Tuesday, November 17, 2009
an astronomer's periodic table
speaking of periodic tables, what chemists call the periodic table of elements is very different from what astronomers consider! listen as dr. omar almaini describes an astronomer's periodic table, followed by the description of how the elements are formed in the hearts of stars!
Monday, November 16, 2009
3D projections on buildings
wow! NuFormer Digital Media has developed a fascinating way to make custom 3D projections on buildings! i would really like to see one of these in person! advertising with a lasting impact!
Projection on Buildings from NuFormer Digital Media on Vimeo.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
marvelous night for a moondance
can i just have one more moondance with you my love?
here's a great recording of moondance by van morrison that i cannot embed.
here's a great recording of moondance by van morrison that i cannot embed.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
ringo starr's small head?
after reading a guardian article about the auction of the photo below, minnesotastan at tywkiwdbi noticed that ringo starr's head (second from right) looks oddly tiny compared to neighboring john and george!
does ringo really have a smaller head?
does ringo really have a smaller head?
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
galaxies of garbage
yes, humans have purposely created islands in unexpected places - dubai, for example. but we've also accidentally made other islands, whose total size may add up to be TWICE THE SIZE OF TEXAS!
thats right: trash islands! off the pacific west coast of the US, 1000 miles northeast of hawaii, live several massive, synthetic, growing islands of our rubbish. our synthetic products and the whirling ocean currents have conspired together to create floating piles of plastic leftovers from our lives. we have multiple huge and expanding mountains of refuse living in the vortices of earth's oceans.
yuck!
what can we do? reuse items that dont break up: plastics! reuse plastic bags, or get cloth bags that you can use infinitely! increase the use of biodegradable materials wherever possible. buy a cup or more permanent water bottle to drink from , instead of opening several plastic water bottles a day.
of course, as a single individual my efforts wont decrease the rate at which the galaxies of garbage are growing, but i think as a society, we have to get better at reusing what we buy. we just plain dont need all this *stuff* in our lives!
thats right: trash islands! off the pacific west coast of the US, 1000 miles northeast of hawaii, live several massive, synthetic, growing islands of our rubbish. our synthetic products and the whirling ocean currents have conspired together to create floating piles of plastic leftovers from our lives. we have multiple huge and expanding mountains of refuse living in the vortices of earth's oceans.
yuck!
what can we do? reuse items that dont break up: plastics! reuse plastic bags, or get cloth bags that you can use infinitely! increase the use of biodegradable materials wherever possible. buy a cup or more permanent water bottle to drink from , instead of opening several plastic water bottles a day.
of course, as a single individual my efforts wont decrease the rate at which the galaxies of garbage are growing, but i think as a society, we have to get better at reusing what we buy. we just plain dont need all this *stuff* in our lives!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
carl sagan on childhood
in honor of his birthday, i'd like to share a quote from carl sagan:
“As soon as I was old enough, my parents gave me my first library card. I think the library was on 85th Street, an alien land. Immediately, I asked the librarian for something on stars. She returned with a picture book displaying portraits of men and women with names like Clark Gable and Jean Harlow. I complained, and for some reason then obscure to me, she smiled and found another book — the right kind of book. I opened it breathlessly and read until I found it. The book said something astonishing, a very big thought. It said that the stars were suns, only very far away. The Sun was a star, but close up.”
from “the backbone of night,” cosmos.
more quality quotes at skeptic.
“As soon as I was old enough, my parents gave me my first library card. I think the library was on 85th Street, an alien land. Immediately, I asked the librarian for something on stars. She returned with a picture book displaying portraits of men and women with names like Clark Gable and Jean Harlow. I complained, and for some reason then obscure to me, she smiled and found another book — the right kind of book. I opened it breathlessly and read until I found it. The book said something astonishing, a very big thought. It said that the stars were suns, only very far away. The Sun was a star, but close up.”
from “the backbone of night,” cosmos.
more quality quotes at skeptic.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
mittenwald, germany
mittenwald is a gorgeous little town in the alps of southern germany. it's known for the murals painted on the buildings and its history of people making quality violins.
i'll take the high road and you take the low road....
mmm... apple strudel.
i'll take the high road and you take the low road....
mmm... apple strudel.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
carl sagan day
today is carl sagan day, with a celebration being held at broward college in southern florida for what would have been carl's 75th birthday.
carl sagan was an astronomer, but most well-known to the public as an incredible science communicator. i meet professional astronomers all the time who claim him to be a major influence in their decision to go into science, including myself.
he has written some very influential books, shared amazing perspective as to our place in the universe on our pale blue dot, he and partner ann druyan created the memorable cosmos tv series, and a recent youtube video featuring carl sagan, a glorious dawn, has proven to be very popular!
here is carl with the dalai lama in 1991.
i'm actually working on another piece about carl sagan, and i'd like to hear your thoughts. what influence has he had for you, if any? what memories do you associate with him? if you are a young person, do you know who he is? how did you hear about him?
carl sagan was an astronomer, but most well-known to the public as an incredible science communicator. i meet professional astronomers all the time who claim him to be a major influence in their decision to go into science, including myself.
he has written some very influential books, shared amazing perspective as to our place in the universe on our pale blue dot, he and partner ann druyan created the memorable cosmos tv series, and a recent youtube video featuring carl sagan, a glorious dawn, has proven to be very popular!
here is carl with the dalai lama in 1991.
i'm actually working on another piece about carl sagan, and i'd like to hear your thoughts. what influence has he had for you, if any? what memories do you associate with him? if you are a young person, do you know who he is? how did you hear about him?
Friday, November 6, 2009
space day aftermath
space day at the castle was loads of fun last saturday! my mom came from the US for the event and has been here all week - hence a lack of posting! here's a photo of us at the event in our costumes! more soon....
ps. no, i'm not dressed as ronald mcdonald!
ps. no, i'm not dressed as ronald mcdonald!
Monday, November 2, 2009
when accuracy kills romance
this cartoon from saturday morning breakfast cereal reminded a reader of me. haha!!
there are certain times when people say things inaccurately and i *have* to say something about the correct information. but sometimes, i have to recognize when to keep my mouth shut ;)
ps. its not a meteorite until it actually lands on the surface of the earth!
there are certain times when people say things inaccurately and i *have* to say something about the correct information. but sometimes, i have to recognize when to keep my mouth shut ;)
ps. its not a meteorite until it actually lands on the surface of the earth!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Saturday, October 24, 2009
space day and moon watch
we're hosting a space day and moon watch event at the nottingham castle in honor of the international year of astronomy 2009.
i've never organized an event as large as this and its been an interesting exercise in administrative business dealings. i've been in complete control of planning everything: instigating, organizing, scheduling, justifying and seeking funding, allocating, etc... overall, it has been fun, but exhausting! i'm extremely grateful to all those around the community who have volunteered their time and resources to help organize!
since the event takes place on halloween, we're having a costume contest and i finally have mine together! i'll let you guess what it is when i take pictures at the event!!
maybe the best part of the event is that my mom is coming all the way from the US to enjoy the day and visit for a while! cant wait to see her and spend time together - i hope she wears a costume ;)
i've never organized an event as large as this and its been an interesting exercise in administrative business dealings. i've been in complete control of planning everything: instigating, organizing, scheduling, justifying and seeking funding, allocating, etc... overall, it has been fun, but exhausting! i'm extremely grateful to all those around the community who have volunteered their time and resources to help organize!
since the event takes place on halloween, we're having a costume contest and i finally have mine together! i'll let you guess what it is when i take pictures at the event!!
maybe the best part of the event is that my mom is coming all the way from the US to enjoy the day and visit for a while! cant wait to see her and spend time together - i hope she wears a costume ;)
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
saturn's newly discovered ring
in this installment of the new sixty symbols, we discuss saturn's new ring, my favorite image of saturn ever, and why saturn's moon, mimas, is my favorite moon in the solar system!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
thats a lot of planets!
using a 3.6-metre telescope in the chilean mountains, a team has discovered 32 new exoplanets! thats a lot of new planets orbiting around other stars to declare at one time, and it brings the total number of planets known to 403!
i imagine more and more planets will be announced in the relatively near future as the kelper telescope sends data back to scientists on earth to analyze!
meanwhile back at home.... you might notice that big bright "star" glaring in evening sky? thats the planet jupiter for us to enjoy, as this sketch by ryo tomo reminds us.
i imagine more and more planets will be announced in the relatively near future as the kelper telescope sends data back to scientists on earth to analyze!
meanwhile back at home.... you might notice that big bright "star" glaring in evening sky? thats the planet jupiter for us to enjoy, as this sketch by ryo tomo reminds us.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
salzburg, austria
salzburg is where the sound of music was filmed. i was surprised to realize that most austrians and germans only know of this film because people from all over the world (probably dominated by native english speakers), want to visit the city because of the movie! its a gorgeous place, and also the birthplace of mozart!
the fortress on the hill in the distance...
we finally headed up to the fortress...
in the marionette museum...
the fortress on the hill in the distance...
we finally headed up to the fortress...
in the marionette museum...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)