-
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
Hiding from time? New design of a “temporal cloak” makes waves
Is it possible to make something invisible in time as well as in space? It is a fascinating question, a provocative question, a mind-boggling question… wait… what exactly does it mean to “make something invisible in time?” We’ll get to … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Optics
2 Comments
George Stokes on science and knowledge (1877)
One thing I’ve learned about the great scientists in history is that they are almost all well aware of the collaborative progressive nature of science. The most famous example of this is Isaac Newton’s quite-possibly-sarcastic “If I have seen further … Continue reading
Posted in History of science
Leave a comment
George Gabriel Stokes in love! (1857)
Been very busy the past few weeks with work, house buying and selling, and life in general. Catching back up on blog posts; here’s a bit of sweetness connected to a prominent physicist. With the weather finally turning nice at … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Silliness
Leave a comment
The Kaye effect after dark!
I’ve talked in some detail before about the Kaye effect, in which a shear-thinning fluid such as shampoo or liquid soap can be made to “bounce.” Well, I did one final experiment with the Kaye effect, in order to show … Continue reading
Posted in Physics
2 Comments
The Giant’s Shoulders #59 is out!
I hereby declare that the 59th edition of The Giant’s Shoulders, the history of science blog carnival, is up at Something by Virtue of Nothing! This edition, centered around the theme of the Antikythera Mechanism, includes posts about: Did Isaac Newton … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
Leave a comment
All about rainbows, double rainbows, circular rainbows!
Do not all charms fly At the mere touch of cold philosophy? There was an awful rainbow once in heaven: We know her woof, her texture; she is given In the dull catalogue of common things. Philosophy will clip an … Continue reading
Posted in Optics
15 Comments
Jack Finney’s The Body Snatchers
This post continues a long-neglected series of posts about classic novels of science fiction and horror that were adapted into movies of the 1950s and 1960s. Years past, I talked about John Wyndham’s The Midwich Cuckoos and The Day of … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Science fiction
2 Comments
Physics demonstrations: Chladni patterns
A good demonstration of a physical phenomenon should be both insightful and exciting. Sometimes, a demonstration succeeds at both so well that it is practically awe-inspiring. Such is the case, for me, with the demonstration of Chladni patterns, exotic and … Continue reading
Posted in Physics, Physics demos
4 Comments
Physics demonstrations: cloaking device?
I’ve spent a lot of time on this blog talking about the optics of invisibility, both hypothetical and actual. Though a number of forms of invisibility have been considered in both science and fiction for over a hundred years, the … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Optics, Physics demos
7 Comments
Skulls in the Stars 