Random Nonphysics Link

Splendid Elles: My Thoughts on Creationism (aka the artist post formerly known as Creationists are Pure Evil)

As the Blue Collar Scientist notes, it’s very well done, and though I understand the reasoning behind noting that it’s done by a fifteen year-old, I think that’s a bit of a distraction. I’m reminded of the quote by Samuel Johnson about seeing a dog walking on its hind legs: “The wonder of the matter is not whether it does it well, but that it does it at all.” This isn’t a good post for a fifteen year-old. It’s a good post, period.

Coherent Google?

laser08.gif

Google’s logo in recognition of May 16, 1960 being the day the first laser was demonstrated. So that’s good. But geek pedantry gets in the way — you can only see a laser from the side if there’s something to scatter the light, so they are depicting a layout with a really poor air filtration system in operation and/or reinforcing a Hollywood myth about lasers.

(I really like Google. That I pick on them occasionally should not be misconstrued as anything mean-spirited. It’s more like constructive criticism: seeking geek perfection.)

Toys in the Office

As I had commented before, I have a USB missile launcher in the office. I first noticed them a few years ago but not only were they unavailable (it was around Christmas), they were unavailable only in England. A few months later they were back in stock, and I had to buy two to justify the excessive shipping cost. One for the office, and one for home.

launcher.jpg

My attempt to attach a USB webcam was thwarted, because both devices want a direct connection to the computer and I don’t have enough ports to do that and connect the things I need to actually function at my job. Such a sacrifice . . .