I just love my Linux “calendar” command. It’s an old Unix trick. *nix (Linux, Unix) systems have these special files on them where dated information is stored, for the user, the system, or just because it’s there. If you have a Linux computer, you have several such files already installed. If you go to a command prompt and type “calendar” (and hit enter) you get, typically, today and tomorrow’s entries by default, which include a bunch of historical entries. To wit:
Continue reading Linux Calendar, Larry Craig, and Moving On →

NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has discovered a new ring around Saturn. This ring is very different from those previously known. In some ways, this ring resembles the “accretionary disk” found around some stars more than it resembles the thin, orderly rings that Saturn is famous for.

Read about it here.

… there was a speech and a plan …

Posted here on Collective Imagination.

The big machines are going to whack into the moon in a few minutes.

They just said “Ten minutes to impact. Fight, are you go?” (go) “Payload, are you go?” (go) “Command, are you go?” (go) “Somebodyelse I can’t remember are you go?” (go).

We are seeing images being beamed back from the moon.

There is a problem with the transmission rate of the data which will force them to make a last minute adjustment of the resolution of some of the images the space craft will be sending back.

A critical instrument has been checked out and it seems to work: This is an instrument that will observe the flash of impact.

The mission is dedicated to Wlater Cronkite, by the way.

FIVE MINUTES to centaur impact, they are showing this ever enlargenting image with a little white arrow onit where the impact is hgoing to happen. This isinterlaced wiht a FC IR image (I think). And, ther is an image of the cenatur craft shot from the LCROSS out ahead of it. And an image of the two dots moving closer and closer to the moon, which looks like an image from earth but it could be from some satellite.

…

Getting closer, closer, closer … They’ll be able to put these refreshed GIF’s (which is what they look like now) into a pretty nice youtube video.

…

TWO MINUTES

Wait, wait, is that a little vilage of moon people I see there?

…

Sixty seconds out … Flash sequence starts. They are changing the NRI to OPR9 … Is that MRI or NRI????? OH crap, November November?… Whas that NRI? To OPR0??

Whatever whatever!!!!

IMACT IMPACT…

We don’t see anything yet. I don’t see anything het. We are getting closer to the crater
…

They are making very last second adjustments to sampling rates for the photos. I still don’t see anything and the craft is getting closer and closer to its own impact.

I see no plume. Isn’t there supposed to be a pllume?

…

Wow, I don’t think it worked. We are about to hit themoon and there is no plume. Noting looks different…

Oh holy crap, the signal just disappeared and everyone is freaking out!

….

True panic as the visulal is lost and they are having trouble communicating.

Only IR signal availbe and it is not too good.

Imact is about to happen, iI see the surface.

They are getting a thermal signature.

I think it’s hit, LOS (impact) the second aircraft hit the moon,.

…

This is a bit different than other missions because there is not that ambiguity about whether or not they can keep the intrumetns working a little longer, collect a littele more data, etc…All the instruments are mushed!

The mission analysits all look really worried I think something did screw up big time at the end. They are already starting to develop their excuses…

…

They are replaying the mission and discussing it but the scientists have all gone silent to do their jobs. There will be no new information for a couple of hours probably.

On September 11th, 2008 Meleanie Hain went to her child’s soccer game with a Glock pistol in a holster strapped to her hip.
Continue reading The Death of a Gun Owner →

So after watching what will surely go down as one of the most epic games in Twins, and even all of baseball, history, it seems a little anticlimactic to sit down and write about the 200-mile high club, but what the hey, it’s for science.

Adults only, please

It’s not Linux, that’s for sure…

Lest we forget: Windows 7 is just like Vista, folks. “Windows 7” is Microsoft’s attempt to re-brand the damaged “Windows” name after the extremely poor “Windows Vista” release. I love that you can still buy systems with Windows XP “downgrade” because Windows Vista still isn’t trusted 3 years after it was released….

Check out this commentary by Linux in Exile.

Yes, Laelaps on Scienceblogs Dot Com is two years old today! Can you believe it?

What? You never heard of Laelaps? Inconceivable!!!!

Start here and read everything. It’s really great.

OK, you can go back to lower ground now. The warning has been canceled.
Continue reading Tsunami Warning CANCELLED →

… Collectively. By visiting the new Scienceblogs.com blog “Collective Imagination.”

Collective imagination pairs an individual science blogger with an individual scientist or engineer type person from G.E. to discuss stuff. Currently, the science blogger in the Collective Imagination Steel Cage is Yours Truly, and the GE Engineer is my Arch Nemesis Peter Tu.
Continue reading I would like you to use your imagination …. →