One of the coolest things (at least I thought so) I’ve ever had decorating my wall was a 3’x5′ Chart of the Nuclides poster from 1976 or so. I had it posted on the wall above my desk, so that every time I looked up I could check out a different element. It was big, and packed a ton of information about each element into each box. It also doubled as a place for me to post Sticky notes. Had to leave it at home when I moved to the US, and I’ve been missing it ever since.
Just heard that the 2003 16th edition of the chart is now available for a really decent price. Only $25 for the wall chart or the book (the book is only $15 if you’re a student).
Think I’ll have to go place an order…
Stunning example of retrograde motion
The Face on Mars
APOD has a cool new picture of what that Face on Mars really looks like.
It still has a face-like appearance, although it does look like more of a natural, not artificially created structure.
The big high resolution version of the photo makes a really cool desktop background.
Farewell Voyager
APOD’s got a pretty cool representation of what Voyager 1 is about to encounter at the edge of the solar system.
90 AU out, and moving at over 3 AU/year. That’s over 448793612 km/year (278866864 miles/year) or 51197 km/h (31819 miles/h) or 14 km/s (8.8 miles/s). Now that’s fast.
IoP Book Sale
If you’re in the market for some physics related books, the Institute of Physics is having a huge book sale. Books are discounted up to 75%, so if they have a text you’ve been eyeing for a while, but have been putting off because it’s too expensive, see if it’s one the books on sale. The list of books sorted by title (which I’m browsing through now) is 18 pages long, so there are plenty of books to choose from. Lots of proceedings, lots of hardcore physics books, and a bunch of general interest books. The sale ends Dec 31, so go check it out!