Science

Spring is almost here. Overnight, it seems, the cherry blossoms are blooming everywhere. Except for the occasional cold spells which come just before the rains, the weather is definitely getting warmer. The days and nights are almost equal now. Speaking of rain, finally, the parched hills of California are getting some sprinkling and the wild flowers are even springing - fields of yellow on green slopes, a rare sight indeed. Californians are strange. The lack of precipitation in the past couple of years are bringing on the threat of drought and water rationing, yet some folks when faced with the little inconvenience of slower traffic and some difficulty with moving around, are even thinking they prefer the rains to go away. Oh well. Personally, I love the rain for the green hills that they nurture. The Tri-Valley looks so much more beautiful, definitely picturesque when the light shines on the green rolling slopes and pastures and the rainbow beams its cheerfulness on the earth.

Spring break is almost nigh and we have no plans. Last year, it took me weeks to plan out and make all the arrangements for Death Valley. I fear we are running out of time - but maybe with the economy the way it is, the hotels may not be as full as they would otherwise be. Or maybe we should be prudent and conserve. Just spend the week at home and visit nearby places within driving distance. Still, Yellowstone sounds so good.

This morning the half man and I went for the 4th of the 5 Science on Saturday lectures. To our surprise, there was a long queue even though we were at least half an hour early. The boy, as usual, was grunbling about being early but the sight of the queue stilled the tongue. The folks at the head of the queue, it appears, had been turned away from the 9:00 am session. Today was on fusion energy and its potential to power the voracious appetite of mankind for ever more energy without adding to the global climate change. Lawrence Livermore Labs has just in recent weeks completed the construction of the world's largest laser fusion facility, the size of 3 football fields. Still very experimental, it will be some years before we will see the first commercial application of the technology to power even a modest size city. I do remember learning about solar fusion when I was still a student back in secondary school. So the science is not new.

Forecast is rain again tomorrow. Tennis is at risk.