Today, July 21, 2011, an age of exploration and discovery came to an end.
Rarely does a simple youtube video re-invigorate my imagination and stir my emotions like this great compilation of the NASA Space Transportation System (STS) program by nature video.
From the summary:
The Space Shuttle fleet delivered the Hubble Space Telescope, the International Space Station, and dozens of satellites, space probes, crew and supplies. Two Shuttles were lost: Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003. The touchdown of Atlantis at Kennedy Space Center marked the end of an era, after 135 missions. This video shows all of them in chronological order. http://www.nature.com/spaceshuttle
As the great astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson put it on July 8, the day of the final shuttle launch:
Many lament the shuttle era's end. But that's misplaced sentiment. Lament instead the absence of an era to replace it.
-@neiltyson (Neil deGrasse Tyson), 8-7-2011 13:30:35
Where do we go from here as Americans? Where do our dreams lie, if not in the great universe around us? Russia and China continue while we stop. What’s next? What will the next generation dream about as children? Will space be a thing of science fiction or a reachable, accessible experience to them? Will space travel be a product of business? I am completely ignorant of all that lies ahead.
Thank you, NASA, for the Shuttle program. It was grand.
For those of you with Netflix Streaming, clear some time to watch The Nature of Existence, a fabulous documentary by Roger Nygard! I had the pleasure of attending a screening of The Nature of Existence here in Chicago.
Roger Nygard travels to the sources of the world’s major philosophies and talks to everyone from physicist Leonard Susskind to Ultimate Christian Wrestling founder Rob Adonis to answer the questions, Why are we here and what are we supposed to do? Spiritual leaders, scholars, scientists, artists, pizza chefs and the guy next door inform this humorously enlightening documentary about the nature and meaning of life.
The film raises many questions about the nature of life, religion, the universe, morality, and our relationships to one another. I especially loved seeing many cultures and perspectives represented in this snapshot of the diversity of ideas. What an adventure and privilege to interview such amazing people. Lucky Nygard; I’m jealous! You can watch a trailer and read more about this film here.
Isn’t this cute? Kids just want to be sheep instead of, you know, humans that think for themselves 
I learned this song in Sunday School back in the day. Sure, Jesus was the “shepherd” and I, as a sheep, would follow him gladly… but who wants to be likened to a herd of rather stupid animals that follow blindly where they are lead? Poor sheep…
I love the comic brilliance of Dan Aykroyd. I have such fond memories of watching him act on Saturday Night Live and in films such as Ghost Busters and The Blues Brothers.
And then my mind was blown. He is so much more.
My flat mate introduced me to this man’s passion for the paranormal and love for conspiracy theories. He’s even a Hollywood spokesperson for The Mutual UFO Network (MUFON).
Did you know Dan Aykroyd made vodka?
This video was the sole reason we bought Crystal Head Vodka. We just could not contain our mirth. The bottle is now sitting on our bookcase, and the vodka is actually rather tasty.
For all you Netflix members, there’s an interview-posing-as-documentary on Netflix Streaming called “Dan Aykroyd Unplugged on UFOs” that is just as hilarious as any UFO believer raving on about the topic—except this is Dan Aykroyd being serious, which makes it even more funny to me. The description on Netflix reads: “Skeptics beware!” So obviously, skeptics should grab the popcorn and enjoy this failure of a documentary. I can’t even describe the terrible narration by the interviewer, cheap camcorder production value, and the graphics. Glorious.
I think Aykroyd might just be the most entertaining rambler of all time:
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