The Science of Life

Suddenly, there is silence. It's been quiet for a while now, but now that the rounds are complete, it is complete silence, here on the surface of Mars. Not that this is really Mars. In the deserts of Southern Utah, there is a crew at the Mars Desert Research Station, running simulations for a trip to Mars. There are strict protocols for such things. Ideas accumulated on the ground put into place by The Mars Society. So simple are these ideas that most people – and even higher percent of scientists – would not think of them. Like, for instance, keeping a comp notebook at each piece of equipment to track use and maintenance. Keeping a log on the computer for suggested SOP for the crew who takes over on the next cycle change. In the isolation of the desert, these people can teach us a few things about how to do what we do as Environmental Scientists. For one, it is alright to be a nerd and proud of it. In fact, it is the preferred state of mind for us....

I apologize for a longer-than-acceptable absence. My academic progress is getting in the way of so much of my life right now, including but not limited to this blog. I will, however, persevere in continuing with it – both the academics as well as the blog. I have also been working on a few projects outside of academia and outside of this blog. This includes a new website which incorporates poetry, chemistry, undergraduate papers, ACS news, and my tutoring in chemistry. For those of you curious, it can be found at http://poetchem.alexandersdesigns.net/ .  Over the course of the next few months, I will be transitioning this blog over there. For this blog entry, I will detail how one of my classes – in particular, Calculus III – relates to the real world. This is one project I have been working on for the past few semesters.  This will also be my final extra credit project for that course. There is something you have to understand about the realm of mathematics,...