Google Video is going to cease hosting new videos, so I need a new service to compress and host videos for my classes. Unfortunately Wikipedia’s comparison charts of video services doesn’t list all the things I want to know about. Here’s what I’m looking for; the first few are required characteristics, “preferred” are additional characteristics I really want, and “optional” are bonuses.Unlimited file size (or at least 500MB), unlimited time (or at least 90 min)Cross-platform compatibleNo additional software required for viewing (things [...]

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More land-using organizations should start putting up wind turbines, if the results from Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock MA is any indication. Putting up a single turbine is saving them $450,000 per year, around 1/3 of their energy bill. Fortunately for them, the windmill produces the most electricity during the winter when it’s the most windy, and seeing as they’re a sky resort it’s also when they use the most electricity (primarily due to their snow-making machines). (I can’t help but think that if more companies used turbines, that we’d slow global warming [...]

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I just ran across the following list of skills that comprise critical thinking. * Evaluate and interpret the meaning of the textual material. * Support a thesis with evidence appropriate to position and audience. * Organize and connect ideas. * View situations from different perspectives. * Compare and contrast source material so that analysis can be made and theories can be proved or disproved. * Draw inferences, suppositions, and conclusions from source materials. * Perform a medley of solutions to a possible problem and present those solutions in a logical, coherent manner. [...]

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The link is a reposting of a Physics Today article about applying Title IX criteria to college and university science departments.

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The second video in my series for my online course.

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I’m working on creating an online course that is the equivalent of my face-to-face intro astronomy course. Think of it as an “astronomy for poets” course, as there’s very little math, and it’s an overview course. Below is the first online lecture for it, or if the embedding doesn’t work well for you, here’s the direct link.

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Have I mentioned I love order of magnitude estimates? How Fermi could estimate things!Like the well-known Olympic ten rings,And the one-hundred states,And weeks with ten dates,And birds that all fly with one… wings. –David Morin, Harvard University There’s plenty more physics limericks on Dr. Morin’s webpage or in his physics textbook.

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When I teach the metric system, I try to help my students get a feel for metric units so they can do what I call a “sanity check” on every problem (“Does your answer make sense?”), but many still do better converting to Imperial units first. I think from now on I’ll show them this graphic.

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Look for Mercury tonight in the West after sunset. Jupiter will appear moderately bright and very close to the horizon. Venus will be brighter and higher in the sky to the South-West. And Mercury will be fainter near Jupiter, for about an hour after sunset. Make sure to find a low western horizon, or you won’t see this at all. I have yet to spot Mercury myself in the night sky, so I’m really hoping it stays clear tonight!

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Welcome to the International Year of Astronomy, 2009!

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