Electrons

I was walking around Cambridge this evening, and notices I sleep 200 feet away from the old Cavendish Laboratory. So far, 28 Cavendish researchers have won the Nobel prize. Not only that, but the electron (the freakin' electron, the most important fundamental particle to a chemist) was discovered by J. J. Thomson 100 feet from my room. I was speechless. I stood there for a minute, reflected, and continued on my walk. A few feet later, there was a plaque honoring James Clerk Maxwell, another professor here (perhaps you have heard of him?).

The people that have worked at this University are amazing. I cannot fathom what has happened in this town - something we miss out on in our young nation. Just something to reflect on.

Melida visits me

Melida came to visit me in Cambridge today. Her showing up was a nice treat. I was in lab, and had been since 8 this morning (on a Saturday, how horrible). She had to wait until we finished our experiments before we went out (she yelled at me the whole time). I am looking forward to her company the next week - I have a lot of work left to do.

Chemistry in 1000 square feet

I toured the Science Museum in London today, and was thoroughly disappointed. I felt like the American-Indian in that commercial that shed a tear when he saw the land being littered with trash. Britain has arguably the best tradition in the sciences. The greatest scientist to ever live (Sir Isaac Newton) is British, and my personal favorite Michael Faraday is too. The Royal Society is one of the oldest scientific societies, and it was started in London. So, what is the problem?

I now know my problem with the exhibit was a matter of expectation. When I heard “Science Museum” I was thinking of great exhibits that teach the public about science and technology (like the St. Louis Science Center). Instead, I found a “Science Museum” – which fits this definition:

A depository for collecting and displaying objects having scientific or historical or artistic value.

I think this museum should aspire to be more than that. The main goal should be to educate the public about science, her role in everyday life, and to get kids interested in her. If I were a kid, and visited this science museum, I would think scientists were super-lame (we really are, but kids don’t have to know that). Let me give you a few examples. A display case with 50 slide rules is not necessary, and what is a Spiro-graph doing in a display case? (Did you know there is a direct correlation between the decline in Spiro-graph, and the rise in gang violence?). At least put some crap out for the kids to play with. The 10 scanning electron microscopes probably aren’t necessary either (although they did have a replica of the first one, which had a magnification of 17X).

On to the chemistry exhibit – I was looking forward to this. It was tucked in a corner on the second floor. It had scientific instruments dating from the last 200 years. For an analytical chemist, it felt great! It even mentioned us by name in the signage on the display case. They had various balances, diffractometers, refractometers, a magnet from an NMR, an FT-IR, etc (though they called the instruments here machines, I was willing to forgive this). What I cannot forgive is what the display fails to do – show the public what chemistry is. It is no wonder chemistry departments are closing in the UK! They also had a giant model of Hemoglobin. Although understanding the structure of this molecule is very important, a giant ball-and-stick model (a crappy looking one, might I add) does not convey this point. Chemistry is more than a few dusty instruments – she is a living science, and continues to make meaningful improvements in our lives. She deserves more than the Science Museum has given her.

In general, the museum’s collection was impressive, but I don’t think it is serving the public. More interactive (and sexy) exhibits are needed. Science has to compete with a lot for kids’ hearts and minds – Halo 2 and Pokemon are hard to beat. Simply displaying scientific artifacts is not enough. The museum should strive to teach the principles on which the world works.

Japan is Awesome

And by awesome, I mean totally sweet. At the British Museum, I visited the Japanese exhibit. The entire Japanese exhibit consisted of…yep, swords and other various stabbing weapons dating from the last millennia. An entire room at the museum on Japan, and all they had were swords and one suit of armor (which had a mustache on it – very cool).

Don’t get me wrong, I love swords (and ninjas). I practically flipped out right there! These weapons dated from the 1100s to the modern day. They were all in excellent condition, and usually had the mounting and scabbard accompanying them. They looked great, but it made me mad to see all of these swords in a case.

I am fascinated by Japan, and would love to visit someday. This exhibit taught me I should bring along a sword when I go!

Head On

I saw the German film “Head On” last weekend. It was pretty good. It was about these two Turks in Germany, who both tried to commit suicide for different reasons. They meet at the hospital, and decide to get married. Their marriage is just a farce, so the Turkish babe can sleep with all the guys she wants, and her family won’t know because she’s married. They end up “saving” each other, but it all turns tragic. It was a good film done in the tradition of a Greek tragedy (5 acts, with the third being the climax). The film examined cultural challenges faced by second-generation immigrants, love, and the human condition.

Enough about the movie, I was shocked at the level of commercialism in the European theatre – it was atrocious! There was about 5 minutes of commercials before the movie; I expected no commercials in this utopia called “Europe.” First Gene Kelly (who is dead) was “singin’ in the rain” to some crappy techno music, while dancing like a robot (via CGI). It turns out The Gaurdian beat me to this story. Why was this great piece of American film desicrated? So Gene Kelly could show me the new VW Golf (which I am sure he has never driven). Then VW told me they were “proud sponsors of independent cinemas.” I though, that was nice – 2 seconds later I learned the cinema I was in operates more than 1000 theatres in Europe. My definition of “independent” must be different than the Queen’s.