Dr. Brian Cox, my new favorite physicist

CameronBornAndBred · Post by **CameronBornAndBred** » August 17th, 2009, 11:31 pm

I've seen a couple shows with him lately, and he's my new favorite. Luckily for my ego, he is older than I am, but only by a few months. Unluckily, he looks younger. My two old favorites, Neil Degrasse Tyson and Michio Kaku are still awesome. These guys make science fun, and have a great way of explaining ideas that are way above my head. One of my favorite Stargate: Atlantis episodes had Tyson and Bill Nye in prominant guest roles, it was great.
But Cox has a humor that the others don't, (although they can still be funny, Tyson wants death by black hole) and I hope to see lots more of him. He's also a musician; he's even been in a band with number one song. (That I never heard of).

colchar · Post by **colchar** » August 18th, 2009, 12:19 am

You have a favourite physicist?!? Fuck, that's geeky.

Ah who am I kidding - my personal favourites are Stephen Hawking (he's leaving Cambridge and is coming here to Waterloo Ontario!!!) and Dr. Shelden Cooper.

Post by **wilson** » August 18th, 2009, 12:22 am

colchar wrote:You have a favourite physicist?!? Fuck, that's geeky.

Ah who am I kidding - my personal favourites are Stephen Hawking (he's leaving Cambridge and is coming here to Waterloo Ontario!!!) and Dr. Shelden Cooper.

Initially, I thought this thread was somehow going to be a joke about Brian Cox, the spitting wackjob who used to play for the New York Jets:

CameronBornAndBred · Post by **CameronBornAndBred** » August 18th, 2009, 12:28 am

colchar wrote:You have a favourite physicist?!? Fuck, that's geeky.

Ah who am I kidding - my personal favourites are Stephen Hawking (he's leaving Cambridge and is coming here to Waterloo Ontario!!!) and Dr. Shelden Cooper.

If it weren't for my shitty math I would have loved to have been in physics. I saved me grades by doing eggdrops, toothpick bridges and mousetrap cars. Physics can ooze creativity and left brain thinking, that damn math just got in my way. (I loathe math)
My last eggdrop project I had, I decided to make a Wright Brother's style plane out of toothpicks and saran wrap, and fly my egg down. On the bus to the drop zone (South Square Mall's second floor parking deck) some jackass swung his arm and my plane's tail broke off. So now I'm f*cked. It comes to be my turn, and I know there is no way in hell this thing is flying. Right before I release it (it did have to be dropped, not thrown) I decided I would turn it around, and let it go backwards. It sailed about 100 yards to land in the parking lot of the TCBY across the street, egg completely intact. If I applied any math to my design, it would have dropped like a rock.

colchar · Post by **colchar** » August 18th, 2009, 12:58 am

CameronBornAndBred wrote: I saved me grades

"I saved me grades"?!? Are you being a pirate tonight?

(I loathe math)

You and me both. Math sucks. Math truly truly sucks.

Lavabe · Post by **Lavabe** » August 18th, 2009, 5:55 am

colchar wrote:You and me both. Math sucks. Math truly truly sucks.

If Brian would reverse my F in Physics 41, he's my favorite physicist too.

bjornolf · Post by **bjornolf** » August 18th, 2009, 8:51 am

When I saw Dr. Cox, I immediately thought of Scrubs. ;)

DukeUsul · Post by **DukeUsul** » August 18th, 2009, 9:39 am

Who DOESN'T have a favorite physicist?

And yes, Dr. Sheldon Cooper is at the top of the list.

windsor · Post by **windsor** » August 18th, 2009, 10:42 am

DukeUsul wrote:Who DOESN'T have a favorite physicist?

And yes, Dr. Sheldon Cooper is at the top of the list.

I have a favorite physcist...Michio Kaku (in the real world) just rocks.

In the not so real world....Sheldon! Elevating geekdom to an artform

bjornolf · Post by **bjornolf** » August 18th, 2009, 10:45 am

windsor wrote:
DukeUsul wrote:Who DOESN'T have a favorite physicist?

And yes, Dr. Sheldon Cooper is at the top of the list.

I have a favorite physcist...Michio Kaku (in the real world) just rocks.

In the not so real world....Sheldon! Elevating geekdom to an artform

Oh, I totally missed that one. You're talking about Sheldon from BBT? I don't really follow the REAL world physicists too closely, so I thought you were talking about a real one. I LOVE Sheldon from BBT, even though he called me an oompa loompa. ;)

windsor · Post by **windsor** » August 18th, 2009, 10:48 am

If I had it all to do over again I would say fuck it and get a PhD in physics.

I think quantum mechanics is cool as all get out.

Oh...and I love math. The weekend of my Senior Prom in high school (back in the dark ages) I was at the Atlantic Regional Math Meet on the NY State math team. No joke. I had a way better time than I would have at the damn prom. blech.

<propeller is spinning on my beanie>
...and the geek shall inherit the earth....

DukeUsul · Post by **DukeUsul** » August 18th, 2009, 10:49 am

windsor wrote:If I had it all to do over again I would say fuck it and get a PhD in physics.

I think quantum mechanics is cool as all get out.

Oh...and I love math. The weekend of my Senior Prom in high school (back in the dark ages) I was at the Atlantic Regional Math Meet on the NY State math team. No joke. I had a way better time than I would have at the damn prom. blech.

<propeller is spinning on my beanie>
...and the geek shall inherit the earth....

Yeah me too. I gave it serious thought. Then I got married and my wife wanted to get her PhD and I wanted to have a way to put food on the table....

Quantum mechanics is ridiculously awesome. My favorite day was when we derived chemistry. I shit you not. We derived chemistry.

windsor · Post by **windsor** » August 18th, 2009, 11:59 am

DukeUsul wrote: Quantum mechanics is ridiculously awesome. My favorite day was when we derived chemistry. I shit you not. We derived chemistry.

cl15876 · Post by **cl15876** » August 18th, 2009, 3:54 pm

windsor wrote:If I had it all to do over again I would say fuck it and get a PhD in physics. ...

I think about this often also!

DukeUsul wrote:Yeah me too. I gave it serious thought. Then I got married and my wife wanted to get her PhD and I wanted to have a way to put food on the table....

Quantum mechanics is ridiculously awesome. My favorite day was when WE derived chemistry. I shit you not. We derived chemistry.

DukUsul - was this before or after you got married to your wife?

If she is the not the one you refer to, than I ask you a couple of following on questions as my friend Dana Carvey would "Why would one shit you not? Wouldn't you know if you were happening? ... there are plenty more from his "squatting with monkeys series" doing an impression of andy rooney - the entire thing is funny as H E double LL" and my question - How does one derive chemistry?

I could ask more, but it might border on TMI!

DukeUsul · Post by **DukeUsul** » August 18th, 2009, 4:23 pm

cl15876 wrote:
windsor wrote:If I had it all to do over again I would say fuck it and get a PhD in physics. ...
I think about this often also!

DukeUsul wrote:Yeah me too. I gave it serious thought. Then I got married and my wife wanted to get her PhD and I wanted to have a way to put food on the table....

Quantum mechanics is ridiculously awesome. My favorite day was when WE derived chemistry. I shit you not. We derived chemistry.
DukUsul - was this before or after you got married to your wife? If she is the not the one you refer to, than I ask you a couple of following on questions as my friend Dana Carvey would "Why would one shit you not? Wouldn't you know if you were happening? ... there are plenty more from his "squatting with monkeys series" doing an impression of andy rooney - the entire thing is funny as H E double LL" and my question - How does one derive chemistry? I could ask more, but it might border on TMI!

The derivation of chemistry was a classroom exercise during I think the first semester of quantum mechanics. It was funny, the professor gets up and says, "Ok, let's derive chemistry." Then she proceeds to walk us through the quantum state of an atom and how the spin-1/2 electrons fit in their orbits. Essentially you derive the fact that the first two electrons go into the 1s shell then the next two go into the 2s shell.... From a very small set of basic principles, you derive the structure of atoms and their shells. Which of course leads to why the periodic table is organized the way it is and why certain atoms will bond in certain ways .... and so on.

And my wife and I didn't have to derive chemistry, we just had it naturally from the first time we met....

cl15876 · Post by **cl15876** » August 18th, 2009, 4:40 pm

DukeUsul wrote:
cl15876 wrote:
windsor wrote:If I had it all to do over again I would say fuck it and get a PhD in physics. ...
I think about this often also!

DukeUsul wrote:Yeah me too. I gave it serious thought. Then I got married and my wife wanted to get her PhD and I wanted to have a way to put food on the table....

Quantum mechanics is ridiculously awesome. My favorite day was when WE derived chemistry. I shit you not. We derived chemistry.
DukUsul - was this before or after you got married to your wife? If she is the not the one you refer to, than I ask you a couple of following on questions as my friend Dana Carvey would "Why would one shit you not? Wouldn't you know if you were happening? ... there are plenty more from his "squatting with monkeys series" doing an impression of andy rooney - the entire thing is funny as H E double LL" and my question - How does one derive chemistry? I could ask more, but it might border on TMI!
The derivation of chemistry was a classroom exercise during I think the first semester of quantum mechanics. It was funny, the professor gets up and says, "Ok, let's derive chemistry." Then she proceeds to walk us through the quantum state of an atom and how the spin-1/2 electrons fit in their orbits. Essentially you derive the fact that the first two electrons go into the 1s shell then the next two go into the 2s shell.... From a very small set of basic principles, you derive the structure of atoms and their shells. Which of course leads to why the periodic table is organized the way it is and why certain atoms will bond in certain ways .... and so on.

Thanks for clarifying... NOW it is all clear!!!! Very cool!!!!

DukeUsul wrote:And my wife and I didn't have to derive chemistry, we just had it naturally from the first time we met....

What a fantastic answer, I CAN relate!!!!! Not sure about the

smilies, but I would have expected the

(not to be confused with the

" smilie!!!! One day our Mod's will fix this.... Now that we have DD, I think there is a chance!

Post by **wilson** » August 18th, 2009, 4:49 pm

bjornolf wrote:
windsor wrote:
DukeUsul wrote:Who DOESN'T have a favorite physicist?

And yes, Dr. Sheldon Cooper is at the top of the list.

I have a favorite physcist...Michio Kaku (in the real world) just rocks.

In the not so real world....Sheldon! Elevating geekdom to an artform
Oh, I totally missed that one. You're talking about Sheldon from BBT? I don't really follow the REAL world physicists too closely, so I thought you were talking about a real one. I LOVE Sheldon from BBT, even though he called me an oompa loompa. ;)

What's BBT? The only non-real world Sheldon that comes to me is the one who never appears onscreen in 'When Harry Met Sally.'
"A Sheldon can do your income taxes. If you need a root canal, Sheldon's your man. But humpin' and pumpin' is not Sheldon's strong suit. It's the name. 'Do it to me Sheldon, you're an animal Sheldon, ride me big Shelll-don.' Doesn't work."

TillyGalore · Post by **TillyGalore** » August 18th, 2009, 4:53 pm

wilson wrote:

What's BBT? The only non-real world Sheldon that comes to me is the one who never appears onscreen in 'When Harry Met Sally.'
"A Sheldon can do your income taxes. If you need a root canal, Sheldon's your man. But humpin' and pumpin' is not Sheldon's strong suit. It's the name. 'Do it to me Sheldon, you're an animal Sheldon, ride me big Shelll-don.' Doesn't work."[/quote]

Big Bang Theory.

As someone else pointed out previously, I suspect Candace Parker may have said the above to her husband. Since they have a baby, I'd be willing to bet it was conceived the natural way.

Lavabe · Post by **Lavabe** » August 18th, 2009, 5:19 pm

I need subtitles as soon as you say quantum... and that goes for Quantum of Solace too.

bjornolf · Post by **bjornolf** » August 18th, 2009, 5:22 pm

Only then it would have been "Shelll-Den!" ;)

Dr. Brian Cox, my new favorite physicist

Dr. Brian Cox, my new favorite physicist

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