I have a couple of EurekAlert feeds in my RSS reader, because they sometimes turn up interesting things– I got the Bill Wootters item there, for example, and they had a piece on strontium clocks that I keep meaning to say something about. Of course, there’s also some total garbage, such as the kookery from… Continue reading Axions and the Problem of EurekAlert
Month: December 2006
Congratulations to Bill Wootters
One of my former professors is collecting some awards: Professor William Wootters is to be honored for his outstanding achievements in physics, not once, but twice in the academic year, by The American Physical Society and by the International Organization for Quantum Communication, Measurement and Computing. In recognition of his pioneering work in quantum theory,… Continue reading Congratulations to Bill Wootters
The AV Club on Dawkins
The Onion AV Club has a review of The God Delusion this week. “Big deal, ” you say, “Who cares what a humor magazine thinks?” I’ve found in recent years, though, that the AV Club is one of the most consistent sources of reviews of movies, music, and books out there. They’re sharp, they get… Continue reading The AV Club on Dawkins
Call for Nominations: Book of the Year (Non-Fiction)
Continuing the year-end wrap-up theme, I’ll invite suggestions for the best books of the year. Since I’m so far behind on the booklog, it’s much harder for me to remember what came out in 2006, and come up with a ranking, but I have some ideas. I’d like to hear what other people think, though,… Continue reading Call for Nominations: Book of the Year (Non-Fiction)
Call for Nominations: Book of the Year (Fiction)
Continuing the year-end wrap-up theme, I’ll invite suggestions for the best books of the year. Since I’m so far behind on the booklog, it’s much harder for me to remember what came out in 2006, and come up with a ranking, but I have some ideas. I’d like to hear what other people think, though,… Continue reading Call for Nominations: Book of the Year (Fiction)
Syracuse-Oklahoma State
Syracuse, ranked #21 according to ESPN, lost by three to #24 Oklahoma State on Tuesday night. This comes on the heels of a loss to #17 Wichita State (who climbed to #10 in this week’s rankings). That’s what happens when you play ranked teams in December. I’m not sure how they managed to get Jim… Continue reading Syracuse-Oklahoma State
Education in the Drexler Continuum
Via EurekAlert, a press release regarding a speech by former Presidential Science Advisor (under Bill Clinton) Neal Lane, about nanotechnology. Lane apparently warned that the US is in danger of falling behind in nanotechnology, and urged steps to avoid a nano gap, including the following slightly puzzling paragraph: A “second step critical to the success… Continue reading Education in the Drexler Continuum
That’s What a Science Gets for Putting Too Many Rules on a Ninja
David at the World’s Fair celebrates Ninja Day with an Ask a Ninja video about physics. Of course, what the ninja says is a lie– Physics did the dumping, and he was all, “Please take me back, I promise to only move along geodesic paths in curved space-time from now on,” but she was having… Continue reading That’s What a Science Gets for Putting Too Many Rules on a Ninja
Get Out the Vote: Results of the Year
Turnout has been disappointing in the Physics and Astronomy results of the year threads. Come on, I know there are some opinionated nerds out there reading this– nominate some stuff. Here, the AIP provides their own list, complete with links to Physics News Update stories. Are blog readers really going to let themselves be upstaged… Continue reading Get Out the Vote: Results of the Year
Big Media Me
For those who care, I’m “interviewed” over at Page 3.14. The scare quotes are because the interview was actually an email response to a list of questions, which is why parts of it sound stilted. Still, free publicity…