Periodically, I look through footage that on first blush, I’ve deemed not too useful. This practice led me to this clip.
In June 2008, Tom Harting, CSC, and I followed Jill Tarter and a bunch of SETI REU students (Research Experience for Undergraduates) around Mount Lassen, an active volcano in northeastern California. (Sometimes, when I think about the things I’ve done in making this film, it seems quite surreal, things like walking up the side of an active volcano with a renowned astrophysicist.)
I wanted to share this video because I want you to see who will be steering spaceship Earth in a few years.
Don’t be scared. (To learn what they did on their summer vacations at SETI, click here.)
Seeing this little clip reminds me of how much I enjoyed their company. They are interested and interesting. Their priorities are right. They are good people. They give me hope in the future. And as you can see by the clip, they’re not what you think of when you think “scientist.” I can also tell you that they are not a tunnelvisioned lot. Tom and I had great, wide-ranging conversations with this group. (If you ever have the opportunity to talk to a future scientist about samurai films, take advantage of it. You won’t regret it.)
I’ve become Facebook friends with many of them and it’s great to see that they are still communicating with each other. I love reading what they’re up to. Check out these status updates:
W. is in awe of nature and its processes… “Life is a process. We are a process. The universe is a process.”
D. First publication: Fluvial network analysis on Titan: evidence for subsurface structures and west-to-east wind flow, southwestern Xanadu in Geophysical Research Letters
M. went out to a lake and did the Volta experiment! yay methanogens!
R. is a glacial modeler
W. is in agreement with Arthur Eddington, “Not only is the universe stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine.”
M. is a fan of physics.
E. Wee Woo! I like planets!
So, REU 2008, I know this has been a long time coming, but I want you to know I think of the time we spent filming you often and fondly. Please let me know what you’ve been up to, here or via FB or my e-mail.
Yvette
Hey just got this link passed on and nice to see this project is still going!
I was the student working under Jill, and am in grad school for physics right now at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. It’s my first year though because last year I took six months to do a solo trip around the world, so I think I’ve shaken off any chance of tunnel vision. 🙂
David Licata
A solo trip around the world: Fantastic!
Glad to hear you’re in grad school. Hope that’s going well.
Thanks for taking the time to check out the blog and give me the update.
May you have continued success and clear, wide-eyed vision.
David
David Licata
Oh, and Yvette, that’s a great blog you’ve got there.
http://whereisyvette.wordpress.com/
William
David, that clip made me smile. I remember that day very well, and it is one I hope to remember well into my old age.
David Licata
William, reading that made my night. Thanks.
I had a lot of fun on that trip. And that’s not always the case when I’m shooting. I attribute it to the people we filmed.
Efrosini
This is so much fun David! I’m sorry to everyone that is hidden behind my sombrero hat 🙂
Good luck with this and any upcoming project!
David Licata
Thanks. And I LOVED your sombrero.