Fifty years ago today the Russians launched Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite. Humanity made its first tentative step into space. I don’t have anything profound to say, unfortunately. I wonder what the kids of 1957 imagined the future would be. The moon, Mars, the stars? Well, we got to the moon, then came back.Continue reading “On Sputnik”
Monthly Archives: October 2007
On Pushing Daisies
On the advice of my friend Todd I watched the premiere episode of ABC’s new series, Pushing Daisies. It’s… weird. The premise is off-beat. As a little boy Ned discovers that he has the power to bring the dead back to life. And that comes with some strings attached. He can never touch a personContinue reading “On Pushing Daisies”
On a Message to the World
:cheers:
On Cometary Niftiness
Comet. Say the word, and it sounds magical. I can almost hear Carl Sagan in my head, talking comets and the cosmic mysteries of the universe. Then I read this — a NASA solar probe photographed a comet losing its tail to a solar storm. Maybe we should rename the comet. Call it “Comet Eeyore,”Continue reading “On Cometary Niftiness”
On a Sad Discovery
I made a shocking discovery yesterday — Constellations has been remaindered. Imagine Anakin Skywalker as he’s awoken, encased in Darth Vader’s environment suit. Imagine his scream of “Nooooooooo!” Yeah. I can’t complain, really. I’ve signed a lot of copies. The book’s gone through four printings at least. That Constellations would turn up remaindered somewhere wasContinue reading “On a Sad Discovery”
On the Coming Crack-Up
Here’s an interesting little story. The “Religious Right” isn’t happy with the Republican Party. The GOP doesn’t value their interests. The GOP isn’t fighting for what they want. And they really don’t like Rudy Guiliani. What does all this mean? There’s the obvious fear, on the part of the Republicans, that the religious voting blocContinue reading “On the Coming Crack-Up”