links for 2009-07-02 : Uncertain Principles

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"Uncertain Principles" features the miscellaneous ramblings of a physicist at a small liberal arts college. Physics, politics, pop culture, and occasional conversations with his dog.

You've read the blog, now try the book: How to Teach Physics to Your Dog will be published December 22nd by Scribner.

"Prof. Orzel gives the impression of an everyday guy who just happens to have a vast but hidden knowledge of physics." (anonymous student evaluation comment)

Emmy is a German Shepherd mix, and the Queen of Niskayuna. She likes treats, walks, chasing bunnies, and quantum physics.

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links for 2009-07-02

Category: Links Dump
Posted on: July 2, 2009 5:01 AM, by Chad Orzel

Newton, P.I. | Cosmic Variance | Discover Magazine

"Happily, Tom Levenson (of The Inverse Square, and one of our honored guest bloggers) has provided us with a fascinating peek into a telling episode in Newton’s later life — his career as a criminal investigator. Not really “P.I.”, as Newton was acting in his capacity as a government official, the Warden of the Mint. The story is closer to something from Law and Order or CSI — remarkably close, in fact. "

(tags: history physics science books levenson blogs cosmic-variance)
Confessions of a Community College Dean: Strong Basis in Confusion

"As a hiring manager, I literally don't know what to do with [the Ricci decision]. I'm compelled by law to ferret out disparate impact, but forbidden by law from doing anything about it. Pre-emptive compliance with disparate impact will fail to meet the "strong basis" standard, since I can't prove I'd lose a lawsuit until I actually lost it. (As Kennedy put it, "[f]ear of litigation alone cannot justify an employer's reliance on race to the detriment of individuals who passed the examinations and qualified for promotions." (p.33) I can't just be afraid of losing; I have to actually lose.) "

(tags: academia law jobs diversity race society culture blogs dean-dad)
News: Supreme Court Punts - Inside Higher Ed

"[L]egal experts note that one category of case the justices tend to take is a dispute in which the federal appeals courts are coming up with different approaches to the same issue. And for that reason, many advocates for Christian students and advocates for gay students had expected that the Supreme Court this week would agree to resolve a legal dispute involving the anti-bias policies of many public colleges and Christian student groups that want the right to ignore parts of those policies"

(tags: education academia law religion society culture)
There, I Fixed It.

"The cunning of the human mind when presented with only duct tape and chip clips is nothing short of amazing."

(tags: blogs pictures silly experiment)
Backreaction: Why are modern scientists so dull? And why that question is nonsense.

"First, the starting point of the whole article is unwarranted. Where is the evidence that something is wrong with modern science? How do you know that we have too few "revolutionary" scientists and too many "normal" scientists? This lacking basis, incidentally, is the same problem I have with Lee Smolin's call for more "risky" research. While I am sympathetic to the argument and personally tend to agree, it's not a scientific statement and anecdotes can't replace data. How do we know it's worse today than yesterday? Who determines whether we need more "revolutionary scientists?" Will somebody calculate a percentage? Who? Based on what? And wouldn't one expect that to depend on the field of research? And on the status of that field?"

(tags: science academia blogs backreaction)
I just won the Association of British Science Writers' Best Newcomer award! : Not Exactly Rocket Science

Congratulations to Ed Yong.

(tags: blogs science prizes journalism)

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Comments

[universities] compelled by law to ferret out disparate impact, but forbidden by law from doing anything about it.

Management is about process not product. 1) Everybody goes to college for free, 2) except for the objectively qualified who are rejected for not being diverse. An advocate makes virtue of failure. The worse the cure the better the treatment - and the more that is required.

I sailed away on that little boat to heaven
And by some chance found a bottle in my fist
And there I stood, Nicely passin' out the whisky
But the passengers were bound to resisist.
For the people all said beware,
You're on a heavenly trip.
People all said beware
Beware, you'll scuttle the ship!
And the Devil will drag you under
By the fancy tie 'round your wicked throat.
Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down
Sit down, you're rockin' the boat.

Nicely-Nicely Johnson (Stubby Kaye), Guys and Dolls

Posted by: Uncle Al | July 2, 2009 11:21 AM

Thanks for the link! :-)

Posted by: Bee | July 3, 2009 4:51 AM