Jan Kmetko · fyi https://jankmetko.fyi/ Recent content on Jan Kmetko · fyi Hugo en Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Recommendation Letter Policy https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/recommendation-letter-policy/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 10:37:30 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/recommendation-letter-policy/ Read before you ask. What the Drop Is For https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/drop-the-lowest-policy/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 12:26:38 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/drop-the-lowest-policy/ A clarification of the drop-the-lowest-score policy. How to Write Professional Emails https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/how-to-write-effective-emails/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 13:23:51 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/how-to-write-effective-emails/ Write emails that are clear, professional, and useful. How to Get Credit For a Project https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/howto-independent-study/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 10:04:27 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/howto-independent-study/ Independent Study: Special Studies 49 Autostar Image Processing Part 1 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part1/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 20:13:48 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part1/ Autostar IP instructions Autostar Image Processing Part 2 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part2/ Wed, 15 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part2/ Autostar IP Instructions Autostar Image Processing Part 3 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part3/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 20:38:40 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part3/ Autostar IP instructions Autostar Image Processing Part 4 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part4/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 20:50:32 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/img-processing-part4/ Autostar IP instructions Selecting an Aperture Radius for Astronomical Photometry https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/selecting-aperture-in-photometry/ Thu, 16 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/selecting-aperture-in-photometry/ Choose an aperture radius that maximizes photometric accuracy and SNR. Cook Dome 16-Inch Telescope Checklists https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/cook-dome-checklists/ Tue, 21 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/cook-dome-checklists/ Start, operate, and shut down the Cook Dome telescope safely. Viewing Galaxies in TOPCAT https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-galaxies-in-topcat/ Sun, 05 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-galaxies-in-topcat/ Browse galaxies in TOPCAT using TAP queries and sky plots. Viewing RR Lyrae Spectra in TOPCAT https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-rrlyrae-spectra-in-topcat/ Sun, 05 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-rrlyrae-spectra-in-topcat/ Browse RR Lyrae spectra in TOPCAT using Gaia data. Constructing an H-R Diagram in TOPCAT https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/construct-hr-diagram-in-topcat/ Wed, 08 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/construct-hr-diagram-in-topcat/ Create an H-R diagram and explore stellar spectra with Gaia DR3. Viewing RR Lyrae Variables in TOPCAT https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-rrlyrae-in-topcat/ Sun, 05 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/teaching/view-rrlyrae-in-topcat/ Locate and examine RR Lyrae variable stars with Gaia DR3. MWO SOAR 2026 Photos https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/soar-2026-photos/ Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/soar-2026-photos/ Photos from the 2026 SOAR program at Mount Wilson Observatory. What Is Time? https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/what-is-time/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 15:00:40 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/what-is-time/ So. You think you know what time <em>is</em>. Consciousness Without Time https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/consciousness-without-time/ Thu, 25 Jun 2026 12:08:16 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/consciousness-without-time/ What if time is something consciousness invents? The Relational Universe: Structure, Incompleteness, and the Limits of Formalism https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-relational-universe/ Wed, 24 Jun 2026 17:32:51 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-relational-universe/ Can reality, including consciousness, be fully captured by formal structure? Can Consciousness Ever Explain Itself? https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/can-i-explain-myself/ Wed, 24 Jun 2026 16:24:46 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/can-i-explain-myself/ AI may leave us with only ourselves. If Free Will Exists, What Would It Have to Look Like? https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/free-will-strange-assumptions/ Wed, 24 Jun 2026 13:36:35 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/free-will-strange-assumptions/ Explaining free will may require assumptions too strange to accept. When My Universe Ends https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/fear-of-death/ Wed, 24 Jun 2026 12:13:03 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/fear-of-death/ What if death is not the end of the universe, but the end of the only universe you ever knew? Why Does the Universe Look Like It Is Directed? https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-not-directed-universe/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 17:31:54 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-not-directed-universe/ It feels like everything is moving toward something. When Evolution Leaves Biology Behind https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-selfish-gene/ Tue, 23 Jun 2026 16:33:44 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/personal/the-selfish-gene/ From cells, to monkeys, to you, to what’s next? About Jan Kmetko https://jankmetko.fyi/about/ Mon, 22 Jun 2026 15:41:03 -0700 https://jankmetko.fyi/about/ Jan Kmetko teaches physics and astronomy at Santa Rosa Junior College. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from Berea College, his doctorate degree from Northwestern University, and his postdoctoral degree from Cornell University, all in physics.