World's Most Powerful X-ray Laser

The newly upgraded Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory successfully produced its first X-rays. The upgrade, called LCLS-II, creates unparalleled capabilities that will usher in a new era in research with X-rays. Credit: Greg Stewart/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory




With up to a million X-ray flashes per second, 8,000 times more than its predecessor, it transforms the ability of scientists to explore atomic-scale, ultrafast phenomena that are key to a broad range of applications, from quantum materials to clean energy technologies and medicine.

The newly upgraded Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory successfully produced its first X-rays, and scientists around the world are already lined up to kick off an ambitious science program.

The upgrade, called LCLS-II, creates unparalleled capabilities that will usher in a new era in research with X-rays. 

Scientists will be able to examine the details of quantum materials with unprecedented resolution to drive new forms of computing and communications; reveal unpredictable and fleeting chemical events to teach us how to create more sustainable industries and clean energy technologies; study how biological molecules carry out life’s functions to develop new types of pharmaceuticals; and study the world on the fastest timescales to open up entirely new fields of scientific investigation.

“This achievement marks the culmination of over a decade of work,” said LCLS-II Project Director Greg Hays. “It shows that all the different elements of LCLS-II are working in harmony to produce X-ray laser light in an entirely new mode of operation.”  READ MORE...

Dreaming

 

Peaceful

Today, I am trading places with my wife...  she is inside the house while I am in the sunroom which is technically still the house but outside the house proper.  The sunroom is one of the reasons that we purchased this house because it offers incredible solitude...  and solitude is what one needs from time to time...  since sleeping at night is not really awakened solitude.

There are absolutely no noises here in the sunroom except the sound of the keyboard as I type and the creaking of the sunroom walls as it adjusts to the gradually increasing temperatures.

Even the ceiling fan is silently running...

The recliner in which I am sitting was purchased from the previous owners who had a sale of items day for all those things they could not take with them.  We had one two when we sold our previous home to move here, but gave most of our items away to Habitat for Humanity...  it would have been nice to have a little extra money, but we did not need it.

We have both been retired since 2015 but ever since we moved into this new location, our retirement lives have never been as quiet and as serene as they are now.  While there are young people living in this neighborhood, most of the people around us are also retired...  there is no need for them to make a lot of noise - outside of when their grandchildren are visiting.

We have done more work to this house than we needed to do and we still have a few odds and ends to fix but there is no emergency and will probably get accomplished over the next 2-3 years.

There no longer seems to be an urgency in what we do, even if it is something that we need to do.  The only time constraint on our lives right now are our doctor's appointments - they only allow a 15 minute late window before you have to make a new appointment.

We went over to my wife's son's camper last night for dinner and they wanted us to be there at a certain time...  so, we have that constraint as well, but it is nothing critical to observe.

Other than that, we are just taking our time in whatever we do and enjoying the ability to do that.  We don't have to work in the yard today, we can do it tomorrow or the next day.

But, what is amazing more than anything else is that we both have things that we enjoy doing and we NEVER GET BORED.

Forgot My Benadryl

Once a month I get a 2-hour infusion of IVIG to help with my immunity due to constant chemo treatments.  And, each month, I try to remember at the end of that day I will not be able to sleep unless I take 2 Benadryl pills.  Sometimes, like tonight, I have forgotten to take those pills and after trying to sleep for over 3 hours, I got up, took the pills, and am now waiting for them to kick in.

To berate myself any more than I already have is counterproductive...

So, it may be an hour or two before I can sleep.

As I sit here thinking, I am reminded that all human beings are composed of both male and female genes.  The gender that we end up with is the one that has a preponderance of that gender gene.  Consequently, there are males and females...  However, each gender is incomplete.

We are made complete when we sexually reproduce but that completeness only lasts momentarily because there will always be dominate gender genes.

Similarly, human beings are both positive and negative, good and evil, depressed and not depressed, intelligent and not intelligent...  In other words we are comprised of opposites and only one opposite at a time can dominate.  Hence our various personalities.

If you are blessed with the depression genes, then you will be fighting depression all your life.  Sometimes, this fight will be extremely dramatic but other times it will be so minor you will hardly know it is there.

For me, I have the depression genes whereas my brother and sister do not possess many of them at all, however, my sister has more than my brother has.   It was just the luck of the draw for me.

My battle with depression has been intermittent all my life with it lessening as I get older.  This was especially true when I retired but it raised its head more often but did not stay as long.  My final break came when I distanced myself with my family and just focused on my own life rather than how I might compare with them.

Not sure why the comparison was necessary but at the time, I must have thought it was important.  What brought this to my mind is the fact that it is my brother's birthday today and I have not had contact with him since last Christmas, when we had a phone conversation that lasted 30 seconds.

When I think about family comparisons, the depression monster raises its head.  Tonight, it did not stay very long.  But it was here.

Am I grateful for getting old?

To some degree I am but it also is an indication that my life will not last much longer, at least not as long as it already has...  at the most I have about 20 years left...  and while that seems like a long time... it goes by quickly.

My retirement is fulfilling...  I want for nothing and can pretty much do whatever I want.  I stay busy doing stuff, none of which is earth shattering important, but it keeps me entertained all day.  I am content, happy, and at peace with myself and my life.

I have gained tolerance and understanding and patience which is all the wisdom I need.

No Excuses

Whether or not you believe this, I believe that we end up in life at a place that we were meant to be at from the getgo.  You have no idea how your life is going to end up, yet, you spend your entire life making choices.  Whether you realized it or not, those choices brought you exactly where you were supposed to be anyway...

Hard to believe?

I reckon it is...  especially when you perceive that you have free will and are making your own decisions...  and you are...  it's just that situations have been put in front of you that cause you to make the decisions you make.  You really didn't have any other choice to make but the one you make.

I have often heard those who have been retired for a while make the comment that if they had it to do all over again, they would live their life differently.  While they may think that would happen or wish that something different would have happened...  they are wrong.  Your life was lived out exactly the way it was meant to be lived out.

How can you say that?

Well...  let's start with your birth.  Did you decide that you wanted to be born?

NO!

Then, who did decide?

Those same forces that decided you were going to be born, decided how you were going to live your life while giving you the impression that you were in charge.

Since your birth, you have never been in charge.

Many people will refuse to believe this, but I do...  therefore, I make no excuses for how my life was lived and if I had a chance to live it all over again, I would live it the same way.

Somewhat Political

 

My Exposure to the Arts

Before I entered high school, around the time I was in junior high, I remember my mother taking me to theater productions at National Theater in Washington, DC.

The plays that I remember seeing were: My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music, The Music Man, and West Side Story. There might have been others, but I do not recall.

In addition to these plays, my mother took me to Art Openings at various art galleries in Washington, DC none of which I recall but I do recall some of the paintings that I saw.  It ranged from the works of the Masters like Renoir, Monet, and Chagall to modern artists whose names I do not recall.

One painting that was selling for $20,000 was a framed canvas about 3 feet by 5 feet that was solid green with a red circle in the upper left-hand corner.  I thought the painting had been done by a child at first.

As a result of my mother, I developed a love for the Arts and not just the theater or painting but of all the arts which included:  theater, outdoor dramas, oils, acrylics, watercolors, sculpture, pottery, weaving, and printmaking just to name a few.

At one time I thought I wanted to pursue the arts but every time I tried to paint or draw, I could not get my hands to mimic what my mind or eyes were seeing.

After high school, I started writing poetry and that lead to short stories then to opinion articles, and finally to novels.  I have no desire to publish any of my writings, although I have a blog on which I post my poems, but I don't really care if anyone reads them or not.

Writing like art is just something I enjoy whether I am doing it or someone else.  It passes the time and gives me pleasure.

It has never been clear to me why my mother selected me for her adventures into the art world and not my sister...  but it is what it is and I am thankful that she selected me.

I still like the arts but have not been to a play or an art gallery in years.  The last art gallery I went to was The Louvre in Paris, France.  I could have spent a whole week's vacation in there, but we only stayed a couple of hours.

My wife does not share my love of the arts although she likes to decorate our homes with a variety of art as long as they complement her color scheme.  Her choices are great but none of them would make it into a museum of art...  lol

Penguins

 

Energy-Efficient Spintronics Computing

Spintronics is a promising approach to computer technology that uses the intrinsic angular momentum of electrons to process information, potentially making computers faster and more energy-efficient. Researchers have been experimenting with magnetic whirls, or skyrmions, and recently enhanced their diffusion rate by tenfold using synthetic antiferromagnets, paving the way for efficient spin-based computing.




Researchers in Germany and Japan have been able to increase the diffusion of magnetic whirls, so-called skyrmions, by a factor of ten.

In today’s world, our lives are unimaginable without computers. Up until now, these devices process information using primarily electrons as charge carriers, with the components themselves heating up significantly in the process. Active cooling is thus necessary, which comes with high energy costs. 

Spintronics aims to solve this problem: Instead of utilizing the electron flow for information processing, it relies on their spin or their intrinsic angular momentum. This approach is expected to have a positive impact on the size, speed, and sustainability of computers or specific components.

Magnetic Whirls Store and Process Information
Science often does not simply consider the spin of an individual electron, but rather magnetic whirls composed of numerous spins. These whirls called skyrmions emerge in magnetic metallic thin layers and can be considered as two-dimensional quasi-particles. 

On the one hand, the whirls can be deliberately moved by applying a small electric current to the thin layers; on the other hand, they move randomly and extremely efficiently due to diffusion. 

The feasibility of creating a functional computer based on skyrmions was demonstrated by a team of researchers from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), led by Professor Dr. Mathias Kläui, using an initial prototype. This prototype consisted of thin, stacked metallic layers, some only a few atomic layers thick.  READ MORE...

Our Female Led World

 

Cycles of Life

 As human beings, we all are forced to live in cycles, some of which are endless, while others are not.  We have the cycle of time.

• 60 minutes to an hour
• 24 hours to a day
• 30 days (+/-) to a month 
• 12 months to a year
• 10 years to a decade
• 10 decades to a century

Of course, this seems obvious to most of us and the statement therefore quite juvenile.  However, we seldom see time as a cycle.  As soon as one of something (whatever it is) dies, another begins.  Consequently, we have cycles.

My thoughts have moved in this direction because we are approaching the end of the month of September...   but, as soon as we do end this month, another month, October begins.  Similarly, the ending of each night begins a new day...  new opportunities.

Once we are born and live our lives we die...  thus, our cycle of life has ended just as another's begins.

Can you imagine anything in life that is not a cycle?

While the earth on which we live has been around for a long time and will continue to be around for a long time, it will eventually die.  Consequently, some cycles are longer than others, but it is still a cycle.

Religious people will tell you that if you believe, then you will live forever...  most of them believe that...  but, if you were to look at that closer, you would see that if your life continues, it only continues in another form...  your body will not continue...  it has been designed to end...  so, if we live on in some other form, what will that form be?

• A spirit
• Our essence

In either case, we will no longer have the need to eat or sleep nor will we feel pain or anxiety, nor will we ever again have the need for money or to become wealthy.  However, the truth about cycles is maintained.

Our entire concept of physics is based upon a beginning and an end...  but, what if that was not the case?  Then what?

Turning again to physics...

Matter can neither be created nor destroyed but it can be changed from one form to another.

• Ice to water and then water to steam
• Human body to spirit

Some cultures believe that our bodies will be recycled and that in our next life we may come back as an animal or another human being...

If this is so, then what causes that new cycle?

How many cycles do you think human beings have?

No one knows...

We are not really sure what happens after death...

Most people don't think about this because it is too mindboggling.

China's Mega Bridges

 

Great Women Artists

Despite the fact that women were involved in the process of creating art from the dawn of humanity, the conversation on their true input started not so long ago. Feminist art historians of the 1970s began uncovering the forgotten or overlooked names in the history of art.

Here are 10 fascinating women artists who left a lasting mark on history that you should definitely know.


10. Remedios Varo (1908 – 1963): The Almost Forgotten Woman 

ArtistMicrocosmos by Remedios Varo, 1959, via Sotheby’s

The name of the great Surrealist Remedios Varo has been known in Mexico for years, but it was ignored by the rest of the world until recent years. Varo worked in Spain and France, surrounded by the most influential Surrealists, but she struggled to make a living as an artist. She was a close friend of artists Leonora Carrington and Kati Horna. The trio made works in Surrealist fashion. They were commonly referred to as the three witches by their colleagues.

Success found her when she left Europe for Mexico when World War II started. Unlike other Surrealists who fled to Mexico, she never directly referenced Mexican art in her works but she was nonetheless interested in it. Varo had a deep interest in alchemy and witchcraft, which helped her create magical compositions. However, her works are not only spiritual, they also make a place for irony and for political issues, mostly those concerning women.

TO READ ABOUT THE OTHER NINE, CLICK HERE...

Somewhat Political

 

Common Sense

Can common sense be learned, taught, or acquired?

Although common sense is something you are born with and learn along the way of life, it is something you can try to improve. Learning common sense isn't quite as easy as doing some reading and sitting an exam, as it's mainly developed through life lessons and skills.  SOURCE:  Rednax Recruitment

My dad had a creative expression for people who lacked common sense...  "That person couldn't pour piss out of a boot with directions written on the heal."

There have been several times in my life where I have similar thoughts about people...  although, sometimes I wonder if I lack common sense as my ability to reason and logically conclude has become, on occasion, distorted (I believe) with age.

Just today, someone claiming to be from AT&T came to the door to sell us on an internet connection and phone service.  We spent an hour or more with him and his assistant and signed up for the internet service as we had to think about the phone...  And, when they left, I looked at my wife an exclaimed we never asked them to verify that they actually worked for AT&T.

Not only is that a lack of good judgement but it is a lack of common sense.

One of these days, our assumptions are going to bite us in the ass.

Common sense is nothing more than exercising good judgment in practical matters...

But, what is good judgement?

Salespersons who succeed in sales where others fail have an uncanny knack of taking advantage of people's lack of common sense.

I am reminded of a story where someone was praising the ability of this salesperson and made the claim that he could sell ice to an Eskimo.

That would be quite a feat, I told myself after hearing the story...  but again, it is based upon common sense or the lack thereof.

I am also reminded of a story about how PhD's are incredibly smart when it comes to book knowledge but that they typically have no common sense.

One of my PhD professors in college, asked me one day how to call a taxi because her car had broken down.  She had just happened to pass me on her way to somewhere else.  I suppose she recognized me as one of her students.  I was older than most since I had spent some time in the military.

If you lack common sense or think you lack common sense, my suggestion is to start paying close attention to others and see how they think a problem through. 

Piglets

 

Tougher Than Kevlar

Numerous scientists aspire to unlock the remarkable capability of spiders to spin silk threads that are immensely strong, lightweight, and flexible. In fact, pound for pound, spider silk is stronger than steel and tougher than Kevlar. However, no one has been able to replicate the spiders’ work yet.

If we ever manage to develop a synthetic equivalent with these characteristics, a whole new world of possibilities may open: Artificial spider silk could replace materials like Kevlar, polyester, and carbon fiber in industries and be used, for example, to make lightweight and flexible bulletproof vests.

Postdoc and biophysicist Irina Iachina from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark (SDU), is involved in this race to uncover the recipe for super silk.

She has been fascinated by spider silk since her time as a master’s student at SDU, and currently, she is researching the topic at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston with support from the Villum Foundation.

As part of her research, she is collaborating with associate professor and biophysicist Jonathan Brewer at SDU, who is an expert in using various types of microscopes to peer into biological structures.

Together, they have now, for the first time, studied the internal parts of spider silk using an optical microscope without cutting or opening the silk in any way. This work has now been published in the journals Scientific Reports and Scanning.

“We have used several advanced microscopy techniques, and we have also developed a new kind of optical microscope that allows us to look all the way into a piece of fiber and see what’s inside,” explains Jonathan Brewer.  READ MORE...

China's in the Lead

 

Opdivo Time Again

Hard to believe that we are approaching the end of September and soon it will be October.  Tomorrow, I go to Knoxville for my 75th OPD  IVO infusion...  it will be an interesting infusion for me because I am 75 years of age. 

Next month, it will obviously be my 76th infusion and in the month of October I will turn 76.  Fortunately, I will not age as fast as my infusions.  lol

At the end of 2023, I will be completing my 15th year of treatments for non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and my 10th year of treatments for metastasized Melanoma.

My OPDIVO treatments are for the Melanoma which according to the most recent PET scan show no activity and no growth.

They say LUCK FAVORS THE PREPARED...  I am not sure if I believe that or not because I consider myself very lucky to say the least.  My Oncologist is no more prepared than any other Oncologist and there have been many people who have died just having one of my cancers.

On Friday, I will have an infusion of IVIG which is basically synthesized plasma and gamma globulin from a horde on donors.  This infusion is supposed to boost my immune system.

Because of all these treatments I have had and continue to have my white blood count is low...  hence low immunity.  My red blood count is low...  hence anemia.  My platelets are low...  hence my blood does not clot quickly.

My treatments also create fatigue and the IVIG is supposed to help improve that as well.  It will not eliminate the fatigue, but it will reduce it some.

I have been getting monthly IVIG treatments for about 4-5 years and while this has been an ongoing process, I seem to be feeling less fatigued than before.  I hope that is not wishful thinking or just in my imagination.

So, tomorrow, I go to Knoxville and on Friday I go up to Morristown which is about 15-20 minutes from the house as opposed to 40-45 minutes to Knoxville.  Neither distance is bad...  however, the parking is worse in Knoxville.

Garage Shelving