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Photo Hope for the Week
Go, Blue Jays!
Quote of the Week
In the 18th century, the Industrial Revolution was one of several revolutions that overturned society. Mechanical creatures intruded into farms and homes, but still this invasion had no name. Finally, in 1802, Johann Beckmann, an economics professor at Gottingen University gave this ascending force its name [technology] . . . He hoped his outline [a textbook titled Guide to Technology] would become the first course in the subject. It did that and more. It also gave a name to what we do. Once named, we could now see it. Having seen it, we wondered how anyone could not have seen it.
Source: Kevin Kelly, What Technology Wants
Posted: 2025 Oct 18Or check out this TEDxSF by Kelly.
Music of the Week
Category Archives: Through Space
Yes, Ma’am!
In which we learn the answer to a riddle about tourists, and what it takes to be successful at herding cats. Continue reading
What I Learned on My Costa Rican Vacation
Lessons from our recent trip to Costa Rica: grocery stores, right and wrong things, small birds, translation problems and communication successes, art, and traffic signs. Continue reading
What’s in a Name?
Some thoughts on names and swamps and names of swamps. Continue reading
The Thing that Goes, “Braack!”
A rockhounding trip to the Mojave Desert leads to several new experiences. Continue reading
My Summer Vacation
A selective recap of our journey across the Canadian Shield–Arctic fireweed, pulp and paper mills, and giant walleyes–and musings about opportunities taken as well as missed. Continue reading
Good Thing, Too Much Of
Musings on the state of Canadian geography after three days spent traversing a pathetically small portion of the Canadian Shield. Continue reading
Open Sesame?
Waiting in line at a border crossing, I am reminded of, and inspired by, a classical scene from a classic fantasy novel: The Lord of the Rings. Continue reading
Close Enough?
A visit to the Equator – sort of – prompts me to think about accuracy and what constitutes “close enough.” Continue reading
Wit and Wisdom in Wyoming
“Ah, Wyoming. It makes Nebraska look picturesque.” Dismissing both Wyoming and Nebraska with one practiced parry, the wit represents the confluence of heritage (Italian), upbringing (New Jersey), and training (courtroom litigation). But, as we find to our sorrow the next … Continue reading