Slog
News & ArtsFriday, October 19, 2012
Science Something Shiny on Mars
Posted by Charles Mudede on Fri, Oct 19, 2012 at 7:28 AM
It looks kind of precious.
- NASA
We [humans] are not more critical than animals, but more object-oriented, filling our minds with all present and absent objects, all geographical and astronomical places, all species of animal, all flavors of juice, all players from the history of baseball, all living and dead languages.
Most of all, humans love shiny objects.
2
It would be funny if it's gold just lying all over the planet. There's no cost effective way of getting it back here.
4
Well, there were diamonds just laying on the beach when South Africa was first colonized. I don't suppose it would be impossible for that to happen on Mars also.
5
If Mars were covered with precious metals, they wouldn't be precious anymore. The only reason gold is valuable is because it's (relatively) rare. If we found a planet covered with it, the future of gold as a valuable metal would be nonexistent.
7
I just went to an art exhibit about shiny objects. They claimed that humans are naturally drawn to shiny things because it reminds us of water and sunlight.
8
Bower birds, packrats, magpies, and many other creatures love and collect shiny objects too. Almost nothing humans do is unique, except perhaps destroying our own habitat.
9
@5: Nope. It does have substantial use-value (as opposed to its considerable fetish-value). It's quite important in electronics as a coating for connectors and suchlike, as it is easily worked, conducts electricity well, and does not corrode.
10
What worries me is what ever happened to the secret NASA mission to send gold-seeking squirrels to Mars.
We managed to adapt them to the atmosphere, but I'm not sure if their laser eyes are functioning correctly.
We managed to adapt them to the atmosphere, but I'm not sure if their laser eyes are functioning correctly.
11
It's obviously magnetite, from a wayward meteorite --- don't ask me how I know these things, I just know them.......
13
@9,
Yes, you're right of course. Gold has great practical value as a conductor.
I was only speaking of its Fort Knox, Glenn Beck, shiny thing value.
Yes, you're right of course. Gold has great practical value as a conductor.
I was only speaking of its Fort Knox, Glenn Beck, shiny thing value.
14
@8- Almost every other animal will destroy their habitat if their population isn't controlled. Humanity managed to throw off the shackles of most population controls in the past ten thousand years.
15
@14 good thing we sent the kangaroo-coyote hybrids to Mars too. That should keep the gold squirrels in check.
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