Don’t be such a scientist February 3, 2010
Posted by sarah in: science . Add a commentI just finished reading a book called Don’t Be Such a Scientist: Talking Substance in an Age of Style
For all his good advice, I have to say Olson picked a rather unfortunate title. It’s impossible to buy this book as a gift for someone without seeming, well, rude. Being a scientist, obviously, I did just that for the scientist I share my life with. He wasn’t too impressed (but did finish the book, then placed it on my side of the bed).
Review: The Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders November 12, 2009
Posted by sarah in: astronomy, reviews, science . Add a comment
Once upon a time in a country far away I was a young girl who loved looking at the stars. I didn’t know any other keen stargazers and the internet was still in its infancy, so I relied on books to help me work out what I was looking at.
These days, sadly, stargazing doesn’t feature very heavily in my life anymore given my light polluted dwellings but my earliest experiences of looking through telescopes did inspire me to get into helping design them myself, as a profession. So I was keen to have a read of one of O’Reilly’s publications, The Illustrated Guide to Astronomical Wonders, by Robert and Barbara Thompson, a copy of which found its way to my desk (h/t to Alasdair).
Watch Men save the planet March 17, 2009
Posted by sarah in: random, women . 4commentsI saw the film Watchmen last week, the adaption of a classic in the graphic novel genre with the same title by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. It’s pretty enjoyable, especially if you’re in the mood for some great visual effects and gore. Lots of blood and bone-crunching. I’ve never been a big comic or graphic novel fan but I decided to read the book and in fact it’s really good! The drawings are beautiful and the writing is very imaginative with lots of depth. So if you want to know what the hype is all about but aren’t a fan of severed limbs and arteries then I recommend the book. I do want to say something about the female characters though.
Wednesday Food for Thought January 14, 2009
Posted by sarah in: women . Add a commentI’m currently reading The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf. I have many thoughts about this book, some of them good and others not.
At one point she cites German philospher Friedrich Engels, who claimed that:
“When a woman displays scientific interest, then there is something out of order in her sexuality”.*
I’m going to sit here, at my desk, in a world-renowned astronomy department and be a little bit thankful.
*I’m not sure of the exact source of the quote. Wolf refrences it as cited in Ann Oakley, Housewife: High value/Low cost (London, Penguim Books, 1987), pp. 46-47
An Early Universe 101 December 23, 2008
Posted by sarah in: science . Add a commentI’ve been learning a bit recently about dark matter, dark energy and the history of the Universe, which are all fascinating. Mark over on Cosmic Variance has writted this interesting post on preheating in the early Universe. This proposed phenomenon has important consequences for the formation theory of dark matter, amongst other things.
While I’m on the topic, one of the best books I read this year was The Inflationary Universe by Alan Guth. I admit I don’t read as many popular science books as I should, and I finish even fewer – but this one is a cracker. Guth builds an excellent story about how he arrived at the theory, in collaboration and in conflict with other scientists around the world. It’s a fascinating account of a great scientific discovery, told in such an anecdotal style that it’s super easy to read. It’s completely rekindled my interest in fundamental physics and cosmology, which explains some recent posts (here, or here) on the topic 
