9 April (The Joy Of Being In STEM)

@milkie-studies

❝Since her death in 1979, the woman who discovered what the universe is made of has not so much as received a memorial plaque. Her newspaper obituaries do not mention her greatest discovery. […] Every high school student knows that Isaac Newton discovered gravity, that Charles Darwin discovered evolution, and that Albert Einstein discovered the relativity of time. 

But when it comes to the composition of our universe, the textbooks simply say that the most abundant atom in the universe is hydrogen. And no one ever wonders how we know.❞ — Jeremy Knowles, discussing the complete lack of recognition Cecilia Payne gets, even today, for her revolutionary discovery. (via alliterate)

OH WAIT LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT CECILIA PAYNE•

 Cecilia Payne’s mother refused to spend money on her college education, so she won a scholarship to Cambridge.

• Cecilia Payne completed her studies, but Cambridge wouldn’t give her a degree because she was a woman, so she said to heck with that and moved to the United States to work at Harvard

.• Cecilia Payne was the first person ever to earn a Ph.D. in astronomy from Radcliffe College, with what Otto Strauve called “the most brilliant Ph.D. thesis ever written in astronomy.”

• Not only did Cecilia Payne discover what the universe is made of, she also discovered what the sun is made of (Henry Norris Russell, a fellow astronomer, is usually given credit for discovering that the sun’s composition is different from the Earth’s, but he came to his conclusions four years later than Payne — after telling her not to publish)

.• Cecilia Payne is the reason we know basically anything about variable stars (stars whose brightness as seen from earth fluctuates). Literally every other study on variable stars is based on her work

.• Cecilia Payne was the first woman to be promoted to full professor from within Harvard, and is often credited with breaking the glass ceiling for women in the Harvard science department and in astronomy, as well as inspiring entire generations of women to take up science

.• Cecilia Payne is awesome and everyone should know her.(OP: Matthew Gardner)

Feeling fairly productive today

Calc 3 notes ✔️

Calc 3 HW ✔️

3 min power nap ✔️

I want straight A’s at least once in my life, but I find that I don’t actually put in the work to get it done. Often times I find myself doing just enough to get by, and despite being a STEM student, I really haven’t done much in the way of studying.

As much as I enjoy math and science, I find it painful to get into studying the material, and do just enough to get a decent grade.

All of this revolves around time management and coping with my adhd, but THE BOREDOM IS REAL and there’s only so much I can do to combat that.

I know grades aren’t a true measurement of success, but just once I’d like to know the joy of being that student.

-28 years and counting 😔

4 April (thoughts)

I never really took the time to explain what the big picture is, so I’m going to attempt to explain it here

I want to be a great dad. As cheesy as it might sound, I love the idea of being a positive father, and father-figure to those who need that person in their life. To this day my dad doesn’t claim me, and much as I love my mom, there are still some things that I would have looked for from him. I will be the change

I want to be a millionaire, and establish various forms of income that can be utilized after my journey on earth is complete. I have already began investing, and look to retire (read: not work as hard) around age 40.

I want to make the world a better place. The earth is OUR mother, and its OUR job to protect her. I have created an animal rights groups, organized adopt-a-highway’s, gone to and organized many protests (the March For Science being to this day the biggest protest I’ve ever helped create).

I want to own a RHD (right hand drive) Snow White FC-RX-7. I adored Initial-D growing up and Ryosuke’s was the first car I actually fell in love with. I was able to own one for a short while, but due to a lack of money, and time I was never actually able to complete the build. I try to play it off like it was no big deal, but that car really meant a lot to me, and it’s my goal to do it right.

I want to be an example of a great physicist, and a symbol of black excellence. I want to show that if I, a vegan, pan, non-binary person can get their Ph.D doing what they love DESPITE being homeless and abused, then you can too.

In case you need to hear this

1. You are loved

2. You are accepted no matter who you are

3. My inbox is always open

Stay up ✌🏿

🎧 my thoughts

there’s something about crisp notes that genuinely bring me peace.

{ 02-04-18 } 91/100 days of productivity

29 days until the start of my exams … i am trembling …

Transgender Day of Visibility.

Anti anxiety.