Author: Chad Orzel

Straight Talk About Alcohol

Inside Higher Ed has a story today about a former Middlebury College president who is launching a non-profit organization to advocate a serious discussion about drinking age laws in the US. As he notes, real data on the topic are a little hard to come by: What was striking about the research, McCardell said, was… Continue reading Straight Talk About Alcohol

Published
Categorized as Academia

New Limits on Constancy

There’s a press release on EurekAlert about new measurements limiting the change in the fine structure constant from the Time and Frequency division of NIST in Boulder: Some astronomical and geological studies suggest there might have been very small changes in the values of fundamental constants over billions of years, although the results have been… Continue reading New Limits on Constancy

Not All That Much of a Paradox, Really

In general, EuerkAlert has been a useful source for drawing my attention to interesting things that I might not otherwise notice. Every now and then, though, there are press releases that just make me faintly embarrassed for everyone involved. Such as yesterday’s announcement from LSU: Subhash Kak, Delaune Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering… Continue reading Not All That Much of a Paradox, Really

Published
Categorized as Physics

Dorky Poll: Favorite Calculational Shortcut

I’m giving an exam at 9:00 this morning– neither snow, nor more snow, nor blowing snow, nor single-digit temperatures shall stay the progress of shaping young minds. Anyway, to keep things lively while I’m proctoring the test, here’s a poll question inspired by the exam: What’s your favorite calculational shortcut? Today’s test is on basic… Continue reading Dorky Poll: Favorite Calculational Shortcut

Published
Categorized as Physics

Pop Culture Supercollider

One of those only-on-the-Internet, adventrues-in-D-list-celebrity videos: A YouTube clip of a hair metal cover band joined onstage by one of the teachers from “Saved by the Bell” and Dallas Cowboys snap-dropper Tony Romo, singing “Somewhere in the Night” by Journey. Romo really gets into it, and Mr. Belding drops the F-bomb a few times, and,… Continue reading Pop Culture Supercollider

The Definitive Statement on Marcus Ross

As usual, Scott Aaronson says it better than I did: [M]ost of the commentary strikes me as missing a key point: that to give a degree to a bozo like this, provided he indeed did the work, can only reflect credit on the scientific enterprise. Will Ross now hit the creationist lecture circuit, trumpeting his… Continue reading The Definitive Statement on Marcus Ross