18 April 2022 - Holographic Doctors in Space!

 

I just read an interesting piece on cnet: NASA 'Holoported' a Doctor Onto the International Space Station. It seems like a great idea, but the article left out one I'm really anxious to know. Were his first words, "Please state the nature of the medical emergency?" If not, someone really needs to be reeducated.

Enkidu? Is That You? - 16 June 2021 - Plague Journal Day 461

Micah 6:8
Genesis 7:17-24
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

I'm looking for a recommendation from my readers. I haven't read the epic of Gilgamesh since High School, and there seem to be a ton of new versions and translations out there. Does anyone have a favorite, or some reason to choose one over another?
It's easy to say, "I'll get the Norton edition," or "Penguin is always reliable," but with so much scholarship and so many discoveries in the intervening years, it seems wise to ask for recommendations.

You're all probably wondering what got me on a Gilgamesh kick (I'm digging up the old Robert Silverberg novels and stories as well). I'll admit it - I recently saw the Start Trek: the Next Generation episode that referenced it. Temba, his arms open. Shaka, when the walls fell.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Green Blood? - 15 June 2021 - Plague Journal Day 460

Micah 6:8
John 10:16
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

On 15 Jun 1844, Charles Goodyear patented the process of vulcanization of rubber. He came up with the idea of strengthening rubber by adding sulfur or similar materials. Vulcanized rubber is generally thought of as a material for tires, but it's in lots of other things too, such as the soles of shoes.

Interestingly, on 15 June 1966, DeForrest Kelley first called Leonard Nimoy a pointed-eared hobgovlin. Of course they were in character as Leonard "Bones" McCoy and Mr. Spock while filming an episode of Star Trek.

One wonders how Gene Roddenberry got away with calling Spock a Vulcan when it had been patented all those years prior. Perhaps it's because the patent had expired, but wouldn't they have trademarked that word? This is another example of how failure to protect ones intellectual property can end up putting egg on ones face. As you come up with ideas, inventions, and designs, please keep this lesson in mind and take good care of your potential nest-egg.



Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

pointed-eared hobgoblin

Floating - in Space? - 10 February 2021 - Plague Journal Day 335

Micah 6:8
Isaiah 23:1-3
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Lately I've found myself watching all the various Star Trek series on H&I - and really enjoying even the ones that lost my interest before they finished (viz. Voyager and Enterprise).
I remember when Deep Space 9 came out and thinking that the theme was the best TV theme music I had ever heard. (Well, maybe Super Chicken was up there too.) Then came Voyager and I revised my opinion. That theme by Jerry Goldsmith was just excellent. Jerry Goldsmith was born on 10 February 1929 and died on 21 July 2004. What a great film and TV composer he was. I don't know if he ever wrote any straight concert music, but if he did, I would listen to it.


Next time  you don't sink while working on a cargo ship, you should thank Samuel Plimsoll for holding the line, as it were, against the use of dangerous "coffin ships," and as today is Plimsoll Day, this is the day for doing just that - not sinking while working on a cargo ship. Maybe you could even wear a pair of his shoes on board - they have rubber soles for traction after all.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.