December 2, 2011

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Breathtaking time-lapse video makes me question Copernicus

By Hannah Waters

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This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

The earth revolves around the sun. It's a true fact, and no conspiracy.

Even with such enlightenment, it's nice to be reminded of why people once thought the opposite -- that the universe revolves around the earth -- to briefly knock us off our ivory tower of knowledge and be reminded of just how far we've come.

This feeling struck me as I watched 'Finding Oregon,' a stunning time-lapse video from the Portland-based Uncage the Soul video production company. The four-minute video highlights the sky, in night and day, from different viewpoints around the state. Intended to be a tourism promotional film, it really does much more. It's breathtaking, literally, and hair-raising in an inspiring, not horrifying, way. And watching the stars careen through the sky gave me pause. Because a person born in a vacuum would conclude that the heavens, in fact, revolve around the earth after watching the video.

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So sit back, full screen the video, turn up the volume and enjoy. And click through to the vimeo page to learn more about how the team put the video together.

If your heart doesn't stop, I declare you inhuman.

https://vimeo.com/32852978

Image: Screenshot from 'Finding Oregon'

Hannah Waters is a science writer fascinated by the natural world, the history of its study, and the way people think about nature. On top of science blogging, she runs the Smithsonian's Ocean Portal, a marine biology education website, and is science editor for Ladybits.

Hannah is a child of the internet, who coded HTML frames on her Backstreet Boys fanpage when she was in middle school. Aptly, she rose to professional science writing through blogging (originally on Wordpress) and tweeting profusely. She's written for The Scientist, Nature Medicine, Smithsonian.com, and others.

Before turning to full-time writing, Hannah wanted to be an oceanographer or a classicist, studying Biology and Latin at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. She's done ecological research on marine food webs, shorebird conservation, tropical ecology and grassland ecosystems. She worked as a lab technician at the University of Pennsylvania studying molecular biology and the epigenetics of aging. And, for a summer, she manned a microphone and a drink shaker on a tour boat off the coast of Maine, pointing out wildlife and spouting facts over a loudspeaker while serving drinks.

Email her compliments, complaints and tips at culturingscience at gmail dot com.

More by Hannah Waters

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