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Friday, August 31, 2007

A study on heat...

After driving a few thousand miles this past few weeks, I started seeing mirages. That is to say, I've always heard that wanderers in the desert would see water in the distance - that simply did not exist. And here I was, driving in the South, in the steamy heat of August (100 degrees farenheit and above), and I could see water shimmering in the distance... but it faded as I approached.

Living in PA, I don't observe this phenomenon ... I started to say often, but really, I haven't seen it in a LONG time or it wouldn't have made such an impression this time. I used to live in Arkansas (and Texas, and Mississippi, and Alabama, and Georgia, and Oklahoma (some of those for only 3 months or so, but still... )). In those years, the first 30 or so of my life, seeing water shimmer on the highway during summertime was a common thing. I never really gave it a lot of thought.

Then, a few weeks ago, I was reading a book by physicist Stephen Hawking, talking about gravity bending light rays and such... It's an interesting concept. Add to that, my fairly newly developed photographer's eye for the unusual, and a few thoughts about it, and I kinda got to wondering about this "mirage" business.

Technically, this water I am seeing may not be a mirage. I am not going to look up the word... But definitely, as you approach it, it ceases to exist. I was thinking - and perhaps I've always thought, that it's just an "optical illusion" - it doesn't really exist, it's just a trick of lighting that makes our eyes see what is not really there.

But then, I looked more, and more, and... I don't buy it. At all. I mean... It's not just the appearance of "water"... it's reflections IN the water. AND it is capturable with the camera. (First time I've ever tried that!!)

AND although I didn't catch it on film, I observed the same thing AFTER DARK. That's right, going through middle Louisiana, when night fell, the temps were still way up there.... and the same shimmering surface that existed in these photos was still there. And actually, it being dark - I could not see it... EXCEPT... and this was the coolest thing - I could see the reflections in it of other cars' headlamps and taillamps.

I do not have any really good explanations as to what this phenomenon is, other than that it is caused by heat, and perhaps, humidity - although if it also happens in a dry desert perhaps humidity plays no role in it. I could - and probably will - do some research and learn more about it, but before I do, I thought I'd post this and see what YOU think about it.

Comments?




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Monday, August 27, 2007

Back from family reunion...

Here's some photos that I posted on flickr, put here for your amusement. I still have three cards full of photos, and almost no free space left on my laptop, so before I can put a few more up, I needs to archive some of my existing photos before I can do any more!

At a picnic outing on Saturday we went playing in the creek, and I caught a crawdad (crawfish, crayfish, whatever) and gave it to my sis-in-law Pam... who had made the mistake of saying that she goes hunting for them with our niece, but that she doesn't actually TOUCH them... I handed mine to her, and when she tried to let him go, he wouldn't let her go....


Aunt Pam's Hand



Along the same creek, my brother Larry (Pam's hubby) and I both took a shot with our cameras at the same time. I haven't seen his (of me) but I am not afraid to post mine, of him:


Got me!



A little while later, at the campground, we went to setup in the pavilion and disturbed a resident there. I don't think he was very happy with us....


The Picnic



The evening before, we had a hayride, the following photos are from that trip...


A full load




Hayride




Oh, and by the way... Thanks for being here...