Astronomical visualization goes big

i think this is the first time i'm promoting something developed at microsoft, but i really gotta give them credit here. the worldwide telelscope (WWT) is an interactive piece of software, with god knows how many layers of astronomical data embedded, that allows its users to navigate through the universe and experience decades of astronomical observations first-hand. i had the privilege of meeting curtis wong (the creator of the software) in december in kicp's cosmology short course, which i helped organize (i even "graded" his assignment for the course, for which he of course submitted WWT). he is a wonderful person and WWT is really an amazing project.

i gotta mention though, at the same cosmology short course, carter emmart from the hayden planetarium of the american museum of natural history presented digital universe, which does essentially the exact same thing as the WWT. in fact, it is almost more impressive than the WWT, AND it's available for free download (i doubt microsoft would allow such a socialist move). having played around with both pieces of software, i have to say i prefer the latter.

below is curtis wong and mike turner playing with the WWT on curtis' laptop, and a group of us - with long-haired and generally amazing carter emmart - awed by digital universe.

More Higher Ed

well, to keep the discussion on higher ed in america going, let me refer to this article in the new york times discussing the widening differences in endowments in universities across the country. harvard has an endowment of around 35 billion dollars, but - as this article states - fewer than 400 of the 4500 universities in the country have an endowment over 100 million dollars, and most have less than 10 million. (for the record, dartmouth's present endowment is around 4 billion, which is around what harvard's endowment was in 1990.) harvard recently announced that they would be offering financial aid to students whose family incomes were up to $180,000 a year (an incredible plan), whereas most universities struggle to provide financial aid to students with family incomes significantly lower than that. so, essentially, if you're brilliant you are set, but if you are an average, hard-working student you'll most likely have to face significant debt for the rest of your life just to get a college education. sound fair? yeah, not really.

University applications

honestly, i'm happy i'm not applying to college these days. the new york times reports today on immense increases in the number of applicants to many universities across the country. to my delight, "my" three universities - dartmouth, harvard, university of chicago - are all mentioned in the first paragraph. the pressure on high schoolers in this country is tremendous. certainly, there is a large group of applicants from top-ranking private or public high schools whose academic and non-academic accomplishments are simply unbelievable. as a representative example, i have one particular family in mind (those of you who know me know who i'm talking about) with three kids graduated from ivies and now in medical school and a fourth one applying this year: each one of them spent high school taking dozens of AP courses, excelling in sports, pursuing non-trivial independent research in the sciences, spending their summers traveling and studying in europe, competing in (and generally winning) math and science competitions across the country, and (in the case of the youngest one) also impressing everyone with her talent as a singer. the top universities in the country must get many of these applicants, whose resumes evoke what is normally accomplished in liberal arts colleges and whose entire school careers seem to have been designed for their college admissions application. but, i've also seen the flipside of education in this country through my teaching in cambridge, boston, and here in the south side of chicago. in these schools, high school classrooms are falling apart, experimental equipment is from the 1950's, drop-out rates are alarmingly high, enrollment in college is shockingly low, teachers have no formal background in the subject they teach, some classrooms lack teachers altogether, and any curiosity or desire to learn is stifled. it's difficult to reconcile these two pictures of education in the united states.