Comments on: Galaxy Zoo Results Show that the Universe Isn't 'Lopsided'

By: beelzebubjones

beelzebubjones — Fri, 23 May 2008 20:46:01 +0000

clockwise or counter-clockwise? this seems a bit weird to me. if i were looking down on a spiral galaxy and determined that it was spinning in a clockwise direction; however if someone were on the other side of that same galaxy…. wouldn't they see it spinning in a counter-clockwise direction. i spun a bicycle wheel and sure enough, at least from my observations… from one side of the wheel it's spinning clockwise but from the other counter-clockwise. it seems to me it's just like einstein said, "it's relative" but maybe that's the point how many from our perspective are spinning one way or another; a universe not lopsided should have an equal amount of both but i'm still straining with this because the galaxies are spinning their direction depends upon the observers perspective. what am i missing?

By: JN

JN — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 09:23:23 +0000

Hi Frend
http://www.hypothesis-of-universe.com/en/index.php?nav=home

By: Peter K

Peter K — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 15:15:50 +0000

Cliff, excellent point! Ha, I'd not thought of that and I participated in the sky survey.
I don't think the human brain is hampered by hurricanes though, Helio.
My guess is that when there is doubt, guessing clockwise seems too perfect, so they click on anti-clockwise just as a step to counter their own basic bias for clockwise turning.

By: Cliff

Cliff — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:58:57 +0000

Is it not true that disk spiral galazies will seem 'righthanded' viewed from one side, and 'lefthanded' when viewed from the opposite side. Try it yourself with a spiral drawn on thin paper and look from either side to see the reverse.

The apparent sidness is merely from our view point.

By: Helio Huet

Helio Huet — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 01:45:21 +0000

My guess would be the close association of galaxies with hurricnes. They can look very similar, and since most participants live in the northern hemisphere, the counter-clockwise rotation of a hurricane might influence quite a number of people.

By: IsaÃas GonzÃ¡lez

IsaÃas GonzÃ¡lez — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 18:46:26 +0000

This may be a form of dyslexia. For example, some people confuse the letter "b" and the letter "d" or the letter "b" and the letter "p", etc.

I don't know whether there are studies about the relation between dyslexia and concepts like "clockwise" or "counterclockwise" but the idea is the same.

The United States have a 18% of its population with dyslexia.

The dyslexic people have difficulties to learn but many of them have normal or superior intelligence.

IsaÃas GonzÃ¡lez
igonzalez12345@yahoo.com

By: El Sofista - SegÃºn Galaxy Zoo, el universo no estÃ¡ desbalanceado

El Sofista - SegÃºn Galaxy Zoo, el universo no estÃ¡ desbalanceado — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:37:08 +0000

En julio del aÃ±o pasado se abrieron las puertas de Galaxy Zoo, una pÃ¡gina web de clasificaciÃ³n de galaxias. Â¿La respuesta? Decenas de millares de personas se registraron y comenzaron a clasificar galaxias del Sloan Digital Sky Survey. [...] Fuente: Nicholos Wethington para Universe Today.

By: nano

nano — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:16:08 +0000

they should try people of different cultures, or at least people that read differently

ie – arabic (right-to-left),japanese (right->left, top->bottom), etc

By: Laszlo

Laszlo — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:01:53 +0000

Most tools and instruments are designed for right-handed clucks(users). Similarly for roadways, ramps, staircases, door hinges, etc. You need to position your right foot ahead of the left to circle a track or public walks. The right is the power foot in sports and foot positioning to operate mundane appliances made for right handers.
Why? Because of the written language, which scans left to right. Even the pixels on our viewer screens scan several times per second left-to-right, whether computer CRT, TV or satellite images.
Even left-handers write right-handed because of this. The only way to beat this rap is to hook your left hand so that it goes right-to-left. Fine, except now your writing left-handed and reverse (to suit convention), since the 'herd' cannot scan right-to-left. Very few languages scan right-to-left, Hebrew scans both ways. So if a right-hander wrote right-to-left the pen would stick into the paper/papyrus. Ditto for a lefty writing left-handed and reverse(left-to-right), that pen will punch a hole in your paper, therefore lefties 'hook their hand'.
You might say this is a dichotomy b/w objectivity and subjectivity. Is your point of focus the person doing the writing, or in this case analysing by scanning, or the photo objective. Subjectively, writing or circling medial-to-lateral gives opposite directions for lefty vs righty. Empathy, not objectivity, provides the clue. Their results tell us which way our written language scans, even forcing lefties to hook & write in reverse.
The world we are trying to discern is not one of sight or sound, but of mind! Les

By: Curtis

Curtis — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 19:49:26 +0000

I don't think we can really discern any shape no matter what research we do. Until we can develop FTL propulsion technologies, we will merely have to be content with a Spherical VISIBLE universe. Once we reach a distance that is farther in terms of light years than we estimate the age of the universe to be, it becomes impossible to go beyond that. Or return from that for that matter. Throw in an accelerated expansion of the universe, it is quite possible there are things in the universe we will never reach. This does however make a more interesting study of the human mind, moreso than an astronomical study.

It is humourous that with all the studies that have been done, all we have is proof that the Earth is at the center of the universe. So much for progress, huh?

By: Ray Bingham

Ray Bingham — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 18:04:11 +0000

So the universe is NOT lopsided. That must mean one of a very few things. We are at the center of a sphere! Equal distant from all edges. (that sounds dumb doesn't it). Or The universe is infinite in all directions.