Brutkey

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social
Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

About 3 weeks until my epic trip, that will include lots of lectures (both for researchers and the general public), meeting with research collaborators, and hopefully a tiny bit of vacation time.

I have SO much to do to get house/farm animals ready for the farm sitter, packing, eating up freezer food... I am at the stage where I have lists started on scraps of paper scattered around my desk, my kitchen table, a notebook, and a couple on my phone and computer. Any good organization tips?

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

It still cold and frosty, and it's still gorgeous

Grasses that are completely covered with frost, on every single twig and blade. It's beautiful. A bunch of frost-killed weeds laying down next to a frozen pond. Every single weed stalk is coated with white frost. There are frosty trees and a grey sky above More frosty grass, with frosty bare forest in the background, and a grey sky above.
Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

RE: https://stefanbohacek.online/@mteverest/115627311525119210

Having a live Mt. Everest weather forecast makes my temperature here in Saskatchewan not seem so bad. (It's "only" -15C here right now.)

Anybody have a Mars weather feed? That would probably help even more..

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

It's impressive how much less email I get when Americans have a holiday. Happy Thanksgiving, indeed!

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

Frost is on everything. Even plastic fenceposts, chicken wire, and toilets-turned-planters look fancy.

A many-layered fence, with frost on wooden fenceposts, plastic fenceposts, and the edges of a metal gate. There's also a layer of hexagonal chicken wire that is beautifully covered with frost. It's hexagons all the way down. An old toilet that has been converted into a planter, completely covered with frost. In the background is a woven-willow fence where every single stick is covered with frost. Another view of the woven-willow fence. It has so much frost on it it almost looks fuzzy. Any branches sticking out a bit are bright white. A closer-up view of the willow fence, showing how completely coated in frost all the sticks are.
Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

It's even colder, foggier, and frostier today. At least it's beautiful! (I keep telling myself over and over)

A bunch of bare, white-trunked trees completely covered with bright white frost on every single branch and twig. The sky above is foggy grey. It looks like a black-and-white photo. A small frozen pond surrounded by completely frosted grass, bare trees completely covered with frost, and a grey foggy sky above. Almost no colour at all in the picture. A close-up of the weird frost bits growing on a horizontal fence railing. The crystals look like tiny spruce trees. In the background is fog and frosted grass and trees. Looking across frosted grass, with tall completely-frosted spruce trees on one side of the photo, and frosted woods with a frosted abandoned building on the other side. The sky above is grey and foggy. The only colour is a little bit of pale yellow paint that hasn't totally peeled off the abandoned building.
Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

Vancouver and Victoria people: I'll be there in January and I might as well give some more lectures than I'm already committed to. Anybody have a library or science centre connection and want me to give a public talk about space debris and satellite pollution?

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

I've been listening to podcasts with my 9yo and this one was one of the best episodes of anything I've listened to for quite a while! It's scientifically fascinating, it's an emotional rollercoaster (with a happy ending) and it's very silly. Great stuff! https://www.radiolab.org/podcast/terrestrials-hybrid-mule

Mules have 63 chromosomes....whaaaaat.

Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

It's cold, foggy, and there's frost on everything. Gorgeously surreal.

I vote that should be Saskatchewan's new tagline. "Gorgeously surreal" is way better than "land of living skies"

Looking across a yard that is 100% covered with frost. Every branch, twig, and blade of grass. There's a bare rose bush up close that looks like a sea creature, and weird white bare shrubs and trees in the background. The sky is white with fog. Looking across frosty grass with a large spruce tree totally covered in frost. It looks like the fake-frosted Christmas trees you can buy. Close-up of wrought-iron railing, with the corners of the iron all covered with frost. It looks very cool on the pieces that are twisted, as the frost traces out a nice spiral pattern.
Prof. Sam Lawler
@sundogplanets@mastodon.social

RE: https://c18.masto.host/@carrideen/115612306944610233

Hey students, here's a great resource for how to ask for and help your professors/mentors to write good reference letters for you!

Carrie Shanafelt
@carrideen@c18.masto.host

@sundogplanets@mastodon.social I don't know if this is helpful, but I use this with my students to try to get enough information to write a good letter. Feel free to adapt the list as appropriate for your discipline! Writing rec letters is awful, but I find it slightly less so if you're getting good input. https://www.carrieshanafelt.com/asking-for-a-letter-of-recommendation