Saturday, October 10, 2009

“Review: Cracking the Einstein Code by Fulvio Melia - New Scientist” plus 3 more

“Review: Cracking the Einstein Code by Fulvio Melia - New Scientist” plus 3 more

Review: Cracking the Einstein Code by Fulvio Melia - New Scientist

Posted: 10 Oct 2009 02:56 AM PDT

MANY biographies of Albert Einstein document the hurdles he faced as he struggled to develop his theory of gravity, known as general relativity, which Einstein finally published in 1916. What is often overlooked is that this was only the beginning. Just as knowing the rules of chess does not, by itself, allow you to win tournaments, having Einstein's field equations for general relativity does not immediately tell you what the gravitational field surrounding a real object is actually like.

Of particular concern was the gravitational field of a massive, rotating body - after all, nearly everything in the universe seems to rotate. It sounds deceptively simple, but as Fulvio Melia explains, it was actually a fiendishly complex problem, one that defied an answer for decades. New Zealand-born physicist Roy Kerr finally "cracked the Einstein code" in the early 1960s. Melia, himself a physicist, clearly interviewed Kerr extensively for this book, which is part history, part scientific biography.

The most intriguing application of Kerr's solution is in describing objects that are so massive and so dense that their gravitational field prevents even light from escaping. Einstein himself was sceptical that such "black holes" could exist in nature. Just as Kerr was developing his solution, however, the first compelling evidence for black holes was found. Today, black holes are thought to be commonplace, including the "supermassive" variety that lurk at the centre of most galaxies, and Kerr's solution has become a vital tool in astrophysics and cosmology.

Melia knows his physics and has found a compelling story. My only complaint is that he relays an urban myth at the start of his preface: that Galileo, shortly before his death, was offered a professorship at Harvard University. Historians insist that there is no evidence to support that notion.

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St. Francis Borgia - Catholic Online

Posted: 10 Oct 2009 12:05 AM PDT

Feastday: October 10

Francis was a young nobleman at the court of the King of Spain. He became a Duke when he was only thirty-three and lived a happy, peaceful life with his wife Eleanor and their eight children. But unlike so many other powerful nobles, Francis was a perfect Christian gentleman, a true man of God and his great joy was to receive Holy Communion often. This happy life ended when his beloved wife died. Francis did something that astonished all the nobles of Spain; he gave up his Dukedom to his son Charles and became a Jesuit priest. So many people came to his first Mass that they had to set up an altar outdoors, but his Superior tested him by treating him in exactly the opposite way he had been used to all his forty-one years of life. He who had once been a Duke had to help the cook, carrying wood for the fire and sweeping the kitchen. When he served food to the priests and brothers, he had to kneel down in front of them all and beg them to forgive him for being so clumsy! Still he never once complained or grumbled. The only time he became angry was when anyone treated him with respect as if he was still a Duke. Once a doctor who had to take care of a painful wound Francis had gotten said to him: "I am afraid, my lord, that I have to hurt your grace." The saint answered that he would not hurt him more than he was right then by calling him "my lord" and "your grace." It was not too long before the humble priest accomplished wonderful works for God's glory as he preached everywhere and advised many important people. He spread the Society of Jesus all over Spain and in Portugal. When he was made Superior General of the Jesuits, he sent missionaries all over the world. Under his guidance, the Jesuits grew to be a very great help to the Church in many lands.  Through all such success, St. Francis Borgia remained completely humble. His feast day is October 10.

Stephen Woolley  - Variety

Posted: 09 Oct 2009 07:33 PM PDT

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YOUR VIEW: Teach Cuffe's life, legacy in schools - South Coast Today

Posted: 09 Oct 2009 09:06 PM PDT

Most often my published thoughts are consumed with political events and all things partisan. On Saturday, Oct. 3, I could have either attended a training seminar held by the Association of Massachusetts Republican Town & City Committee Chairmen in Westboro, or the Republican National Committee's Northeast Leadership Conference in Newport, R.I. Instead, I had the great honor and profound pleasure of ignoring the politically partisan and spending my day attending the Paul Cuffe symposium at the New Bedford Whaling Museum in honor of the 250th anniversary of Captain Cuffe's birth.

I was one of approximately 200 attendees from across the area, and indeed the country, who packed the museum theater in order to hear the guest speakers on the subject of "Exploring Paul Cuffe: The Man and His Legacy." The symposium tackled such issues as Cuffe and his relationships with the black and white community, Cuffe's philanthropic and entrepreneurial ventures, his involvement with the African colony of Sierra Leone, and the contemporary relevance of Paul Cuffe and his rich legacy.

As I sat in the theater during a stormy Saturday morning and afternoon, I noticed something spectacular. There was a room packed with Cuffe enthusiasts of every color, gender, age, religion, and ideology. I met a few fellow conservative Republicans but I also talked with some liberal Democrats. In the theater were black, white and Native American, male and female, young and old.

Ultimately, there was simply a room of fellow Americans appreciating our often ignored and forgotten, yet rich and vital, history as embodied by a multicultural great man from the SouthCoast. The symposium was a multicultural affair of diverse individuals united for a common cause through the history and legacy of Paul Cuffe.

Earlier this year, in honor of Cuffe's great achievements, the municipalities of Dartmouth, Westport and New Bedford all declared days in honor of the captain. The state House of Representatives issued citations honoring Cuffe. Gov. Deval Patrick issued a proclamation declaring Jan. 17, 2009 to be Paul Cuffe Day in the commonwealth. Not to be outdone, Congressman Barney Frank inserted a speech into the Congressional Record in honor of Cuffe.

As a graduate student in December 2004, I published my 214-page master's thesis on Paul Cuffe under the direction of professor Julie Winch of UMass Boston. I was thrilled to see my old friend, as she was one of the guest speakers. It was an honor to meet Lamont Thomas and see George Salvador, both of whom wrote Cuffe biographies I studied during my research.

I do not consider myself an expert on Captain Cuffe, but rather a profound admirer who deeply appreciates the recent public remembrance of the great man. It was heartening to see so many other admirers united in appreciation of a great local man of national and global importance.

Having a distinguished group of historians, scholars, and Cuffe descendants assembled at the New Bedford Whaling Museum was a triumph for local history and the public memory of Paul Cuffe. The Paul Cuffe Symposium Committee members — Frank Barrows, Cindy Barber, Norman Barber, Lee Blake, Tony Connors, Carl Cruz, Janine da Silva, Jenny O'Neill, Laurie Robertson-Lorant, Betty Slade, David Sutton, Emily Sutton, and William Wyatt — have done SouthCoast residents and all history a great service by their hard work.

To local politicians, educators, and other public servants of either party or no partisan affiliation either way — I challenge you. I challenge you to encourage the study of Paul Cuffe as a part of our public school curriculum. I challenge you to name a public school building after Captain Cuffe. I challenge you to establish a "Cuffe Trail" akin to Boston's Freedom Trail.

I challenge you to better and more effectively promote our local and all-too-often unknown local history. I challenge you to challenge us — our understanding, our tolerance, and our embrace of what should be known but often is not.

I not only challenge you, but offer you my assistance. I wager that the 200 people in the whaling museum who gave up a Saturday to honor a gentleman who died 192 years ago will aid you as well in accepting the challenge of embracing the past in order to build a better future.

For anyone interested in my thesis, "Paul Cuffe: The Study of His Life and the Status of His Legacy in Old Dartmouth," you may download it for free and in its entirety from my research Web site at http://paulcuffe.home.comcast.net.
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