Astronomy From May 2016

Magus (Pty) Ltd. and CST – Computer Simulation Technology AG (CST) announce the release of Antenna Magus 2017.3, the latest version of the leading antenna design tool. Version 2017.3 sees a number of small new features and improvements as well as a number of new antennas.

TO A NATION enthralled by the heroic exploits of the Mercury astronauts, the launch of Lt. Cmdr. Scott Carpenter on NASA’s second orbital space flight was a renewed cause for pride, jubilation and celebration. Within hours, that excitement had given way to stunned disbelief and anxiety as shaken broadcasters began preparing the American public for the very real possibility that an American astronaut and his spacecraft may have been lost at sea.

Mainstream SETI scientists and ancient alien theorists don’t agree on much, but one opinion they share is that the undisputed authority on the possibility of alien existence was the late Carl Sagan (1934—1996), whose voluminous writings on the subject have had a profound influence on ETI research.

What can fashionable ideas, blind faith, or pure fantasy possibly have to do with the scientific quest to understand the universe? Surely, theoretical physicists are immune to mere trends, dogmatic beliefs, or flights of fancy?