Pluto is a dwarf planet, but not because it’s small

Posted on October 5, 2016September 8, 2022

As promised, I'm putting my PhD to use and delving into an aspect of my life that has been neglected for far too long: the science geek in me. I now have my own show on KLRNRadio: Conversations in Science. (Don't ask how that happened. I'm still trying to figure that one out.)

Conversations in Science airs the first Monday of every month at 7pm EST (currently equates to the first Tuesday of every month at 12noon for those in New Zealand, but this NZ time will change come summer — daylight savings). For those who miss it, that's okay. It's downloadable. Links to the episodes are here on my site, and the show is now on iTunes.

UPDATED TO ADD: The latest episode has now aired. Just a quick warning: we were plagued with a heavy storm during the recording and my internet was playing silly-buggers. It did have a negative effect on the recording, but we didn't have time to re-record prior to the episode going live. (Sorry, guys.)

The Perfect Gift for a Writer: A Dictionary

Posted on September 21, 2016January 11, 2020

As the title suggests, I recently received the perfect gift that any writer could get: a dictionary. But this was not just any dictionary. This was a copy of The Compact Oxford English Dictionary.

Big whoop, I hear some of you say. Well, actually, it is.

The Oxford English Dictionary (2nd Edition) is a 20-volume beast. No joke. Published in 1989, it clocked in at 21,728 pages. And that doesn’t include all the supplement materials that have since been added. The 3rd Edition is still in production and is not expected to be published until 2037. I hate to think how big the Oxford English Dictionary will be by then.Read More→

9/11: A view of life…

Posted on September 14, 2016September 8, 2022

On the weekend just past, it was the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 disaster. Every year, for the past 15 years, I have been silent about my memories of that day, fearful that someone would get offended.

The events of that day had a global impact. So many things changed in an instant. The world was in chaos. No one knew what was going on and planes around the world were being grounded.Read More→

New Radio Show and Heavy Water

Posted on September 7, 2016September 8, 2022

You never know what opportunities crop up when you put yourself out there. My recent appearances on various shows with KLRNRadio have been no different.

I now have my own show on KLRNRadio: Conversations in Science. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how that happened. Rick Robinson and Jessie Sanders have been trying to convince me for some time, but I was resistant. Producing my own radio show? That was the last thing I wanted to be doing. But apparently, I have the knack of explaining science in a way that everyone can understand. Maybe that's why they kept calling me for help on the science stuff.