I went to the partial Solar Eclipse event at the Planetarium on October 23rd. Though it was cloudy and as a result we couldn't actually see the eclipse, the event was a fun chance to see the planetarium, and they had a live stream of the eclipse in California. I think it is a great idea to have events like these where people can get excited about science and space, even if the event itself isn't such a massive deal.  Solar Eclipses occur between twice and five times a year throughout the world, though they only happen over the United States around once every three years in the United States. This was a partial eclipse, meaning that the moon did not fully obscure views of the Sun, but rather it makes a black dot over the sun. I'm looking forward to August 21st, 2018 because there will be a total solar eclipse that goes from coast to coast in the United States, an event that hasn't happened since the 1800's.  At the event, we sat outside hoping for a view of the eclipse, but once it was clear that it would stay cloudy, we went inside and enjoyed the exhibit on the Eclipse. The exhibit was well done, and there is something very cool about knowing that people thousands of years ago also observed this phenomenon. Historians are able to date events based on recordings of solar eclipses, and some even theorize that religions were formed because of total solar eclipses. This year especially I have felt like there is growing appreciation for and interest in physics and specifically astrophysics. That's an awesome development, and I hope it will mean that NASA and similar projects will receive more funding in future years, because long term space travel is our greatest hope of permanent survival. I hope to attend more public events on science, especially if they are getting more kids interested in the field.

This past Sunday I went to the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center to see Ruth Messinger speak on global civic justice. She was an interesting and thought provoking speaker, although I had a number of issues with what she said, and I suspect with her program more broadly. Ms. Messinger is the head of the American Jewish World Service (AJWS), a not-for-profit dedicated to improving livelihood for the impoverished around the world. The core of her focus was on the importance of humanism and empathy, which is a powerful message.  She clearly cared a lot about effecting positive change in the world, though I found some of her statements/ philosophies complicated her message immensely. To me, the very foundation of AJWS is contradictory. A faith specific organization that preaches total humanism feels hypocritical to me, especially when her rhetoric stems largely from the idea that there is something intrinsic and unique to being Jewish. As a non Jew I do not intend to criticize or demean another religion, but religious belief or not, I find it wrong to distinguish people's quality or character based upon being a part of the same faith. Though she certainly did not criticize other's cultures, the inverse of praising one culture is being derogatory to others.

Despite the issue I had, Ruth clearly does good, important work in countries like Burma, Uganda and Jamaica. Ultimately, I do believe in the mantra of any positive change, and even if I don't agree with her philosophy, I do agree with her actions. From providing small business loans to farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, to building sewers and latrines in the Caribbean, if her emphasis on a Jewish identity gets more people to give back and support each other, then good for her.  I enjoyed thinking about these issues, and I am interested in going to more public events like this.