astro_nerd

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Men of Reddit, what is the most bromantic thing your friend has ever done for you? by givinatorin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 1 point2 points ago

I am a doctor who leads a diagnostic team. My best friend of many, many years, an oncologist, recently developed cancer. I have had a hard time dealing with the grief of the situation, and at first, I didn't want to let him refuse chemo, as his tumor was not responding to treatment.

He broke down to me in his car and asked that I just be with him and tell him that I love him. Out of fear, I said no, not until he accepts chemo.

Realizing I'd rather spend a few good months with my friend than zero months with my ex-friend, I returned to him later with my full support. It isn't fair that my fucked up leg puts me in chronic pain every day, but it's also not fair for me to put him through chronic pain, either. I can't live without Dr. Wilson.

I'm at my wits end Reddit. My SO is fat and refuses to do anything about it. by Throw_a_way22in AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 0 points1 point ago

Acknowledging the burden of blame is fair in this situation as long as it isn't used to belittle or attack the person.

More parking lots should look like this by JKastnerPhotoin pics

[–]astro_nerd 0 points1 point ago

Also, it could give parking lot owners another reason to charge for parking, even in non-urban areas...

Smoothie mix! Just add: all the ingredients of a smoothie. by nazgul_hunterin funny

[–]astro_nerd 63 points64 points ago

Careful, don't forget to swallow, lil bud :D

What prevents us from swallowing air when we breathe? by astro_nerdin askscience

[–]astro_nerd[S] 0 points1 point ago

Thank you for confirming my teacher. I was talking with my brother about this, and we concluded that there must also be vacuum pressure sucking up most of the air from the pharynx into the trachea rather than the esophagus.

What prevents us from swallowing air when we breathe? by astro_nerdin askscience

[–]astro_nerd[S] 0 points1 point ago

The diagram makes it appear that the epiglottis would obstruct the trachea if it closed off the esophagus.

To all redditors in the medical field: What is one thing you wish more patients knew? by Sharkbait_ooh_ah_ahin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 2 points3 points ago

I believe there was a reason why he used a USB instead. I'll have to ask him.

To all redditors in the medical field: What is one thing you wish more patients knew? by Sharkbait_ooh_ah_ahin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 8 points9 points ago

My dad has an extremely large array of medicines because he has an odd case of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HOCM) and some other disease (can't recall name) that causes some of his heart cells to originate impulses.

Anyways, due to his lengthy Rx list, he carries a USB flashdrive with all his info on it on his car keys so that when he goes out in public, he knows that someone can find out his info quickly if his heart stops.

I have mild Pectus Excavatum(a dent in my chest) and want to get a unique tattoo that utilizes it. Any suggestions? by [deleted]in AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 1 point2 points ago

In nicer terms, it's probably something you'll regret, OP.

Amendment One passed. by counttessin triangle

[–]astro_nerd 9 points10 points ago

Of course. It sets the legal definition of a union in the eyes of the State.

What is the most unusual public restroom experience you've had? by kaptainobveeusin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 10 points11 points ago

how many pixels did you see

So I had lunch with my boyfriend's parents today and his dad paid for everyone, except me. Any charming stories from your SO's familiy, reddit? by chipkoekjesin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 285 points286 points ago

Guessing by the very fact that it happened, she's probably accustomed to being shat on by her parents.

So I had lunch with my boyfriend's parents today and his dad paid for everyone, except me. Any charming stories from your SO's familiy, reddit? by chipkoekjesin AskReddit

[–]astro_nerd 553 points554 points ago

IMO, the girlfriend should have had the backbone to stand up for herself and her boyfriend to her own parents. That's just not right.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 1 point2 points ago

Thank you! I was going to respond with this. I also love the program Celestia, which gives a 3-D interactive tour of the cosmos. However, it only seems to have specific images of the most famous objects.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 1 point2 points ago

Hey friend, great question. I didn't know right off the bat, but I did find some relevant information from Wikipedia. From the text:

Because deuterium is destroyed in the interiors of stars faster than it is produced, and because other natural processes are thought to produce only an insignificant amount of deuterium, it is presently thought that nearly all deuterium found in nature was produced in the Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago, and that the basic or primordial ratio of hydrogen-1 (protium) to deuterium (about 26 atoms of deuterium per million hydrogen) has its origin from that time.

and a bit further on...

Deuterium/protium ratios thus continue to be an active topic of research in both astronomy and climatology.

Hopefully that gives you a bit more insight. As you feared, I'm in no way qualified to answer any further than that. Keep asking questions in the future, though. Curiosity breeds innovation. :)

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 1 point2 points ago

Outside the heliopause is the bow shock, which is named for its likeness of the wake of water at the bow of a ship.

Here's an awesome picture of a star's bow shock.

I imagine that stuff in the heliopause is deflected tangentially as the star moves about the galactic center, but keep in mind one thing: we know very little about the heliosphere and its interactions with the interstellar medium. The Voyagers are feeding us our first significant data about the outer reaches of the solar system. The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX), a scientific spacecraft launched in 2008 to study the heliosphere, returned surprisingly complex initial results. One initial interpretation suggested, "Everyone agrees that it means the textbook picture of the heliosphere—in which the solar system's enveloping pocket filled with the solar wind's charged particles is plowing through the onrushing 'galactic wind' of the interstellar medium in the shape of a comet—is wrong."

That's my two cents. Hope that helped.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 4 points5 points ago

I doubt it is just sitting there. It creates an inward pressure on our solar system's magnetic field (heliosphere). Someone more qualified could explain exactly how it's moving.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 12 points13 points ago

Sorry, I was a little off. Looks like most of the material in the ISM is a remnant of what is known as primordial nucleosynthesis, which is a fancy term for stuff created during the Big Bang. Previous response edited.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 13 points14 points ago

Ah, that's where it gets a bit fuzzy! There really isn't a completely absolute line. A great example of this is our atmosphere. Where does our atmosphere end and space begin? Nowhere in particular. The gases in our atmosphere just become less and less dense. It's a very gradual transition. Humans have defined the line between Earth's atmosphere and space at an altitude of 100 km, known as the Kármán line.

Where one ends and the other begins is dependent on how they are defined. The heliopause is the region where net movement of particles to or from the Sun is zero. On the nearer side of the heliopause, where particles are slowly moving away from the Sun (producing outward pressure), is the solar wind. On the farther side, where particles are moving toward the Sun (producing inward pressure), is the interstellar medium.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 10 points11 points ago*

I actually had the same confusion you did a few minutes ago, until I found this.

Of the gas in the ISM, 89% of atoms are hydrogen and 9% are helium, with 2% of atoms being elements heavier than hydrogen or helium, which are called "metals" in astronomical parlance. The hydrogen and helium are a result of primordial nucleosynthesis, while the heavier elements in the ISM are a result of enrichment in the process of stellar evolution.

It states that 98% of the material gases in the interstellar medium is hydrogen and helium that were formed during the Big Bang. The remaining 2% is from stars. Remember that the magnetic fields of stars don't last forever - stars die and spread their flesh all over. That's what the ISM is made of. Great question!

EDIT: 99% of the material in the ISM is gas. 98% of that gas is from the Big Bang. That is, almost all of the ISM material is from the Big Bang.

What scientific data will Voyager 1 give us when it finally leaves the solar system's heliosphere? by JoeOfTexin askscience

[–]astro_nerd 7 points8 points ago

It will easily pass the heliosphere. It has already hit the termination shock, which is the region in which the solar wind has slowed down below the speed of sound because of the inward pressure from the interstellar medium. Voyager 1 is headed toward AC+793888, a star in the Camelopardis constellation.

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