An exploration of ultracoffee, radiation safety, and more often than not a beer or two.
This was originally written on May 20th, 2010, the day after Erik died beneath the wheels of an Alameda County Transit bus. The original post evaporated between many server migrations, in addition to many of the original links disappearing, so I have recreated it here as best as I can as it something than can …
Continue reading “In Memoriam: Erik Allen Fitzpatrick (1975-2010)”
The other half of last week’s fun was responding to a request from UC and Berkeley Police Departments to assist them with some training for their bomb squad unit. While they’re quite familiar with what to do with explosives, they wanted to get some practice in with radioactive sources just to work on potential “dirty …
Continue reading “Playing Cops & Robots and Touching Faults, Part 2”
Tickets are officially purchased for upcoming the May and June parts of the 2011 Scientific Drinking Tour plus a new addition in September! This is your opportunity to get direct hand off of either Steins of Science or BBotE while we’re on the road. They more detailed itinerary looks like this: May 12th-17th: Fairbanks, AK We …
There’s nothing quite like the end of the month, which is always paperwork crunch time, for new and interesting opportunities to crop up. Despite knowing the certain long hours they will demand in make up time, you just can’t…say…no. Two of those happened this week, I got to enter into UC Berkeley’s Lawson Adit (definition: …
Continue reading “Playing Cops & Robots and Touching Faults, Pt. 1”
Right out the gate, I must highly recommend the work of Mr. Nicholas Johnson writer of Big Dead Place and curator of the website of the same name. I started giggling at his tales while I was still in Antarctica and it now helps me maintain a connection to a continent I never expect to …
Continue reading “Corporate Culture vs. The Frozen Frontier”
In addition to being South Pole Station’s bartender, my actual job (the reason I was sent to the bottom of the Earth) was as the science/cryogenics technician. It was my job to take care of all the liquid helium and liquid nitrogen and make sure all the cryogenic equipment on the telescopes stayed in good …
While I like to keep my discussions here coffee, beer, and historical science related some things just can’t be ignored especially when people keep poking me for answers. So, I have some thoughts that are quite lacking in insobriety. First, I am not a nuclear engineer, contrary to how more than a few people have …
Herr Direktor Funranium shares a brief history of the Goiania Radiological Accident and some thoughts about hazard communication.
The long absent “Origins of Funranium” post from the Iteration I website returns.
Herr Direktor Funranium issues a challenge for you to assess what is important in your life.
Herr Direktor Funranium shares another Antarctic moment and salutes the astronauts who made for a very special, though sad, memory.
Herr Direktor Funranium cannot encourage you enough to go to the Atomic Testing Museum
The non-Atomic Testing Museum half of Herr Direktor Funranium’s Vegas adventures.
Sometimes all that time playing on and researching about volcanoes pays off.
Rather than talk about Las Vegas adventures, Herr Direktor Funranium shares with you a slice of life from Amundsen-South Pole Station, circa-December 2002.