The Night Before
Am I supposed to sleep now? How? I’m. So. Excited.
Also, a little nervous.
Also, a little uneasy like I’m forgetting a million things.
Let’s see:
Fill up pink duffle bag with suggested items from four different sources…check
Weigh duffle bag and pat myself on the back (32 pounds!)...check
Pack carry-on with necessary flight entertainment and paperwork…check
Have faux-thanksgiving dinner with family…check
Stress clean entire apartment…check
Go over itinerary three times…check! check! check!
Ok, looks good. I think I am right on track.
I’m soaking up the feeling of home for as long as I can. Tomorrow night I’ll be leaving Los Angeles for New Zealand, a comfy 13 hour flight. My sister appropriately suggested Lord of the Rings for my flight entertainment...we’ll see. I’ll take this adventure one moment at a time. My first goal: get to New Zealand. So, I’ll update you once I’ve accomplished it.
On a science-y note, my mom asked me today, “What exactly is the science that you’re going there to learn & write about?” It’s a great question because it was the first time, I had to explain IceCube science on a whim and I think I did ok. The purpose of this trip is to digest and share life/work at the South Pole, as well as the science behind the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. Part of the my sharing process, is learning it myself and learning how to share it effectively. So let’s start now!
IceCube Lab in Virtual Reality at the Wisconsin Institute of Discovery
Every blog post, or so, I’ll use a few sentences to explain IceCube to a different audience. Let’s call this corner The Ice Breaker because I hope to be able to explain this awesome work to almost anyone. As a starting point, here is what I told my mom:
Neutrinos are these tiny particles born from high-energy events in the universe. They are so small they rarely interact with anything. The IceCube Neutrino Observatory is made up of thousands of detectors miles deep in the ice that detect these passing neutrinos. It’s an odds game and when we detect them, we can learn about where in the universe they came from.
Ok, I have to get back to triple checking everything!
Talk soon, friends.
Jocelyn
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