Andrew Scott
Bio
Student scribbler
Stories (19/0)
A hot Jupiter that can be seen by amateurs
Are monster telescopes in world class facilities and gigantic super-expensive detectors and instruments always needed to do some real science on a planetary system outside of our solar system? After all, I showed in this article that in order to pick out the really faint signals from an exoplanet that would otherwise be lost in the glare of its parent star, professional grade equipment would be needed, of such a scale to dwarf a person standing next to it.
By Andrew Scottabout a year ago in Futurism
Humility into the light of dawn
What does the metaphor of "into the light of dawn" mean to me? Well, for one, it’s a commonplace thing. We all experience the dawn-light, in one way or other, every day. It can also be about continuation, especially when linked with the word "into" – somehow, I journey from night into day. That’s quite hopeful in emotional tone, isn’t it?
By Andrew Scottabout a year ago in Poets
A Missed Opportunity
Many of us live in a world defined by our internal conceptions of existence: what it is, and what it’s for. We invest so much of ourselves in this world-view that any challenge is seen as a direct affront to our very existence. The arrival of “Nomad Century” by Gaia Vince therefore attracts both gushing praise from some, and withering bile from others.
By Andrew Scottabout a year ago in Earth
A commentary on Philip Larkin's "Aubade"
In the sense that death is to Larkin like bitterness is to a good coffee, the question does seem ridiculous. The topic of the fear of death has been as much a part of Larkin’s output as any of his other favourite themes, since it clammily took hold of him in his twenties.
By Andrew Scottabout a year ago in Poets
Koestler's fragrance of mortality
The life of the influential journalist and author, Arthur Koestler, came to a tragic end when he took his own life in 1983. The prolific literary stream which poured from Koestler’s creative mind in life was largely driven by his ceaseless quest to find meaning from the experiences he had in a Spanish prison in the 1930s, under sentence of death.
By Andrew Scottabout a year ago in FYI