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Musings, Page 3

Stuff that just crossed my mind

An Idea For Naming Planets, Stars, and Galaxies

I agree with the idea that we need a new way to name celestial bodies that helps the public feel a bit more in touch with the cosmos. We have two major problems with that now: the vast number of objects, and the limited number of thematic names we’ve traditionally used.

Visualizing the Number Of Stars in Our Galaxy

When astronomers use numbers in the billions and larger, it’s hard to find a frame of reference to compare it to. For example, our galaxy, the Milky Way, is described as having about 250 billion stars. What does that mean?

Science In Action

There is still a lot of buzz going on about the announcement from CERN over the possibility that they had detected neutrinos traveling faster than the unfettered speed of light. Whether or not the results overturn that element of relativity is neither here nor there. The thing that does matter is that it shows the world how science works.

Let’s Speed-up Spacecraft Development Without Rushing

Following the failure and crash of a Russian Progress M-12M cargo vehicle, there has been a lot of alarmist rhetoric about the future of the ISS as well as American spaceflight capability. Let’s take a step back to look at the situation without a “sky is falling” mentality.

Validation and Social Networking

Various social networking schemes have come and gone over the years. One thing remains constant: letting people feel they are members of a community and not simply free-content producers.

Personal Financing the Federal Budget

With trillions of dollars of spending, revenue, and debt, it can be tough to have more than a theoretical handle on what all this Federal Budget nonsense is all about. Why don’t we scale it down a bit so we can get a better grasp on what the “fine folk” in Washington are doing.

TweetDeck – My Wishlist

After much searching, I long ago settled on TweetDeck as my primary Twitter app. Though useful, it’s not perfect. Here are some suggestions for features that would enhance the experience.

A Spacecraft For the Future

DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) recently issued an RFI to support a project to last at least 100 years concerning building …

Sir Ken Robinson – Changing Education Paradigms

If you care about education, you really need to hear what Sir Ken Robinson has to say. Whether or not he’s correct is not for me to say, but his arguments are sensible and it’s clear that what we are currently doing isn’t working…in fact, it’s doing the opposite.

The LA-La Ride: Katee Sackhoff and Tricia Helfer On the Road and On Ustream

Katee Sackhoff and Tricia Helfer are doing a motorcycle tour from Los Angeles to Louisiana. Their LA-La Ride is to raise awareness and money for the Gulf Future campaign for Gulf Coast recovery. You need to watch their nightly recaps.

Twitter Following Choices

Who you follow and who follows you will define your Twitter experience. The question is: if you send text onto Twitter and no one is following you, does it make a tweet?

TIB @ 1 E+3

Some thoughts on TIB with this, the one-thousandth entry. I’ve written a lot of words here over the years.

5 Science Fiction Technologies We’re Still Waiting On

For a SF writer, it gets harder and harder to find those science things that are “indistinguishable from magic”. Harder, but not impossible. There are still wonders we don’t yet have.

3 Tips For a Contented Life

I’ve experienced about a half-century of life. In my guises as a writer and artist, I’ve also been a keen observer of how others have lived their lives. With the perspective that only time provides, I offer up three of the keys to getting through it all.

Will IE Survive HTML 5 and CSS 3?

With the coming of HTML 5 and CSS 3, will Microsoft Internet Explorer become an also-ran as it falls behind its competition in standards compliance?

Is 3-D a Fad or a Stepping Stone?

It’s all the rage. All the cool studios are doing it. What’s not to like about 3-D movies and TV? Well, a lot, but I just don’t want to be a naysayer. It’s possible that 3-D will stick around this time for it to develop into something still only seen in SF movies.

When Life Gives You Lemons, Monetize the Lemonade

In “There is no ‘free’ lemonade: In giving drink away, girls ignore rules of economics — and sum up what’s wrong with U.S.”, writer Terry Savage takes to task three young girls (plus nanny) for setting up a lemonade stand and then giving away–not selling–their wares. I must admit, I’m torn by the two views of the world, the two mindsets, this conflict represents.

My Vulgarity Conundrum

I love words. I love all words. They tie us to a common anchor of communication. And yet, some words are despised. Not because of anything intrinsic–they are just sequences of letters/sounds, after all–but because of societal taboos. It’s been an interesting personal adventure.