lego ® in the age of aquarius presenting complex technologies to diverse audiences. astronomy –...

LEGO® in the Age of Aquarius Presenting complex technologies to diverse audiences

.astronomy – Leiden – 30 Nov 2009

Rob SeamanNational Optical Astronomy Observatory

IVOA VOEvent Working Group Chair

This talk

• A little philosophy

• LEGO® telescope demo

• A bit of technology

• Advertisements

• The bribe

30 Nov 2009 2DotAstronomy – Leiden

Why is it so hard to explain science and technology?

• Complexity?

• Unfamiliarity?

• Lack of context?

• Neurophysiology?

• “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance”?

or perhaps it’s…

A competing non-scientific worldview?

Reasons intrinsic to the things being studied

• Complexity (astronomy is the study of – well – everything)

• Unfamiliarity (rare and distant phenomena)

• Lack of context (contingent & hierarchical structure)

These are issues of systems engineering

Reasons pertaining to the beings doing the studying

• Neurophysiology (linear brains in a non-linear world)

• “Having the knack” (only some are cut out for science)

• Pre-scientific worldview (Can coexist, or must replace?)

These are issues of social engineering

Spheres of influence

• DotAstronomy is about “exploring the connections between astronomy and the Internet”

• IVOA “enable[s] the international utilization of astronomical archives as an integrated and interoperating virtual observatory”

• VOEvent is about “representing […] the discovery of a transient celestial event, with the implication that timely follow-up is being requested”

30 Nov 2009 6DotAstronomy – Leiden

present

past

future

Astronomy

Domains

30 Nov 2009 7DotAstronomy – Leiden

DotAstronomy

VO VOEvent

HTN

O/IR“System”

The Age of Aquarius?

When the Moon is in the seventh houseAnd Jupiter aligns with MarsThen peace will guide the planetsand love will steer the stars

– Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical

30 Nov 2009 8DotAstronomy – Leiden

“Astrological gibberish” – Neil Spencer

Astronomy versus anAstrology worldview

★ AQUARIUS 20 Jan – 19 Feb By tradition, Jupiter (now in your skies) is the planet of luck and liberation, the latter quality meaning that sometimes you're unhitched from people or situations you have outgrown. Even if you're in a comfortable groove, this is the month to stretch your perspective and ambitions, with optimism and idealism central to your mission. Romance? Exciting, but quite a tangle, especially this week. Patience called for.– Neil Spencer

30 Nov 2009 9DotAstronomy – Leiden

But a good omen!

★ SAGITTARIUS 22 Nov – 21 Dec The Sun's arrival in your skies today opens a birthday month when your spirit is re-charged and your affairs re-animated. It's handy timing for your professional outlook, where Saturn's shift signals that a deadlock has, for better or worse, been broken. The new rules call for a co-operative ethic; even if you can't be an all-out team player, you need allies, preferably with clout. Fine week for brainstorming.

30 Nov 2009 10DotAstronomy – Leiden

Worldview colors everything

• We live in an extraordinary age of discovery…that is extraordinarily underappreciated

(7 billion humans, ~ 7 thousand astronomers)

• Astronomy looks outward many other worldviews (Astrology) look inward

• We’re a self-centered speciesRetaining deeply tribal outlooks

30 Nov 2009 11DotAstronomy – Leiden

Tribal Worldviews

Humans are hugely diverse:• Politics• Religions• Ethnicities• Economics• Nationalities• Gender identities• New-age “philosophies”

30 Nov 2009 12DotAstronomy – Leiden

• Popular cultures• Musical genres• Sports & games• Hobbies• Social networks• Computer OSes• Pseudo-sciencesCoexist in each of us

plural

Scientific Worldview• The universe is one unique shared reality, but

• H. sapiens (Cro-Magnon in this neighborhood) have been around for about 400 centuries

• “H. science” for less than 4 centuries

• Astronomy has been around ~400 decades• The internet for less than 4 decades

• Kurzweil says we’re headed for a singularity• One has reason to be skeptical30 Nov 2009 13DotAstronomy – Leiden

singular

Where did the scientific worldview come from?

Descartes’ house(or maybe the site of his house?)

His “method”, published in Leiden30 Nov 2009 14DotAstronomy – Leiden

René Descartes

• Introduced modern concept of skepticism– “I think therefore I am” (a cliché, maybe, but not therefore untrue)

• That is – he created the scientific method– Science has replaced much of philosophy – but science has not dislodged

cogito ergo sum (elaborated into the anthropic principle)

• Empiricism, phenomenology, epistemology, …– Philosophers’ views of science – an inherent splintering of isms & ologies?

• Noumenon vs. phenomenon (Kant)– Inaccessible “thing-in-itself”, inferred via observable physical

manifestations– Platonic ideals? (long history of “natural” philosophers: Thales,

Democritus, …)30 Nov 2009 15DotAstronomy – Leiden

14 Mar 2005

Transient Universe 2006 16

Ask yourself, what is this thing in itself, by its own specialconstitution? What is it in substance, and in form, and in matter?What is its function in the world? For how long does it subsist?

– Marcus Aurelius

“We also know there are known unknowns” – Donald Rumsfeld

also Hannibal Lectorto Agent Starling in

Silence of the Lambs

14 Mar 2005

Transient Universe 2006 17

First Things First (“time management”)

Covey’s “highly effective” habit #3

Astronomy

Domains

30 Nov 2009 18DotAstronomy – Leiden

DotAstronomy

VO VOEvent

HTN

O/IR“System”

Venn Diagram

30 Nov 2009 19DotAstronomy – Leiden

Venn

Venn shows all subsetswhether possible or not

30 Nov 2009 20DotAstronomy – Leiden

Euler omits empty subsetsshows contained vs. disjoint

shading forempty

sets

Magical, not physical Science, not science fiction

–> Euler Diagram

implies

boolean logic

Evidence from the Historical Record

1. intersection of the Mineral & Animal sets

2. an Animal disjoint from Four Legs set

30 Nov 2009 21DotAstronomy – Leiden

not G

orig

nak

Gor

igna

k

Impose order in the universe

Infinite unsorted options• many (most?) are impossible• (un)conditional logic, not physics

30 Nov 2009 22DotAstronomy – Leiden

Actively assert knowledge• animals are biological entities• only some have 4 legs

Pain-free ontologies

Try to show this with a Venn Diagram!

30 Nov 2009 23DotAstronomy – Leiden

How can we demonstratethe limits of the impossible?

30 Nov 2009 24DotAstronomy – Leiden

• With software systems we have learned to expect the depiction of impossibilities (e.g., special FX)

• Astronomy is full of apparently impossible things– So we focus on visualizing dramatic phenomena

• But science is precisely concerned with delineating limits – natural laws– Physics is about “articulating your intuition”– Bayesian statistics, physical priors, null hypotheses, …

• Robots are one way to ground system behavior in the physical constraints of the real world

BackboneBackbone

The emerging VOEventNetThe emerging VOEventNet

Roy Williams Alasdair AllenAndrew Drake Matthew GrahamRob Seaman Phil WarnerRobert White Scott Barthelmy

Roy Williams Alasdair AllenAndrew Drake Matthew GrahamRob Seaman Phil WarnerRobert White Scott Barthelmy 26 May 200626 May 2006

DataScope etcDataScope etc VOSpace etc VOSpace etc

UKIRTHawaiiUKIRTHawaii

Palomar-Quest CaltechPalomar-Quest Caltech

Palomar P60CaltechPalomar P60Caltech

PairitelBerkeleyPairitelBerkeley

Liverpool TelescopeLa PalmaLiverpool TelescopeLa Palma

OGLE IIILas CampanasOGLE IIILas Campanas

Faulkes SouthAustraliaFaulkes SouthAustralia

Faulkes NorthHawaiiFaulkes NorthHawaii

SDSS SNe U Wash/StanfordSDSS SNe U Wash/Stanford

RAPTOR x 8LANLRAPTOR x 8LANL

SWIFT, GLAST etcSWIFT, GLAST etc

VOEventVOEvent

OtherOther

Event FlowEvent FlowKey Roles

Author

Subscriber

Key Roles

Author

Subscriber

Publisher

Filter

Repository

Publisher

Filter

Repository

JACHawaiiJACHawaii

ExeterExeter

CaltechCaltech

LANLLANL

Data MiningExeterData MiningExeter

SkyDOT(database)SkyDOT(database)

Microlensing Survey ExeterMicrolensing Survey Exeter

Tools/ServicesCommunityTools/ServicesCommunity

SurveysCTIO/KPNOSurveysCTIO/KPNO

NOAONOAO

VO-GCNVO-GCNGCNNASA GSFC

GCNNASA GSFCCBATCBAT

AAVSOAAVSO

GeminiGemini

Thread Safe AstronomyThread Safe Astronomy

Rob SeamanNOAO Data Products Program

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 27

VOEvent LifecycleVOEvent Lifecycle• Publish / subscribe paradigm

• Alerts generate follow-ups

• These comprise rich threads

• Threads create telescope behavior

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 28

Multi-threadingMulti-threading• Forked execution

• Simultaneous tasks

• Typically lightweight

• Time slicing

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 29

DARPA Grand Challenge

DARPA Grand Challenge

• $2,000,000 challenge • Autonomously cover ~200km course• 5 finished, ~30 kph• Previously, none > 10 km• Stanford winner

– Drive-by-wire– Focus on SW

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 30

Autonomous astronomy?Autonomous astronomy?

• The challenge isn’t to build one autonomous car - or robotic telescope

• The challenge is to build a complete ecosystem

• System of systems

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 31

Issues for an autonomous astronomy ecosystem

Issues for an autonomous astronomy ecosystem

• Standards

• Observing modes and paradigms

• Telepresence (remote observing, tng)

• Data representation / compression

• Proprietary data rights

• Market pressures

• Data transport

• etc.

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 32

Hardware versus Software

Hardware versus Software

Hardware• State of the art

– but frozen

• Expensive– but can budget

• What is impossible?• Laws of Nature

Software• Options

– not canned features

• Cheap– deceptively so

• What is possible?• Nurture

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 33

Pro

bes

Pro

bes

• “Probes” appear in many science fiction stories– often central to Star Trek plots

• Absurdly general purpose– minimal configuration– zero experimental design– all wavelengths / particles?– continuous cadence (picoseconds?)

• Infinite bandwidth, zero latency– no data reduction needed

• Can detect or infer unknown phenomena or noumena(note: not the “melodic death metal band” from Finland)

e.g., “see” dark matter & energy ?

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 34

NXT SpecsNXT Specs• 32-bit ARM

• LabVIEW

• 3 servo motors

• 4 sensor ports

• Extensible• 64 KB + 256 KB

• Bluetooth• USB

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 35

IssuesIssues• Heterogeneous technology

• Gearing versus form factor– physiology, not just anatomy

• Power / cable wrap

• Interesting sensors– can be expensive

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 36

PossibilitiesPossibilities• Engineering prototype (“toy”)

• Outreach

• Curriculum

• Interacting telescopes

• Emergent behavior

• Multiple programs

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 37

ImpossibilitiesImpossibilities• Functioning optics

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 38

Extending the demonstrationExtending the demonstration

• Current prototype plays “Simon says”

• Tie this into one or more expressive astronomical applications

• Behavior is as important as the graphics

• Must be robust

• Prizes!

Hot-wiring the Transient Universe

Posters courtesy Pete Marenfeld of NOAO

Visions of VOEvent

“Novel view of the Solar eclipse of 11 July 1991…”

“… a VOEvent where the location of the observer mattered”

Some upcoming meetings• Eventful Universe, Tucson, 17 – 20 March 2010

• IVOA InterOp, Victoria, 17 – 21 May 2010

• SPIE Astronomical Instrumentation, San Diego, 27 June – 2 July 2010 (Observatory Operations III)

• ADASS XX BoF, Boston, 7 – 11 Nov 2010

• AAS Meeting Workshop?, Seattle, 9 – 13 Jan 2011

• Hotwired III, Tucson?, Spring 2011?

• New Horizons in Time Domain Astronomy, Oxford, 26 – 30 Sep 2011

30 Nov 2009 41DotAstronomy – Leiden

Abstract

• Astronomy is the most dramatic of the sciences. It is also the most foreign to everyday life. The complex technologies involved in modern astronomical research often act to enlarge the gulf. This is particularly true of the astronomical time domain, in which the observational assets of numerous networked telescopes must be combined in ever changing synoptic and transient response observing modes via a rich suite of computer software and protocols. Even among professional astronomers few have the opportunity to visit remote mountaintop observatories; by their very nature, interconnected networks of such telescopes are impossible to view from a single location. Thus professionals as well as the public often must view various sorts of depictions of distributed facilities in order to comprehend the most basic facts of their operations. Conveying the complex dynamics of networked telescopes requires more than a static picture. LEGO NXT robotics provides a rich environment for modeling the behavior of complex network-based technologies engaged in otherwise opaque empirical investigations. We demonstrate the application of NXT to modeling celestial transient response observing using the VOEvent protocol of the IVOA in combination with web services. We discuss how best to use such models to reach a target audience. (These devices can be seen at http://www.noao.edu/noao/noaonews/mar08/pdf/93dpp.pdf)

30 Nov 2009 42DotAstronomy – Leiden

Tucson - June 4–7, 2007HOT-WIRING the TRANSIENT UNIVERSE 43

Kepler LEGO DemoKepler LEGO Demo

http://kepler.nasa.gov/ed/lego.html