NASA's announcement....

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**Monster Rain**

That would be muy underwhelming.

**Manchu**

Yesh, I think we'd better wait until the announcement begins.

**Monster Rain**

Fox News is talking about the Announcement being about arsenic-eating bacteria.

I hope this is an indication that this won't be the subject of the press release.

For God's sake, anyone with a modicum of Sci-Fi background and common sense knows that life could be based on something other than oxygen and water. If you hear a lapping sound in 45 minutes it will be the echo of millions of nerds facepalming simultaneously.

**Manchu**

Monster Rain wrote:Fox News is talking about the Announcement being about arsenic-eating bacteria.

And not Titan, moon of Mars?

**Monster Rain**

Manchu wrote:And not Titan, moon of Mars?

I thought the Titans were from Tennessee?

**ShumaGorath**

Manchu wrote:So NASA was announcing something already publsihed in Science magazine?

...When?

**Manchu**

And so we're back to Fox's headline: aliens among us! Next Fox story: "'alien' bacteria take American jobs, drain government resources."

Automatically Appended Next Post:

ShumaGorath wrote:
Manchu wrote:So NASA was announcing something already publsihed in Science magazine?
...When?

See:

BBC wrote:The find, described in Science, gives weight to the long-standing idea that life on other planets may have a radically different chemical makeup.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11886943

See also: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/308/5726/1221.14.full?sid=ef4d6214-25be-414a-ace9-f4acf5b21284-11886943

May 2005

:/

**Monster Rain**

Alien bacteria! They refuse to learn how to speak English!

**Manchu**

They took our arsenic!

**ShumaGorath**

Manchu wrote:And so we're back to Fox's headline: aliens among us! Next Fox story: "'alien' bacteria take American jobs, drain government resources."

Automatically Appended Next Post:

ShumaGorath wrote:
Manchu wrote:So NASA was announcing something already publsihed in Science magazine?
...When?
See:
BBC wrote:The find, described in Science, gives weight to the long-standing idea that life on other planets may have a radically different chemical makeup.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11886943

See also: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/308/5726/1221.14.full?sid=ef4d6214-25be-414a-ace9-f4acf5b21284-11886943

May 2005

:/

That BBC article is dated today and I don't have access to that sciencemag article.

**Manchu**

Neither do I, but the bibliographical data in that link says "Arsenic-Loving Anaerobic Bacteria, Science 27 May 2005: 1221."

**avantgarde**

It's literally a paragraph:

Arsenic contamination of subsurface aquifers may be mediated in part by microbial processes. Oremland et al. (p. 1305) demonstrate the occurrence of a full biogeochemical cycle of arsenic in a hypersaline alkaline lake, Searle's Lake in California. The ecosystem of the lake is driven by inorganic donors such as hydrogen and hydrogen sulfide, which combine to make an arsenic-based redox system ecologically viable. An extremophile haloalkaliphilic bacterium of the Halanaerobacteriales family was isolated that thrives in this extremely toxic environment by respiring arsenate oxyanions in the As(V) state.

There's a second link in the above paragraph linking to a more complete report. This is the abstract:

Searles Lake is a salt-saturated, alkaline brine unusually rich in the toxic element arsenic. Arsenic speciation changed from arsenate [As(V)] to arsenite [As(III)] with sediment depth. Incubated anoxic sediment slurries displayed dissimilatory As(V)-reductase activity that was markedly stimulated by H2 or sulfide, whereas aerobic slurries had rapid As(III)-oxidase activity. An anaerobic, extremely haloalkaliphilic bacterium was isolated from the sediment that grew via As(V) respiration, using either lactate or sulfide as its electron donor. Hence, a full biogeochemical cycle of arsenic occurs in Searles Lake, driven in part by inorganic electron donors.

**Manchu**

Uh, thanks. Point being that BBC's article seems a speculative regurgitation of past news--not necessarily what NASA may talk about in 18 minutes.

**ShumaGorath**

Is what the BBC article states the same as what that sciencemag article states?

**avantgarde**

Essentially yes, they're talking about bacteria grown in labs using arsenic. But the BBC article and Sciencemag article are talking about different lakes.

The BBC article talks about Mono lake which is in the eastern central area of California while the ScienceMag is focusing on bacteria in Searle's Lake which is located in the Mojave desert. In the ScienceMag report they state they've already done testing on bacteria from Mono lake and were performing a similar experiment on bacteria from Searle's lake.

**Mr Mystery**

Have NASA said owt yet?

**avantgarde**

It's here live:

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

Alternate: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/02/nasa-announcement-live-ne_n_791166.html

It's about the arsenic bacteria. NASA oversells again...

**ShumaGorath**

avantgarde wrote:It's here live:

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

It's about the arsenic bacteria. NASA oversells again...

Won't play for me.

**Chibi Bodge-Battle**

Monster Rain wrote:Fox News is talking about the Announcement being about arsenic-eating bacteria.

I hope this is an indication that this won't be the subject of the press release.

For God's sake, anyone with a modicum of Sci-Fi background and common sense knows that life could be based on something other than oxygen and water. If you hear a lapping sound in 45 minutes it will be the echo of millions of nerds facepalming simultaneously.

That would be so cool
but it would be even better if it could start at NASA and travel westwards as a global mexican wave
henceforth to be known as the NASA Nutslap

It alliterates and nut slap sounds more onomapaeic but maybe not

**kronk**

Well, the only thing I can find is the arsenic bacteria, so I guess that was it.

Edit: Spelling is hard.

**Kilkrazy**

Arsenic bacteria.

They once sat down on a spare razor blade by accident.

**KingCracker**

avantgarde wrote:It's here live:

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

Alternate: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/02/nasa-announcement-live-ne_n_791166.html

It's about the arsenic bacteria. NASA oversells again...

Thats how I felt too. Yea its cool and all, and I see the potential of this finding but uhm............. as stated earlier, any and all sci fi geeks already knew that was possible. Ive truly believed for years that looking for life on Earth like bodies was a bit short sighted. But hey, what can ya do. Like in ym first post.......dust on a lens....hurray

**Manchu**

Wait but why is NASA announcing something published in Science magazine some six months ago?

**sebster**

I'm sure there's a pun to be found around Arsenic and Old Lace, but buggered if I can think of it.

**Chibi Bodge-Battle**

If only the microbes had been discovered in Mexico.

you could have had:

Arsenic and Oles.

**Monster Rain**

Or if it was discovered by one of the surviving Tuskeegee Airmen.

Arsenic and Old Ace.

**Chibi Bodge-Battle**

on an asteroid or comet (sorta like the news we hoped for)

Arsenic and Cold Space.

edit:Betchya wished you never mentioned it now Sebster, eh, dontchya?

edit:Was going to add
Or in your Christmas pressie from Auntie Nell

Arsenic and Old Spice.
but that would be punning my own pun, which is jolly bad form even if suitably seasonal.

**Monster Rain**

Or if it was on a piece of old bread.

Arsenic and mold taste.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
I read about it in the newspaper.

It said:

"Arsenic" in bold face.

**sebster**

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:edit:Betchya wished you never mentioned it now Sebster, eh, dontchya?

Nah, these are good, and put my complete blank on the pun to shame. Arsenic and Oles made me laugh out loud.

**Chibi Bodge-Battle**

You would have to be careful if discovered on a dog

Arselick and then face.