Science and Inquiry discussion

Octopi Wall Street

LoL!

Here is another one:
Science Tattoo Emporium

:D Not that I'd ever get a tattoo, but if I did, I think it would have to be Maxwell's EM Equation.

or maybe just E = MC^2

Or the Boltzman's entropy equation which is carved on his gravestone: S = k ln W. Especially ironic as my skin begins to sag. :)

Betsy wrote: "Octopi Wall Street"

Definitely brought a smile to my face. Thanks!

David wrote: "LoL!

Here is another one:
Science Tattoo Emporium"

I like the atom tattoo.

Betsy wrote: "Octopi Wall Street"

the best - thanks for the big chuckle

Science vacations:

http://sciencegetaways.com/2012/01/19...

Ten Science Holidays to Get Your Geek On

Those both lead to events in which I want to participate - thanks for sharing!

Betsy wrote: "Science vacations:

http://sciencegetaways.com/2012/01/19..."

As the caption says, this type of lenticular cloud is very frequently seen in Colorado, especially in the winter.

Another interesting cloud feature that we saw occasionally in Colorado is the cloud corona. It is caused by diffraction by water droplets or ice crystals. This phenomenon is so vivid, that the first time I saw it, I thought it was due to some rocket experiment.

Hi All; here in the UK Pennines we don't get to see lenticular clouds very often (in fact, I've still never seen them), but we had an instance just before Christmas, and they were very spectacular indeed. This is one of the best pics I saw of them:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robertbr...

Jenny

That is an excellent photo. I love how the light is shining on the buildings, too.

Jenny wrote: "Hi All; here in the UK Pennines we don't get to see lenticular clouds very often (in fact, I've still never seen them), but we had an instance just before Christmas, and they were very spectacular ..."

Beautiful photo! Are there hills or mountains nearby, in that general direction?

Hi David, yes exactly. Prevailing wind is from west
& this was taken just to the East of the Pennines,
a n-s ridge of hills, the backbone of England.

Conditions not usually right for these clouds, so
a special treat.

Looking for something fun to do in December when the world doesn't end? How about Cruisegeddon:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/bad...

http://www.astrosphere.org/blog/2012/...

There's a study and an editorial article about infections from contaminated tattoo ink. I just saw them listed on the cover when I pulled it out of the mailbox. I'll read them tonight and update everyone tomorrow!

Okay, essentially there was a recent outbreak of nontuberculosis mycobacteria in contaminated tattoo ink. The specific case series was in Rochester, NY, but there have been reports of several different outbreaks, involving several different strains of mycobacteria, throughout the U.S. It would appear that the manufacturing process of tattoo ink is the problem b/c the tattoo parlors where these infections were traced to were not in violation of industry standards. I usually don't give specific medical advice on the internet (for legal reasons), but if you have recently gotten a tattoo and it appears infected you need to go see your physician immediately. So far, most of the cases have responded to either macrolide antibiotics or doxycycline (both common types of antibiotics).

Dr. Leonardo Noto

www.leonardonoto.com (nonfiction book reviews and author updates) or follow me on Twitter @DrLeonardoNoto (medical tweets).

Happy Hagfish Day!

http://www.whaletimes.org/HagfishDay.htm

Unfortunately I read this post too late for this year. I will need to remember this for next year and celebrate with my science students

Gifts for science geeks:

http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/20...

Fun little project:

http://www.instructables.com/id/The-A...

Betsy wrote: "Fun little project:

http://www.instructables.com/id/The-A..."

That one is fantastic! thanks for the link, Betsy.

That one is good, but if I had to choose I think I'd like the pi bracelet.

A great interactive online chemistry tool, and game:

http://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/bu...

http://bhagatkapil.tumblr.com/post/44...

"Home is where your displacement is zero."

"Two Neutrinos go through a bar."

Q: Why can't you trust an atom?
A: They make up everything

"Did you hear about the man who got cooled to absolute zero? He's OK now."

A photon checks into a hotel. The bellhop asks: "Can I help with you luggage?" The photon replies: "I don't have any, I'm traveling light."

Q: What did one physicist say when he wanted to fight another physicist?
A: Let me atom.

Then he ordered a beer. He got the bartender's attention. A tachyon went into a bar.

Jewelry is a Secret Drug Science Joke:

http://io9.com/this-beautiful-jewelry...

Betsy wrote: "Jewelry is a Secret Drug Science Joke:

http://io9.com/this-beautiful-jewelry..."

Ha! Love it!

How good is your general knowledge of psychology? Take one of Steven Pinker's exams:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/20...

Ha, awesome, it never occurred to me to get a science tattoo, cause i'm usually in trippy art mode about those, that's why. Unless deliberate moon phase placement counts? LOL not if it was me being all pagan like, right? (got a waxing crescent on one wrist already, and planning to put a waning crescent on the other wrist, but shite keeps coming up if ya know what I mean) Thought about being a smartass and getting the word No tattooed under each of them, but stopped short there. Planning to put moon related song lyrics under the waning one, the space under the waxing one is (mostly) taken. by a crazy bird spirit thing :P

I am totally gonna go to town on this.....dunno what equations I would want yet, but I def am interested :)

3 logicians walk into a bar. the bartender asks "do all of you want a drink?"
the first logician says "I don't know."
the second logician says " I don't know."
the third logician says "yes."

That's terrible!

no its not! it's funny!

here's another one. Einstein, Pascal and Newton are playing hide and seek and Einstein is It. Pascal goes off and hides and Newton draws a one meter by one meter box in chalk on the sidewalk and stands in it. when Einstein is done counting to 100 he opens his eyes and sees Newton. he goes, "Newton! I found you!"
and Newton goes, "no you didn't. you found Pascal!"

Word jazz about Fibonacci numbers from the brilliant Ken Nordine :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYi07E...

Vi Hart is a goddess. She is a mathematician who got an artistic side from her sculptor father. I would not be able to handle that level of brilliance without popping. this is just part 1 of of a 3 parter.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahXIMU...

She also does some awesome spacial and music theory math videos. Vi Hart. SHE'S AWESOME :)

VI HART!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFLkou...

this one made me go "no no no, just NO" lol it can't be.

Let's take this and make a portal. NOW. cause that's what it's amounting to.....

vi hart :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIVIeg...

Physics themed halloween costumes:

http://www.symmetrymagazine.org/artic...

Betsy wrote: "Physics themed halloween costumes:

http://www.symmetrymagazine.org/artic..."

Reminds me of Sheldon's costume, in "Big Bang Theory". :-)

Seen on Facebook:

A science love song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...

NASA Book Shows How Space Station Research Offers "Benefits for Humanity"
http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nas...

Betsy,

That was a great find!

Kenny,

I wouldn't have a tatoo, perhaps just a T-shirt.

E = mc^2 though is just too well-known and boring. Maxwell's equations have their magic, at least in their most modern mathematical form, based on the rationalised SI units, if my memory serves me correctly. Of course not only do they describe electromagnetism, they were also ultimately the stimulus for the discovery of special relativity.

At MIT (I think) the atmospheric sciences department have a T-shirt with the fluid dynamics equations on a rotating sphere. For the uninitiated these are the dynamics equations used in climate change and weather prediction, i.e. they determine the wind and pressure in the atmosphere. The equations are accompanied by a quip along the lines of "And you thought you could understand the weather!"

4 remarkable inventions of Archimedes that still baffle us
http://www.hexapolis.com/2015/07/07/4...

Jim,

There is no doubt of Archimedes prowess as a mathematician, scientist and engineer. However, the article indicates without evidence that he discovered infinitesimals. I very much doubt that this is true. You have for example Xeno's paradox about a runner (Achilles) not being able to catch a tortoise who is given a head (or shell start!) in a foot race. This indicates that the Greeks in general did not understand calculus, or the mathematics of infinitesimals.

Instead, calculus was invented independently by Newton and Leibniz in the 17th century.

By the way, I have always thought it really tacky in movies when some person (deemed clever) is capable of doing calculus! As if calculus was any more difficult than any other branch of mathematics. Look out for it if you've not noticed it. This is usually only high school calculus anyway which just follows simple rules. Serious calculus is about co- and contra-variant vectors and tensors which allow the description of curved space in General Relativity. Now we're smoking!

Another thing in movies (especially American ones) is that all classical music is compared to Mozart. It's the only composer movie directors have heard of. Of course Mozart was indeed a musical genius for his time, but his music was the popular music of the time in some ways.