One issue in equity work is how to center Black voices without making Black people do all the (thankless) work.
Ironically, this as isn't much of an issue in physics, because the problems are so bad that non-Black people HAVE to do the work. #ShutDownSTEM#Strike4BlackLives
So the key for those of us who want to do the labor without dominating the conversation is to listen to and be guided by the few Black physicists we have. They know what they need and what future students/postdocs/faculty need.
They're here! Once again, my quantum mechanics students made QM memes for extra credit while studying for their exams. Prior threads are in the QT and here:
The midterm exam for my QM class is tomorrow, and I told my students they could get a bit of extra credit for making memes. So, as a treat for you all, a thread:
Man if people are mad about mathematicians using the same symbols to define different operations, wait until they see what we physicists are doing to the letter delta
Actual footnote from my dissertation:
And yes, 2+2 = 5 for some definitions of "2", "5", and "+"
Just because real number arithmetic is the only thing you learned in school doesn't mean it's the only possible way to do math.
We discovered what was wrong with the grounding in the lab! Strap in #newPI friends, for a cautionary tale. 1/6
Having a clean electrical ground is really important for everyone who does sensitive measurements. Electronics can interfere with each other through the ground, causing spurious signals. So we like to have grounds that are completely isolated from the rest of the building. 2/6
I knew this when it came time to build my lab, so I insisted on 3 independent ground panels, each connected to its own copper spike driven into the earth outside. (Why 3? I eventually want 3 fridges in the lab, each with their own ground; need more $$ first!). 3/6
On moderation in politics, a short thread: let's say there's a house on fire. The fire is manageable at the moment, but it's spreading rapidly. 3 people are trying to decide what to do about the fire.
Person A recommends dousing it with as much water as possible
Person B starts poring gasoline on the fire
Person C says the fire is a problem, but hooking up the water hose is hard, so instead recommends spitting on the fire
Person C is not a moderate! They're a radical!
Just because they're less radical than person B doesn't mean they're moderate! The middle ground is not always moderate! Incremental solutions to climate change aren't moderate. Accepting growing inequality isn't moderate. Doing nothing about structural racism isn't moderate.