(Lack of an) Online Presence

Blogs and forums have always been first on my list for preferred methods of web-based communication and especially outreach/information sharing. It's often hard to keep track of though, and can require quite a large amount of effort. Afterall, a 140 character tweet can be drafted, proofed, and published before you have boiled the kettle. I can only imagine the quantities of tea/coffee that content creators like Kurtzegast, Smarter Every Day, and Periodic Videos go through for each video.

Being fair to myself and the lack of effort I have put into blogging (or the various online projects I have initiated and never followed through on) I have had my hands tied by PhD work. The good news there being that I am submitted, viva voce-d, and to graduate any day now.

I would really like to get involved in science web content, it has been a desire in the back of my mind for a long time. The work with the Physics Society DIT, lab demonstrating, teaching hours, tutorials, talks, posters, conference dinners, discussions over tea, general academic life, all of this does really help grow a broad perspective. I've been very lucky to sit on tables with experts and attend talks by award winners, it's nice to share that for anyone who is interested. I realise there are plenty of staffers out there who do this, but there's always room for one more eh?

I wanted to put up a five minute blurb as a getting-back-to-it. As usual if you read this and want to comment I'd love to hear from you, but for the time being this is for myself I suppose.

#WhatDidScienceDoToday

Nearly finished with September 2012 already

Isn't the world ending soon? I really do never get enough time to finish what I start..
I never even get a chance to start half the things I want to start really.

College term is beginning again, final year of my PhD, the start of my 21st year in education, my 8th year of graduate physics and coming up on my quarter of a century.
More than this, much more than this.. (hur hur) one brother is starting his leaving cert courses (5th year), another has moved to San Diego for his PhD in UCSD, one sister is starting schooling (5 years old) and another is going to be moving to England to continue her graduate level architecture. Really crazy to think, I find it hard enough to believe that little Alannah is 5, let alone that Josh isn't going to be living in Ireland for at least the next 5 years. Feels very odd indeed.

Listening to Interpol on my headphone in the office, just G and myself in the office at the moment, I like Interpol sometimes. What do you like to listen to when you're working? Do you not get to listen to music when you work? I hate it when that happens, I never work right without music. I remember my first job, it was just a summer job in a primary school (1st level of education) near where I was living. I had just finished my leaving cert and my dad sorted me out with a few weeks repairing and upgrading the computers he had sold them years before. I spent about the bulk of it just formatting machines, fresh install of the latest Windows and all that.
I would walk down to the school each morning, stop off in the shop and buy an Irn-Bru and a pack of Crispy M&Ms. I had brought a set of PC speakers (the same set I have in my office now, had them for about a decade [harman/kardon HK195]) and was blasting Eagles of Death Metal while I worked alone in the computer room. The school was basically empty except for me and the odd teacher who was dropping by to grab this or that from their rooms. Just me, spinning on office chairs and checking the HDDs, dusting out machines and replacing power supplies that had lived their lifetime. Was a fun couple of weeks considering I was getting paid to do it.
I like that memory.

My brother is gone D:

    All the way to San Diego, 8363.86 km away (give or take). I really hope he is settling in well over there, in those 40 degree highs and 20 degree lows. With the sunshine, and the sandy beaches. Getting paid to be a student, doing maths (well, he likes that.. that wouldn't be for me). That bastard.

Recent (iPhone) photograph, taken in Blackwater, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford (Aug 2012).
My two brothers, Daniel and Josh (L-R) scoping the fields ahead for dinner.

    But I really miss him, even if we didn't see each other every day it's hard to think he's not even remotely close by. I mean, it's nearly the other side of the world (well New Zeland is really the other side of the world to Dublin [nearest land mass anyway]). But I'm really happy he has found somewhere which will look great on his academic CV and also give him a great chance to explore and grow as travel only can (not to mention give me another handy holiday destination for the next 5 years).

    As for everything else in life I will sit down and finish blog posts and organise images eventually. I enjoy writing blogs because it feels like having a journal you can access everywhere (or a log book, draft blog posts allow more control than draft emails for sure). It's nice to collect moments in time and to have somewhere to share things as everyone who writes personal blogs knows.

Childhood photograph, taken in Blackwater, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford.
From left to right are my nana, Shauna, Josh, myself and my grandad, rest his soul.

Back to work with me now, preparing a poster for the 2012 International Workshop on EUV and Soft X-ray Sources and getting a general talk ready for the postgraduate seminar I have to give in October.

Listening to Ben Prunty Music's songs from the game FTL (which is an epic game btw, worth well more than the $9).