The Crosley fire truck that we previewed last week crossed the auction block yesteray and hammered for an even $100,000 ($110,000 with buyer's commission). So I hope the new owner realizes it wasn't actually built to, you know, chase down and put out fires.
The question now: Has any Cros
Part two of this series focused on the diseases of the heart, lung, and intestine. This part of the series will focus on the diseases and statistics involved with the liver, kidneys, and pancreas.
The Liver
The liver is responsible for getting rid of toxic substances i
Witnesses:
- Hon. Paul K. Martin, Inspector General, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Ms. Cristina T. Chaplain, Director, Acquisition and Sourcing Management, Government Accountability Office
- Vice Admiral Joseph W. Dyer [U.S. Navy, retired], Chair, Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, National
Keith's note: Hmm... Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, known Ares 1 hugger, who is anti-commercial spaceflight and an Augustine critic - and Joe Dyer (ditto) at the same hearing. Gee, I wonder what they will talk about ...
- Congressional Hearing on Safety, earlier post
- Too Close to NASA For Comfort?, earlier post
- Flying Air NASA, earlier post
- Congress Falls For Time Magazine's Ares Award Too, earlier post
- Chairman Gordon and Subcommittee Chairwoman Giffords Comment on Augustine Committee Report, earlier post
- Commercial Spaceflight Federation Takes Aim at ASAP's Report, earlier post
The Newton, like the forthcoming tablet, was introduced with expectations that it would revolutionize personal computing. Apple's then-chairman noted, "It has been said that Apple either walks on water or it sinks." That was after the Newton, well, sank.
This vintage NYTimes review, dated September 23, 1993, is remarkable for how forward-thinking it was—except it's clear now, more than 16 years later, that the Newton isn't the ancestor of a tablet as we currently conceive of it. The Newton was the pre-iPhone.
The operating system is "communication enabled," which means, in theory, that all data can be faxed, e-mailed, beamed via infrared or sent to a desktop computer or printer. It is also ready for voice, video and other advanced technologies if or when they become available.
The possibilities are grand. For example, one can imagine cellular phone circuitry being shrunk to fit in the Message Pad's credit-card-sized PCMCIA slot, or a Newton being shrunk to fit in a cellular phone.
"One can imagine" indeed. It only took 14 years for the Newton to be "shrunk into a cellular phone."
The one-pound Message Pad, which is about the size of a slim video cassette, is unlike any other Apple computer, and indeed is unlike most personal computers. It has a radically new operating system, a new microprocessor and a new mission: to become the first "anytime, anywhere" pocket computer and communicator for business executives.
On the Newton's meager app selection:
There are only a few simple software applications available for Newton, including one that makes it easy to split the tab at a restaurant and calculate the tip, among other common executive arithmetic chores. To be fair, this makes the Newton slightly more useful than the Tandy Corporation's rival P.D.A., called Zoomer, which contains a data base of birth stones and state flowers.
But the overwhelming message of this review is a measured "wait and see."
The bottom line on the Newton Message Pad is that Apple promised too much and failed to deliver a useful device for everyday executive chores. On the other hand, the Message Pad practically hums with untapped potential, and six months (or moths) to a year from now it is likely to be a popular executive tool.
Will the tablet be a sinker or a walker-on-water? Or, like some have predicted, neither of the above? We'll see on Wednesday. [NYTimes]
Budget Freeze Is Proposed, Wall Street Journal
"President Barack Obama intends to propose a three-year freeze in spending that accounts for one-sixth of the federal budget--a move meant to quell rising concern over the deficit but whose practical impact will be muted. To attack the $1.4 trillion deficit, the White House will propose limits on discretionary spending unrelated to the military, veterans, homeland security and international affairs, according to senior administration officials. Also untouched are big entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare."
Obama to propose freeze on government spending, Washington Post
"Under mounting pressure to rein in mammoth budget deficits, President Obama will propose in his State of the Union address a three-year freeze on federal spending that is not related to national security, a concession to public concern about government spending that could dramatically curtail Obama's legislative ambitions."
On Monday night, CBS Evening News covered the arrest of the snake-oil salesman who was selling what he claimed are bomb-sniffing dowsing rods, but are in reality (gasp!) totally useless:
Lt. Col. Hal Bidlack (retired), interviewed in the show, is an old friend and friend of the JREF; if you’ve attended a TAM then you’ve seen him MC the event. He got in a couple of excellent sound bites!
And I guess I should be fair. The magic wands aren’t totally useless. They’re perfect for getting people blown up and killed. I’m sure the terrorists love them.
Related posts :
A double military victory!
When antiscience kills: dowsing edition
Hal Bidlack: Colorado’s next Congressman (and yeah, that didn’t work out as well as planned, but it’s worth reading for things Hal has said and done.)
American soccer star Clint Dempsey is injured, possibly through the World Cup. In our time of greatest need emerges: a crazy soccer ball-kicking machine from BP Castrol Japan.
The big guy will, it turns out, make an appearance in South Africa this summer, but only to show off its wares. But don't worry, American soccer fans! We've got plenty of time before then to get it naturalized. In the meantime, just watch it work, and be thankful no part of your body is defending against it on a free kick. [MSNBC via CrunchGear]
Poignant and poetic words and meditations on making the most of yearning, joy, beauty, commitment and solitude in our lives.
Oriah on giving in to joy that comes unexpectedly and dazzles us with all the wild possibilities.
A recommendation that we stop fighting reality and heed the call to become our true selves and all we were meant to be.
A meditation by Oriah on listening for and embodying your word.
A challenge to discover our essential nature and to dance through our days with acceptance, courage, joy, and love.
A spiritual manual on the art of waking up, listening to our inner wisdom, and serving others in love and with generosity.
It takes practice, energy, discipline and perseverance to rekindle enthusiasm daily.
A moral work that brings the scourge of genocide into the light of day.
Explores the wisdom that can grow out of group or community cocreativity and collaboration.
The essential qualities and benefits of collective wisdom that emerges when people work together in groups.
A smorgasbord of juicy quotations on emptiness, nothingness, silence, and more.
An enlightening and inspiring collection of dharma talks on the essentials of Buddhism.
Lama Surya Das on the lessons he's learned from retreat practice.
