Arizona: First Talk of My Speaking Tour!

Talk went well in Tucson today! I greatly appreciate the kind hospitality of the faculty and staff at the University of Arizona Steward Observatory.

Richard Greenberg, a co-author with Brian Jackson and Rory Barnes of the paper that inspired me, attended. It was good to meet him. There were also some other good people around the department. Professor Jill Bechtold was very kind to arrange the venue for me. I appreciate the audience for coming with good questions. Met several exoplanet astronomers.

I have a good flier to give out showing my talk and the projects I did at LCOGT: TrES 3, Uranus satellite work, the first astronomer doing the first LCOGT telescope work. Thanks to Emily's input on the flier. She is a great designer. Emily is helping me make a graphic to add to my fliers.

Tomorrow I am going to New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.

Setting out on bold trip to claim my role in science

I leave tomorrow. I am glad to be bold, but it's scary. I am doing a national speaking tour to promote myself continuing in astronomy. My talks are ready. Not as ready as I would like -- my "observing falling planets' luminosity" paper is not published yet, with some parts still needing work. But I am going to go. An astronomer unemployed for two years must have professional contact. To do the things that it means to be a scientist: Gather data and analyze it. to go visit colleagues to understand the subject, to write up the results, and to speak in public talks about what we find. I endeavor to recreate all these pieces of a scientist's life. But of course nothing replaces not having one's salary and not having the things that I and those close to me miss out on. It does not work to job hunt in astronomy after being kept off my publication record. I will go in part to look people in the eye and tell them that these papers, the planet TrES 3 and the rest, are my work as well. I am saying I choose to continue and finish my contributions, and expect them to be recognized.

So off I go to speak on exoplanets! To speak on my purpose for being in astronomy. To connect with astronomers and the public. To improve my scientific knowledge and skills. To not allow job hunting to interfere with my progress. To be public for being the first astronomer for LCOGT and the planets, Uranian satellite mutual event, and transient science. To be a public face for exploring exoplanets!

Taking on the Challenge

Getting ready for my Across the Nation Speaking Tour to regain my career in Astronomy. Having to enter a whole new subfield is a nearly impossible task. I was forced to leave observational astronomy, so now I am forced to become a theorist from home without pay. At least I have a great topic.

I am going on my speaking tour for another important reason: to return to the role of a professional astronomer. That means meeting with colleagues and speaking about what I am doing. It means staying engaged with other astronomers. It means speaking to the public. It means going to different institutions and setting up collaborations. Seeing what astronomers elsewhere are doing.

I am also going to claim my work. To regain my history for 2007 and 2008. To look people in the eye and say I was a part of the first published results for TrES 3. I had everything ready that that was to be my observation, as were the Uranus satellite observations. I did the first LCOGT Uranus satellite observations, in preparation for being a part of the first observation of Uranus satellite mutual events. I did the first LCOGT photometry, and I expected to share in the transit and satellite observations, and to expand from there with the LCOGT astronomers that came after me. I am working to get credit for these papers when I job hunt. The falling planets paper comes first, but I will follow that paper with one on my contribution to ideal handling of color differences between target and reference stars using ideal weighting obtained by SVD fitting of the extinction curve. By putting my name on zero papers, LCOGT shows Rosing's lack of any ethics. I expect to be included in the credit for my work, and to look people in the eye and tell them this was my work.

The most difficult thing is to explain my situation. No affiliation and no credit on the work I did at Las Cumbres. Rosing's goal (if nothing else) was clearly to have LCOGT have no record of me. Completely hide me away as having been that organization's astronomer. The allegations were to completely devalue me. To fabricate me doing four wrong things to make me run away without claiming a part in the science done by LCOGT or being a part of its history. Rosing's goal from the first attack was to make me completely go away. I had no value as a person. It is true LCOGT offered to put my name on one transit timings paper but I wouldn't be allowed to participate in writing it. I said to include me in the work on the paper and then put my name, but they refused. I find the offer to use my name but not let me participate as an author to be another ethical violation. So it is important to claim my work.