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Can somebody explain what is the difference between bobsled and luge? And why the people inside are called athletes? Don't they just sit there while the sled whizzes down the track? Wouldn't it be safer if they put sandbags in the sled instead of people, so nobody gets hurt?

Elements KitchenThis new restaurant opened a couple of months ago, right next to the historic Pasadena Playhouse, and then the Playhouse went bankrupt about three minutes later. Nevertheless, the restaurant was crowded last night. The most fun dish I had was the Oyster Quartet, which was four of them, all done in different ways, tiny precious ( Read more... )

The Color Career Counselor is amazing! The quiz has no words, it is just selecting colors. But it caught my ecological niche perfectly: ... gather information, analyze and interpret data, and inquire to uncover new facts. They have a strong scientific orientation, enjoy academic or research environments and prefer self-reliant jobs. Dislikes are ( Read more... )

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Took the children to see "Avatar" today, mainly on the basis of a mega-pundit who announced that its release is more important for the future of the Earth than the Copenhagen Summit ever was. It has humans versus blue aliens, on the alien planet, with a sort of Gaia thing thrown in, and the humans are plundering the idyll. The worst humans are ( Read more... )

Software interoperability and good documentation are two of those elusive things like carbon reduction, or having spare parts from one manufacturer fit with the products of another manufacturer. The common thread is that everyone benefits at the expense of the individual. Nobody wants to unilaterally cut back their own carbon usage to benefit the ( Read more... )

Last week was the .Astronomy meeting. What a pleasure it was to be back in Europe for a few days, especially the Netherlands that I have known so well for all these years. The conference was near Leiden, but far from the historic center, in a concrete hotel under the freeway. Bicycles were provided to get the 2 miles to the conference center or the ( Read more... )

Where does self-worth come from? This is different between different people, it is as if we are all born with a need, a need to know we are a good person, it is how we can stand and smile even in adversity ( Read more... )

I built a dining room table 20 years ago with a big sheet of copper as the surface. I built another one just a year ago, the same design but smaller. But with the second one, the copper has been rearing up and warping and breaking free from its bonds, not sitting perfectly flat like the copper does on the first table. Last night I tried gluing it ( Read more... )