Fuzzy Logic

In my research I work with the Physics simulation software GEANT4.  It’s an incredibly detailed and realistic package, but it’s an absolute beast to get working.  A while ago one of my coworkers found this site and it makes it incredibly easy.  It went down a while ago, but you can find it at http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~skirkwoo/GEANT4-Kubuntu.html now.  I believe the old link is up as well, but the newer link is Dr. Kirkwood’s official site.  It’s a really great install and very valuable because it works on 8.04 (Hardy Heron), which is a Long-Term Service release.  The guide is for Kubuntu, but it works great on Ubuntu as well.

A quick note about using newer version of Ubuntu: From 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on, Ubuntu doesn’t come with a g77 package. g77 is not used for GEANT4 specifically, but with CERN’s ROOT, which is an amazing statistical analysis package. You won’t NEED this for GEANT4, but it allows you to do some cool stuff.  Anyhow, instead of g77, Intrepid (8.10) comes with ‘gfortran’ which is not the same code, it seems.  Now, there are two ways on handling it.  I, personally, advise sticking to 8.04 and the g77 it comes with.  However, you can use a newer version of Ubuntu (or its variants) and either use Hardy packages or install from source.  Either way, it’s nice to have ROOT installed for statistical analysis.

As a side note, I’m hoping to (eventually) post a complete walkthrough of the process I go through when compiling CLHEP, GEANT4, and ROOT on a 8.04 machine.  It’ll probably be a while before I manage to get it written up, but it sure would be nice…

It seems that Prof. Rusi Taleyarkhan, a Purdue University Professor in the School of Nuclear Engineering, has been found guilty of scientific misconduct.

Quote from the Purdue News Service:

Purdue University on Friday (July 18) announced that an investigative committee with members from five institutions has concluded that two allegations against Rusi Taleyarkhan, a professor of nuclear engineering, constituted research misconduct.

I can’t really comment on this too terribly much as I’m a student in the School of Nuclear Engineering.  That being said, I hope that this doesn’t tarnish the reputation of Purdue or NE there–there is only so much they can do and they couldn’t be expected to do more than they already have.  So, that all being said, read up on it and see what you think.

Many people, including New Scientist, are reporting on the passing of a bill in the Louisiana Senate: Senate Bill 733, the “Louisiana Science Education Act.”  This is yet another instance of a religious agenda being pushed into the public school under the guise of science.  Can we go ahead and agree that this is ridiculous, not scientific in the slightest, and has no place in a public schoolroom?  Look, if you want to teach your kids creation, that’s great–but keep it at home or at church.  Not in the public school that I am funding.  Of course, this doesn’t just deal with evolution, but with “evolution, the origins of life, global warming, and human cloning.”  Oh, come on!

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