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Syera Cynical Scribe

Joined: 03 Jul 2005 Posts: 3441 Location: West Nenūvān
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Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:26 am Post subject: Aladdinic Influences in Scientific Stupidity |
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National Geographic held a contest to come up with a new mnemonic for remembering the planets: Mercery, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, and Eris.
The fact that three of these things just don't belong here seems to have no effect on NG.
The winner of this contest: My Very Exciting Magic Carpet Just Sailed Under Nine Palace Elephants.
Okay, so it doesn't explicitly say "Aladdin," but the Aladdin-related vocabulary is there. (Most strongly the inclusion of the word 'palace,' which most children will hear spoken more in Aladdin's under-two-hour run than they will hear in six months in the real world.)
Aladdin influences or not, though, NG's blunder is still head-bang worthy. If you're going to include Eris, why doesn't Charon make the mark? (It's only slightly smaller than Pluto.) And what about the other Kuiper belt objects that are just as big as Pluto?
http://www.badastronomy.com/bablog/2008/02/28/my-contest-goes-to-11/ _________________
Weblog | SH.net | Ed-sprite by Janette |
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Calluna Genie of the Messageboard

Joined: 14 Jul 2004 Posts: 3692 Location: Where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain.
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Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 7:17 pm Post subject: |
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Actually, someone just posted about this in one of the off-topic forums, and the kid did come out and admit that she was thinking of Aladdin.
http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2008/02/27/11_planet/index.html _________________ "If only I could believe you. Perhaps I can! After all... you do bear the name of a flower." -- Arbutus |
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Syera Cynical Scribe

Joined: 03 Jul 2005 Posts: 3441 Location: West Nenūvān
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Posted: Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:27 pm Post subject: |
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Oh, geeze... and according to the article they're printing a book on the twelve planets. NG fails BIG TIME.
I'd about bet part of the reason is because twelve is a more important-sounding number (certainly it has more mystical significance) than eight. >_< _________________
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persian85033 Elemental

Joined: 27 May 2005 Posts: 2061 Location: Agrabah(I wish)
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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 9:03 pm Post subject: |
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That's awesome. _________________ "I too am a member of your species, Captain, or I was. Perhaps I am not anymore. Perhaps you are right in thinking of me as an alien. I know I am different from you. You see-I do not kill." |
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