Tonight was the Physical Sciences Honors Colloquium for this semester. Seven students from astronomy, geology, chemistry and physics gave presentations. I might be a little biased, but I think my two astronomy students gave the best talks! I spend so much time ranting about the annoying students, so it's about time I devoted some space to the good ones.

My student Erin gave a talk on gamma ray bursts. She's a religious studies major, but she gamely performed every calculation I asked for and did such thorough research that she probably knows more about gamma ray bursts than I do. All this while going to school full-time, working full-time, and carrying a fifth child, kicking away as she gave her talk. Erin took her first class with me last spring, and I was so happy to have her back this semester. Funny, brash and amazingly smart, she's one of those rare students who deserves her 4.0. I have a feeling she'll be able to tackle whatever she chooses in the future.

My student Carlos gave a talk on quasars. He's currently an aerospace engineering major, but I think that he might be leaning towards the physics major. College hasn't challenged him yet, so I tried, every time he performed a calculation or showed me his research, to push him just that much more. He met and exceeded my expectations with his work, but I still think we just barely scratched the surface of his capabilities. He doesn't believe me, but he is the most inherently talented student I've seen in almost a decade of teaching at the college level. He has the unrelenting curiosity that marks the best scientists, and I know his first love is astronomy, so I hope he follows his heart and chooses physics.

I have to say, future students had the bar raised for them tonight, and I'm proud.