Thursday, May 15, 2014
Curiosity is drilling holes on Mars...
Like Pantone, but from 1692!
Eight OSX terminal utilities...
Eight OSX terminal utilities... Several of these were new to me, and they look pretty handy...
JavaScript: is there anything it can't do?
JavaScript: is there anything it can't do? In-browser RAW image processing. I'm expecting a full-featured in-browser JavaScript IDE any day now :)
Cat saves kid from dog...
Quote of the day...
Quote of the day... From Dan Henninger, for the conclusion of his op-ed piece in today's Wall Street Journal: Bonfire of the Humanities.
The loonies are becoming the public face of some once-revered repositories of the humanities. Sic transit whatever.
A guide to life...
A guide to life... By the late George Carlin. A couple examples:
Once you leave out all the bullshit they teach you in school, life gets really simple.Carlin was a raving liberal, and he held many positions that I strongly oppose. Despite that, he had a peerless ability to cut through euphemisms, bullshit, and pretension that often had me rolling on the floor with laughter. I still watch clips of him on YouTube every time I see one come along...
I don’t believe there’s any problem in this country, no matter how tough it is, that Americans, when they roll up their sleeves, can’t completely ignore.
Lennart Bengtsson gives up...
Lennart Bengtsson gives up... Dr. Bengtsson is a well-known climate scientist (and professor) who has long been part of the warmist scientific support. A few weeks ago, though, Dr. Bengtsson very publicly joined a skeptic's group (the GWPF) – loudly proclaiming his doubts and his disgust at the unscientific approach of the IPCC. Yesterday he resigned from the GWPF, citing enormous pressure from his scientific colleagues. Steve McIntyre and James Delingpole have entirely characteristic responses.
I'd call it a sad day for science, except that I think in large part the “science” part of climatology has long since departed, replaced by a conformity and fanaticism that resembles that of certain religions more than it does science. So I'll phrase it differently: it's a sad day for those few genuine scientists who remain part of the climatology community – scientists like Judith Curry or Lennart Bengtsson, who are willing to listen to things like evidence, alternative theories, etc. Unfortunately they are greatly outnumbered by the likes of James Hansen, Michael Mann, et al.
Mark Steyn's lawsuit with Michael Mann, while primarily a free speech issue, does offer the hope of making a dent in the warmists' position. That hope stems from the “discovery” part of the legal proceedings, wherein the private emails between Mann and the other contributors to the IPCC report will become public. These emails almost certainly will contain hard evidence of the unscientific manner in which the support for the warmists position was constructed (I speak here not just of the infamous “hockey stick”, but of all the evidence in the IPCC reports). It will be most interesting for the skeptical community to pore over these emails...
I'd call it a sad day for science, except that I think in large part the “science” part of climatology has long since departed, replaced by a conformity and fanaticism that resembles that of certain religions more than it does science. So I'll phrase it differently: it's a sad day for those few genuine scientists who remain part of the climatology community – scientists like Judith Curry or Lennart Bengtsson, who are willing to listen to things like evidence, alternative theories, etc. Unfortunately they are greatly outnumbered by the likes of James Hansen, Michael Mann, et al.
Mark Steyn's lawsuit with Michael Mann, while primarily a free speech issue, does offer the hope of making a dent in the warmists' position. That hope stems from the “discovery” part of the legal proceedings, wherein the private emails between Mann and the other contributors to the IPCC report will become public. These emails almost certainly will contain hard evidence of the unscientific manner in which the support for the warmists position was constructed (I speak here not just of the infamous “hockey stick”, but of all the evidence in the IPCC reports). It will be most interesting for the skeptical community to pore over these emails...
Pater: memories...
Pater: memories... Yesterday afternoon I bought a ladder and started pruning the 35' tall pines in our front yard. There are eight of them, and as far as I can tell nobody has ever tried to prune them beyond removing limbs damaged by snow fall. If you know pines at all, then you can easily imagine what I faced: long, gangly lower limbs with a few needles at the end (largely shaded out by the canopy above), and the bottom half of the trees filled with gray, dead wood. This is all perfectly normal for a pine; the interior needles and branches die out as the tree grows, unable to get any light as new needles and branches hide the sun from the old ones.
I haven't identified the species of these pines yet, but whatever they are, they have a very attractive bark: the old parts are shades of browns and reds, and sort of papery and flaky. The total effect is of a mottled blend of colors with a distinct 3D texture. But most of this was being hidden by all the dead wood.
Armed with a ladder, a pruning saw, loppers, and a hand pruner, I went to work. In just over 3 hours, I cleared all the dead wood up to about 18' high from three of these pines. I also took off the lower branches to make enough room to walk underneath them. I'm very pleased with the result – the pruned trees are much more attractive than they were before I started, and I really like being able to walk under them. The cleared space also opens up a nice view to the south of our home, showing off farmed fields in the foreground and a 180° vista of snow-capped mountains in the background.
So where do memories come into this?
Many things about the afternoon's work reminded me of my dad. Pruning out the grey, dead wood – that's something he taught me about. How to cut off a branch without causing a damaging split back to the trunk – another little skill he passed along. Knowing to let the rosin seep out freely, spreading it to cover the saw wounds – another piece of pater lore. Even the tools I used (Swiss-made Felco) were a choice he made. I can still remember him showing me the features of the swivel-handled Felco 10 hand pruning shears that he favored. That was roughly 45 years ago; Felco still makes the same shears, and I used a pair of them yesterday.
Lots of memories; some brought with them a tinge of sorrow and grief, others smiles. I would dearly love to have been able to show my dad around our new home in Paradise. He'd have greatly enjoyed the name of the town, while poking fun at the Mormons all round me and teasing me about my imminent conversion (probably forcible). I know he would have loved the climate and soil here, because it would mean we could easily grow the conifers and many other plants that he loved so much...
I haven't identified the species of these pines yet, but whatever they are, they have a very attractive bark: the old parts are shades of browns and reds, and sort of papery and flaky. The total effect is of a mottled blend of colors with a distinct 3D texture. But most of this was being hidden by all the dead wood.
Armed with a ladder, a pruning saw, loppers, and a hand pruner, I went to work. In just over 3 hours, I cleared all the dead wood up to about 18' high from three of these pines. I also took off the lower branches to make enough room to walk underneath them. I'm very pleased with the result – the pruned trees are much more attractive than they were before I started, and I really like being able to walk under them. The cleared space also opens up a nice view to the south of our home, showing off farmed fields in the foreground and a 180° vista of snow-capped mountains in the background.
So where do memories come into this?
Many things about the afternoon's work reminded me of my dad. Pruning out the grey, dead wood – that's something he taught me about. How to cut off a branch without causing a damaging split back to the trunk – another little skill he passed along. Knowing to let the rosin seep out freely, spreading it to cover the saw wounds – another piece of pater lore. Even the tools I used (Swiss-made Felco) were a choice he made. I can still remember him showing me the features of the swivel-handled Felco 10 hand pruning shears that he favored. That was roughly 45 years ago; Felco still makes the same shears, and I used a pair of them yesterday.
Lots of memories; some brought with them a tinge of sorrow and grief, others smiles. I would dearly love to have been able to show my dad around our new home in Paradise. He'd have greatly enjoyed the name of the town, while poking fun at the Mormons all round me and teasing me about my imminent conversion (probably forcible). I know he would have loved the climate and soil here, because it would mean we could easily grow the conifers and many other plants that he loved so much...
Fires in San Diego...
Fires in San Diego... Several people wrote to ask if we were ok, after they heard the news reports about wildfires in San Diego County. Debbie (who is currently at our home in Jamul) got phone calls from concerned relatives and friends.
Short answer: we're fine. As best I can tell, there have been no major fires anywhere near Jamul, despite news reports to the contrary. There were several minor fires, including one quite close to our home (that one was started, we're told, by a power line downed by the high winds on Wednesday morning). These minor fires were all controlled, contained, and put out in short order by very fast and well-coordinated response from fire agencies – in marked contrast to the situation during the 2007 fires.
There are three major fires still uncontrolled in the northern part of the County, near the cities of Rancho Bernardo, San Marcos, and Carlsbad. All of these have the potential to cause enormous damage. As I write, just over 30 homes have been burned already.
The high winds (the “Santa Anas”) that are the primary driver for these fires have died down, and no more are in the forecast. If past experience is a guide, that means that firefighters will now be able to control and contain these fires within a few days, and their structure protection efforts will be largely successful. Fires roaring up canyons will be the biggest challenge for them. That's not the voice of an expert you hear; it's the voice of experience. We're very familiar with this pattern.
Our fire season appears to have arrived five months early – the weather that is at the root of these fires is what we would normally experience in October. I have no idea what the next five months will bring, but I sure hope it's not one giant fire season!
Short answer: we're fine. As best I can tell, there have been no major fires anywhere near Jamul, despite news reports to the contrary. There were several minor fires, including one quite close to our home (that one was started, we're told, by a power line downed by the high winds on Wednesday morning). These minor fires were all controlled, contained, and put out in short order by very fast and well-coordinated response from fire agencies – in marked contrast to the situation during the 2007 fires.
There are three major fires still uncontrolled in the northern part of the County, near the cities of Rancho Bernardo, San Marcos, and Carlsbad. All of these have the potential to cause enormous damage. As I write, just over 30 homes have been burned already.
The high winds (the “Santa Anas”) that are the primary driver for these fires have died down, and no more are in the forecast. If past experience is a guide, that means that firefighters will now be able to control and contain these fires within a few days, and their structure protection efforts will be largely successful. Fires roaring up canyons will be the biggest challenge for them. That's not the voice of an expert you hear; it's the voice of experience. We're very familiar with this pattern.
Our fire season appears to have arrived five months early – the weather that is at the root of these fires is what we would normally experience in October. I have no idea what the next five months will bring, but I sure hope it's not one giant fire season!