Kendrew Bell

Bio:

The poet's name is Kendrew Bell and he is a rising senior from Cary, North Carolina. He chose the Poetic Light Phoenix Summer course because it was a blend of something typically very formulaic and concrete (Science, specifically Astronomy) with something more freeform and creative (Poetry). He also chose this course because he enjoyed learning astronomy previously, and wanted to continue broadening that knowledge.

Scientific Inspiration:

On one of the first days of class, we used Diffraction Grating lenses to look at different light sources, artificial and natural. These lenses work through tens of thousands of miniscule slits, which separate the light into individual beams that can be seen when looking slightly askew. Interestingly, this allowed us to see each individual light in lightbulbs.

On a different day, we used Polarizing Lenses to block and unblock light. They are similar to the previous lenses, however the lenses are not at an angle and thus stop all light not rotated along a specific axis. Using two perpendicular lenses, therefore, block out all light, and using three (two perpendicular and one at a 45° angle) allows some of the light to pass through (almost only vertical through the first lens, some through the second, and all through the third).