Random
catdynamics | September 22, 2006Friday again, already?
Oh man, lets stay topical, and ask the iPod a historical question:
oh Mighty One, was there a single transition to an oxygenated archaen atmosphere, involving sudden onset of photosynthesis-2, with associated rapid mass extinction, say around the late Huronian or thereabouts?
Whoosh goes the randomizer.
Whoosh.
The Covering: Rat Trap - Boomtown Rats
The Crossing: Cry For Love - Iggy Pop
The Crown: O Little Town of Bethlehem - King's College Choir
The Root: Lilli Hittir Mikka Ref - Thorbjorn Egner
The Past: No Business - Bonnie Raitt
The Future: Pole Pole - Ella…
catdynamics | September 14, 2006Through the magic of iTunes, I just got to listen to "Ever Fallen in Love" as covered by Fine Young Cannibals, right after hearing the Buzzcocks original version.
I also got "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda..." right after a straight cover of "Waltzing Matilda".
This causes severe cognitive dissonance. Although in both cases the covers were quite good.
It is the mood disconnect that gets you.
Any others?
Could have been worse, got straight to "One of Us" without a detour through something like King's College Choir cover of "Come All Ye Faithful". Although now I've thought of it I have an…
catdynamics | September 13, 2006Water here is hard.
Hence the kettle needs to be cleaned with vinegar regularly. Overnight.
It really isn't necessary to mention when this is done, if nothing else the smell is a hint.
In spite of this, occasionally coffee gets made with boiled vinegar, especially first thing in the morning.
Sometimes the coffee gets actually drunk.
This time though, I didn't actually notice until My Better Half mentioned it...
Doesn't taste half-bad actually.
catdynamics | September 12, 2006Ah, there is a plan.
Army Group Steiner will move south and save Baghdad
Science and Democracy have one unique strenght in common.
They provide institutional mechanisms for negative feedback. When pundits are wrong, the mechanisms will, eventually, reveal the error and self-correct.
When those mechanisms fail or or abandoned we lose.
Testing these institutional mechanisms to destruction does not seem like a very good idea.
catdynamics | September 11, 2006I learned some amusing little things over the last couple of weeks.
Some universities have staff who track blog and web comments about the institutions.
They seem primarily interested in comments by prospective students!
Secondary interest is comments, partiuclarly negative ones, by current faculty and staff.
A tertiary concern is any comments by current students.
This is an obvious development in retrospect, I just hadn't thought about it.
Universities obsessively track any mainstream media mention of themselves, web and blog tracking would follow. I am sure some universities also contract…
catdynamics | September 7, 2006Oh, mighty iPod, travel time, and we ask you through the magic of scheduled time displacement:
are there really habitable terrestrial planets in orbits exterior to the hot Jovians?
Whoosh goes the randomizer.
Whoosh.
The Covering: King for a Day/Shout (live) - Green Day
The Crossing: Whispering Your Name - Alison Moyet
The Crown: 2001 - Melissa Etheridge
The Root: La fille aux cheveux de lin - Claudio Arrau
The Past: Cool Water - Talking Heads
The Future: A New England - Billy Bragg
The Questioner: Golden Years - Bowie
The House: Truth No. 2 (live) - Dixie Chicks
The Inside: Call Me -…
catdynamics | September 2, 2006hm, I leave town for a few days and first the servers are trashed, then the backup fails and now the mail servers are off line. oooee.
my deepest sympathies to those who lost /home the week before lectures began.
anyway, e-mail has been inaccessible for over a day - if you need to reach me urgently, comment on this post, can call back if really needed - if you wonder what this is about, then it is not about you
catdynamics | August 31, 2006Early friday, and we move to ask:
iPod - was the Earth's atmosphere anoxic in the Archaean before 2.4 Gyr BPE or did we have oxic episodes going as far back as 3.8 Gyr BPE?
Whoosh goes the randomizer.
Whoosh.
The Covering: Take of Me - Alison Moyet
The Crossing: Summertime - Ella Fitzgerald
The Crown: Kata Rokkar - Björk
The Root: Í dansi með þér - Björk
The Past: Feeling of Falling - Bonnie Raitt
The Future: Did You Ever See a Lassie - Twin Sisters
The Questioner: Death at One's Elbow - Smiths
The House: The Grey Goose - Burl Ives
The Inside: Nógan Gefur Snjó a Snó
The Outcome: Við…
catdynamics | August 31, 2006Just caught Bush's American Legion speech on CNN.
He just gave Iran an ultimatum. His Sept 19th speech to the UN will be interesting.
I am seriously concerned that the US is likely to make a unilateral pre-emptive strike on Iranian nuclear facilities and armed forces in late September. I'd now put the odds at over 50%, maybe as high as 2/3.
That would not be amusing.
The US is talking itself into a nasty trap - if they back down after escalating the rhetoric against Iran, then the US policy is severly weakened. If they attack then the US is likely to face severely negative consequences for…
catdynamics | August 30, 2006"I read this article in the NRO, and the author actually made some interesting arguments. 'Basically,' he said, 'I am questioning the premise that [you know what] is a problem rather than an opportunity.' Does he have a point?..."
Absolutely. Ok, some people may die, including possibly half your friends and relatives, but if the estate tax is abolished, just think of the opportunities!
And "liberals" are always bitching about over-population. Voila.
Housing prices will come down, plenty of opportunities there; oil peak will be deferred, and with the sharp immediate decrease in consumption,…
catdynamics | August 29, 2006another Katrina revisit - this from six months ago
Is this going to be on the test?
Have you ever had that sinking feeling when you are talking to a class and you see the slouch...
That one student with attitude who slumps in his seat (it is almost always a "he") and gets the slightly impatient what-am-I-wasting-my-time-on-this-for look and starts the attitude through body language.
Sometimes, just to prove he is paying attention he'll make a generic comment at the beginning of class, but as the others sit up straight and start interrupting with questions and comments he slouches further,…
catdynamics | August 29, 2006So, Santa Cruz is as lovely as ever.
Damn. I'll have to browse a real estate brochure to get a sense of perspective back.
Interesting thing on the plane out of DC...
For some strange reason it is impossible to get a flight out of State College round this time of year, at least for a finite price.
So, I drove to DC, in a rainstorm, at 5 in the morning, and the #$^!(() rental car radio was broken. Bastards.
Airport security was fun. For real. Guy on the metal detectos was doing a good keep the punters amused stand up routine. Didn't help the lady in front of me who hadn't got the "no fluids"…
catdynamics | August 25, 2006Friday, and I need to pack up this computer and move in the next 4 hours.
So, oh mighty iPod one, we ask the The Serious Astronomy Question of the Week, having presciently disposed of Pluto last week...
So, iPod, d00d, wazzup with this Dark Matter shit?
Whoosh goes the randomizer.
Whoosh.
The Covering: Sexuality - Billy Bragg
The Crossing: Bill - Talking Heads
The Crown: Marteinn Semur Lö Fyrir Dýrin - Torbjorn Egner
The Root: Body of Water - Billy Bragg & The Red Stars (live)
The Past: Baby Can I Hold You - Tracy Chapman
The Future: Wild Wild Life - Talking Heads
The Questioner:…
catdynamics | August 22, 2006Bora passes on (and supplements) a request for must read SF
here are some they missed
Axiomatic by Egan
Stories of Your Life ad Others by Chiang
Startide Rising by Brin
True Names by Vinge
Use of Weapons by Banks (actually anything by Banks, seriously)
Antibodies by Charlie Stross
Instrumentality of Mankind by Cordwainer Smith
War Hound and the World's Pain and the Cornelius Chronicles by Moorcock
Her Smoke Rose Up Forever by Tiptree - since 10,000 light years from home is unvailable
Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen by H. Beam Piper (oo, and Space Viking!)
Good Omens by Gaiman,
Russian Spring by…
catdynamics | August 22, 2006I travel a lot, mostly by air. More than I would like, actually. But less than I should.
I spent a number of years in the UK, during "the Troubles" - one day in London, three buildings I had been in earlier in the day were blown up. Strangely enough my wife had the same experience, possibly the same day - we were children then, but both visiting London, separately and of course unbeknownst to each other.
Airport security was high, especially when Icelandair had check-in counters next to El-Al (Iceland, Israel - it all made sense). One day at Amsterdam airport, just after Heathrow was…
catdynamics | August 18, 2006Janes tags, I obey...
Random quotation generator - pick first five that apply.
First five out of the box suit me just fine:
When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, it's best to let him run.
Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)
Some prices are just too high, no matter how much you may want the prize. The one thing you can't trade for your heart's desire is your heart.
Lois McMaster Bujold, "Memory", 1996
The penalty for laughing in a courtroom is six months in jail; if it were not for this penalty, the jury would never hear the evidence.
H. L. Mencken (1880 -…
catdynamics | August 18, 2006The TSA is saying tonight if you wear a gel bar for prosthetic purposes they will be allowed through security and on planes, but if you were them for cosmetic reasons you'll have to pack them in a checked luggage.
catdynamics | August 18, 2006Yikes, friday again and I am behind.
So we go for the obvious: oh, mighty iPod, whose wisdom exceeds that of the most cleverly appointed ad hoc committee ever assembled, what is a good criterion for what is planet?
Whoosh goes the randomizer.
Whoosh.
The Covering: Whispering Your Name - Alison Moyet
The Crossing: She Looks To Me - Red Hit Chili Peppers
The Crown: All I Want - The Lightning Seeds
The Root: In The Flesh - Pink Floyd
The Past: Open All Night - Son Volt
The Future: Refurinn Fer að Bóndabænum - Thorbjorn Egner
The Questioner: Scar Tissue - Red Hot Chili Peppers
The House: Heil…