The music of the future will be either 1970s rock or 1930s/1940s Tin Pan Alley.
The Soviet Union will last for centuries.
No major buildings will be constructed or demolished in Manhattan over the next thousand years.
There will be human cities on Mars by 1970.
Tobacco will never cause health problems -- at least, for humans.
Computers will always use vacuum tubes.
The first Black US President will not originally be elected to that office. He (or she) will have been in the line of succession.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Friday July 26, 2013 The organizer of the local ADHD Meetup group has decided he's not organized enough to handle it alone. He's asking for help.
There was an earlier ADD/ADHD Twin Cities Meetup group. The organizer decided....
Saturday July 27, 2013 When I turn on an all-news radio station, I want news. Not car repair advice.
***To Southeast Library. Returned books, including one I was certain I'd lost. Requested a couple of forthcoming sf anthologies.
In the New York Times, Gail Collins quotes Mick Jagger saying he won't tour when he's 50. Today is Jagger's 70th birthday. The man who sang "Hope I die before I get old" is also 70.
It feels odd to read a newspaper on paper these days.
***When I got home, the yard sale across the street had ended. Everything left over was free.
I got an office chair, and a bit more.
There was an earlier ADD/ADHD Twin Cities Meetup group. The organizer decided....
Saturday July 27, 2013 When I turn on an all-news radio station, I want news. Not car repair advice.
***To Southeast Library. Returned books, including one I was certain I'd lost. Requested a couple of forthcoming sf anthologies.
In the New York Times, Gail Collins quotes Mick Jagger saying he won't tour when he's 50. Today is Jagger's 70th birthday. The man who sang "Hope I die before I get old" is also 70.
It feels odd to read a newspaper on paper these days.
***When I got home, the yard sale across the street had ended. Everything left over was free.
I got an office chair, and a bit more.
Friday, July 26, 2013
Tuesday July 23, 2013 The heroine has a job in the family business. She happens to be competent; but she has a job because she's a member of the family.
Her ancestor built the business with extensive government help. No nonsense about free enterprise or small government in his methods.
As part of the happy ending, she wears handcuffs in honor of the man who has claimed her.
The book? Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand. Regarded by some as an individualist, minarchist classic.
***Met with my ACA sponsor at Sporty's Bar. Very good session. Got me started on working through a problem.
Her ancestor built the business with extensive government help. No nonsense about free enterprise or small government in his methods.
As part of the happy ending, she wears handcuffs in honor of the man who has claimed her.
The book? Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand. Regarded by some as an individualist, minarchist classic.
***Met with my ACA sponsor at Sporty's Bar. Very good session. Got me started on working through a problem.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Monday July 22, 2013 From Twitter:
(Apologies in advance to blind persons whose screen readers don't handle Dutch text)
Maarten van der Meer @Vernoeming
Kate is bevallen van een zoon! Gaat hij James heten, of toch Psy, Rodney, Donald of Elvis?
Night Vale podcast @NightValeRadio
I'm going to give you a piece of my mind. It's in this clay jar. Please keep it in a cool, dark place and away from cats.
***John_Gillnitz
When you wear a wrestling mask with the Confederate flag and call yourself The Southern Avenger, maybe you shouldn't be on the staff of someone running for President.
http://politicalwire.com/archives/2013/07/22/controversial_aide_resigns_from_pauls_office.html#disqus_thread
(Apologies in advance to blind persons whose screen readers don't handle Dutch text)
Maarten van der Meer @Vernoeming
Kate is bevallen van een zoon! Gaat hij James heten, of toch Psy, Rodney, Donald of Elvis?
Night Vale podcast @NightValeRadio
I'm going to give you a piece of my mind. It's in this clay jar. Please keep it in a cool, dark place and away from cats.
***John_Gillnitz
When you wear a wrestling mask with the Confederate flag and call yourself The Southern Avenger, maybe you shouldn't be on the staff of someone running for President.
http://politicalwire.com/archives/2013/07/22/controversial_aide_resigns_from_pauls_office.html#disqus_thread
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Saturday July 20, 2013
"Josephson asserts that the claim to Shinto's secular status was based on over a hundred years of discourse on science introduced slowly but convincingly from the Western nations, which later came to be reconstructed and reinterpreted by a Japanese intellectual movement with strong nativist and proto-nationalist proclivities. To make his long argument short, this intellectual movement repeatedly made the assertion that the empirically verifiable, publicly reproducible results of Western science, which were originally inspired by and equally identifiable through Japanese classical sources, depended on the power of Japanese _kami_, that is, Shinto. However, at this time in the early eighteenth century, the modern Christian-determined concept of religion had yet to reach Japan. Moreover, secularized Western scientific discoveries and procedures, intentionally stripped of Christian influence by government decree, were becoming well known in educated circles in early modern Japan."
Citation: Wilburn Hansen. Review of Josephson, Jason AÌ„nanda [?], _The Invention of Religion in Japan_. H-Shukyo, H-Net Reviews. July, 2013.
URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=38984
"Josephson asserts that the claim to Shinto's secular status was based on over a hundred years of discourse on science introduced slowly but convincingly from the Western nations, which later came to be reconstructed and reinterpreted by a Japanese intellectual movement with strong nativist and proto-nationalist proclivities. To make his long argument short, this intellectual movement repeatedly made the assertion that the empirically verifiable, publicly reproducible results of Western science, which were originally inspired by and equally identifiable through Japanese classical sources, depended on the power of Japanese _kami_, that is, Shinto. However, at this time in the early eighteenth century, the modern Christian-determined concept of religion had yet to reach Japan. Moreover, secularized Western scientific discoveries and procedures, intentionally stripped of Christian influence by government decree, were becoming well known in educated circles in early modern Japan."
Citation: Wilburn Hansen. Review of Josephson, Jason AÌ„nanda [?], _The Invention of Religion in Japan_. H-Shukyo, H-Net Reviews. July, 2013.
URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=38984
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Friday July 19, 2013 Reread: Melissa Scott, Conceiving the Heavens: creating the science fiction novel. Heinemann (Reed Elsevier), 1997.
There are reminders of how much the world can change in less than twenty years. One example given of future possibilities is electronic currency. Today, BitCoin is old news. (And generated in a way Scott didn't predict. I don't think anyone else predicted it, either.)
Then there are references to such things as library card catalogs.
This time through, I noticed an unintended story idea in the glossary: "A relatively new wrinkle is the collaboration between two writers, one living and one dead." Suppose the dead writer is still active, or again active....
Highly recommended.
***From Google Plus:
Robbie Taylor
Shared publicly
#Lovecraft
You have to make a SAN check before driving through...
Andrea Bonazzi originally shared:
H.P. Lovecraft Square.
Providence council names intersection after HP Lovecraft
http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20130717-
There are reminders of how much the world can change in less than twenty years. One example given of future possibilities is electronic currency. Today, BitCoin is old news. (And generated in a way Scott didn't predict. I don't think anyone else predicted it, either.)
Then there are references to such things as library card catalogs.
This time through, I noticed an unintended story idea in the glossary: "A relatively new wrinkle is the collaboration between two writers, one living and one dead." Suppose the dead writer is still active, or again active....
Highly recommended.
***From Google Plus:
Robbie Taylor
Shared publicly
#Lovecraft
You have to make a SAN check before driving through...
Andrea Bonazzi originally shared:
H.P. Lovecraft Square.
Providence council names intersection after HP Lovecraft
http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20130717-
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Thursday July 18, 2013 Seen in Minneapolis Central Library: Ransom Stephens, The God Patent.
"When electrical engineers Ryan McNear and Foster Reed co-authored two patents for company cash incentives, they thought it was all just a joke. One described the soul as a software algorithm and the other described the Big Bang as a power generator. But when the company crashes, McNear finds himself divorced, desperately hard-up, and estranged from his son. As he rebuilds his life, McNear discovers Reed has used their nonsensical patents to draw in top-tier energy investors. A patent war erupts, and McNear is suddenly immersed in something much bigger than a personal argument with his old friend: a battle between hard science and evangelical religion. To fix the mistakes of his past, he will have to risk everything - his reputation, his livelihood, and even his sanity - to be with the son he loves. Set in the age-old culture war between science and religion, The God Patent is a modern story that deftly blends scientific theory with one man's struggle to discover his soul."
***ACA meeting. [Adult Children (of Alcoholic and Otherwise Disfunctional Families) Anonymous]
Picked up a card for a member of a new-to-me profession: Consulting Philosopher.
"When electrical engineers Ryan McNear and Foster Reed co-authored two patents for company cash incentives, they thought it was all just a joke. One described the soul as a software algorithm and the other described the Big Bang as a power generator. But when the company crashes, McNear finds himself divorced, desperately hard-up, and estranged from his son. As he rebuilds his life, McNear discovers Reed has used their nonsensical patents to draw in top-tier energy investors. A patent war erupts, and McNear is suddenly immersed in something much bigger than a personal argument with his old friend: a battle between hard science and evangelical religion. To fix the mistakes of his past, he will have to risk everything - his reputation, his livelihood, and even his sanity - to be with the son he loves. Set in the age-old culture war between science and religion, The God Patent is a modern story that deftly blends scientific theory with one man's struggle to discover his soul."
***ACA meeting. [Adult Children (of Alcoholic and Otherwise Disfunctional Families) Anonymous]
Picked up a card for a member of a new-to-me profession: Consulting Philosopher.
Friday, July 19, 2013
Wednesday July 17, 2013
From Twitter:
New Scientist @newscientist
Chromosome that causes Down's syndrome silenced for first time, raising hope that symptoms could be reversed http://ow.ly/n44Af
***In January 1932, the widow Luigia Barbarovich Paulovich of Trieste won an unusual legal victory. For the past eighteen months, she had officially been known as Luigia Paoli, a name imposed on her by Fascist legislation aimed at "Italianizing" the inhabitants of the northeastern borderlands. Despite the regime's aggressive efforts to nationalize this population acquired after World War I, the widow Paulovich prevailed in her efforts to retain her husband's seemingly "foreign" or "Slavic" surname--a seemingly uncharacteristic instance of "administrative tolerance" and legalism by an authoritarian dictatorship (p. 2). The Paulovich case was never publicized at the time, and has remained obscure for decades....
Citation: Joshua Arthurs. Review of Hametz, Maura, _In the Name of Italy: Nation, Family, and Patriotism in a Fascist Court_. H-Italy, H-Net Reviews. July, 2013.
URL: www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=37084
From Twitter:
New Scientist @newscientist
Chromosome that causes Down's syndrome silenced for first time, raising hope that symptoms could be reversed http://ow.ly/n44Af
***In January 1932, the widow Luigia Barbarovich Paulovich of Trieste won an unusual legal victory. For the past eighteen months, she had officially been known as Luigia Paoli, a name imposed on her by Fascist legislation aimed at "Italianizing" the inhabitants of the northeastern borderlands. Despite the regime's aggressive efforts to nationalize this population acquired after World War I, the widow Paulovich prevailed in her efforts to retain her husband's seemingly "foreign" or "Slavic" surname--a seemingly uncharacteristic instance of "administrative tolerance" and legalism by an authoritarian dictatorship (p. 2). The Paulovich case was never publicized at the time, and has remained obscure for decades....
Citation: Joshua Arthurs. Review of Hametz, Maura, _In the Name of Italy: Nation, Family, and Patriotism in a Fascist Court_. H-Italy, H-Net Reviews. July, 2013.
URL: www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=37084
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Monday July 15, 2013
Elon Musk Posts Plan to Annouce Hyperloop Transit System
By Ehren Goossens - Jul 15, 2013 11:05 AM CT
Elon Musk, chief executive officer of electric vehicle maker Tesla Motors Inc., will unveil designs for a solar-powered inter-city passenger transport system by Aug. 12.
The technology behind the system will be a “breakthrough” and Musk will be “happy to work with the right partners,” Musk said in Twitter posts today. Musk is seeking “critical feedback” on the system and will publish it as open source, according to the tweets.
Musk previously said that the so-called Hyperloop would be twice as fast as airplane travel and cheaper than high-speed rail. Musk is the chairman of SolarCity Corp. (SCTY), the rooftop power producer that’s more than quadrupled in value this year.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/qch3wh5
Comments of Comment:
Lee Gold: On 7/15/2013 10:36 AM, Daniel S. Goodman wrote: "Caffeine is unhealthy for canines. Perhaps it would be bad for werewolves? If so, they would probably avoid coffee and tea.
"Which, in a society where most people drink coffee and/or tea, might make them conspicuous.
"However, there's one large religious group who are expected to avoid decaffeinated beverages. So in the US (and other places with relatively large Mormon populations,) werewolves might become Mormons."
Or perhaps Seventh Day Adventists.
Then again, the dog I grew up with had my father's leftover coffee (about half a cup, with cream and fake sugar) every morning and lived to be over 16 years old. I think this dog probably weighed about thirty pounds.
[Was that fake sugar saccharin? If so, your father was lucky enough to be among the people to whom saccharin doesn't taste bitter. Tastes bitter to me; didn't to my mother.]
On tracing your assertion, I've found that "coffee grounds" are bad for dogs.
A webpage says "While 1-2 laps of coffee, tea or soda will not contain enough caffeine to cause poisoning in most pets, the ingestion of moderate amounts of coffee grounds, tea bags or 1-2 diet pills can easily cause death in small dogs or cats." It sounds as if werewolves should just stay on instant coffee.
Then again, assuming that the average werewolf weighs at least a hundred pounds. there's not likely to be much problem as long as they don't snack on coffee grounds or teabags.
[Drat! A beautiful theory slain by an ugly fact. Thanks.]
7/15/13 onyxlynx replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/107178.html )
Herbal tea would be OK, though. They're expected to avoid <i>caffeinated</i> beverages, not decaffeinated.
7/15/13 stardreamer replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/107178.html )
Don't forget Coke and Mountain Dew!
Perhaps more interestingly, imagine that the werewolves themselves don't realize this -- perhaps because the effects aren't lethal. What if the primary effect were sterility? Utah might then be the only part of the US where the werewolf gene doesn't get bred out of the population. How that would influence anti-Mormon prejudice in the rest of the country is left as an exercise for the writer. :-)
Elon Musk Posts Plan to Annouce Hyperloop Transit System
By Ehren Goossens - Jul 15, 2013 11:05 AM CT
Elon Musk, chief executive officer of electric vehicle maker Tesla Motors Inc., will unveil designs for a solar-powered inter-city passenger transport system by Aug. 12.
The technology behind the system will be a “breakthrough” and Musk will be “happy to work with the right partners,” Musk said in Twitter posts today. Musk is seeking “critical feedback” on the system and will publish it as open source, according to the tweets.
Musk previously said that the so-called Hyperloop would be twice as fast as airplane travel and cheaper than high-speed rail. Musk is the chairman of SolarCity Corp. (SCTY), the rooftop power producer that’s more than quadrupled in value this year.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/qch3wh5
Comments of Comment:
Lee Gold: On 7/15/2013 10:36 AM, Daniel S. Goodman wrote: "Caffeine is unhealthy for canines. Perhaps it would be bad for werewolves? If so, they would probably avoid coffee and tea.
"Which, in a society where most people drink coffee and/or tea, might make them conspicuous.
"However, there's one large religious group who are expected to avoid decaffeinated beverages. So in the US (and other places with relatively large Mormon populations,) werewolves might become Mormons."
Or perhaps Seventh Day Adventists.
Then again, the dog I grew up with had my father's leftover coffee (about half a cup, with cream and fake sugar) every morning and lived to be over 16 years old. I think this dog probably weighed about thirty pounds.
[Was that fake sugar saccharin? If so, your father was lucky enough to be among the people to whom saccharin doesn't taste bitter. Tastes bitter to me; didn't to my mother.]
On tracing your assertion, I've found that "coffee grounds" are bad for dogs.
A webpage says "While 1-2 laps of coffee, tea or soda will not contain enough caffeine to cause poisoning in most pets, the ingestion of moderate amounts of coffee grounds, tea bags or 1-2 diet pills can easily cause death in small dogs or cats." It sounds as if werewolves should just stay on instant coffee.
Then again, assuming that the average werewolf weighs at least a hundred pounds. there's not likely to be much problem as long as they don't snack on coffee grounds or teabags.
[Drat! A beautiful theory slain by an ugly fact. Thanks.]
7/15/13 onyxlynx replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/107178.html )
Herbal tea would be OK, though. They're expected to avoid <i>caffeinated</i> beverages, not decaffeinated.
7/15/13 stardreamer replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/107178.html )
Don't forget Coke and Mountain Dew!
Perhaps more interestingly, imagine that the werewolves themselves don't realize this -- perhaps because the effects aren't lethal. What if the primary effect were sterility? Utah might then be the only part of the US where the werewolf gene doesn't get bred out of the population. How that would influence anti-Mormon prejudice in the rest of the country is left as an exercise for the writer. :-)
Monday, July 15, 2013
Sunday July 14, 2013 Bastille Day
***Caffeine is unhealthy for canines. Perhaps it would be bad for werewolves? If so, they would probably avoid coffee and tea.
Which, in a society where most people drink coffee and/or tea, might make them conspicuous.
However, there's one large religious group who are expected to avoid decaffeinated beverages. So in the US (and other places with relatively large Mormon populations,) werewolves might become Mormons.
***From Twitter:
Tom Jefferson @tjefferson1976
Nader, 1970: "Data banks" might prevent people from "speaking out and blowing the whistle against the system." http://on.wsj.com/15D7Dj2
Retweeted by Ben Zimmer
***Caffeine is unhealthy for canines. Perhaps it would be bad for werewolves? If so, they would probably avoid coffee and tea.
Which, in a society where most people drink coffee and/or tea, might make them conspicuous.
However, there's one large religious group who are expected to avoid decaffeinated beverages. So in the US (and other places with relatively large Mormon populations,) werewolves might become Mormons.
***From Twitter:
Tom Jefferson @tjefferson1976
Nader, 1970: "Data banks" might prevent people from "speaking out and blowing the whistle against the system." http://on.wsj.com/15D7Dj2
Retweeted by Ben Zimmer
Sunday, July 14, 2013
7/3/13 thnidu replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/105006.html ) in which you said:
> Monday July 1, 2013 "I now find myself in a large house over looking
> Queens Park and am keen to get a lodger. This is a position I am prepared
> to offer for free (eg: no rent payable) on the fulfillment of some
> conditions. I have, over the last few months, been constructing a
> realistic walrus costume, which should fit most people of average
> proportions, and allow for full and easy movement in character. To take
> on the position as my lodger you must be prepared to wear the walrus suit
> for approximately two hours each day (in practice, this is not two hours
> every day - I merely state it here so you are able to have a clear idea
> of the workload). Whilst in the walrus costume you must be a walrus -
> there must be no speaking in a human voice, and any communication must
> entail making utterances in the voice of a walrus - I believe there aer
> recordings available on the web - to me, the voice is the most natural
> thing I have ever heard. Other duties will involve catching and eating
> the fish and crabs that I will occasionally throw to you whilst you are
> being the walrus."
> http://preview.tinyurl.com/qe987q6
> via burger_eater on DreamWidth
The reply was:
So some lucky lodger can now say "I am the walrus!"
7/3/13 houseboatonstyx (houseboatonstyx) replied to your LiveJournal post
(http://dsgood.livejournal.com/1230087.html):
By Jove, is it still 1895?
7/2/13 onyxlynx replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/105006.html )
Nothing is too weird to show up on the Internet.
7/2/13 Fred Lerner
This sounds like the first paragraph of a really bad Sherlock Holmes pastiche.
Fred
7/2/13 Dennis Lien
The time may have come for the walrus to speak of "many" things, but I think both he and the carpenter would be well-advised to remain silent about this particular one...
Denny "The Oyster Whisperer" Lien
> Monday July 1, 2013 "I now find myself in a large house over looking
> Queens Park and am keen to get a lodger. This is a position I am prepared
> to offer for free (eg: no rent payable) on the fulfillment of some
> conditions. I have, over the last few months, been constructing a
> realistic walrus costume, which should fit most people of average
> proportions, and allow for full and easy movement in character. To take
> on the position as my lodger you must be prepared to wear the walrus suit
> for approximately two hours each day (in practice, this is not two hours
> every day - I merely state it here so you are able to have a clear idea
> of the workload). Whilst in the walrus costume you must be a walrus -
> there must be no speaking in a human voice, and any communication must
> entail making utterances in the voice of a walrus - I believe there aer
> recordings available on the web - to me, the voice is the most natural
> thing I have ever heard. Other duties will involve catching and eating
> the fish and crabs that I will occasionally throw to you whilst you are
> being the walrus."
> http://preview.tinyurl.com/qe987q6
> via burger_eater on DreamWidth
The reply was:
So some lucky lodger can now say "I am the walrus!"
7/3/13 houseboatonstyx (houseboatonstyx) replied to your LiveJournal post
(http://dsgood.livejournal.com/1230087.html):
By Jove, is it still 1895?
7/2/13 onyxlynx replied to your Dreamwidth entry ( http://dsgood.dreamwidth.org/105006.html )
Nothing is too weird to show up on the Internet.
7/2/13 Fred Lerner
This sounds like the first paragraph of a really bad Sherlock Holmes pastiche.
Fred
7/2/13 Dennis Lien
The time may have come for the walrus to speak of "many" things, but I think both he and the carpenter would be well-advised to remain silent about this particular one...
Denny "The Oyster Whisperer" Lien
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Friday July 12, 2013 Three from politicalwire.com:
Huffington Post: "State troopers are confiscating tampons, maxi pads and other potential projectiles from those who are entering the Texas capitol to watch the debate and vote on a controversial anti-abortion bill. Guns, however, which are typically permitted in the state capitol, are still being allowed."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/5ho
*Iowa Supreme Court justices found that a male dentist did not discriminate against a female employee "when he fired her out of fear that her good looks might prompt him into an extramarital affair," the Des Moines Register reports.
Associated Press: "Coming to the same conclusion as it did in December, the all-male court found that bosses can fire employees they see as threats to their marriages, even if the subordinates have not engaged in flirtatious or other inappropriate behavior. The court said such firings do not count as illegal sex discrimination because they are motivated by feelings, not gender."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/kh3bjrf
*A man who has been legally dead since 2010 was elected mayor of a small Mexican town, the New York Times reports.
"Authorities say relatives of Lenin Carballido used a death certificate showing that he died of a diabetic coma in 2010 to convince police to drop an arrest warrant against him for allegedly participating in a 2004 gang rape.
"A living Carballido later ran in, and narrowly won, Sunday's election in San Agustin Amatengo in Oaxaca state."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ojfwdlk
Huffington Post: "State troopers are confiscating tampons, maxi pads and other potential projectiles from those who are entering the Texas capitol to watch the debate and vote on a controversial anti-abortion bill. Guns, however, which are typically permitted in the state capitol, are still being allowed."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/5ho
*Iowa Supreme Court justices found that a male dentist did not discriminate against a female employee "when he fired her out of fear that her good looks might prompt him into an extramarital affair," the Des Moines Register reports.
Associated Press: "Coming to the same conclusion as it did in December, the all-male court found that bosses can fire employees they see as threats to their marriages, even if the subordinates have not engaged in flirtatious or other inappropriate behavior. The court said such firings do not count as illegal sex discrimination because they are motivated by feelings, not gender."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/kh3bjrf
*A man who has been legally dead since 2010 was elected mayor of a small Mexican town, the New York Times reports.
"Authorities say relatives of Lenin Carballido used a death certificate showing that he died of a diabetic coma in 2010 to convince police to drop an arrest warrant against him for allegedly participating in a 2004 gang rape.
"A living Carballido later ran in, and narrowly won, Sunday's election in San Agustin Amatengo in Oaxaca state."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ojfwdlk
Friday, July 5, 2013
7/4/13 Fourth of July
Thursday July 4, 2013. Independence Day.
Evening sounds: fireworks, some probably legal.
***From politicalwire.com:
A new Gallup survey finds that despite a high 85% of Americans saying they are "extremely" or "very" proud to be an American, 71% say the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be disappointed in today's United States, while 27% say they would be pleased.
My view: "The signers would be disappointed" and "Things went wrong" are not the same thing. Some would be disappointed because slavery has been written out of the Constitution. Some because women have the vote.
Others for reasons I'd be more sympathetic to. The size of permanent military forces, for example.
***From Twitter:
Simon Bisson @sbisson
We are actually living in a computer simulation in the far future, made up of NSA records and Google Streetview images.
Pinboard @Pinboard
Canada is a chilling reminder of what would have happened if there had been no Declaration of Independence
Retweeted by Tim Maly
Evening sounds: fireworks, some probably legal.
***From politicalwire.com:
A new Gallup survey finds that despite a high 85% of Americans saying they are "extremely" or "very" proud to be an American, 71% say the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be disappointed in today's United States, while 27% say they would be pleased.
My view: "The signers would be disappointed" and "Things went wrong" are not the same thing. Some would be disappointed because slavery has been written out of the Constitution. Some because women have the vote.
Others for reasons I'd be more sympathetic to. The size of permanent military forces, for example.
***From Twitter:
Simon Bisson @sbisson
We are actually living in a computer simulation in the far future, made up of NSA records and Google Streetview images.
Pinboard @Pinboard
Canada is a chilling reminder of what would have happened if there had been no Declaration of Independence
Retweeted by Tim Maly
Thursday, July 4, 2013
7/3/13
Wednesday July 3, 2013 Opening of work in progress; first draft or zero draft:
"Of course you're a witch. You're an atheist, aren't you?" Miranda Afterland smiled, to show she didn't really believe that superstition.
Chane Mardon shook his head. "I'm an agnostic. I neither believe or disbelieve in any gods."
"That's even better! Someone who doesn't even believe in atheism must have really powerful magic. Look; all you have to do is give obscure answers to questions about the future. I'll interpret what you say. And we both get paid."
***Shopped at the Wedge and Steeple People Thrift Store. Picked up prescription meds at HealthPartners Riverside.
***From Twitter:
Michael Anissimov @MikeAnissimov
Bad news: you probably won't be able to be revived from the NSA's records of you.
Which sparked a story idea I probably won't use. Given sufficiently advanced technology, it would be possible to reconstruct someone from surveillance records. ("Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Arthur C. Clarke.)
"Of course you're a witch. You're an atheist, aren't you?" Miranda Afterland smiled, to show she didn't really believe that superstition.
Chane Mardon shook his head. "I'm an agnostic. I neither believe or disbelieve in any gods."
"That's even better! Someone who doesn't even believe in atheism must have really powerful magic. Look; all you have to do is give obscure answers to questions about the future. I'll interpret what you say. And we both get paid."
***Shopped at the Wedge and Steeple People Thrift Store. Picked up prescription meds at HealthPartners Riverside.
***From Twitter:
Michael Anissimov @MikeAnissimov
Bad news: you probably won't be able to be revived from the NSA's records of you.
Which sparked a story idea I probably won't use. Given sufficiently advanced technology, it would be possible to reconstruct someone from surveillance records. ("Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Arthur C. Clarke.)
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
7/2/1
Tuesday July 2, 2013 Semi-annual appointment with the doctor who prescribes my ADD/ADHD medication.
He asked why I set the science fiction stories I write on other planets. I told him one reason was that I didn't need to worry as much about things becoming obsolete before I finished a story. Buildings are demolished or destroyed, often at times inconvenient to writers.
And there were sf writers who had the Soviet Union surviving well into the future.
***Southeast Library, to pick up books being held:
Wen Spencer, Eight Million Gods. Inside front cover, this blooper: "She's attacked by a raccoon in a business suit." I wondered what a raccoon was doing in Japan. It's a raccoon dog (aka tanuki.) I suspect someone made a "correction."
Charles Stross, The Fuller Memorandum. Which, it turns out, is now being discussed on the author's blog.
***From Minnpost.com:
"Are these things warmer than human hands? Elizabeth Baier at MPR has a story about … robo-milkers: 'A robotic arm swings below the cow's udder and two small, spinning brushes set to cleaning. An electronic tag around the cow's neck pinpoints where she is in her milking cycle. A precise amount of feed -- a treat to get the cow in place -- falls into a small trough at the end of the box. A laser finds the teats, attaches the milker and starts pumping, recording butterfat and protein levels in the milk. Ten minutes later, the process is done. The computer unlocks the gate. The cow walks back into the barn. The next cow steps in and repeats.' Heck, they might as well make me a Culver's malt while they're at it ..."
***From Publishers Lunch (email):
"Among the new deals posted yesterday at Publishers Marketplace: Francesca Haig's THE FIRE SERMON, 400 years after a nuclear apocalypse, society is left without technology and all humans are twins; Bruce Coville's DIARY OF A MAD BROWNIE, an adventure about a girl who is the messiest girl in Abbot's Cove, and the unfortunate ancient fairy who has been tasked with caring for the eldest living member of her family; and Jessica Day George's SILVER IN THE BLOOD, set in the Belle Epoque period about two cousins, who journey to Romania and uncover a deep family secret."
I suspect I know what that "deep family secret" is. Spoiler for Dracula -- some characters turn out to be vampires.
He asked why I set the science fiction stories I write on other planets. I told him one reason was that I didn't need to worry as much about things becoming obsolete before I finished a story. Buildings are demolished or destroyed, often at times inconvenient to writers.
And there were sf writers who had the Soviet Union surviving well into the future.
***Southeast Library, to pick up books being held:
Wen Spencer, Eight Million Gods. Inside front cover, this blooper: "She's attacked by a raccoon in a business suit." I wondered what a raccoon was doing in Japan. It's a raccoon dog (aka tanuki.) I suspect someone made a "correction."
Charles Stross, The Fuller Memorandum. Which, it turns out, is now being discussed on the author's blog.
***From Minnpost.com:
"Are these things warmer than human hands? Elizabeth Baier at MPR has a story about … robo-milkers: 'A robotic arm swings below the cow's udder and two small, spinning brushes set to cleaning. An electronic tag around the cow's neck pinpoints where she is in her milking cycle. A precise amount of feed -- a treat to get the cow in place -- falls into a small trough at the end of the box. A laser finds the teats, attaches the milker and starts pumping, recording butterfat and protein levels in the milk. Ten minutes later, the process is done. The computer unlocks the gate. The cow walks back into the barn. The next cow steps in and repeats.' Heck, they might as well make me a Culver's malt while they're at it ..."
***From Publishers Lunch (email):
"Among the new deals posted yesterday at Publishers Marketplace: Francesca Haig's THE FIRE SERMON, 400 years after a nuclear apocalypse, society is left without technology and all humans are twins; Bruce Coville's DIARY OF A MAD BROWNIE, an adventure about a girl who is the messiest girl in Abbot's Cove, and the unfortunate ancient fairy who has been tasked with caring for the eldest living member of her family; and Jessica Day George's SILVER IN THE BLOOD, set in the Belle Epoque period about two cousins, who journey to Romania and uncover a deep family secret."
I suspect I know what that "deep family secret" is. Spoiler for Dracula -- some characters turn out to be vampires.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
7/1/13
Monday July 1, 2013 "I now find myself in a large house over looking Queens Park and am keen to get a lodger. This is a position I am prepared to offer for free (eg: no rent payable) on the fulfillment of some conditions. I have, over the last few months, been constructing a realistic walrus costume, which should fit most people of average proportions, and allow for full and easy movement in character. To take on the position as my lodger you must be prepared to wear the walrus suit for approximately two hours each day (in practice, this is not two hours every day - I merely state it here so you are able to have a clear idea of the workload). Whilst in the walrus costume you must be a walrus - there must be no speaking in a human voice, and any communication must entail making utterances in the voice of a walrus - I believe there aer recordings available on the web - to me, the voice is the most natural thing I have ever heard. Other duties will involve catching and eating the fish and crabs that I will occasionally throw to you whilst you are being the walrus."
http://preview.tinyurl.com/qe987q6
via burger_eater on DreamWidth
http://preview.tinyurl.com/qe987q6
via burger_eater on DreamWidth
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