SUNY-Binghamton

The morning after

February 19, 2007 by muyiwa

Christmas in Binghamton may not have been white, but we sure more than made up for it on Val's day eve. Here's a shot of my street following the snow dump of Val's day eve.

I wonder where the parking meter wardens are — surely, they won't let all those cars park for free? Jokes aside though, I was quite impressed when I looked out of my window and saw that in spite of the heavy downfall, the buses were actually running! I'm certain that if we ever had this quantity of snow in New Zealand, the whole country would be shut down for days, if not weeks!

Here's a couple more pictures — these were taken at Binghamton University.

White Val's day

February 14, 2007 by muyiwa

It's been "real" winter in the US north-east for some days now, with up to ten feet of snow in places, but we've been lucky in Binghamton so far. Well, that's going to change starting tonight, Valentine Day's eve. There's a heavy snow warning in place, and we've been advised to only go out tomorrow if we really have to.

The last time I saw heavy snowfall was back in the eighties in the south east of England, so when I learned that we could have up to three feet of snow here over the next couple of days, I thought I'd get a couple of shots. These were taken around midnight on the eve of Valentine Day, 2007.

And to my Kiwi friends who've been asking for pictures of a white Christmas, well, I guess Christmas has finally come to Binghamton — in February.

I can hardly wait to see what things will look like in the morning.

First day of (real) snow - in Binghamton, NY

December 8, 2006 by muyiwa

Today, we had what I learned is referred to as "falling daily temperatures" or something to that effect. It's a curious situation in which morning temperatures are higher than afternoon temperatures. Today, the morning temperature was 34°F, and afternoon temperature was 22°F!!

Here's a couple of pictures. It's only the beginning though, so as I said yesterday, I wait in anticipation of negative temperatures. Brrrrrrr....

Nanobiotechnology and voodoo.

December 8, 2006 by muyiwa

I ended yesterday's entry with a promise to describe what went through my mind as I sat listening to Dr. Asemota's presentation on nanobiotechnology. The first connection I made was with Michael Crichton's Prey, which I read a couple of years ago. At that time, I felt that the book was probably an attempt to sound a note of warning about the potential for the then just-emerging field of nanotechnology to go in ways that man would find difficult to control. But here I was, listening to an academic who's already started working with these monsters too small to be seen with the naked eye. It was indeed a feeling of deja-vu.

WHAM!

December 7, 2006 by muyiwa

I think I've put off blogging on my time at SUNY-Binghamton long enough, but fortunately, an activity at the department today has given me the kick I need to get going. There's probably not much missing anyway, as I've mostly spent the last week getting familiar with the university and the department, settling into the system here — payroll (very important), social security number, ID card, etc. — and researching as much as I can on chemistry databases and related matters.

Of course there's the matter of the unfamiliar chilly weather. When I got on the plane in Auckland, the summer sun was shining in all its glory. I arrived here in Binghamton to a chilly but tolerable 48°F — that's 9°C to Kiwis. And, according to my hosts, that was warm for this time of the year. Boy! Was I worried! Temperatures have headed south since then, but we haven't had any snow yet, although there have been a few squalls. I find it interesting though, that the mind adjusts so easily to new situations. Coming from Auckland where the coldest overnight temperatures rarely if ever dropped to freezing, I'm amazed that I'm now able to handle being told that temperatures will fall to 22°F — -3°C!! — without going into panic mode. It's still only early December though, so I wait with bated breath for worse that's bound to come.

Anyway, back to today, and the activity that's got me going.