Articles written by Colin Beveridge

What is Helium

About me - Colin Beveridge

My name is uncle Kensson and I am a rocket scientist. It's an easy life, but someone's got to do it. I'm based in Bozeman, Montana in the northwestern USA and spend the bulk of my free time playing football (soccer) or guitar. If I can write something witty

+ more bio information

RSS Feed

Arts & Humanities > Philosophy (Other) Why do scientists reject evidence of God: 7 of 38
It is not the case that all, or even nearly all, scientists are atheists. I happen to be an agnostic scientist; several of my most able colleagues are devout Christians and others belong to other denominations.However, none of my religious colleagues ever invoke their deity of choice as a cause for any scientific phenomenon. ... More..
Travel > Travel Planning & Advice The benefits of conversing in a foreign tongue unknown to native speakers: 2 of 8
I was in a taxi a few weeks ago - as is usual with Scottish railways, a series of trains had been cancelled without warning or explanation and a bunch of stranded passengers clubbed together to get where we needed to be. One of my co-travellers was an Italian lady who took a call on her mobile and immediately asked her interl... More..
Hobbies & Games > Hobbies & Games (Other) How to make (and not lose) money by gambling: 9 of 29
It is possible to make a living from gambling. That's not to say that it's easy; bookmakers and casinos build a profit margin into their odds so that they are effectively guaranteed to come out ahead.Other authors on this site and elsewhere have pointed to the possibility of arbitrage, the practice of placing bets on all poss... More..
Sports & Recreation > Soccer Fundamentals The "offside trap" explained: 3 of 7
The offside trap is a negative and fairly risky football (soccer) strategy which tries to prevent a team from scoring by tricking their strikers into being offside.A player is offside when, as one of his* teammates plays the ball forward, he is in his opponents' half and closer to the goal-line than all but one of his opponen... More..
Health & Fitness > Alternative Therapies How to give a great massage: 3 of 6
A good massage is among the most generous gifts you can give to a loved one or a friend who doesn't mind physical contact.The ideal place to give a massage is on a massage table, but if you have one of those lying about, you probably don't read Helium to find out how to give a massage. Instead, a bed is an adequate substitute... More..
Sports & Recreation > Soccer Fundamentals Soccer and turf conditions: 2 of 4
From the simplest viewpoint, a table-flat pitch with soil soft enough to take a stud but not muddy enough to slip is the perfect soccer surface - assuming you play what the commentators call attractive passing football. The flatness allows you to pass the ball cleanly along the ground, while the firmness protects you from une... More..
Style & Beauty > Business & Formal Clothing Learning to tie a tie: 1 of 2
"Fatty over thinny, fatty round again, fatty through the keyhole, fatty down the drain." My mother taught me this simply tie-tying rhyme when I was about 11 and had to wear a tie to school. Obviously, it made tying a tie easier, but I still left the knot in place and slipped it over my head. In fact, a quick check of my close... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Political & Economic Theory Starting an Amnesty International group: 1 of 2
So your town or campus is sorely lacking in Amnesty International groups. This is a calamity for prisoners of conscience everywhere, who won't reap the benefit of your organised letter-writing. There's only one thing to do: start a group on your own!This is a daunting task. But it's easily surmountable. The first thing to do ... More..
Sciences > Physics Conversions: metres - yards, litres - pints and more: 1 of 1
Measurement systems (once upon a time) were arbitrary and local - a foot, say, corresponded to the length of the foot of the king. This led to a serious anomaly after the French revolution, when there was no longer a king whose foot could be measured.Instead, a new system of measurement was introduced - the metric system. A m... More..
Jobs & Careers > Health & Sciences Jobs How to become a physicist: 1 of 1
I fell into physics more or less by accident. I always enjoyed the subject in school but ended up taking a maths degree. While I was most interested in the applied side of maths, I was quite adamantly against being thought of as a physicist, even when I fell into a doctorate studying the magnetic fields around the Sun. It was... More..