tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post3111382627410902875..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: I dread this time of year.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-63054400384329050922015-03-18T02:03:41.700-04:002015-03-18T02:03:41.700-04:00Thanks, but notice that we're the only ones wi...Thanks, but notice that we're the only ones with attention spans long enough to be still reading this. It worries me.<br /><br />You did get this right: the video "A Private Universe treats this topic in detail. If you want to consider something you need to take for granted, consider how difficult it would have been to get a cheeseburger in pre-industrial times.Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-38065704982663202922015-03-17T07:25:54.759-04:002015-03-17T07:25:54.759-04:00Things I've been reminded of by this thread: a...Things I've been reminded of by this thread: atmospheric lensing extending the daylight by a few minutes, and coriolis effect to prove the earth is spinning. These and the other things are worth the price of admission, i.e., the time to read the thread.<br /><br />I am intrigued by how much knowledge I take for granted. For example, what makes it so remarkable that "Earth's equator Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-80525119329270482132015-03-16T23:27:41.624-04:002015-03-16T23:27:41.624-04:00I always thought "The Smegma Boys" would...I always thought "The Smegma Boys" would be an excellent name for a punk/thrash/heavy metal band. Univax was an old tube job.Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-53239367914368792322015-03-16T23:26:20.727-04:002015-03-16T23:26:20.727-04:00Also: nowadays we have Doppler radar and spacecraf...Also: nowadays we have Doppler radar and spacecraft. Since radar can measure lengths, it's better than using a tape measure, since you're more assured of measuring in a geodesic.Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-53296401735085683122015-03-16T23:20:27.468-04:002015-03-16T23:20:27.468-04:00In my general-ed astronomy class for non-majors, I...In my general-ed astronomy class for non-majors, I have an exercise for students to explain in 1-3 sentences how we know that Earth rotates, even though one can't feel the motion. Another exercise is to explain in 1-3 sentences how we know Earth orbits the Sun, even though it looks like the Sun is moving. A common wrong answer for both (which I specifically warn them not to make, not that Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-27165818006558001472015-03-16T21:42:54.603-04:002015-03-16T21:42:54.603-04:00Oh, you scientists and your methodological natural...Oh, you scientists and your methodological naturalism. Everybody knows the sun rises in the east because it revolves around the earth in that direction.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-34485386463280932992015-03-16T15:40:18.330-04:002015-03-16T15:40:18.330-04:00Daylight Saving Time (please note it's Saving,...Daylight Saving Time (please note it's Saving, not Savings) would save more energy if we had it all year. We have it because city slickers who didn't have the gracious Southern upbringing you and I had like to stay out late. Richard Feynman would have had no tolerance for it since it's not a law of nature, it's purely a human convention. I trust you remember the disagreements Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-59407005225205467752015-03-16T15:38:23.212-04:002015-03-16T15:38:23.212-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-67710903622746274042015-03-16T15:21:43.193-04:002015-03-16T15:21:43.193-04:00Stonehenge is by no means the only place on Earth ...Stonehenge is by no means the only place on Earth where people noticed this. I used to get phone calls about it when I worked at the planetarium in Chicago, which of course is totally flat and has all its streets aligned north-south and east-west, so people notice where the Sun came up and went down. Neil de Grasse Tyson risked his life to get a photo of it in Manhattan, here:<br /><br />http://Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-10448490616145462952015-03-16T15:13:44.315-04:002015-03-16T15:13:44.315-04:00Knowing TV news, they'll have no problem menti...Knowing TV news, they'll have no problem mentioning this and Due West in the very same broadcast. Somehow, it's reassuring.Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-5186166902528438442015-03-16T15:12:45.371-04:002015-03-16T15:12:45.371-04:00Due West may not be as witty, but she's easily...Due West may not be as witty, but she's easily twice the size of Mae West. You did ask!Froderick Frankenstien from Fresnohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11653942918068535424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-55518331126781166142015-03-15T19:58:07.636-04:002015-03-15T19:58:07.636-04:00Univax might explain the "tears in my eyes&qu...Univax might explain the "tears in my eyes" bit.EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-6025979608161175162015-03-15T19:30:23.676-04:002015-03-15T19:30:23.676-04:00Wasn't that Univax?Wasn't that Univax?Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-72818223737032654722015-03-15T13:46:46.431-04:002015-03-15T13:46:46.431-04:00Thanks, Frod! Brilliant strategy to break it into ...Thanks, Frod! Brilliant strategy to break it into sound bites. <br /><br />They may interrupt you on TV, but at least you say your own words. My husband gets called fairly often by print reporters about some application of his field, and they always misquote or mis-paraphrase him. His parents would be so proud to see him quoted in the newspaper, and would collect extra copies from their neighborsAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02906546940408742913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-9532998011030237882015-03-15T13:16:40.388-04:002015-03-15T13:16:40.388-04:00Makes sense to me (and I learned a few things). Th...Makes sense to me (and I learned a few things). Thanks, Frod! <br /><br />I have for several years lived in an apartment with an expansive view of the southeastern portion of the horizon, and some easily recognizable landmarks along that horizon. It took me several years to realize that the sun was rising behind different landmarks at different times of year. Presumably I would not make a very Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-5759835885707570972015-03-15T00:52:24.027-04:002015-03-15T00:52:24.027-04:00Nah, it's Midge Ure's old band.Nah, it's Midge Ure's old band.EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-903899660419224662015-03-15T00:18:05.027-04:002015-03-15T00:18:05.027-04:00I thought Equinox was some kind of additive for ga...I thought Equinox was some kind of additive for gasoline.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-53923126820881687542015-03-14T12:57:33.957-04:002015-03-14T12:57:33.957-04:00Thank you, Frod.
Never mind the amadáns, as my I...Thank you, Frod. <br /><br />Never mind the amadáns, as my Irish granny used to say.BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-20073956625773039112015-03-14T12:53:56.191-04:002015-03-14T12:53:56.191-04:00just say Jesus did it.... just say Jesus did it.... Middle-Aged and Morosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04046076243513948921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-71194466641250685572015-03-14T12:47:05.337-04:002015-03-14T12:47:05.337-04:00:-):-)Southern Bubba, Ph.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12050992903794385204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-70818940860760917602015-03-14T12:46:13.102-04:002015-03-14T12:46:13.102-04:00Good post, Frod. Is due west related to Mae West?...Good post, Frod. Is due west related to Mae West?Southern Bubba, Ph.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12050992903794385204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-35682773674040807412015-03-14T12:45:18.644-04:002015-03-14T12:45:18.644-04:00This reminds me of how much I hate daylight saving...This reminds me of how much I hate daylight savings time. What next? Maybe we should completely eliminate March 15 this year, and instead make October 15 last for 48 hours?Southern Bubba, Ph.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12050992903794385204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-36295026176201574392015-03-14T12:44:39.607-04:002015-03-14T12:44:39.607-04:00"Equinox" would be a good name for a bab..."Equinox" would be a good name for a baby. Or a nightclub. Or a sleeping pill.<br />Southern Bubba, Ph.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12050992903794385204noreply@blogger.com