Why I Love Neutrinos

Did you know that as you read this, billions upon billions of tiny little particles are zipping right through your body? These little particles zip around at close to the speed of light, have very little rest mass, and rarely, if ever, interact with normal matter. They are so small that they can pass right through the empty space that surrounds any given atom. They originate from the sun, travel here, and continue, as if the were never there. Where do they go? Perhaps on grand adventures. They can travel for long distances. If we were traveling that fast, 50 light years would seemingly appear to be only one light year. They can live for a long time. If we were traveling that fast, a journey of 50 light years would only age us one year. They are so tiny that if they were ever to interact with our bodies as they zip through, we would never be able to feel it. How do we know they are there? We've measured them. Far below the sit huge tanks of cleaning fluid. Occasionally, one of these tiny little guys hits an atom, and it changes the chemical composition of the fluid slightly and produces a flash of light . We can detect about eight per month, though in theory it's supposed to be three times that amount. What are these little, enigmatic particles? They are neutrinos. They are my favorite particle of all time. Just ask me why, and I'll tell you: "What other particle originates in the sun, travels through your body, and exits through the as if it were never there?" This is why I love neutrinos. Of course, that fact that I'm a Physics major who plans on becoming an astronomer may have NOTHING to do with it...but you know, it could be the fact that they are dang cool, too.

You might be a physicist if...

You refer to your weight as "rest mass"
You name things after elementary particles
You regularly make cracks about things reaching relatavisitc speeds
You rip on movies that disobey or abuse the laws of physics
You didn't even realize there WAS a Humanities building, much less ever been there...
You can't figure out why anyone would consider social sciences a worthwhile endeavor
Your dog's name is "Dog" and your cat's name is "Cat"
You refer to the brake on your car as the "slower-downer"
Symmetry is an obessession, not just a passion
You give everything you own pointless acronyms
You love to strip electrons off stairs and subsequently ground them
You see no difference between an orgasm and an intense dicussion of string theory
You think M-theory is BETTER than sex
You can see the fourth spatial dimension
You think "drag" is air friction
You can conduct highly precise experiments and calculate complex differential equations yet still have difficulty matching your clothes
You can think of at least three quantities for any given symbol

...Umm, yeah, I'm terrible at these things, but maybe I'll think of more.

Ten Reasons Why I love the Japanese (though my soul belongs to Russia):
10. Akira is possibly one of the finest movies ever made.
9. Spike Spiegal makes me sweat
8. Isao Tomita: he does the best rendition of Mussorgsky ever! I would call him, spacey new-age [here is his this is he (perhaps) this is his planet and, uhhh...Full Moon! ]
7. Kikaider: they can make an animated robot look attractive--wow, now THAT is skill
6. Iron Chef: love the yellow pepper at the beginning, the live orchestra and the way they always begin with, "If memory serves me right..."
5. One of my favorite Simpsons episodes: "I know nothing...I am product of American education system..."
4. Japanese game shows: chopsticks, ping-pong balls, 'nuff said
3. Samurai Jack: good story, animation, plus, he's not bad-looking
2. Inu Yasha: see #3, plus, it's addicting
1. Yatta! Yatta! Yatta!: Anyone got a fig leaf? Oh! Here comes Lovey-Dovey with one now (see my list of websites)

Good Websites I Know and Love...has moved to a guide entry! It was too unwieldy to be included in my intro, now it has room to roam and be free! Check it out, and add suggestions, please!

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