This is in the lobby of the NOAA. It uses ultrasonic vibrations to generate steam from water without heating it, then pumps it up into this large bowl which you can blow down into or run your hands through. It doesn't really serve any scientific purpose, really, but it's fun to play with.
The highlight of the tour for most of us was Science on a Globe. This a six-foot diameter sphere suspended from the ceiling, then four projectors use it as a spherical movie screen to project a globe onto it. This allows presenters to show any array of global information on the sphere, animated. The effect looks exactly what you would expect a hologram of the Earth to look like.
Topo maps.
The night side of the topo map shows the lights that are visible form human activity. Our presenter told us how to recognize the differen types of lights. White are electric lights - cities. Purple lights in the ocean (particularly near Japan) are fishing boats using lights to attract squid to the surface so they can turn them into calamari. Red lights are fires, usually big slash-and-burn operations. Blue lights are oil rig flares.
A view of the globe seeing the tops of the clouds color-coded to show the infrared spectrum. Also, the globe-like head of the kid in front of me apparently trying to simulate an eclipse as seen from beyond the dark side of the moon.
An animation showing the formation of hurricanes in the Atlantic.
The next animation I have is a really cool one showing global warming from the 1870's (as based on ice core samples) and projected into the year 2200 (based on computer models), but the clip is bigger than the Vox limit of 50 megs. When I get back home I'll see if I can work it into a smaller file. All of the other videos I took were also over 50 megs. Hmmph!
After Science on a Sphere, the tour took us into a conference room where one of their employees demonstrated on a big screen the NOAA's experimental island in Second Life. It looked neat, but unfortunately my bandwidth at home just can't handle Second Life.
After leaving the NOAA, we went to the National Center for Atmospheric Research. It was a much shorter tour and there wasn't nearly as much to see, but their building was neat, and they had a very basic science museum just inside the door.
The building was designed by architect I. M. Pei after visiting Mesa Verde National Park.
A view of the Flatirons Mountains from right outside the NCAR facilities.
Some door archways on the exterior of the NCAR facility. For comparison, here is a shot I took at Chaco Canyon National Historic Park:
Another view of the Flatirons.
Back inside the NCAR facility, a mural showing the different altitudes where various atmospheric phenomena exist. From this mural, I learned about a type of cloud that I hadn't heard of before: noctilucent clouds. They are much higher in the atmosphere that other cloud formations, and as such they can sometimes reflect light from the sun back down toward the night side of the planet, making them appear to glow. I wonder how many UFO sightings such clouds have caused. They're also interesting because scientists don't yet understand how clouds can form at such high altitudes or why we're seeing them in lower latitudes in the last couple of decades than we used to.
An early air sampler rocket, meant to take samples of air at high altitudes. This one was used at the White Sands Missile Range.
Finally, since we're going white water rafting Sunday and we forgot to pack hats to protect us from the sun, I bought a couple of floppy fishing hats at the NCAR gift store for Strix and me.
Yes, my face really is that round. Sad, huh?
It's time for lunch. More later!
I love my fur babies. They are like my children. I ESPECIALLY love Fatso. We've had this big furball of a cat since he was born and he is just so sweet and loving, he has a very special place in my heart reserved JUST for him.Although he can be very sweet and loving, he also commands a certain amount of respect. Fatso does not tolerate things such as being restrained or even being held or fooled with for too long. He ESPECIALLY doesn't like anyone venturing into areas such as his haunches or his tail when brushing him. I'll openly admit it: I'm afraid of Fatso! Although fat, his reaction time is akin to a Jaguar and I'm NOT kidding! He has hurt me many times over the years so I have learned to be respectful and careful! Fatso is a Maine Coon aka FURBALL! He has long, long hair and it is EVERYWHERE in my house. I try to brush him regularly, but he doesn't tolerate it well and he absolutely will not allow me to brush the areas that REALLY need it! This has resulted in some knots on Fatso's chest and down in his 'neutered but still somewhat manly area'.
Michael is much braver and stronger than me (and tolerates pain much better also)! So I told him last week I couldn't take cleaning up the hair any longer and I was concerned about the knots and I wanted him to buy a shaver and come shave the knots off of Fatso and give him a bath.
Well Michael and Alyssa arrived last night with a brand new trimmer and a whole bunch of good intentions! Alyssa, being the intelectual girl that she is wants to follow the instructions that come with the trimmer and some other techniques that she's heard of from pet groomers. She's even brought him a special treat to give him after the procedure is over so he will 'associate the shaver with a treat'. Yeah right! She doesn't realize that there is no instruction booklet written on how to deal with Fatso! She soon learns this though....
So they spread a blanket out on the couch and Alyssa starts shaving his sides while Michael holds him. So far, so good. Then about 10 seconds later Fatso begins to buck and resist like a Red Bull!
After a couple of minutes Fatso is spitting everywhere, Michael can't even hold him. So they let him go. Fatso is MADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!! After a couple more attempts Michael is about ready to give up as he is bleeding from several nice cuts on his arms. Alyssa has more ideas though: She says we should try putting something over his head to keep him calm and to put socks on his legs so he can't claw Michael. She went out to her car and got the bag from a bottle of Crown Royal and I went and got 2 old pairs of socks. She put the bag over Fatso's head and pulled the drawstring just a bit to keep it on. Then, with Michael holding him, tried to put the little booties on all four of his feet. I was laughing so hard I forgot to take a picture but it was quite hilarious! Fatso must have worked with Houdini in another life because before they could even get 2 of the booties on him he somehow removed that bag from his head, removed the booties from his feet, spit, scratched and clawed and catapulted his entire body out of Michael's grip! He was all bowed up looking at all of us like "WHAT THE HELL ARE Y'ALL TRYING TO DO TO ME?" Bob is freaking out because he doesn't understand what is going on. Heidi doesn't care because she's rekindled her relationship with Hailey.
So, the saga continues....
Although they have removed a sizeable amount of hair with the trimmer, they have still only touched the tip of the iceburg and haven't even ventured to his underbelly (I can already see that that is NOT going to happen, Fatso is just NOT going to have it and all the brute force Michael has cannot even restrain him). Finally they decide to try cutting off some hair with scissors. Fatso is a little bit more agreeable to this but still it's not very long before he rebels.
Finally, Michael is ready to concede defeat and asks me to call a groomer and get a price. He takes Fatso upstairs to give him a much needed bath.
Poor Baby! So now he has a haircut that looks like he did it himself, but at least he's clean.
I'm calling a groomer tomorrow.
This morning, I got up bright and early, ate some Cheerios, and headed out to a bus waiting to take me and a bunch of other geeks on a tour of some of the scientific facilities in Boulder, Colorado.
Our first stop was the Boulder branch of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
First, let me say, Boulder is gorgeous. I will definitely have to go back when I'm not stuck with a tour group to explore it more thoroughly, but I think I may want to live there.
But back to the NOAA. We first stopped at the security station outside. A security officer came onto the bus and said that we were all going to have to get off and go through a metal detector, so anything we didn't want to take through the metal detector we should leave on the bus. Being the good Americans we are, we didn't question this, but did as we were told. We were all given temporary name badges, and went through the metal detector, then got back on the bus which took us on to the main building.
Now... since we could leave whatever we wanted on the bus and were given an opportunity to retrieve it before going into the main building, can someone please explain to me what the hell the purpose of the metal detector was? These people need training on how to design a security checkpoint system, because this ain't it.
Anyway, here's my temporary name badge.
Yep. I should have expired... nine minutes ago now. Maybe they were on Greenwich Mean Time.
A half-size prototype of a weather satellite, suspended from the ceiling just inside the door.
Some neat artwork in the lobby.
Pics from the solar observation lab...
Some neat artwork on the wall outside the solar lab.
The blue and white cylindars are sample bottles full of... well... air. The NOAA receives 40,000 samples per year from volunteers and organizations around the world, and analyzes them for levels of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, etc.
This is the lab where actual weather forcasts are accurately made... or not.
Just two of the several rows of parallel supercomputers used to model climate change and weather patterns.
Computer simulation only goes so far. This rather cluttered lab is where actual chemical reactions are tested at various pressures. When we entered the lab, our tour guide said, several times, "DO NOT STARE INTO THE FLASHING GREEN LASER!" The first question to be asked by one of my fellow tourists was, while they were looking avidly around the lab, "Where's the laser?"
Got all that?
The air tanks all along the wall are the various types of gasses used in the experiments. The woman who designed the lab (I can't remember her name right now) won a Nobel prize for discovering the chemical process in which CFCs break down the Ozone.
Okay, I've got a lot more, but it's really late. More tomorrow.
Now that you've got your hat all you need is a song! :P Before there was Boa and the stream of crossover artists, there was S.E.S...a trio of Korean vocalists with power, grace, and soul in their voices. Before debuting in Japan S.E.S released an impressive catalog of pop releases in Korea and were actually one of the first Korean groups/singers to pioneer the transition to a multilingual career overseas. One day a customer asked to special order their Japan debut single "meguri au sekai" (while I was still employed at a record store here) and while I wasn't familiar with the trio back then in late '98 I was immediately impressed with the powerful projection and sound of their vocals which are quite in a very sweet way and when their single "(ai) to iu nano hokori" was released just a few months later I was completely hooked on their sound. "(Ai) to iu nano hokori" remains as one of my top 100 J-Pop songs of all time.
Wordpress post: Dear Writer
Since we live atop Red Mountain we have a pretty good view of the fireworks that are shot from Vulcan Park on the 4th of July right from our own yard. We have stayed home and watched them for the past 2 years. Homewood also has a nice little carnival, street thing in downtown and we've gone down there a couple of years also, but it's really geared more for younger kids. This year we're going to 5 Points South to attend a block party! It's a more grown up atmosphere and I think Hailey and her friends will have a great time! Michael will also be there (working) but at least we'll get to see him.
5 Points South is a club and restaurant district just over the hill from Homewood. Whereas Homewood has a nice view of Vulcan's butt, 5 Points South has a nice view of his frontside LOL. 5 Points South, also known as 'Southside' is an awesome place with many unique clubs and shops. This is where the local music scene in Birmingham thrives. It's a very walkable area and the shops are amazing! Hailey and I went down there last Saturday and went in Cloud Nine and India Shop. Both shops have unique clothing, shoes, jewelry, posters, and tons and tons of incense! Cloud Nine also does tattoes and that is where Hailey will get hers (when she does get it). Southside is also a neighborhood and within walking distance to University of Alabama at Birmingham. There are many old homes that have been refurbished and remodeled into showcases. Quaint, old apartment buildings house singles, couples and many college students.
This is the first ever block party in 5 Points South. It was an attempt by the 5 Points Neighborhood Association to provide a fun 4th of July event for people who are feeling the gas crunch and can't necessarily afford to go out of town for the holiday. I think it's a great idea and I will DEFINITELY be taking my camera along!
My Dear Neighbours:
It's time for me to take a short holiday from blogging. I want to spend a few weeks catching up with everyone in my neighbourhood whose blogs I haven't had time to read in the past few months, as I've been so busy with writing. I feel as though I've lost touch with many of my friends,and am missing very important things in their lives, not only here on VOX, but at home, too. Also, my garden is full of weeds and needs tending. I will be back in August. Before I go I want to thank all my neighbours who tagged me for the "Eight Things You Don't Know About Me" game. I didn't want to respond to only one person, so I decided this would be a good way to leave off, by responding here. Thanks for the tag, everyone, and... here we go:
Eight Things You Don't Know About Me:
• When I was twenty, I took classes to learn how to assemble car transmissions just to impress a boy I was in love with, who was an auto mechanic. I put a C-6 transmission together, all by myself. Now I probably couldn't remember what it looks like.
• I sold my first engagement ring and went on a tour of the European continent with the proceeds. I'm serious- Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, England, Belgium, Amsterdam and more, all for the price of one sparkler, which the man who gave it to me told me he didn't want back.
• I come from a family of amazingly talented musicians. I, on the other hand, am tone deaf. But God made up for that deficiency by blessing me with the biggest feet you’ve ever seen on a 5’ 2” woman. (Size American 8 Wide – real grape stompers from my Sicilian ancestors.)
• My former business partner and I once took an overnight train from the northern border of Greece back to Athens carrying a satchel stuffed with approximately 4000 USD in cash. (Long story.) The train was filled with derelicts and poor refugees. We were very uncomfortable, to say the least, two women alone, carrying all that money. To top off our discomfort, my business partner got hit on by the station manager. She turned him down, but kept his phone number to show to her husband when we got back home. Bless his heart, I don't know what upset him more - the fact that we could have gotten mugged, or that a strange man had approached his wife. Once we were home safely, the whole experience seemed a big adventure.
• Several of my pupils at a NYC junior high school were gang members, unfortunately. I truly cared about them all, and worked very hard with them, not only on reading and writing, but on their lives. One of them astounded my colleagues when he got up and read an A.E. Housman poem aloud in our classroom. The next day he was arrested on suspicion of murder. I’ve always wondered what he could have become were his circumstances different.
• I love to read to children. Bernard Evslin or Roald Dahl are my first joys, but I’ll read Eric Carle and Dr Seuss gladly, too.
• In my middle-age I have become a ‘gym rat.’ I work out with heavy weights four times a week. Some of my friends are the male body builders I work out with. I never knew men with muscles so big would have hearts to match. I learned a lot about how men really think from working out with them. They are not at all as I’d imagined when I was young. Apart from the body builders, I am lucky to count as my friends people of both sexes, all careers, sexual persuasions, nationalities, and age ranges from 20’s - 80’s. The world is full of intriguing people wherever one looks.
• I can cook pretty darn well, especially Italian and Greek food. My baklava and tiramisu are legendary. I hope I can prove it to you all some day. And when I divorced my Greek husband, he asked me to leave him my shrimp scampi recipe before I left. I did leave it for him, (and didn't even leave out any of the ingredients for spite.)
I'll be seeing you on your blogs. Enjoy July!