Having done a giant weighty physics post, I feel like I should post something more frivolous, so here’s something about music… I recently purchased a bunch of stuff from iTunes (yeah, yeah, Amazon has DRM-free MP3’s, blah blah, blah. 1) I had a gift card, and 2) I’m not Cory Doctorow), and there was a… Continue reading New Songs from Old Singers
Author: Chad Orzel
Ultra-High-Energy Cosmic Rays Explained?
I have a bunch of science news sources in my RSS feeds, and every evening, I scan through the accumulated articles to try to figure out what physics-related stories there are to talk about. Sometimes, it’s hard to find anything, but other days, you get stories that lead to four press releases at EurekAlert (one,… Continue reading Ultra-High-Energy Cosmic Rays Explained?
links for 2007-11-09
Robert Donoghue – Hunting Vegetarians with Ted Nugent Anthony Bourdain rediscovers Furr’s Law (tags: food blogs computing society silly) Dynamics of Cats : “Rocketeers” – a Review This is exactly rocket science (tags: space books review) NOVA | Intelligent Design on Trial | PBS We’ll see if I remember to watch this (tags: biology education… Continue reading links for 2007-11-09
Low-Tech Lab Essentials
There are a lot of high-tech tools that are absolutely essential to the functioning of my lab. The diode lasers I use are a couple hundred bucks each, and only available from a handful of companies. I’ve got a couple of digital oscilloscopes that are really impressive instruments, packing a huge amount of signal-processing power… Continue reading Low-Tech Lab Essentials
Politics of the Purple Cow
There’s been a bunch of talk in the blogosphere about the Democrats taking over the Virginia Senate. I’ve only really glanced at these, because I don’t live in Virginia, but I got email today pointing out that I have a personal connection to one of the “Key Races.” In District 34, J. C. “Chap” Petersen… Continue reading Politics of the Purple Cow
Wikipedia and Charity
Ethan Zuckerman (who is on the Wikimedia Advisory Board) has a post discussing Wikipedia’s recent fundraising drive, with some comparative numbers: In the past 17 days, the [Wikimedia] Foundation has raised over $478,000 in online gifts. That’s a pretty amazing number, on the one hand, and a concerning one, on the other hand. If Global… Continue reading Wikipedia and Charity
DonorsChoose Accolades
I got a thank-you email yesterday from the head of DonorsChoose, which I will quote here. Because, well, you’re the ones who coughed up the cash, not me: Thanks in great part to the attention you generated, we made Internet history! During the month of October, readers of more than a hundred blogs gave $420,000… Continue reading DonorsChoose Accolades
links for 2007-11-08
ABC News: Police: Students Used Cookies to Torture “Ill. College Students Accused of Kidnapping, Battery With Freshly Baked Cookies” The world is a strange and disturbing place. (tags: news stupid drugs) mmcirvin: A strange map: UFO sightings in the US Why don’t people in the South see UFO’s? (tags: space science silly US) The National… Continue reading links for 2007-11-08
True Exam Stories
Becky Hirta is thinking about exams: For the giant calculus class I’m starting to write multiple choice questions. For a class like that, really the only issues for me to consider about the final are how to avoid cheating (change the order of the MC questions and the numbers in the long-answer), how to make… Continue reading True Exam Stories
Semi-Dorky Poll: Bicycle or Running?
Mark P. comments on particles and waves: I think it can be argued that a particle is a “thing” while a wave is a “behavior”, so it’s like asking: bicycle or running? Yes, and? Why wouldn’t that work as a poll question? Here’s let’s try: Bicycle or running? Pick only one, and leave your answer… Continue reading Semi-Dorky Poll: Bicycle or Running?