The Science Lifestyle Blog

Screwed - in a Manner of Speaking

2011-11-17T09:44:00.000-08:00

"I don't want to be joined to another object by an inclined plane wrapped helically around an axis."

Sheldon Cooper, Big Bang Theory

FundaGeek - Crowdfunding for Science!

2011-11-06T17:16:00.000-08:00

Are you a scientific researcher in need of funding for your project? If so great, read on …

Over the past couple of years, my frustration kept growing. I kept reading about it in publications like Nature, and Science and the mainstream press. It was depressing. I had to figure out a way to help the cause. I had to do something. Of course I’m talking about the dismal state of funding for scientific projects. With the U.S. budget crisis decimating NSF and NIH grants, it’s made basic research ever more competitive and challenging. Just look at what’s happening to the James Webb Space Telescope. We need the JWST to take over where Hubble left off, but how?

I thought and I thought about what I could do to help basic research to find a new funding paradigm, not to replace grants but to fill in the holes and keep important projects running. Then it came to me – crowdfunding for basic research! A year later after my brainstorm, FundaGeek just launched and is ready to help the cause.

FundaGeek is the first crowdfunding platform expressly for technical innovation and basic research. By promoting your project to social networks, you basically attract a large number of “micropledges” in return for simple rewards. There are many tips for how to do this on the site. People from all over the world can contribute small amounts in support of your research. At the end of the campaign period you collect the funding, and start the process all over again for a steady and consistent method of funding.

Once the project goes live in the FundaGeek project catalog and the funding floodgates open wide – the promotion process kicks into high gear. You’ve got to put in some work to attract the backers. The typical researcher probably doesn’t have time for this, but a grad student (or even a undergrad) savvy in the art of Twitter and Facebook can take the reins to help the cause of finding backers for the research group.

The timing is great for this new method of funding scientific research. I hope many of you Science Lifestyle Blog enthusiasts will check it out (www.fundageek.com) and get your project funded by the crowd.

[NOTE: this is why the posts here on the SLB have dropped off so much recently. I've kinda been busy!]

Big Bang Theory – Big Fan Here!

2011-11-02T16:40:00.000-07:00

Somehow I’ve avoided watching the award winning CBS comedy show “Big Bang Theory” until about a month ago when my TIVO, always faithful in recording shows “it” knows I will like, recorded the original pilot episode of the series. I nearly deleted it but I was already out of new reruns of Star Trek Enterprise, Stargate, and Sanctuary, so I thought – why not?

I loved the show! It probably didn’t hurt that I started watching from the beginning to get the full impact of the strong set of characters, the lovely Penny, Howard, Raj, Leonard, and of course Sheldon.

Since then I’ve become a faithful fan, diligently enlisting my TIVO to record episodes across multiple channels including the new season. It doesn’t really matter that I’m watching out of order. Now that I have a full understanding of the cast, and the incredibly humorous, scientific dialog including my field of astrophysics, I can safely say that each and every episode is a gem to be savored. I sometimes find myself watching some episodes twice just so I’ll be able to pick up more of the fast-paced dialog. How does Jim Parsons (the Sheldon character) memorize all that?

I’m grateful I finally discovered Big Bang Theory, and I highly recommend it to all here at the Science Lifestyle Blog.

Knock, knock … Penny.
Knock, knock … Penny.
Knock, knock … Penny.

Book Review: For the Love of Physics

2011-09-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

I’vebeen a huge fan of MIT Professor Walter Lewin for some time. My firstintroduction was when I took his course 8.02 on Electricity & Magnetismwith MIT Open Courseware, the delightful experience for free and open learning.I took Lewin’s course quite seriously because it helped me in my metamorphosis towardastrophysics since my college physics coursework was many decades stale. Idutifully bought the textbooks and downloaded lectures onto my iPod so I couldlearn pretty much anywhere I might find myself. Dr. Lewin’s lectures were energizing,filled with insight and unbridled enthusiasm for the subject. I knew I hadstumbled onto a superstar.

WhenI learned he wrote a book on his favorite subject - physics, I just had towrite a review of “For the Love of Physics” (Free Press, 2011). Written with ProfessorWarren Goldstein, the book weaves in stories from his own life, including theimpact of the Holocaust on his family and his life, his coming of age as aphysicist, joining one of the most dynamic groups of astronomical explorers andmaking an exciting series of major discoveries in x-ray astronomy.

Lewindescribes the awe-inspiring feeling of being a young scientist in the dawn ofthe nuclear age and holding exotic radioactive isotopes decaying in his hands.He takes intimidation out of the physics equation by focusing first on thewonder of our everyday lives – such as the mysteries of why lightning strikesand how musical harmony works – and in introducing some of the most awesomefeatures of the outer reaches of the universe, he makes the astonishing workingsof phenomena such as supernova explosions remarkably clear.

Aswith his online lectures, Lewin’s infectious energy and passion, for bothphysics and teaching, jump off of every page, making the elements of physicscomprehensible even for those who might have feared physics in high school orcollege. He allows us to see the world all around us with new eyes, and to peerinto the far reaches of the universe, from showing us how to hold a rainbow inour hands to illuminating the mysteries of black holes.

I can highly recommend this book as a perfect gem for engaging thewonders of nature. I know it will gain a permanent place in your sciencelibrary.

Book Review: The Beginning of Infinity

2011-08-21T21:13:00.000-07:00

In the new title by David Deutsch, The Beginning of Infinity, the question “will human progress ever come to an end?” is posed in an overtly contemplative way. Deutsch provides an ardent “No” in response and sets the stage for this extraordinary book. The noted visionary claims that human progress is unbounded, and to enforce his claim, takes the reader through a rousing romp through virtually every fundamental field of science and philosophy.

According to Deutsch, all human progress results from a solitary activity – the pursuit of good explanations. After a Tour de force analyzing the nature of explanation itself, the reader takes an excursion of what Deutsch sees as the four strongest types of explanation: evolution, quantum physics, knowledge, and computation. Although controversial, his conclusions are markedly original. He believes, for example, that the growth of knowledge bears deep similarities to biological adaptation, with genes and ideas both serving as replicators. He suggests that the field of artificial intelligence has reached an impasse not because of some absolute roadblock, but because we do not yet understand how creativity works. (“Once that has been solved, programming [AI] will not be difficult,” he writes.)

Perhaps even more controversial is Deutsch’s argument that the physical world is a multiverse whose structure is determined by how information flows within it. He is a strong proponent of the “Many Worlds” interpretation of quantum physics, in which all possible quantum states (i.e. physical realities) are actually realized, contradicting the mainstream Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics.

Whether or not you agree with Deutsch on each topic, The Beginning of Infinity offers an intellectual survey of nearly unparalleled scope, with a strikingly fresh spin on the power of inquiry. Anybody here on the Science Lifestyle Blog will find this new title a refreshing detour into the philosophy of science.

Sing about Science

2011-08-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

As I’m always trying to educate the general public about all that is science, I recently encountered a fantastic little website called Sing About Science & Math. The site was developed in part by an NSF grant. The goal of the team and contributors is to build a community of researchers to study the usefulness of music in science and math education. A worthy and noble pursuit, I decided to use their searchable database to find some examples. I entered the search term “black hole” and found a long list of qualifying titles complete with lyrics, links to the music, and in some cases links to buy the music.

The music database offered by this site seems quite extensive, and I’d recommend it to any parent seeking new ways to encourage interest in science and math topics. If music helps cultivate an appreciation for science and math in young people then this site may represent a path in the right direction. Check it out!

The Sandwich Lab

2011-07-21T18:54:00.000-07:00

My favorite sandwich shop is called “Which Wich?” located on Sawtelle Blvd. just south of Olympic in West Los Angeles. I like this place because it reminds me of a sandwich laboratory where you hone in on the perfect sandwich based on empirical evidence over time. You fill out a sandwich formula form where you specify your meal’s ingredients down to the last pepperoncini. Then you pass along your formula to the cashier who sends it on to the lab technicians who rapidly and meticulously build your mouth-watering sandwich. It’s a great experience to get something to eat exactly the way you want it – a scientist’s dream.

The other day I was waiting in a very long line for my lab sandwich when I noticed this guy in front me taking a picture of something on the wall with his cell phone. The wall has a bunch of round, 2 foot diameter decorations, a smiley face, a peace sign, a surfer riding a wave, and the chemical structure of an amino acid! This is what the guy was photographing. I did a double-take and thought to myself, WTF. Why in the world would that be hanging in a sandwich shop?

It appears the amino acid (see inset) is close to Tryptophan, but has a molecular formula of C12H18N2O. But the question remains, why there? Next time I’m over there, I’ll have to ask an employee what it all means, but I’m just happy to see a little bit of science in such a strange place.

Killer Smart Meters

2011-06-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

Paranoia (and science ignorance) in the general public can surface unexpectedly for the most surprising reasons. Take for example the latest fear-fest centering around the use of “smart meters” – those monstrous beasts being installed by public utility companies around the country to boost energy efficiency in a myriad of ways.

The smart meter is the latest machination of companies like Pacific Gas & Electric here in California to cut costs and save energy by no longer having to employ manual meter readers and allowing consumers to adjust their energy use based on current demand. PG&E does this by installing these new, high-tech devices that contain radio transmitters that send real-time information about power usage directly to utilities and consumers. As an example, on hot summer days when power demand is high, consumers would save money by waiting until evening to run the dishwasher. This kind of awareness in turn could cut the risk of blackouts, ease the integration of clean power sources such as wind farms and solar plants, and reduce the need to build polluting fossil fuel power plants. Everybody wins.

But not so fast, modern day Luddites are making a stink. Some reactionary homeowners actually fear the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the devices. This in the day of wireless home routers, electric garage door openers, not to mention cell phones held up to your head, these people are worried about a low-power radio signal.

Fear mongers point out that radio waves put out heat, and extreme exposure to such heat has been shown to cause lab rats to lose their appetites. But the heat from smart meters is a very small fraction of the exposure level established as safe by the FCC. Most people are exposed to far more EM radiation from such everyday devices as cordless phones and microwave ovens than they would be from a home smart meter.

A knee-jerk reaction of this kind is something to be expected, I suppose, from a general public so accepting of Tea-party-like rhetoric, but come on now. How about picking up an introductory physics text and studying up on EM radiation instead of watching that next episode of The Bachelorette.

Proof by Atheism

2011-06-07T10:46:00.000-07:00

“We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.” -- Richard Dawkins

I’ve heard this argument before when debating fundamentalists of any established religion. You can make an argument against the belief in any god by using the mathematical principle of “proof by induction.” As an example let’s take the case of Buddhism. Let’s say you’re debating a Buddhist about the teachings of Buddha.

Base case (statement holds for n=1): You ask the Buddhist whether he accepts Christ as his lord and savior. He will reply “No I don’t.”

Inductive step (statement holds for n cases): You ask the Buddhist whether he accepts Allah as the only god and creator. He will reply “No I don’t.” Now you can keep going to solidify the proof by asking about “n” other religions: Joseph Smith, the Mormon’s prophet, the Hebrew god, etc.

Proof by induction (aka proof by atheism) for the n+1 case: You say “then you too are an atheist, I simply reject one more god than you.”

QED

Icarus and the Black Hole

2011-05-08T17:09:00.000-07:00

I love it when world-class scientists take time from their busy research schedules to engage the general public by opening up their complex theoretical fields to broader understanding. Case in point, one of my all-time favorite physicists, Brian Greene – a theoretical physicist at Columbia University – did exactly this with the publication of his 2008 children’s book, Icarus at the Edge of Time. The 34 page book is a science fiction retelling of the classic Icarus tale - the story told about Icarus and his attempt to escape from Crete by means of wings that his father constructed from feathers and wax. He ignored instructions not to fly too close to the sun, and the melting wax caused him to fall to his death.

Listen to Greene describing his story here.

Greene’s Icarus re-imagines the story of Icarus in a world of astrophysics. Instead of donning wax wings and flying into the Sun, a boy build his own spaceship and, against his father’s warning, flies close to a black hole. Black holes have a reputation for reaching out and sucking things in, but they’re not like vacuum cleaners – if you stay outside the black hole’s boundary, or event horizon, you can pull away. The boy does just that, but as Albert Einstein taught us, black holes affect one’s passage through time. When Icarus returns, it is 10,000 years later, which felt like an hour to him, and everything he knew was gone. His father is gone. Icarus at the Edge of Time is a somewhat dark tale for youngsters that teaches a couple of important lessons: Einstein and relativity must not be ignored, and if your Pop tells you to stay away from black holes, you better listen!

Last year, Greene took yet another step forward in bringing black hole physics to the masses by having American composer Philip Glass adapt the story to a 45 minute orchestral piece. Greene explained the physics of warped space and time, and Glass struggled to represent it musically. For instance, as the boy got near the black hole, would you want two lines of music playing against each other, one for his timeframe and one for the rest of the Universe? Should you represent gravitational redshift with change in frequency? Glass ended up capturing some of the physics in an artful and poetic way. Opening at the NYU Skirball Center on June 6, 2010, the event attracted many adorably inquisitive kids. Check out the trailer here.

So if you want your kids to grow up smart and well-behaved, perhaps you should pick up this book and mix in some black hole physics with that Mozart!

Boston Moonrise

2011-04-12T18:00:00.000-07:00

Did you see it? March 19, 2011 featured a rising full moon – its exact full phase occurred within an hour of perigee, the closest point in the Moon’s orbit around our planet Earth. As a result it appeared 14% larger and 30% brighter than a full moon near apogee, the most distant point in the elliptical lunar orbit.

In the image above the near perigee full moon still hugs the horizon, distorted by atmospheric refraction as it rises over Boston, Massachusetts. The shot was taken from Prospect Hill in Waltham, about 10 miles from the Boston skyline. Just to the left of the orange lunar disk is the distinctive control tower at Boston’s Logan International Airport. Topped by recognizable lights, the tall, twin towers of the cable-stayed Zakim Bridge spanning the Charles River are also featured in the night skyscape.

I chose to feature the Boston scene here on the SLB because it is a city very dear to my heart. I should have been born an New Englander, with nearby attractions like: the Red Sox and venerable Fenway Park, the Charles, New England clam chowder, the Celtics, my favorite academic destination Cambridge, and of course Dover, New Hampshire.

S.T. Yau - The String Man

2011-03-23T18:38:00.000-07:00

Always on the look-out for a rousing mathematics lecture, I caught scent of something special brewing earlier this year when I heard about a talk by Harvard Professor of Mathematics Shing-Ting Yau sponsored by the UCLA Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics (IPAM). I’d heard of Professor Yau from his Calabi-Yau manifolds fame and I was particularly anxious to see him in person. I've always admired Yau for helping pave the way for the hot field in theoretical physics - string theory.

I arrived at the venerable lecture hall in Haines Hall on the university campus in Westwood and I could see by the size of the room that a large crowd was expected. I wasn't mistaken, place was packed. I arrived early to find an optimum seat front and center. I noticed all the luminaries filter in as the time for the lecture approached – professors, graduate students, postdocs, and other cognoscenti. Soon the room was full and Dr. Yau was introduced.

The title of the lecture was “THE SHAPE OF INNER SPACE: String Theory and the Geometry of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions” which is the same as his new general audience book with the same title (see inset link). Yau proceeded to describe one of the smallest things you can possibly imagine—six-dimensional geometric spaces that may be more than a trillion times smaller than an electron—could, nevertheless, be one of the defining features of our universe, exerting a profound influence that extends to every single point in the cosmos. Yau told the story of those spaces, which physicists have dubbed "Calabi-Yau manifolds." In his illustrious career, Yau managed to prove the existence, mathematically, of those spaces, despite the fact that he had originally set out to prove that such spaces could not possibly exist. This mathematical proof, which had initially been ignored by physicists (partly because it was steeped in difficult, nonlinear arguments), nevertheless made its way into the center of string theory, which now stands as the leading theory of the universe and our best hope yet of unifying all the particles and forces observed—and yet to be observed—in nature.

After the lecture at the reception in the IPAM building, I got to chat with Dr. Yau and expressed my appreciation for his work. I told him about my metamorphosis a number of years ago when I attended a book tour talk by Dr. Brian Greene who successfully turned my intellectual curiosity to string theory. He seemed to like my comment indicating that such public events can excite the general public to such a degree. There’s power in spreading the word about math and physics.

Click here to listen to Yau's talk and here is a link to Yau's slides for his presentation.

Coffee Chemistry Lab

2011-02-21T21:24:00.000-08:00

I’m always on the look-out for appealing new locations to engage in my independent research activities in astrophysics. The various environmental factors have to be just right – the correct mixture of white noise and ambiance, suitable lighting, comfortable seating with a table for writing formulae. The hang-out also should be cool (just can’t see working on numerical relativity at McDonalds).

This evening I happened by a new place that satisfies all of the above as an appropriate study-hall location: Balconi Coffee Company located in West Los Angeles at: 11301 W. Olympic Blvd, #124 near the corner with Sawtelle Blvd. The proprietor “Ray” just recently opened up after moving from a quaint, though much less stylish location, next to a Palm reading joint.

The reason why I like Balconi’s so much is the long flat wooden bar area that runs the length of the shop. The lighting and flat surface and comfortable chairs are perfect for intense study (not to mention the really nice and eclectic selection of music playing at a reasonable volume level).

But the real appeal of Balconi’s is their “siphon coffee” selections. I tried the Ethiopian and it was heavenly. The preparation of the coffee is 100% individualized and the apparatus looks like a makeshift chem lab. The only downside is that if there is a line waiting to order, you might be there a while since each cup takes about 5 or so minutes to make. All things considered, I find the wait worthwhile, and like I said, hanging around the place while scanning the light curves of some photometric binary star system is my idea of a very good time. Try Balconi’s to break open your science books and be sure to say hello to the Physics Groupie!

Dunk Your Homeomorphic Toroidal Polyhedrons?

2011-02-18T16:17:00.000-08:00

You see them in the market, hanging on women's ears (and some men's), dangling through people's noses, orbiting around kid's wastes, and even the token of eternal love at your average wedding. Of course I'm talking about the homeomorphic toroidal polyhedron, aka the donut (or ring, or hoop).

To the mathematician, specifically one who studies topology, this shape is all too familiar. Explained to a child, a torus is a surface of revolution generated by revolving a circle in three dimensional space about an axis coplanar with the circle. So the next time you visit your local Krispy Kreme shop, just ask for a Glazed HTP and see what kind of reaction you get.

Valentine's Nebula

2011-02-13T13:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine’s Day! Here is an ode to a love gone lost – by Stephen Hunter-Hanlon. Have a wonderful day and be sure to think about the one your love.

When the stars came out tonight,

you were on my mind,

the planets I see and think of you,

I look closer and see your face.

I see Mercury and the brightness in your eyes,

I see Venus and your pure beauty,

I see Earth and see your life,

I see mars and see my life to come.

I see Jupiter and the storms our love can bring,

I see Saturn and the rings of life together,

I see Uranus and look into your past,

I see Neptune and the seas between us.

I see Pluto and that is my last discovery,

Then I see our Sun again and like you,

My universe is complete,

A thing of beauty life and pure love.

Music and the Cosmos

2011-02-06T21:11:00.000-08:00

The link between astronomy and music is not a common one and people who share a love for both can point to few classical music compositions with direct references to astronomy. A couple of pieces come to mind having celestial connotations – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Jupiter” symphony (No. 41, in C Major) and Joseph Haydn’s “Mercury” symphony (No. 43, in E-flat Major). But these names are fanciful additions by others, unrelated to their composer’s musical conceptions.

There are a few other fringe pieces having derivative themes relating to the cosmos – Ludwig van Beethoven’s Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor and Claude Debussy in “Claire de Lune”, both “Moonlight” masterpieces. And then there are the six string quartets comprising Haydn’s Opus 20, known as the “Sun” quartets, and Haydn’s comic opera Il Mondo della Luna (“The World on the Moon”).

The most familiar music conceived on an arguably astronomical subject is The Planets, an orchestral set of seven pieces by British composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934). Written between 1914 and 1917, usually during weekends and holidays scattered between Holst’s day job as a music teacher, The Planets is by far his best-known work.

Still, The Planets was not musical inspiration derived from the night sky. Holst’s eyesight was very poor and he obviously was not a keen observer. Later though, Holst read a popular astronomy text of the time and realized with excitement that the ideas which were put forward in scientific terms were exactly the same as those which he had been trying to express in music. What a wonderful tautology.

If anyone would like to add to my short list here, I’d be anxious to listen to some additional pieces that tie the heavens to musical acuity.

Taking the Kids to the Oort Cloud

2011-01-30T17:03:00.000-08:00

Combining science and quality family time can be a rewarding and educational experience. Here is a tip on a fun experiment that you can perform the next sunny weekend afternoon – playing with astronomical distances. Many of us learned about the immense distances between objects in the universe. To have the kids get a firm feel for the magnitude of these distances, we can use an analogy with something familiar.

Take the family basketball and make it represent the Sun and map out a distance that is in the same ratio as the basketball’s radius to the Sun’s. For example, you can calculate the distance from the basketball Sun that represents the distance to the dwarf planet Pluto. This comes out to be about a half-mile (or a few city blocks).

To make the game more enjoyable, you could pick a starting point in an interesting neighborhood in your town, and actually walk off the length to demonstrate astronomical distances. Remember to mention, as you reach Pluto’s location, that this distance represents the start of the Kuiper belt (the area past Neptune with millions of small icy bodies). Next, you can walk 12 more blocks which gets you to the outer reaches of the Kuiper belt. Delight the kids by mentioning this represents about 5 billion miles in the Sun’s actual scale.

You can go further with the basketball Sun analogy and plan a family road trip to get to the beginning of the Oort Cloud (home to billions of comets). This would take the family a distance of about 34 miles from the basketball Sun. You might select a fun destination at this distance so the family can relax and reflect on being at the outer rungs of the Solar System – maybe an amusement park, beach, hiking trail, or Grandma’s house!

Now if you wanted to demonstrate getting to the most distant part of the Oort Cloud, you’d have to go a bit father – about 1,700 miles. You could save that trip for summer holiday. Just don’t forget to remind t he kids that they’re now at the edge of the Solar System as they’re munching on a piece of Grandma’s apple pie.