Final Discovery
The Space Shuttle Discovery embarked on its final mission on Thursday, marking the beginning of the end of NASA’s shuttle program. There are two remaining Space Shuttle launches scheduled for later this year, but Discovery is considered the flagship of the shuttle program, launching 39 times as it delivered supplies and satellites to outer space.
On board the shuttle this go-round is a robot that looks a human from the waist up. The humanoid will be working on doing simple tasks like turning knobs in a zero-gravity atmosphere. Pretty cool until we figure out that the humanoid thrives in outer space and very quickly evolves from a robot to a maniac set on galactic domination. More.
These pictures really make me miss Florida on this cold, dreary day. Cape Canaveral was 100 miles away from where I lived and I could still see shuttle launches. Today I couldn’t see the top of the Sears Tower, which is three blocks away.
On board the shuttle this go-round is a robot that looks a human from the waist up. The humanoid will be working on doing simple tasks like turning knobs in a zero-gravity atmosphere. Pretty cool until we figure out that the humanoid thrives in outer space and very quickly evolves from a robot to a maniac set on galactic domination. More.
These pictures really make me miss Florida on this cold, dreary day. Cape Canaveral was 100 miles away from where I lived and I could still see shuttle launches. Today I couldn’t see the top of the Sears Tower, which is three blocks away.
Reunited Wallet
Now that I’ve depressed you with the reminder that Punxsutawney Phil is a lying, heartless fatty, I bring you a story to warm your frostbitten heart. In 1970, Rudolph Resta’s wallet was stolen from his jacket pocket. Fast forward 40 years, when security guard Jose Cisneros found the wallet and through a series of events, the wallet made its way back to Resta. His cash was gone, but in the wallet Resta found a saucy photo of his wife in a jaguar stole – this dude was an art director in the promotions department at the NYT. How much was he making?? – and pictures of his then young sons. There was also a photo of his Italian immigrant father and a copy of Senator Ted Kennedy’s eulogy for his brother, Senator Robert F. Kennedy. This is the kind of story that reminds you the world is filled with good people. More.
Now that I’ve depressed you with the reminder that Punxsutawney Phil is a lying, heartless fatty, I bring you a story to warm your frostbitten heart. In 1970, Rudolph Resta’s wallet was stolen from his jacket pocket. Fast forward 40 years, when security guard Jose Cisneros found the wallet and through a series of events, the wallet made its way back to Resta. His cash was gone, but in the wallet Resta found a saucy photo of his wife in a jaguar stole – this dude was an art director in the promotions department at the NYT. How much was he making?? – and pictures of his then young sons. There was also a photo of his Italian immigrant father and a copy of Senator Ted Kennedy’s eulogy for his brother, Senator Robert F. Kennedy. This is the kind of story that reminds you the world is filled with good people. More.
Our Future Is Screwed
Providence, R.I. has to cut costs, so it is firing all of its teachers. Okay, not really, but kinda. Faced with a $40 million budget deficit, the city knows it will have to close some schools, much like Detroit which announced it plans to close as many half of its schools. Since Providence doesn’t know how many schools it will have to shutter, it is sending dismissal notices to all 1,926 of its teachers because a state law requires them to notify teachers about layoffs by March 1. Not all of those teachers will be fired, but some of them will. I know in this economy you have to cut corners where you can, but the idea of cutting teachers not only depresses me but also makes me worry about our future ability to compete. More.
Providence, R.I. has to cut costs, so it is firing all of its teachers. Okay, not really, but kinda. Faced with a $40 million budget deficit, the city knows it will have to close some schools, much like Detroit which announced it plans to close as many half of its schools. Since Providence doesn’t know how many schools it will have to shutter, it is sending dismissal notices to all 1,926 of its teachers because a state law requires them to notify teachers about layoffs by March 1. Not all of those teachers will be fired, but some of them will. I know in this economy you have to cut corners where you can, but the idea of cutting teachers not only depresses me but also makes me worry about our future ability to compete. More.
Skin in San Francisco
“Intactivist” Lloyd Schofield is trying to ban get a circumcision ban put on the November ballot in San Francisco, so naturally he took his cause to Fox News, the champion of all hippie causes. He and Megyn Kelly go back and forth over the importance of foreskin. (Shouldn’t Schofield exclusively wear turtlenecks to promote his cause?) My favorite part is when he talks about the bris-shalom, basically a Jewish ceremony that ceremonially celebrates the snip without actually snipping. More
My mom and I got into the funniest debate about the circumcision of her theoretical grandson once. I told her that I had mixed feelings about it and she was incensed by that. We went back and forth over culture and cleanliness. Her final argument was “Well, Jesus was!!!” No arguing with that.
Gas Prices
With all the uprisings in the Middle East, it was only a matter of time before it showed up at the pumps and only a matter of time before eager editors assigned gas price stories to grumpy reporters. Every story is going to have the same basic details. First, it will talk about the fact that prices are up, then it will transition to the fact that prices are going up even more because there is a time lag between crude oil future sales and the unleaded arriving to the pump. Then it will talk about the regional reasons, such as specific taxes and distribution channels. It might even talk about gasbuddy.com and how raising prices actually hurt the gas stations. More.
If you can’t already tell, gas stories were the bane of my existence at my old paper. I remember getting into a shouting match with our metro editor when I refused to approach the story from the premise of gas going to $5 a gallon. He told me story wasn’t “poppin’” I wanted to pop him in the jaw.
A Hangover Cure, Please?
A teaser trailer for "The Hangover 2" hit the internet on Thursday. It looks awful. Yes, I will still see it. Whatever.
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