Thursday, August 24, 2006
Pluto Demoted! Mickey Outraged!
Well, I must say I’m a little bummed by Pluto’s demotion from a regular planet to a “dwarf planet.”
Though I've never seen it, I liked that it was discovered by a man named Clyde [Tombaugh]. That he was working at a private observatory funded by a rich astronomical wacko (Percival Lowell, who really really believed in life on Mars, thereby putting momentum behind The War of the Worlds which, Tom Cruise notwithstanding, is a pretty good story.)
But I can see the dilemma the astronomers faced: let Pluto in and there’s no good way to keep a host of truly lame orbiting bodies from getting promoted to planets.
Though I've never seen it, I liked that it was discovered by a man named Clyde [Tombaugh]. That he was working at a private observatory funded by a rich astronomical wacko (Percival Lowell, who really really believed in life on Mars, thereby putting momentum behind The War of the Worlds which, Tom Cruise notwithstanding, is a pretty good story.)
But I can see the dilemma the astronomers faced: let Pluto in and there’s no good way to keep a host of truly lame orbiting bodies from getting promoted to planets.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Colorful
There are indeed colors not found in nature, but some of the colors you do find in nature look awfully unreal sometimes: witness these guys from our garden.
Of course, the color you are seeing here is the color of the hydrangea as captured and digitized by the electronics in my camera and as interpreted by your screen.
But even the eyeball-to-bloom view – can I really say I am seeing the actual color of the hydrangea. Birds, I understand, have four or even five color receptors in their eyes, as compared to our three. Because they have an additional tool to work with, in effect, does that mean they are more closely seeing the “true” color?
I asked one of the sparrows hanging out at the birdbath, but she wasn’t talking.
Of course, the color you are seeing here is the color of the hydrangea as captured and digitized by the electronics in my camera and as interpreted by your screen.
But even the eyeball-to-bloom view – can I really say I am seeing the actual color of the hydrangea. Birds, I understand, have four or even five color receptors in their eyes, as compared to our three. Because they have an additional tool to work with, in effect, does that mean they are more closely seeing the “true” color?
I asked one of the sparrows hanging out at the birdbath, but she wasn’t talking.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Rose of Sharon
The termite guy said we should really cut back everything that grows up right against the house, and of course he's right. But maybe I'll wait til the flowers are gone to chop away at this one.
