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

HURRAH FOR SCIENCE—AND THE HUMANITIES!

THERE’S EXCELLENT reason to promote STEMM and HACD. As unwieldy as it appears, STEMMHACD (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Medicine, Humanities, Arts, Crafts, and Design) can play an essential role in … Continue reading

July 16, 2018 · 2 Comments

PREPARING FOR A SOUTH SEAS ADVENTURE, 50 YEARS AGO

THE WISDOM of old guidebooks is often found charming and occasionally even timely by today’s travelers. Donald Sea Briggs certainly had a way with words in his Briggs South Seas … Continue reading

July 15, 2018 · 2 Comments

A MOVEABLE FEAST OF ELEGANCE—THE BUGATTI TYPE 50T

HAVE THERE ever been automobiles more elegant than Bugattis? I doubt it, and I offer this 1932 Type 50T as an example. The Type 50 and its variants are the … Continue reading

July 14, 2018 · 2 Comments

AN ENLIGHTENING T-SHIRT

I LEARN something every day. Well, sorta every day. Recent enlightenment came when I solved a personal sartorial shortcoming by ordering new T-shirts from March for Science. The March for … Continue reading

July 13, 2018 · Leave a comment

ETYMOLOGY—RIDICULE, DERISION, MOCKERY

MINIONS SHAMED in restaurants. A giant balloon to float above London. A ballad celebrating inarticulate ramblings about mouth, brain, and Elton John. What a perfect time to add the word … Continue reading

July 12, 2018 · Leave a comment

THE TRAGEDY/SUCCESS OF THE COMMONS

WHAT FOLLOWS is a brief account of a philosophical concept in the social sciences. My account is brief for two reasons: I haven’t the space here nor the depth of … Continue reading

July 11, 2018 · Leave a comment

WHEN IS THAT?

OUR ENGLISH language has the word “today.” For the day immediately prior, we have “yesterday.” And for the day immediately following, there’s “tomorrow.” From there on, passages of time in … Continue reading

July 10, 2018 · Leave a comment

WAS SHERLOCK HOLMES AN AMERICAN? PART 2

YESTERDAY, NONE other than noted Sherlockian Franklin Delano Roosevelt offered the view that the world’s first consulting detective was indeed an American. Here in Part 2, we hear from another … Continue reading

July 9, 2018 · Leave a comment

WAS SHERLOCK HOLMES AN AMERICAN? PART 1

THERE’S SOLID evidence provided by chronicler Dr. John H. Watson that Sherlock Holmes visited the United States. But is it possible, nay probable, that the world’s first and greatest consulting … Continue reading

July 8, 2018 · Leave a comment

ETYMOLOGY—ELOQUENT, INARTICULATE

EVERY SO often, the meaning of a word surprises me. As an example, consider the word “eloquent.” It conjures up thoughts of classic Roman orations or the most memorable of … Continue reading

July 7, 2018 · 1 Comment