Can’t make it to AGU this year? Neither can I, but I will still visit the poster session

It is once again the time of the year for the big AGU conference in the US. I made it to the one two years ago, and found it kind of overwhelming in its hugeness, with talks and posters on any number of topics which fall into categories of which I know nothing, because geology is nothing if not a huge broad catch-all of a science. Fortunately for us that meeting, like many others these days, has a fully searchable program, permitting us to find those talks or posters we should hear/see because they relate to our own research, and those talks which are totally outside our current research but still fall into topics which are of personal interest. This year, in addition to having the computerized program, they have also made much of the poster session available on line. Therefore those of us who are staying home can still have the fun of wandering the crowed isles and looking at interesting research results. So ahead, go on over, look at some posters, and learn something new. Perhaps you will even find something interesting enough to send the author a note inviting conversation on the topic.

this is delightful!

I just saw a link over at Earth Learning Idea to a delightful web page, made by Cary and Michael Huang, which shows the scale of the universe. They've got a blue box you can slide back and forth, to see things at all scales. A very delightful toy.