Flash Past

Interesting facts of the amazing Universe

Show Notes

We follow suit from last week’s podcast on the Griffith Observatory and venture deeper into the universe as we know it. Our quest starts with considering the vast age of the universe, its origins, and its construct. The gravitational pull takes us into the specifics of Jupiter, Saturn, the Sun, and our Moon. With some fascinating structures such as black holes, galaxies, pulsars, comets, and moons, there is so many interesting facts and figures that can be shared with your friends and family members. How much debris is circulating in space? Is the Moon really moving away from mother Earth? And, how dense really is a black hole? All the answers to the questions and so many more are here in this week’s Flash Past. Sit back, enjoy, and let your mind venture into the world of the universe as we know it.

Click these links for some more interesting facts about the Universe
- Are stars and the sun the same thing?
- Universe Today
- SkyGaze
- Cool Space Facts
- Universe Facts
 
Last Weeks Question:
Q: Since reopening in 2006, how many students has the Griffith Observatory School Field Trip Program invited to the observatory?
A: 85,000 fifth-grade student, over 2500 teachers, over 1000 schools

This week’s question:
Q: How far away is our own Sun in miles?
 
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A look at the history of the Griffith Observatory

Show Notes

Located in the heart of the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles, the Griffith Observatory sits nestled high on a cliff on Mt. Hollywood over looking all of Los Feliz, Silverlake, Hollywood, Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, West Hollywood, out to the Pacific Ocean and down to LAX. The observatory is home to a wide array of space exhibits, a planetarium and several huge telescopes. Colonel Griffith Jenkins Griffith had a dream of building a park inspired by science, focused on changing the human perspective, and advancing the education of the community. Join us as we flash past to the beauty, the awe, and the iconic nature of The Griffith Observatory.

A brief history of the Observatory
Renovation after 67 years of operations
Wikipedia

Last weeks Question:

Q: Based on studies, which has a better short term memory, a cat or a dog?

A: Cats have better short term memories than dogs. Tests conducted by the University of Michigan concluded that while a dogs memory lasts no more than 5 minutes, a cat’s can last as long as 16 hours – exceeding even that of monkeys and orangutans.

This week’s question:

Q: Since reopening in 2006, how many students has the Griffith Observatory School Field Trip Program invited to the observatory?

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The History of Domestic Animals

Show Notes

The history of pets and people has a very interesting origin. We often forget that our furry, dirty, scaly, and smelly friends once took care of themselves out there in Mother Nature. We have brought them into our homes either for companionship, friendship, protection, or ornamental reasons. Whatever the case may be, how did domestication start. Birds were originally domesticated for communication purposes while cats were domesticated for rodent and pest control. What other animals and things have we domesticated over the years: plants, goats, cows, ferrets, snakes, sheep, alpacas, llamas, pigeons, horses!! The list could go on for days and this is the path we take you down on this week’s Flash Past podcast. We hope you enjoy learning about the early domestication of animals as we venture down the path of animal history.