THUMBS UP! AND OVER
AN OPPOSABLE THUMB optimizes interaction with the other four digits of a hand (or foot—gorillas have opposable big toes too). Humans have opposable thumbs, as do most other primates. Cats, … Continue reading
SAMUEL F. B. MORSE, — .. -..- . -.. / — . … … .- –. . … PART 2
YESTERDAY IN PART 1, we celebrated artist Samuel B. Morse with the coded title “mixed messages.” Today, in Part 2, we celebrate Morse’s technical prowess, but lament others of his … Continue reading
SAMUEL F.B. MORSE, — .. -..- . -.. / — . … … .- –. . … PART 1
MORSECODE.WORLD PROVIDED a portion of the title above, reading “mixed messages.” And if ever there was a person deserving such an epitaph, it’s Samuel F.B. Morse. Here in Parts 1 … Continue reading
A VIRTUAL PORSCHE
WHAT WITH THE modest odometer reading on my 2012 Honda Crosstour (not yet 25,000), I’m not quite in the market for a battery electric vehicle. On the other hand, a … Continue reading
CELEBRATING PASTA ENGINEERING
HERE’S A WIN-WIN for science, for the environment, and for cuisine: a pasta that changes shape from flat to fancy as it cooks. At first glance, this may seem like … Continue reading
SHIPPING TIDBITS
THE ARTICLE “Gargantuanisation,” by John Lancaster, in the London Review of Books, April 22, 2021, is a review of Laleh Khalili’s Sinews of War and Trade: Shipping and Capitalism in … Continue reading
T. REX TALLY
DINOSAURS DOMINATED THE world’s land masses for 185 million years, from some 250 million years ago to around 65 million years ago. How many dinosaurs existed? Charles R. Marshall and … Continue reading
THE KERFUFFLE OF THE LADY PEN
LANGUAGES WITH GENDER distinctions are getting caught up with inclusion and equality. For example, a French “leader” is the grammatically correct “le” dirigeant, with the assumption that such a position … Continue reading
ARCANE SOUNDS AMONG MY CDs
WHAT WITH STREAMING off the cloud and all, CDs on my shelves have a 20th-century appearance, akin to the books nearby. Upon listening to them, though, there’s interesting technology associated … Continue reading
HOLY CADUCEUS!
THESE TIDBITS COME from no less than the U.S. National Institutes of Health, from Wikipedia, and from R&T. “There are certain things,” the NIH’s National Library of Medicine writes, “that … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 