Another from New Scientist dated 07/02/2009 …
THE mother of a friend of Dave Higginbottom was trying to get the hang of her daughter’s computer. After a while, she shouted to her daughter: “What do you do when a squiggly red line appears under a word?”
“Just right-click,” replied her daughter from the next room.
A moment later the mother replied: “I’ve written ‘click’ but it makes no difference. I just get the word ‘click’ after the word with the squiggly line.”
The following from New Scientist dated 07/02/2009 …
BLAMING Canada geese for forcing a US Airways jet to ditch in the Hudson river seems logical. They’re big enough to cause serious damage to any plane that hits them, and thousands have settled around New York City. Sure enough, when we checked the Federal Aviation Administration’s National Wildlife Strike Database at www.planestrikes.notlong.com, Canada geese were high on the list, with 1266 reports of them hitting aircraft between 1990 and 2008, 103 of which were in New York State.
With all three New York City airports close to the ocean, gulls also seemed likely suspects and, yes, over the same period, 1208 gull strikes were reported in New York, out of a total of 9843 gulls that collided with planes across the US. Further scrutiny of the list revealed that other collision victims include 145 bald eagles and 15 black-capped chickadees. An endangered whooping crane was hit in Wisconsin. We began to think that nothing that flies is safe. Then we spotted an entry for turtles.
One can imagine circumstances in which turtles could become airborne, although not of the turtle’s volition. It would, however, seem quite hard to hit a plane with a tossed turtle. Yet 80 turtles suffered this fate, including 23 in New York State. The turtles weren’t alone. Armadillos are, if anything, even less aerodynamic than turtles, yet planes struck 14 of them in Florida, two in Louisiana and one in Oklahoma, although Texas armadillos successfully avoided aircraft. In addition, 13 American alligators hit planes in Florida.
We can report that our mental picture of airborne armadillos, alligators and turtles did not survive long. We were forced to conclude that although the FAA doesn’t specify it, these animals had their collisions with aircraft on the ground, presumably during take-off and landing. It was interesting to note, though, that some terrestrial species seem much better at dodging planes than others. No one reported hitting wolves, bears, sheep or goats, but the toll included 811 deer, 310 coyotes, 146 skunks, 146 foxes, 33 domestic dogs, 18 domestic cats, eight cattle, six moose, five horses, two river otters, and a single unfortunate pig.
This week’s self-portrait: 52 Weeks 50/52 (2009 week 06).
Out of time for a new picture this week, so here’s one I did earlier!
Thirty-five years ago I was a postgraduate student at the University of East Anglia and in the middle of the research for my doctorate. In simple terms I was looking at how metal-compounds interact to quench light-driven chemical and physical processes in organic compounds; this was done using pulses of laser light which typically lasted millionths of a second (a technique called laser flash photolysis). The technique was already well characterised and the metal-induced photochemical quenching already of industrial importance in developing additives to make plastics more light stable – after all one doesn’t want buckets or sinks which fall apart after a short while as happened in the chemistry labs at University of York when I was an undergraduate there. In our research we were extending the work to try to better understand the physics of the systems at a quantum energy level, and (as my supervisor memorably expressed it) fill in one piece of the jigsaw puzzle which is photosynthesis – the chemical and physical processes by which plants turn water, carbon dioxide and light into energy, sugars, proteins and oxygen; the veritable bedrock of life. It was but a very tiny piece of a massive jigsaw puzzle and to this day I still do not understand how it earned me a doctorate!
This was at the time when Lord Porter (then Professor Sir George Porter) who won a Nobel prize for the invention of flash-photolysis was at the Royal Institution and was just beginning to develop systems using picosecond lasers which we thought at the time was mind-blowing. (A picosecond is one million-millionth of a second, so around a million time shorter than the equipment I was using).
Thirty-five years on scientists are now on the threshold of putting in the very last pieces of that jigsaw. This at least is the way I read today’s BBC News item which describes scientists watching the reacting electrons in the molecules using a similar photolysis technique but with laser pulses lasting just 100 femtoseconds, that’s one ten-thousandth of a billionth of a second (or ten thousand million times shorter than an average camera flash). I’m not so much gobsmacked at the rate of technological innovation – one has almost come to expect that – but more that not only has this been done but that it is possible to achieve such incredibly fast pulses of light AND use them to watch chemical reactions in such real-time detail. It is something we dreamt of doing but never imagined would become a reality. For me this is much more gobsmacking science than any piece of cosmology or particle accelerator physics.
This is the cherry tree in the street outside our doctor’s surgery. It looked stunning against the blue sky; the shapes and contrasts were fascinating. I’m sure I could have found a better angle, but sadly I didn’t have time: work was calling. 🙁
There’s an interestingly refreshing take on nudity in an short article in the Johns Hopkins Newsletter, especially given that it is all American! Here is an edited version of the opening paragraphs.
America loves nudity. Cannot get enough. At the same time, America hates nudity. It makes us nervous … Nudity draws attention to our insecurities …
One insecurity is that of being inadequate. It makes us feel bad to think that we are unattractive …
We would rather live without the possibility of being denied our ignorance/illusion than live truthfully, in a world with breasts and penises everywhere …
But what if we were comfortable enough that we could deal? What if seeing one’s privies was commonplace? Firstly, big dicks and voluptuous breasts would no longer be as large a deal as they are body parts. Following this, skill comes into frame. One’s abilities in the sack are just as important to attraction as one’s appearance, but the more comfortable we are with nudity, the more our intellect catches up to the emotional reality of this. In business terms, transparency increases competition, and competition increases the possibility that you are just as desirable as the next …
What a refreshing change to have some commonsense!
[Hat-tip Diary of a Nudist]
This week’s Flickr Photo Meme is the first names of people in your life. So as usual here are the questions and my answers
1. Spouse’s name. Noreen, and yes that is her in the photo taken with an ultra-wide angle lens at short range.
2. Mother’s name. Dora
3. Father’s name: Bob
4. Brother / sister’s name: to quote Peter Cook “Tragically I was an only twin”
5. Pet’s name: The cats: Harry and Sally, no not our choices!
6. Best friend’s name: Suzy
7. Childhood friend’s name: Derek
8. Person who has most influenced you: that has to be Victor, but only by a short head from Faith and Barry & Julia
9. Neighbour’s name: Zaina, a luscious Lebanese beauty queen
10. Grandmother’s name: Flo; that’s my mother’s mother
11. Grandfather’s name: Alf; my mother’s father who I never knew as he died 2 years before I was born
12. Your name: Keith, but I have yet to understand why!
As always these are not my photos (with the exception of #1) so please follow the links to enjoy the work of the photographers who did take them!
1. Madam Noreen, 2. Dora was my co-pilot (04/2005), 3. Bob Staake – Toy Designs, 4. tragically i was an only twin, 5. PB120027-1, 6. Shy Suzy, 7. Derek, 8. Victor Bagging, 9. zaina, 10. say ah (iris ‘larry and flo’), 11. Alf Leila Wa Leila, 12. Keith Haring by Annie Leibovitz New York City 1986
Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.
Interesting little piece by philosopher AC Grayling on the prohibition of drugs in today’s Times. He largely echos my long-standing views on the subject except that he fails to mention that by legalising and controlling all drugs (in the way alcohol and tobacco are) the government would not only save money but could make money as the drugs could be taxed. At a time when government is in desperate need of cash I’m surprised this is a wheeze they’ve missed.
There are some rather amusing (no, not side-splittingly funny, just rather amusing) cartoons in today’s Times, all making political comment on these trying times. As the Times doesn’t print most of them, I naughtily reproduce them here; ownership remains with the Times, of course.
First Peter Brookes …
And then three pocket cartoons …
This week’s self-portrait: 52 Weeks 49/52 (2009 week 05).
After going to the barber’s early this morning I decided to treat myself to pain au chocolat.
