Much has been written about Richard Feynman. Many tributes and books. Feynman wrote some books as well. But the inspiration for this post is an exhibit promoted for Caltech’s 82nd Annual Seminar Day and Reunion Weekend May 16 – 19, 2019. The Mind’s Eye: Richard Feynman in Word & ImageIn work and play, Richard Feynman… Continue reading Feynman’s legacy — quantum originality
Regarding recent posts about black holes, here’s another YouTube video by The Science Asylum on the topic (published February 16, 2019): “Black Holes can SPIN?!?” I’ve previously highlighted The Science Asylum as a science communicator. This latest video is an interesting overview of black holes: non-spinning vs. spinning, the math vs. reality inside and outside… Continue reading Ergosphere – what?
I’ve encountered some articles recently about the current state of particle physics. Concerns about its future. Whether new particle accelerators are needed (or even viable). An expensive rabbit hole. That research has become mired in wishful elegant mathematics. The absence of evidence being evidence of absence. I didn’t record the first articles that I noticed… Continue reading The future of particle physics?
Popular media is abuzz today with news regarding research by NAOC (National Astronomical Observatories of Chinese Academy of Sciences) on the shape of our galaxy, the Milky Way, published in Nature Astronomy today. A peculiar disk. A new 3D model. Original article on Nature Astronomy: “An intuitive 3D map of the Galactic warp’s precession traced by classical… Continue reading The Milky Way’s shape — a peculiar disk
In the last few months, I’ve been struck by how many articles have been published in the popular media and science news about black holes and the Big Bang. Mainstream physics and science communications (like phys.org, quantamagazine.org, etc) lately seem to be discussing more and more “mind blowing” geometries of the universe (or multiverse, eh).… Continue reading Cosmological fact and fiction
I’ve thought about this question for years. A FAQ. Imagine you’re traveling at the speed of light. Well, physics says that’s impossible. Mass’ gotcha. So, what can travel at the speed of light? Photons (not just the visible ones). So, imagine … does a photon “experience” space and time? Some weeks ago I recall reading… Continue reading A photon’s frame of spacetime — no rest for the massless
This Scientific American post “A Thanksgiving Meditation in the Face of a Changing Climate” (November 21, 2018) is an interesting take on gratitude — from a cosmic perspective. And ESA’s video “Space Station 20th: longest continuous timelapse from space” is the type of thing which makes for interesting meditation as well. Here’s an excerpt from “A… Continue reading Holiday meditation – part of a cosmic perspective
Reference: The 2018-2019 Watson Lecture Series, Caltech, Beckman Auditorium World’s Deepest-Penetration and Fastest Optical Cameras by Lihong Wang Wednesday, November 28, 2018, 8:00 PM – 9:30 PM Lihong Wang will discuss the development of photoacoustic tomography, which allows scientists to peer deep into biological tissue. He will also talk about his lab’s development of compressed ultrafast… Continue reading Imaging a light pulse?
Today’s post is somewhat different than usual. I’m highlighting a YouTube channel. Communicating science to a general audience has a long history. The bibliography for my physics blog contains some books by authors to this purpose. Modern physics has many great stories, and the just plain strangeness of quantum physics lends itself to great storytelling.… Continue reading Communicating what physics says — Domain of Science YouTube channel
I’ve written elsewhere about neutrinos (aka “ghost particles”). The latest news is about a particular discovery — a major team effort — as to the source of some of the most energetic ones. Many articles. Some contain illustrations. High-Energy ‘Ghost Particle’ Traced to Distant Galaxy in Astronomy Breakthrough Most of these neutrinos come from the… Continue reading Blazar neutrinos
