Author: Travis
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[sign-on] May 15 2025
Yesterday was an absolute blur. Lots got done, but don’t ask me how or when. I looked up and it was 6pm and I was exhausted.
Tomorrow I will head to the beach with the family for a bit of a recharge.
Today will be a day of wrapping things up or getting them to a state of manageability that will allow me to get away without anything exploding.
I’ve been filling notebooks this week, but with all of the wrong kind of notes. This made me come to the realization that I know how to use my brain and how to logically process information, but I don’t know how to think. Will use some of my time away to explore how I can unlock some introspection.
Any other remaining time will be dedicated to finishing up The Three-Body Problem and listening to this:
Enjoy one another. I’ll see you on Monday, reader.
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Leakage
When I decided to go back to college in my early 30’s I remember being committed to taking in as much of the information from my classes as I could. After all, I was paying for my education out of pocket this time around. High School was a blur to me and I promptly, almost purposefully, forgot everything I learned as soon as I threw my mortarboard in the air. But, this time around I was determined to learn.
Which is why I have this vivid memory of my Physics professor smacking a table on a Zoom call and telling the class why our perception of that small act of violence was in direct contradiction to what quantum physics would have us believe. He then proceeded to tell us that he doesn’t understand quantum physics, that no one does, and that if anyone ever tells us they understand it that we should tell them they are full of shit.
That was it. That was about as much of an introduction I got to the subject and it wasn’t until I read Carlo Rovelli’s Helgoland that I came to understand, at a high level, what quantum physics actually was: a predictive theory of probabilities and the study of the principles that govern those probabilities. The contradictions my professor tried to point out by smacking a table were the assumptions of classical physics we hold, most of which are deterministic.
Fast-forward to yesterday when I read this article and it broke my brain.
Quantum tunneling, wherein particles pass through energy barriers without the energy required to do so because of their associated wave-function, essentially means that some particles of an object can potentially appear on the other side of a barrier regardless of their total energy at that point in time. No interaction of the particle and the barrier is even required.
Apparently the hypothesis is that in the early days of the universe, tunneling that occurred through high-energy barriers could have caused quantum fluctuations that may have caused gravitational collapse thus resulting in primordial black holes.
I am sitting here imagining particles entering primordial black holes, being flung out the other end, and somehow ending up, through various processes on their way here, creating amino acids that ended up on Earth and thus aiding in creating life here. We’re talking about leakage all the way down, my friends. Particle leakage through energy barriers, particle leakage across various corners of the universe, and those particles falling (or otherwise leaking through the atmosphere) onto Earth and into the water.
Those of you who know me know I hate a double-truth, and the double-truth right now is that I am both fascinated and terrified at this concept. I’m not sure I’ll ever watch Ant-Man the same way ever again.
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[sign-on] May 13 2025
Good morning from South Texas. I’ve limited myself to two coffees this morning because I drink entirely too much of the stuff and I am entirely convinced that the acidity is having an effect, albeit indirect, on how swollen my stomach feels most of the day. Going to have a tea later this afternoon to see how I feel tomorrow.
Inbox at zero. To-do list at five large items.
Three quarters of the way through The Three Body Problem. Many thoughts, which I will write later. All in all, I am enjoying it and it’s sparked some curiosity in me about different concepts, but mostly it got me thinking about the differences in Newtonian physics and quantum physics, and now I can’t stop trying to understand concepts that I never thought I would.
Going to table that hyper-fixation until after work. Diving in.
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[sign-on] May 12 2025
Good morning from South Texas where this morning was a brisk 57 degrees and it’s going to get into the triple-digits later this week. The weatherman said on Wednesday our city will be one of the hottest places on Earth that day. Luckily I am headed to the coast a day or so into the fever-pitch so that my bones can rest for a bit, and I will narrowly escape this oppression because it will be a beautiful 83.
Weekend was lovely. On cup of coffee #3 at the moment. Inbox has been tamed. Escalations can been addressed. Now to fit five days worth of work into four.
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[sign-on] May 9 2025
Been on the road for work the past two days which means I’m both a very sleepy boy and also pretty behind on some major projects. This morning I was able to get my inbox under control and now I need to consume more coffee and gather my notes from the road meetings.
Currently halfway through The Three Body Problem, by Cixin Liu.
Will be taking some much needed time off next week. But for now it’s headphones and deep work.
Be kind to one another.
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[sign-on] May 6 2025
Over the past week I’ve been very intentional about staying away from social media and staying close to my family, my interests, and authors, artists, and musicians that I enjoy. To nobody’s surprise, I’m much happier than I otherwise have been. Nothing major, mind you – just a little lighter than before. It’s worth it.
Inbox is clear. Music is playing. New cup of coffee has been poured. Time for some deep work.
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[sign-on] May 5 2025
The skies are ominous this morning. Coffee doesn’t taste very good but is certainly effective. Mind is made of mush from lack of sleep. This week is going to require a lot from me.
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[sign-on] May 4 2025
Sixty-degree weather and bagels on the docket this morning, and this beautiful drone track that accompanied me while watering the grass.
Wherever you are, I hope you are well.
Signal Intent 