string theory!

I often think that if I had a chance at a second life, I would be a theoretical physicist. I don't mean that I wish I was a theoretical physicist, and I don't think I have the mind for it (I have a hard time reading a street map, especially when I am on the street. I'm not exaggerating, either. It's incredibly frustrating!)--I guess I should say I don't have mind to figure out spacial properties, but I do have the mind to figure out puzzles/logic, which is why I can somewhat understand string theory, especially when the spacial models are provided. I think string theory is fascinating (yes, watching videos like this is something I consider to be very fun), and Brian Greene does a good job of explaining the basics in the clip below. This is what I was referring to the other day, when I said that the process of finding an answer is sometimes more exciting than the answer itself. Enjoy:

Poems on Paint, #2

As promised, here is "Starlife" by Timothy Muskat:

click photo to enlarge
from Poetry East, Chicago: DePaul University, 1997

Try to imagine something a million times larger than the sun....

....now multiply that by a thousand. That's how big the largest star every discovered is - one billion times larger than our sun. But also remember that we're talking about our sun here, which is one hundred times the size of the earth - and think about how big the earth is compared to the size of you. Thinking about this makes my brain stretch, and I am addicted to that feeling. Click here to watch a cool video that illustrates all of this.

String Theory (and a poem)

I've overdosed on coffee which is preventing me from focusing, when really, the coffee was supposed to do the opposite. Darn. But anyway, I just watched this video in which physicist Brian Greene "explains how extra dimensions may solve several problems in physics, and gives his stance on the possibility of a 'multi-verse'." This kind of thing fascinates me, and maybe that's why I am alone so often. I enjoy being alone, though, so that's also probably why I'm alone so often. And, I'm a writer, and writing is something that happens when I am alone. So there are many reasons, I suppose, but gosh, I just love thinking about these big questions and exploring the possible answers.

If you made it through the video, what do you think? I think it's incredibly exciting, and string theory is something I will definitely explore further. To not explore it further would be a shame, like when roses don't bloom--the lack of focus has led me to think of a Charles Bukowski poem I recently read:

Finish

We are like roses that have never bothered to
bloom when we should have bloomed and
it is as if
the sun has become disgusted with
waiting