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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
What is Quantum Entanglement? Part 1: Waves and particles
If you follow science, or science fiction, to any degree, great or small, you’ve probably heard the term “quantum entanglement” before. You may also have heard it referred to as “spooky action at a distance,” and understand that it somehow … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Physics
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The Southern Reach trilogy, by Jeff VanderMeer
I’m not entirely sure why it took me three years to read Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach trilogy. One of his earlier novels, Finch, is on a very short list of “best books I’ve ever read.” I suspect that I simply … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Science fiction, Weird fiction
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Chills, by Mary SanGiovanni
I’ve been in a bit of a funk the past few weeks and haven’t been reading much. What I needed to get myself back on track was a nice solid bit of horror fiction, and fortunately I had on hand … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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Optics basics: reflection
It’s been some 5 years since I wrote my last “Optics basics” post! The goal of that series of posts was to introduce some of the most fundamental concepts in optics in a non-technical way, in part so I wouldn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Optics basics
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The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin
After reading the epic Foundation series of novels by Asimov, I was in the mood for a change of pace in science fiction. I turned to another brilliant author, Ursula K. Le Guin, and her classic 1969 novel The Left … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
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Pepper’s last optical illusion: metempsychosis
A month ago, I shared the lengthy, odd and sometimes dramatic history of the illusion commonly known as “Pepper’s ghost,” which I believe is more properly called the “Pepper-Dircks ghost.” In researching this post, I uncovered a wealth of fascinating … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Optics
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Foundation’s Edge, Foundation and Earth, by Isaac Asimov
Been rather preoccupied recently with life, but I finally have a moment to catch up on a bit of my book blogging, including discussing the “final” two books of Asimov’s classic Foundation series, namely, Foundation’s Edge (1982) and Foundation and … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
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Twitter Weird Science Facts: Full Year and Final Volume!
This is it — the last regular installment of my Twitter weird science facts! I’ve done a full year of weirdscifacts, averaging one fact per day for the entire year (though I’ve had to play catch up on missed days … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Weirdscifacts
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19th century optics FAILs
My recent post on the Pepper-Dircks ghost didn’t include even close to all of the interesting tidbits it could have! There are so many things to learn from the story of the ghost, including some lessons about optics. For example: … Continue reading
Posted in ... the Hell?, History of science, Optics
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Skulls in the Stars 