Michael T. Starks

Author: admin

  • The Princess Bride – Part 2

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    Okay. This is a first. I feel compelled to write about the fact that I watched The Princess Bride again. I LOVE THIS MOVIE! I wish that I could say this about so many more movies. Every single frame of this movie is unbelievably good. I’m sure that many movies can boast better cinematography. Maybe…

  • Friends of Mikayla

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    My daughter, Mikayla, is 24 years old. Because she has special needs, she still lives with us. When she was about six months old, she was diagnosed with Septo Optic Dysplasia (SOD). She’s missing the septum pellucidum, a thin membrane that typically separates the brain’s two hemispheres. Mikayla displays the following symptoms, which are typical…

  • John Williams

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    I recently finished watching an excellent Disney+ documentary called Music by John Williams. It reminded me just how much I love the music John Williams has created. He has been one of my heroes since I first saw Star Wars in 1977. I still have a book of his songs that I learned to play…

  • The Princess Bride

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    This is one of my favorite movies ever made! The first time I saw it in the theater, I was late. So, they’re already making their way across the water, heading for the Cliffs of Insanity. While I didn’t know what was happening, I was instantly drawn in. I was loving every minute of it.…

  • Two Axes of Health

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    I’ve been listening to the book Languishing by Corey Keyes on Audible. One concept that resonates with me is that doctors should not just focus on fixing or minimizing the bad stuff. They should also promote well-being. They should help us maximize the good stuff. This works for physical and mental health. Here’s an example.…

  • The Beauty of Physics

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    People often think of physics as a science. In many ways, it’s more like an art. While I earned a Bachelor’s of Science in physics, my next degree was a Master’s of Arts in physics. Solving physics problems requires logic, but it also requires intuition. Studying physics is a passionate endeavor. The questions physicists ask…

  • The Standard Model – Part 2

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    Okay, I can’t help myself. Let’s examine Quanta Magazine’s 3D Visualization of The Standard Model in more detail. What I love about this visualization is that it considers the interactions between the fundamental particles and the behaviors that distinguish any given particle from another. It has the following elements. Color (Red, Green, and Blue) is…

  • The Standard Model

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    Particle physics is a BIG subject. There are so many known particles that I doubt anyone can name each one (at least not without taking the time to memorize them all). While most people don’t need to understand all the details, we can benefit from knowing the basics. It’s worth knowing how scientists currently answer…

  • Judi Dench

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    A moment in the movie Shakespeare in Love took my breath away. During a performance of one of Shakespeare’s plays, some guy wants to shut it all down. He talks about what Queen Elizabeth would want. Then, Judi Dench, playing the role of Queen Elizabeth, stands up and says, “Have a care with my name.…

  • Unimpressed

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    My younger self would not be so impressed with me. In college, I dreamed of getting a Ph. D. in physics. When push came to shove, I only got a master’s degree in physics. This would have been okay if I had stuck with physics. I taught math and physics for about five years after…