I love getting toys for Christmas: Chateau Steelypips is now GPS-enabled. That’s from our drive home last night (GIMPed to within an inch of its life, because the light level was really low)– bonus points for anyone who can identify where it was taken. It’s a Garmin c340, for those who want specs with their… Continue reading No Matter Where You Go, There You Are
Leave My Childhood Icons Alone!
It was sort of amusing when people started doing kitsch holiday commercials in a CGI version of those old quasi-claymation holiday specials (Rodolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the like). I’m ok with hipster irony, at least to a point. It was a whole lot less amusing when somebody (I’ve forgotten who) did a commercial this… Continue reading Leave My Childhood Icons Alone!
Tree of SCIENCE!!! #10
The final installment from the Tree of SCIENCE!!! for this year: This is a Santa Claus figure walking his dog. Which, of course, is a reminder to everyone of the importance of talking to your pets about SCIENCE!!! Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate it. The rest of you, have a great Tuesday.
links for 2007-12-23
The Muckraker’s Progress: Politics & Power: vanityfair.com “[Bob Livingston] said he thought I was a bottom-feeder. So they called me for a comment and I said, ‘Yeah, that’s right, but look what I found when I got down there.’ ” –Larry Flynt (tags: politics US society stupid) scifantasy: Bimbos And Zombies, or Getting Away… He’s… Continue reading links for 2007-12-23
Christmas Songs That Don’t Suck, 2007
Thanks largely to the leather canary, I’ve amassed a surprising number of non-sucky Christmas songs this year. There’s some painful stuff in there, too, but most of the tracks on their mixes aren’t likely to make you want to stab ballpoint pens through your eardrums. If you’re in need of a holiday soundtrack, you could… Continue reading Christmas Songs That Don’t Suck, 2007
links for 2007-12-22
E Y E W E A R: The Failure of Interest In Poetry In Our Time Today’s nominee for Pompous Ass Comment of the Year: “The fact that poetry does not interest most people suggests most people are no longer interesting.” (tags: academia culture poetry literature books) Christmas with Christopher Hitchens | The A.V. Club… Continue reading links for 2007-12-22
Bunnies Made of Cheese: The First Draft
“Hey, dude. What’s in the binder?” “Well, it’s the first draft of my book. I finished it this morning, and printed it out to have a paper copy to look at.” “Ooooh! The book about me?” “Well, it’s a book about physics, featuring you. But yes, that’s the only book I’m working on at the… Continue reading Bunnies Made of Cheese: The First Draft
Family Traditions
Tomorrow, Kate and I will be heading off to Scenic Whitney Point to spend a few days with my family. Part of this will be the traditional Christmas Eve dinner with my father’s side of the family (described in more detail below the fold). It occurred to me a little while ago that this is… Continue reading Family Traditions
Tree of SCIENCE!!! #9
This one may not look like much, but it covers a lot of ground for the Tree of SCIENCE!!!: This ornament is built around a copper plaque, and copper is a very good conductor, which means it includes an element of solid state physics. The copper in the plaque is from the roof of the… Continue reading Tree of SCIENCE!!! #9
links for 2007-12-21
COROT surprises a year after launch Stellar seismology and a new extrasolar planet. (tags: astronomy news science planets) The quest for a new class of superconductors An article positing superconductors in which electrons pair up through something other than phonon interactions. (tags: physics science news low-temperature materials) Boston College physicists find new explanation for superconductivity’s… Continue reading links for 2007-12-21