Links for 2010-05-14

“Yes, green laser pointers are cool. Especially when you use them to make stuff fluoresce. Ok, what about a blue laser pointer? They are getting surprisingly cheap (Amazon has a 10 mW for pretty cheap). Still not cheap enough for me. But, you know what? Some of the physics majors here at Southeastern Louisiana University purchased a couple of these. Physics major Daniel let me borrow his.”

“Just in time for the 50th anniversary of the laser, President Obama has signed a letter telling us all what he thinks of this handy bit o’ technology. And, you know, he loves lasers almost as much as we do!

For reasons that escape me, the folks at the White House tell me that I can’t post the letter, quote from the letter or (I assume) think too hard about the letter. But if you click the “Read the rest of the post” link you’ll see a picture of someone looking at a piece of paper that’s the same size as the President’s letter (but is absolutely not the actual letter) to give you a feel of what the experience might have been like.”

“So, what do you think? Are scientists benefiting from the exposure? Is it enough that scientists, long underrepresented on TV, are finally prominently featured in a successful and critically acclaimed sitcom that reaches millions of people? Or, is [the Big Bang Theory] doing a disservice to the science community and society in general by reinforcing already well-entrenched negative stereotypes? The Exchange would like to hear your thoughts.”

“There are as many different motivations to become a physicist as there are physicists. But one of them is certainly the wish to be part of something greater, an event of historical importance. It’s the wish to be there and have a say when our view of the world fundamentally changes; when a new picture comes into focus that will be passed on to future generations.

The change of our fundamental understanding of Nature, the emergence of a new way of thinking about the world is what is known as a “paradigm shift.” It’s a notion that occasionally creeps up in a discussion. It most often does so either as a means of defense, when a new proposal is widely rejected or when the speaker tries to make himself more interesting.

I was wondering the other day what paradigms there are that might be shifting today. In the 22nd century’s textbooks, what of our today’s understanding will appear in the historical appendix instead?”

“Adjustment Team is a short story by Philip K. Dick where a man, Ed Fletcher, inadvertently gets a look at those who work behind the scenes of ‘reality’. The Adjustment Bureau is a movie loosely based on the short story and stars Matt Damon as rising politician who falls for Emily Blunt’s ballerina while the Adjustment Team schemes to keep them apart. Since it’s a PKD story, you would expect plenty of reality warping, mind bending games to occur. I dare you to watch this trailer and not think ‘chick flick’.”