Art in Bed with Science Again

I love artists, but I think they are mad. Too symbolic, not real enough. They think I am mad. Too frakking rational. Most actual scientists think I'm off my head, too symbolic etc, but I digress.

Originally uploaded by satellite investigator

I really love the idea of Artists-in-Residence (even MSSL's got one, but she - orbits seldom intersect - came and went in a week when I wasn't there), and they really should be everywhere. In fact, the general concept of incorporating an outsider is a valuable one, as long as is it isn't embedding for a defined purpose. The photo's from Joanna Griffin (or rather her bits and pieces in Flickr), and it used to be the lab's phone number in the pre-fibre age.
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This on the other hand, is snatched from the mouth of Karel Nel, who's got a deep-astronomy inspired exhibition in London now, until 9 October '08:

What was it like, visiting observatories?

At the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, some of the world's most powerful telescopes are trained on the powder-black darkness, looking at complexity and eternity. It is awesome and desolate. Even the scientists fall silent in the face of that.

Nature, 2 October 2008