
In unexpected discovery, comet contains alcohol, sugar - lelf
http://phys.org/news/2015-10-unexpected-discovery-comet-alcohol-sugar.html
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jwuphysics
The factor that the Comet Lovejoy contains ethyl alcohol and a simple
saccharide is not unexpected; this paper does however mark the first
identification of these organic molecules in a comet. Astronomers have
previously detected both of these, along with plenty of other complex organic
molecules, in other regions of the Milky Way (e.g.,
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_interstellar_and_circu...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_interstellar_and_circumstellar_molecules)).

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idlewords
This could be a real shot in the arm for the Russian space program

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gdy
What do you mean?

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alanh
It’s a joke at Russians' expense, due to association of Russia and vodka in
popular stereotypes. :/

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eru
Alas, Russians really do drink themselves to death. See
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_consumption_in_Russia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_consumption_in_Russia)

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gdy
Yep, the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the "democratic" chaos that
followed was indeed a catastrophe.

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moron4hire
If anyone is familiar with the X game series (space flight simulators ala
Elite), they had an illegal alcoholic substance called "Space Fuel" that you
could make a lot of money running as a smuggler. This reminded me of that.

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JoachimS
So candy and booze, sounds like a wild ride. ;-)

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ZoeZoeBee
Sweet, now I can get drunk while I clean my toilet

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S_A_P
I can't take this site seriously with the ad content.

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jstalin
[https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock](https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock)

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kbenson
I hope anyone blocking ads decides to register, or unblock ads. They have a
helpful banner that pops up when you visit the site using an ad blocker, that
directs you to a page[1] that very nicely explains that while they appreciate
your cjoice, they use ads to fund the site, and provide a couple alternative
ways to help them. One of those is to register, which they say allows browsing
with less ads (I'm not sure if the implication is you'll register and then
turn off the ad-blocker, but it seems to me to be clearly offered as an
_alternative_ ).

In any case, they've very clearly set expectations.

1: [http://phys.org/help/adblock/](http://phys.org/help/adblock/)

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gcb0
> a helpful banner that pops up

said no one ever

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kbenson
Well _I_ said it. They put a 35 pixel notice at the top saying that you appear
to be using an ad-blocker if you are, and give you the option to click to see
what they think about it. I fail to see how they could make their thoughts
obvious to those using ad-blocking in a less obtrusive manner.

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dx211
The first thing that came to mind when I read that headline was we could maybe
save a couple bucks making homemade toilet cleaner.

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YeGoblynQueenne
I thought ice cream.

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xweb
Woo-hoo! Party at Comet Lovejoy tonight!!! Who's with me? (Go to the Alley
Door on the Comet, you'll see the bouncers at the top of the stairs. Dress
warm, it's chilly inside)

