Articles written by Joe Murray

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About me - Joe Murray

Joe Murray is the nom de plume of Thomas Murray, an ex-math teacher and wannabe screenwriter living for the most part in the Midwest.

I have a BLS in communications (worthless) and BA in physics, and am a habitual federal worker who gains employment at the

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Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Slumdog Millionaire: 1 of 20
"Slumdog Millionaire" contains the seven basic Hollywood plots and then some - the Road Trip, the Quest, Confronting the Monster, Tragedy, Comedy, Rebirth, and Rags to Riches - a melange difficult to pull off, though the last movie to try this stunt, "Star Wars," did just fine.The first images are immediate, what Marshal McLu... More..
Sciences > Physics Is time real or relative?: 2 of 36
The theory of relative time arose through the six classic pillars of science: a field observation, supporting verifiable measurement, explained by a relevant theory (paradigm), a follow-up experiment, which, failing to support the relevant theory, led to its overthrow and replacement by another theory. See, measure, explain, ... More..
Creative Writing > Humor Humor: When the federal government attempts to fix the economy: 1 of 15
I have spent many minutes of valuable brain energy working out how to solve America's economic problems, and now would like to share them with you.Just follow these 23 steps to recover the dollar.1) Adopt the Euro. At 1.6 dollars to the Euro, that's point-six extra dollars we have to print. And paper costs money. Besides, the... More..
Entertainment > Film Making & Production How to write for the movies: 1 of 12
After reading an excerpt from Steve Martin's new memoir in the February Smithsonian Magazine, I was astonished to learn that it took him ten years to perfect the effortless lunacy he projected in his 1976 appearance on Saturday Night Live.There is no substitution for practice, no matter how talented the performer. And screenw... More..
Sciences > Astronomy 57 alien species: Are we alone in the universe?: 13 of 115
Occasionally I like to groove about the possibility that an errant alien spacecraft dumped some space alien DNA in Earth's primordial ooze sometime in the Paleozoic Era and survived intact enough to evolve into octopuses. Given the diversity of life in the oceans, this doesn't seem too far fetched. I mean, have you seen the w... More..
Sciences > Chemistry The chemistry of gunpowder: 1 of 7
Gunpowder, or black powder (also called blasting powder), is not a chemical, but a mixture, though its decomposition, or deflagration, is a chemical reaction between potassium nitrate (saltpeter), sulfur, and charcoal mixed by weight roughly in the ratio 6:1:1.INGREDIENTSSaltpeter is potassium nitrate (KNO(3)), a chemical for... More..
Sciences > Sciences (Other) Does falsification provide the most accurate model of understanding for the progress of scientific knowledge?: 1 of 6
One cannot become too exercised with the proponents of Creationism because, unlike a religion-based doctrine, science has the ability to refute itself, a faculty that is usually destructive to any faith-based discipline.The property of falsification is the best answer to that most subtle of philosophical dilemmas, the inducti... More..
Sciences > Astronomy Why the universe is finite in size: 1 of 5
Contemplating "Of the Nature of Things," Lucretius (96-55 BCE) questioned the concept of the universe's infinity when he wrote, "If we should theorize that the whole of space were limited, then it a man ran out to its very last limits and hurled a spear, would you prefer that the spear flew on, or do you think something would... More..
Entertainment > TV Show Reviews TV show reviews: Fringe: 1 of 5
"Fringe" opens auspiciously enough, like "LOST," in a Cold Opening that recalls the line "It was a dark and stormy night" on a mysterious spooky airliner, Lufthansa Flight 627, out of Hamburg bound for Chicago, when a mysterious contagion ripples through the passenger cabin, a condition that presents with projectile vomiting ... More..
Sciences > Earth Science (Other) Is human space travel to the planet Mars too dangerous?: 8 of 37
A journey to Mars can be made relatively safely with acceptable hazards for the crew, but not by conventional means. After nearly a decade of research for my first novel, "Trajectories," I realized that for a "practical" manned mission to Mars, four conditions must be met.First: The propulsion rockets must involve a nuclear r... More..