Simanaitis Says

On cars, old, new and future; science & technology; vintage airplanes, computer flight simulation of them; Sherlockiana; our English language; travel; and other stuff

Monthly Archives: November, 2022

WHAT DO PISTACHIOS HAVE IN COMMON WITH SPINAL TAP’S THIRD AND POSSIBLY FOURTH DRUMMERS?

HERE WE CELEBRATE Pistacia vera, a member of the cashew family not unrelated to poison ivy and positively replete with other fascinating tidbits (including the provocative headline above).  The Basics. … Continue reading

November 30, 2022 · 1 Comment

INFINITESIMAL CHIPS OFF THE OLD BLOCK: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TRANSISTOR! PART 2

YESTERDAY, WE BEGAN CELEBRATING the transistor’s 75th birthday with a book review of Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology. Today in Part 2, the American Association … Continue reading

November 29, 2022 · 4 Comments

INFINITESIMAL CHIPS OFF THE OLD BLOCK: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TRANSISTOR! PART 1

IN “FROM ONE TRANSISTOR…,” AAAS Science, November 18, 2022, Phil Szuromi writes, “For most of 1947, the count of transistors made was…zero. It is now estimated that at least 3 … Continue reading

November 28, 2022 · 5 Comments

TO AV OR NOT TO AV?  TO WHAT EXTENT?—YOUR VIEWS REQUESTED

I AM QUITE THE LUDDITE when it comes to personal transportation: My Honda Crosstour is ten years old; my Mazda Miata, a first-generation 1990. Thus, I have little first-hand experience … Continue reading

November 27, 2022 · 15 Comments

HOPPER’S HORIZONTAL CITY

THE WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART has an exhibition described by Karen Rosenberg as “Edward Hopper’s Fantasy Island.” Here are tidbits gleaned from her article in The New York Times, … Continue reading

November 26, 2022 · 1 Comment

SEARCHING FOR SPECIES 

TWO RECENT ARTICLES REMINDED ME of a Katherine Rundell quote three days ago here at SimanaitisSays—and also of a conversation with a fellow college professor some fifty years ago. Andy … Continue reading

November 25, 2022 · 1 Comment

LANCIA AIMS FOR THE MID-50S U.S. MARKET

IN THE MID-50S, AMERICAN CARS WERE displaying an exuberance of wraparound windshields, swoopy chrome trim, and tail fins destined to reach a reductio ad absurdum by the end of the … Continue reading

November 24, 2022 · 3 Comments

TO MUM WITH LOVE, WITH BIBLIOPHILIA ADDED 

A HEART-WARMING STORY comes from BBC News, November 17, 2022: “U.S. Blogger in Quest to Find Norfolk Mother’s Day Card Writer.” It’s a sweet tale that reminds me of my … Continue reading

November 23, 2022 · 1 Comment

IN AWE OF HUMMINGBIRDS

I CONFESS TO BE not much of a bird watcher. Indeed, I take delight in the satirical “Birds Aren’t Real” movement claiming our avian friends are actually Biological Intelligent Reconnaissance … Continue reading

November 22, 2022 · 4 Comments

WORKING THE INTERNET’S EDGE WITH ANALOG OPTICS

WE LIVE IN DIGITAL TIMES. Yet, as noted recently here in SimanaitisSays, analog computing is having a resurgence. “Delocalized Photonic Deep Learning on the Internet’s Edge,” by Alexander Sludds et … Continue reading

November 21, 2022 · Leave a comment