22nd
September
2009
Somebody on the Island came close to losing their penates this afternoon, when a small fire broke out in an upstairs bedroom. The tweak in the story is how things got started – this was a case of solar energy. Seems that one of the residents had left a mirror on the bedroom vanity, and a ray of sunshine bounced back towards the window, igniting the curtains. Tricky mirror.
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posted in music, science |
30th
June
2009
Part of the pleasure of getting up early is the serenade of the birds. Around here, we have a number of enthusiastic doves, a small communal chorus of robins and the occasional grackle (who can imitate the others when at a loss for new material). In other places (yes Charlottetown, we have heard your cry all the way up here), crows provide the morning wakeup. In certain rural areas, the cocky rooster or the meandering gander are ready to sound off at any opportunity. Birds, as close to nature as it gets here in the big city.
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posted in music, science |
4th
June
2009
Although I have no idea how they actually do it, nuclear physicists can calculate the half-life of an isotope. Remember those calculations from Grade 11 physics class? Something like that. But what about the half-life, or even better, the whole-life of a nuclear reactor? We seem to be having issues with that question up here in the great white North.
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posted in politics, science |
12th
April
2009
A few minutes ago, the dog was in my face. Something, on the edge of her tongue; an idea. She wanted (I think) to go outside, lie on the stoop with a toy and watch the world go by. But, the words escaped her. All she could get out was a sibilent yowl, expressing frustration at our interspecies communications barrier. I did what I could, taking her to the door, attaching a cobbled-together long lead and wishing her a good hair day (it is rather windy right now) as she took up her post on our eastern boundary.
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posted in humour, science |
16th
March
2009
Was that a bird? Or a plane? Under the “cover of darkness”, it may well have been the ISS followed by an eager Shuttle. Oh, the stories I’ll be able to tell my descendants, as we sit around whatever technology supercedes the family hearth in decades to come. Next time, I should bring someone with better eyesight and a deeper familiarity with heavenly bodies than the one I received during an audited astronomy course with “Whistling Earl” back in the last century at UPEI.
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posted in science |
27th
February
2009
I finally have proof that rain falls. Back, just before the onset of winter, I installed a weather station at home, and as nature would have it, cold precipitation is difficult to measure. With great aplomb, I’ve barricaded the house with shovels and piles of snow. My boots have kept me feet dry (mainly). And there has been this niggling doubt about the ability of my equipment to measure rainfall. The statistics have been harsh; no precipitation recorded for the last three months.
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posted in science, Wx |
22nd
February
2009
The red carpet festivities are still some hours away, so I’ve been watching another program that is just as competitive. A sports program, with a movie tie-in: The trivia question for today reads “How many movies have included curling as a plot device?” (IMDB lists an even dozen, including one James Bond flick. Who knew?) Anyhow, the Scotties are underway, and PEI just gave up a match to Quebec. Still a week away from the final end, though.
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posted in media, science |
25th
October
2008
One thing about watching nature TV is that it really makes life in the ‘burbs seem safe and comfortable. I might cross the path of the neighbour’s cat from time to time, and the dogs across the street that squeak might be irksome, but the “stuff of nightmares” that we’re watching on the Discovery channel will remain just a vision.
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posted in science |
12th
July
2008
Part of the afternoon was spent working on the concept of video capture. There’s a whole world out there, free of any sort of conformity to standards, and the poor user who feels the need to save something digital to the local drive is in for a wild ride.
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posted in science |
