Archive of Writings
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Developing a better world, one astronomy lesson at a time
Earlier today I realized I was one day off. I showed up for a meeting on communicating astronomy to the public and found myself in a meeting on generating more accurate world coordinate systems for sky surveys. While astrometry is important, it is something that I...
Pink Tasks (post 2/2)
In yesterday's women in science lunch, we ended with this question: Why do so many women remain silent about all the day-to-day micro-inequities and minor discriminations and injustices they deal with. Ignoring the obvious (it's really hard to report someone for a...
Pink Tasks (post 1 of 2)
In general, I'm not someone who is an activist feminist. My focus has always been on science research and education, but sometimes gender issues can't be ignored. If you saw my talk from TAM2012, you know that for better or (more likely) for worse, the issues faced by...
IAU, I’m lost within you
This morning I woke up in Beijing. This wasn't entirely surprising since I'd fallen asleep at about 32,000 ft on AA187, inbound to PEK from ORD. Nonetheless, no matter how much you know logically that you are soon to be somewhere very foreign, the reality of it is...
Thank you, Neil Armstrong
When I heard Neil Armstrong had died, my first reaction was to stop walking and reread the text, curse once, and realize I had no more words. He is a hero who lived an amazing life, a long life, and will remain an inspiration as so many past heros have remained. Its...
IAU, Pluto, and naming P5
The 2012 meeting of the International Astronomical Union is about to begin in Beijing, China. I'll be attending the second week of the meeting, and talking on the very last day (yikes!) The 2 constant questions about IAU are "Will Pluto get back its planethood?" and...
Red August: A Mars Month
The month of August is named after Augustus Ceasar, the Roman Emperor who oversaw the expansion of the Roman Empire in the years after Julius Ceasar's death on the Ides of March, and even Jesus Christ is said historically to have reminded people to render unto this...
Stopping Harassment Starts Here – the shirt
Over the weekend I gave a talk at TAM2012 that discussed as one part of the talk the issues of harassment and discrimination that minority groups to often face. In order to call attention this issue I had printed (with personal funds) a set of t-shirts that simply...
Make the World Better
Yesterday at TAM2012 in Las Vegas I gave the hardest talk I've ever given. I present it annotated below. The out pouring of love I've received has been truly overwhelming, and I thank all of you for the strength you have given me. update 08/17/2012 My talk was posted...
Cassini, Cassini, Cassini
Here at the Lunar and Planertary Sciences' Conference, I think it is safe to say that Cassini is in the house. From weather on Titan, to seasonal variations on Enceladus, to cracking of Dione, you can't throw an iPad (those are also in the house) without hitting a...