| Housing Crisis |
[May. 15th, 2008|10:52 am] |
The link below is to an extremely informative hour-long look at the housing crisis, from the perspective of the people who caused it! All the way from the borrowers who took out the loans, to the brokers who made them, to the investors and middlemen who bought and re-sold the mortgage-backed securities up the chain:
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=355
One conclusion I can draw from this, in combination with other recent discussions and thoughts (see previous entry), is that the major ultimate cause of social problems is not money itself, not a given economic or political system (though these may facilitate the problems to various degrees) but is subconscious selfishness and greed. Pure and simple.
I see greed more as a disease than a "sin". It's not something most people realize they are doing, or would want to continue if they did realize it. But its subtle pull causes us humans to make poor decisions that we can justify to our fundamentally good consciences. And the consequences, when conditions are right, can be enormous. Maybe that is what some people mean by sin, but I don't think it's what most people think of. |
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| Faith |
[Feb. 22nd, 2008|10:52 am] |
A friend recently made a post that touched on one thing I've found to be a large obstacle in uniting religion and science (a topic a I care a lot about): that most people on both sides have too simplistic a conception of faith.
A quote from my friend's post was: I don't think I'll ever be capable of simply relying on "faith" and suspending my scientific and rational thinking, which backed up by about a quarter century of education.
My response:
It took me a long time to realize that there is no need whatsoever to suspend scientific and rational thinking in order to make use of faith. In a literal way (the simpler of the ways that science and faith overlap), scientists have "faith" in their senses and in human logic itself. Philosophers might argue that our logic could be incomplete at best and deceptive at worst, though I don't actually think this is true, personally.
More deeply, despite what many religious practitioners preach, spiritual "faith" is NOT supposed to be unquestioning, literal belief in anything. Faith is a sense of comfort that comes from realizing the limitations of your ability to control the universe around you, and realizing that is OKAY. I came to this type of faith mostly BECAUSE OF science, though I was inspired to look for it by various religious philosophies.
Example: in reading The User Illusion and learning other things about neuroscience, I saw how experiments seem to show that what we actually consciously have control of, even within our own bodies and our own actions, is vastly less than we think. That was profoundly scary at first, but I also saw that it was very true. It came to be a comfort once I realized it didn't mean we should just give up and stop caring. We have this illusion of conscious control because that itself is what allows our species (and perhaps certain others) to thrive.
Another example: in thinking about determinism versus free will, especially while studying quantum mechanics and complexity, I realized that that free will, at least as we imagine it, is physically impossible or very limited at best. I think it's likely there is only one possible future, inaccessible to our imaginations due to our sequential perception of time and the fact that the universe is computationally irreducible, and cannot fit within our brains. This is a dangerous idea, though, because it could be misconstrued to justify all sorts of destructive actions, by people who view humankind as separate from the rest of the universe. It's obvious that our actions do impact the future, and that what we do matters. It may just be that there's only one way it will play out in the end. We still have to strive as hard as we can for what we want to see happen, but at the same time accept that it may or may not work out.
I think faith is pretty well summed up by a very famous prayer. Below is the original version by Reinhold Niebuhr.
God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things that should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. |
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| Tough Questions |
[Nov. 30th, 2007|08:31 pm] |
A friend (manganese) emailed me this great question today that revealed a lot about how difficult it is to really understand the science of environmentalism and energy. Since it is something I have thought a lot about and considered doing as a career at times, I got into the response and figured it might be worthy of posting here.
> Perhaps you can solve this eco-math problem...it
> presented itself as
> I was making pasta.
> I don't know the answer, although I suspect
> (counterintuitively?)
> that it might be a., since the water heater seems
> like a smaller
> total energy investment as opposed to electric
> energy channeled
> through a power plant.
>
> Given that I have an electric stove and a natural
> gas-powered water
> heater, is it more globally energy efficient to:
>
> a. Fill a pot with as-hot-as-possible water from the
> tap, then heat
> it to boiling on the stove (for a shorter period of
> time)
>
> or
>
> b. Fill a pot with cold water from the tap, then
> heat it on the stove
> (longer on the stove, but no water heater
> involvement)?
>
> Your opinions, please!
>
>
That's a very astute question! I don't know the
answer for sure, because there are a lot of factors
involved and the calculation would take a lot of
research and consideration, and even then would be
only an estimate.
For example, one factor that most people might not
think of is that you sit there waiting for the tap
water to get hot for a minute or so, because the last
time you used the hot water a bunch of it got left in
the pipes between the heater and your faucet. That
water cools down over time, and has to be flushed out
if you use the hot water again much later. Basically,
it's wasted energy.
A bigger question within your question is: What makes
something, overall, "more globally energy efficient"?
To fully get at that, you'd have to consider the
carbon output and other costs of making and
transporting the natural gas for the water heater,
versus similar considerations for the source of your
electricity. Are the pollutants even quantifiable in
a way that could be compared to the other factors?
How about impacts on the local environment? Flora and
fauna? I can't even imagine trying to weigh that in.
It goes on from there... Very fascinating and
important stuff, but not easy! The entire world is
connected, and everything effects everything else.
It's beautiful and amazing, but nearly impossible to
really analyze in full, once you get to complex
questions.
So I don't know. I would guess because of the wasted
energy factor I mentioned above with hot tap water,
that option B would actually be better. |
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| Inbox |
[Nov. 30th, 2007|01:40 pm] |
Am I the only person who actually uses my email inbox as just that—an In Box? Everyone I've talked to or observed in regards to this pretty much just lets every email that they haven't deleted sit in the inbox until the thing is full. Some people delete messages they'll probably never need again, others don't bother. Most of them seem to have between 50 and 1500 messages in their inbox.
My inbox is for things that have yet to be taken care of. If I get more than 12 or 13 messages in there at a time (and I probably receive about 10 per day that aren't junk) then I start to feel like I'm behind on life. To whittle it down to a more manageable number, I finally have to take care of the emails that are sitting there.
What does the rest of the world do to keep track? Do they even bother? |
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| The Mind is a Strange Thing |
[Nov. 20th, 2007|01:10 pm] |
The other day I was in Philadelphia, training some more MCAT physics teachers, when I stopped to fill up the car with gas. I swiped my debit card, but instead of being asked for my PIN number, I was asked for my ZIP code (this may have something to do with the fact that my bank has banned most charges to its debit cards coming from Pennsylvania or New Jersey, due to high rates of fraud, as I learned the hard way last time I came to Philly).
Anyway, the point is that when I went to punch in my ZIP code—which I write almost daily on medical school application forms, envelope return address labels, or some other document—I suddenly couldn't think of what it was! I don't know whether I was thrown off by having to punch it in on a keypad rather than write it by hand or type it on a computer keyboard, or whether my mind needed to run through the full address before the ZIP would flow out, or what. But for a good 20 seconds I stood there and thought about it. It contained the digits 0, 3, 5, and 1, but what about the last digit? I felt like those digits should come in that order, but I didn't know whether it was the 0 or the 1 that was repeated, and where the repeated digit came in the sequence.
Finally I guessed something like 03510, but I was wrong. My astonishment was turning to frustration by this point, and the pump was beeping "see attendant". While I waited for the pump to reset, I tried to reason my way to the number. I knew it was the same as my old ZIP in Greenfield, except the new one had a 5 in place of one of the 0s. That old ZIP code ended in a 1 and was... 03001, no... 03101, no. I couldn't remember that one either! I then remembered that western Massachusetts ZIP codes, where I have lived for 8 years now, all start with 01, not 03. 03 is New Hampshire, where I lived for the first 17+ years of my life. Aha. So.. 01... 01351!
I'm not sure how much this was aggravated by lack of sleep over the last months of taking care of the twins, but I'm pretty sure that's not the whole explanation. I have heard of and even experienced other minor instances of the brain not recalling very basic knowledge when asked out of context. For example, how long does it take you to figure out how to verbally spell a difficult word, compared to the time it takes to type it? The process of turning a thought into words, turning those words into letters, then moving your fingers to hit the keys that correspond to those letters occurs VERY quickly, but it's a complex process, so the brain almost entirely cuts out the consciousness once you get good enough at it. Apparently, recalling a ZIP code is just as automatic and unconscious for me, and when my brain wasn't triggered to automatically recite it, my consciousness couldn't find where it was filed. |
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| Big News |
[Sep. 15th, 2007|10:10 pm] |
Jonah Daniel Libby
Born: 9/14/07 at 8:17am
4 lbs 7.7 oz.
Owen Winslow Libby
Born: 9/14/07 at 8:18am
3 lbs 15.4 oz.
Both are having more respiratory trouble than expected at their gestational age (35 weeks), and they kept going downhill until early this afternoon. They're stable now; Owen stabilized just before they ran out of things they could do before sending him to Boston. We're hoping they continue this way for a few days while their respiratory systems mature, and then to ease them off of the assistance. I was there when they were delivered (cesarean section) and got to see them, talk to them, and touch them right away. We've been in every few hours to see them and talk them, and usually touch them. It's very difficult because they need to feel their parents' love, and we are pushing for as much contact as we can get, but the babies also need minimal stimulation, and can't be picked up out of their trays because of the ventilation machines. It's been really, really hard, but things may start getting better from here.
This stay in the hospital has been a very trying experience personally, and also a relevant experience in terms of medical career! I am trying to keep up to the minute with the boys' conditions, trying to learn and understand and advocate for what is best for them, while taking care of Liz as she recovers from surgery. She's recovering very well, and quickly, which is the best news I have to relay. Even so, it's a lot more work than most people imagine. She has a simple routine: eat, use the bathroom, visit the boys, rest and talk to family, pump milk (actually just colostrum for now, which is great for the babies because it is full of antibodies and other goodies and can be swabbed in their mouths; they can't eat milk yet until their health improves anyway). Each of those is a long process involving a lot of help, and as soon as we finish the list, we have to start the cycle again, modified for meals or health updates. I've been worried and tired out all day, but am feeling good at the moment. Family has been here all day both days, and has been an enormous help, practically and emotionally.
The other bit of news was that my MCAT scores came out today.
Physical Sciences: 15 (Perfect!)
Verbal Reasoning: 11 (2 points below my goal. Sort of disappointing.)
Biological Sciences: 12 (1 point below goal, but not bad considering.)
Writing Sample: S (One point shy of perfect. Very happy with this.)
So not as well as I'd hoped on the bio and verbal fronts, but better than I feared overall.
The physical sciences material felt more difficult than the official AAMC practice tests (only one of which I ever got a perfect on), but I had time to review the 1st half of my answers and fixed two careless mistakes. I was a little worried that I might have made some more in the 2nd half, but apparently not.
The verbal felt much more difficult on the real test than any of the official practice tests I'd taken, and even a little harder than the Princeton Review diags I took. The main issue was that I never had a problem with the time limit on the practice tests, and routinely scored 12 or 13. On the actual test, I looked at the clock after the first passage and realized I'd used twice as much time as I was supposed to. I tried to go quickly through the next passage, but still took the a bit more than the usual amount of time. I had to really rush the rest of them, especially the last one; I clicked the last answer at literally the last second. I remember feeling very shaken after that section as I went to Stop and Shop during the break to get some water.
I only practiced the essays twice, but I was pretty sure that I rocked the actual ones. The score was about what I expected, so not much to say there.
I was shooting for a 13 on the bio, but only reached that on the final practice test. Most of my practice scores were in the 8-10 range, so I am pretty content with a 12. It's actually very good, considering I knew almost nothing about this section (it tests biology and organic chemistry) 7 months before the test. |
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| Dusting off the old website |
[Jun. 9th, 2007|09:36 pm] |
I went on a hiking trip last week, and put together a narration and photo collection from the trip at:
http://mattlibby.net/photos/franconia_notch/
This weekend I'm back in Philadelphia for work again (last trip I got a couple nice photos: see my flickr.com page), but nothing good to photograph on this trip yet. |
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| The Work of Loki |
[May. 24th, 2007|01:04 pm] |
I was strangely and prankishly reminded of two important lessons a moment ago.
1) Don't eat junk food. Seriously.
2) Always--even in mundane moments--pay attention to what you're doing.
I picked up a bag of Cheetos at the cafe here on campus. I almost didn't, and knew I shouldn't, but I caved in at the last second. The bag had some Shrek ad on it. Maybe I wouldn't have bought them but for a subconscious second glance, but I'd just taken Liz to see the movie for her birthday on Monday. She likes the Shrek movies, and despite my reluctance to go, Shrek the Third was actually pretty funny in some parts. Plus, Shrek and princess Fiona are expecting a baby in the movie, and that provided an interesting parallel to our lives.
I munched the Cheetos all the way back to my office, noticing that they tasted a little off, somehow. Cheetos don't normally taste much like sustenance, but this bag was particularly flavorless and artificial. I sat down and kept eating them periodically while I focused on the slice of greasy cafeteria pizza I got as my main meal (another last-second, weak-willed decision).
When there were about two mouths-full left in the bag, I happened to actually read the label on the package: "Turn Thy Tongue Shrek Green!" it read in giant, medieval font with a huge, black arrow pointing to the greened tongue of Chester Cheetah.
Oh, no. I went and looked in the mirror. Yes, these bright orange snacks had managed to turn my tongue a deep green.
The second-to-last mouthful of Cheetos went into a dish, which I filled from the sink, watching the gnarled, fluorescent-orange sticks of corn slowly dye the water blue. Disgusting.
And then I ate the last of them. |
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| The Edge |
[Feb. 22nd, 2007|03:30 pm] |
Here's a Google Earth image of where I grew up: right on the edge between a small city and a large span of forest, continuing for miles and miles beyond what's seen on the image. I've always thought that was pretty essential in shaping who I've become.
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| Fuzzy Math |
[Feb. 10th, 2007|11:14 pm] |
This is pure sleepiness at work here.
Me: I've had this alarm clock and been using it consistently since I was in second grade; that's almost 20 years!
Liz: What, no way. You're 25, so 10 years ago you would have been five...
Me: Ha, ha! No, 10 years ago I was 15.
Liz: Oops, ha! So 20 years ago you would have been five, so that's kindergarten.
Me: But I was five at the beginning of high school...
Both: HA, HA!
Liz: I feel vindicated now.
Me: I was five at the beginning of first grade, is what I meant to say...
And the rest you can probably guess. Yikes, it's time for bed. |
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| Post-Industrial |
[Jan. 29th, 2007|10:03 pm] |
I added a new set to my collection at Flickr. It's probably my best set so far, though in addition to ever-increasing experience, this time I had a good deal of help from an incredible location... and a sweet new MacBook Pro running Aperture (RIP my old friend the cheapo Dell), so I could actually clean the shots up a bit! Here's two small samples as links (both link to the same set).
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| Exam |
[Jan. 19th, 2007|05:25 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  thankful | ] |
Re: last post.
Got a 96% on the final exam, and am in the course. |
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| Motivated |
[Jan. 16th, 2007|08:52 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  determined | ] |
I have learned a few very important things about myself lately:
---
1) I need a higher degree of structure than I'm accustomed to (though not total structure) to my time and my goals in order to do well and be happy.
2) I tend to thrive ONLY in situations where I am doing something very challenging.
Back in October I had a minor epiphany (perhaps false, I thought at the time, since it was so radical). The evening after attending the "white coat" ceremony of my brother-in-law, who graduated college when I did and is now in his first year of medical school, I decided that perhaps—after nearly four years of teaching MCAT physics—I actually would be interested in being a doctor. Perhaps VERY interested. I thought maybe it was actually the perfect match for my interests and goals, sitting right under my nose the whole time without me even seriously considering it.
Part of the reason I never considered it is that I had a false conception of what being a doctor would entail. I imagined either a specialist doing the same thing day in and day out, passing out pills in a health care system that is unfair and has serious problems (as opposed to, of course, my current career of teaching?); or, being a research scientist, which I could do in physics if I really wanted to. Neither sounded appealing. But Dan is going to a school of Osteopathy, and whether or not I end up going to one also, or to an Allopathic school, I was very inspired that night by hearing in detail about this more sane philosophy of medicine, whose practitioners are as qualified and fully certified as any MD to practice anywhere in the US, and in any field they choose. I was excited to hear people talk about treating the cause of illness rather than the symptom, treating and interacting with the actual human patient, looking analytically and scientifically to the root of health problems rather than throwing pills at every symptom. It changed my idea of what the career might entail.
And I'd already known that I was interested in leaning the sciences required to get there.
So I talked to some people, including the pre-med advisors at UMass, and set out a pretty impossible-looking schedule of getting the General Chemistry (I'm appalled that as a physics major I wasn't required to take these courses), Organic Chemistry, and Biology prerequisites done in time to take the MCAT this coming summer and apply to med schools in the fall.
The situation got more complicated because general chemistry (2 semesters) is a pre-requisite for organic chemistry (also two semesters); I had exactly none of these completed and one semester plus the summer (up to two consecutive courses) to take them in before the MCAT. My plan to get around this crunch involved using my physics experience, my dusty recollection of high school chemistry, and my free time during January break (when my jobs slow down) to learn all the general chemistry I would need to take orgo without the pre-requisite credits. I knew immediately that the bureaucracy that I'd have to overcome to make this happen was likely to be more challenging than the actual learning I would have to do (because the learning I enjoy, for the most part, and have control over!).
With this plan in front of me and unable to be postponed, I sprung into action, emailing and popping in on pre-med advisors and the organic chemistry professor. I bought the text book and solutions manual for the general chemistry courses and spent 4 - 6 hours a day reading them and doing all the practice problems to be fully prepared for organic chemistry. I hadn't been able to get myself motivated to move on grad school in three years, and yet here I was, super-charged and acting on it!
Hence the second self-realization that I stated above.
---
3) Nothing motivates me more than trying to accomplish something that someone has told me I can't do, but that I want to and know that I can do.
My first chat with the organic chem professor was initially negative. Effectively, the first response was "Sorry, course closed; you're not a student so you're at the bottom of the wait list, virtually hopeless". But I explained my situation (and unintentionally confused him in the process) and he agreed to put me on the list with a note about my circumstances and see what happened.
That was all still well and good as he sent me an email recently and asked for my ID to add me to the waiting list officially. But then, I got an email today saying simply:
It appears that you have not taken the general chemistry courses that are prerequisites for Organic Chemistry 261. You must complete both courses or their equivalent prior to taking organic.
That set me again on a relentless quest. I first wrote him back apologizing for being such an inconvenience but reminding him of our former talk, and explaining the situation in more depth, including the preparatory work I'd been doing. Then, impatient for some resolution, I walked into his office an hour later, to follow up.
He didn't remember our former conversation, and was initially obstinate. "You have to take 111 and 112." I pleaded my case a little, and he still didn't budge, but was at least listening to what I had to say. He asked me why he should treat me any differently from anyone else in a similar situation who comes to him asking him for the same treatment. I tried to explain that I was older, that another year off (the probable consequence of not getting into his course) was very significant for me, and that I really could and would do absolutely anything to prove that I was ready to and could handle the class.
In the end, he said he was going to consult with a colleague whose opinion he respected on these things, and see if perhaps I could take the final exam of one of the prerequisite courses (the other he was willing to wave) as an assessment of my readiness. He asked me to write him reminders every other day.
I wrote the first reminder this evening, to add some more to my case, and I have reproduced part of it below:
...now that I've had time to compose my mind, I realize that some of my
personal thoughts are actually very relevant to this.
Medical school is what makes my taking 261 this semester so urgent, but it's
actually not my only motivation for taking this course. I am also very excited
to learn the material, and excited for the challenge of a difficult yet
interesting course! Despite all the physics I've learned and taught (see
below), I was humbled when my brother-in-law (a first-year medical student now,
whom I helped in physics, and who was my initial inspiration to take this path)
could explain the biochemistry that was taking place while we were hiking, and
eating different foods. That sort of understanding of the world is what got me
interested in science as a child and young college student. His unintentionally
highlighting my limited knowledge of some of the most common phenomena we
experience made me realize that physics is just the beginning. I know orgo is
hard, but I also know that I CAN do well in it, and am excited to get the chance
to learn it and do just that. I have found the chemistry I've been studying
over the last month endlessly fascinating. Seeing how
the laws of quantum mechanics result in a description of chemical bonding,
intermolecular forces, properties of materials, and ultimately life and the
entire universe, is inherently very deeply interesting to me. Being a doctor is
what I will probably pursue as a career for many reasons; however, I don't see
the courses I have to take along the way to be hoops to jump through at all.
Far from it. I'm honestly as excited to learn these things along the
way as I am to become a physician.
So that you don't have to try to remember my whole situation when you talk to
your colleagues, let me reenumerate my arguments for you (note: some of these
things I didn't think to mention in your office, and if they're irrelevant feel
free to disregard them... I'm just trying to be as thorough as possible!)
Qualification:
-B.S. Physics 2003, UMass, 3.2 GPA, 3.4 in Physics Dept classes
-Have read through all chapters and done all odd-numbered practice questions in
"Chemistry and Chemical Reactivity" text--covered all of material on 111
syllabus and much of 112 so far. Paid extra-thorough attention to bonding and
structure (partly because I knew it was most important for orgo, and partly
because it happens to be the most inherently interesting aspect to me!... I'm
more a visual thinker than an equation solver.)
-Taught for the Physics dept here (summer session), and teach MCAT physics for
The Princeton Review
-Wrote/edited physics AND CHEMISTRY questions for teacher certification tests
for the American Board for The Certification of Teacher Excellence in
Washington, D.C.
-Am currently prepared to do any final, midterm, quiz, OWL, or anything else to
prove that I know the material covered in Chem 111 sufficiently to take 261.
(and will soon be similarly prepared in regards to Chem 112
Very sincerely,
--
Matt Libby
Department of Physics
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA 01003
Let's hope it works. If not, though, I know with full confidence that somehow I'll find a way to get around this obstacle, and I'll keep on moving. |
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| Philly photos |
[Jan. 8th, 2007|08:52 pm] |
I started using Flickr for my photos, and it's so convenient that I've pretty much stopped updating that section of my website. (It also has groups, which are an amazing feature. Today I joined two groups for photos about human impact on the environment.)
This weekend I was training MCAT teachers in Philadelphia. Check out the set (10 photos). |
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| New camera |
[Dec. 13th, 2006|07:07 pm] |
Updated my photos page with the best shots from the first week with my new camera!
A few months ago I thought that maybe I could consider moving up to a digital SLR, so I did a LOT of research. I'd heard Canon and Nikon were pretty much the only game in town for DSLR, but I couldn't find anything under about $1,300 that really fit what I was looking for. I'd almost given up when I came across the then-unreleased Pentax K10D. Its features were ideal, and there was (still is) a lot of hype among users of all brands. After about a month the K10D hit the streets. The images looked at least as good as those from the other competitors in its class, so I made up my mind that when it was time, this would be my camera.
But then I started to doubt whether I should get a new camera at all. I didn't want to spend $1,000 on a hobby that was still just budding, especially given that my financial situation is likely to change next year as Liz and I both try to change careers. I'd spent entirely too much time obsessing about this camera for the last month, reading over all the specs, lurking on forums reading heated debates about features, technology, and brands. Many long-time forum posters pointed out that most people so deeply engaged in these discussions had lost sight of the whole point: to take photos! And I realized that I'd become just like that. So I tried to convince myself to just forget about it, at least for a few months, and stop wasting my time thinking about the camera.
Then, last week, Liz got me a very nice—and, as it turned out, very early—Christmas present. After feeling guilty the entire first evening (while charging the battery and reading the manual), I took the camera for a walk a couple times and used it. The guilt turned into excitement and happiness! The results have been pleasing to say the least. |
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| spell check disasters |
[Dec. 8th, 2006|04:22 pm] |
When spell check features first became a commonplace thing, I remember musing with other middle school friends about what crazy suggestions it gave for people's names. Now most spell checking software knows a vast range of first and last names, and for those it doesn't recognize, it at least "knows" better than to suggest an outrageous replacement.
That is, except the spell checker in Thunderbird.
Whenever I hit send, spell check runs, and I have to be careful not to let it replace people's names as quoted in responses with some of these memorable suggestions:
Traschen --> Maraschino
Machta --> Yachters
dvonmalu --> nonmalignant
Miskimen --> Miskito
Blaylock --> Shylockian
Kreisler --> Misleader
Welborn --> stillborn |
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| Kansas |
[Oct. 29th, 2006|03:03 am] |
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Some new photos posted of my first real trip to the Midwest (went to visit Liz's paternal relatives... it was a great time, despite having fewer vegetarian options than Iceland, believe it or not). |
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| Grad school? |
[Oct. 3rd, 2006|07:16 am] |
Early last week, or maybe it was the week before, one of the physics professors at UMass (a well-respected, good one) was thinking about his lecture for that morning in my office/the prep room. He asked if any of us had ever heard the three-second rule in driver's ed. Apparently where he grew up they advise people to always stay three seconds behind the car in front of them. I sad that I hadn't heard of that, but in my driver's ed. I was told to stay one second behind for every 10 mph. For example: two seconds for 20 mph, three seconds for 30 mph, four for 40, etc.
He said, "No, that wouldn't work because that's linear with speed, but stopping distance is quadratic with speed."
And I agreed at first because I assumed he was right. But then I changed my mind, "No, wait a minute... the TIME you trail by may be linear with speed, but that means the distance actually would be quadratic."
He gave me a baffled look, and said "How could you get that? Distance is proportional to time."
I replied: "If you are 2 seconds behind at [changing the units for conventience] 20 m/s, that's a 20 m distance. But if you double that, to 4 seconds at 40 m/s, that's 160 m. Four times as far. So it's quadratic."
The prof paused and thought about it, and I went back to my computer. A minute or so later he said "No, no, that's not right because..." I forget his exact reasoning, but I do remember that his response completely misinterpreted what I was saying, and he implied that I had been advocating his "three-second rule" of constant time, which was what he had said in the first place, not me.
I'm not trying to say that I'm particularly smart for figuring this out. It's just a basic proportionality that I'm sure most people reading this understand too. I'm also not implying that this professor is stupid. I think the reason that this happened was that my status relative to his blocked him from considering that I might be right. My point here is, as the physics demo bitch I'm always wrong, unless I'm fixing the AV setup. How could I possibly know what I'm talking about? I have only a bachelor's degree and am not pursing a Ph.D, and I come from UMass none the less. How could I even think about comparing to their Ivy-league or UC or MIT Ph.D educations? Obviously I must be wrong when I contradict them in regard to physics.
Later I was setting up the AV equipment for one of the toughest professors I ever had in physics, when--out of nowhere--he said, "So this job surely doesn't represent your aspirations in life: when are you going back to grad school?" That opposite attitude from what I expected was pretty inspiring. The truth is, I've been meaning to for a long time but have had no idea which way to go. It's getting later and later, and I really need to just DO IT. |
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| Just the beginning |
[Sep. 8th, 2006|04:28 pm] |
Whew. It's been a while. I had an interesting summer working insanely hard while teaching physics 100, then going hiking in Maine, getting married, and spending 10 days in Iceland for a honeymoon!
The hiking photos have just been added to my website: mattlibby.net/photos
And the wedding pics are up at Bella Pictures. NOTE: you have to use the event code T0812LIBBY
Honeymoon photos (which are amazing) yet to come. |
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