Sunday, July 05, 2026
When Nathan Thompson, now CEO of the Atlantic, spoke kind words of me--
At that time I did not connect the "Thompson" in his name with Scott Thompson who helped us at Free Burma Coalition a great deal.
I'm not that good at outreach or making connections.
I guess I live in a misty world like those wild geese--
https://southeastasiaglobe.com/poetry-myanmar-southeast-asia-globe/
Saturday, July 04, 2026
How Magnesium helps leg cramps--
Copilot Search Branding
How Magnesium Helps with Muscle Cramps
Magnesium is an essential mineral involved in over 300 biochemical reactions in the body, including muscle contraction, nerve transmission, and relaxation Healthline+1. It helps regulate calcium levels in muscle cells — calcium triggers contraction, while magnesium helps pump calcium back out, allowing the muscle to relax Drugs.com.
Why Magnesium Deficiency Can Cause Cramps
Low magnesium levels (hypomagnesemia) can disrupt this balance, leading to involuntary muscle contractions such as cramps, spasms, and weakness Drugs.com. Deficiency may result from:
Poor diet
Certain medical conditions (e.g., gastrointestinal disorders)
Medications (e.g., diuretics)
Chronic alcohol use Drugs.com
How Magnesium May Help
Supports muscle relaxation: By helping regulate calcium, magnesium prevents prolonged contraction Drugs.com.
Reduces inflammation and oxidative stress: This can ease muscle soreness and improve recovery Verywell Health.
Improves nerve signaling: Ensures proper communication between nerves and muscles Healthline.
May help pregnancy-related cramps: Some studies suggest magnesium can reduce leg cramps during pregnancy, though evidence is mixed Verywell Health+1.
Evidence and Limitations
In people with confirmed magnesium deficiency, supplementation often resolves cramps and weakness Drugs.com.
For cramps without confirmed deficiency, results are mixed — some people report relief, others do not Healthline+1.
Magnesium citrate is often recommended for better absorption and muscle pain relief Health.
Sources of Magnesium
Dietary: Leafy greens (spinach, kale), nuts (almonds, cashews), seeds (pumpkin, chia), legumes, whole grains, avocados, dark chocolate Drugs.com+1.
Supplements: Magnesium oxide, chloride, sulfate, citrate; citrate is more absorbable Health.
Topical: Magnesium chloride (Epsom salt baths) may help some people, though absorption varies Health.
Practical Tips
If you suspect low magnesium, get tested before starting supplements.
Address overall electrolyte balance (potassium, calcium, sodium) alongside magnesium.
For prevention, include magnesium-rich foods in your diet; for acute cramps, try a short magnesium-rich bath or supplement if deficiency is confirmed.
Bottom line: Magnesium helps muscles relax and supports nerve function, so it can be effective for cramps caused by deficiency. For other cramps, evidence is less clear, and results vary by individual Verywell Health+2.
From (what is Leidos--formerly SAIC)
In June 2001, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) paid SAIC US$122 million to create a Virtual Case File (VCF) software system to speed up the sharing of information among agents. But the FBI abandoned VCF when it failed to function adequately. Robert Mueller, FBI Director, testified to a congressional committee, "When SAIC delivered the first product in December 2003 we immediately identified a number of deficiencies – 17 at the outset. That soon cascaded to 50 or more and ultimately to 400 problems with that software ... We were indeed disappointed."[52]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leidos
Friday, July 03, 2026
Thursday, July 02, 2026
3 books to read in July--check online--for summaries and how to buy
1. Sister Helen Prejean: Dead Man walking--also a movie with Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon--
2. Walter Isaacson--Leonardo da Vinci
3. Kai Bird: American Prometheus--also movie Oppenheimer--about development of atmom bomb.
Kaung--7-2-2026
Wednesday, July 01, 2026
In my 3rd year of college at Rangoon University, I didn't take English Literature but went to
Economics--much to the disappointment of U Myo Min--the Department Head.
I remember going to see him and explaining I could read English literature on my own, but for Economics I needed Guidance.
U Myo Min shook his head sadly: "It's not the same."
So I missed Mr.Raymond Adlam's brilliant lectures and sometimes my brother would talk to me about his classes--
Prometheus Unbound, Paradise Lost,Percy Shelley's heart that did not burn,Mary Shelley and Frankenstein--
Mourning becomes Electra, George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalian--
but they were just words in a stew, in chunks as Salman Rushdie might have said.
Adlam left in 1962 after the first coup.
So I never really got around to "reading English Literature on my own," until 1994 when I deposited my Ph.D. dissertation and I felt so empty I immediately started to write rushed summaries of all the stories pent up inside me.
After discussing with my friend Dr.Sharon Ann Yaeger who had TWO doctorates back to back, both in poetry--I took several classes with the Rittenhouse Writers Group
and had my first short Story, published in America in The Philadelphia Inquirer Sunday Magazine. Thank you James Rahn and my classmates.
https://www.rittenhousewritersgroup.com/wordpress/
It's been an incredible journey.
Kyi May Kaung
7-1-2026
Percy Bysshe Shelley--a short life--full of death, depression, debt--
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Bysshe_Shelley
But he inspired Gandhi.
Amazing.
And with her pathbreaking Frankenstein, his 2nd wife Mary Shelley single-handedly pioneering the whole new genre of science fiction.
Kyi May Kaung
7-1-2026
On my LinkedIn--
Trump viral over small crowds--well--"small crowds" is an oxymoron.
If it's small it's not a crowd.
Small turnout better.
The reporter asked a white couple--the man speechless and seemed to show signs of dementia. The woman did all the talking.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-crowd-size-state-fair-national-mall-250-b3006937.html?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us
Wow--the real Prometheus.
Copilot Search Branding
Prometheus was a Titan in Greek mythology, known as the god of fire and a master craftsman. He is celebrated for stealing fire from Zeus and giving it to humanity, which enabled progress and civilization. This act of defiance against Zeus led to severe punishment, as he was chained to a mountain where an eagle would eat his liver daily, only for it to regenerate each night Mythology.netMythology.net+2. Additionally, Prometheus is often regarded as a benefactor of mankind, introducing them to various crafts and the art of sacrifice Encyclopedia.comEncyclopedia.com+1.
The book that inspired the movie Oppenheimer took 25 years for
2 authors to write--American Prometheus
https://www.amazon.com/American-Prometheus-Triumph-Tragedy-Oppenheimer/dp/0375726268/ref=asc_df_0375726268?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80401998413558&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=91335&hvtargid=pla-4584001476496805&psc=1&hvocijid=14469501715215136700-0375726268-&hvexpln=0
Co-pilot search results #2--read everything from the bottom up
Copilot Search Branding
Chen Ning Yang’s Research and Its Connection to the Atomic Bomb
Chen Ning Yang’s work was not directly about the atomic bomb, but it was deeply connected to the same era of nuclear physics that underpinned both nuclear weapons and nuclear energy. His most famous contribution, made in 1956 with Tsung-Dao Lee, was the discovery that parity (mirror symmetry) is violated in weak interactions Britannica+1. This meant that certain particle decays behave differently in a mirror-reflected universe, a finding that revolutionized particle physics and helped establish that the primary currents in weak interactions are left-handed Institute for Advanced Study+1.
This research was part of the broader post–World War II effort to understand the fundamental forces and particles that govern matter. During the 1940s and 1950s, physicists like Yang were working alongside those involved in nuclear weapons research, as both projects relied on advances in nuclear theory, particle physics, and quantum field theory. For example, Yang’s doctoral work under Enrico Fermi at the University of Chicago coincided with Fermi’s own contributions to the Manhattan Project Wikipedia.
While Yang’s own research did not design or build atomic bombs, the theoretical framework he helped develop—especially in particle physics and symmetry principles—was part of the same scientific ecosystem that advanced nuclear science. His work on Yang–Mills theory with Robert Mills in 1954 provided a mathematical foundation for describing forces like the strong nuclear force, which is essential for understanding how nuclei are held together Wikipedia+1. This kind of theoretical work indirectly supported the deeper understanding of nuclear structure and interactions that was critical for both nuclear energy and nuclear weapons. In short, Yang’s research was not about the atomic bomb itself, but it was part of the nuclear physics revolution of the mid-20th century, a period when theoretical advances in particle physics and quantum field theory were closely linked to the practical challenges of nuclear science, including weapons development.
Co-pilot search results--
Copilot Search Branding
Particle physics is the branch of physics that studies the universe’s fundamental particles—such as quarks, leptons, and bosons—and the forces governing them, as described by the Standard Model developed in the 1970s.
Overview
Particle physics (also called high‑energy physics) investigates the smallest known building blocks of matter and the fundamental interactions between them. It explores both matter particles (quarks and leptons) and force‑carrying particles (bosons). WikipediaWikipedia
What Particle Physics Studies
Elementary particles: Quarks, leptons, neutrinos, photons, gluons, W/Z bosons, and the Higgs boson. WikipediaWikipedia
Fundamental forces: Strong, weak, electromagnetic, and gravity (though gravity is not yet fully integrated into the Standard Model). web.cern.chweb.cern.ch
Antimatter: Each particle has a corresponding antiparticle with opposite charge. WikipediaWikipedia
Quantum fields: Particles are excitations of underlying quantum fields. WikipediaWikipedia
The Standard Model
The Standard Model is the dominant theoretical framework describing:
Three generations of quarks and leptons
Force carriers for strong, weak, and electromagnetic interactions
Predictive structures that have been experimentally confirmed, including the Higgs boson web.cern.chweb.cern.ch
How Particle Physics Is Studied
Particle accelerators (e.g., the Large Hadron Collider) smash particles at high energies to reveal subatomic structure. WikipediaWikipedia
Detectors observe the resulting particle interactions and decays.
Theoretical physics develops mathematical models to explain and predict particle behavior. WikipediaWikipedia
Why It Matters
Particle physics helps explain:
The composition of matter
The forces shaping the universe
Phenomena such as the early universe, symmetry, and the nature of mass
Particle physics remains a central field for understanding the fundamental structure of reality.
What is Particle Physics--from wiki--
History
Main article: History of subatomic physics
see caption
The Geiger–Marsden experiments observed that a small fraction of the alpha particles experienced strong deflection when being struck by the gold foil.
The idea that all matter is fundamentally composed of elementary particles dates from at least the 6th century BC.[1] In the 19th century, John Dalton, through his work on stoichiometry, concluded that each element of nature was composed of a single, unique type of particle.[2] The word atom, after the Greek word atomos meaning "indivisible", has since then denoted the smallest particle of a chemical element, but physicists later discovered that atoms are not, in fact, the fundamental particles of nature, but are conglomerates of even smaller particles, such as the electron. The early 20th century explorations of nuclear physics and quantum physics led to proofs of nuclear fission in 1939 by Lise Meitner (based on experiments by Otto Hahn), and nuclear fusion by Hans Bethe in that same year; both discoveries also led to the development of nuclear weapons. Bethe's 1947 calculation of the Lamb shift is credited with having "opened the way to the modern era of particle physics".[3]
Dr Chen Ning Yang--
Examining symmetry in nature
Yang served for a year as an instructor at UChicago before joining the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, where he worked alongside Robert Oppenheimer. In 1954, Yang worked with Robert Mills to develop the Yang-Mills theory, which describes the behavior of elementary particles and is the basis of our understanding of the Standard Model of particle physics.
Two years later Yang collaborated with fellow UChicago alum Lee, PhD 1950, on landmark research that would revolutionize the field of physics. Exploring long-held assumptions that the laws of physics were the same in a mirror image as in reality—and that all forces conserved parity—Yang and Lee proposed that parity might not hold for interactions with weak forces. A team led by Chien-Shiung Wu of Columbia University confirmed Lee and Yang's theory, observing that the decay of cobalt-60 did not happen in the exact same way as its mirror image—and that the left-right symmetry law was violated by the weak interaction.
https://news.uchicago.edu/story/chen-ning-yang-world-renowned-physicist-and-nobel-laureate-1922-2025
For their breakthrough, Yang and Lee shared the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics for their research on parity laws, which the Foundation wrote “led to important discoveries regarding the elementary particles.”
Deep devotion to China
A prolific author, Yang went on to make other important research contributions in statistical physics, quantum groups, and related fields of physics and mathematics, serving on the faculties of Stonybrook University and Tsinghua University. In addition to the Nobel Prize, Yang won numerous honors, including the U.S. National Medal of Science, the Albert Einstein Medal and the Benjamin Franklin Medal.
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Monday, June 29, 2026
This is like my magnet poetry--I tried to submit it to Poet Lore but it was rejected by E.Ethelbert Miller--a lovely man and a lovely poet.
https://www.nplusonemag.com/online-only/online-only/the-expansiveness-the-new-air/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us
But I do like this poet (above's) book-laden rooms in Cambridge. Yesterday a
driver from "Great Supermart" delivered me $200 worth of groceries for 4-6
weeks.
He kept saying "I can't complete the delivery without the 4 digit code." While I
was opening my email,he glanced at my space and said, "Books! Where do you
sleep?"
I said,"I sleep in my bed with my books."
Finally I found the code and shouted it out and he could leave.
Here is a recent poen by E.Ethelbert Miller.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/1731781/from-the-gaza-suite
E.Ethelbert did accept one poem from me,"The Seeds of Truth,"
And another,"Elephants on the Mae Rim Road," I had already posted on this blog
when she was young, so he passed.
Kyi May Kaung
6-29-2026
Helmut--a great name for a Hero--also compatible with Mars--
https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=Helmut--name&mid=68E3E24DB443AEDA2B4D68E3E24DB443AEDA2B4D&churl=https%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fchannel%2fUCexqmeueNOXiXAJeMfuVOPQ&FORM=VIRE
How to pronounce--"Hay-hoot--lann" as in Burmese Lann--Road
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)