more images from malaysia

these trees do not like each other!


we walked under this detached canopy in the forest research institute malaysia (FRIM) near kuala lumpur.

a sweet pink drink called "sirup bandung". rose syrup with black jelly! it tastes a lot better than it sounds :)


a view of the petronas twin towers from the KL tower.


the steep entrance to batu caves.



fun fruit!



river town



rice from a cooler, dumped onto a big banana leaf!


eat with your hands!


please do not spit... on the bus.


storm a-comin'


white hot large-grain sand!


gigantic jellyfish! i didnt swim at this beach.


statue of an oddly-proportioned lady outside a temple.






the traditional toilet (toilet paper was not a regular feature):


which warranted some regular toilets to have signs like this posted behind them!


view the full set of malaysia photos.

view the previous installment of southeast asia photos.

gravity: one gallon

need a little more gravity in your life? sam potts might be able to help :)

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of course, everything has a gravitational influence on everything else! i'm (always) imparting a gravitational force on the surface of the earth, just as the moon is exerting a gravitational force on the earth as well! its funny, even if impossible, to claim a measurement of one gallon of gravity!

carnival of space - 100!

for one hundred weeks in a row, space enthusiasts have collected their favorite writing samples together for everyone to enjoy in the carnival of space! enjoy your weekly dose of space reading at the one minute astronomer's site!

the year 2012 AD

for those of you worrying (needlessly) about the many end-of-the-world scenarios that have been put forth to occur (in)conveniently on the exact same day - december 21st, 2012 - there is a nice description by cameron hummels in today's podcast of 365 days of astronomy!

Summary: An increasing number of people believe that December 21, 2012 will mark the end of the world. Proponents of this idea cite diverse astronomical reasons for an imminent apocalypse: the end of the Mayan long-count calendar; an alignment between the Solar System and the Milky Way; the solar sunspot cycle reaching an all-time high; the reversal of the Earth's magnetic field; and a devastating collision with 'Planet X'. Tune in to hear to the facts and controversy surrounding this purported impending disaster.

listen here!

i will inevitably write more about this topic as the date approaches because people have asked me a lot of questions about these issues and i'd like to clarify what are facts and what are fallacies. to summarize: no, i am not worried. i have not heard a single doomsday claim that is supported by facts.

for more information, read what ian has to say at universe today.

pluto: size

here's a funny pluto shirt designed by chris murphy:

timescapes timelapse

here's another lovely video by tom at timescapes! at minute 2:15, he shows some great shots of a single dish of the very large baseline array (VLBA), and several shots of the multi-dish very large array (VLA) in new mexico. beautiful views of the moving night sky throughout!


Timescapes Timelapse: Learning to Fly from Tom @ Timescapes on Vimeo

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under the bridge - the literal version

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astronomers and the temple of preah khan

this clever panorama image, featuring yara and myself and yara and me, was created by audrey galamet at the preah khan temple, near angkor, cambodia. click for a larger view!


my pose on the right is an attempt to imitate the lovely apsara dancers who are carved into the walls all over these temples.

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Agate Genesis Research

I have spent all day and most of the past few days conducting research on agate genesis. I plan on using the information to update and expand my Understanding Agates Presentation (which I have to present in Holland, MI on April 29th). The research will also be incorporated into the second edition of my agate book, which I hope to publish in 2010. Although I understand a lot more about the factors that influenced agate formation, I still cannot say which of the two main theories I support. My gut feeling is that maybe both of these theories (inflow theory and silica gel theory), and perhap others, are correct. After all, there are 3,000 agates in the world that have formed under a vast array of conditions. Perhaps there is not just one genesis process.

I also met this past week with Shawn Malone, who is a photographer from Marquette. I think we hit it off because we are both "corporate refugees." She speciallizes in landscapes and northern lights photos. Since the northern lights are in a slow period of their cycle, she is looking for other photographic subjects.

I've purchased photos from her before, plus we talked at the Escanaba Art Show last month. We discussed the possibilty of her taking close up pictures of agates and related minerals. Thus, we finally met and I loaned her many of the "Wowser" rocks, as well as some other interesting agate slabs I've been collecting. We are still working out the synergistic relationship, but at the very least I will be selling some of her incredible agate close-up prints. She will also be selling them at the 29 shows she is exhibiting at this year. I hope to have some in time to sell at the Cuyuna Agate and Mineral Show in MN on May 2-3. Below are a few of the preliminary shots. For those of you who have seen the "Wowser" rocks, the first two are the Priday Agate and the Montana Dry Head Agate. The third photo is a close up of an Iris agate. You can learn more about Shawn's work at www.lakesuperiorphoto.com. If you think you may be interested in purchasing an agate close up print, and/or for those of you who are familiar with the Wowser Rocks and you have a request for a particular agate photo, please send me an email to karen@agatelady.com.

38 hours across thailand

miraculously, all forms of public transport i needed to use yesterday conspired to work with me! the day started with a 45 minutes taxi ride from our hostel to the pier of koh chang island. the taxi consisted of two benches in the back of a pick up truck, with our luggage tossed on top of a loose covering. then we took a ferry to mainland thailand where we waited (ahem, sweated) for one hour until the bus arrived. the bus was supposed to take 6 hours, but it arrived in bangkok uncharacteristically ahead of schedule, giving me more time to say au revoir to my fabulous traveling companions!

i took a tuk-tuk to the train station and really enjoyed bargaining with the tuk-tuk driver over the price! i had previously asked a travel agent about how much the tuk-tuk would cost; she said 60 baht. the driving initially offered me 150!? when i countered with 50, he looked shocked, and then smiled, and we settled on 80 (about $2 for a 20 minute ride). haggling can be great or horrible.... not much in between.

i arrived at the train station, bought my 2nd class overnight sleeper compartment ticket to chiang mai, which i had been worried might be sold out! the train confused me at first because i had no idea how the "sleeper" system worked, but i eventually figured it out and the ride was mostly comfortable. it ended up taking nearly 16 hours to get to the chiang mai station!!! then i took another tuk-tuk and waited about 30 minutes for the girl i'm staying with here to come meet me.

whew! i'm exhausted from all the sitting, broken up by moments of backpack-laden excitement!

chiang mai is a cute little city with great alley ways, coffee shops and message parlors everywhere. my first point of business was to sign up for a cooking class ;)

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my poster at the malaysia conference

yeah science!

Spring Has Sprung

Yeseterday and today certainly feel like spring in Grand Marais. Yesterday is the first time I've desended Sable Falls steps this spring. There is quite a bit of ice on the steps, which makes it tricky getting down. It was worth it, though. It was a beautiful evening to spend on the beach with a temperature in the mid 50s and calm wind. There is still some ice on shore in spots, but there are rocks exposed all along the beach. Unfortuantely, the rock piles are not as high as they have been in past years.

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