Friday, February 20, 2004

Jet-powered Nausicaa Glider Project [Slashdot] The test flight video is pretty impressive. I wonder how well it would work with a human pilot, though. I rather doubt that they'll be able to find a test pilot with Nausicaa's abilities. 10:04:29 PM    comment () My film scanner finally got back from the Nikon service center today. It took two weeks to repair, which seems a bit unreasonable to me. When I send my laptop to Apple for repairs I can expect to get it back two days later. On the other hand, when my film scanner came back it worked, whereas my laptop doesn't work about half the time, so I guess the longer repair time isn't totally without benefit. 7:58:17 PM    comment () Japan Raises Security Amid Troop Dispatch [AP World News] Japan is sending 1,000 air, sea and ground forces for the mission in Iraq, its largest military deployment since World War II. An advance team of 30 soldiers is already in Iraq. Many fear that dispatch could draw terrorist attacks in Japan, and last November an alleged al-Qaida operative threatened to attack Tokyo if it sent troops to Iraq. Japan issued a series of travel advisories and alerts for citizens living abroad late last year. There are some pretty obvious implications for US foreign policy there, although I can confidently predict that those implications will be completely ignored by the mainstream media. 7:55:25 PM    comment () Tinderbox Is Two. This week marks the second anniversary of Tinderbox. Wheee. I'm very happy to say that the Tinderbox community is large and growing, and that we've got lots of positive energy. My mailbox (and NetNewsWire window) has been overflowing with comments on the Daybook note earlier this week; Daybook is just about the simplest Tinderbox task you could imagine, but it also seems to be a frontier of knowledge management. Save the date: we're planning a Tinderbox weekend in Boston, May 22-23. We'll have training -- from Getting Started basics to advanced template design. We'll take a look at the roadmap for Tinderbox for Windows and Tinderbox 3. We'll look at a wide variety of applications. More details, soon. [Mark Bernstein] I'd be tempted to go to the weekend event if it was someplace closer to Los Angeles. It takes too long (and too much money) to get to Boston by train. 6:39:02 PM    comment () Guns and Marriage. A Redondo Beach, California, gun rights activists pens a satirical letter to San Francisco law enforcement officials, analogizing his marginal social role as a gun-owner with that of homosexuals, and wondering if their willingness to ignore the law in regards to gay marriages in their city would be extended to him as well. An excerpt: You have shown progressive thinking and tolerance for that which the majority condemns. So I was thinking of coming up to San Francisco and exercising my right to keep and bear arms, maybe showing up at City Hall with a state-banned AR-15 and a couple 30-round magazines, and also carrying several pistols concealed without a permit. Yes, I know, it will be a violation of California laws, but you've shown that you're willing to disregard those when it serves your goals. And because I am a peaceable citizen, I should easily meet Judge Warren's criterion that no immediate damage would be done by allowing this. So what do you think, if I visit your city and proudly display my lifestyle choices, can I count on your support? As a private citizen, don't I have as much right to disregard laws I find reprehensible as you public officials? Isn't that what equality is supposed to be all about, where no class of citizen enjoys privileges and immunities not extended to all? Hilarity ensues, including calls from the San Francisco police and two Redondo Beach police cars showing up at his house. [Hit & Run] The letter-writer makes a good point. It would be a mistake to think the mayor of San Francisco is some kind of pro-freedom hero making a stand--as the response from the San Francisco police demonstrates. 6:32:15 PM    comment () Yankee or Dixie. Do you say "pop" or "soda"? "Potato bug" or "pill bug?" And do you call it a "hoagie," a "hero," or a "sub?" Take the test and score your regional pedigree. One problem: the testmakers need to add subcategories, especially... [LewRockwell.com Blog] The test is an interesting look at American regional dialects. I got "68% (Dixie). A definitive Southern score!" An interesting result, since I've lived in Southern California my whole life. It probably has something to do with the fact that all the relatives who lived near me when I was a little kid were from my father's side of the family, which is from Texas. 5:01:47 PM    comment ()

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