Archive for the ‘Opinion’ Category
Brief thoughts on blogging
Soon I’ll be off the blogosphere. Will I be back? (A question relevant to all of maybe two or three people.) I have mixed feelings about whether it is wise for a PhD student to moonlight as a blogger. On the one hand, it’s a great way to connect with the physics community. The way […]
Filed under: Opinion | 4 Comments
Proposed rules for long papers…
[Unfortunately things got busy before I had a chance to properly wrap up this blog… I hope to write up a proper `farewell’ post over the next couple of weekends.] If your paper is more than 30 pages long with multiple sections and subsections, it would be prudent to include a table of contents on […]
Filed under: Opinion, Student Life | 4 Comments
[Kudos if you got the Schoolhouse Rock reference.] I’ve gotten a few messages now about the Graduate Junction, a social networking site developed to help postgraduate students. After noting it was endorsed by Durham, I decided to give it a try to see what it’s all about. Update: see Dan’s comment below for further discussion. […]
Filed under: Opinion, Student Life | 3 Comments
It seems like the powers-that-be at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center are considering changing the lab’s name. Besides reflecting the broader spectrum of science done at the lab since its 2005 reoganization, apparently there’s some issue with the DOE registering for ownership of the lab’s title. Stanford University, who operates the lab, objects to anyone […]
Filed under: Just for Fun, Opinion, Physics | Closed
OS X Leopard for Physicists
I’ve recently purchased a new MacBook and thought I’d share some set-up information. I borrow heavily from Professor Murayama’s OS X for Physicists, but have tried to focus on tidbits that have either been updated or aren’t covered there. Why Apple? Most physicists will have already noticed the rapid adoption of Apple technology in academia. […]
Filed under: Opinion, Physics, Science 2.0, Student Life | 15 Comments
Running the LHC to save mankind
Previously I wrote about a great quote by M. Mangano regarding the safety of the LHC. Here’s an even better response to the cult of LHC doomsday-ists, by Prof. S. Aaronson of MIT: As a concerned citizen of Planet Earth, I demand that the LHC begin operations as soon as possible, at as high energies as […]
Filed under: Just for Fun, Opinion | Closed
Gripe: Linux discrimination
I’ve been working on various drafts of ‘last impressions’ of the UK and ‘first impressions’ of returning to the US… but I’m compelled to interrupt this activity to gripe a little bit. Here’s something I wanted to get off my chest: Physics resources need to be linux-friendly. Besides this being a “good thing” from some […]
Filed under: Opinion, Student Life | 7 Comments
Just a public service announcement for class of 2009 undergrads interested in the Marshall or Rhodes: if you haven’t started preparing your application, start soon. Marshall and Rhodes applicants are nominated by their university, so you need to understand your particular university’s nomination process. These nominations have to be submitted early in the autumn, which […]
Filed under: Opinion, Student Life | Closed
On Tuesday Neuroscientist Simon LeVay was on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show promoting his book When Science Goes Wrong. A video of the interview is available online. At around 4:07 host Jon Stewart brings up the question of black holes and strangelets at the LHC. (He’s a bit off on the terminology, but no matter.) […]
Filed under: Opinion | 2 Comments
Litigious LHC
I know of people over 45 who read this blog, so I should include a link explaining the reference. Image adapted from T. Ricker and U. Kraus. In a courtroom drama better suited for Judge Judy than Boston Legal, a pair of cautious Hawaiians are taking on the LHC. In the case Sancho & Wagner […]
Filed under: Just for Fun, Opinion | 4 Comments
An American Physics Student in England 