A Degree of Latitude

It is a well known fact that in the UK, Japan, Korea and Switzerland, if you face the sun at midday, you are facing South.

On a visit to the Philippines once, I had an unusual experience.

My assistant, Raquel lives in Barangay Hilusig, in the center of the Island of Leyte, Visayas.

The bus from Tacloban City (1oo km away) runs right by her home on the concreted National Highway from Manila to Davao City. Believe me, it is a noisy highway, despite being halfway up the mountain and in the jungle!

In the Philippines, there are no bus stops, you just wait and flag the bus down.

I must have waited outside her house a dozen times before I figured out what was wrong.

In the Philippines, whose latitude varies between 6 degrees and 15 degrees (Latitude being the angle that the imaginary line between the center of the earth, the equator, and the place you are on the surface, makes. For example, the latitude of the north pole is 90 degrees, a right angle). England is about 55 degrees latitude, that is, much more to the north.

In the daytime, the sun in the Philippines is almost always directly overhead, being so far south.

The highway runs exactly North to South past Raquel's home, and I was standing on it, looking down it, in the southerly direction.

Then I noticed something really strange. It was midday, and being north of the equator, my shadow should have been behind me. But it was in front of me.

It took me the whole bus journey (90 minutes) to work it out:
























The Tropic of Cancer is there to indicate the extent that the Earth's tilt in space affects the climate. It is at 23.5 degrees latitude. At June 21, the sun is directly overhead at the Tropic of Cancer.

Since the Philippines is above the equator but below the Tropic, at some points in the year, the sun is actually NORTH when you face it, as the diagram shows.

This is what caused my shadow to be in front of me when I faced south.

The effect is subtle and directly related to the "midnight sun" as seen above the Arctic Circle.

"Even in your own house?"

To me , I am startled that the West has not yet "grasped" the mere rudiments of the East.

I refer to the taking off of the shoes when entering a house.

I do it automatically.

People in the Uk (bless them) seem to think it is ok if I just "wipe my feet" on the "Welcome" mat provided.

After that, I still take my shoes off, leave them on the mat, and only then I bow.

In all the places I stay, I do this.

The question has arisen for me thus: "what about your own house?"

My answer is the same, hence the title. I take off my shoes when I go inside.

The point? When will Westerners learn to have this amount of respect for Us?

American Tourists in Japan have to take off their shoes because they are there, out of respect ( very often begrudged). We just take off our shoes in the USA because we are Japanese.

At least I choose to.

The difference is clear.

Classify this One, then!

The "Darwin Awards" usually go to that individual who kills him/herself in such a stupid way, that Charles Darwin would have been happy that that said individual had been removed from the Global Gene Pool.

For example, a few years back, I forget the exact details, but a Chinese fighter pilot decided to "escort" a formation of US fighters through Chinese air space, so that they could safely land in China, I think, about a grounded US Hercules (correct me if I wrong). Anyway, his wing touched a US fighter's wing, and he went out of control, and crashed, killing him. He made it to the Darwin Awards Website.

How about this one: In Hilusig, where I was a guest again for the last 2 weeks or so, this happened only yesterday:

Two guys had been drinking. Heavily.

These two decided it would be a good idea to go for a ride, in the dark, on a motorcycle, after the said alcohol-consuming activity.
(and of course, in the Philippines, motorcycle helmets do NOT exist)

There is only one road in Hilusig, and it is unlit at night - you only have headlights to guide you. There are no city lights, only the Stars and pitch blackness to see by.

Not surprising, then, that they apparently crashed at speed.

The lead rider was killed. Also not surprising since Hilusig sits on the side of a mountain.

The pillion rider lived.

The question begs itself: Who deserves the Darwin Award most, even though you have to be dead to get it?!?!?!

Obviously, the guy who was killed got the award, but what about the passenger? Did he not deserve it more for agreeing to be ridden into the night by another drunk guy?

Maybe the second guy is a victim of the "Final Destination" scenario...?

..or is that...."will be.....?"

"Exciting is Hardly the Word I would Choose"

As said by R2D2 (George's abbreviation for "Roll 2 Dialogue 2" in the original Episode IV screenplay), but translated to us by C3PO.

The quote illustrates to me how travel is ~ exciting ~ but, to pessimist C3PO, quite the opposite.

I refer to the recent loss of my passport. I droppped it, somewhere in the departure lounge at Manila Domestic airport. As usual, this one lounge was packed with people (maybe up to 1000). However, panic I did not. I just retraced my steps, inch by inch, until I reached the point where Ilast knew I had it, near to the newsstand. So I approached the clerk, and he said to ne there was a guy who had found it, and was currently looking for me using my photo. Soon after, I found him, and expressed my profound gratitude with a kiss on the cheek.

Travel can be dangerous at times, and I had simply left it on the floor whilst i checked my baggage, assuming I had already pocketed it into my jeans back pocket.

I thank the Maker that I have a cool head.

Taking a Break

I have left the climes of CERN and the whole Nuclear Physics shebang for a while, to go visit my old (yet still young) roommate Raquel here in the Philippines. The reason is two-fold:

a) to see old friends again, and

b) to discuss with my parents where I should go from here.

Suffice it to say, I want to continue with my PhD, no matter how hard it is.

Ideas? Of Course! Delegation!

It is very rainy here right now, Tacloban City must be getting a storm a day at precisely 3 o'clock. Doc Brown would be so proud.

My thoughts go out to a certain passenger whom I met on my flight here, with his lovely girlfriend. Both seemed a little uneasy at coming here, but they soon wised up. I have even read on a certain blog that they thought travel in Manila was without rules! Shah! This was the one thing I neglected to advise them about as they disembarked into the oven that is called "the air" here!

Hold That Thought!

This is true - I haven't blogged in while (12 days).

I am making a painful transition (ouch!)

I am currently in the Philippines where Internet access is limited, so I have to write my posts on my pc, copy to FD and then paste and format into the posts here. But hey! In a few days you may well read about High Numbers (who?) and the fascination they have for me.

In short, I have, as of now, three posts to do. But my FD is 100km away, my pc is in an hotel, and I am in an Internet Cafe with DIAL-UP access! Bleurghgh! At least these ip adresses are in the Philippines! Hey, we had a small earth tremor last night! The curtains in my 7th floor hotel room were dancing!

Watch this space.

Expectation Values

Here I am then, in Groningen. Hotel is fairly not-so-fabulous, but hey! who am I (good song in Les Miserables - 24601 ahoy!) to judge?

Tomorrow I will gauge their team's invariance to the "3-slit" technology that I have somehow provided for them.

Here is flatland to a fault (not that they get any here, but hey, this is Akiko with her triple entendres). This place is so FLAT that ignoring any kind of resistance (French or otherwise), given a small push on a bicycle, you would travel for "miles and miles" (The author of that song would mayhap trash his guitar at my allusion) without any help at all. A "bit" like superconductivity, only on a macroscopic scale, and without the "cool" temperatures.

Suffice it to say, Groningen is a little different from Manchester. It is in the middle of nowhere, with just a few black-and-whites for company (Al Powell perhaps).

My reading on this place is that they are not expecting anyone to make much valued improvement, hence the title of the post.

Quantum Mechanics is wonderful, ain't it?

Damn the Hamster

Once upon a time there was a river. It was called the "Amster". It hailed from a country called "The Netherlands" (connotations ahoy! - twice! ~ NAY ~ thrice. Those of you into journalism may make the connection(s)).

Anyway, I am here in the real flatland, and home to M. C. Escher. Now there was an artist. True , his career spanned woodcuts and engravings and even paintings, but there was an aura about him that caught the eye. The Impossible Triangle first caught mine. (It certainly got the attention of Boon's finger in Clive Barker's "Nightbreed". (what a disturbing movie!))

Now, there is an impossible cube. (this statement has at least three meanings, depending upon who you are!)

To each his own.

Back to the future, then. I am here in Holland checking out the laboratory in Friesland. Where the black and white cows come from. The lab is at Groningen, North west of the said area. They have an average sort of setup. I will go there tomorrow and gauge their invariance.