carleton university

“You are invited to see the Earth turn” - Discovering Foucault’s Pendulum

Foucault's Pendulum at Carleton.

Foucault's Pendulum at Carleton.

Post by Mokum

The other night I strolled over to the Herzberg Laboratories at Carleton University to spend a few minutes with the Foucault Pendulum. I was looking for a metaphor. If you haven’t seen the Foucault Pendulum at Carleton, it really is that: a five-storey replica of the famous pendulum first conceived of by the 19th century French physicist Léon Foucault. In designing his pendulum, Foucault set out to demonstrate in an easy-to-see experiment that the Earth rotates; in this he succeeded.

How does it work? Like many groundbreaking discoveries, Foucault’s proof was quite simple. All he did was suspend a large pendulum from the ceiling to show that the plane of its motion, with respect to the Earth, rotated slowly clockwise. What does this clockwise motion mean? The simplest – and correct – answer is that it means that the Earth turns.

Click to continue reading ““You are invited to see the Earth turn” - Discovering Foucault’s Pendulum”

Science Cafe: Where physics and medicine meet

Photo courtesy of pfala on Flickr.

Photo courtesy of pfala on Flickr.

Cancer: whether it was a dear friend, relative or acquaintance who had it, this is one disease that we’ve all encountered at one time or another. Science and medicine have made leaps and bounds in seeking out a cure, and treatment has drastically changed.

Radiation is one such treatment that continues to be changed and improved. At Science Cafe this week, Tong Xu of Carleton’s department of physics explores how radiation works, and the current advances around this treatment. There’s still room for improvements, and the talk will describe how we can ensure a more accurate delivery of radiation therapy.

Science Cafe is the bi-weekly science ‘lesson’ put on by Carleton University. It’s happening this Wednesday, May 5, down at The Wild Oat Cafe (817 Bank) at 6:30 - go early, grab a chai latte, and settle into your seat for this engaging lecture and discussion.

Science Cafe gets X-ray vision

Photo courtesy of katieportwin on Flickr.

Photo courtesy of katieportwin on Flickr.

As you can see every week on any number of medical TV dramas, technology is everywhere in hospitals. (So is, apparently, the tendency to sleep around - but I suspect that this is just vamped up for TV. Or do all residents get caught in love triangles?) It’s all natural for us - but we forget that these technologies are incredibly new. Most of them have only existed for a few decades - xrays have been around longest, for about a century.

And it’s all (or somewhat) thanks to those applied physicists out there. They’ve been the ones on the cutting edge of medical technology, and they aren’t looking to stop any time soon. Tonight you can find out about these pioneers - including the ones who, even today, are discovering the latest advancements. Science Cafe will feature Paul Johns of Carleton’s Department of Physics discussing these incredible scientists who’ve made our lives so much better.

Science Cafe is that bi-weekly science lesson, held down at the Wild Oat Cafe (817 Bank). It gets underway at 6:30pm tonight, April 21st - be early to grab your seat!

Science Cafe goes to Sudbury

Science Cafe, Carleton’s bi-weekly public science lesson, will delve into the world of Northern Ontario in the April 7 edition. Alain Bellerive of the Department of Physics will answer the question, “What have we learned from the Sudbury Neurtrino Observatory?”

Well, can you answer that?

It all goes down Wednesday, April 7, at 6:30pm down at the Wild Oat Cafe (817 Bank).

The abstract:

The Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) was a water Cherenkov detector dedicated to investigate elementary particles called neutrinos. It successfully took data between 1999 and 2006. The detector was unique in its use of heavy water as a detection medium, permitting it to make a solar model-independent test of solar neutrino mixing. In fact, SNO conclusively showed that solar neutrinos oscillate on their way from the core of the Sun to the Earth. This groundbreaking observation was made during three independent phases of the experiment. Even if data taking ended, SNO is still in a mode of precise determination of the solar neutrino oscillation parameters because all along SNO had developed several methods to tell signal and background events apart. This ability is crucial for the final and ultimate data analysis of all the phases. The physics reach of a combined three-phase solar analysis will be reviewed for a general public together with results and subtleties about solar neutrino physics.

Film Screening: Return to El Salvador - tonight!

elsalvador

El Salvador - the film!

El Salvador takes up just one small corner of Central America, but like the countries around it, it is filled with rich history and political intrigue. Filmmaker Jamie Moffett had always been captivated by this small nation and its people, and his most recent film, Return to El Salvador, seeks to shed a bit more light on this small country.

Moffett will be in town tonight for a special screening of Return to El Salvador, which was narrated by Martin Sheen (that’s President Bartlett to a few of you out there). It’s happening down at Carleton’s Azrieli Theatre (AT 301) at 7pm. Tickets are $10 for adults, $7 for students.

New Music in New Places: Local Composers and a Balloon Orchestra!

Photo Courtesy of olaerik's on flickr

Photo courtesy of olaerik's on Flickr.

Learning that Ottawa has its very own Balloon Orchestra just made my day. Apparently the orchestra, which uses nothing but latex balloons to create music, started as a class project in 2008 at Carleton University and has continued to perform around the city, even scoring a couple of appearances on the CBC. The ten members of the group rub, deflate, stretch, hit and pop the balloons to create a remarkable range of sounds. For example, I was convinced that the beginning notes of Clair Balloon, one of the songs available on the group’s MySpace, was made by a clarinet. While not all the other songs are quite as enchanting (Three Breaths for Three Balloons kind of sounds like a bagpipe that’s inhaled helium) the group will definitely expanding your idea of what music can be made from.

Photo Courtey of Wikipedia

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

The Balloon orchestra is just one of the innovative Ottawa musicians being featured by the Ottawa Chamber Music Society’s upcoming concert, New Music in New Places. The show, which is taking place at the Carleton University Art Gallery (St. Patrick Building, 1125 Colonel By Drive), features the works of seven local composers, at least two of which incorporated visual arts into their work. Ryan Purchase’s The 53 Stations of the Tokaido consists of five suites of miniatures inspired by a series of prints created in 1833 by Japanese printmaker Utagawa Hiroshige. Hiroshige’s work, based on sketches he made while traveling the Tōkaidō road, have inspired Western artists like Vincent Van Gogh. Chan Na Kin’s and the masks evoke will be performed by the Gryphon Trio as the audience is led through a fantastic journey inspired by the ceremonial masks of Canadian aboriginal peoples.

New Music in New Places is being presented in partnership with the Ottawa New Music Creators and Carleton University on Saturday, April 10 at 8pm. Tickets are $15 adult / $10 students and can be purchased at the OCMS Box Office, by calling 613-234-6306, or at the door. For more information, please contact the OCMS office at 613-234-6306 or www.chamberfest.com.

Info and some of the text for this post came courtesy of Artengine Artlistings. Full list of composers after the break:

Click to continue reading “New Music in New Places: Local Composers and a Balloon Orchestra!”

Still single? Blame all of that noise

Photo courtesy mr * p on Flickr.

Photo courtesy mr * p on Flickr.

It’s true. Apparently all of that noise pollution - cars honking, music blaring, anything really, really loud - can get in the way of finding your true love.

Glenn Cunnington down at Carleton University set out to prove the facts behind all of the hullabaloo. In nature, the mating calls of many species can be drowned out by noise pollution, mixing up or even hiding the plaintive calls of the opposite sex. (Really, just like that guy yelling over the club music while you were out dancing last weekend. Did he say “I love you” or “Elephant shoes”?) So the question is: can species change their tune or raise their voices to make sure they are heard? Glenn will explore the answers down at Science Cafe this week, which, as always, takes place on Wednesday at 6:30pm at the Wild Oat Cafe (817 Bank).

Hoop Dreams - Men’s Basketball Final 8 this Weekend

bballgood

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Today, I feel a bit nostalgic for basketball. I played the game as a teenager and was an all around b-ball fanatic. The Jordan years, Reggie Miller talkin smack to Spike Lee (not Jonze) at Madison Square Garden, March Madness! in the NCAA and a dream of making it to Canada’s version of it, the CIS Final 8.

Well, it’s that time of year again. March Madness began yesterday in the States AND the CIS’ Final 8 gets underway live today from Scotiabank. Carleton has won the McGee Trophy six times out of the last seven years and is again the favourite. Joining the top seeded Ravens are the No. 2 Cape Breton Capers (AUS champions), No. 3 UBC Thunderbirds (Canada West bronze medalists), No. 4 Windsor Lancers (OUA finalists), No. 5 Saskatchewan Huskies (Canada West champions), No. 6 Lakehead Thunderwolves (OUA bronze medalists), No. 7 Calgary Dinos (Canada West finalists), and No. 8 UQAM Citadins (QSSF champions).

The weekend will be packed with a slew of other activities surrounding the Final 8 - a basketball player clinic, a coaches clinic and CIS Final 8 Hoops Classic, a tournament for Junior Girls AA- AAA and Midget boys AA-AAA teams, are also set to take place the weekend at the Ravens’ Nest.

The CIS tournament gets underway Friday at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa with the quarter-final round and concludes Sunday at 6:30 p.m. with the gold-medal final. Tickets are priced to fit all budgets and there’s going to be amazing talent on the court.

Full Schedule after the break

Click to continue reading “Hoop Dreams - Men’s Basketball Final 8 this Weekend”

Ottawa’s largest antiquing event!

From March 26 to 28, Carleton University will hold Ottawa’s largest antiquing event. You’ll be able to find one-of-a-kinds, unique home fashion, gorgeous period pieces, cheap chic, terrific textiles, stunning jewellery, decorator finds, country pine, antique furniture, fun fleas and art.

Where: The Fieldhouse at Carleton University Bronson Ave. and Sunnyside
Hours: Fri. 5-9 Sat. 10-5 Sun. 10-4
Cost: Admission $8 (Under 18 free) Free Parking & Re-admission

O-Town Hosts Good Po’t Bök Tomorrow: Joy!

Bök Bök Bök

Photo courtesy of blurasis on Flickr

Let’s be clear about one thing: Christian Bök will never be employed to write verse for Hallmark cards. (Although if I’m wrong, they will be the most awesome Hallmark cards EVER, and I will collect them all.) For those of you not up to speed on your avant-garde Canadian poetry, Bök - a University of Calgary English professor by day - is the mad genius behind the best-selling 2001 collection Eunoia, which features five chapters of poems made up of words using the same single vowel. Seriously. There’s an “a” chapter, an “e” chapter, and so on until the end of the alphabet. (Bök once said he wrote Eunoia - which is not only Greek for “beautiful thinking” but also the shortest word in the English language containing all five vowels - to show how each vowel has its own personality. If that’s so, I might suggest not inviting “u” to tea with your grandmother.)

Click to continue reading “O-Town Hosts Good Po’t Bök Tomorrow: Joy!”