Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
bird shadows
not a single overlap!? likely photoshopped, but i still love the composition in this photo by alexei bednij:
Sunday, November 7, 2010
jetlagged in sydney
i survived two A380 flights to cross half the world and successfully land in australia! hello from sydney! i hope they manage to quickly fix the design fault in the A380 engine, because its an amazingly quiet and more-pleasant-than-usual plane in which to fly long journeys!
i arrived at 8 am yesterday and felt my mind was swimming through a jetlag haze for most of rest of the day. but i managed to accomplish a few things during my determination to stay awake until at least 8pm. i saw the sydney opera house, from a few different directions, from the car. i thought it looked smaller than i expected, to which someone said "you're so american!" no way to argue that point. i also had some very tasty australian red wine, and i must admit, i tried kangaroo... and liked it.
i havent taken too many pictures yet, but i wanted to share this photo of the power outlets...
they remind me of edvard munch's famous painting the scream, but even more so, of that scary character from the movie...
i made it to 8 pm yesterday and then slept solidly thru the next 12 hours. now i might be on the local time schedule and i get to start shopping for a few staples, you know... a place to live, a phone, health insurance, a car, etc... and i'm supposed to start my new job tomorrow. yikes! that was poor planning!
i arrived at 8 am yesterday and felt my mind was swimming through a jetlag haze for most of rest of the day. but i managed to accomplish a few things during my determination to stay awake until at least 8pm. i saw the sydney opera house, from a few different directions, from the car. i thought it looked smaller than i expected, to which someone said "you're so american!" no way to argue that point. i also had some very tasty australian red wine, and i must admit, i tried kangaroo... and liked it.
i havent taken too many pictures yet, but i wanted to share this photo of the power outlets...
they remind me of edvard munch's famous painting the scream, but even more so, of that scary character from the movie...
i made it to 8 pm yesterday and then slept solidly thru the next 12 hours. now i might be on the local time schedule and i get to start shopping for a few staples, you know... a place to live, a phone, health insurance, a car, etc... and i'm supposed to start my new job tomorrow. yikes! that was poor planning!
Friday, November 5, 2010
so begins another adventure
today i leave england with a one way ticket to australia.
moving far far away is difficult and draining, despite the potential adventures that await in a new land....
its a bittersweet feeling that the inexorable nina simone has managed to capture in her ballad, lonesome cities. see you on the flip side.
moving far far away is difficult and draining, despite the potential adventures that await in a new land....
its a bittersweet feeling that the inexorable nina simone has managed to capture in her ballad, lonesome cities. see you on the flip side.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
things i'll miss about england
tomorrow i move away from england, my home of the last 2 years and 3 months. i have to admit i'm emotionally exhausted from saying so many big goodbyes, but i'm completely over dealing with all the preparations for moving across the world.
things i will miss about england
the sound of the accent, in general, but also how geographically quickly the accents vary!
being called "love" or "duck"
the subtle and hilarious humo(u)r
riding on the upper floor of a double decker bus, in the front seat!
the variety of locally brewed, tasty, real ales. and ciders. and whisky...
satisfying late night cravings for chips!
premier league football
afternoon tea, and the arguments about the "proper" way to add milk to tea
pub quizzes (i only ever won one during my time in england, but not for lack of trying!)
running along the canals
my city center flat and walking to shops
come dine with me
rambling thru the unbelievably bright green countryside
sandwiches from homemade.
participating in sixty symbols
postdoc lunches (PDL), specifically at the vic!
unforgettable friendships.
things i will not miss about blighty
the weather
general moaning and the expectation things will inevitably go wrong: "typical!"
friday and saturday night debauchery by the locals (lack of clothes year round, incredible drunkenness, etc...)
invisible queues ("An Englishman, even if he is alone, forms an orderly queue of one." - George Mikes)
the irrational excesses of english politeness
lack of eye contact
not speaking to strangers, or in most cases, not even acknowledging the existence of other people, unless, of course, one is trying to sell the big issue, or sharing the silent acknowledgment of the impudence of a queue jumper.
confusing one-way streets that are practically impossible to navigate, mostly because the street signs are purposely hidden!
riding my bike in the rain
the full english breakfast
brits asking me to imitate the british accent and then laughing at me when i cant
"i cant be bothered" to come up with anymore right now, but if youre curious about any of these aspects of the english culture, i can highly recommend the book watching the english: the hidden rules of english behaviour by kate fox. in her socialogical study, she hilariously captures the peculiarities of living with the english. reading this book completely changed my perspective and experience here.
cheers, england!
things i will miss about england
the sound of the accent, in general, but also how geographically quickly the accents vary!
being called "love" or "duck"
the subtle and hilarious humo(u)r
riding on the upper floor of a double decker bus, in the front seat!
the variety of locally brewed, tasty, real ales. and ciders. and whisky...
satisfying late night cravings for chips!
premier league football
afternoon tea, and the arguments about the "proper" way to add milk to tea
pub quizzes (i only ever won one during my time in england, but not for lack of trying!)
running along the canals
my city center flat and walking to shops
come dine with me
rambling thru the unbelievably bright green countryside
sandwiches from homemade.
participating in sixty symbols
postdoc lunches (PDL), specifically at the vic!
unforgettable friendships.
things i will not miss about blighty
the weather
general moaning and the expectation things will inevitably go wrong: "typical!"
friday and saturday night debauchery by the locals (lack of clothes year round, incredible drunkenness, etc...)
invisible queues ("An Englishman, even if he is alone, forms an orderly queue of one." - George Mikes)
the irrational excesses of english politeness
lack of eye contact
not speaking to strangers, or in most cases, not even acknowledging the existence of other people, unless, of course, one is trying to sell the big issue, or sharing the silent acknowledgment of the impudence of a queue jumper.
confusing one-way streets that are practically impossible to navigate, mostly because the street signs are purposely hidden!
riding my bike in the rain
the full english breakfast
brits asking me to imitate the british accent and then laughing at me when i cant
"i cant be bothered" to come up with anymore right now, but if youre curious about any of these aspects of the english culture, i can highly recommend the book watching the english: the hidden rules of english behaviour by kate fox. in her socialogical study, she hilariously captures the peculiarities of living with the english. reading this book completely changed my perspective and experience here.
cheers, england!
geek bumper sticker
i've never been anywhere in the world where people go as crazy for bumper stickers as they do in the US. this one is top quality!
via unreasonable faith
via unreasonable faith
Monday, November 1, 2010
timescapes: rapture
tome lowe has been traveling around the southwestern part of the US for the last many months (a year almost?) with a huge haul of equipment to record timelapse shots for his upcoming feature film, timescapes, to be released next year.
his past work was gorgeous, but the production footage below shows that he is really revolutionizing this technique. i absolutely love the scenes that follow in the frame of our milky way galaxy across the sky, showing the earth in the foreground moving past. i've never seen the universe filmed in such a way. stunning work!
his past work was gorgeous, but the production footage below shows that he is really revolutionizing this technique. i absolutely love the scenes that follow in the frame of our milky way galaxy across the sky, showing the earth in the foreground moving past. i've never seen the universe filmed in such a way. stunning work!
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
buckeyes or conkers?
i'm originally from the state of ohio, USA, which is known as the "buckeye state." buckeyes are the common local name of a type of tree that are more generally called horse chestnuts.
ohioans have been inspired to make make necklaces out of the seeds of the buckeye tree in support of the ohio state buckeyes:
the region is also known for sweet candy treats called "buckeyes" which are made from peanut butter balls dipped in melted chocolate and left to dry. mmmmmm... buckeyes!
the british, on the other hand, have developed quite a different tradition using the seeds from the horse chestnut trees, which they call conkers. the game of conkers is a moderately violent affair where you string up your conker and try to knock an opponent's conker off his or her string.
a couple years ago we held a conkers tournament among the astronomers and physicists in our building... the brits wanted to initiate all us foreigners to the tradition, you see. we were warned of a few of the rules, which mainly revolved around forbidden methods to potentially strengthen your conker: soaking in vinegar, drying in an oven, etc...
what surprised me is how painful this game can be when your shot is not accurate. if you miss your opponent's conker altogether, which i did quite often, the conker flings around on the end of the string and slams into your forearm. my unskilled conker flicks continued to hit the same spot on my arm and built up quite a painful bruise! ouch! of course i lost my conker during my first battle.
brady haran, who produces sixty symbols, has produced an interesting video about horse chestnut trees for his trees project, which explains a bit more about the game of conkers (but doesnt mention "buckeyes" at all :(
ohioans have been inspired to make make necklaces out of the seeds of the buckeye tree in support of the ohio state buckeyes:
the region is also known for sweet candy treats called "buckeyes" which are made from peanut butter balls dipped in melted chocolate and left to dry. mmmmmm... buckeyes!
the british, on the other hand, have developed quite a different tradition using the seeds from the horse chestnut trees, which they call conkers. the game of conkers is a moderately violent affair where you string up your conker and try to knock an opponent's conker off his or her string.
a couple years ago we held a conkers tournament among the astronomers and physicists in our building... the brits wanted to initiate all us foreigners to the tradition, you see. we were warned of a few of the rules, which mainly revolved around forbidden methods to potentially strengthen your conker: soaking in vinegar, drying in an oven, etc...
what surprised me is how painful this game can be when your shot is not accurate. if you miss your opponent's conker altogether, which i did quite often, the conker flings around on the end of the string and slams into your forearm. my unskilled conker flicks continued to hit the same spot on my arm and built up quite a painful bruise! ouch! of course i lost my conker during my first battle.
brady haran, who produces sixty symbols, has produced an interesting video about horse chestnut trees for his trees project, which explains a bit more about the game of conkers (but doesnt mention "buckeyes" at all :(
Monday, October 25, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
small worlds
the results are out for the 2010 nikon small world contest. here are a few of my favorites! the descriptions below come from the big picture.
Magnified 400 times, this is a 2-Photon fluorescence image of glial cells in the cerebellum. Glial cells provide support for the brain's neurons. This image was made by Thomas Deerinck of the National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research, University of California, San Diego.
Two human cancer cells seen just before they divide into four cells, viewed at 100x magnification. This image of Telophase HeLa (cancer) cells expressing Aurora B-EGFP took 11th place and was made by Dr. Paul D. Andrews of the University of Dundee in Dundee, Scotland.
Patterns of light are seen in soap film, magnified 150 times in this 18th place image by Gerd Guenther from Dusseldorf, Germany.
Magnified 400 times, this is a 2-Photon fluorescence image of glial cells in the cerebellum. Glial cells provide support for the brain's neurons. This image was made by Thomas Deerinck of the National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research, University of California, San Diego.
Two human cancer cells seen just before they divide into four cells, viewed at 100x magnification. This image of Telophase HeLa (cancer) cells expressing Aurora B-EGFP took 11th place and was made by Dr. Paul D. Andrews of the University of Dundee in Dundee, Scotland.
Patterns of light are seen in soap film, magnified 150 times in this 18th place image by Gerd Guenther from Dusseldorf, Germany.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
observing: the story via twitter
some of you may use twitter, and some of you may not see the point of trying to communicate thru 140 character phrases. personally, i find twitter to be entertaining, interesting, and quite useful in my professional life. my opinion is that twitter can be worthwhile for anyone, you just have to follow only those people who post things of interest to you and ignore everyone else!
anyway, i have tweeted consistently throughout this observing run on mauna kea and i think those tweets tell a unique play-by-play story of the experience that i have not otherwise captured on this blog. each line is a single twitter entry. so you know, hashtags (#) are used to organize and identify various topics throughout twitter, and i've left them in this compilation... i hope you enjoy!
ACCLIMATION DAY/NIGHT (9000 ft)
i'm sitting in hilo surrounded by big-leaf plants and incredibly loud chirpy creatures!
breakfast of fresh papaya, fruit juice, and smooth kona coffee while watching the rescue of chilean miners.
i have a few hours this morning before i head up to mauna kea. i'm going to go swim with turtles, obviously.
sitting in hale pohaku at 9000 ft feeling a bit wobbly... and tired even though the sun hasnt set yet and i want to stay up past 2 am...?
wow, i just blew my nose and got incredibly light headed. high altitude does funny things to the body.
i've managed to stay awake past 1 am.... running out of things to do. what should i watch online?
NIGHT 1 AT SUMMIT (14000 ft)
managed to sleep for ten hours! now i'm excited to get to the summit, but still have to wait a few hours. work until dinner.
sitting at the summit of mauna kea! clouds make for a crappy observing night, but a lovely sunset. i'm feeling ok at 14000ft... for now!
in a hole right now/ clouds are on the horizon/ will be a long night #observinghaiku
major clouds, sucker holes, dying computers, and high-altitude wooziness - time for night lunch.
what we're trying to do is find find loads of new distant galaxies, but the clouds are not letting us!! :(
on an extinct volcano: http://bit.ly/crrvYL (blog post with pictures)
no wonder y'all are so quiet... its saturday. weekend observing is the worst. no, marginal weather observing is the worst. d'oh!
it takes water a long time to boil up here, and the kettle doesnt seem to know when its boiling!
the computers here talk to us sometimes: the male voice is like stephen hawking, but the female voice has a realistic british accent. huh?
oh no! i assumed lost season 6 was on hulu and i could watch it while observing... but its not! foiled.
the bad weather is holding steady :( we'll wait for 1.5 hrs more then head down.... unless the clouds clear, of course.
"Being a graduate student is like becoming all of the Seven Dwarves. In the beginning you're Dopey and Bashful."
"In the middle, you are usually sick (Sneezy), tired (Sleepy), and irritable (Grumpy)."
"But at the end, they call you Doc, and then you're Happy."
NIGHT 2
slept like crap; woke up in a thick cloud. should be an interesting and long night.
uh- oh. i'm bored and we're scheduled to be up here for another 8 hours.
my partner in astronomical crime for the evening just offered to make cappuccinos. divine.
meanwhile, we're collecting data in hopes of finding the smallest stars and/or the most distant quasars!
just went outside for ten minutes and saw six meteors whiz across the sky! its a crisp, cool, clear night illuminated by a bright moon.
also, i thought gemini's adaptive optics laser was green, but it looks red tonight...? ( http://bit.ly/bmcjoT ) anyone know?
i'm watching old josephine baker clips on youtube to stay awake.... wow could she dance!
clouds just came rushing in incredibly fast. guess thats it.... shutting down, packing up, and heading down the mountain.
NIGHT 3
the doorbell just rang. who knew observatories had doorbells?!?
ringing the doorbell was a lovely (~70 yr old?) aussie who claimed to be an "astronomy student" and asked politely to see the telescope.
so far every system we are using has failed and needed fixing... we've been in the dome for 27 minutes. we good for the night? or doomed?
"panspermia" is an oddly descriptive name for what it means http://bit.ly/3PuBVo
the telescope is touchy tonight.
clouds over mauna kea make for very frustrating observing, but absolutely gorgeous sunsets! http://twitpic.com/2yox0j
really bright star in this field whose light is reflecting all over inside the scope, causing crazy light streaks and artifacts. offset!!
the humidity has risen above 75%.... closing the dome for a bit to see if it drops again.
the gauge currently measures 102.5% humidity. hmmmm...
still over 100% humidity. dome is frozen in place. packin it up and callin it a night.
NIGHT 4
just woke up after a good sleep. getting ready to eat dinner - weather at the summit doesnt look good: humidity, high wind, maybe snow?!!
there's always potential for a random reunion when observing at mauna kea. my undergraduate professor is here!
visibility is about 30 ft at most on top of mauna kea right now. poor tourists wont get much of a sunset.
random reunion: at dinner i saw jonathan fay who i met last year at @dotastronomy in holland!?! #dotastro #smalluniverse
stuck in a cloud and this room ( http://bit.ly/aYZwFh ) for at least 7 more hours, unless the road starts to freeze and we have to descend.
the weather is teasing us now.... humidity has dropped to 90%, where it sits. we cant open until its consistently below 75%.
clouds have cleared, humidity has dropped, the air is still.... let the data collection commence!
looks like we will be up here all night after all.... time to make use of the super fancy espresso machine!!
it turns out 3 am at 14000 ft is not the best time to try to learn a new program.
was a mistake to leave my night lunch out in nature's refrigerator. its below freezing. d'oh!
soggy sandwiches and frozen fruit.
looks like we'll be working straight to the sunrise. thats a full 14 hour work night. #worthit
NIGHT 5
well, after the 14 hour work night, i slept 8.5 hrs and was woken up by my alarm clock so i could make it to dinner in time! whew!
its 5pm tuesday evening here, and 2 pm wednesday afternoon for collaborators in australia. what is "tomorrow" ?
cant say i was terribly impressed by the dinner offered tonight at hale pohaku. oh well, it will be another lovely sunset from the summit!
i keep asking "how faint" is it? he keeps telling me "how bright" it is. is this the astronomical "glass half full" conundrum?
clouds swept up over the mountain incredibly fast! we're sitting in supersaturated air, again. guess that means i should do real work...
it's as if we're Li'l Abner's Joe Btfsplk with this rain cloud perched above us! http://twitpic.com/2z7btm
ugh, i have a headache tonight. is the altitude finally getting to me? or am i sick of trying to finish this paper i'm working on?
so far this evening the humidity has ranged from 3.4% to 105.8%. crazy clouds.
NIGHT 6
last night on the mountain! clouds are wild, but hopefully they clear enough to let me see some orionids later! http://bit.ly/d8me57
right now the earth is passing thru the debris left by halley's comet, resulting in the orionid metoer shower. too bad the moon is ~full
collecting data for the first time in three nights. woohoo!!
when we are focusing the telescope to see if conditions are good enough to observe, sometimes i get the urge to yell "survey says...!"
mauna kea always offers interesting views: http://bit.ly/bydN6M
the moon is SO bright! watched for 10 minutes and only saw two orionid meteors near peak hour.
just found two instances in this paper where i typed "in this pork" instead of "in this work." the 1st really confused me!
nope. i cant see/find comet hartley with binoculars or IR monocular :( i blame the moon. http://bit.ly/aGUVgT
the full moon finally set, so i went outside to see several orionid meteors and to say goodbye to the stars of the northern hemisphere.
that's all folks, this observing run is over. i get to sleep for a few hours, then begin the two-day journey back to robin's hood. mahalo.
anyway, i have tweeted consistently throughout this observing run on mauna kea and i think those tweets tell a unique play-by-play story of the experience that i have not otherwise captured on this blog. each line is a single twitter entry. so you know, hashtags (#) are used to organize and identify various topics throughout twitter, and i've left them in this compilation... i hope you enjoy!
ACCLIMATION DAY/NIGHT (9000 ft)
i'm sitting in hilo surrounded by big-leaf plants and incredibly loud chirpy creatures!
breakfast of fresh papaya, fruit juice, and smooth kona coffee while watching the rescue of chilean miners.
i have a few hours this morning before i head up to mauna kea. i'm going to go swim with turtles, obviously.
sitting in hale pohaku at 9000 ft feeling a bit wobbly... and tired even though the sun hasnt set yet and i want to stay up past 2 am...?
wow, i just blew my nose and got incredibly light headed. high altitude does funny things to the body.
i've managed to stay awake past 1 am.... running out of things to do. what should i watch online?
NIGHT 1 AT SUMMIT (14000 ft)
managed to sleep for ten hours! now i'm excited to get to the summit, but still have to wait a few hours. work until dinner.
sitting at the summit of mauna kea! clouds make for a crappy observing night, but a lovely sunset. i'm feeling ok at 14000ft... for now!
in a hole right now/ clouds are on the horizon/ will be a long night #observinghaiku
major clouds, sucker holes, dying computers, and high-altitude wooziness - time for night lunch.
what we're trying to do is find find loads of new distant galaxies, but the clouds are not letting us!! :(
on an extinct volcano: http://bit.ly/crrvYL (blog post with pictures)
no wonder y'all are so quiet... its saturday. weekend observing is the worst. no, marginal weather observing is the worst. d'oh!
it takes water a long time to boil up here, and the kettle doesnt seem to know when its boiling!
the computers here talk to us sometimes: the male voice is like stephen hawking, but the female voice has a realistic british accent. huh?
oh no! i assumed lost season 6 was on hulu and i could watch it while observing... but its not! foiled.
the bad weather is holding steady :( we'll wait for 1.5 hrs more then head down.... unless the clouds clear, of course.
"Being a graduate student is like becoming all of the Seven Dwarves. In the beginning you're Dopey and Bashful."
"In the middle, you are usually sick (Sneezy), tired (Sleepy), and irritable (Grumpy)."
"But at the end, they call you Doc, and then you're Happy."
NIGHT 2
slept like crap; woke up in a thick cloud. should be an interesting and long night.
uh- oh. i'm bored and we're scheduled to be up here for another 8 hours.
my partner in astronomical crime for the evening just offered to make cappuccinos. divine.
meanwhile, we're collecting data in hopes of finding the smallest stars and/or the most distant quasars!
just went outside for ten minutes and saw six meteors whiz across the sky! its a crisp, cool, clear night illuminated by a bright moon.
also, i thought gemini's adaptive optics laser was green, but it looks red tonight...? ( http://bit.ly/bmcjoT ) anyone know?
i'm watching old josephine baker clips on youtube to stay awake.... wow could she dance!
clouds just came rushing in incredibly fast. guess thats it.... shutting down, packing up, and heading down the mountain.
NIGHT 3
the doorbell just rang. who knew observatories had doorbells?!?
ringing the doorbell was a lovely (~70 yr old?) aussie who claimed to be an "astronomy student" and asked politely to see the telescope.
so far every system we are using has failed and needed fixing... we've been in the dome for 27 minutes. we good for the night? or doomed?
"panspermia" is an oddly descriptive name for what it means http://bit.ly/3PuBVo
the telescope is touchy tonight.
clouds over mauna kea make for very frustrating observing, but absolutely gorgeous sunsets! http://twitpic.com/2yox0j
really bright star in this field whose light is reflecting all over inside the scope, causing crazy light streaks and artifacts. offset!!
the humidity has risen above 75%.... closing the dome for a bit to see if it drops again.
the gauge currently measures 102.5% humidity. hmmmm...
still over 100% humidity. dome is frozen in place. packin it up and callin it a night.
NIGHT 4
just woke up after a good sleep. getting ready to eat dinner - weather at the summit doesnt look good: humidity, high wind, maybe snow?!!
there's always potential for a random reunion when observing at mauna kea. my undergraduate professor is here!
visibility is about 30 ft at most on top of mauna kea right now. poor tourists wont get much of a sunset.
random reunion: at dinner i saw jonathan fay who i met last year at @dotastronomy in holland!?! #dotastro #smalluniverse
stuck in a cloud and this room ( http://bit.ly/aYZwFh ) for at least 7 more hours, unless the road starts to freeze and we have to descend.
the weather is teasing us now.... humidity has dropped to 90%, where it sits. we cant open until its consistently below 75%.
clouds have cleared, humidity has dropped, the air is still.... let the data collection commence!
looks like we will be up here all night after all.... time to make use of the super fancy espresso machine!!
it turns out 3 am at 14000 ft is not the best time to try to learn a new program.
was a mistake to leave my night lunch out in nature's refrigerator. its below freezing. d'oh!
soggy sandwiches and frozen fruit.
looks like we'll be working straight to the sunrise. thats a full 14 hour work night. #worthit
NIGHT 5
well, after the 14 hour work night, i slept 8.5 hrs and was woken up by my alarm clock so i could make it to dinner in time! whew!
its 5pm tuesday evening here, and 2 pm wednesday afternoon for collaborators in australia. what is "tomorrow" ?
cant say i was terribly impressed by the dinner offered tonight at hale pohaku. oh well, it will be another lovely sunset from the summit!
i keep asking "how faint" is it? he keeps telling me "how bright" it is. is this the astronomical "glass half full" conundrum?
clouds swept up over the mountain incredibly fast! we're sitting in supersaturated air, again. guess that means i should do real work...
it's as if we're Li'l Abner's Joe Btfsplk with this rain cloud perched above us! http://twitpic.com/2z7btm
ugh, i have a headache tonight. is the altitude finally getting to me? or am i sick of trying to finish this paper i'm working on?
so far this evening the humidity has ranged from 3.4% to 105.8%. crazy clouds.
NIGHT 6
last night on the mountain! clouds are wild, but hopefully they clear enough to let me see some orionids later! http://bit.ly/d8me57
right now the earth is passing thru the debris left by halley's comet, resulting in the orionid metoer shower. too bad the moon is ~full
collecting data for the first time in three nights. woohoo!!
when we are focusing the telescope to see if conditions are good enough to observe, sometimes i get the urge to yell "survey says...!"
mauna kea always offers interesting views: http://bit.ly/bydN6M
the moon is SO bright! watched for 10 minutes and only saw two orionid meteors near peak hour.
just found two instances in this paper where i typed "in this pork" instead of "in this work." the 1st really confused me!
nope. i cant see/find comet hartley with binoculars or IR monocular :( i blame the moon. http://bit.ly/aGUVgT
the full moon finally set, so i went outside to see several orionid meteors and to say goodbye to the stars of the northern hemisphere.
that's all folks, this observing run is over. i get to sleep for a few hours, then begin the two-day journey back to robin's hood. mahalo.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
views from mauna kea
as this observing run on mauna kea draws to a close (tonight is my last night), i share another round of views from the volcano.
i never really get tired of these sunsets.
the nearly full moon is on the rise.
just a short hike from the telescopes takes you to that actual summit of mauna kea (on the right of the photo above, and shown below). some brave folks marched over to see the small monument built by hawaiians.
clouds in front of the sun can create some really interesting shadows and rays. when taking this shot, the sun was setting behind me and i couldnt see it at all thru the thick cumulus clouds.
below is an early morning photo with the sun rising behind me. the telescopes from right to left are the NASA infrared telescope facility (IRTF, where my old undergraduate professor is currently observing, small universe), the two keck telescopes (the biggest mirrors on the mountain), the japanese suburu telescope, and the submillimeter array. the little island peaking out of the clouds on the right is maui!
this is a sunrise view of the cabin at 9000ft where sleep happily greeted me after a 14 hour work night.
if you click to see the full photo below, you can see some telescope domes on the top of mauna kea! its rare to be able to see the peak from the ever-cloud-covered town of hilo.
aloha!
i never really get tired of these sunsets.
the nearly full moon is on the rise.
just a short hike from the telescopes takes you to that actual summit of mauna kea (on the right of the photo above, and shown below). some brave folks marched over to see the small monument built by hawaiians.
clouds in front of the sun can create some really interesting shadows and rays. when taking this shot, the sun was setting behind me and i couldnt see it at all thru the thick cumulus clouds.
below is an early morning photo with the sun rising behind me. the telescopes from right to left are the NASA infrared telescope facility (IRTF, where my old undergraduate professor is currently observing, small universe), the two keck telescopes (the biggest mirrors on the mountain), the japanese suburu telescope, and the submillimeter array. the little island peaking out of the clouds on the right is maui!
this is a sunrise view of the cabin at 9000ft where sleep happily greeted me after a 14 hour work night.
if you click to see the full photo below, you can see some telescope domes on the top of mauna kea! its rare to be able to see the peak from the ever-cloud-covered town of hilo.
aloha!
mandelbrot fractals
benoît mandelbrot died on october 14th, 2010 at the age of 85.
he was the mathematician who invented fractals: rough (not smooth) geometric shapes that have the cool property that if you look at small parts of the whole, they look (almost) exactly like the whole, only smaller. here is the famous mandelbrot set:
fractals occur all over in nature including clouds, snow flakes, crystals, mountain ranges, lightning, river networks, cauliflower or broccoli, and even our blood vessels.
in july of this year, mandelbrot gave an interesting TED talk called Fractals and the art of roughness describing how he came about the idea of fractals, and how they are used in a wide variety of ways today:
ps. someone sent me this fractal which could sort of maybe loosely qualify as dirty space news.
he was the mathematician who invented fractals: rough (not smooth) geometric shapes that have the cool property that if you look at small parts of the whole, they look (almost) exactly like the whole, only smaller. here is the famous mandelbrot set:
fractals occur all over in nature including clouds, snow flakes, crystals, mountain ranges, lightning, river networks, cauliflower or broccoli, and even our blood vessels.
in july of this year, mandelbrot gave an interesting TED talk called Fractals and the art of roughness describing how he came about the idea of fractals, and how they are used in a wide variety of ways today:
ps. someone sent me this fractal which could sort of maybe loosely qualify as dirty space news.
nebula print clothes
here are some pieces from christopher kane's resort 2011 collection of nebula print awesomeness! this is my favorite...
... but i really like the one on the bottom, second to the left too.
spotted by the style rookie.
... but i really like the one on the bottom, second to the left too.
spotted by the style rookie.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
where do good ideas come from?
a new book by steven johnson is out now called Where Good Ideas Come From. he argues that most ideas do not come from EUREKA! moments, but rather slowly simmer over time and usually come to fruition under the influence of external stimulation. as he says, "chance favours the connected mind."
here's a short visual summary of him describing where good ideas come from:
i think this is an interesting concept to consider because its easy to get frustrated when inspiration doesnt show itself quickly, yet we see other people coming up with good ideas and achieving success**. especially in the US, people seem to be on the lookout for a "million dollar idea" that will allow them to live the profitable "american dream." certainly that is possible and happens, but that is not the way most of our lives operate. i think that the "quick fix" mindset inevitably leads to disappointment, which can easily destroy our motivation to maintain the effort necessary to achieve any sort of goal.
the concept that some ideas need to marinate in my system for a while until they are agitated by the right force is somehow comforting. more good ideas are yet to come! i just need to be patient and continue building momentum by reading, talking to other people, exposing myself to new experiences, and maintaining an observant, empathetic mind.
i had never heard of steven johnson before reading an interview with him on the guardian, but now i think i will read his book.
** of course everyone has their own idea of "success." is it attaining lots of money, or having a family, or helping others, or maintaining a career, or simply feeling happy?
here's a short visual summary of him describing where good ideas come from:
i think this is an interesting concept to consider because its easy to get frustrated when inspiration doesnt show itself quickly, yet we see other people coming up with good ideas and achieving success**. especially in the US, people seem to be on the lookout for a "million dollar idea" that will allow them to live the profitable "american dream." certainly that is possible and happens, but that is not the way most of our lives operate. i think that the "quick fix" mindset inevitably leads to disappointment, which can easily destroy our motivation to maintain the effort necessary to achieve any sort of goal.
the concept that some ideas need to marinate in my system for a while until they are agitated by the right force is somehow comforting. more good ideas are yet to come! i just need to be patient and continue building momentum by reading, talking to other people, exposing myself to new experiences, and maintaining an observant, empathetic mind.
i had never heard of steven johnson before reading an interview with him on the guardian, but now i think i will read his book.
** of course everyone has their own idea of "success." is it attaining lots of money, or having a family, or helping others, or maintaining a career, or simply feeling happy?
what are special and general relatvity?
the newest installment of sixty symbols shows a discussion of the difference between special and general relativity. brady also asks what physical constant we might change if given the opportunity.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
off on a tangent...
Sunday, October 17, 2010
NASA and etsy: space craft contest!
NASA and etsy have created a creative contest to commemorate the end of the NASA Space Shuttle Program: the Space Craft Contest. to enter, "share an original handmade item or work of art inspired by the NASA Space Shuttle Program and space exploration at large."
what a great idea!
prizes for the winners include etsy shopping sprees, stuff from nasa and etsy, and a trip to see the final space shuttle launch ever as NASA’s VIP guest!! and if that isnt enough awesome, your artwork might even be flown on the space shuttle.
the final space shuttle mission is currently scheduled for launch in february 2011 and will voyage to the international space station.
what's great about this contest, in my opinion, is that this contest ideally reaches an audience that science organizations like NASA should be making more of an effort to engage. of etsy's 5.9 million members, 96 percent are women, and most are under the age of 35.
no matter who you are**, submit your creative entries by november 2nd, 2010 (and post them here to so we can all see your work!).
i'm finding myself attracted to the wearable art, like the orbital earrings below, but there are many cool entries so far.
** the contest is open to legal US residents only.
what a great idea!
prizes for the winners include etsy shopping sprees, stuff from nasa and etsy, and a trip to see the final space shuttle launch ever as NASA’s VIP guest!! and if that isnt enough awesome, your artwork might even be flown on the space shuttle.
the final space shuttle mission is currently scheduled for launch in february 2011 and will voyage to the international space station.
what's great about this contest, in my opinion, is that this contest ideally reaches an audience that science organizations like NASA should be making more of an effort to engage. of etsy's 5.9 million members, 96 percent are women, and most are under the age of 35.
no matter who you are**, submit your creative entries by november 2nd, 2010 (and post them here to so we can all see your work!).
i'm finding myself attracted to the wearable art, like the orbital earrings below, but there are many cool entries so far.
** the contest is open to legal US residents only.
Friday, October 15, 2010
on an extinct volcano
aloha from the top of hawai'i!
i'm sitting at the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) and will be here for the next 5 nights. my last visit was about a year ago and i posted a few descriptions that you can read for more pictures and stories: scenes from mauna kea and twinkle twinkle little star (about adaptive optics).
the peak of mauna kea is at 14000 ft, which is really really high (about 3 times higher than the tallest peak in the UK). the potential effects of such a high altitude on the human body have forced this observatory to limit the amount of time that people are allowed to stay at the summit to 14 hours. which is fine with me - 14 hours is a long work day/night, especially at high altitude!
during observing runs on mauna kea, astronomers sleep at hale pohaku which is at 9000 ft. i spent one night there in order to acclimate to altitude, before coming up to the summit the next night. the photo below shows the buildings where we stay, the visitor center, and some cinder cones from the extinct volcano.
tonight is my first night on the summit, and i just reread the safety material they gave me which describes some of the minor symptoms of high altitude: headaches, drowsiness, nausea, loss of balance, altered mental state, and impaired reason.
i had a headache earlier, but it's gone now. the bathroom is down a flight of stairs and i have to remember to walk back up to the control room veeeerrrrrryyy ssslloooooooowly, or else i get light-headed and dizzy. the altered mental state and impaired reason is annoying when i cannot remember the right word for something, but slightly amusing when i mix my words up into some humorous mutation of what i actually mean to say.
the clouds are coming and going pretty rapidly tonight. we start an observation series and by the end the weather is too bad to result in useful data. i cant even go outside to enjoy the night sky because its hazy and too fuzzy. so for tonight, and the next five nights, this is my station:
the three screens on the right allow me to choose targets and control the observations. the middle three allow me to monitor the weather and quality of the data collected. the four screens on the left display the data after preliminary processing so i know whether things are running smoothly.
time for my night lunch...
i'm sitting at the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) and will be here for the next 5 nights. my last visit was about a year ago and i posted a few descriptions that you can read for more pictures and stories: scenes from mauna kea and twinkle twinkle little star (about adaptive optics).
the peak of mauna kea is at 14000 ft, which is really really high (about 3 times higher than the tallest peak in the UK). the potential effects of such a high altitude on the human body have forced this observatory to limit the amount of time that people are allowed to stay at the summit to 14 hours. which is fine with me - 14 hours is a long work day/night, especially at high altitude!
during observing runs on mauna kea, astronomers sleep at hale pohaku which is at 9000 ft. i spent one night there in order to acclimate to altitude, before coming up to the summit the next night. the photo below shows the buildings where we stay, the visitor center, and some cinder cones from the extinct volcano.
tonight is my first night on the summit, and i just reread the safety material they gave me which describes some of the minor symptoms of high altitude: headaches, drowsiness, nausea, loss of balance, altered mental state, and impaired reason.
i had a headache earlier, but it's gone now. the bathroom is down a flight of stairs and i have to remember to walk back up to the control room veeeerrrrrryyy ssslloooooooowly, or else i get light-headed and dizzy. the altered mental state and impaired reason is annoying when i cannot remember the right word for something, but slightly amusing when i mix my words up into some humorous mutation of what i actually mean to say.
the clouds are coming and going pretty rapidly tonight. we start an observation series and by the end the weather is too bad to result in useful data. i cant even go outside to enjoy the night sky because its hazy and too fuzzy. so for tonight, and the next five nights, this is my station:
the three screens on the right allow me to choose targets and control the observations. the middle three allow me to monitor the weather and quality of the data collected. the four screens on the left display the data after preliminary processing so i know whether things are running smoothly.
time for my night lunch...
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
sixty symbols: star classification
our sun is classified as a "G2V" star, but what does that mean? here's a new sixty symbols video to explain how we classify stars.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
the gift of art
soon after i arrived in ohio last week, my older sister told me she was excited about giving me a surprise that was brewing. i was intrigued, but didn't dwell on figuring out the mystery, because i like the anticipation before such an event! but seriously, i had NO idea what was coming!
my first night in town, we went to see a band and at the show she excitedly introduced me to her friend, pierre, saying "he reads your blog!" for the next week, i ran into pierre and his tiny dog all over town, which seemed strange because i had never met him over the many many many stays i've had in yellow springs.
on my final day in town, she seemed eager for us to walk to the coffee shop, which made me happy because i was very much in the mood for a tasty coffee treat. while i watched my niece and nephew run around like crazy people, in walked pierre carrying a painting. he handed it directly to me with a grin on his face and i was stunned.
my sister had commissioned this well-known local artist, pierre nagley, to paint something for me and this is what he created!
she talked over some ideas with him, but gave him creative freedom in the end. even though he and i had never met, he created this beautiful piece of art - and i couldn't be more pleased!!
the colors are fantastic and the details of the storm bands in jupiter's atmosphere are incredible. there are a few galilean moons floating around and in front of jupiter, including a close up view of callisto. when he saw that i enjoy seeing comets in the night sky, he included the dark features near the bottom of jupiter, which represent the temporary features created by the impact of comet shoemaker-levy 9 in 1994.
if you want to hear more, i actually described a lot of these features in the sixty symbols videos on jupiter and mysterious new spots on jupiter and venus.
here is pierre and my fabulous sister :)
so a big huge THANK YOU to lara and pierre!!
my first night in town, we went to see a band and at the show she excitedly introduced me to her friend, pierre, saying "he reads your blog!" for the next week, i ran into pierre and his tiny dog all over town, which seemed strange because i had never met him over the many many many stays i've had in yellow springs.
on my final day in town, she seemed eager for us to walk to the coffee shop, which made me happy because i was very much in the mood for a tasty coffee treat. while i watched my niece and nephew run around like crazy people, in walked pierre carrying a painting. he handed it directly to me with a grin on his face and i was stunned.
my sister had commissioned this well-known local artist, pierre nagley, to paint something for me and this is what he created!
she talked over some ideas with him, but gave him creative freedom in the end. even though he and i had never met, he created this beautiful piece of art - and i couldn't be more pleased!!
the colors are fantastic and the details of the storm bands in jupiter's atmosphere are incredible. there are a few galilean moons floating around and in front of jupiter, including a close up view of callisto. when he saw that i enjoy seeing comets in the night sky, he included the dark features near the bottom of jupiter, which represent the temporary features created by the impact of comet shoemaker-levy 9 in 1994.
if you want to hear more, i actually described a lot of these features in the sixty symbols videos on jupiter and mysterious new spots on jupiter and venus.
here is pierre and my fabulous sister :)
so a big huge THANK YOU to lara and pierre!!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
circle puzzle
here's a clever little puzzle for everyone to ponder. without measuring and using only the information on the image, can you figure out the radius of the circle?
please dont give away the solution in the comments, but feel free to share how long it took you or other puzzles you have enjoyed!
via The Marcos Kirsch Experience®
please dont give away the solution in the comments, but feel free to share how long it took you or other puzzles you have enjoyed!
via The Marcos Kirsch Experience®
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