Cosmic Variance (blog)
Encyclopedia
Cosmic Variance is a collaborative weblog discussing physics
, astrophysics
, and other topics, written by JoAnne Hewett, Mark Trodden
, Sean Carroll
, Risa Wechsler, Julianne Dalcanton
, John Conway, and Daniel Holz. It is the successor to Carroll's earlier blog Preposterous Universe, which began in early 2004 and ran through much of 2005. The blog's name comes from the cosmology
concept of cosmic variance
.
Cosmic Variance has rapidly become "undoubtedly the most popular blog written by physicists." In 2006, Nature reported that it was the fourth most popular science blog and one of only five blogs by scientists in the 3500 most popular blogs. As of July 26, 2007, Cosmic Variance had a Technorati
authority of 1001 and rank of 2277. In 2008, the blog became part of the Discover magazine
website.
Most writing on Cosmic Variance focuses on modern physics, astrophysics, and cosmology, at a level accessible to the interested non-scientist. However, topics of discussion have ranged widely, including science and religion, science journalism, higher education, and politics. Several discussions on Cosmic Variance have gained attention in the print media, including a discussion on women in science that compared physicist Lisa Randall
to Jodie Foster
and a post by John Conway about his discovery of a "bump" in particle accelerator
data that turned out not to be caused by the Higgs boson
. When the engagement of Carroll to science writer Jennifer Ouellette was first announced on his blog, the story was picked up by both the New York Times and the prominent scientific journal Nature
.
Cosmic Variance has hosted a number of guest bloggers, including string theorist
Joseph Polchinski
reviewing Lee Smolin
's book The Trouble With Physics
.
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, astrophysics
Astrophysics
Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...
, and other topics, written by JoAnne Hewett, Mark Trodden
Mark Trodden
Mark Trodden is a theoretical cosmologist and particle physicist. He is the Fay R. and Eugene L. Langberg Professor of Physics and Co-Director of the Center for Particle Cosmology at the University of Pennsylvania.-Education and career:...
, Sean Carroll
Sean M. Carroll
Sean Michael Carroll is a senior research associate in the Department of Physics at the California Institute of Technology. He is a theoretical cosmologist specializing in dark energy and general relativity...
, Risa Wechsler, Julianne Dalcanton
Julianne Dalcanton
Julianne Dalcanton is an American astronomer.She is Associate Professor of Astronomy, University of Washington, and researcher for Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Her main work is on the area of galaxy formation and evolution...
, John Conway, and Daniel Holz. It is the successor to Carroll's earlier blog Preposterous Universe, which began in early 2004 and ran through much of 2005. The blog's name comes from the cosmology
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
concept of cosmic variance
Cosmic variance
Cosmic variance is the statistical uncertainty inherent in observations of the universe at extreme distances. It is based on the idea that it is only possible to observe part of the universe at one particular time, so it is difficult to make statistical statements about cosmology on the scale of...
.
Cosmic Variance has rapidly become "undoubtedly the most popular blog written by physicists." In 2006, Nature reported that it was the fourth most popular science blog and one of only five blogs by scientists in the 3500 most popular blogs. As of July 26, 2007, Cosmic Variance had a Technorati
Technorati
Technorati is an Internet search engine for searching blogs. By June 2008, Technorati was indexing 112.8 million blogs and over 250 million pieces of tagged social media...
authority of 1001 and rank of 2277. In 2008, the blog became part of the Discover magazine
Discover (magazine)
Discover is an American science magazine that publishes articles about science for a general audience. The monthly magazine was launched in October 1980 by Time Inc. It was sold to Family Media, the owners of Health, in 1987. Walt Disney Company bought the magazine when Family Media went out of...
website.
Most writing on Cosmic Variance focuses on modern physics, astrophysics, and cosmology, at a level accessible to the interested non-scientist. However, topics of discussion have ranged widely, including science and religion, science journalism, higher education, and politics. Several discussions on Cosmic Variance have gained attention in the print media, including a discussion on women in science that compared physicist Lisa Randall
Lisa Randall
Lisa Randall is an American theoretical physicist and a leading expert on particle physics and cosmology. She works on several of the competing models of string theory in the quest to explain the fabric of the universe. Her most well known contribution to the field is the Randall-Sundrum model,...
to Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
and a post by John Conway about his discovery of a "bump" in particle accelerator
Particle accelerator
A particle accelerator is a device that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to high speeds and to contain them in well-defined beams. An ordinary CRT television set is a simple form of accelerator. There are two basic types: electrostatic and oscillating field accelerators.In...
data that turned out not to be caused by the Higgs boson
Higgs boson
The Higgs boson is a hypothetical massive elementary particle that is predicted to exist by the Standard Model of particle physics. Its existence is postulated as a means of resolving inconsistencies in the Standard Model...
. When the engagement of Carroll to science writer Jennifer Ouellette was first announced on his blog, the story was picked up by both the New York Times and the prominent scientific journal Nature
Nature (journal)
Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
.
Cosmic Variance has hosted a number of guest bloggers, including string theorist
String theory
String theory is an active research framework in particle physics that attempts to reconcile quantum mechanics and general relativity. It is a contender for a theory of everything , a manner of describing the known fundamental forces and matter in a mathematically complete system...
Joseph Polchinski
Joseph Polchinski
Joseph Polchinski is a physicist working on string theory. He graduated from Canyon del Oro High School in Tucson, Arizona in 1971, obtained his B.S. degree from Caltech in 1975, and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1980 under the supervision of Stanley Mandelstam...
reviewing Lee Smolin
Lee Smolin
Lee Smolin is an American theoretical physicist, a researcher at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and an adjunct professor of physics at the University of Waterloo. He is married to Dina Graser, a communications lawyer in Toronto. His brother is David M...
's book The Trouble With Physics
The Trouble with Physics
The Trouble With Physics is a 2006 book by the theoretical physicist Lee Smolin about the problems with string theory. Subtitled The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next, the book strongly criticizes string theory and its prominence in contemporary theoretical physics,...
.