M.J. Rose

Where can one eat a lavish underground dinner in a restaurant illuminated by giant salt-crystal chandeliers, and then visit with the seven dwarves near an underground lake, and then stop over in several chapels and a cathedral if you fancy?

Why, the Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland of course…

(From Atlas Obscura)

“The Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland is the epitome of technological human progress. The beginnings of the current mine are believed to have been primitively excavated after the discovery of a rock salt deposit in ancient times. In the middle ages, salt became recognized as one of the most important staples in the food and preservation industry, leading to the advancement of salt mining technology and further excavation. During the Renaissance, the mine was one of the largest business ventures in Europe. It was around this time that royal tourists started to flock to the mine, lured there in part by the developing Renaissance taste for humanism and culture…”

For the photo album and more, click here.

How long will it be before we find an earth-like planet with actual signs of life? At the rate we’re going, if there is life out there at all, we are going to find it soon…possibly in our lifetime.

Scientists: We’re ‘very close’ to finding another Earth

By Suzanne Presto, CNN

(CNN) — Scientists looking for signs of life in the universe — as well as another planet like our own — are a lot closer to their goal than people realize.

That was the consensus of a panel on the search for life in the universe held at NASA headquarters Monday in Washington. The discussion focused not only on the philosophical question of whether we’re alone in the universe but also on the technological advances made in an effort to answer that question.

“We believe we’re very, very close in terms of technology and science to actually finding the other Earth and our chance to find signs of life on another world,” said Sara Seager, a MacArthur Fellow and professor of planetary science and physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

“Finding Earth’s twin, that’s kind of the holy grail,” said John Grunsfeld, an astronaut who helped repair the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009 and is now an associate administrator at NASA….”

For the rest, and some spectacular images, click here.

Isaac Asimov was a true futurist —

For example, he predicted this:

“Communications will become sight-sound and you will see as well as hear the person you telephone. The screen can be used not only to see the people you call but also for studying documents and photographs and reading passages from books. Synchronous satellites, hovering in space will make it possible for you to direct-dial any spot on earth…”

We Live in the Future Nobody Predicted

(Mysterious Universe blog)

“Flash back to the 1964 World’s Fair. One of the greatest science fiction writers of your generation, someone who is also a well-respected science writer with a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Columbia University, makes a series of relatively modest predictions about the year 2014. If there were, say, a Mysterious Universe radio show covering the fair, Isaac Asimov’s predictions would be among the top stories, and for good reason.

Now, with the benefit of hindsight, we look back on the article…and most of us agree that Isaac Asimov did incredibly well, because we’ve gotten so accustomed to off-the-wall predictions that Asimov’s stand out as reasonable…”

Read the rest here, at Mysterious Universe.

What do you think the world will be like in another fifty years? Please share your predictions below in the comments section. M.J. and The Museum of Mysteries would like to hear your ideas…