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

THE HUM

I CAME upon the Hum only recently while researching ”Sounds Like…” Maybe you’ve heard of the Hum, within the context of the Auckland Hum, Bristol Hum, Kokomo Hum, Taos Hum, Windsor … Continue reading

February 25, 2015 · 1 Comment

“SOUNDS LIKE…”

AN ONOMATOPOEIC word is one that sounds like its meaning: Bang! Ring, ring. Meow. Some are cross-cultural; others are not. Some have been around a long time; others are only … Continue reading

February 23, 2015 · Leave a comment

FLYING ROME TO TOKYO—IN 1920

THE FIRST flying machines seen by thousands of people across Asia could have been two Ansaldo SVA.9 biplanes. Italian pilots Arturo Ferrarin and Guido Masiero, accompanied by their mechanics Gino … Continue reading

February 22, 2015 · 1 Comment

THE PHILOSOPHY OF AUTO SAFETY

MARK ROSEKIND is the new administrator at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, sworn in December 22, 2014. And, as Keith Crain of Automotive News observed in his column on … Continue reading

February 21, 2015 · 1 Comment

THE FIRST LOTUS

COLIN CHAPMAN’S first Lotus is being offered by Gooding & Company at its Amelia Island Auction, March 13, 2015. And, for such a sweet little car, the Mark IIIB represents … Continue reading

February 19, 2015 · 1 Comment

THE EXOPLANET TRAVEL BUREAU

NASA AND Cal Tech’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory have devised a wonderfully artful means of describing exoplanets, planets that are extrasolar, orbiting stars other than the Sun. The two organizations have … Continue reading

February 18, 2015 · Leave a comment

CAR STYLING: KATSURA OR NIKKO?

THE FASHION of automotive styling is an evolving thing, and I sense we were in the midst of a swing from Nikko to Katsura and are now heading back to … Continue reading

February 17, 2015 · 1 Comment

SHAKESPEARE COUNTRY—1914 AND TODAY

I HAVE claimed that old guidebooks are useful for travel today. (See “Baedeker’s Handbooks for Travelers,” http://wp.me/p2ETap-ki.) What was worth seeing a century ago is still worthy of attention today, … Continue reading

February 16, 2015 · Leave a comment

SMUGGLING AND MOTORSPORTS

FULL DISCLOSURE: Here I do not mean mere smugglers, of drugs or whatever, who happened as well to participate in motorsports of one kind or another. Instead, I celebrate two … Continue reading

February 14, 2015 · 3 Comments

OPERA AND AVIATION

A RECENT mention of the John Adams opera Nixon in China (http://wp.me/p2ETap-2Rh) got me thinking of other links of aviation and opera. One of today’s links is a classic, two are … Continue reading

February 12, 2015 · 1 Comment