March 19, 2002

9:13 AM

Clueless! But wouldn't this have made a big dent in the middle east peace process?
posted by BentPenguin (28 comments total)

Pun unintended (no, really!)
posted by BentPenguin at 9:16 AM on March 19, 2002

*Groan* As if we haven't had enough excuses around here to sling mud, we have completely unrelated post baiting people. Excellent. I look forward to the upcoming flame war.
posted by BlueTrain at 9:22 AM on March 19, 2002

I like the accompanying cartoon of an asteroid about the size of the moon hitting earth. Its a little gratuitously sensational for my tastes.
posted by plaino at 9:28 AM on March 19, 2002

I like biscuits of any sort.
posted by Spoon at 9:29 AM on March 19, 2002

Ehhh, I woulda saved us. All those years getting the high score on Asteroids down at the corner arcade weren't for nothin', ya know.
posted by jonmc at 9:43 AM on March 19, 2002

jonmc's flat thumb
the savior of all mankind
quarters are well spent
posted by ColdChef at 9:48 AM on March 19, 2002

government coverup
posted by Postroad at 9:50 AM on March 19, 2002

bluetrain couldn't get anyone to climb on his pisswagon with him. too bad. [thumbs nose, waggles fingers]
posted by quonsar at 9:51 AM on March 19, 2002

My girlfreind just read that haiku and said, "ColdChef is the Basho of our time."
posted by jonmc at 9:55 AM on March 19, 2002

Another fine post
swept up and carted away
off to haiku-land
posted by luser at 9:57 AM on March 19, 2002

touche quonsar...but i'm glad to see my piss touched you in some way; it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
posted by BlueTrain at 9:59 AM on March 19, 2002

*blushes*

fine post is still fine
haiku-land is happy place
comments more thought out
posted by ColdChef at 10:04 AM on March 19, 2002

I apologize. It looks like haikus are the kiss of death to a thread.
posted by ColdChef at 10:54 AM on March 19, 2002

Well-thought out? Well, yes.
Just like the book with no "e"s
and with no readers
posted by luser at 11:06 AM on March 19, 2002

Finally! I have you alone! bwahahahahahahahahahah
posted by luser at 11:07 AM on March 19, 2002

from the article:The odds of a collision are currently 1 in 10 million and could become even more remote with more refined calculations.

That makes it sound like somehow, the calculations will have an effect on how likely the event is. Besides, do we really have a solid enough understanding of the cosmos to be able to accurately calculate the odds of something like this?
posted by bingo at 11:10 AM on March 19, 2002

It's okay ColdChef, my rantings probably didn't help the thread all that much. If you would prefer, we could simply fault the front page post. No sense in taking all, if any, of the blame.
posted by BlueTrain at 11:13 AM on March 19, 2002

"could become more remote. . ." or more probable!

refined calculations RULE!
posted by computerface at 11:15 AM on March 19, 2002

Or they don't!
posted by dong_resin at 11:24 AM on March 19, 2002

do we really have a solid enough understanding of the cosmos to be able to accurately calculate the odds of something like this?


The article is poorly worded but I think the one in 10 million refers to the odds of that one asteroid hitting the Earth in 2093! And this is an asteroid we didnt see coming in the first place! What are the odds of any asteroid (above Tunguska size) hitting us in the next, say 100 years? Who knows?

There is also evidence that Tunguska was not the most recent Tunguska, so to speak.
posted by vacapinta at 11:26 AM on March 19, 2002

That makes it sound like somehow, the calculations will have an effect on how likely the event is.
Actually they'll just be lulling themselves into complacency with numbers, when what we need to be doing is to get the hell out into space and map the asteroids before the next extinction-level rock comes along.
posted by darukaru at 11:36 AM on March 19, 2002

Whatever the odds, they increase by a factor of 1,000,000,000,000 or so when you account for the likelihood of it hitting me.
posted by luser at 11:39 AM on March 19, 2002

Um, chef. Ever hear the expression "too much of a good thing"? Besides. Haiku has its time and place--especially its place [nudge nudge]
posted by jpoulos at 12:05 PM on March 19, 2002

oops, i meant to post this here.
posted by kliuless at 1:02 PM on March 19, 2002

Arrogant mefites
lament thread integrity.
Some things never change.
posted by SilentSalamander at 5:29 PM on March 19, 2002

I mentioned 2002 EM7 on my page a couple days ago (except that I quoted and linked to the New Scientist article), and it's drawing more Google hits than my passing mention of the Fighting Whities. What's strange is that a few of the Google-searchers on this asteroid business are from dot-mil and dot-gov domains. (Still using Netscape 3 and 4. Sure, it could be a spoofed user-agent string, but I sorta doubt it, given they're clueless enough to look for intel on my site in the first place.)
posted by StOne at 11:16 PM on March 19, 2002

Jackass old timers
Believed to be know-it-alls
But are never here
posted by BlueTrain at 9:19 AM on March 20, 2002

old tyme re-li-jun
is no excuse to not get
jiggy with je-SUS!
posted by kliuless at 10:13 AM on March 20, 2002