Earlier this month (April 8, 2024), a total solar eclipse cut through Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Total solar eclipses are paramount spectacles. It’s unlikely you will see anything else in your short, pointless life that will match a total eclipse. Thus, whenever an eclipse passes nearby, you should endeavor to place yourself in … Continue reading The First Total Solar Eclipse of the 21st Century
Frankenstein Weather
In my old age, I’ve picked up a nasty habit: a fondness for literary biographies. Recently, I’ve enjoyed books about Keats, Shelley, Byron, Blake, Twain, Orwell, Tagore, Joyce, and others. It’s a strange affliction — utterly without rational basis, lacking the danger of street drugs, but like drugs delivering peculiar damaging delights. Last night, while … Continue reading Frankenstein Weather
Math Eras
As part of a larger project, I needed a simple timeline for the history of mathematics. I kicked around a bunch of candidates but settled on the following: Old Tally — before 4000 BCE Bronze River — 4000 BCE to 1001 BCE Early Philosophic — 1000 BCE to 301 BCE Euclidean — 300 BCE to … Continue reading Math Eras
Generation Ship: Review
I grew up reading hard science fiction. Some of my favorite authors were Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Larry Niven, Frank Herbert, and Jerry Pournelle. All these writers created technically plausible stories with heavy doses of science. I’ve always held that science fiction needs some actual science to distinguish it from … Continue reading Generation Ship: Review
The Pointless Existence of Ambrose Oliver Cuddlepomp
We find Ambrose Oliver Cuddlepomp at work, or at least what he calls work. It’s not work in the sense of exerting energies for earnings; it’s more like a deliberate marking of time: a way to distinguish one hour and day from another. Ambrose Oliver Cuddlepomp, or “Cuddie” to use the demeaning nickname, has never … Continue reading The Pointless Existence of Ambrose Oliver Cuddlepomp
Ok Boomer K-TV
I was into South Korean TV long before BTS and the gen-whatever teeny boppers. One of the first TV shows I reviewed on this blog, Faith, was a deliciously nonsensical time-traveling South Korean rom-com martial arts fantasy. Yeah, it was that crazy. With advancing age and creeping Bidenesque dementia, my affection for South Korean TV has only increased. My latest K-TV … Continue reading Ok Boomer K-TV
Decoding and Encoding RSV Files with J
Another year has come and gone, and my failures continue to accumulate. I’ll stop failing when I’m dead. For the nonce, I will stew in my abyss of hubris, biting off more than I can ever hope to chew. But there will be plenty of time for self-abasement later (at least if my health holds). … Continue reading Decoding and Encoding RSV Files with J
Pam and the Alien Memory Biz
Click here for a PDF version of this post. A mockery by Kline Leopold Hedrös ©2023 Nobody expected libertarian aliens to set up a memory trading post off the west coast of Antarctica, but they did, and now Pam and her mates on the good ship Forget Me Not were entering the UN-patrolled waters around … Continue reading Pam and the Alien Memory Biz
Society Prefers Dead Liabilities
The other day, while trolling the fetid depths of Reddit, I was amused by the response to this story about more and more boomers becoming homeless. The nugatory netizens of Reddit were not sympathetic. They blame the execrable boomer generation for many of the ills, both real and imaginary, that have befallen them. Yes, boomer … Continue reading Society Prefers Dead Liabilities
The Book of Terms
Click here for a PDF version of this post. A tale by Kline Leopold Hedrös ©2023 Arthur – 2024 The first time Arthur saw the old wooden box, he wondered if it was worth anything. It was a recurring thought. A week before, he had learned of the death of his grandmother, Alice, while zooming … Continue reading The Book of Terms
Analyze the Data not the Drivel 