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The author of Skulls in the Stars is a professor of physics, specializing in optical science, at UNC Charlotte. The blog covers topics in physics and optics, the history of science, classic pulp fantasy and horror fiction, and the surprising intersections between these areas. -
Author Archives: skullsinthestars
ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: Soothing troubled waters, zombie stars, risky business with oil, visual recognition, and time and power
Pouring oil on ‘troubled waters’. Historically, sailors believed they could calm choppy water by pouring oil on it, and small-scale tests indicate at least a partial truth to this. Could the Gulf oil spill have a similar effect? In a … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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Swimming (well, kneeling) with stingrays!
This past week I’ve been rather quiet about blogging and tweeting because I’ve been on vacation with the Wife and some of her family in Myrtle Beach, SC. We just returned yesterday and had a quite nice time, though like … Continue reading
Posted in Animals, Travel
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“On the decline of mathematical studies, and the sciences dependent upon them”
I was browsing the internet a few weeks ago, and came across an opinion piece lamenting the poor state of mathematical education and the detrimental effect it has had on science. The provocative piece starts as follows: It is a … Continue reading
Posted in ... the Hell?, History of science
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ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: Grandpa vs. the oil, inadvertent cloud-seeding, faith and science, and hip-hop evolution
Reflections on the Gulf Oil Spill – Conversations With My Grandpa. Over at Observations of a Nerd, Christie hits it out of the park by talking about the Gulf oil spill with an expert on cleanup strategies: her Grandpa! Aircraft … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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A mini milestone…
In the midst of all the work I’ve been doing lately, I almost completely overlooked the fact that I’ve passed the 400,000 page view milestone! It was less than a year ago that I hit the 300k mark, so I’m … Continue reading
Posted in Personal
8 Comments
A visit to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
Over the weekend, the Wife and I visited some of her relatives in Cleveland. Though it was a very short trip, we managed to take a trip to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, which has a nice collection of exhibits. We … Continue reading
Posted in Animals, Travel
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The Giant’s Shoulders #24 is up!
The Giant’s Shoulders #24 is up over at Jost a Mon, and to celebrate the 24th edition it includes a timeline of discoveries made in the 24th year of each century ! Many thanks to Fëanor for assembling such an … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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Joe Hill’s Horns
Joe Hill is a good horror author, but not an incredibly prolific one; his first book was 20th Century Ghosts (2005), a collection of ghost stories, and his second was Heart-Shaped Box (2007), which I reviewed on this blog a … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: primate risk-assessment, not-quite-life on Titan, and 65-year-old precursor to the Web
A Bonobo in the Hand or Two Chimps in the Bush? Do different species of primates have the same perception of risk, or does it depend on their feeding habits and environment? With some clever imagery, Jason at The Thoughtful … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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You could learn a lot from a ducky: the van Cittert-Zernike theorem
(Alternate titles considered for this post: Ducktoral degree, Send in the ducks, Proof by in-duck-tion, Duck Tales, Duck-ing the issue.) One of my specializations in optics is the theory of optical coherence, which is the theory that characterizes the random … Continue reading
Posted in Animals, Optics
29 Comments
Skulls in the Stars 