AN ACTUAL PLANET VULCAN??
FOLLOWERS OF Star Trek recognize planet Vulcan as the birthplace of Spock’s father Sarek (his mother Amanda was an Earthling). What’s more, there was a respected mathematician who believed he … Continue reading
RUTH LAW—NOT JUST A RECORD-SETTING AVIATRIX
WHEN PIONEER aviatrix Ruth Law Oliver sought to fly from Chicago to New York in 1916, she approached Glenn Curtiss to buy an aircraft capable of traveling such a distance. … Continue reading
REMEMBERING HENRY N. MANNEY III
A KIND READER recalling early R&T reminds me that I’ve not written much here about Henry N. Manney III. I too have memories of Yr. fthfl svrt, favorites lines he composed and, … Continue reading
BETTER EATING—THROUGH CHEMISTRY
A CHRISTMAS GIFT from Wife Dottie was utterly impossible to guess: an 8 1/2 x 10 3/4 x 1 3/4-in. rectangle, rigid as a board—and heavy! Later assessment proved it … Continue reading
LIFE SPANS IN THE ANIMAL WORLD
DISCUSSIONS OF animal life spans include us too. There’s a Special Section on this topic in the December 4, 2015, issue of Science, published by the American Association for the … Continue reading
VERA NEMTCHINOVA, DANSEUSE—AND TEACHER
I RECENTLY came upon a marvelous characterization of “teacher.” My discovery evolved while I was learning about Madame Vera Nemtchinova. She was a prima ballerina and a part of the … Continue reading
BONNET BLING
THE DETROIT AUTO show, formally the North American International Auto Show, runs from today, January 11, through January 24, 2016. It’s expected to fill Detroit’s Cobo Hall with global debuts … Continue reading
WIDER TIRE = BIGGER FOOTPRINT?
NO, LET’S DISPEL that myth right off. To a large extent, a tire’s inflation pressure—not its width—determines the area of its contact with the tarmac. However, there are still lots … Continue reading
A HOLMESIAN CALENDAR
HERE IT IS January 8, 2016, and we’ve already missed, by two days, the 161th anniversary of the birth of Sherlock Holmes. But there are a lot more places to mark our … Continue reading
CENTURY-OLD SLANG
LADY MARY CRAWLEY of Downton Abbey uttered “Golly!” and that got me thinking. What were the slang terms of a hundred years ago? I dug into this with A Dictionary … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 