What Happens When You Flip the Light Switch

South Burlington, VT

Physics Forums, has a feature called Science Insights.  It publishes articles of interest to scientists and engineers or fans of the same. They just published an article of mine.  I'm proud of that.

The link is below.  I belive that it available to anyone to view.

What Happens When You Flip the Light Switch

Laid Back at BTV

South Burlington, VT

Libby and I continue to expand our horizons.  Today we toured the Lamoille River using TJ.  It was very pretty.

Yesterday, I went over to the airport to drink my morning coffee.  I was surprized to see a hot air balloon floating nearby.   I listened to the control tower radio frequency.  

The controller was well aware of the baloon and he was warning the airplanes to look out for it.  But they didn't need much warning, the baloon was huge and highly visible.  


After a while the balloon actually drifted over the runway and it blocked a FEDEX jet that had just landed.   But no big deal.  The FEDEX pilot just said, "We'll wait for him to move away."

Soon after, the baloon actually landed on the apron of the airport.  I don't know if it was deliberate, or whether he had permission, but I could see that nobody got excited.

Imagine if that happened at JFK or MIA.  The press would have called it a terrorist attack, and DHS would have surrounded the baloon with men with machine guns.   Not in Burlington though.  This place is very laid back.  

Back in the 90s, I was also listening to the Burlington Airport Tower when a similar incident happened.   The balloon pictured below was drifting over the airport.  I heard the tower controller say, "Traffic is a Boeing 747 hovering over the field."  Now that is what I call laid back.

Chomp chomp chomp chomp, Another One Bites The Dust

South Burlington, VT

I think I mentioned before that a good form of local entertainment this summer is the demolition of 87 houses surrounding the Burlington International Airport.  Here is a picture from this morning.

It takes only 30 minutes to demolish a single storey house or 60 minutes for a two-storey one.  It takes the rest of the day to demolish the basement, to fill the empty hole with soil, and to smooth it in preparation for growing grass.  In a month, it will look like a lawn that has been there forever.  Only pictures, will record that a house ever stood on that spot.  No traces will remain for future archaeologists.

Look at the lime green bedroom wall.  I surmise that it was a child's bedroom.   Some boy or girl grew up there and would have a heavy emotional investment in the memories of those walls.   Fortunately, that boy or girl was not there to witness the demolition.  It would probably feel like a personal attack on their identity if they did witness it.

That machine with the claw looks like a monster munching the house.  Think of Godzilla.  It is almost irresistible to watch as a form of entertainment.  I see several people from the neighborhood out there every day.

Valcourian Balm for the Sould

South Burlington, VT

Soul Balm; is that a good phrase to describe Valcour Island?

We just returned from another three day stay there.  When we are on Valcour we feel totally at peace with the world.   The only thing that forces us to return to land is running out of food.

The past few days especially, there has been a heat wave.  But sitting 5 meters from the water it never gets too hot.   Besides, we can (and did) simply walk into the water frequently for a swim.  The water is perfect temperature for swimming (75F 24C).  It is also crystal clear, soft and silky.

The interior of Valcour is also interesting.   It is perfectly clear that Valcour was scrubbed clean down to baserock in the last glacial period about 12,000 years ago (?).   Since then, it has rebuilt only a thin layer of soil on top, 3-6 inches in most places.  That makes it hard for mighty trees to establish structurally adequate roots to hold them up.   Accordingly, every time a powerful wind comes along, some of the big trees fall pulling their root system over with them.

Note the slab of rock pulled up when this tree fell.

Almost every visit to Valcour in the past 40 years, I fantasize about energy.   I would love to have a house there, and to power it with the energy from dead wood, plus the thermal sink of lake waters all around.   Of course, that dream can never be fulfilled, but it is fun.

Cedars are especially tenatious in seeking soil for their roots.

The interior of Valcour is also totally shaded and almost always damp.   Fungi, and moss flourish.   In some places the verdant green moss beds are somehow suspended in air above the rocks.  When you walk on them it feels like a trampoline.   If they weren't damp, they would make marvelous natural bed mattresses.

We circumnavigated the island during a calm spell.

I'm sure it's not over,  We will return to Valcour again before the end of this summer season.

Local Knowledge Needed, Lake Huron North Channel

South Burlington, VT

We want to see Georgian Bay and the North Channel.   So many sources say that it is incredibly beautiful.    We would cruise and camp using our canoe, TJ.

But recent experience on Lake Champlain makes us cautious.   Even though most of the day was calm, the wind picked up while we were out on open water.  Experienced boaters know that unexpected shit happens. (pardon my French)

TJ, when loaded down with two people plus all our camping gear, is not seaworthy in anything but mild conditions.  If Lake Champlain is a challenge, then Lake Huron is more so.   We need some charts and/or paddling guides and/or cruising guides and/or personal advice.   The thing to avoid is the need to cross long open stretches of water to get to the next camping destination.

If you can help, please respond.