I'm going to Antarctica! Want a postcard?

I'm going to Antarctica! My heart is fluttering even just typing that right now.I have spent the past five years (five!) working on trying to go to Antarctica. And now, later this year I'll be spending an entire month there! For me, going to Antarctica is like going to space... only I get to keep that nifty gravity and atmosphere as carry-on luggage.This is going to be a multi-month endeavor for me and I expect it will be a lot of work as a team of one. This is where all of you come in, because I really could use your help. While my flight and my room/board in Antarctica is covered, all of my time and all the cool equipment that I need to pull off this project is not funded at all. Signing up for my Patreon is a massive way you can help directly fund this project, and also receive some pretty rad rewards like a postcard from me to you stamped from Antarctica!

So, you may be wondering at this point what the heck am I doing there!? I am going to be exploring the life beneath the ice. A common misperception about Antarctica is that it is barren and lifeless, save for perhaps some penguins. But under the ice exists a microbial "Serengeti" of life and I want to bring you all along on a safari to see it with your own eyes. I'll be doing video microscopy (shooting video through a microscope) of the weird creepy crawlies that live in this extreme environment.In addition to creating videos on my YouTube channel about what it's like in Antarctica, I'll be sharing what it's like to prepare for deployment to Antarctica and how you, too, can capture extremophiles (like tardigrades!) in your own backyard with a microscope. Since I can't take all of you to Antarctica with me, I want to bring as much of Antarctica to you as I can.

I have a lot more to say and share but for now I just want to say thank you to all of you, those who I've met in person and those I haven't yet, for all your support and encouragement over the years and in recent days. This expedition means a lot to me and I couldn't do it without you.

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On that note, I want to specifically thank: Ken Mankoff for telling me about this opportunity back in 2013. Chris McKay for invaluable advice, encouragement and for helping me get my first microscope. Jill Mikucki for amazing support both on the field and off and being there for me in so many ways. Britney Schmidt and John Priscu (and team) for field support. Gisele Giorgi and Peter Werner, including everyone at the Merritt College Microscopy Program and the San Francisco Microscopical Society for all the education and encouragement. Mike Lucibella, Valentine Kass, Jenny Cunningham, and Peter West for the opportunity and dedication to the program. Lynn Rothschild, Matt Ganucheau, Ian Brunswick, Maryanna Rogers, Marina Gorbis, Seth Shostak, and Josh Greenberg for your support. Matt Bellis, Penny Boston, and Alex Parker for helping improve my grant proposal writing. Caroline Miller for being so welcoming when I was at the start of figuring out microscopes. Matt Biddulph, Lisa Ballard, and so many of my friends for being there for me through 'thick and thin' over these past few years. And finally, thanks to the many people who I haven't met yet who will be helping me while I'm on the ice!

Science Adventure: 1 Mile Underground!

I went a mile underground inside an abandoned gold mine ...for science!I was in Lead, South Dakota (next to Deadwood) to keynote their big public event called Neutrino Day where families come in from the surrounding areas to geek out about particle physics, which is so cool.I always adore a chance to geek out about neutrinos and subatomic particle collisions, but I was especially excited to get a chance to go one mile underground and see all the cool science taking place. The Sanford Lab is host to a particle accelerator, extremophile research, dark matter experiments and the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). Check out what it was like!

Excited to announce I have a new show on Tested!

Premiering today for the first time - I'm hosting a new show with Tested called Offworld! Tested is Mythbusters' Adam Savage's YouTube channel that has over 3 million subscribers. Offworld will be about all things outer space + pop culture. Check out the first episode featuring astronomer Dr. Jill Tarter and Norm Chan as we geek out about the movie Contact:

Welcome to Offworld, a new show we're making that explores the fun places where space and pop culture intersect! In each episode, we'll examine a science fiction story and discuss how it holds up under some scientific scrutiny.

I'm also still continuing to grow my own YouTube channel where I make short and sweet space-tastic videos, so be sure to subscribe there, too!

No Hate, No Fear: my year in protests

As many people today, on New Year's Eve, are reflecting on the year they had, I feel compelled to document and more suitably archive my year in protests. This is not a post telling you what you should do or what to compare yourself to. Welcome to a personal blog – my personal blog. Going through these photos and videos helps give me faith for whatever 2018 brings, whether it's rebuilding a long staircase out of the darkness, or simply surviving it. It's helpful for me to remember that this is not a marathon, nor a sprint, but a relay.

To those claiming protests aren’t effective: this is how you build community strength to do the other things required in fighting fascism 💪

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 30, 2017

It began on November 9, 2016, the day after the "election".

Protest with 3,000 people headed to 24th & Mission in SF. https://t.co/CXk4LqYfMB

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) November 10, 2016

On Mission Street in SF right now pic.twitter.com/AXXfjGdk3A

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) November 10, 2016

On 24th Street #protestspic.twitter.com/ahrSOc64Pi

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) November 10, 2016

The weekend that immediately followed was Science Hack Day San Francisco, which was tough. Science Hack Day is an incredibly positive grassroots community that I have been building since 2010, and the 2016 event was the 7th annual one in San Francisco. Nearly everyone around me had understandably sunk into a depression. As lead organizer, I just went into "be a rock" mode and tried to shoulder everything I possibly could. And then I got a phone call that a close family member had a life-threatening event and was in the hospital for an unexpected major surgery. That was a tough week. I got through it because building even a tiny little corner of positive community for people felt like one of the best and most useful things I could be doing in this darkest timeline.

Focusing my attention towards #sciencehackday &the incredibly awesome & inclusive community we’ve built over the years. and will continue to

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) November 10, 2016

The following week, I traveled to Iran – a lifelong dream of mine given my partial Iranian heritage. We had booked the travel months in advance to take place before the inauguration – we told ourselves "just in case". Ha. The TL;DR is that Iran is amazing, warm, and welcoming, and you can browse the photos from my trip here.While in Iran, I was quickly booking my flights to go to Washington D.C. when I got back. The Obama White House was organizing a Champions of Change Reunion, to bring together the people who were recognized as Champions of Change, a program started by Barack Obama to highlight community change-makers across a myriad of causes. In 2013, I spoke at the White House as a Champion of Change in Citizen Science. When I got to D.C., it was encouraging to be surrounded by so many people that had also focused on building a tiny little corner of positive community, all across the country.

Important to affect change through being a model instead of telling people to act differently #WHChamps

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) December 5, 2016

2017 began with the historic Women's March, which was something both to experience in person and to watch unfold around the world. My friends and I gathered ahead of time to make signs and go together.

#squadgoals #womensmarch #womensmarchsf

A post shared by Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) on Jan 21, 2017 at 7:38pm PST

In San Francisco that day, it was cold, dark and nothing short of absolutely pouring rain. We huddled together shoulder-to-shoulder with so many thousands of people stuffed into and overflowing Civic Center, waiting for the march to begin. Just as the march got started, the rain intensified even more. Everyone was soaked to the core, even if they had a rain poncho. Protest signs were wilting, ink running. But what I remember so clearly is that every time the rain intensified, everyone, thousands and thousands of people, roared back at it – nothing short of a battle cry.

I love this planet and its humans - #womensmarch protest taking place also in Antarctica today! 💪 #resisthttps://t.co/eB53St7Yif

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 21, 2017

Only a week later, Tr*mp would attempt his first Muslim Travel Ban on a Friday night. I was devastated. I began checking in with my Iranian friends, making sure they had access to good lawyers and getting good lawyers for the ones who didn't have one. I made plans with friends to look after their apartment should something happen to them, and to offer my apartment should they be forced out of theirs. There was then a tweet or two about going to the SFO airport to both protest and attempt to get support to the people who had been flying overnight when the ban was announced and were just landing into this chaos.My friend Lisa Ballard and I hopped on BART as soon as we could to get down to SFO. I quickly scrawled out a sign in Farsi since I had been learning it in prep for my trip to Iran just a couple months prior and learned from the Women's March that it was a good way to connect with other people of Iranian heritage. Arriving at the BART station, I saw other people with quickly drawn signs and we immediately bonded knowing we were going to the same place.

Boarded BART and instantly saw a group of protesters who welcomed me. We’re all headed to SFO to protest the #MuslimBan - join us! My sign: pic.twitter.com/iEXVFpQYg8

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 28, 2017

When I arrived, there were only around 25 people protesting inside the terminal at international arrivals. A guy asked to borrow my Sharpie to make a sign. The large hallway began to fill with more and more protesters until it was over capacity and we were pushed to the sidewalks just outside. Then the sidewalks began to fill on both sides of the trafficway, but police kept us from blocking the street. As the crowd continued to grow the police quietly retreated, letting us take over the sidewalks and the street, and then also the inside of the terminal itself again.We chanted and stomped and human-microphoned stories of people impacted and updates on getting lawyers inside to help travelers. We cheered when we heard of people being let through. It was so loud and vibrational that it really wasn't an exaggeration to say the entire international terminal could hear us. People who were just landing at SFO joined the protests, luggage in tow. Lisa and I spent 8 hours straight protesting at SFO that first day and were encouraged to see so many of our friends showing up on the second day. Before I left, a man introduced himself to me telling me he had shown up because of seeing my tweets. I was glad to have handed over the relay baton. Here are some of the videos I took that day:

SFO right now #MuslimBanpic.twitter.com/UeoQu0CiZQ

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 28, 2017

SFO right now #MuslimBanpic.twitter.com/UiQ6ZmKCuq

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

SFO right now. Storming back inside! #MuslimBanpic.twitter.com/CapIcq4HP3

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

SFO right now #MuslimBanpic.twitter.com/rAE0GzarWk

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

SFO right now. Crowd split across upstairs & downstairs int’l arrivals #MuslimBanpic.twitter.com/HcDp8p5U3j

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

SFO right now. #MuslimBan protest has transitioned into sit-in. pic.twitter.com/BrzvsAhIrm

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

This is community. Build communities wherever you are and with whoever you can. Support your friends in showing up. #resist#MuslimBanhttps://t.co/UtTYeb72Bj

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) January 29, 2017

The following week (now into February) I went to a #NoBanNoWall rally:In April, there was the Tax March, which wasn't as well-attended as the other marches but was still large enough to shut down Market Street downtown for several blocks:

#taxmarch

A post shared by Matt Biddulph (@mattbiddulph) on Apr 15, 2017 at 5:52pm PDT

There was also the Science March, which I had reservations about going to, which I detailed in a thread and also explained my personal reasoning in choosing to attend in the end:

If you're curious why I haven't been a vocal supporter of the #ScienceMarch, this excellent recap thread explains. https://t.co/DT3PkgEAaJ

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) April 20, 2017

I began realizing that my art supplies were getting a workout this year for the first time in a while.I met Dianna "Physics Girl" Cowern completely by chance at the Science March by recognizing her at a distance and awkwardly shouting "Dianna!?".I met an Iranian man who introduced himself after seeing the Farsi on my sign and then told me he had worked on Apollo 11, which was so exciting to hear.Kishore Hari, who had helped co-organize the SF Science March, and I discovered we were wearing the exact same SCIENCE socks.In August, there was a rally in response to the horrific events in Charlottesville:

Crowd in San Francisco now singing This Little Light of Mine #DefendCVillepic.twitter.com/bFsHhFX5LP

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 14, 2017

Later that month, San Francisco organized a #UnitedAgainstHate counter-protest in response to the Nazis and other white supremacists who planned to protest in the city. The march started in different places across the city, eventually merging as they went downtown. I started in the Castro:

#SanFranciscopic.twitter.com/1xzGC02XQ3

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 26, 2017

#SanFrancisco#UnitedAgainstHatepic.twitter.com/MmhRSN50kz

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 26, 2017

just hit the uphill part of the street so I can look back at the huge crowd pic.twitter.com/VM1hY6DMOF

— Matt Biddulph (@mattb) August 26, 2017

As the march reached downtown, the crowd passed by Twitter's headquarters, and the chant quickly changed, loudly and forcefully:

Right now the head of the #UnitedAgainstHate march in #SF yelling at @Twitter HQ & @jack: "BAN HIS ACCOUNT!" pic.twitter.com/wnI3fc1inX

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 26, 2017

At the end of the long march, though, it turned into a number of scattered dance parties and I rested my feet in the grass before Civic Center.

Breakout satellite mini dance party at Civic Center 🎉 #UnitedAgainstHatepic.twitter.com/tNAgmVS28J

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 26, 2017

Proud of #SanFrancisco for showing up today. Now to finally eat and rest my feet. #WeGotThis ❤️ pic.twitter.com/0CpMS7vjJS

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) August 26, 2017

Throughout the year, I met many new people at protests and rallies. Began recognizing the faces of the regulars. Watched people of all ages participate at each and every one. Witnessed support systems grow stronger and communities grow larger. For myself, and no doubt many other people, participating in protests revitalized us and reminded us that we are not alone, that we are far from alone, we are the majority as much as some would like us to believe otherwise and importantly that #WeGotThis.#resist

I'm on the Science Channel!

Geeky confession: I was excited to wake up & see @ScienceChannel RTed me: http://is.gd/7bQ1Jh . Geeky dream: Ideally, 1 day I'll be on it.

— Ariel Waldman (@arielwaldman) June 23, 2011

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Five years ago I revealed on Twitter that one of my geek dreams was to appear on the Science Channel. Little did I know that a few months later I would be appearing on the SyFy channel, which was a lot of fun and deepened my desire. And now, five years later, I will appear on the Science Channel! Appearing on TV is something very near and dear to me because of how central a role TV shows, documentaries and films have played in inspiring me to be where I am today.I had never self-identified as a science geek, but I always enjoyed watching science documentaries. In 2008, I was watching the documentary When We Left Earth on the Discovery Channel that captured the story of NASA sending a human into space. The documentary interviewed people who had worked in mission control at the time and shared their story of how they didn't know anything about orbits or rocketry or spacecrafts – they were figuring it out as they went. As a millennial who had grown up in Kansas and attended art school, this was new information to me and I found it incredibly inspiring. I didn't know anything about space exploration either, but all of a sudden I wanted to work at NASA, too! I took that inspiration and shortly thereafter emailed NASA a fangirl letter to volunteer myself. Very unexpectedly, I ended up getting a job at NASA from that email. The rest is history, aka my biography to date.Tomorrow my dream from five years ago will be realized when I be appear on the Science Channel! The show is called How To Build Everything (#HowToBuild) and it airs on Wednesdays 10pm Eastern (9pm Central, 7pm Pacific). I'll be talking about how to build an interplanetary rover! I'll also be in a couple of upcoming episodes talking about how to build spacesuits and rocketships. Below is a shot of me from filming last year. Tune in!