Thanksgiving alone?

I took the day off of work today so that I could study arabic at the University and see a few of my friends. During the day one my arab friends told me, Happy Thanksgiving. I said thanks, but I don't plan on celebrating it. I told him that I really only celebrate one holiday anymore, but I celebrate it every day of my life. He asked, what is that? I said Easter (Easter in Arabic is called 'Resurrection day' if you translate it). After about ten minutes my friend went to class and two girls came over and said, I heard what you said about easter, are you a Christian. I said, not in the traditional sense. They asked what I meant so I explained why I am the way the I am, and why I can celebrate Resurrection day every day of my life, and what that means...that simple opportunity is better than any festival this life can offer.

I have learned from my time here that Christ is truly my all in all. Sometimes I feel alone, but I am never alone. I may sit in my room every night with no one to talk to, but I still hear His voice. I might not see the smiles and laughter of friends, but His joy still fills my heart and soul. I may eat only the simplest of foods, but I have the Bread of life to sustain me.
No, I am never alone. My best friend is always with me.

Revival of the sportworld

So its been almost three months since I've played any real sport, besides working out in my apartment, which is pretty limited. However, two weeks ago one of my friends asked me if I had ever played squash. I said no, but that I had heard of it. Anyway, I went with them and borrowed a raquet. It was alot of fun (squash is the British cousin of raquetball). As it turns out I am pretty good at the game, I think from playing badminton with my dad a lot. We've been going twice a week now, and today I decided that I like the sport enough to invest money and buy my own raquet (about 80$) since you can't rent them at the gym. There is a group of guys that go with us, so it's been a great way to get to know them as well. It feels so good to get out and do something physical again. Sports are one of the biggest things I miss here in Jordan.

I don't really have much else to say. I'm trying to focus on studying formal arabic more. It is difficult because in every day conversation I never use it. But if I ever want to read and write I have to know it. Plus if I don't keep studying it I'll forget it. Strange to think that you can forget a language when you speak it every day...that's arabic for you.
By the way, sorry for stealing the title Tobi. We don't have (or obey) any kind of copyright laws here in the Middle East.


These pictures are unrelated to the post. I took them a couple months ago. They are of the southern desert. This is where they filmed Lawrence of Arabia. The bottom pic is bedouin tents.

one long week over

So tonight was the end of the big nanotechnology conference (that was a pun if anyone caught it). The conference ran from about 8am to 6pm each night, after which we went and had dinner, usually at the hotel where most of the visiting speakers were staying. It was very interesting, and I met lots of interesting people, and learned lots of stuff. My role in presentation turned out to be pretty small, only about 15 minutes. In response to a comment, the research I do is debatably important, because it is being done by lots of other people with much better research labs than mine, but it definitely has the potential to change our lives (imagine shrinking your electronics to 1/10th their size for beginners). I don't think I'll be famous any time soon. Although this week I met and had dinner with Dennis Hastert (former speaker of the house), the head of the Drug Evaluation Research in the FDA, the Prime Minister of Jordan, and a number of high ranking scientists. Basically, I just act and talk like an important person, dress nice, and people pay attention...but the fact remains that I am really a nobody, and I am glad for it. I don't like playing pretend.

since the conference is over, and this photo was displayed I can show it. The picture you see is actually Copper metal particles under UV light (aka black light). The red dots are clusters of nanoparticles, which glow red under UV (which normal copper does not do). Pretty cool huh?

Olives and Nanotechnology

So its been a absolutely crazy last two weeks. Tomorrow starts the kickoff to the big international conference on Nanotechnology and Commercial Applications that is being hosted here in Jordan. There is a total of about 200 experts from the field coming from all over the world. We have been working like crazy to try and get the results of my current research finalized so that I can publish it. Normally that wouldn't be an extremely difficult thing, however, I just started getting desired results from the experiment about 3 weeks ago. Long story short, it is very difficult to prove and finalize the production of metallic particles that are 50 nanometers big, that is 2000x smaller than the human hair, or about 20 times larger than the DNA double helix (for you biology nuts, or nurses :) Nevertheless, somehow I managed to get my research project on the schedule (probably cause the professor I work for is one of the organizers). I wish I could show you some pictures of the work, but the research is still under international IP rights...In addition I've been doing some extra work on the organizational side of things (Arabs need all the help they can get). This is the main reason I came back to the University this semester. After this conference things will slow down significantly for me, to the dissatisfaction of my professors.
On a somewhat disconnected topic I've been using my mp3 player alot while working in the lab, and I am very happy with it, especially the 25 hr battery life. Thanks to Sam Hammet for the recommendation.

Anyway, back the world of the macroscopic. Last Friday I spent the majority of the day preparing and bottling olives. I made four different recipes. They are mostly similar, but vary in salt concentration and some of the extra ingredients (like putting honey in one). The olives I bottled had been first soaked in water for one week, and as it turns out they will start to cure in ordinary water, because when I opened the bottle the lid shot off and hit the ceiling...pretty cool. After I rinsed them one more time I started "bruising" the olives with the hatchet or cutting them with the knife. This allows the curing brine to enter the olives. After the olives were bruised I put them in the bottles, using a different recipe for each bottle.

I also made an attempt using the Chemical method, of soaking olives in Sodium Hydroxide (20mL NaOH : 1 L Water). I soaked the olives in the NaOH solution for 12 hours, then in water for 12 hours. I repeated this process two more times. After the second time the olives were pretty much devoid of any sour taste. After the third time they pretty much devoid of any taste at all, except a slight hint of soap flavor. So I cut them open and let them soak for another 24 hours to remove the remaining Lye. Afterwards I bottled them in a special brine. Supposedly, after they have been Lye-cured you can put them in the brine and they will take on the flavor of whatever is in the brine after about 3 days. We'll see what happens .
I also dry cured some black (ripe) olives, using a dry salt recipe. I simply cut the olives, put them in a large plastic bowl and smothered them in salt. I was told that they will be ready in about 4,5 days.
Overall I bottled about 7 liters of olives, and still have some left over (like another gallon). I think I'll probably end up throwing them away. If I could send olives over seas I would...

OK, I'm tired. I'll try to post after the conference.
Thanks for the comments everyone.

What is man that thou art mindful of him?

I have noticed a great fault in myself. It is a faulty memory. I find that I so easily forget who and what I am. I forget who it is that has made me what I am, and who keeps me from becoming in reality what I am inside. I seem not to remember what I would be were if not for the grace of God, and that it is only His grace that keeps me from slipping.

When you live in third world or developing nations it can become all too easy to start looking at the people around you with some form of inferiority because they are uneducated, or because they are dirty, or 'uncivilized'. I hate the fact that my flesh wants me to believe that. I know that in my flesh there is no good thing. If there is anything good in me, it is not because of me. I know what I am; a worm. how can a worm be proud? he can ever only look up from the dirt in which he lives. Yes, a worm, I would be so lucky.

Today I renew my affirmation that it is truly by the grace of God I am what I am. I know that I am nothing. Yet, this knowledge leads me, for the millionth time, to ask the question, "why God, if I am nothing, have you given everything for me?" I think this question is the most wonderful thought that ever blessed the heart of man, for to me it is that very question which gives me the answers to my life.

Life is amazing and wonderful, if for no other reason than because we don't deserve it. Nevertheless we have it, and we have it because of Love. I pray I never take that for granted.