“In the health area, over 80 percent of the users said they made a change in their diet after using library computers,” Crandall said, adding that he did not know whether the changes were permanent.
“One-third of Americans use library computers” Seattle Times, Wednesday, March 24, 2010
After the Sounders game (Go Sounders!) I was in the parking garage and saw a car that really slammed into the bumper of the car next to it while pulling out of a parking space. Since the car at fault did not stop to leave information, I wrote down their license number and left it and my name and number on the damaged car. I got a call today from the owner of that damaged car, confused about my note. Why? BECAUSE SOMEONE TORE THE NOTE, REMOVING THE INCRIMINATING LICENSE NUMBER!!!! Unluckily for criminals everywhere, I still had the number in my purse. Hah!
But next time I’m just going to call the State Patrol.
From the same book as previous:
The table [of causes of pauperism] suggests also that insanity, epilepsy, paralysis, syphilis, lameness, and general wreck are conditions especially associated with bad habits, and that deafness, blindness, rheumatism, and cancer are associated with absence of bad habits.
(I especially like the category “general wreck.” That’s what I’m shooting for.)
Causes of Pauperism:
Intemperance
Drug habit
Immorality
Shiftlessness and inefficiency
Crime
Temper
Stinginess
Speculation
Neglect by relatives
No support
Accident
Sickness
Physical defect
Mental deficiency
Insanity
Old age
From Almshouse women: a study of two hundred and twenty-eight women in the city and county almshouse of San Francisco by Mary Roberts Coolidge. Stanford University, Cal.: Published by The University, 1896. p. 29.
A very amusing collection of Kim Jong-il’s visits to various industrial sites with a hilariously dry introduction. For maximum enjoyment, watch for his, er, limited sartorial choices.
David Starr, Space Ranger; Lucky Starr and the Pirates of the Asteroids; Lucky Starr and the Oceans of Venus; Lucky Starr and the Big Sun of Mercury; Lucky Starr and the Moons of Jupiter; Lucky Starr and the Rings of Saturn; Asimov. Yes. Reading the introductions to these was a little like listening to the John Hughes commentary on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off: it seemed like Asimov hated (or at least wanted to apologize for) everything that made these books charming. Charming they were, nevertheless, though the latter three are somewhat less so as Asimov strove to render them indistinguishable from his other work.
Charming though they were, the former three could have used some editing attention. My favorite example, I think, was this:
There were four of them. The number increased as more men joined the group.
I also have to wonder whether, in a conversation set in the asteroid belt, when a character from the asteroid belt says “We’d have to take it to one of the rocks,” I can blame the editor for compelling “Anton turned to Lucky, explaining suavely, ‘We always refer to the asteroids as “rocks,” you understand.’” or only for leaving it in.
Very much of its time, the series has a simple optimism unlikely to be captured again:
In this age of Galactic civilization, with humanity spread through all the planets of all the stars in the Milky Way, only scientists could properly cope with mankind’s problems. In fact, only the specially trained scientists of the Council were adequate.
I got these new headphones that block out external sound, and the instructions had the usual warning about not wearing them when you drive, but also had this howler, with accompanying diagram:
“Be sure to ensure that there is continuous audio signal to the headphones to ensure that you are not left alone in silence with the horror of your own thoughts!”
Stephen Fry in America: Fifty States and the Man Who Set Out to See Them All, Fry. Non-fiction. I think I love Stephen Fry as much as he loves America, and with similar layers of feeling: I admire his wit and talent; I admire that he strives to be gracious, and if he has sometimes failed, well, who among us hasn’t? The delightful Mr Fry visited each of the 50 United States over the course of several months, driving a London cab through the continental states, and this book is the companion to the tv series in which his journey was chronicled. The book could have used somewhat more careful fact-checking and editing, but a list of errata does not make a very interesting review. Overall, it’s an intriguing look at the States from the point of view of an outsider who was very nearly one of us.