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© Catherine HaslagConservation Laws
There are many conservation laws that govern how the universe works. I teach two of these laws in my chemistry classes.
The first is the Law of Conservation of Matter, which states that matter cannot be created or destroyed. Atoms can rearrange to make new compounds, but the amount of matter you start with will equal the amount of matter you end with.
The second is the Law of Conservation of Energy, which states that energy cannot be created or destroyed. Energy can convert from one type to another (kinetic energy to potential energy or mechanical energy to electrical energy). Still, the amount of energy you start with will equal the amount of energy you end with.
These laws mean that you can never create more than you started with.
Business pushes the concept “do more with less.” However, since you can’t end with more than you started with based on the Laws of Conservation of Matter and Energy, it is impossible to do more with less.
This example is one of the many reasons a basic understanding of science is essential – it allows you to understand when someone is peddling bullshit, so you know not to buy it.
©2023 Catherine Haslag, All Rights Reserved.Life is a Chemical Reaction
Life is a chemical reaction.
Sometimes it is a violent combustion reaction, leaving destruction in its path.
Other times it is a very orderly and predictable reaction that precipitates a beautiful outcome.
In every instance, the limiting reagent is time.
© Catherine HaslagOde to the Electron
It’s a very small bit of matter,
9.1094×10^-31kg in mass,
but don’t let its nanoscopic size fool you.
This minuscule molecular
pulls more than its weight.
It is one of three subatomic particles
that make up the atoms
that make up the universe.
When transferred to another atom or shared,
it helps hold everything together.
When focused as an accelerated beam,
it can allow us to see the surface
of cells, crystals, and metal.
It prefers to pair up
and can be very destructive when left alone.
When left to travel
along a membrane in the mitochondria,
Fireworks from the 4th of July, 2006
it helps produce enough power
for you to run a marathon.
And on the 4th of July,
it gets excited, then relaxes
and puts on a pretty colorful show.
So celebrate the electron,
an extremely tiny particle
that performs extraordinary feats!
© Catherine HaslagLiving On the Edge of Science
I teach chemistry. One of the first things I teach my students is about the scientific method, the systematic process by which scientists learn about the world. I wrote the following back in April near the start of the pandemic. I wanted to share it here for your consideration.
Science is the systematic process by which we learn about the world. Scientists are basically professional students and explorers. They are constantly investigating the world around us to learn more about how and why it works as it does.
When you first started learning something, did you instantly know everything about it? At your first piano lesson, were you able to play Ragtime by Scott Joplin? On the first day of Spanish, were you able to speak and read fluently to your classmates and teacher? When you first got behind the wheel of a car, were you able to brake without jerking, shift smoothly, and merge on and off the interstate without concern?
The answer to all of these questions is no. You needed time to learn the keys and the notes on the piano, to learn vocabulary and how to conjugate verbs, and how to coordinate your hand, eye, and foot to smoothly maneuver the car and navigate traffic.
This is what scientists do on a daily basis. They learn, share the knowledge they have obtained, and continue to study so they can learn more. They work with what they know, understanding that tomorrow, they will know more and that may change their working hypotheses/theories about a concept. Scientists are on the frontier of what we know. This is the difference between a scientist and a Spanish teacher – the teacher already knows the vocabulary and how to conjugate the verbs. When they teach their classes, they are regurgitating what they already know. Scientists are not only speaking the language but also expanding the vocabulary and trying to teach others what they know as they learn it. They are on the edge of knowledge.
Most of the science we learn in school and see in the world around us is tried and true. It’s already gone through the process of rigorous testing and investigation. We missed the learning and changing that went along with that process. Coronavirus is on the edge of the science we know. It is still being studied and we are learning new things about it every day. This is why the information changes so quickly. It’s not that science doesn’t know what it’s doing but rather that it is constantly learning new details and getting a better picture of coronavirus. Humans just aren’t used to this rapid change in information and behavior. We like certainty and we don’t have all the information yet about coronavirus to be certain in the situation.
© Catherine HaslagWhat Happened to Flattening the Curve?
I have been following the data on the spread of the coronavirus updated daily by the New York Times since I was made aware of this resource sometime in late March/early April 2020.
On April 9, near the first peak observed, 34,699 new cases were recorded and the 7-day average was 31,544 cases (obtained from the NYT page on coronavirus cases linked above). I am writing this blog post on December 2, 2020, though I am not sure when I will be ready to share it online. The most recent data posted on the NYT page is for December 1. It states that 184,294 new cases were reported yesterday (December 1) with a 7-day average of 161,245 cases. As I write this, the NYT reports that more than 13,888,300 people have been infected by COVID-19 and at least 272,100 people have died due to this virus.
Hospitals are overwhelmed and healthcare workers are struggling to keep up with the demand for care.
- NPR reported on November 10 that hospitalizations are hitting high records.
- On November 10, Mayo hospital reported that over 1,000 staff members were out due to COVID-19. Later on November 18, Mayo reported that more than 900 clinic staff in Minnesota and Wisconsin tested positive for COVID-19 over a 2-week span.
- The Post Bulletin reported on November 10 that over 85% of the critical care hospital beds in eastern Minnesota were in use and that the hospitals in these areas were on-trend to reach full capacity.
- In St. Louis, Missouri, hospitals reported on November 25 that they are “at capacity now” and were routing patients to other area hospitals.
- As of December 1, the NYT reports that 98,691 people are hospitalized because of the coronavirus. This is up 32% from previous days.
- The USA Today reported on December 2 that New Mexico’s intensive care beds were at 101% capacity and that the explosive growth of the virus could overrun our healthcare system for not just COVID patients but anyone needing medical care.
- On December 2, 97% of ICU beds in the 16 eastern Tennessee counties were occupied with only 8 ICU beds open in the entire region. Even 93% of non-ICU beds were occupied.
- Hospitals in Santa Clara County, California were working together to redistribute patients who require ICU care because hospitals in the county were between 84% and 93% capacity.
- Many hospitals are also canceling elective surgeries to free-up beds and healthcare workers to treat the surge of COVID patients.
These are just a few of the stories I found about how hospitals and healthcare workers are currently stretched because of coronavirus. If you do your own search, you are likely to find many, many more.
How did this happen? Back in March and April, the goal was to “flatten the curve.” According to the graph of coronavirus cases reported per day since March, not only have we not flattened the curve, but we don’t seem concerned regarding what the curve looks like at all.
Back in March when the US first began to respond to the pandemic, I realized that there were going to be people who died not because they caught coronavirus but because they had a medical issue and didn’t receive the treatment they needed because of the coronavirus. The person who had a heart attack or stroke and weren’t treated in time because there wasn’t a bed available or enough doctors/nurses to care for them. The woman who’s tumor went undetected because her mammogram was postponed due to all medical staff being needed to treat COVID patients. If our hospitals and healthcare workers are overwhelmed, there may be no help available if you get sick at all, be it from COVID-19 or not.
This is exactly where we are now – if you become ill for any reason, our medical system is so overwhelmed that the help you need may not be available to you. Preventing the spread of the virus isn’t just about keeping people from getting sick from COVID, it’s also about preventing our medical system from being overall so medical services available for all those who need it.
I know everyone is tired, including me. The only things I have really succeeded in doing is putting on the COVID-19 (actually 15 pounds, but still more than I would have liked) and hosting some wonderful Zoom happy hours. I also manage to shower and cloth myself on a daily basis, usually in stretchy, comfy pants. I totally understand the grind that is living in this COVID Groundhog’s day. It sucks the big one, but I believe we need to keep going. Masking. Washing our hands. Social distancing. It’s our only choice if we want to curb the spread of this virus.
2020 has been the longest decade most of us have ever experienced, but I also know we can pull together and beat this. I saw the nation’s reaction after 9-11 and the unity that came out of a horrible tragedy. I experienced incredible acts of kindness, compassion, and community when my hometown was ravaged by massive flooding in 1993. I have seen in my own lifetime how people can pull together and overcome.
When did we lose sight of how to care for each other?
I know we are capable of better than I have seen from us in 2020. I am disappointed that so many aren’t coming together for the safety of their neighbors and community. So many who can’t see the big picture of how to care for each other.
We are capable of better than this.
© Catherine HaslagCrucible as Myself
Crucible is from the Medieval Latin Crucibulum for “melting pot for metals” and “night lamp.” The first part of the word, crus, could also originate from the Middle High German kruse meaning “earthen pot” or from the Latin crux in reference to a cross.
The word crucible has two meanings:
- As a noun, a crucible is a ceramic, graphite, or metal container that is used for the melting of metals or conducting of chemical reactions at high temperatures.
- As a verb, a crucible is a severe trial in which things interact and something new is created from it. This meaning of the word began sometime around the 1640s.
Example of a crucible used in a chemistry lab.
A classic chemistry lab uses a crucible to react with magnesium metal with oxygen gas at high temperatures to produce magnesium oxide. Crucibles are also used to melt bronze and other metals for casting bells and statues. If a crucible is ceramic, it can be brittle despite its ability to withstand extreme temperatures.
Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible told a fictional account of the Salem Witch Trials that took place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1692 and 1693. It was an allegory for McCarthyism, a time in the 1950s when people were being accused and persecuted for being a communist. Much like the Salem Witch Trials, most of the accusations were false and were very dangerous to the lives of those accused.
A crucible is also a container, a place for work to be done. Its job is to hold, to be a space. Based on this definition, anything can serve as a crucible: an office, journal, classroom, tennis court, website.
The book Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work and in Life, One Conversation at a Time by Susan Scott spoke of the role of the crucible in the work she does with her coaching clients. She pondered if she could become the crucible for her clients, her family and friends, or herself.
The title of this blog comes from this idea. I have created a space for me to bring my writing, thoughts, and ideas to the world, but I am my own crucible in this process. I contain the reaction or heated metal in me and eventually present that work to the world on this site. This is page is my voice, my practice is finding, developing, and crafting it into something that is authentic to me. What I say here may not be popular, but it is authentic to me and hopefully will resonate with others.
We all have different crucibles that present themselves in life, some of them we choose for ourselves, some are chosen for us. This is a combination of the two. I have felt for awhile that I have something of value and meaning to share. This feeling grew so strong that I felt it was being chosen for me and I had no other option than to choose it back. I don’t know yet if the words you read here is that something or if this is just practice for that something. Only time will determine that.
References
Online Etymology Dictionary. (2020) Crucible. https://www.etymonline.com/word/crucible
Scott, S. (2002). Fierce Conversations (Second Edition). The Berkley Publishing Company.
Sparknotes. (2020). The Crucible. https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/crucible/
© Catherine HaslagTo Blog or Not to Blog
Taken at Nerstrand Big Woods State Park, Northfield, MN
This is my second go writing my first blog. You won’t get to read the first one because it didn’t sound like me. I tried to be clever, witty, and funny. While I am all of these things, what I tried to write the first time didn’t sound like my voice. So I decided to give it another try. What are you reading now sounds much more like me.
We all have a voice. Some of us use our voices, other’s don’t. Some have strong, clear voices that carry easily through valleys, others have quite, delicate voices that required the room to hush so they can be heard. I am using this blog to find my voice, explore it, develop it, and use it in the world. This blog is for my growth. It is a way for me to think, process, write, share, and (hopefully) grow.
I will likely write on a broad range of subjects – biking, camping, hiking, books, educational projects, trips, experiences. Whatever I feel I need to and want to share my opinion, thoughts, or experience regarding. I enjoy researching and learning about new things, which you will likely see in my blog posts. If I include information from sources in my writing, I will cite them or otherwise give them credit to the best of my ability. I believe in giving credit where credit is due. Additionally, the resources I have used may be helpful to others, so I want to share them.
This is an experiment for me and I don’t have an idea where it will take me. Life is a great teacher. We not only learn from the experiences life brings to use but also from each other. While this blog is for my growth and learning, I hope that sharing my experience here with you will provide for your growth as well.
I look forward to seeing where this experiment takes me.