Top 10 Star Mysteries

See also: Why I want to do what I want to do

In an effort to post something, anything... I have discovered an excellent article on star mysteries care of Space.com. I would absolutely LOVE to share with you now!

Top 10 Star Mysteries
By Jeanna Bryner

For many stargazers, the night sky might look like a backdrop of very similar twinkling lights. But actually the billions of stars that make up the universe are varied and full of tantalizing marvels. From stellar fireworks caused by supernova explosions to invisible black holes, astronomers are gradually figuring out how stars work and what makes each variety unique. Many mysteries remain, however.

Number 10: Diamonds In the Sky
When a star the mass of our Sun uses up its nuclear fuel, it expels most of its outer layers to leave just a very hot core called a white dwarf. Scientists had speculated that at the bottom of a white dwarf’s 31 mile (50 kilometer)-thick crust was crystallized carbon and oxygen, similar to a diamond. And in 2004, they found that a white dwarf near the constellation Centaurus, BPM 37093, was made of crystallized carbon weighing 5 million trillion trillion pounds. In diamond-speak, that’s 10 billion trillion trillion carats!

Number 9: Stellar Corpses
Magnetars are dense neutron stars—a type of stellar corpse—with magnetic fields billions of times stronger than any magnet on Earth. They release flashes of X-rays about every 10 seconds with an occasional gamma-ray burst. They weren’t classified as a distinct star type until 1998, nearly two decades after their telltale light shows were first spotted: In March 1979, nine spacecraft observed a release of radiation equaling the amount of energy the Sun lets off in a 1,000 years coming from the location of a supernova remnant called N49.

Number 8: Close Quarters
Stellar clusters are composed of many stars that develop at the same time. Some contain several dozen stars, and others many million stars. Some star clusters can be seen with the naked eye, such as the famous Pleiades cluster in the constellation Taurus. Stars form in the same region, but why some stay together forming clusters is a mystery.

Number 7: Stellar Rumbles
A starquake is thought to be the tearing apart of the surface of a neutron star, much like an earthquake here on Earth. In 1999 astronomers identified these bursts as the cause of gamma rays and X-rays coming from neutron stars. Predicting these powerful bursts has remained a mystery. Recently, John Middleditch of Los Alamos National Laboratory and his team found that for a particular type of spinning neutron star called a pulsar, the time to the next quake is proportional to the size of the last quake.

Number 6: Super Stars
A neutron star is born out of a supernova explosion, which compresses the dying star's core—with a mass greater than the sun's—into a ball with a diameter the size of a small city. One step from becoming black holes, neutron stars are the densest objects in the universe. Just a teaspoon would weigh roughly a billions tons on Earth. In 2005, NASA scientists found the source of gamma-ray bursts that emit as much light as 100,000 trillion suns—and solved a 35-year mystery: When two neutron stars collided at speeds tens of thousands of miles per second, they emit gamma-ray fireworks.

Number 5: Star Bursts
A new class of stars called rotating radio transients (RRATs) can be fickle flashers. They are massively compressed neutron stars that intermittently send out bursts of radio waves that can last for as few as two milliseconds with dark gaps lasting as long as three hours. Not only are these outbursts short-lived, in order to detect RRATs astronomers must distinguish the fleeting radio flashes from terrestrial radio interference. Even so, there could be hundreds of thousands of them in the Milky Way.

Number 4: Singles Club?
Stars may not be loners, as once thought. Now astronomers predict that 85 percent of the stars in the Milky Way galaxy reside in multiple-star systems. More than half of all stars are binary stars, or two stars that are bound by their mutual gravitational attraction, with each star orbiting around the center of mass. When three or more stars huddle together, it’s called a multiple star system. In 2005, astronomers presented evidence for the first planet orbiting a binary system.

Number 3: Enigmatic Explosions
The catastrophic explosion of a star sends out shock waves that radiate outward at 22 million mph (35 million kph). The end of life for some stars can be a spectacular event. Called a supernova, when a star that’s more than eight times the mass of our Sun burns out, gravity’s inward push tears apart the star’s innards. The explosion propels jets of high-energy light and matter out into space. Since Johannes Kepler’s supernova was spotted in 1604, astronomers haven’t witnessed one in our own galaxy.

Number 2: Sun Rays
The Sun’s atmosphere, or corona, can reach a bubbling 3.6 million degrees F (2 million degrees C), and can unpredictably fling out streams of high-energy particles at near light-speed. Called solar flares, these bundles of charged particles accelerate along curved magnetic field lines toward Earth, where they can disrupt communications and satellite technology, electronic devices, and even cell phones. The largest solar flares can release millions of hydrogen bombs’ worth of energy, or enough energy to power the United States for 100,000 years if it could be harnessed. Astronomers are just beginning to understand the inner workings of the sun, with the goal of predicting these fiery flares.

Number 1: Grim Reapers
Black holes are so dense that nothing can escape from their gravitational clutches. Once past the event horizon, or the boundary beyond which even light cannot escape, there’s no way out. Now astronomers have strong evidence for the existence of stellar black holes, which form from the collapse of massive stars, as well as super-massive black holes that reach jaw-dropping weights of millions of solar masses.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/top10_star_mysteries.html

Testing... Testing... 123

So the GRE Results are in for round two. Here's how I did both times:

Round One (October 2005):
Verbal - 510 - 52nd Percentile
Math - 710 - 71st Percentile
Essays - 5 - 70th Percentile

Round Two (May 2006):
Verbal - 550 - 62nd Percentile
Math - 790 - 90th Percentile
Essays - 5 - 70th Percentile

Ok well really those scores are off the top of my head, but I think they are correct... Verbal and math are out of 800 points total and the essays are scored on a scale of 1-6 for 2 essays scored by 2 readers and then averaged. I guess it's good I did a little better. 10 more percent on the verbal looks way better, but may still not be enough for Berkeley or Santa Cruz... but that doesn't mean I'm not going to apply. No hurt in that, I figure. But honestly... a 790 in the math section?!?!? I think that means I'm a mathematical genius! Haha, not really... but damn it feels good! Too bad I can't remember enough vocabulary to do as well on the Verbal section!

Dark Crystal Sequel

Can I get a what-what?!?
I am so excited! And it even looks like Brian Froud will be doing the design work again! Woohoo!

http://www.muppetcentral.com/news/2005/051305.shtml

Starbucks Discovery

Did you know that a venti starbucks has the same amount of espresso as the grande? They just add more milk to the venti! I feel totally gipped! All this time I was getting the larger size, thinking that spending that little bit more money on a commodity I neither need nor can afford was waking me up a little bit more! But no! I actually need to fork over even more dough if I want the venti to actually be worth that extra 4 ounces of drink! I am flabberghasted that no one had ever mentioned it to me before. All my time spent in Starbucks, getting to know each and every barista, and nothing! I had to overhear it from some bubbley blonde girl in pigtails shining a fake smile from here to neverland while batting her lashes over blue contact lens laden eyeballs.

I need to find a new cafe.

Fire

Fancy that... I scored as fire and I'm a fire sign, who's surprised?

You scored as Fire. Fire is your predominating element; it rules the signs of Aries, Leo and Sagittarius. Water 65% Fire 65% Air 55% Earth 50% Spirit 35% Which of the Five Elements are you? created with QuizFarm.com

I am so bored! Apparently I work too fast, so now there isn't really anything to do. I guess that's a good thing... getting caught up and all. But now I am just sitting here. My boss is out picking up his son from the airport and Ryan just went to visit his sister in the hospital. That makes me want to go visit Sierra in the hospital. Except that Ryan's sister is in Alameda and Sierra is in Chico. Chico = much, much farther away. I hope she's feeling better! I called her earlier since I haven't heard anything since Saturday, but she didn't answer which leads me to believe that she is still in there. Hopefully she's getting all caught up on the latest Soap gossip or something!
Lalala. Typatypatypa. I guess I could just go home early. I know I'll have work tomorrow and possibly Friday too, but not today it seems. Carol from the Soils Lab may have me help her with some data entry, but she seemed too swamped to even train me on that, so we shall see. She said that she would come and find me. That was awhile ago. An hour maybe? Hum. And la.
It's my sister's birthday today and she isn't here. She'll be here soon, but not until Monday I think. Today she is at a spa all day and I'm totally jealous. My brain feels like jello. I can't even think straight cuz I am so freakin' bored. I can't decide which is better: being overwhelmed with work that is boring or being underwhelmed with work that is fun. Maybe it will pick up soon. Gosh, I hope so.
Yay! Sierra just called me and she is alive, woo! She is still in the hospital, but she sounds like she is doing ten times better, so that is good. I think she will get to leave tomorrow. And she says she's coming down in a month or so for Elizabeth's wedding so that means that I'll get to see her soon too! Yippee!
Ok, well I'm obviously not the creative type today so I'm going to stop the blabbery typing and find something else to do for a little bit.
*~*Raevyn Mystique~*~

The First Thing I've Written Since The Last Thing I Wrote

Swing sets and sing songs
Are longing to play
But His tarnished wheelbarrows
Adulterate Her stay

Impassive and stolid
With tacit, His eyes
Their whimsical opprobrium
A worthy disguise

Her pristine mind
Will inevitably fail
Quiesce the waters
Under Her soporific tale

Moving On

Ok, I'm ready. Ready for what, you may ask... ready to move on. I'm done letting dumb people run my life, and ruin it! I was so over it and moving on, but He just kept on haranguing me. Pretty irritating, if you ask me. Why did He feel the need to call me and let me know that yes, he had had sexual relations with that girl. First of all, I'm no idiot. They have a past together and yadda yadda. But is it truly necessary to call me and tell me it? I'm thinking no, but He did it anyways! So yeah. Not answering the phone when His number pops up anymore. Plus, He for some reason finds it useful to corner me at my car when I'm trying to leave to ask me if we can be friends. Only, it's not as nice as that. It's more of a demand than a request. You can't demand someone whose heart you've broken FOUR times to be your friend, no matter what time of night or how much money she's just won at the poker table! Especially when You make it sound like it's her fault!
So for awhile, I've been avoiding Him. I don't like getting cornered at my car and told how to run my life. Only, He's part of the crew. Even more now than ever before. So that means that I've been excluding myself from outings and gatherings. I've missed 2 soccer games (which turned out to be okay because they only ended up playing basketball instead cuz the field was too muddy), most jam sessions, and numerous poker games. Not any more.
First of all, New Boy Interest is involved in the jam sessions... so, if I start going, then I start connecting. Who cares if poo ex-boyfriend is there? Well, prolly me. But I'll work on that one next. Anyways, He's not always there. I plan on taking my lovely new Irish Tin Whistle to jam out with! Moving up from the spoons, I am!
So we'll see how my new plan pans out. Well, I am sure. If He tries to corner me again, I'll just punch Him in the nose! Ok, maybe not. But I'll tell Him to freakin' leave me alone. When it's time, it's time. When I'm ready, I'm ready. But don't force me into something by making me feel guilty and worthless! Who would want to be that Guy's friend? Sure as hell not me.

Day 5

Of my new life... smoke free and working full-time in the lab! Both are going quite well, actually! I'm wishing I could just be fully trained already because I was getting a little frustrated yesterday. Everyone keeps talking to me like I know everything already, but I don't, so it's a little hard to keep up. But aside from that, it's pretty fun! I had a brief sautering (sp?) lesson yesterday which was awesome. All of my sauters were done correctly the first time which totally helped boost my self-esteem! Jay also took me around to all of the machine shops and outside service labs that we use here, so it was interesting to finally see and meet all of the people I used to send checks to way back in the old A/P days, haha. All in all, things are going well. Speaking of which, I'd better get back to it!

Day 2

Of the non-smoking.
So far, so good!

Surprise!

I have the bestest friends on the planet! Not only did I have an excellent birthday on Friday, but they threw me a surprise party on Saturday night, woo-hoo!
On Friday I had to work. I pulled a full day, even! My boss got me a cake and so we had some chat-time in the break room which was nice, especially for a Friday. It was chocolate with chocolate, but it was still good! I'm not going to complain about work-bought cake!
It started pouring down rain sometime before I left work at 4, so when I attempted to drive my birthday arse down Crow Canyon I discovered that it was totally stopped! I'm pretty sure the hills were trying to take over the road, so as soon as the "Road Work Ahead" came into view I flipped a bitch and went straight for the freeway. Not to mention that at that same instant my gas light flicked on. Hooray for having to buy gas in San Ramon! Actually, it wasn't so bad because the guy at the gas station (who was so short he had to stand on a footstool to see me and reach the cash register, but was cute no less) ran out before I left to give me a Red Bull (for drinking of the Jager Bombs or Red Bull and Vodkas) for my b-day! Woo hoo free Red Bull! So to the freeway I went. And then proceeded to get off the freeway and onto the secret side road that leads to Castro Valley cuz the freeway appeared to be having just as much troubles as Crow Canyon.
But alas, I made it! To my daddy's house in Castro Valley, that is. Just in time to leave again for the A Street Cafe (on A Street, actually) for my b-day din-din. I was craving French food for some strange reason, so that's what I picked for my fancy dinner. And fancy it was! We had escargot and duck pate appetizers. I had a glass of Shiraz cuz my mom talked me into it even tho I felt a little weird about it at first. For dinner, I chose the special: Ostrich in a red wine sauce with Cream of Asparagas Soup. Yum, yum! Ostrich est tres bon! My mom had veal and my dad ordered a rack of lamb. Everything was superb!
Anyhoo, after the fooding (which took two and a half hours), we drove back to my daddy's house and I traversed on to Simoney's house for some festivities.

Haha, I never made it to the party... well, anyways, I am going to post this and be done with it! 4/25/06

Happy Birthday To Me

A quarter of a century...
And I still feel like a wee lass!
So, Reno was the first one to wish me a Happy Birthday this morning.
I love that guy.

Happy B-Day Jessa!

Here are some pics from her par-tay last Saturday (3/25/06). Much fun was had by all!

Job Posting: Metalurgist in Consulting [Oakland]

The Consulting Division is looking for a full time Metallurgical Technician.

SUMMARY: [Hourly position] Under the supervision of the Senior Engineer, this person will be responsible for day-to-day performance of testing programs, organization of the laboratory and maintenance of equipment. Participation in field projects will be part of the job as needed.
The Technician will work closely with the Senior Engineer or other supervisory personnel regarding project requirements, the testing schedule and quality control. Primary activities include scheduling, coordination of materials used in testing programs, conduct of testing, data collection and submission of test results to a senior engineer. The person will typically work on an assigned project basis in writing with an overall schedule and intermediate milestones.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following.
Technical
1. Complete and pass CEL Training modules for testing procedures (Met Lab)
2. Develop a basic working knowledge of the test equipment and electronic data acquisition systems
3. Comply with requirements of CEL quality program
4. Read test criteria and related technical standards (e.g., ICC-ES, ASTM) as assigned and deemed necessary for test preparation
5. Prepare test area, equipment and fixtures for testing
6. Prepare specimens to be tested according to requirements
7. Perform testing according to requirements

Administrative
1. Report status of daily lab testing programs and activities to Senior Engineer verbally or in writing as directed
2. Submit test results at the end of each day to Senior Engineer for review
3. Keep lab area neat and organized
4. Maintain inventory and storage of sampled and tested product

Other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS: To perform this job successfully, this individual must be able to perform each essential duty [above] satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with legally protected disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE: High school diploma or equivalent; five years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Ability to read and comprehend instructions, correspondence, memos, safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions and procedures. Ability to write routine reports and correspondence. Ability to effectively present information in one-on-one and small group situations to customers, clients, and other employees of the organization.

WORK SCHEDULE: Regular work schedule is 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with a 40 hour, Monday-Friday work week.

If you know of anyone who might be qualified have them get in touch with Jay Dorst in Oakland.

Quite the Predicament!

I'm not even totally sure it is a predicament... but I do feel at a loss as to what I should do (or even what I really want to do!). So maybe someone could give me some enlightening words of advise?
Last week I went on a tour of our Oakland Lab. Yeah, yeah, I know I've been working here for a pretty long time and it's a wee sad that I hadn't toured the lab until last week, but at least I finally had the opportunity to do so! Gary, the president of CEL, offered the tour to those of us who had not had the chance to do so yet. Our Oakland lab consists of the following departments: CEL Consulting (Metals Lab, Forensics Lab, Structural Lab, Temp-Screw, and Consulting Services), Soils Lab, Concrete Lab, and X-Ray. I found the tour pretty interesting... mostly because I love labs (I love lamp). Jay Dorst runs the metals lab/temp-screw department and very much so appreciated my enthusiasm. So much so, in fact, that since my return to the ever-lovable A/P department, he has been calling all of the big-wigs to express interest in my transfer to his department in the Oakland lab.
So then the VP of the company says that he spoke with Jay and that we could always work something out if I wanted to go over there. I said it was in the back of my mind, but I really wasn't looking to move around until Grad School started up and I have to go part time anyways. But then Gary (the Pres) brings it up to me also, saying that he spoke with Jay as well. I guess Jay could really use the help or something! So Gary gave me a similar story, saying that he would be willing to work something out with me if I wanted to go the lab. He said that I could always have a trial period where I could go visit the lab for awhile to get a feel for things without losing my position here.
So, I dunno what to do. I talked to my parents who really want me to try this thing out. I know how much I love working in a lab, I just don't know that this, persay, is what I want to be doing in the lab... whatever this is, exactly. Maybe I should do the trial thing?
See, here's the thing. I'm really excited about going back to school and getting my phD and all that good stuff, and I am afraid that it will be easier for me to not go back to finish if I have a job that I like! So would it not be better to stay in this semi-crappy position that pays fairly decently in order to motivate me to "stay in school"?
And therein lies the predicament.

Is Narcolepsy Contagious?

Music I've Recently Purchased:
Death Cab For Cutie - Plans
Madonna - Confessions on a Dance Floor
Sublime - Gold

Clothes I've Recently Purchased:
Lost Numbers T-Shirt
Red Cords

Listening to Right Now:
Live 105 Online

Did at Lunch:
Drove down Bollinger Canyon to see if the zebra was out... it wasn't, but I did see an ostrich! Talked to some people who live next door to zebra-man and discovered that zebra-owner-man is a zoo psychologist (I think that's what he said...) and there are actually more than one!

Did Last Night:
Sushi with Mom
Spent time with Katy MacMillan who is 7 months prego and called to invite me to the baby shower in April... instead of calling her back, I showed up at her door! I miss her so very much, I forget until I see her again. Note to self: Self, keep in touch with Katy! She's living in Hayward again (and right down the hill from the SJSJ crew!), you no longer have excuses! Baby = girl... Name = Molly (tentatively)

Doing Right Now:
Eating Sunflower Seeds (ie, SALT)

End Transmission

I Know Where You Live Now

Once upon a time I knew What I wanted from this life.
And then
There was you... waltzing in and out of my life
Until butting into my dance.
Not that I truly minded -
Playing your games was the only prerequisite.
Maybe I didn't play them long enough...
Every facet of your being
Was all I wanted to see.
Yet the more I played along,
The further you drifted from me...
Hiding behind a plethora of vocabulary words
And metaphors of song.
Now I wonder who you really are
And what you really wanted from me.
Boys smell nice.
It stains my clothes.
So night sweats masquerade as you,
So quiet and still next to me.
Did you discover sleep, I wonder -
Is that what's taken you from me?
I wonder if you even see
What you're doing and what it truly does to me.
This pipe I smoke to make it stop.
To make the pain you gave me turn to thoughts.
I want to sleep, but in your dreams
You've lost all hopes and faiths in me.
So when I'm gone you'll think no less,
Since life goes on in happiness.
But where will I end up in this,
When everything returns to bliss?
I know where you live now,
I've tasted it.

Time To Go Now

Is it 5 o'clock YET????????????

The President Is My Best Friend

Could it be true? Are people finally coming to their senses?



Taken From msnbc

'Member When I Worked Here?

Just testing the photo feature.