Another Reason I <3 Wikipedia
The Ship of Theseus article is in Category:Vehicle modification.
Add comment August 30th, 2006
Archive for August, 2006
A Place I’m Glad Exists
I saw a reference on the Web a while ago–can’t quite remember where–to “99 Red Balloons,” or “Neunundneunzig Luftballons” if you prefer. I was always struck by the English version’s reference to “99 Decision Street,” and started Googling around for interesting things involving that phrase. Naturally, I found quite a few copies of the song’s lyrics, including a comparison of the German and English versions. I also wish I knew more German, so I could rework the German lyrics to employ the translation of that line, “Entscheidungstraße Neunundneunzig.” But most of all, I’m glad to be able to report that Decision Street may be found in Vista, California.
1 comment August 26th, 2006
On the Apple Battery Recall
You might have heard about the Apple battery recall by now. Here is what I was thinking when I was checking my battery:
“Ok, let’s see . . . affected batteries for the twelve-inch PowerBook are model number A1079, serials ZZ411 through ZZ427 and 3K428 through 3K611. My battery . . . model A1079, serial 3K5arrrrrgh!”
And of course, the official site and telephone line are completely jammed with people trying to get batteries that won’t, y’know, violently burst into flame, so I’m stuck on AC power for now. This article on Macworld and this CPSC alert have more information.
:-(
3 comments August 24th, 2006
Battery sale at the bookstore
Y’see, it’s “a salt and battery sale.” Yeah. Sometimes I worry about the bookstore people, all trapped in that basement all the time.
1 comment August 16th, 2006
Various Technical Changes
I’ve tweaked a few things around here! The first, and most prominent, is that I’ve edited the WordPress theme I’m using (Blix) to make it wider, which means it won’t cut off the 500-pixel wide images I get from Flickr. Hooray for randomly hax0ring CSS until things work right. Email me if you want the edits.
The second is that I’ve added the Sociable plugin, so you can add my posts to Digg and the like. I’m probably going to dump a few of the services soon; twenty tiny icons at the bottom of every post is a bit much.
Finally, I’ve upgraded to WordPress 2.0.4, which will have absolutely no visible effect on anything, but y’know, new software. Whee!
The width thing is the most important upgrade. When I made my first soap post, I noticed the image extended into the sidebar and looked pretty nasty, so I wanted to fix that before I continued.
Let me know if any of these edits make the site ugly for you. Soap soon.
1 comment August 16th, 2006
The Show with Ze Frank
I’ve been watching The Show recently, and it’s been very good, but today’s edition is nothing short of classic. It’s a bit of a departure from his other stuff–it’s usually quite joyous and a bit silly, but today he absolutely nails it in his response to the recent attempted terrorist attacks. Definitely worth watching.
Add comment August 10th, 2006
Futility
“Armed with a tree branch, a villager tries to beat an arson wildfire into submission in Galicia, Spain.” Reuters could not confirm rumours that the villager was named Quixote.
Add comment August 8th, 2006
Look Around You
Look Around You. Look Around You. Just Look Around You.
Those who grew up geeky in the 1980s will love this. It’s a sort of a double treat for me, because I read a lot of Usborne’s science books as a kid, which meant that I learned a lot of British English. Good times.
Some episodes are available on YouTube, like “Water.” “Le petit déjeuner est prêt.”
1 comment August 4th, 2006
