So much world all at once – how it rustles and bustles! / Moraines and morays and morasses and mussels, / The flame, the flamingo, the flounder, the feather / how to line them up, how to put them together? / All the thickets and crickets and creepers and creeks. / The beeches and leeches alone could take weeks. / Chinchillas, gorillas, and sarsaparillas / Thanks so much, but this excess of kindness could kill us. / Where’s the jar for this burgeoning burdock, brooks’ babble, / rooks’ squabble, snakes’ squiggle, abundance, and trouble? / How to plug up the gold mines and pin down the fox, / How to cope with the lynx, bobolinks, streptococcus! / Take dioxide: a lightweight, but mighty in deeds; / What about octopodi, what about centipedes? / I could look into prices, but don’t have the nerve: / These are products I just can’t afford, don’t deserve. / Isn’t sunset a little too much for two eyes / That, who knows, may not open to see the sun rise? / I am just passing through, it’s a five-minute stop. / I won’t catch what is distant; what’s too close, I’ll mix up. / While trying to plumb what the void’s inner sense is, / I’m bound to pass by all these poppies and pansies. / What a loss when you think how much effort was spent / Perfecting this petal, this pistil, this scent / For the one-time appearance, which is all they’re allowed, / So aloofly precise and so fragilely proud.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wis%C5%82awa_Szymborska
2008-06-24
A utility for sending complex email messages from the command line
"When the need arises to send email from the command line, many folks first think of the mail(1) command. A better choice might be the email program, which gives you the ability to send email to an SMTP server over SSL, offers MIME support including ability to attach one or more files to your emails, uses an address book to store your recipients, and lets you digitally sign and encrypt your messages."
http://www.linux.com/feature/136877
http://www.linux.com/feature/136877
How to Think Before Speaking
"... this innate ability is often the source of consternation when what we say on the spur of the moment is something we later wish we had either not said, or said differently; it happens to everyone, sometimes, the trick is to remember when. Typically, this happens when we are responding quickly in stressful situations, or during confrontation, ..."http://www.wikihow.com/Think-Before-Speaking
The Internet Will End in 30 Years!
"In thirty years, the internet will stop working! Apparently, a bug similar to the millennium bug will affect Unix-based systems, like those that run the tubes, in the year 2038. The bug, being dubbed the "2038 bug," arises because Unix-based systems store the time as a signed 32-bit integer, in seconds, from midnight on January 1 1970. And the latest time that can be represented in that format, by the Posix standard, is 3:14 AM on January 19, 2038. After that, times will wrap around and be represented as a negative number."http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/the_internet_will_end_in_30_years.php
Set Up Dynamic DNS
"If you have a home broadband connection, odds are you have a dynamic IP address -- one that changes every so often. This is fine until you feel the need to connect to your home computer from somewhere outside your house. Without a constant, static, never-changing IP address, you don't have a reliable way to find your home computer on the internet."http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Set_Up_Dynamic_DNS
Rare cream foal 'a special boy'
"At less than a month old Snowdrop - or Cynheidre Fawr Crème de la Crème to give him his official title - is probably unaware how special he is."http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/7448021.stm
FreeRein Riding Holidays
"After 20 years running guided rides, we realized there were many riders who wished to ride without guides - and that no one was offering this service . In the Autumn of 1989 the first unescorted trails set out into the hills to stay at the Royal Oak in Gladestry and at Llanerchcoedlan Farm. There were 4 route descriptions and 2 places to stay overnight. Today we offer riders 400+ "door to door" route descriptions and over 30 overnight stops stretching across Wales from the Wye Valley to the coast at Cardigan Bay."http://www.free-rein.co.uk/homepage.html
50 Cool Things You Can Do with Google Charts API
"Chartophiles, have you heard that Google has made it incredibly easy to generate your own slick-looking charts? It’s true, and all it takes to make one is the ability to read and edit a URL. This has made it possible for lots of people to get creative with charts."http://www.collegeathome.com/blog/2008/06/05/50-cool-things-you-can-do-with-google-charts-api/
How to back up your Gmail on Linux in four easy steps
"I really like Gmail, but I also like having backups of my data just in case. Here’s how to use a simple program called getmail on Unix to backup your Gmail or Google Apps email. We’ll break this into four steps."http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/backup-gmail-in-linux-with-getmail/
The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
"The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, founded in 1949, is the award-winning SF magazine which is the original publisher of SF classics like Stephen King's Dark Tower, Daniel Keyes's Flowers for Algernon, and Walter M. Miller's A Canticle for Leibowitz."http://www.sfsite.com/fsf/
Modelling time travel in fiction
"Time travel is a subject of great interest to me - not the actual, you know, nuts and bolts physics of it, but the various possible models that can be imagined. I've written a variety of fiction based around these. The most important thing, I find, when coming up with a new theory, is to try to trip it up in every way imaginable and make sure it still works."
http://qntm.org/?models
http://qntm.org/?models
Efficient Modern Turboprop Aircraft are Making a Comeback
"turboprops are among the most efficient aircraft in the skies, using only 64% of fuel per seat compared to the average jet"http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/turboprop-aircraft-comeback.php
A Story about Losing, Leaving and Buying It All Back
"This is about living in a consumer culture and being aware of the things I buy. Since there is so much that I will need to rebuy, I thought it would be interesting to keep track of everything I buy. When I start buying back the things that we seem to acquire—usually unnoticed—over time, I want to think about how it will be used, where it's made, how it's made, how long it will last me and what will happen to it when I no longer need/want it."http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/a-story-about-losing-leaving-buying.php
Buckets to blame for wartime temperature blip
"Prior to the war, UK and US fleets had contributed roughly equally to the global temperature record. From 1942 to 1945, UK ships, previously an important gatherer of sea water temperatures, were mobilised on the front and contributed just 5% of measurements. Measurements taken from US ships made up 80%.The key, then, is how each nation took its measurements. UK ships tended to throw a bucket overboard and lift it on deck to take the water's temperature. US ships by and large would sample water drawn into the the engine room before it was used to cool the machinery."
http://environment.newscientist.com/article/dn14006-buckets-to-blame-for-wartime-temperature-blip.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news7_head_dn14006
Urban Modular Architectural Wind Power Microturbines
"Aerovironment is designing these wind microturbines specifically for the urban environment: No need for a tower, the blades rotate more slowly and silently, and they are set at an angle that allows them to benefit from the wind that is bouncing up the walls and escalating them vertically."http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/wind-power-urban-architectural-microturbines.php
Prince Charles Saves Britain's Apples
"We have applauded Prince Charles before for his willingness to spend massive amounts of money on green causes. And now HRH has done it again. He has purchased 1,000 of the rarest British apple varieties. So have Geoffrey Anderton, who owns Lochnaw Castle in Scotland, and the Co-operative Group. The sellers are a trust which looks after the living collection on behalf of the Government. Its collection includes 2,300 traditional varieties of apple, 500 of pear, 350 of plum, 220 varieties of cherry and 320 varieties of bush fruits, such as gooseberry. The apples have all been stored in one location and it was decided that it was too risky to put all your apples in one basket, as it were. The species being sold include the Bloody Ploughman, which was first recorded in 1883, the Fairie Queen, Forty Shillings and Ducks Bill, originating in England, and Great Expectations, which comes from Ireland.Each of the buyers has committed to planting their saplings in different parts of the country. It is assumed the Prince's collection would be grown at the Duchy Home Farm in Gloucestershire. The Co-op plans to introduce the apples to its customers. They are planting the trees at their 800-acre fruit-growing operation in Herefordshire. They intend to press and blend the fruit for their own "heritage" brand apple juice. Watch for the Ashmeads Kernal (pictured) "it's an ugly looking apple, with black spots, and most supermarkets wouldn't touch it with a bargepole, but the taste is fantastic – really nutty, with a juicy, firm texture.""
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/prince-charles-saves-apple-collection.php
Analog Australian Traffic Signal's Time Has Come
"this analog rotating traffic signal, designed by Charles Marshall in 1936 and used in Australia until the seventies, gave drivers a graphic, intuitive understanding of how much time they have left and how long they have to wait until the next change."http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/analog-australian-traffic_light.php
Broadstar AeroCam Wind Turbine
"The major innovation in the design, however, is the ability to automatically and interactively adjust the pitch or angle of attack of the aerodynamic blades as the turbine rotates, thereby optimizing its performance for much the same reasons a bird changes the shape of its wing in flight."http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/broadstar-wind-turbine.php
Victory Gardens: War on Waste
"It's not quite war time, although sometimes it feels like it... Endless articles on the "credit crunch", cutbacks and soaring food prices are putting a chill in the air. During WW2 the British were digging Victory gardens in squares and public parks across the country. They were growing their own food in very tight compact spaces as a response to food shortages due to the wartime restrictions on food imports. Wartime principles of eating seasonal food grown locally and organically have a message for us now.In the heart of historic St. James's Park, the Dig for Victory allotment garden has been created to bring back the flavour of those times and encourage people to embrace the idea of growing your own. For the second year running, a small allotment garden has been created in the spirit of those from the war. Included is an Anderson Shelter (pictured), a bomb shelter made of prefab. metal sheets and secured with bags of sand. Zucchinis are growing around and over it as camouflage. The beds are raised to allow for deep rooting. Companion planting was encouraged--different plants side by side can repel insects or attract them. The approach was quite organic, although the intent was to produce crops with the highest nutritional value."
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/05/dig-for-britain-allotment-victory-gardens.php
The Gospel of Consumption
"But despite the apparent tidal wave of new consumer goods and what appeared to be a healthy appetite for their consumption among the well-to-do, industrialists were worried. They feared that the frugal habits maintained by most American families would be difficult to break. Perhaps even more threatening was the fact that the industrial capacity for turning out goods seemed to be increasing at a pace greater than people’s sense that they needed them.It was this latter concern that led Charles Kettering, director of General Motors Research, to write a 1929 magazine article called “Keep the Consumer Dissatisfied.” He wasn’t suggesting that manufacturers produce shoddy products. Along with many of his corporate cohorts, he was defining a strategic shift for American industry—from fulfilling basic human needs to creating new ones. "
http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/2962
" If we want to save the Earth, we must also save ourselves from ourselves. We can start by sharing the work and the wealth. We may just find that there is plenty of both to go around. "
Efficiency
"It's gone before you even knew it was there: As energy is unlocked from fuels at power plants, two-thirds of the energy consumed to create electricity is lost. The laws of thermodynamics dictate that conversion efficiency will never be 100 percent, because heat is lost at every step of the conversion process. But new technologies may be able to greatly increase conversion efficiency, moving from an overall rate of 36 percent to closer to 50 percent."http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/06/efficiency-in-new-york-times.php
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