Saw an incredible production of Pride & Prejudice with my beloved [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat last night! It was performed at the Oxford Playhouse, by a touring company from Theatre Royal Bath. This was the fourth show that we have seen together this year... and, by far, the best![*] The house was packed, as the show apparently had a number of fairly famous actors in it[**], for this excellent performance! The acting was incredible, the sets were extraordinary. Everything about this show -- except, on certain occasions, the lighting -- was utterly wonderful. Much humour was injected, as well, which fit perfectly. I am not certain where this tour will be going... but if it comes near you, gentle reader, I heartily recommend seeing it!

Hurm. I really do need a theatre icon for shows that are neither musicals nor Shakespeare.

Other than that, it has been a relatively quiet week. Just for the sake of journaling, here are some recent comings and goings of everybody's favourite Nomad:

On Tuesday evening, the fantastic [livejournal.com profile] wolfpeach came over for ice cream and gaming and hanging out. This was -- as always -- good fun! We taught him how to play Dominion and played two games (the so-called "first game" and the "interaction" game). I won both... although just barely on the latter!

On Monday evening, I made my way to St. Aldate's Church in the centre of Oxford for an extended ringing practice focusing on Plain Bob Minor. I feel that my work here is getting better and I would hope to participate in a quarter peal before this year is out.

Also of note, I hopped in the pool this weekend and swam a mile for the first time in Far Too LongTM. That felt good! Being a water elemental, I need my immersion on a much more regular -- and frequent! -- basis! Must remember to make more time for swimming in the near future!

Finally, my dear friends, I know that I inundated many of you yesterday with my fairly technical post of sciencey goodness. I appreciate your collective indulgence and would not normally inflict such on you again so soon. However, there is one more piece of news that is so awesome, so totally bounce-inducing that I cannot hold it back! The news is actually from yesterday... yet I was not able to mention it publicly until the press release went through this morning. Here it is:

Ta-DAAA!!!


This, dear friends, is the first T2K neutrino event seen in the Super-Kamiokande detector. The brand new neutrino beam was fired down into the Earth... travelled nearly 300 km across Japan... then was detected in an enormous water tank on the other side of the country! How cool is that??

The three rings of light that you see are from particles resulting from the neutrino detection. The first two are probably from what we call a π0, which decays immediately into to particles of light. The other ring -- barely visible -- is from something else. Possible a nuclear interaction?

Anyway, I have been saying for some time now that T2K is moving into a very exciting era. This event marks that... and is the start of much more niftyness to come!


[*] The first three were a stage adaption of Angela Carter's The Magic Toyshop, a fairly bizarre rendition of Medea, and a delightful Ayckbourn piece entitled My Wonderful Day.

[**] So I am told, anyway. I am notorious for being clueless about celebrities. Want to know who was king of England in 975 C.E.? I can help you. Who are Susan Hampshire, David Beames, Natalie Burt, Peter Ellis, or Carolyn Pickles? I have absolutely no idea[**]... except to say that I saw them on stage last night and they all did a superb job!

[***] To emphasize my lack of cluefulness, I should point out that I have read their bios in the programme and, even after seeing all those television and film credits, I still have no idea who they are! Mainly because I have not heard of all these television shows and movies! [livejournal.com profile] cheshcat is frequently embarrassed by my profound ignorance.


From: [identity profile] xirpha.livejournal.com


Neat results. I did not know that the detector was a cylinder, I always thought it was a sphere. If I read the data right, it seem that the event caused particles to flow out in opposite directions, the first two in one and the third in the other.

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


Super-Kamiokande is a cylinder for engineering purposes. It is about forty-one meters high and thirty-nine meters in diameter... holding twelve and a half million gallons of water! Blasting such an enormous cavern underneath a mountain is not possible to do [safely and stably] for a sphere.

As for the event itself: The first two particles are emitted back-to-back in the rest frame. To our eye, they are boosted and look like they are going somewhat in the same direction. The other ring -- and I am not sure what caused it -- is indeed going in a very different direction to the first two.


From: [identity profile] cmcmck.livejournal.com


I just love bellringing peel terms. My favourite has to be 'grandsire triples' :o)

From: [identity profile] anarchist-nomad.livejournal.com


*grin* Funny you should mention that! I was just brushing up on my Grandsire Doubles for tonight's practice! The triples method, on anything but a plain course, is quite beyond me at the moment... ;-D

From: [identity profile] acelightning.livejournal.com


Wow, the new readings from Super-Kamiokande are seriously nifty! (But could you please refresh my aging memory as to how the emitter is producing a beam of neutrinos?) Is this the one that's going to win you your Nobel Prize? ;-)
.

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