SCOTLAND YARD’S FLYING SQUAD
I WAS ENJOYING one of the Paul Temple radio mysteries when Scotland Yard Chief Commissioner Sir Graham Forbes said to Paul, “We’ve got the Flying Squad on it.” Scotland Yard … Continue reading
BEEN THERE, SORTA
MR. AND MRS. Dinesh Rathod, both police officers in Pune, Maharahstra, India, claim to have climbed Mount Everest. As proof of conquering this 28,028-ft. peak, they offer a photo showing … Continue reading
CENTRAL-SEAT SPORTS CARS
IN HIS MOTORSPORTS satire The Grand Prix of Gibraltar, Peter Ustinov described the hyper-technical Schnorcedes as having perfect weight distribution: Its driver sat neither left nor right; what’s more, his … Continue reading
A DUO OF JULY 4TH CELEBRATIONS
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! I recognize that about half of SimanaitisSays readers live elsewhere around the world. Nevertheless, do join us in celebrating the 240th anniversary of the signing of the … Continue reading
A MURAT FAMILY BUSH
LEARNING A LITTLE recently about Murat the Younger and his Turkish Abductions of Icelanders, I felt compelled to search out Murat the Elder and others sharing this moniker. Pirate, admiral, … Continue reading
HELLO, JUPITER! SUE FINLEY IS ARRIVING
IN A FEW DAYS, Sue Finley may retire. This test engineer has worked at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for 57 years, the woman with the longest career at NASA. Sue … Continue reading
WRY/PPW—WELCOME TO PAPA
THE SIX LETTERS WRY/PPW (and PPW/WRY) identify the world’s shortest commercial flights, Loganair’s hops in Scotland’s Orkney Islands. These flights are between Westray (in airport lingo, WRY) and its neighbor … Continue reading
RED BURGUNDY HEIRLOOM OKRA
ALTHOUGH I CANNOT find it, both Wife Dottie and I remember a cartoon showing a guy lazily leaned back in his office chair, his feet on an uncluttered cob-webby desk, … Continue reading
FROM LENINGRAD WITH LOVE, OR AT LEAST WITH DIALECTICAL MATERIALISM
GUIDEBOOKS CAN provide more than details of locale; they may also offer directions to thought. Certainly my Leningrad Guide, 1930, is such an example. Published within two decades of the … Continue reading
1916 GALLAUDET D-1 SEAPLANE—THE TRADEOFFS OF INNOVATION
SOME AIRCRAFT INNOVATIONS, such as ailerons and joystick, proved lasting. Others may have been based on sound engineering principles, but this wasn’t enough. An example is the patented Gallaudet Drive, … Continue reading
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