For many, a new year brings self-examination and commitment to self-improvement. Sometimes, promises of personal development are kept, but in my experience, they are typically forgotten by spring. Usually, New Year’s resolutions include goals of weight...

Okay, it’s the wrong season, but bear with me. Easter eggs, at least the software kind, are everywhere — from a hidden menu in a DVD to an obscure demo in an application program . In the software game, some rules apply as to what legitimately can...

With President Bush’s call for a return to the lunar surface, dozens of titles about the Moon have hit bookstores. From the volumes that have crossed my desk, most are nostalgic or historic accounts that showcase the people behind earlier lunar missions...

Recently, I stood in a foot of snow when the Fahrenheit temperature was barely in the teens. I dressed warmly (or so I thought), but I wasn’t doing anything physical, so the cold was biting at my extremities. Yes, I was observing. As much as I despise...

One place I’ve always wanted to visit is Antarctica. It’s a continent seemingly designed for science geeks and natural-history buffs. Here’s a sampling of scientists now scattered across the bleak landscape: Cosmologists tweak the 10-meter South Pole...

With more than a week left until what many North Americans consider as official start of winter, a nasty winter blast moved through the Midwest yesterday. Thanks to this weather emergency, our office closed, and most employees spent the day shoveling...

Today started off as one of those Midwestern winter days where I’d rather go back to bed and start over sometime in spring 2008. Here’s the pre-9 A.M. highlights: a dead car battery, 5 inches of snow to shovel, a broken water heater, an extra 45 minutes...

This week, the SciFi Channel is running a miniseries called Tin Man . I haven’t watched it (you can view all three episodes at www.scifi.com ), but one of my astronomy friends tells me tonight’s episode features a double solar eclipse — two moons covering...

How do you make astrometry fun? Well, you don’t, of course. Astrometry is the precise measurement of the position and motion of astronomical objects. It is not something one takes lightly. It requires skill, exactitude, and lots and lots of math. Nevertheless...