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Regy Rusty posted:Well I gotta say, I'm pretty satisfied with how they handled my area of expertise. That was a really good introduction to evolution, condensed into 45 minutes. As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life. That's what's so awesome. The first cosmos made me want to learn about science. This one lets me know I made the right decision.
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Mar 17, 2014 03:06
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That was a good hour of television. Just an unapologetic presentation of scientific consensus of evolution, with emphasis on what science hasn't figured out and how we're not the perfect "end" to that process.
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Mar 17, 2014 03:06
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If human beings ever went to Titan, we wouldn't go to visit, but to invade. It would be an attack on it.
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Mar 17, 2014 03:09
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SaxMaverick posted:As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life. end the thread
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Mar 17, 2014 03:11
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SaxMaverick posted:As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life.
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Mar 17, 2014 03:18
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SaxMaverick posted:As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life. I'll someday be a poor jaded grad student that hates life, but at least this reminds me that it'll be worth it.
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Mar 17, 2014 03:21
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Command Ant posted:If human beings ever went to Titan, we wouldn't go to visit, but to invade. But who would be the prey and the hunters?
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Mar 17, 2014 03:22
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SaxMaverick posted:As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life. God being a grad student sucks so much.
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Mar 17, 2014 04:24
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That was a fun watch. Tardigrades and the eye sequence were particularly fascinating. I sure wonder what that Oklahoma TV station that cut the bit about evolution from the first episode did this time around.
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Mar 17, 2014 04:33
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double negative posted:That was a fun watch. Tardigrades and the eye sequence were particularly fascinating. I sure wonder what that Oklahoma TV station that cut the bit about evolution from the first episode did this time around. "Muslims attacked our broadcasting tower!" Command Ant posted:If human beings ever went to Titan, we wouldn't go to visit, but to invade. Coming tomorrow: the announcement that the oil companies are forming their own space program.
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Mar 17, 2014 04:56
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OhSnapGangsta posted:God being a grad student sucks so much. Try doing it and working full time 
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Mar 17, 2014 05:01
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I wish they'd gone more into what commonalities all Earth life share at the DNA level. That part about trees and people having the same mechanism for metabolizing sugar was neat; they could have sprinkled more of those facts into that whole DNA sequence.
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Mar 17, 2014 05:20
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This is the best show on TV.
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Mar 17, 2014 05:31
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I liked this episode better than the first one -- it was a lot more focused. Only real objection is that it's not longer, but on topics like this show covers you can spend your whole life studying the science behind every single sentence. It's not like you can fit fractal complexity into a 45 minute show. It'd just be nice if they could!
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Mar 17, 2014 05:39
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OhSnapGangsta posted:God being a grad student sucks so much. For me it was one of the best times of my life. Stressful, but you get to do whatever you're interested in for 5-7 years and you're surrounded by like-minded young people who are interested in the same sorts of things you are. As long as you have a good advisor and don't care about money, grad school is awesome. If you do care about money, what the gently caress are you doing going to grad school?
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Mar 17, 2014 05:47
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Darth Windu posted:Mmhmm. How many has he published again? Published research articles? Thirteen. If you want to pick apart all of his accomplishments he has compiled them here for you.
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Mar 17, 2014 05:51
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That was a really loving good episode of TV. I thought they hit almost all the right notes at the right times, and it didn't fall flat at any point the way the first episode did. I was a little concerned that they were going to do The Evolution Episode so early but it went really well. Starting with the artificial selection of dogs and then going straight into an easy, obvious mutation that most people can understand (fur color of a predator making it easier for them to catch prey) was a good introduction.
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Mar 17, 2014 06:01
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Forgot to mention this last week, but I really like how the title card starts as CS and then expands into COSMOS. Nice little tribute to Carl Sagan, right there in the title.
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Mar 17, 2014 06:03
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I knew episode 1 was going to do an overall summary of all the subjects that were going to be covered. Now that episode 2 has gotten into the details, the quality of this new Cosmos series really shines through. Overall it was a great episode; the eye evolution segment was awesome.
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Mar 17, 2014 06:08
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Meanwhile, in Oklahoma: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J62JQ3yBXds
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Mar 17, 2014 06:22
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Well, second episode in and I'm convinced. The moment this show is released as a complete set on DVD or Blu Ray or whatever, I'll be in line throwing my money at the person behind the cash register.
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Mar 17, 2014 06:27
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SaxMaverick posted:As soon as I realized it was about genetics, it made me remember that becoming a geneticist wasn't always the process of being a poor, jaded graduate student that hated life. Yeah, watching this show is one of the few times that I've regretted leaving science. Edit: Then I go to bed on a pile of money next to my beautiful wife.
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Mar 17, 2014 06:32
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Maxwell Lord posted:We need to send probes to Titan at once. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrnuGAQroXQ
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Mar 17, 2014 06:33
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I felt like I needed a postcoital cigarette after tonight's episode. Tonight it went from being a "decent science documentary series" to being COSMOS. And by god, if they release a blu-ray set of both series I will be all over that poo poo like a meat dress on Lady Gaga.
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Mar 17, 2014 07:03
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Hazo posted:I wish they'd talk more about the concept of common ancestry instead of that cheesy plant->fish->monkey->human thing they did at the end. That's still one of the big persistent misconceptions about evolutionary theory and is why you get the "if we came from monkeys why are there still monkeys" idiots. Regy Rusty posted:Yeah that was the one thing I didn't like. That imagery is so pervasive in the minds of the public, and should really be avoided altogether. But then I guess they wanted to put in the throwback to Sagan's stuff.
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Mar 17, 2014 08:12
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This show is beautifully magical. It never fails to make me tear up at some point.
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Mar 17, 2014 08:29
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Great episode. So much better than last week. I'm a fan if they keep this up.
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Mar 17, 2014 08:46
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This show is fantastic and easily the one I look forward to the most. NDT is a superb host! I posted on facebook about it and my 16 year old niece who has trouble in school and posts in purposely misspelled gibberish was the first person to agree and say she loved it as well.  So glad that stuff like this is reaching her demographic.
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Mar 17, 2014 10:02
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Regy Rusty posted:I'll someday be a poor jaded grad student that hates life, but at least this reminds me that it'll be worth it.
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Mar 17, 2014 11:46
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AstroZamboni posted:I felt like I needed a postcoital cigarette after tonight's episode. Tonight it went from being a "decent science documentary series" to being COSMOS. Yeah it was a fantastic episode and waiting a bit to watch it without commercials vastly improved the experience.
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Mar 17, 2014 12:38
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I have to say Neil Tyson's acting is actually pretty drat good here. It's subtle but these looks of wonder he gets, or in Titan when he goes under the sea and has an aura of concern and uncertainty about this dangerous environment, or in the hall of extinction where he seems overwhelmed by its enormity for a moment, is really good.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:18
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greatn posted:I have to say Neil Tyson's acting is actually pretty drat good here. It's subtle but these looks of wonder he gets, or in Titan when he goes under the sea and has an aura of concern and uncertainty about this dangerous environment, or in the hall of extinction where he seems overwhelmed by its enormity for a moment, is really good. I do think he could've added to the "Hall of Extinction" segment by doing more than hinting passively that the empty hall was reserved for us, especially after offering the viewpoint that we consider ourselves special earlier in the program.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:25
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BIG HEADLINE posted:I do think he could've added to the "Hall of Extinction" segment by doing more than hinting passively that the empty hall was reserved for us, especially after offering the viewpoint that we consider ourselves special earlier in the program. I liked NDT pointing at the unlabeled hall of extinction and going "Uh yeah about that, we'll fuckin get to that don't you worry." His version of the "Who Speaks for Earth?" episode ought to be one to watch.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:28
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Did this episode spark any controversy in the US yet? Given that it was all about evolution.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:32
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Combat Pretzel posted:Did this episode spark any controversy in the US yet? Given that it was all about evolution. I'm sure some poo poo will come out of the south today, considering it's been said in this thread that some station in Oklahoma cut stuff out of the first episode.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:38
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Maduo posted:I liked NDT pointing at the unlabeled hall of extinction and going "Uh yeah about that, we'll fuckin get to that don't you worry." His version of the "Who Speaks for Earth?" episode ought to be one to watch. Whenever I want to remind myself how resilient and stubborn the planet is when it comes to life, I punch this up on Google Earth:  I can't imagine I'd want to spend much time on "Namu" even today, but that's plant life existing next to the epicenter of a 15 megaton groundburst, and visible coral reefs (though sparse) under the water.
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Mar 17, 2014 13:40
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I thought Polar Bear fur wasn't white, but 'clear' (prob not correct term)? He kept saying white. Or am I recalling another science show incorrectly?
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Mar 17, 2014 14:08
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PowerBuilder3 posted:I thought Polar Bear fur wasn't white, but 'clear' (prob not correct term)? He kept saying white. Or am I recalling another science show incorrectly? I'm pretty sure polar bear fur is transparent; but it would have taken more time to explain diffraction of light etc. than to just call it white.
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Mar 17, 2014 14:26
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PowerBuilder3 posted:I thought Polar Bear fur wasn't white, but 'clear' (prob not correct term)? He kept saying white. Or am I recalling another science show incorrectly? Yes, the fur is technically transparent and was thought at one time to work as "optical fibers" that allowed the sun to warm the dark skin underneath, but has since been disproven. It's still transparent, though, but appears as white. But this fact is irrelevant for the point that the show was trying to make, which was the white fur allowed them to be better hunters.
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Mar 17, 2014 14:27
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BIG HEADLINE posted:I do think he could've added to the "Hall of Extinction" segment by doing more than hinting passively that the empty hall was reserved for us, especially after offering the viewpoint that we consider ourselves special earlier in the program. The synopsis that I posted indicated that this is the first visit to the hall of extinction, which implies we'll be back in a future episode.
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