Now, I’m not going to write a post answering that question. Instead, I invite you to explore that on your own and I’m talking about Habitable Worlds online course. It’s going to be launched soon.
HabWorlds is a powerful adaptive learning platform with scientifically accurate simulations and informative lectures, and will allow you to experience science beyond dry observations and facts.
What I like about the idea here is that the course is organized around the Drake Equation and puts together stars, planets, habitability, life, intelligence, technology, and sustainability. (Not to mention that I really enjoyed the music from this video.)
This is SO cool! Thanks!
Always welcome 😀
Ooh thanks Jeno! This looks a great find – I also like the music. Plus their website is pretty and well designed. I’ll have to share it with The World Building School and Guild. Do you know if this is a free course or if you have to pay for it?
It’s a free course. Pretty much like coursera.org stuff.
That is fantastic. Well I’ve signed up 🙂
Interesting, I write a bit of Sci-Fi and didn’t know there was a course on modelling stellar systems.
Hi Cameron,
Thanks for stopping by my blog.
To my knowledge, this course is more Astrobiology, not exactly modeling stellar systems. If you want to build models, try digging through my other articles here: http://jenomarz.com/worldbuilding-101-contents/ (I do plenty of modeling.)
Oy, the modelling appears to be above my skill level, I’m a bit technologically impaired.
The fun part with stellar systems is the biology is very much a part of it from the beginning, whether it’s right-handed or left-handed nucleic acids present in the initial disk or the development of self-replicating life forms.
I’ll stop back by, both the astrobiology and system modelling look interesting even if the math loses me.
Well, the math here is not that horrible if you know what you are building—you use basic calculus, formulas, and spreadsheets (or specific software with some input). Modeling is not that scary as some might think. Except, maybe, 3D atmospheric/ocean dynamics models. I haven’t gotten past setting up the environment stage myself yet.
Cheers, J
Ah, calculus, the bane of my formative years and an arch-nemesis. “Cry havoc and loose the hounds of calculus!”
The first time I posited a stellar system (several years ago, using a large quantity of paper and several pencils) I finally resorted to use of the ‘Stellar Dartboard’ — once I was able to find a calculator I found my initial assumptions weren’t that far off.
Once I get through the current project I’ll be able to get a better idea of how the tools in question work.
Regarding the atmospheric / oceanic models versus environments, the three are inextricably interrelated, as one part alters the others alter as well. In order to properly visualize the connections, you’d probably need one of the IBM arrays that can graphically model catastrophic fission or fusion events.
Well, no need for an array. MITgcm works fine on a laptop/desktop. You’d need Linux (Ubuntu 10.10 would do fine) and some average processing power. Any modeling takes time.
Apologies, I remember computers with punch cards and I guess some of the software has gotten better.
I suppose if I understood the math better, what I ‘run through’ with my visual cortex would better match what the computers come up with.
Oh well, back to the salt mine, have a great afternoon.
And a good day to you too.
Thanks again for stopping by. It happens here rarely. 😉
Ah, came up for air so to speak and saw the reply email.
You’ve an interesting subject board, why would people rarely stop by?
Because I post rarely (I’m not that an avid blogger); gaining readership is hard task. So anyone joining the small crowd is a good thing.
I understand, if forced to choose between blogging and the worlds and characters ‘waiting to have their stories’ told writing wins out.
That’s true. I’d rather be writing books, occasionally posting interesting things about the process.
I probably should start a blog, but I doubt a morning spent going through Barycenter calculations would elicit much interest.
The afternoon of writing though, a very different story…