Once there was a star. Like everything else, she was born; grew to be around 30 times the mass of our sun and lived for a very long time. Exactly how long, people cannot really tell. Just like everything in life, she reached the end of her regular star days when her heart, the core of her life, exhausted its fuel. But that was no end.
Bila jednom jedna zvijezda. Kao i sve ostalo, rođena je; narasla je oko 30 puta većom od našeg Sunca i dugo je poživjela. Koliko točno, ne možemo znati. Kao i sve u životu, došla je do kraja svojih zvjezdanih dana kada je njezino srce, srž njezina života, ostalo bez goriva. No to nije bio kraj.
She transformed into a supernova, and in the process releasing a tremendous amount of energy, outshining the rest of the galaxy and emitting, in one second, the same amount of energy our sun will release in 10 days. And she evolved into another role in our galaxy.
Transformirala se u supernovu, emitirajući pritom ogromnu količinu energije, zasjenila je ostatak galaksije u jednoj sekundi emitirajući jednaku količinu energije koliku sunce emitira u deset dana. Preuzela je drugu ulogu u našoj galaksiji.
Supernova explosions are very extreme. But the ones that emit gamma rays are even more extreme. In the process of becoming a supernova, the interior of the star collapses under its own weight and it starts rotating ever faster, like an ice skater when pulling their arms in close to their body. In that way, it starts rotating very fast and it increases, powerfully, its magnetic field. The matter around the star is dragged around, and some energy from that rotation is transferred to that matter and the magnetic field is increased even further. In that way, our star had extra energy to outshine the rest of the galaxy in brightness and gamma ray emission.
Eksplozije supernove vrlo su žestoke. No one koje emitiraju gama zrake još su žešće. Dok postaje supernova, unutrašnjost se zvijezde uruši pod vlastitom težinom, okrećući se sve brže, poput klizača koji privlači ruke k sebi. Tako se brže rotira, jako povećavajući svoje magnetsko polje. Materija oko zvijezde povlači se za njom i dio energije od rotacije prenosi se na materiju te se magnetsko polje još povećava. Tako zvijezda dobiva energiju kojom može zasjeniti ostatak galaksije svojim sjajem i emisijom gama zraka.
My star, the one in my story, became what is known as a magnetar. And just for your information, the magnetic field of a magnetar is 1,000 trillion times the magnetic field of Earth. The most energetic events ever measured by astronomers carry the name gamma-ray bursts because we observe them as bursts most or explosions, most strongly measured as gamma-ray light. Our star, like the one in our story that became a magnetar, is detected as a gamma-ray burst during the most energetic portion of the explosion. Yet, even though gamma-ray bursts are the strongest events ever measured by astronomers, we cannot see them with our naked eye. We depend, we rely on other methods in order to study this gamma-ray light. We cannot see them with our naked eye. We can only see an itty bitty, tiny portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that we call visible light. And beyond that, we rely on other methods.
Moja zvijezda, ona iz moje priče, naziva se magnetar. Informacije radi, magnetsko polje magnetara tisuću je trilijuna puta jače od magnetskog polja Zemlje. Događaji s najvišom razinom energije nazivaju se bljeskovi gama-zračenja jer ih vidimo kao bljeskove ili eksplozije, a najsnažnije su kao gama-zračenje. Naša zvijezda, kao ona iz priče koja je postala magnetar, detektirana je kao gama-bljesak u najenergetskijem dijelu eksplozije. Iako su gama-bljeskovi najsnažniji događaji ikada izmjereni ne možemo ih vidjeti golim okom. Oslanjamo se na druge metode kod proučavanja gama-zračenja. Ne možemo ih vidjeti golim okom. Možemo vidjeti tek djelić elektromagnetskog spektra koji nazivamo vidljivom svjetlošću. Za ostalo, oslanjamo se na druge metode.
Yet as astronomers, we study a wider range of light and we depend on other methods to do that. On the screen, it may look like this. You're seeing a plot. That is a light curve. It's a plot of intensity of light over time. It is a gamma-ray light curve. Sighted astronomers depend on this kind of plot in order to interpret how this light intensity changes over time. On the left, you will be seeing the light intensity without a burst, and on the right, you will be seeing the light intensity with the burst.
Mi astronomi, proučavamo širi doseg svjetlosti i pri tome koristimo druge metode. To na ekranu može ovako izgledati. Pogledajte graf. To je krivulja svjetlosti. Graf predstavlja intenzitet svjetlosti u vremenu. To je krivulja gama-zračenja. Videći astronomi koriste ovakve grafove kako bi interpretirali promjene intenziteta svjetlosti tijekom vremena. Lijevo vidite intenzitet svjetlosti bez gama-bljeska, a desno intenzitet svjetlosti za vrijeme gama-bljeska.
Early during my career, I could also see this kind of plot. But then, I lost my sight. I completely lost my sight because of extended illness, and with it, I lost the opportunity to see this plot and the opportunity to do my physics. It was a very strong transition for me in many ways. And professionally, it left me without a way to do my science. I longed to access and scrutinize this energetic light and figure out the astrophysical cause. I wanted to experience the spacious wonder, the excitement, the joy produced by the detection of such a titanic celestial event.
U ranoj fazi karijere i ja sam mogla vidjeti ovakav graf. No tada sam izgubila vid. Izgubila sam vid zbog duge bolesti, a s vidom sam izgubila mogućnost da vidim ovaj graf i da se bavim fizikom. Za mene je to bilo teško prijelazno razdoblje. Profesionalno, nisam se više mogla baviti znanošću. Silno sam željela proučavati tu energetsku svjetlost i dokučiti njezin astrofizički uzrok. Željela sam iskusiti to ogromno čudo, uzbuđenje, radost koju donosi otkriće takvog divovskog nebeskog otkrića.
I thought long and hard about it, when I suddenly realized that all a light curve is, is a table of numbers converted into a visual plot. So along with my collaborators, we worked really hard and we translated the numbers into sound. I achieved access to the data, and today I'm able to do physics at the level of the best astronomer, using sound. And what people have been able to do, mainly visually, for hundreds of years, now I do it using sound.
Dugo sam o tome razmišljala, kada sam shvatila da je krivulja svjetlosti zapravo tablica brojki u obliku vizualnog grafa. Zajedno sa suradnicima, marljivo sam radila na prevođenju brojeva u zvuk. Uspjela sam doći do podataka i danas se mogu baviti fizikom na razini najboljeg astronoma, koristeći zvuk. I sve što ljudi mogu, uglavnom koristeći vid, stotinama godina, mogu i ja koristeći zvuk.
(Applause) Listening to this gamma-ray burst that you're seeing on the -- (Applause continues)
(Pljesak) Slušanje bljeskova gama-zračenja koje vidite -- (Pljesak se nastavlja)
Thank you.
Hvala vam.
Listening to this burst that you're seeing on the screen brought something to the ear beyond the obvious burst. Now I'm going to play the burst for you. It's not music, it's sound.
Slušanje gama-bljeskova koje vidite na ekranu skrenulo je pažnju na nešto osim samog bljeska. Sad ću vam pustiti zvučni zapis bljeska. To nije glazba, nego zvuk.
(Digital beeping sounds)
(Digitalni zvučni signal)
This is scientific data converted into sound, and it's mapped in pitch. The process is called sonification.
Ovo su znanstveni podaci pretvoreni u zvuk, tonska visina. Postupak se zove sonifikacija.
So listening to this brought something to the ear besides the obvious burst. When I examine the very strong low-frequency regions, or bass line -- I'm zooming into the bass line now. We noted resonances characteristic of electrically charged gasses like the solar wind. And I want you to hear what I heard. You will hear it as a very fast decrease in volume. And because you're sighted, I'm giving you a red line indicating what intensity of light is being converted into sound.
Slušanjem sam čula još nešto osim gama-bljeska. Proučavajući područja niskih frekvencija ili nultu liniju -- upravo povećavam sliku nulte linije. Uočili smo rezonancije uobičajene kod električki nabijenih plinova poput solarnog vjetra. Želim da čujete ono što sam ja čula. Čut ćete to kao jako brzo smanjenje jakosti zvuka. Možete vidjeti, pa dobivate prikaz crvenom krivuljom koja prikazuje intenzitet svjetlosti koju se pretvara u zvuk.
(Digital hum and whistling sound)
(Digitalni šum i zvuk zviždanja)
The (Whistles) is frogs at home, don't pay attention to that.
To (zvižduci) su žabe kod kuće, zanemarite ih.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
(Digital hum and whistling sound)
(Digitalni šum i zvuk zviždanja)
I think you heard it, right?
Mislim da ste ga čuli, zar ne?
So what we found is that the bursts last long enough in order to support wave resonances, which are things caused by exchanges of energy between particles that may have been excited, that depend on the volume. You may remember that I said that the matter around the star is dragged around? It transmits power with frequency and field distribution determined by the dimensions. You may remember that we were talking about a super-massive star that became a very strong magnetic field magnetar. If this is the case, then outflows from the exploding star may be associated with this gamma-ray burst.
Dakle, otkrili smo da bljeskovi traju dovoljno dugo za podržavanje rezonancija valova, izazvanih izmjenama energije među česticama, možda pobuđenih, koji ovise o jakosti zvuka. Možda se sjećate da sam rekla da se materija oko zvijezde povlači za njom? Odašilje energiju čija je frekvencija i distribucija određena njezinim dimenzijama. Govorili smo o super-masivnoj zvijezdi koja je postala magnetar sa snažnim magnetskim poljem. Ako je to točno, ostatke eksplodirane zvijezde možemo povezati s ovim gama-bljeskom.
What does that mean? That star formation may be a very important part of these supernova explosions. Listening to this very gamma-ray burst brought us to the notion that the use of sound as an adjunctive visual display may also support sighted astronomers in the search for more information in the data. Simultaneously, I worked on analyzing measurements from other telescopes, and my experiments demonstrated that when you use sound as an adjunctive visual display, astronomers can find more information in this now more accessible data set. This ability to transform data into sound gives astronomy a tremendous power of transformation. And the fact that a field that is so visual may be improved in order to include anyone with interest in understanding what lies in the heavens is a spirit-lifter.
Što to znači? Formiranje zvijezda može biti važan dio ovih eksplozija supernove. Slušanje ovog gama-bljeska navelo nas je na pomisao da korištenje zvuka kao dodatnog vizualnog prikaza može pomoći i videćim astronomima u potrazi za dodatnim informacijama. Istovremeno, analizirala sam mjerenja drugih teleskopa i moji su pokusi pokazali da uporabom zvuka kao dodatnog vizualnog zaslona astronomi mogu pronaći više informacija u ovom pristupačnijem skupu podataka. Ova sposobnost pretvaranja podataka u zvuk astronomiji daje ogromnu moć transformacije. A činjenica da se područje toliko usmjereno na vid može poboljšati kako bi uključilo sve koji žele razumjeti što se krije u nebesima, ohrabrujuća je.
When I lost my sight, I noticed that I didn't have access to the same amount and quality of information a sighted astronomer had. It was not until we innovated with the sonification process that I regained the hope to be a productive member of the field that I had worked so hard to be part of.
Kada sam izgubila vid, primijetila sam da nemam pristup istoj količini i kvaliteti informacija kao videći astronomi. Tek kada smo osmislili postupak sonifikacije, vratila mi se nada da ću biti produktivan član u području u koje sam uložila toliko truda.
Yet, information access is not the only area in astronomy where this is important. The situation is systemic and scientific fields are not keeping up. The body is something changeable -- anyone may develop a disability at any point. Let's think about, for example, scientists that are already at the top of their careers. What happens to them if they develop a disability? Will they feel excommunicated as I did? Information access empowers us to flourish. It gives us equal opportunities to display our talents and choose what we want to do with our lives, based on interest and not based on potential barriers. When we give people the opportunity to succeed without limits, that will lead to personal fulfillment and prospering life. And I think that the use of sound in astronomy is helping us to achieve that and to contribute to science.
Pristup informacijama nije jedino područje u astronomiji gdje je ovo važno. Situacija je sistemska i znanstvena područja ne idu ukorak s vremenom. Tijelo je promjenjivo -- svatko može postati osoba s invaliditetom. Zamislimo, na primjer, znanstvenike koji su već na vrhuncu svojih karijera. Što će im se dogoditi ako postanu osobe s invaliditetom? Hoće li se osjećati izopćeno poput mene? Pristup informacijama omogućuje nam da napredujemo. Daje nam jednake prilike da pokažemo svoje talente i izaberemo što želimo postići u životu, temeljem interesa, a ne mogućih prepreka. Kada ljudima pružimo priliku da uspiju bez ograničavanja, to vodi osobnom ispunjenju i produktivnom životu. Mislim da nam uporaba zvuka u astronomiji pomaže da to ostvarimo kao i da doprinesemo znanosti.
While other countries told me that the study of perception techniques in order to study astronomy data is not relevant to astronomy because there are no blind astronomers in the field, South Africa said, "We want people with disabilities to contribute to the field." Right now, I'm working at the South African Astronomical Observatory, at the Office of Astronomy for Development. There, we are working on sonification techniques and analysis methods to impact the students of the Athlone School for the Blind. These students will be learning radio astronomy, and they will be learning the sonification methods in order to study astronomical events like huge ejections of energy from the sun, known as coronal mass ejections. What we learn with these students -- these students have multiple disabilities and coping strategies that will be accommodated -- what we learn with these students will directly impact the way things are being done at the professional level. I humbly call this development. And this is happening right now.
Dok su druge zemlje govorile da proučavanje tehnika percepcije s ciljem proučavanja podataka iz astronomije nije svrsishodno jer nema slijepih astronoma, Južna Afrika rekla je: "Želimo da osobe s invaliditetom pridonesu području." Trenutno radim u Južnoafričkom astronomskom opservatoriju u Odjelu za razvoj astronomije. Ondje razvijamo tehnike sonifikacije i metode analize kako bi pomogli učenicima Athlone, škole za slijepe . Ti će učenici učiti radioastronomiju, kao i metode sonifikacije, kako bi proučavali astronomske događaje poput velikih erupcija energije iz sunca, poznate kao koronarne masovne erupcije. Ono što budemo učili s učenicima, oni imaju višestruke teškoće i poteškoće sa suočavanjem koje ćemo uvažiti -- ono što naučimo s ovim učenicima izravno će utjecati na način rada na profesionalnoj razini. Skromno to nazivam razvojem. To se događa sada.
I think that science is for everyone. It belongs to the people, and it has to be available to everyone, because we are all natural explorers. I think that if we limit people with disabilities from participating in science, we'll sever our links with history and with society. I dream of a level scientific playing field, where people encourage respect and respect each other, where people exchange strategies and discover together. If people with disabilities are allowed into the scientific field, an explosion, a huge titanic burst of knowledge will take place, I am sure.
Mislim da je znanost namijenjena svima. Pripada ljudima, i treba biti dostupna svima jer smo svi po prirodi istraživači. Budemo li ograničavali osobe s invaliditetom u sudjelovanju u znanoti, oštetit ćemo naže veze s poviješću i društvom. Sanjam o jednakopravnosti u znanosti, o tome da ljudi potiču poštivanje i poštuju jedni druge, o tome da ljudi razmjenjuju strategije i zajedno otkrivaju. Ako osobama s invaliditetom otvorimo put u znanost, dogodit će se eksplozija, divovska erupcija znanja. Sigurna sam u to.
(Digital beeping sounds)
(Digitalni zvučni signal)
That is the titanic burst.
To je divovska erupcija.
Thank you.
Hvala vam.
Thank you.
Hvala vam.
(Applause)
(Pljesak)