Steve-o Stonebraker

A collection of my "ready for primetime" #desmos #physics graphs can be found here: www.camphortree.net/blog/desmos/ Every graph has a brief explanation, a preview image, and a permalink that will redirect to future updates. #ITeachPhysics

Not sure how I missed this???

I have over a hundred extra copies of my various foreign language editions. I’d love to place them in good hands! I’m offering a free book giveaway (to USA & Canadian recipients only, at this time). Please fill out this form, and pass it on! Thank you! docs.google.com/forms/d/1h4E...

Oh jeez, this reminded me I never even checked the results of last year's Somerville Cat Mayor election. The winner was black longhair Minerva, whose campaign signs simply said "CRIME".

I remember this being done in Philip Morrison’s Ring of Truth in a pool along Boston’s Charles River walk. Somehow had not occurred to me to try it in the classroom.

Congratulations to JAXA on the successful launch of the Martian Moon eXplorer (MMX) yesterday! MMX will bring back a sample from the Martian moon Phobos. Phobos may have formed during a giant impact on Mars, which would make the MMX sample Martian... #planetSci www.youtube.com/live/Fn6gzuG...

White dwarf color depends on temperature and atmospheric composition. These stars have ultra-dense atmospheres which can distort light beyond black-body radiation expectations resulting in stars that can appear yellow, green, cyan, or even pink! 🧪 academic.oup.com/rasti/articl...

I’m sorry to have to be the bad guy here but we need to recognize that we live in a compressed air thrusters world now. If you’re not finding ways to teach the critical use of compressed air thrusters in your classroom, you’re setting your students up to fail when you could be setting them up to fly

I see I haven't posted a baby bird in over a week, please accept this tiny puffball, rare, snowy plover, as an apology. 🪶 🐣

This game is really quite fun, even if you aren't a physics nerd. (But it contains extra joy if you ARE a physics nerd.) #ITeachPhysics

Today is #WorldOctopusDay 🐙 Did you know that octopuses have blue blood? This graphic looks at what makes it blue, as well as other blood colours seen in different organisms: wp.me/p4aPLT-Fc #ChemSky 🧪

Thanks to Ian McKellen for introducing us at the #AttitudeAwards in London last night with a wonderful speech! We’ve known him since we made the “Heart” video in 1988 and it was lovely to see him again. x Photo: Vita Spalding @attitudemag.bsky.social #PetText

Currently at the bathroom at NYCC having the worst shit of my life and someone outside of my stall says "Erica Henderson is here" and it takes me a few seconds to realize they mean the con and not the toilet

Do any physics people know what's going on with Circuit Scribe, who make (or used to make) conductive ink pens for drawing circuits? They are out of stock everywhere and the actual Circuit Scribe website feels like it's abandoned. I emailed them and got no response. #ITeachPhysics

Every time a disc enters or exits a console this cat will be there. Calcifer will hear the disc tray from across the house and sprint over to face his arch nemesis. He wants to kill Playstation discs the most. Whether it’s PS3, 4, or 5, they’re his most hated foe

Update to my Saturns. This goes: 2015, 2016, then annually from 2020 onwards.

Throwback to that time I signed into a new season of #DestinyTheGame with my hunter--who I hadn't used since Halloween and was still in costume as villain cannon fodder--and got thrown straight into this cutscene of Eris Morn treating a vex goblin like her trusted research partner. #destiny2

it’s october 3rd 💗

This week's t-shirt is a very silly joke for fans of linguistics, Ghibli, and milky drinks. #WeeklyTshirt #Ghibli #Boba danielsolis.threadless.com/designs/kiki...

French astronomer, mathematician, Ismael Boulliau, who was a Keplerian and suggested the first inverse squared theory of gravity, was born 28 September 1605 #histsci thonyc.wordpress.com/2021/11/24/t...

I don't know if any #transformers folks here on bsky remember a sweet dude named Mike "Star Saber" Bisbee who used to be on alt.toys.transformers and attended #BotCon every year with his wife and daughter (also fans). If you do, they could use some help after a house fire: gofund.me/3ee5b518b

After a long day at the aquarium, the otters help tidy their toys away. Payment is made promptly and entirely in ice cubes.

Significant feature rollout for Phosphor: * Both predefined and custom palettes instantly tell you if they are colorblind-safe * Added live map and image previews of your palette * Controls to add parabolic curves if desired * (See next post)...

Happy Stanislav Petrov Day He passed in 2017. As Encyclopedia Britannica puts it, “He is survived by his two children, two grandchildren, and the entire human race.” If you don't know his story, please take 3 minutes now to learn it. @gchalliance.bsky.social @docsforclimate.bsky.social

An “oasis in the desert” 🏝️ This is how ESO’s Residencia, which provides shelter for those who work at Paranal, is sometimes called. It was chosen as the hide-out for the Bond villain in the movie Quantum of Solace and it was blown up in one of the scenes — luckily, only virtually! 🔭

I want you to think about the kids in your life. Maybe those kids are 8. Maybe they are 32. Do they know enough about snails? Hard to imagine anyone truly knowing *enough* about snails. Help those kids learn snailhood. Get them a Snail Facts advent calendar. SquidFacts.net.

Boston runners took part in the Charlie Card Challenge Friday night, a 6-mile race from Boston College all the way to Park Street to see if they can outrun the T.

Nature's sunrise palette, reminding us of the beauty in the world around us. 💜🩷💚🩵💛 Photo taken in Glastonbury yesterday morning

There's a lot of stuff we have done in the past which turned out to be a bad idea. So we stopped doing it. It's difficult for me to accept the inevitability of [things] knowing this. But I am worried there are not enough people standing up and saying "this is a bad idea" in 2026.

It’s a tale of two crescents… am seeing some great captures of yesterday’s lunar occultation of Venus from around the visibility region; it was a challenging daytime event for many, and a dusk event for SE Asia. spaceweathergallery2.com/indiv_upload...

Hey! Do you live in Massachusetts and heat your home with heating oil? Are you feeling anxious about prices this winter? Are you weighing whether to fill now, whether to lock in a rate, etc? If so, I'd love to talk to you for a story. Email me, please: MRWASSER@bu.edu Thanks!

Walking to lunch from the workshop, we passed this amazingly Dutch tote bag 😄

Units of measure history #ITeachPhysics

TiVo really sent this update saying "we are disabling the commercial autoskip but are pleased to share a new commercial autoskip service for additional fee". They've enshittified so badly I almost don't mind my TV provider is--later than most!--completely discontinuing CableCard support soon.

The most absolutely massive flex from the state fair exhibit. This quilt is made of 40 years of prize ribbons from various categories at the New Mexico State Fair won by Carol St. Clair Johnson. She also won a prize for this quilt.

College Board is one of those huge organizations where people in different roles have different priorities and work against each others' goals. The folks who write the physics exams are accessible to teachers and I really believe they're trying to to produce good, valid exams! But also... this.

Hold a grating in front of the camera, and your phone is now a spectrometer thanks to phyphox! #ITeachPhysics

A year ago I sat on my roof and saw one of the most incredible lightning storms I've ever seen. From sunset to 2am, it was a constant multicolor display over the horizon followed by a grand finale of purple crawlers exploding over the backyard.