I flew back yesterday from California.

[MineralMan]

In the airport newsstand I spotted a copy of the current Scientific American's special Spring Edition on nuclear physics and cosmology. It's expensive, at $11.99, but worth the price and then some.

I began reading it on the 3.5 hour flight, but haven't quite gotten through all of the articles yet. As usual, I can't follow the mathematics past the point I ended my math studies, but also as usual, the articles still helped me understand more of the recent research and experiments that are going on in those fields.

About half an hour before we landed, I dogeared the page I was on and put the magazine back in my carry-on. The man two seats over from me in the exit row, asked "Do you understand what's in that magazine?" We had talked earlier, and I had learned that he is a mechanical engineer.

"Not entirely," I replied. "I can't follow all of the math, so I have to take the authors' words for that. However, both nuclear physics and cosmology have interested me for over 50 years."

I asked him if he had seen the recent photos of a black hole. He said that he had. I commented that, in our lifetimes, we have seen individual atoms, and now a black hole. Both things had seemed impossible not very long in the past "How could I not be fascinated with all of that research, even if I have to accept that the math and techniques being used are being accurately described?" I asked.

Anyhow, that special issue of Scientific American is worth it's price. If you're interested in those fields, it's sort of a must buy issue. New discoveries that have been recently announced are not included in it, but there's a huge amount of great information to be found on its pages.

[lastlib]

1. I F*cking Love Science!

As a science geek from way back, I could eat this stuff up. Thanx for the heads-up!

[eppur_se_muova]

2. Thanks for the heads-up, I'll look for it. nt

[MineralMan]

3. I'm going to finish reading the issue in the next couple of days.

But, I expect to re-read some of the articles. I'll keep the issue for reference. It's that good.

[monmouth4]

4. And, how are your parents doing? n/t

[MineralMan]

6. They're surviving. It's very difficult for my father,

as my mother's Alzheimer's continues to worsen. They're sticking with the assisted living facility with maximum services. I convinced my father to hire a private healthcare aide to spend about three hours a day sitting in their apartment to give my father some respite time and time to do things he needs to do.

Compared to the cost of the assisted living apartment and the services they offer, it's a minor expense, really. But, someone needs to be there all the time, since Mom sometimes gets up and wanders off inside the facility with her walker. She also needs assistance in the bathroom. The staff at the assisted living comes quickly when called, but Mom doesn't remember how to call them.

So a room-sitter will let my father leave, which he needs to do on a regular basis for his own well-being.

So, we figured that out. I also met with their physician for a consultation. I filled him in on their daily issues and he gave me a detailed rundown of their health issues. My father is very hard of hearing. So, we agreed that the doctor would call me if my Dad doesn't seem to understand something and let me act as a relay point. He also gave me his private cell phone number so I can contact him with concerns that come up. Finally, he will check in on them whenever he visits a patient at that facility. The half-hour consultation was gratis on his part. He's a good guy and is concerned for their well-being. He said that they're the oldest couple he has ever worked with and likes them both.

So, we solved some issues, for the time being. I'm sure there will be more things come up and I'm figuring that I'll be flying out there on short notice from time to time. Oh, well...

[monmouth4]

9. You're a good son MM, much luck to them and of course, you. n/t

[shraby]

5. I love that magazine. I read the library copy.

There used to be one called Science Digest. It was geared more to interested readers who are without the requisite math but have the requisite curiosity.

After they quit publishing, I found Scientific American. It's more technical but still great! I've been reading it since around 1980. You have good taste in reading!

[MineralMan]

7. I started reading Scientific American when I was 12.

There was a lot I didn't understand back then in each issue, but I kept learning more over the years and so I understood more. The magazine has always offered a glimpse into scientific research which you can learn from, regardless of your level of knowledge.

This particular issue has a lot of depth to it, but, anyone interested in the sciences and who has a better than average understanding of math and those sciences will get a lot out of it, I think.

One of my favorite things in the magazine is the look-back page, where they reprint short articles from 50, 100, and now 150 years ago. The magazine has been around for a very long time.

[hunter]

8. Science News is still around, in paper and on the web.

https://www.sciencenews.org/

It used to be supported by Intel and other giant tech corporations in a fairly unobtrusive way, but now it's got advertising like you see in Smithsonian and similar magazines.

It's worth a subscription if you can afford it.

As a kid I remember visiting rural relatives who subscribed to both Science Digest and Readers Digest. People were proud of being well-read.

Then came satellite television.

In middle and high school I spent as much time as I could hiding out in the library reading Science Digest and the like.

[MineralMan]

10. I used to read Science Digest, too.

I actually wrote a couple of articles on quack medicine for that magazine in the early 1980s, but didn't continue to write for them after that. It's too bad it went out of business. It was a good, non-technical magazine for the average person.