Reginald L. Goodwin's Posts

Diaspora, 21 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 21, 2012 at 8:30am

The Road goes ever on and on,
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone
And I must follow if I can.

Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it meets some larger way,
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.
- J.R.R. Tolkien

Education
B.S. Physics, Imperial College, London University, 6/1989
Ph.D. Theoretical Physics, University of Southampton, 6/1992

Postdoctoral Training
Postdoctoral Researcher
Institute for Theoretical Physics, UC Santa Barbara, 09/1995-08/1998

Instructor and Postdoctoral Researcher
Princeton University, 01/1995-08/1995

Member
Institute for Advanced Study
Princeton, 09/1992-12/1994

Dr. Clifford Johnson is a professor in the Physics and Astronomy Department at the University of Southern California. His work involves research and teaching, undergraduates and postgraduates.

He works mainly on superstring theory, quantum gravity, gauge theory, and M-theory, studying objects such as black holes and D-branes, using a variety of techniques from Mathematics and Physics.

Faculty profile: Dr. Clifford V. Johnson

Godspeed, John Glenn...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 20, 2012 at 7:00am

I guess for my mother, it was t-minus six months and counting (I was happily gestating in her womb)...

It took chutzpah, moxie for a human being to consciously strap (at that time) himself to a large lit stick of dynamite with no guarantee that the procedure, though thoroughly calculated and considered, would not end in disaster.

So was this Marine Corp pilot, who confidently climbed into a Mercury rocket - Friendship 7, and took the first flight by an American to orbit the Earth.

Mercury - Gemini - Apollo: it would change our world with semiconductor-manufactured spinoff technologies that we now take for granted. It would change our focus, our nerve on what was possible. We would look to the stars and listen for signs of humanity's cousins.

50 years later: Godspeed, John Glenn

Diaspora, 20 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 20, 2012 at 7:00am

Dr. Derrick Pitts

In Philadelphia, a radio program called Skytalk features a weekly discussion led by astronomer Derrick Pitts, also the chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute of Astronomy. There you can hear Pitts ruminate about astronomical forecasts for 2010, the 400th anniversary of Galileo finding Jupiter's moons with a telescope, and the discovery of new planets in the galaxy.

The image of Benjamin Franklin, for whom Pitts' Institute is named, peering out into the universe through a telescope from Philadelphia may have been the prevailing icon of American astronomy since the 18th century, but today it's a black man named Derrick. He's been at the Institute since 1978 and through the years has become a top scientific consultant for entities like Lockheed Martin and NASA.

TheGrio's 100: Derrick Pitts, a star among the stars

Diaspora, 19 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 19, 2012 at 5:10pm

Philip Emeagwali, PhD is a Nigerian Computer Scientist. He conducts research at the Army High Performance Computing Research Center at the University of Minnesota. He overcame hardships to earn his academic bona fides. His nickname in school from classmates: "Calculus" (which he taught himself).

Invisible Iron...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 19, 2012 at 5:03pm

This uses the principle of optical resonance, using lasers to make thin sheets of iron transparent.

Diaspora, 18 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 18, 2012 at 7:04am

Dr. Lisa Egbuonu-Davis

Dr. Egbuonu-Davis develops and implements research strategies contributing to pricing and marketing tactics worldwide for Pfizer's pharmaceutical products.

Your Pencil's Going Vertical...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 18, 2012 at 6:58am

As in a Molybdenum Disulphide and/or Boron Nitride layered sandwich using either to prevent current leakage.

Quantum Teleportation in a Nutshell...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 17, 2012 at 6:45am

Enjoy!

Diaspora, 17 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 17, 2012 at 6:30am

The youngest of 15 children, Dr. Darnell Diggs raised himself up from poverty to research scientist in physics, earning undergrad and graduate degrees from Alabama A&M (an HBCU). He works at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, USAF Research Laboratory.

Darnell Diggs, PhD

Diaspora, 16 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 16, 2012 at 6:37pm

Dr. Mark Dean is an IBM fellow, and one of the first inventors of the ISA system bus that enables multiple devices - think printers and modems - to be connected to the computer. He holds 3 of the 9 original patents on the personal computer. You can truly say "Dr. Mark Dean is responsible for the content of this message."

Iron-Based Superconductors

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 16, 2012 at 6:30pm

The NIST and University of Maryland have found an iron-based superconductor that operates in the highest known temperature of a material in its class.

Diaspora, 15 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 15, 2012 at 2:38pm

Dr. Kim Michelle Lewis

Dr. Lewis is an National Science Foundation grant winner ($575,000) to advance electronics used in medicine and toxic sensing technology (important in a post 9-11 world). She graduated from Dillard University, and holds a summer research camp open to HBCU science and engineering majors hoping to learn and advance in the field.

Tesla...Prophet

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 15, 2012 at 2:32pm

Nikola Tesla pretty much predicted the modern-day cell phone before its Star Trek communicator clone:

Diaspora, 14 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 14, 2012 at 1:16pm

How can we speak of science and our scientist without George Washington Carver:

Optical Frequency Comb...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 14, 2012 at 1:13pm

This is a device that operates in the extreme ultraviolet of the electromagnetic spectrum. I've included a chart for reference.

Diaspora, 13 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 13, 2012 at 12:01pm

Dr. Peter J. Delfyett

Dr. Delfyett is the past president of the National Society of Black Physicists. He's authored and published several papers in laser research. He is a professor at the University of Central Florida, Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers (CREOL). I think he had some say in the naming!

I-Robot...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 13, 2012 at 11:52am

In our image: by 2050, it is projected that the "Roomba," or domestic robots may have a different attitude...

Diaspora, 12 February 2012

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 12, 2012 at 7:06am

Meet Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. Previously posted as "Strong Force."

"No New (Nobel) Thing"...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 12, 2012 at 7:02am

A US researcher finds perfect quasicrystal patterns...in Islamic architecture. Ecclesiastes said: "there is no [new] thing under the sun."

Gunbad-I Kabud tomb tower, Maragh

Tribute

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on February 11, 2012 at 10:00pm

She gave us a reason to love ourselves,

Emerging in the 80s post-Civil Rights, post-loss of

Medgar, Malcolm and Martin, if Michael was the “King of Pop”…

She was definitely “Our Queen.”

What 1980 male college freshman

Didn’t calculate that we were just

One year older than the voice that

Belted from her lithe frame, fantasize

“What we’d do” with 5 minutes of our

Best Mack if we had a chance

(Past her Bodyguard) to step to her,

As if she was “saving all her love for []”…

Her faux feud with Maria Cary set the

Diva pattern for Rihanna, Beyoncé, Jennifer, Latifah and Eve…

Yet, didn’t we laugh (instead of pray)

When she married Bobby, and starred in a

So-called “reality” show, showcasing her

Private demons for public display?

Post-Bobby, with the baby (Bobby-Christina),

She could never hit “the notes” she used to,

Her interviews shaken versions of

Her star’s former hue.

The human voice has depth and range

That cannot be enhanced or explained

In a digital software mix program or

Corporate studio...

Some things of exquisite beauty are

Born in choir robes, Sunday solos and

Christmas shows,

Before the Clive Davis’ discover angels,

Among us,

When NAPHESH kicked first breath

In Eden

And Deity pronounced self-awareness

To a creation with mind, will, imagination,

Emotion and intellect – defining the

Earthiness that we would call…soul…

The best of Adam’s rib performs now…celestial shows.

Whitney Houston, 1963 – 2012