Design, Build & Commission
These are good words, active words, words that say I am a bad-ass, so step off. It's because of those words that I took this job, since I will be expected to design, build and commission a polarimeter for a project at Brookhaven. Unfortunately, up till now, I have only known the glory of commissioning, since most of the infrastructure was already in place for my graduate project. I never got the full trifecta of goodness. So now I am intending to fill those gaps in my physics education and, provided I do it well, successfully enter the pantheon of bad-asses.
Part of me, the engineer and the anal-retentive micro-manager, is loving the design aspect. Figuring out the details, writing up the report, thinking about the plan. Then the other half of me, the worrier racked with insecurities, is thinking about how much this would suck if I f**k something up, so please, please, please don't f**k up.
Good Luck! So do you get a staff?
Posted by: xoxo | November 24, 2005 at 02:40 AM
Never sell yourself short, for this is pretty much the job of everyone else.
Posted by: Anon. | November 25, 2005 at 02:23 PM
"bad-ass" with all due respect; all of this hard work.. all of this insecurity, and anticipation.. what do you really intend on accomplishing? I am curious Caolionn.. do you actually think that you can better the world that we live in? What are your true intentions?
Posted by: Sean | November 27, 2005 at 12:27 AM
As for staff, I might be getting a grad student. But I think that might count for slave labor rather than staff.
And as for bettering the world, if I have a small part in helping scientists better understand the universe we live in, then, yes, I would think that would be an amazing accomplishment. I am not curing cancer, but I think that working to gain a greater knowledge, in general, does better the world we live in.
Posted by: Caolionn | November 27, 2005 at 08:04 PM
Sorry, but I didn't understand. And also, may I suggest to add a sort of button in the Post a Comment. So that comments can stay private. Thanks.
Posted by: Alessandro Artini | November 28, 2005 at 08:41 PM
Alessandro: I'm sorry, but the bloggers here have no control over the website format, instead it is the people that run the site. You'll have to take you recommendations to them. What part did you not understand?
Posted by: Caolionn | November 28, 2005 at 10:04 PM
So, is this a polarimeter for RHIC? Someone commented that your STAR photo had colors reminiscent of 70’s playground equipment – have you given any thought to the important color scheme issues that your detector will face? You know, “design, build, spray paint awesome 70’s colors, and commission”?
Posted by: Richard | November 29, 2005 at 07:25 AM
Ohhh, the color scheme. I totally forgot about that. Since the Caltech color is that delightful 1970's orange, I am sure I can do something with that; a color so ugly, it begs to be loved.
Posted by: Caolionn | November 29, 2005 at 09:08 PM
OL?..COMO VAI?
EU GOSTARIA DE OBTER INFORMAǕES SOBRE O CHAMADO MISTɒIO DOS NEUTRINOS. GOSTARIA DE SABER PORQUE H?POUCA DETECǃO DE NEUTRINOS PELOS APARELHOS CIENT͆ICOS, SE PELA TEORIA F͓ICA O SOL DEVERIA EMITIR CERCA DE 60 BILHՅS DE NEUTRINOS POR CENT͍ETRO QUADRADO POR SEGUNDO.
OBRIGADO.
JOAO.
RIO DE JANEIRO, 13 DE DEZEMBRO DE 2005.
Posted by: JOAO FLUCK | December 13, 2005 at 09:31 AM
I'm sorry Joao, but I don't speak Portuguese.
Posted by: Caolionn | December 13, 2005 at 02:08 PM