Category: Eureka

Advent Calendar of Science Stories 4: Solstice

The passage tomb at Newgrange, in Ireland. Inset: some dude in front of the entrance to Newgrange.

The southeastern sky had been lightening for some time, stars slowly fading away. Off to the west, a band of clouds was moving in, obscuring stars as it came, but they wouldn’t make it in time to block the sunrise. A good thing, as the last two dawns had been cloudy. There would be maybe… Continue reading Advent Calendar of Science Stories 4: Solstice

Advent Calendar of Science Stories 3: Iceman

Otzi the Iceman, both as a mummy and a modern reconstruction. From DOGOnews, link in post.

The fungal tea tastes vile, and not for the first time he considers dumping it on the last of the morning’s fire. It does seem to be helping the pain in his gut, though, as the medicine man said it would, so he gulps the last of it with a grimace. Around him the younger… Continue reading Advent Calendar of Science Stories 3: Iceman

Advent Calendar of Science Stories 2: Begin at the Beginning

Exterior of Blombos Cave in South Africa, photo by Magnus Haaland, from Wikimedia.

She kneels on the dirt and watches the elder study the rocks she brought. Five fist-sized chunks of red stone, laboriously hacked from an outcrop. Half a day walking there and back, and half a day pounding rocks against rocks to yield this offering. The elder’s hands are stained the same red as the stone,… Continue reading Advent Calendar of Science Stories 2: Begin at the Beginning

Advent Calendar of Science Stories 1: Famous Exclamation

“…and unless the King comes here himself, I’m not to be disturbed.” “Yes, of course.” The servant bowed out, leaving him alone with the bath. He stepped in, gingerly at first, the water almost too hot to stand. Slowly, he lowered himself down to a sitting position, feeling the heat soak into his tired legs.… Continue reading Advent Calendar of Science Stories 1: Famous Exclamation

Eureka: Collecting the Origin

Screenshot from the video, talking about Rutherford's famous division of science between physics and stamp collecting.

Almost everybody, regardless of what side they favor in the culture wars, knows that Charles Darwin was the first scientist to come up with the theory of evolution. At least, they think they do. In fact, lots of people had the general idea long before Darwin, including his own grandfather. We remember Darwin not because… Continue reading Eureka: Collecting the Origin

Eureka: Bridge to Dark Matter

Screen shot from the video, showing me explaining the spectra of rotating galaxies.

The first time you hear about dark matter, it sounds kind of crazy– asserting that we’re surrounded by tons of invisible stuff is usually a good way to get locked up. But the process of its discovery is surprisingly ordinary: it’s just what you do when you play cards. Here’s the second green-screen video I’ve… Continue reading Eureka: Bridge to Dark Matter

Benefits of an Academic Day Job

The central quad at Union; the big building in the center is the Nott Memorial, the obligatory building-on-the-letterhead that every college must have.

I’ve been quieter than usual here, partly because I’ve been crushingly busy, but primarily because most of the things I want to talk about, I can’t. Not yet, anyway. But I’m still alive, and this murderous term will be over soon, at which point blogging will pick up a bit. I will throw in a… Continue reading Benefits of an Academic Day Job

Eureka: Quantum Crosswords

Me in front of a green-screen crossword puzzle, talking about science.

My new book comes out one month from yesterday, or four weeks from tomorrow. Of course, yesterday was Sunday, and tomorrow’s a federal holiday, both lousy times for promotional posts, so I’ll drop this in today instead. Here’s a promotional video I put together, about how the history of quantum mechanics can be compared to… Continue reading Eureka: Quantum Crosswords

Eureka: “Fun, Diverse, and Accessible”

Cover for the book-in-progress.

The exciting news of the week: Eureka: Discovering Your Inner Scientist has gotten a starred review in Publishers Weekly. Woo-hoo! They’ve said nice things about my previous two books, but getting the star is a big deal. And it’s a really good capsule description of the book, with a great pull quote in the last… Continue reading Eureka: “Fun, Diverse, and Accessible”