Via Swans On Tea, an article in the Telegraph about the Greatest Experiments in Science. Been there, done that, picked a winner. Over two years ago. Way to go, Torygraph. OK, fine, they did all of science, while I was only looking for the greatest experiment in physics. But, really, can any of those stamp… Continue reading The Telegraph Steals My Ideas
Category: Physics
God and Physics
Via the Zeitgeist, the Templeton Foundation has asked a bunch of famous smart people “Does science make belief in God obsolete?” I wouldn’t ordinarily note this, but if you scroll down a little, you’ll find my thesis advisor, Bill Phillips, who offers an “Absolutely Not!”: [A] scientist can believe in God because such belief is… Continue reading God and Physics
Physics to Finance
We had a talk yesterday at lunchtime from an alumnus who graduated with a physics degree, got a Ph.D. in Physics, did a couple of post-docs, and then decided to give academia a miss, and went to Wall Street where he’s been a financial analyst for the last 12 years. He talked, mostly for the… Continue reading Physics to Finance
A Stable Heavy Element?
Via Swans on Tea, a new article on the arxiv reports the possible discovery of a new stable element: What they did was fire one thorium nucleus after another through a mass spectrometer to see how heavy each was. Thorium has an atomic number of 90 and occurs mainly in two isotopes with atomic weights… Continue reading A Stable Heavy Element?
Matter and Interactions by Chabay and Sherwood
Today’s episode of “Thrilling Tales of Physics Pedagogy” is brought to you through a comment by CCPhysicst who picks up on the implications of last week’s schedule post: You are ripping right along in that course. You do E and then B and only later get around to circuits? Yes and no. We are ripping… Continue reading Matter and Interactions by Chabay and Sherwood
What a Drag
I went for a bike ride this morning, the first real bike ride of the year (I’ve biked to and from work a couple of times, but this was the first real ride just for the sake of riding). There was some pissy drizzle at the start, but by the time I got on the… Continue reading What a Drag
Abstraction, Compartmentalization, and Education
Given the amount of time I’ve spent writing about academic issues this week, it’s only fitting that the science story getting the most play is about math education. Ed Yong provides a detailed explanation, and Kenneth Chang summarizes the work in the New York Times. Here’s Ed’s introduction: Except they don’t really work. A new… Continue reading Abstraction, Compartmentalization, and Education
The Japanese Directions Theory of Pedagogy
We had a great time on our visit to Japan last summer, but we had one incredibly frustrating experience, on our first day in Yokohama. We couldn’t bring three full weeks’ worth of clothing with us, so we brought a bit more than one week’s worth, and planned to get things cleaned there. The hotel… Continue reading The Japanese Directions Theory of Pedagogy
Quantum Computing in Diamond
Two weeks ago, now, I promised some peer=reviewed physics blogging, to compensate for the “screechy monkey” nonsense. Of course, I got distracted by other things, but I’ve been sitting on this paper for a while now, and I really need to get it off my desk. The paper in question is “Quantum Register Based on… Continue reading Quantum Computing in Diamond
Ask a ScienceBlogger: What’s in the Air?
There’s a new “Ask a ScienceBlogger” question out: “A question from a friend’s 9-year old son: What is in the air we breathe? What is it’s chemical composition?” The short answer to this is “a little bit of everything.” Pretty much any substance we have on Earth can be found in the atmosphere somewhere. The… Continue reading Ask a ScienceBlogger: What’s in the Air?