Welcome to Astronomer in Shanghai! Thank you for following my blog and for your interest in my adventures in Shanghai! As covid-19 continues to plague the US, and you all are (hopefully) wearing masks (like me) and maintaining social distancing practices, I hope that my blog illustrates that once the world recovers from this outbreak (which is not now in the US), things will improve. You should all look forward to small interactions with friends and family. I’m sure you’ll find, as I have, that these are the interactions you will cherish. In Shanghai, life has returned to a new normal. The recovery timeline for Shanghai is not applicable to the US and new outbreaks may still occur. However, we are all in this together and if we wear masks and cooperate with social distancing guidelines things will improve.
If you find my blog interesting or enjoyable, please subscribe and let me know! To subscribe, enter your name and e-mail on the right side of the page. Once subscribed, you’ll receive an e-mail with each new post. If you have any questions about how I’ve dealt with covid-19 or my life in Shanghai, please ask. Instructions are on the “To Comment” page. Also, please share this blog with anyone who needs reassurance that eventually life will return to a semblance of normalcy.
Life in Shanghai
As the summer continues to heat up (at least here in Shanghai), I hope that this latest post continues to find all of you remaining smart and vigilant while following your social distancing guidelines and wearing masks when you go outside. As I’ve said before, I know wearing a mask isn’t always comfortable, especially when it’s brutally hot, but it’s the best way to help prevent the spread of the virus. While I’m sure all of you are doing this, please kindly remind your friends and neighbors to do so as well. It’s only by doing our best for the good of the whole that we will be able to recover from the virus.
While I don’t want to spend too much time voicing my frustrations about the situation in the US, I do want to say that over the past few weeks, it’s become increasingly clear how different the reality is for me in China than it is for you in the US. In China, when Beijing had an outbreak of a few hundred cases in a few days, the city went into lockdown and all visitors were required to do 14 days of quarantine. In the US, the cases continue to skyrocket with no such restrictions in many of the key hotbeds. It’s troubling and disheartening that we have an administration that refuses to acknowledge their faults and failures and the fact that over 150,000 Americans are the result of their inaction. Hopefully the US will finally stop making decisions based solely on the economy and will instead allow science to dictate our response (maybe once we have an election).
In terms of covid-19, here in China, the virus remains under control. There are concerning outbreaks in both Hong Kong and Xinjiang (this is hundreds to thousands of cases). However, those cases appear to be localized. In Shanghai, there are just 17 cases, while in Beijing there are now only 7! All the cases in Shanghai are imported cases. As a result, the recovery rate remains remarkably high, at 96.8% in Shanghai and 92.1% for China overall. So, as I’ve already emphasized in previous posts, clearly this virus can be controlled if strict practices are implemented.
On the Astronomy side of things, this was a very productive week! I made a lot of progress on my Luminosity Function analysis. We’re now working on modifying some of the parameters in order to determine any small-order differences. This is the first original project I’ve worked on as a post-doc, so it feels great to be making headway! Additionally, I’ve been involved in telecon discussions (with Ying as well as many US collaborators) about using secondary DESI fibers (that currently have no targets) to apply for DESI observations to create a spectroscopically complete sample of BCGs for DESI, which should yield some great science projects in the future. Unfortunately, I’m still having some struggles with my analysis of the uncertainties associated with the DES SMHM relation. So, hopefully I’ll be able to make some progress on that project soon. In addition to my work, all my meetings are still on Zoom, where we have our group meeting as well as our AstroCoffee meetings.
As I mentioned earlier, it’s super hot here! Every day the high has been over 90 and with humidity, the feels like temperature is well over 100! So, I’ve been spending a lot of time indoors. Even when I walk to the subway (~5-10 minute walk), I’m usually dripping with sweat by the time I get back inside where there’s air conditioning. However, when I spoke with my research supervisor, Ying, he commented that it’s pretty mild this summer, so the next few summers could be brutal! 🙁
Despite the heat, I still made time for some fun things this weekend. On Friday, I got bubble tea with Heather! For those of you who are unfamiliar, bubble tea is a tea/smoothie with tapioca balls (that look like bubbles) at the bottom. I got a mango smoothie with pomelo and tapioca balls! It was a very refreshing way to beat the heat!
There were also a lot of cool signs and displays in the nearby shopping complex that we met at. Unlike in the US, in Shanghai, there are tons of malls that are almost exclusively restaurants. And unlike the restaurants in US malls, these are generally good!
I love seeing panda advertisements!
As some of you are aware, the NBA returned to action this past week. While I don’t believe that the US has done enough to earn the return of sports, it is a welcome break from the monotony of my mornings. With the return of the NBA, I thought I’d share the advertisements I saw for Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell’s new shoes at the Adidas store near Jing’an Temple!
Food in Shanghai
On Saturday, I got a dim sum brunch with my friends Hannah Maia and Clem! We met up to discuss the planning for our next Black Lives Matter discussion event (which is Wednesday). So, I’ll update you all on that next week! For those of you, like me, who have never had a full dim sum meal before, dim sum (at least to my understanding), is different baozi (bao buns) and dumplings as well as noodles. We went to a vegetarian dim sum restaurant and enjoyed a feast!
We ordered vegetable and tofu stuffed baozi, Shao mei stuffed with rice and mushrooms, honey sponge cake, gluten with mushrooms and bamboo, tofu knots, lotus roots stuffed with glutinous rice, and dry noodles with fermented tofu. My personal favorites were the tofu knots (which is basically knotted tofu skins–So Good!!!) and the baozi!
I’ll definitely have another dim sum brunch (though hopefully less brown colored next time!). 🙂
In addition to all the yummy dim sum, I also did a lot of cooking for myself. This week, I made black bean burgers, roasted broccoli, and Mediterranean Quinoa salad!
Jewish Life in Shanghai
On Friday, the Moishe House hosted a Shabbat dinner! This was a very relaxing and fun way to spend my Friday night with friends! We had a delicious meal prepared by Hannah Maia along with my Quinoa salad! I’m really glad to be such an active member within the Moishe House Community here in Shanghai!
The highlight of Shabbat this week was getting to play with Lucky! Lucky is the dog that the Moishe House residents are fostering for two of the community members who are stuck in Israel. She’s super friendly (as you can see from the pictures below)!! It’s always fun to get to hang out with my friends who have pets for me to play with!
Overall, this was another fun week even though it was a little bit quieter than the last few! This upcoming week will be a little busier, another improv game night on Tuesday and the BLM discussion on Wednesday. So, this will should be another fun and social week!
I hope that you enjoyed hearing about and seeing some of the things that I did this week! I hope this update reminds you that life really isn’t that different here in China (though the food is :)) and that things will improve (though the process to improve life can’t be rushed). If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about the current covid-19 situation, please let me know. If you want to talk about how to stay positive and productive, reach out. I want to help support you and assure all of you in any way that I can.
In peace,
Jesse
Hi Jesse, WOW it sounds hot there! I can’t believe this has been deemed a cooler summer! Is it a dry heat, or super humid? I’m glad to hear you’re making research progress! That sounds like a cool plan for DESI! What redshirts would you be looking out to? I hope you have some better luck with your error analysis this week! The bubble tea sounds great! I don’t think I’ve had one in years. I really like the ads you shared and the the Donovan Mitchell ad looked super cool. Go Jazz! The dim sum sounds wonderful. I got dim sum once in Boston ages ago, but since the place wasn’t vegetarian and was buffet style, it was a bit hectic trying to figure out which buns were vegetarian. I’m so glad you have the Moishe house community! You look like you’re having so much fun with Lucky in those pictures! I hope you have a fantastic week! Stay safe and healthy!
Love,
Emmet
Thanks Emmet! It’s super hot here. It’s usually in the mid 80s or higher when I get up. It’s not quite as humid as it was during the Plum rain season, but it’s still quite humid. For DESI, the redshift sample should be complete out to ~ z=0.3-0.4 (so for you still pretty low redshift). The Donovan Mitchell ads were cool! I completely understand how hard it would be to have Dim Sum where you don’t know what’s vegetarian. You can’t tell by the outside at all! I hope that you also have a safe and healthy week!
Hi, Jesse.
I am glad you had both a fun and a productive week. The future projects with the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) sound exciting. And I am so glad that you have a sense of pride in your work on the Luminosity function, your first original work as a Postdoc; I detect a note of pride in your accomplishment, and I am delighted to second that. I remember your saying that you and Juliette were talking about the excitements and challenges of being a Postdoc, and it seems like this project has launched you!
The panda advertisement is adorable. Who would have thought that when I bought you that panda hat as a toddler that you would develop a love of pandas–giant pandas and even the red pandas at the Buffalo Zoo–and now be living in a country that is proud of its pandas. I hope you will get to visit the panda reservation one day when it is safer to travel. And Lucky is certainly very lucky to have you to play with. I could not tell who was having more fun–I think it was you though.
This week I have been working hard on my classes and cleaning my desk at home since I am teaching remotely, so my study is my teaching office, too. The kitchen is moving along, and we are seeing some real progress. I just found out that I can pick peaches starting on August 9-10, so I will go picking and hopefully can still be making jam. We are losing the sink tomorrow! Our raspberries are at a lull now, but we still have lots of rhubarb and some more lettuce mix growing.
This has been a hot summer in Saratoga, too, and I would love to have some bubble tea. I am fascinated by the buns and the tofu skins. I am going to have to make a list of all the amazing foods to eat when I am able to come to Shanghai to visit.
I agree with your take on our current administration 100%. Rest assured your Dad and I are social distancing and wearing our masks. I have quite a mask collection now!
Here is to another great week. Much love, Mom
Hi Mom! There’s definitely a sense of pride with starting to make progress, though some of it is also a sense of relief that I finally figured out what I’m doing! I also hope that I can visit Chengdu sometime soon! I think younger me would be very disappointed if I didn’t. It was great playing with Lucky! Though I think she had a little more fun than me 🙂
I’m glad that the kitchen is coming along well and that you’ll be able to get fresh peaches! You’ve had a fantastic haul from the garden so far this year as well! You’ll definitely have to make a list of all the foods you want to try when you’re able to visit (there’s a ton)!
I’m glad you and Dad are still being smart and wearing masks! I hope you have a safe and healthy week!
Another great blog, full of interesting points. Fascinating that you have so quickly become a significant voice in both Moishe House and the Shanghai Jewish community. This was my experience when I went up to Aberdeen in the north east of Scotland and became involved in the very small (about 40 families and individuals) Jewish community there (many years ago) for post grad research in medical sociology. Many of the 40 were residents of the city, a number of others were academics (which the residents viewed as likely transient) and students (undergrads and grads).
The food you find always sounds so delicious. If you get a chance you might want to check out Michael Pollin’s book Cooked ((2013). There is a Netflix series based on it and apart from the chapter dealing with fire and meat there are excellent sections about bread, fermented vegetables and fruits (pickles and wines) and a wonderful section on cheese making. Much of my own thinking about fermentation (bread, vegetables and milk) resonates very closely with his. Indeed, I have started a second batch of true pickles from our cucumber harvest (using brine to encourage lacto-bacteria and inhibit other spoilage organisms) – so simple to make (5% brine solution by weight + spices and herbs + horseradish leaves to add tannin to keep the cucs crisp (but you can add a tablespoon of black tea leaves)
I really need to look into bao buns.
Gotta find a way to discourage the squirrels in our yard from stealing and eating our handful of apples. Surprised one creature this morning after it had pulled two apples (not yet ripe) from our tree) and was gnawing on them. Perhaps the solution is to cover the bark of the tree with hot pepper in a Vaseline salve.
Continued good fortune with your research. While I certainly don’t understand the niceties of your luminosity research I wonder if you might explain what the key idea behind your research is and what the data will either confirm or challenge.
Stay safe – We are going to find out this week (I think) how NYS and NYC schools might open in the fall. in my opinion they need to be more conservative , as you suggest , and protect lives before they protect $$$.
Fascinating that you have so quickly become a significant voice in both Moishe House and the Shanghai Jewish community. This was my experience when I went up to Aberdeen in the north east of Scotland and became involved in the very small (about 40 families and individuals) Jewish community there (many years ago) for post grad research in medical sociology. Many of the 40 were residents of the city, a number of others were academics (which the residents viewed as likely transient) and students (undergrads and grads).
The food you find always sounds so delicious. If you get a chance you might want to check out Michael Pollin’s book Cooked ((2013). There is a Netflix series based on it and apart from the chapter dealing with fire and meat there are excellent sections about bread, fermented vegetables and fruits (pickles and wines) and a wonderful section on cheese making. Much of my own thinking about fermentation (bread, vegetables and milk) resonates very closely with his. Indeed, I have started a second batch of true pickles from our cucumber harvest (using brine to encourage lacto-bacteria and inhibit other spoilage organisms) – so simple to make (5% brine solution by weight + spices and herbs + horseradish leaves to add tannin to keep the cucs crisp (but you can add a tablespoon of black tea leaves)
I really need to look into bao buns.
Gotta find a way to discourage the squirrels in our yard from stealing and eating our handful of apples. Surprised one creature this morning after it had pulled two apples (not yet ripe) from our tree) and was gnawing on them. Perhaps the solution is to cover the bark of the tree with hot pepper in a Vaseline salve.
Continued good fortune with your research. While I certainly don’t understand the niceties of your luminosity research I wonder if you might explain what the key idea behind your research is and what the data will either confirm or challenge.
Stay safe – We are going to find out this week (I think) how NYS and NYC schools might open in the fall. in my opinion they need to be more conservative , as you suggest , and protect lives before they protect $$$.
Hi Bernard! Your experience in Scotland sounds very interesting. There’s definitely something unique about being in a small Jewish community. Since it’s such an integral part of my life, I’m grateful that it’s here. Cooked sounds very interesting! Thanks for the recommendation. The pickles your making sound delicious! The bao buns that I get are usually stuffed with vegetables (greens, mushrooms, tofu, ginger) or red bean paste. I really enjoy them!
Thanks for the well wishes on my research. In next week’s post, I’ll do another research deep dive and explain some of the nuances of what I’m working on in that project.
I hope that the NYS and NYC schools make the responsible call and are not in person this fall. I hope you and Lisa continue to stay safe and healthy!
Hi Jesse: I want to express how much I look forward to Sunday AM to read your messages. I cheer for any progress on the luminosity function analysis and know that your struggles with analysis of DES SMHM relation is a great learning opportunity for your future endeavors. The food entrees has positively impacted what I eat. I loved the car with flowers.
Hi Dora! It’s great to hear from you! I’m so glad to hear that you’re still enjoying my posts! Thank you for your positive outlook on my research struggles. You’re right that it’s always best to look for the positives associated with any challenges. I’m glad to hear that the food I’ve shown has positively impacted what you’re eating! The car with flowers was really cool! It was at a shopping mall, so I have no idea whether it was an advertisement or just a display, but it was neat! Hope you and your family continue to stay safe and healthy!
Hi Jesse, I enjoy the panda ads too! And always the Lucky photos 🙂
I hope you have another nice week!
Hi Ryan! That panda ad was super cute! I’m glad you enjoyed the photos of me and Lucky. I’m really happy my friends took them for me! Hope you also have another nice and safe week!