Caltech
pontiff | October 5, 2009Postdocs at Caltech's IQI. Now in the new Annenberg Center (named, of course, after Caltech's Ann of the Steele tower :) ):INSTITUTE FOR QUANTUM INFORMATION
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Postdoctoral Research Positions
The Institute for Quantum Information at the California Institute of Technology will have postdoctoral scholar positions available beginning in September 2010. Researchers interested in all aspects of quantum information science are invited to apply. The appointment is contingent upon completion of a Ph.D.
Please apply on-line at http://www.iqi.caltech.edu/postdoc_opening…
pontiff | July 2, 2009DARPA, you know the people who invented the internet ("100 geniuses connected by a travel agent"), has a new director: The Department of Defense (DoD) today announced the appointment of Regina E. Dugan as the 19th director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). DARPA is the principal agency within the DoD for research, development, and demonstration of concepts, devices, and systems that provide highly advanced military capabilities for the current and future combat force. In this role of developing high-risk, high-payoff projects, DARPA compliments and balances the…
pontiff | May 28, 2009Ditch day 2009 was May 27, 2009. A classic from the past. Our stack involved a multi-storied wooden puzzle and the strong chance we would be taped to a tree upside down.
pontiff | May 27, 2009As an alumnus of the California Institute of Technology (thats "Caltech" not "CalTech" peoples!) and a member of the Caltech alumni association, I get a quarterly copy of Engineering and Science (E&S). In this month's issue there is a letter from the editor concerning the future of the print version of Engineering and Science. It seems that, like much print media today, this esteemed publication's print edition may go the way of the dodo.
In particular editor Douglas Smith asks what the readers of his rag think of the decision to axe the print edition:Which brings me to the other hand…
pontiff | May 19, 2009A song we (Steve, Elwyn, and ??) wrote while at Caltech. I write it down here because last night I struggled with reconstructing all the verses.
The Frosh Arrived (sung to the tune of "Cat's in the Cradle")
the frosh arrived just the other day
they came to Tech in the usual way
but there was work to do, grades were at stake
staying here was a big mistake
they were flicking for I knew it as I watched I'd say
you're going to be like me, frosh
you know you're going to be like me
and the math's on the table and the chem's on the floor
ain't got sleep in the past twenty four
when you coming out s…
pontiff | April 17, 2009Catching up with places I've been.
Caltech.
Steve Chu to be Caltech's commencement speaker. Caltech has found an upgraded mascot. I once wore the old mascot uniform when we were playing Life Bible college. Nothing like signs saying "Darwin was right!" to inflame some sporting events. Who was the person who decided to send out an email to alumni for a survey where the link led to an MIT web address? That's a good way to get a Techer's suspicions up (even the Boston version of the Techer might catch that.)
Berkeley
Berkeley physics now webcasts their physics colloquium. They also scored a big…
pontiff | September 15, 2008Dum, dum, dum, DUM DUM
No, it's not the monolith from 2001, but instead Millikan library at Caltech which I'm visiting. If you're ever around Caltech on Halloween, be sure to check out the pumpkin drop where frozen pumpkins are dropped off this gigantic monolith. I thought I saw a blue spark...
Always a bit strange going back to the place where you spent seven plus years of your life. Especially when it's a place like Caltech, I suppose.
pontiff | July 29, 2008Someone at Caltech's PR office sure was having fun:
Caltech Astronomers Describe the Bar Scene at the Beginning of the Universe
PASADENA, Calif.--Bars abound in spiral galaxies today, but this was not always the case. A group of 16 astronomers, led by Kartik Sheth of NASA's Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology, has found that bars tripled in number over the past seven billion years, indicating that spiral galaxies evolve in shape.
Oh, I can tell you all about the bar scene near Caltech. Dive bar: The Colorado. Beer for graduate students: Lucky Baldwin's. Quantum…
pontiff | March 30, 2008 Last night I got a chance to go see Quantum Hoops which is playing at the Landmark Metro in Seattle for a limited time. For those who haven't heard of this movie, "Quantum Hoops" is a documentary about the Caltech basketball team, which currently owns the longest losing streak without a conference win in NCAA basketball (22 years.) The movie is narrated by David Duchovny, and, with the exception of an opening "old time cinema" introduction to Caltech, is actually quite enjoyable. Of course I'm biased. Not only did I go to Caltech as an undergrad (and returned as a postdoc) and thus knew…
pontiff | January 23, 2008Fortune has put out its list of the top 100 companies to work for. The Google Monster is number one. Washington state does pretty good, as it is in a tie for fourth in the total number of companies on the list with headquarters in the state. (Per capita it comes in third, losing to Delaware and D.C.)
Looking through their article on "10 fascinating Googlers" I found Wei-Hwa Huang. Hey, he was in my class at Caltech! Indeed Wei-Hwa was responsible for one of my favorite stories about the many-worlds interpretation of quantum theory. Huh?
Wei-Hwa, you see, is a world class puzzle…
pontiff | January 15, 2008Quantum Hoops, a movie about the Caltech basketball team, will be playing in Berkeley at the Landmark Shattuck Cinemas. Now if only we could get it up here in the Pacific Northwet.