20 November 2009

Irony

It's a good time to be a physicist. CERN started circulating particle beams today at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and the date acquired from the particle collisions will be phenomenal.

Unfortunately, I'm not yet a physicist.

I notice, though, since I full-on decided to pursue this course of education, all of a sudden, physics are everywhere. I wonder if this is some sort of cosmic message, or just the Yellow Volkswagen Phenomenon. You know... when you buy a yellow Volkswagen, suddenly you start seeing them everywhere. It's not that everyone else bought one as soon as you did, just that you're more aware now.

Of course, I'm aware of what's going on with the LHC at CERN because of my interest in physics. Other things, though... I started reading the His Dark Materials trilogy last week. As I was listening to them discuss "dust" and their theories of multiple universes, I couldn't help but think how much it sounded like the ideas about quantum physics I'd been reading lately. And, as the story progressed, I found physics was exactly what they were discussing. Next week's episode of House, MD (my biggest guilty TV pleasure, which I reward myself with while at the gym) involves a physicist. Those things are less an awareness and more a coincidence.

Or maybe it's the Universe's way of telling me that I'm on the right path here, that this is where I'm supposed to be and what I'm supposed to be doing right now. I find it ridiculously ironic that, as I'm preparing to become a scientist, I'm also waxing philosophical about everyday occurrences.

But that's part of what I love so much about quantum physics, astrophysics, and cosmology. At this point, it has all the intellectual appeal of modern science and the spiritual appeal of theology. I can get my preternatural fix without resorting to the supernatural.

I never have been happy with a boring life.

1 comment:

  1. I see you like astronomy

    Followed your link from phil plait's page.
    Thought i'd share a neat place, not mine though.

    http://niteskygirl.blogspot.com/

    her astronomy news page is rockin

    http://niteskynews.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete