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There Is No Such Thing as a "Nuclear Scientist". There Are Only Physicists

Let’s bury the dangerous, lazy, and politically convenient idea that there exists a distinct...

The Thirty Meter Telescope May Be Cancelled Not by Ordinary People's Protest, but by Wealthy People's Whim

Astronomy, it seems, finds itself at the mercy of political caprice and economic machinations yet...

NASA Predicts Asteroid 2024 YR4 Might Hit The Moon.

According to observations made by NASA using the James Webb Space Telescope, there is a three point...

Basically No chance 2024 YR4 will hit Earth.

Recent observations have virtually eliminated any concern about an impact from asteroid 2024 YR4...

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Hontas FarmerRSS Feed of this column.

My research focuses on astrophysics from massive star formation to astroparticle physics. Born and raised in Chicagoland I have lived in Bellwood, IL since 1984 and attended public schools here... Read More »

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The big bang was not an Explosion: However an explosion is a metaphor for what the big bang was.

The big bang was not an Explosion: However an explosion is a metaphor for what the big bang was.

May 01 2011 | comment(s)

The big bang was given it's name by Fred Hoyle, in order to make the theory sound absurd.  He metaphorically called it an explosion.   In the mist of time most people even some scientist lost the metaphor part of that and thought of it as an explosion.  Others then stopped using the metaphor because it confused people.   
This is more of an entry about the use of language than physics.  That said here is the shortest possible argument for why the big bang was not an explosion for anyone who needs convincing:

Explosions are the free expansion of material from higher, pressure, temperature and density to lower pressure, temperature and density in a short amount of time. 
5% of men and 10% of women believe that the Earth is bigger than the Sun?

5% of men and 10% of women believe that the Earth is bigger than the Sun?

Mar 18 2011 | comment(s)

Really?  Seriously  according to OK Cupid's analysis of their data from asking 642533 people the question  5% of men (gay and straight) and 10% of women (gay and straight) think the Earth is bigger than the Sun.  This finding is in a posting by Ok Cupids researchers about gay Vs straight sex. 
Nuclear disasters, such as Japan's, due to natural disaster can happen anywhere! Here is why and what we can do about it.

Nuclear disasters, such as Japan's, due to natural disaster can happen anywhere! Here is why and what we can do about it.

Mar 15 2011 | comment(s)

99942Apophis A asteroid which if it were to hit earth would hit off the coast of California and do damage similar to the Earthquake. A 9.0 magnitude earthquake is equal to about 450 megatons of TNT being set off underground.  Due to the situation at the Daiichi nuclear plant near in Sendai Japan there is much talk of how nuclear plants should not be built in earthquake zones.
Where to see the Lunar Eclipse if it's cloudy

Where to see the Lunar Eclipse if it's cloudy

Dec 20 2010 | comment(s)

Where can one see the lunar eclipse online or at a viewing party.  Here are a couple of options and how to find out.

The best option would be to watch the eclipse online via NASA's live feed of the eclipse from Huntsville Alabama. Which I have embedded right here. 
The difference between matter, antimatter, dark matter, and negative matter

The difference between matter, antimatter, dark matter, and negative matter

Nov 18 2010 | comment(s)

Here I will explain the difference between matter, anti matter, dark matter, and negative matter in a concise and understandable way.   I have seen confusion pop up in various online forums and comments on the recent announced trapping of an anti atom by CERN. 

The first thing to know is that for a physicist there are four fundamental forces of nature which are always at work.  These are the familiar Gravity and  Electromagnetism, as well as the generally unfamiliar strong and weak atomic forces.   The atomic forces work on the length scale of atoms, Electromagnetism and gravity work on the length scale of the universe though in fundamentally different ways.
A quick lesson for the public on what scientific theories are and are not.

A quick lesson for the public on what scientific theories are and are not.

Sep 26 2010 | comment(s)

If you are a scientist in any field you have had to deal with a member of the public who did not understand the word theory.  This blog post intends to be a simple explanation for the willing but confused. 
What are theories how are they arrived at? 

The word theory has it's roots in the scientific method.  (In order to divorce this from creationism or the theory that the ancient Egyptians were really black Africans and other emotionally charged topics I shall write in Abstract terms. )

The scientific method has several basic steps.  

  1. Observation of some phenomena.