• Who am I?

    I am Qrystal; or at least, that's my dot-name! Har har. (My name is really Crystal, but that's not as internet-searchable; hence, switching the C for the little-used letter Q.)

    I am here because I enjoy writing. I do this mostly for myself, but I also have a passion for helping others learn things from the things I write. Now that I am done my Ph.D. in Physics, I am stepping away from academic research so that I can indulge in some creative ways to share my knowledge and inspire the appreciation of scientific thinking in others. I am also working as a tutor, which is one of the jobs I've most enjoyed doing in my life so far.


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  • Buddhist Personality Type: Deluded/Speculative

    Posted by Qrystal on March 5, 2009 at 1:43.
    Category: Advice. Tags: personality.

    The spiritual task …[for] the deluded type [of person] is to transform spaciousness into a state of rooted equanimity. Deluded types need to learn how to reel in their minds. Practices useful for a deluded type include: noting (labeling); mindfulness of the hindrance of doubt; body awareness; somatic experiencing; [...] Continue Reading…

    1 Comment »

    Priority Stolen by Last-Minute Tasks

    Posted by Qrystal on March 2, 2009 at 1:35.
    Category: Advice. Tags: productivity.

    … [A]ll your […] “urgent priorities” are only urgent because you have left them to the last minute. And why have you left them to the last minute? – because you are prioritizing by urgency, that’s why!
    So says Mark Forster, in trying to convince us that prioritizing by urgency [...] Continue Reading…

    No Comments »

    Good Choice of President, Neighbour!

    Posted by Qrystal on February 25, 2009 at 12:32.
    Category: Miscellany. Tags: politics.

    Even in the most trying times, amid the most difficult circumstances, there is a generosity, a resilience, a decency, and a determination that perseveres; a willingness to take responsibility for our future and for posterity.
    This is a quote from President Obama’s Address to Congress, one I found particularly inspirational. [...] Continue Reading…

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    Answering Questions as a Teaching Assistant

    Posted by Qrystal on February 24, 2009 at 2:12.
    Category: Concepts. Tags: electromagnetism, light, physics, relativity, spacetime, teaching.

    The following questions and answers are from a course called Physics and Society, offered at the University of Windsor. I am the teaching assistant for the course, and as such I answer the students’ questions on a private online discussion board. The current unit covers the basics [...] Continue Reading…

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    Best Website Fail Ever

    Posted by Qrystal on February 20, 2009 at 15:01.
    Category: Miscellany. Tags: .

    Blip.fm was failing today, and their fail screen had me LLOLing madly! It was so great, I had to capture it as a video and share it. Way to go, Blip.fm, you ROCK at failing gracefully and with humour!

    Fullscreen this, or else you’ll miss the small print.

    By the power of [...] Continue Reading…

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    Boldly trying to explain spacetime

    Posted by Qrystal on February 20, 2009 at 2:12.
    Category: Concepts. Tags: light, physics, relativity, space, spacetime, teaching, time.

    There seems to be some confusion [among the students in my Physics and Society class] about spacetime, which is completely understandable because it’s difficult to visualize. I’m going to review some of the main ideas of it here, hopefully clearing up some confusion along the way.

    The main quote [...] Continue Reading…

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    Twitter Haiku Thieves

    Posted by Qrystal on February 16, 2009 at 20:59.
    Category: Miscellany. Tags: .

    Today, I finally got around to reporting to Twitter Support the plagiarism of haiku that is occurring on twitter. Below is the content of the support request I sent, with a bit of extra emphasis added for better readability here.

    I (and many others) have been concerned about a user [...] Continue Reading…

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    Awesomedynamics

    Posted by Qrystal on February 16, 2009 at 1:56.
    Category: Concepts. Tags: .

    The first law of awesomedynamics would be the conservation of awesome…
    via @phil.gs

    One particularly amusing day in the twitterverse, the word awesomedynamics emerged from somewhere in the vicinity of Wil Wheaton. Phil’s quote, above, caught my attention because it begged the question: what are the rest of the [...] Continue Reading…

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    Creating a Creative Style

    Posted by Qrystal on February 12, 2009 at 3:29.
    Category: Concepts. Tags: creativity, guitar, music.

    I think any creative activity is in fact a learning process. Musical performance is included in this, by the way, because you have to create your particular style of playing. You’re always trying to develop and move forwards…
    Creative cycles – By Tim J

    I agree so much with what Tim [...] Continue Reading…

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    Base 10

    Posted by Qrystal on February 10, 2009 at 21:12.
    Category: Miscellany. Tags: humour, math.

    “All your base” – Cowbirds in Love

    My thoughts on reading a handul of posts in this comic series: “YAY! A new comic to add to my Amusement category in Google Reader! And a new geeky source of giggling to add to my life. I [Heart] the [...] Continue Reading…

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