 percent and .76 percent the distance between the sun and Earth. That means conditions on the planets are very harsh with temperatures up to 16,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

That's so close the host star's expansion as a red giant would have engulfed the planets, possibly stripping gaseous giants similar to Jupiter down to their dense cores. The planets also could have contributed to the host star's unusual loss of mass.

The research team said the discovery of the two planets raises many questions about their ability to survive such harsh conditions. It also raises questions about how planets can affect the evolution of their host stars.

Kawaler said NASA's Kepler Mission, launched in March 2009, is a tremendous tool for studying stars and planets. So much so, astronomers are working to extend the Kepler Mission another four years, from 2012 into 2016.

Kepler's primary job is to detect tiny variations in the brightness of the stars within its view to find Earth-like planets that might be able to support life.

The Kepler Asteroseismic Investigation is also using Kepler data to study different kinds of stars. The investigation is led by a four-member steering committee: Kawaler, Chair Ron Gilliland of the Space Telescope Science Institute based in Baltimore, Jorgen Christensen-Dalsgaard and Hans Kjeldsen, both of Aarhus University in Denmark.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Iowa State University.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. S. Charpinet, G. Fontaine, P. Brassard, E. M. Green, V. Van Grootel, S. K. Randall, R. Silvotti, A. S. Baran, R. H. ?stensen, S. D. Kawaler, J. H. Telting. A compact system of small planets around a former red-giant star. Nature, 2011; 480 (7378): 496 DOI: 10.1038/nature10631

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/Hf8yst4zqXI/111221140631.htm

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NFL playoffs, Super Bowl to be streamed online

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Source: networks.org --- Wednesday, December 21, 2011
(21:46 UTC) CNN : NFL playoffs, Super Bowl to be streamed online ...

Source: http://networks.org/?src=cnn:2011:12:20:tech:web:super-bowl-online

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'The Onion' Of Medical Journals Pokes Fun At Studies

For the past 13 years, North America's medical community has had its own version of The Onion. The Canadian Medical Association Journal's "Holiday Reading" segment in its December issue brings satire and spoofing to its medical studies, with some unintended consequences. Host Audie Cornish talks with Barbara Sibbald, editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Source: http://www.npr.org/2011/12/18/143916143/the-onion-of-medical-journals-pokes-fun-at-studies?ft=1&f=1007

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Green Monday And Free Shipping Day Help Boost Online Holiday Sales By 15 Percent To $31B

As we get closer to the Christmas holidays, online retail spending continues to soar, says data and web analytics company comScore. A total of $6.3 billion was spent online in the past week, bringing the total spending for the holiday season to $30.9 billion. That's a 15 percent increase versus the same period last year. In the past week, four individual days surpassed $1 billion in spending, led by Green Monday (Monday, Dec. 12) with $1.13 billion and Free Shipping Day (Friday, Dec. 16) with $1.07 billion.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/3vJZYxvkSGE/

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Barbara Walters' Most Fascinating Person of 2011 is ...

Even Bill O'Reilly will have a hard time arguing this one.

On Wednesday, Barbara Walters announced her annual 10 Most Fascinating People list, and overtaking big names like Simon Cowell, Pippa Middleton, Katy Perry and the Kardashians was one person whose impact and legacy transcend all of them combined:

The late Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs: Most Fascinating Person of the Year

The co-founder of Apple and the man responsible for numerous technology innovations that shape our lives on a daily basis, Jobs passed away this fall at age 56.

First diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004, Jobs recovered, but it returned, and in 2009, he underwent a liver transplant. He resigned this summer as CEO.

At that point he became Walters' choice immediately, even though she never got to interview the man. Jobs is the first deceased Most Fascinating Person.

Truly a once-in-a-generation mind, Jobs was taken from us far too soon, but not before transforming technology - and modern life - in profound ways.

His fingerprints are on everything from the iTunes store to the iPod, iPhone, iPad, Pixar films and even the mouse. Yes, the mouse. In a word, he was awesome.

Steve Jobs: Good choice for Most Fascinating Person?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/12/barbara-walters-most-fascinating-person-of-2011-is/

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Japan Prepares to Declare the Fukushima Reactor "Shutdown" [Fukushima]

Japanese officials are preparing to finally declare the Fukushima power plant in a state of cold shutdown as early as 9am tomorrow (GMT). Now they can begin the estimated 40-year process of dismantling the site and repopulating the area. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/KBNNUo7S_Hg/japan-prepares-to-declare-the-fukushima-crisis-over

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Report slams Dutch Catholic Church over sex abuse

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk, center, answers questions during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk, center, answers questions during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk gestures during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk, center, and chairman of the Conference of Dutch Religious Orders, Cees van Dam, right, during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk, left, and chairman of the Conference of Dutch Religious Orders, Cees van Dam, right, are seen during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

Archbishop of Utrecht Wim Eijk during a press conference in Zeist, Netherlands, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011. A Dutch archbishop has apologized to victims after an independent inquiry reported that thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Catholic institutions, and church officials knew about it but failed to adequately address it. Wim Eijk says the report "fills us with shame and sorrow." (AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) ? As many as 20,000 children endured sexual abuse at Dutch Catholic institutions over the past 65 years, and church officials failed to adequately address it or help the victims, according to a long-awaited investigative report released Friday.

The findings detailed some of the most widespread abuse yet linked to the Roman Catholic Church, which has been under fire for years over abuse allegations in Europe, the United States and elsewhere.

Based on a survey of 34,000 people, the report estimated that 1 in 10 Dutch children suffered some form of sexual abuse ? a figure that rose to 1 in 5 among children who spent part of their youth in an institution such as a boarding school or children's home, whether Catholic or not.

"Sexual abuse of minors," it said bluntly, "occurs widely in Dutch society."

The findings prompted the archbishop of Utrecht, Wim Eijk, to apologize to victims on behalf of the Dutch church, saying the report "fills us with shame and sorrow."

The abuse ranged from "unwanted sexual advances" to rape, and abusers numbered in the hundreds and included priests, brothers and lay people who worked in religious orders and congregations. The number of victims who suffered abuse in church institutions likely lies somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000, according to the probe, which went back as far as 1945.

The commission behind the investigation was set up last year by the Catholic Church under the leadership of a former government minister, Wim Deetman, a Protestant, who said there could be no doubt church leaders knew of the problem. "The idea that people did not know there was a risk ... is untenable," he told a news conference.

Deetman said abuse continued in part because bishops and religious orders sometimes worked autonomously to deal with the abuse and "did not hang out their dirty laundry." However, he said the commission concluded that "it is wrong to talk of a culture of silence" by the church as a whole.

Colm O'Gorman, executive director of Amnesty International in Ireland and a victim of clergy abuse, criticized the Dutch inquiry because it was established by the church itself.

"It is the Dutch government that should be putting in place a meaningful investigation," O'Gorman said.

Even so, he said the report "highlights widespread abuse on a scale I think would be shocking to most Dutch people."

But O'Gorman added that "the scale of the abuse is in and of itself not the significant issue. It is whether it was covered up and, significantly, this report suggests it was."

Nearly a third of the Netherlands' 16 million people identify themselves as Catholic, making it the largest religion in the country, according to the Dutch Central Bureau for Statistics for 2008.

The Dutch probe followed allegations of repeated incidents of abuse at one cloister that spread to claims from Catholic institutions across the country.

The investigating commission received some 1,800 complaints of abuse at Catholic schools, seminaries and orphanages. It then conducted the broader survey of 34,000 people for a more comprehensive analysis of the scale and nature of sexual abuse of minors in the church and elsewhere.

In one order, the Salesians of Don Bosco, the commission found evidence that "sexually inappropriate behavior" among members "may perhaps have been part of the internal monastic culture."

Bert Smeets, an abuse victim, said the report did not go far enough in investigating and outlining in precise detail exactly what happened.

"What was happening was sexual abuse, violence, spiritual terror, and that should have been investigated," Smeets told The Associated Press. "It remains vague. All sorts of things happened, but nobody knows exactly what or by whom. This way they avoid responsibility."

The commission said about 800 priests, brothers, pastors or lay people working for the church were identified in the complaints. About 105 of them are still alive, although it is not known if they remain in church positions. Their names were not released.

Prosecutors said in a statement that Deetman's inquiry had referred 11 cases to them ? without naming the alleged perpetrators. Prosecutors opened only one investigation, saying the other 10 did not have sufficient details and happened too long ago to prosecute.

The latest findings add to the growing evidence of widespread clergy abuse of children documented in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Belgium and other countries, forcing Pope Benedict XVI to apologize to victims whose trauma was often hidden by church cover-ups.

In September, abuse victims and human rights lawyers, upset that no high-ranking church officials have yet to be prosecuted, filed a complaint in the United States urging the International Criminal Court to investigate the pope and top Vatican officials for possible crimes against humanity. The Vatican called the move a "ludicrous publicity stunt."

An American advocacy group involved in that case, the Center for Constitutional Rights, called the Dutch findings "yet another example of the widespread and systematic nature of the problem of child sex crimes in the Catholic Church."

"If similar commissions were held in every country, we would undoubtedly be equally appalled by the rates of abuse," it said.

Archbishop Eijk said the victims in the Netherlands would be compensated by a commission the Dutch church set up last month and which has a scale starting at $6,500 (euro5,000), rising to a maximum of $130,000 (euro100,000) depending on the nature of the abuse.

O'Gorman criticized the church-established compensation scheme.

"It is simply not appropriate for the church to be the decider" of compensation, he said. "It is important the Dutch government recognizes its responsibility to ensure access to justice ... to all victims."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-12-16-EU-Netherlands-Church-Abuse/id-1f0c0ddbbacc4b1a834cddbf66767601

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