Brief catch-up

Busy with work, exhilarated by NIN concert, disconsolate over last NIN concert, sick with allergies, visited with Carl, missing Greg, winging well-wishes northwesterly, giddy with Greg, awed by Saturn:

from Cassini

Strange, but true

I have had photographs published in magazines.

That is a true statement, although I bet most of you find it surprising. Me, too, quite frankly. On a few occasions, Greg needed to submit an author photo and chose ones that I took. So strange as it might sound, my photographic work has been published.

I guess all of us have strange, but true, aspects. That's one of mine. Yours?

Too close

The Station Fire has come very close to the Mt. Wilson Observatory. Wish luck to the observatory, its people, and the firefighters defending it, please. It's going to be a rough night there.

View from the solar telescope, looking west at 8:00 pm PDT:

Back to school

The first week of classes is over for me. The classrooms are bursting, and I hate turning away folks. The sad truth is that our budget doesn't allow us to take more students. They ask me, "Don't you want our money?" A perfectly valid question. Here's the answer: the student fees don't pay all of our bills. Despite the fact that the cost of the community colleges in California went up by 30% this semester, it means they're still only paying $26 per credit. It's the best deal in higher education. However, it doesn't generate enough revenue to pay for salaries and utilities and facilities and equipment and so on. That's where the State comes in, but they haven't been so good about paying recently. In addition, the State puts a cap on how many students they will fund. If we go over that cap, we actually LOSE money.

At the start of the week, in our three-college district, there were 11,000 people on waitlists.

In other years, I would allow more people into my classes, but we're in danger of not being able to afford to offer summer classes at this point, because the State LOWERED the cap this year while enrollments are growing. We have already cut about 10% of our course offerings. The good news is that enrollment is also UP about 10%... the courses we are offering are full. It's a good feeling to know that we are serving more students, but it's an awful feeling to know that we aren't serving ALL who want an education.

Most students have been handling the stress well, but there have been some incidents of frustration that required police involvement. Nothing in my department, though... hopefully that trend will hold through next week, as next Friday is the last day that students can add classes. But think about that, will you? People desperate for an education being turned away. Go celebrate that you got Cash for your Clunker... the rest of us are dealing with a very sad reality that will have repercussions extending far into the future.

Summer recap

My summer unpaid-voluntary-leave-of-absence is coming to an end. (Saying "vacation" would make it sound like I got paid, doesn't it?) I can't believe classes start tomorrow. I spent this weekend in coffee houses prepping my courses, but I'm still not emotionally prepared for summer to be over. What did I do with my summer?:

• Visited a handful of museums in Balboa Park.
• Went on one trip, a very nice visit to old haunts in Arizona.
• Read 15 books.
• Spent a lot of time in meetings with architects designing a new science building for the college.
• Steadily worked on curriculum for the upcoming academic year.
• Wrote many letters to state legislators about the budget situation.
• Visited a Congressional office to discuss NASA and NSF funding and relationship to education.
• Became a tourist attraction for the evening that I performed the planetarium shows at the R.H. Fleet Center in Balboa Park.
• Fan-girled all over Comic-Con.
• Saw a musical.
• Discovered new beaches.
• Ate at many new restaurants.
• Finally found chocolate cream pie.
• Hosted Greg's folks for a weekend.
• Participated in Laurie Halse Andersen's "Write For Fifteen Minutes A Day"-challenge.

I make this list because I always feel like I don't accomplish enough over the summer. Looking at this list, there are glaring absences, goals that just didn't get done. Hopefully, I won't wait til next summer!

Today

After a nice summer, it's back to work for me. Classes start one week from today, and I am not prepared. The first of many meetings occurred today, none related to getting ready for next Monday. I was stressed and bemoaning the end of summer, but tonight we went to eat seafood and walk along the bay. We walked on the jetty and saw where the bay meets the sea, which makes me want to jump on a ship and sail the world. Living in my neighborhood isn't so bad, eh?

From Summer 2009

Yet more pretty

Our space program just keeps providing the pretty this week. Victoria Crater on Mars, from MRO/HiRISE:

Looking up

A few astro notes:

The Perseid meteor shower is peaking tonight and tomorrow:

Also, Saturn is at its equinox, and the Cassini spacecraft is sending back some lovely images. Here's a raw image I just pulled:

And here's an image from a few days ago, seemingly showing an object plowing through the rings:

Enjoy!

Big Toy

Today I did yet another thing I've never done before: I presented the planetarium show at the R. H. Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park. I was honored to have the opportunity to geek out over the night sky with such appreciative audiences. I've done public talks before, but these were certainly the largest - the planetarium seats three hundred! The planetarium staff was wonderful to work with, and did I mention I got to play with a planetarium?!?! Toy!

I was impressed tonight, as always, with the quantity and quality of questions I received. Young and old alike, nary a bad question in the bunch. I'm reminded that I need to do more public outreach, because the public really does want to be reached.

A new thing

I did something today that I'd never done before. Earlier this year, the American Astronomical Society called upon its members to volunteer to visit their local Congressional offices to advocate for space research. So today I met with a staffer, doing just that. I focused on the contributions that NASA makes to education, research, and inspiring people to pursue STEM careers. I don't know if I did any good, but I don't think I did any harm, and at least I did something!

Highlights

I had a lot of fun at Comic-Con. I'm already looking forward to next year. Two Battlestar Galactica highlights:

• Attending a Music of Battlestar Galactica concert. Absolutely amazing. I'm a huge fan of the music, and I'm so impressed at how well Bear McCreary has translated his scores for the smaller, very talented, ensemble. It was also fun to see members of the BSG cast, and Katee Sackhoff was adorable playing the piano for, well, you know.
• Just as K and I were looking at James Callis, he gave us a "oh yeah, the chicks dig Gaius" look. He instantly switched into the character and sent us into giggles. So much so that we bolted, not believing we'd been reduced to such behavior. I still giggle when thinking about it.

Other highlights involved hanging out with friends, seeing Robots in Orbit shirts on everyone, sighting random celebrities, and meeting Eoin Colfer. My feet are happy it's over, but I wish the next one wasn't a year off.

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One of my goals for 2009 was "to do something I've never done before". The upcoming several days will present two opportunities towards achieving that goal. Wish me luck!

Looking back at Apollo 11

They aren't superheroes. They are intelligent, determined, disciplined, and immensely competent men who went to the Moon with a legion of brilliant and dedicated people behind them. That's worthy of being remembered today, 40 years later, and every day.

Apollo 11 crew with Chris Kraft:

Apollo 11 crew with President Obama:

(All images from www.nasa.gov)

Moonshot

I wasn't even alive for the Apollo 11 Moon landing. In fact, I was not yet 2 years old when we last left the Moon. That's a long time ago. I've often thought that the people of Apollo (and Mercury and Gemini) deserved better from us. Where is our Moonbase? When is our Mars Expedition? Why are we still here? The legacy of Apollo is a great one, but what will our legacy be? As our new NASA administrator Charles Bolden pointed out, he used to go to schools and the students wanted to be astronauts. Now, he says, they want to go into business. Really? Instead of spaceships and exploration, our children dream of MBAs? Not if I have anything to do with it.

There are many commemorations of this 40th anniversary of the first Moon landing.

• For the uber-geeky amongst you, I recommend the January 30, 1970 issue of Science, containing the first science articles from the mission.
• NASA has released some newly restored videos from the Apollo 11 mission.
• And then, there is http://wechoosethemoon.org, which is broadcasting the Apollo 11 mission "live" as it happened 40 years ago. Take a few moments to listen to it, will you? The back-and-forth between CapCom and the astronauts sounds like an epic poem. Even the static whispers promises of adventures and knowledge and grandeur just within our reach, if we try.

Fourth of July

I had quite a lovely Fourth of July. It started off with a picnic by the bay with Greg - chicken, potato salad, chips, watermelon, pretty view, lovely weather. With all the people who have invaded our beach town, I'm glad that we can just walk to the beach. I think half of Arizona is here. Spent a quiet afternoon reading The Patriot Witch, which is appropriate material on this day. Tonight's dessert was red, white, and blue - strawberries and blueberries soaked in sugar and amaretto, poured over vanilla ice cream and cake, topped with whipped cream. After that, we decided to venture out into the neighborhood to watch fireworks. We passed by a house flying the Union Jack and remarked "Tories!" Fireworks started on the west side of the bay. Overheard comment: "I don't know how they can afford all the fireworks. They're just a small yacht club." That firework display ended as we reached the tip of the little peninsula that we live on. Next overheard comment, spoken as a challenge: "Alright, SeaWorld." Yup, we settled in to watch the fireworks from SeaWorld. A good show, I must admit. Watching the armada of boats going from the west bay to the east side of the bay to catch SeaWorld's show was almost as entertaining. All-in-all, a very nice Fourth of July in our neighborhood.

We live in an expensive area. In all seriousness, we pretty much live in a city park. Our rent is high, higher than we'd like. A day like today puts the rent in perspective, though. By the time we had our picnic, parking was scarce. A local gas station was offering spaces for $30 - yikes! We didn't have to drive to get to our destinations. We didn't have to spend $65 each to enjoy SeaWorld's fireworks. So the next time I pay rent, I'll try to grumble a little less.

New view of the Moon

New images of the Moon from LROC were released today. If you go to this link and scroll all the way down, you can zoom in and see what 73 cm/pixel of the Moon looks like. Lovely. And some people think the Moon is boring.

Here's one of the press release images:

Back from the desert

I greatly enjoyed my week in Arizona, hanging out with friends and eating at old favorites and hiking amongst the beautiful outdoors. Here's one of my favorite photos from a hike in Sedona:

From Southwest Trip - June 2009

See whole album here:

Southwest Trip - June 2009

It's like looking at a different world, the beauty is so grand and exotic. One of these days I'll have to get back there when it isn't summer, because I had to keep my hikes short! It's good to be home, but part of me already wants to be on the road (and in my hiking shoes) again.

Things I Miss

• Exceptional colleagues.
• Good friends.
• Red rock country.
• Best Starbucks ever.
• Amazing desert sunsets.

From Southwest Trip - June 2009

Dry heat

Back in Arizona. Hitting some of the old haunts. Carlsbad Tavern is as good and tasty as ever. Our old Starbucks has remodeled with many more outlets. And the temp isn't even 100 degrees! With low humidity! Strange the things the desert makes one grateful for.

Productivity

I've been bizarrely productive this week. Cleaning, organizing, work stuff, car maintenance, car wash, ... even baked cookies! Makes me feel good, actually. I know I'm on vacation and I need to relax, but if I'm not productive, I feel all icky about myself.

Tomorrow, we're heading in an easterly direction. I'm looking forward to the trip, but would the desert please arrange to cool off a bit? Please?

Cell phone manifesto

There used to be a big problem with cell phones ringing during class. That doesn't happen very often any more. Two reasons: 1) experience evolving into etiquette, and 2) the students are ALWAYS using their phones, so there is NO CHANCE for them to go off.

What am I blathering about? Students are now constantly texting or web-surfing on their phones. Up til this point, I hadn't cared. You want to ignore part of the class? Fine, I know it'll show up in your grade. However, for the first time, the correlation between attendance and performance has waned in my astronomy courses. Even the students who know it's rude to use the cell phone during class feel no remorse about jumping in and out of the classroom to use it. So now it has turned into a distraction for more than just the user. Which is funny, as you'd think the cell phone ringing would be more annoying, but it isn't. I have a couple of specific examples from this last semester that have motivated me to come up with a long, clear cell phone policy for my syllabi. Here's a first draft:

CELL PHONE POLICY

All electronic devices must be turned to “silent” before class starts. Cell phones should not be in use during the class period at any time. Usage includes answering the phone, making calls, sending and receiving text messages, browsing the internet, listening to music, taking or looking at photographs or using the phone as a calculator. If such usage is noted by the instructor, the student will be asked to leave class for the day.

Any usage of a cell phone during an exam will mean that the student is finished with the exam, and the exam must be turned in to the instructor at that time.

If there is an extenuating circumstance (ex: on-call at work, family emergency) that means that the student must be in contact via voice/text messaging, the student must inform the instructor at the beginning of the class period. Any voice/text messaging in that case must be conducted outside of the classroom. The student will be as silent as possible in this situation out of respect to fellow classmates and the instructor.

Comments? Suggestions? HELP!?!?! Sadly, this is now the longest part of the syllabus!!!!