Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · 9d

If this is the version I had to do it took four hours 😭

Reposted by Eric Bellm

Jay Strader @caprastro.bsky.social · 17d

~ 1000 astro bachelors degrees given out last year, a new record, while most grad programs are planning to admit fewer students this year (due to reduced or uncertain federal funding).

number of astro bachelor degrees over time, showing rapid recent increase

1 2 6

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · 20d

Wrapping up a very nice visit to the Yale Astronomy Department. Lots of lovely discussions about Rubin, ZTF, compact binaries, and much more!

Author selfie in front of a sign advertising a science talk.

1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Sep 10

Really stoked that dear family friend Steve Joo has been named one of @foodandwine.com's Best New Chefs for 2025. If you are in the Bay Area, check out www.joodooboo.co!

www.foodandwine.com/2025-best-ne...

A Tiny Tofu Shop Is Serving Some of the Most Soulful Meals in America

2025 F&W Best New Chef Steve Joo's restaurant Joodooboo serves deeply personal Korean-Californian dishes — and the most thoughtful tofu you’ll ever taste — in Oakland.

www.foodandwine.com

1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 22

I had to get a new one last week after my beloved 12 mini suddenly stopped corresponding with cell towers. I'm still not happy with the bigger form factor.

a group of people are riding an escalator and one of them is wearing a red shirt that says ' dc ' on it

Alt: a group of people are riding an escalator and one of them has an ipad the size of a person.

media.tenor.com

1 1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 22

May I suggest raintreenursery.com/products/tri...

Triple Crown Thornless Blackberry

Grow the Triple Crown Thornless Blackberry for sweet, juicy berries without the hassle of thorns. Ideal for home gardens.

raintreenursery.com

1 1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 22

Probably this one

web.archive.org/web/20240714...

The Not-so-Social Gospel

The Lazy Paralytic 1 When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days it was reported that he was at his home 2 So many gathered around that there was no longer room for them not even in front of the ...

web.archive.org

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 20

Just need some under-trained grad students working without appropriate PPE

(I heard)

1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 19

I use it and it's great!

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 13

If only catholicism offered some guidance on responding to social disorder... perhaps some kind of "catholic social teaching"

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 11

Not sure if this meets your criteria, but I recently discovered that it's possible to carry a roll-aboard bag on one of the Lime sit-down moped things--you can wedge it in front of the seat and hold it with your knees.

1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 6

Is everyone in Seattle's block party tonight?

1 4

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Aug 1

Yes but I, personally, was young then

Regime Accountant, CPA ☠️🎢 @regimecpa.bsky.social · Jul 31

Weird fetishization of the 90s as a time before alienation and the destruction of third spaces when the 90s were a high crime decade with high rates of suburbanization where people spent the money they made at their suburban office park jobs on Applebees.

1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 31

ZTF 🔭 is now shadowing the @vrubinobs.bsky.social Science Validation survey footprint with a daily cadence in gri! www.wis-tns.org/astronotes/a...

I made a "watchmap" for the Lasair broker that for all ZTF alerts falling in this region: lasair-ztf.lsst.ac.uk/watchmaps/568/

A map of the celestial sphere. A portion of the ecliptic plane is colored red.

5

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 28

So the Grand Canyon is on fire...

An image of the Grand Canyon from an airplane. Smoke is visible along the North Rim and into the canyon itself.

1 1

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 21

a man in a white shirt is saying i don 't like it .

ALT: a man in a white shirt is saying i don 't like it .

media.tenor.com

1 2

Reposted by Eric Bellm

Sue Stone @knittingknots.bsky.social · Jul 20

Trump’s ‘Gold Standard’ for Science Manufactures Doubt - The Atlantic www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...

Trump’s ‘Gold Standard’ for Science Manufactures Doubt

By emphasizing scientific uncertainty above other values, political appointees can block any regulatory action they want to.

www.theatlantic.com

5 5

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 19

"Obsolete in 6 months" does presume decreasing incremental costs, though, so I think that does point to AI being financially sustainable in the long term if that comes to pass.

3

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 19

Not an MBA, but the difference with Amazon might be timeline for depreciation of the capex? If you plow profits into warehouses and distribution networks that work for a long time, you've built a moat. If you train a model or buy a GPU cluster that is obsolete in six months, you just burnt money.

1 10

Reposted by Eric Bellm

EarthSky @earthskyscience.bsky.social · Jul 10

Yesterday, astrophysicist Eric Bellm told us about his involvement with the groundbreaking Vera Rubin Observatory, as well as the astonishing things this #telescope could achieve in the coming years. 🔭 Watch at buff.ly/RcmRZEy

Inset of 2 men talking with a big background of many different galaxies with different shapes and colors.

2 9

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 13

Just finished rereading Jane Smiley's 1995 university satire "Moo." Highly recommended for academics looking for a diversion this summer.

www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/168699...

Moo by Jane Smiley: 9780307472762 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Thousand Acres comes “an uproariously funny and at the same time hauntingly melancholy portrait of a college community...

www.penguinrandomhouse.com

3

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 9

Senate markup is tomorrow, call call call! 🔭

www.appropriations.senate.gov/hearings/ful...

3 10

Reposted by Eric Bellm

Michele Bannister @astrokiwi.bsky.social · Jul 6

3I/ATLAS now recovered back to May 22 (mag 20.5 in g) in ZTF imagery, thanks Quanzhi Ye. In the latest MPEC

MPEC 2025-N51 : Comet 3I/ATLAS

We are the official body that deals with astrometric observations and orbits of minor planets (asteroids) and comets.

minorplanetcenter.net

14 52

Reposted by Eric Bellm

Shoshana 🏳️‍⚧️ @shoshana.bsky.social · Jul 3

Build it!

Everyone should learn the joy of changing trains at Park Street. This is what peak transit system design looks like.

Seattle to San Francisco? Just go Inbound to Park St and change trains to go Outbound to San Francisco! Nothing could be simpler!

A Green Line Extension map showing the Boston MBTA's Green Line being extended across the country with lines terminating in Quebec City, Toronto, Anchorage, Honolulu, Portland Oregon, and Miami.

27 120 390

Eric Bellm @ebellm.bsky.social · Jul 1

Full house at @dirac-institute.bsky.social for our @vrubinobs.bsky.social Data Preview 1 sprint! 🔭

A stylish man in a hat stands speaking among scientists at tables with laptops.

2 11