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

DATA MINING

CALL ME Big Data. Several years ago—never mind how long precisely—computers became potent enough to analyze huge collections of information. These metastudies of data mining have included everything from medical reports … Continue reading

February 1, 2013 · 1 Comment

RONALD SEARLE

THE ART and humor of Ronald Searle delighted me once again when I was moving some of my books and came upon Slightly Foxed. This wonderful book addresses one of … Continue reading

January 31, 2013 · 1 Comment

48 VOLTS

JOHNSON CONTROLS, a major automaker supplier, has announced it’s developing a 48-volt lithium-ion battery for automobile applications. According to Automotive News, January 21, 2013, an unnamed European automaker (spelled Mercedes-Benz?) … Continue reading

January 30, 2013 · 2 Comments

THE ART OF EARLY FLIGHT

FLYING WOULD have seemed magical to that earliest generation of viewers—including artists. Here’s a sampling of several books that display this. Each is listed at either http://www.amazon.com or http://www.abebooks.com. This … Continue reading

January 29, 2013 · 3 Comments

LES AUTOS VOISIN

IT WAS 14 years after founding Avions Voisin in 1905 that the highly talented—and even more highly eccentric—Gabriel Voisin turned from aeroplanes (www.wp.me/p2ETap-B3) to automobiles. And what automobiles! Gabriel Voisin’s cars … Continue reading

January 28, 2013 · 6 Comments

PEWABIC POTTERY

FOR MANY years now, I’ve kept a touchstone at my work table. Merely through its appearance and texture, this object helps me put things—good or bad—in perspective. My touchstone is … Continue reading

January 27, 2013 · Leave a comment

JV CARS

THE “JV” I have in mind is “Joint Venture,” wherein two or more companies share their talents in research, development or production. We’ve seen this big time with Subaru/Toyota and their BRZ/Scion … Continue reading

January 26, 2013 · 3 Comments

JENNY LORE

THE CURTISS JN4-D “Jenny” was the iconic biplane of the Twenties, the aeroplane of choice for an entire generation of barnstormers including Charles Lindbergh. If it was good enough for … Continue reading

January 25, 2013 · 3 Comments

HANDS ON THE WHEEL

A FREQUENT query: “I have $xxxx to spend and want to improve my car’s handling. What should I do? Tires? Shocks? Springs? Anti-roll bars? ” An honest reply: Attend a … Continue reading

January 24, 2013 · 2 Comments

LAGO D’ORTA

NORTHERN ITALY has beautiful lakes, all thanks to glaciers carving their way south from the Alps. Maggiore, Como, even Garda are well known, but my favorite is Lago d’Orta. About … Continue reading

January 23, 2013 · 1 Comment