The American Museum of Natural History website has an intriguing article up about the whiptail lizard, and how they avoid a problem that occurs among most species when cross-bred in nature.

Most products of crossbreeding, such as the mule, are sterile. But the New Mexico Whiptail, as well as several other all-female species of whiptail lizard, does reproduce, and all of its offspring are female. Moreover, it reproduces by parthenogenesis -- its eggs require no fertilization, and its offspring are exact and complete genetic duplicates of the mother.

The article is short but interesting, and makes me wonder anew at the workings of Mother Nature. Here, she's obviously used natural selection to solve a common problem, by eliminating the wet spot.

Posted by: Ted at 04:16 PM | category: SciTech
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The Spacemonkey has had an amazing response when he offered up Gmail invites for the asking. And since I'm nothing if not derivitive, I'll extend the same deal.

Leave a comment asking for a Gmail invite, and I'll send one to you. How's that for complicating your life?

Posted by: Ted at 11:41 AM | category: Links
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After watching The Incredibles this weekend (and as good as the movie is, the extras on the DVD are just wow), I've been tagged with my new super-hero name. Just call me Lobster Man, in honor of my sunburn.

Posted by: Ted at 05:56 AM | category: Square Pegs
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1 Clever, as always.

Posted by: dawn at April 14, 2005 09:13 PM (Dh1V0)

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Someone was kind enough to scan and post a whole heap of Players Cigarette cards. This particular set of 85 cards is of Actresses, and were released during the late 1930's (from clues like "her latest film was...").

I'll post one of these every once in a while, with a couple of simple links to IMDB.com or a bio if I can find one. You might be surpirsed at some of the familiar names you'll see. The category is "Star Cards" (over on the right column), and you can click there at any time to see all that I've posted. Hope you enjoy.

(in the extended entry) more...

Posted by: Ted at 05:21 AM | category: Star Cards
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Check out Tom's Astronomy Blog for news and bits about the science of looking up. Cool pictures too.

Posted by: Ted at 08:13 PM | category: Links
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This one is quick to make, and it's Mookie-approved!

Apple-Pecan Cake

ingredients
1 egg
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup chopped tart baking apple (I peeled and cored a largish Granny Smith)
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, beat the egg until light and airy.
Add the flour, cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar, salt and baking soda. Mix well.
Fold in the apples and pecans.
Pour mixture into a greased 8" pie plate.
Bake for 25 minutes (it should be well browned).

Best served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Serves 4 - 6.

Posted by: Ted at 03:30 PM | category: Recipes
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Something I've found among rocketeers is the willingness to share equipment and knowledge. You need something? Ask the guy next to you, and chances are he'll gladly lend it to you, and if he doesn't have it, he'll point out someone who does.

That, more than anything, has impressed me since day one about this hobby.

Saturday was a perfect example. I had some parts that I no longer needed, but I knew that Bart, a good friend could make use of them. I also remembered talking to him about rail buttons, and mentioned that I had a bunch and would give him some to try. So I added those to the bag and found him talking to another club member, Mitch. Bart wanted to pay me for it, but I refused. Instead I asked for some advice.

My Level 2 rocket has been designed and I've collected all the parts except for the fins. I was going to use plywood, but more and more people were suggesting that I go with fiberglass sheet. I asked my friends what thickness they'd recommend considering the motor I was going to use. Mitch immediately said "use the thickness of the ones I'm going to give you for free right now," and he handed me three large sheets of G10 fiberglass. The stuff they make circuit boards out of. They're about 15" square, in pristine condition, and Mitch salvaged several hundred of them from his workplace when they started to throw them away. All in all, he gifted me with about $50.00 worth of fin material, along with instructions on how best to cut it into shape. He told me to consider it payment for giving Bart the rail buttons.

This kind of stuff happens all the time.

PS. Yep, I'm at home today. The sunburn is still bad enough that I can't wear a collared shirt, let alone a tie. I'll tough it out tomorrow, but for today I'm still slathered in aloe burn gel.

Posted by: Ted at 10:10 AM | category: Rocketry
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Man, I was an idiot yesterday. I had such a wonderful time at the rocket launch. Everything I flew worked to perfection, there were boy scouts and a high school physics class and junior ROTC and TARC rocket contest teams all over the place, in short, big fun the entire time. So much fun, in fact, that I never got around to putting on any sunscreen.

I am one hurtin' unit right now. I wore a ballcap to protect the ol' solar panel, but my ears and back of my neck are toasted to a screaming hot pink. I've got a nice little 'V' where my shirt was open too. Fortunately I'm prepared for this, because I'm stupid like this once a year or so, and I've got this soothing blue aloe gel that I've been coating myself in. Just going out into the sun in painful today, so no launch for me. Dammit.

On the plus side, yesterday was excellent! I said that, didn't I? Oh well, a detailed report (like you care) will be coming in the next day or two, but for now, I'd like to show you a picture that was taken yesterday by a student from Oakton High school. His name is Enrique, and I understand that he's the official photographer for the school's SLI team.

What's SLI? That stands for NASA's Student Launch Initiative, and these young ladies and gentlemen are headed to Huntsville, Alabama to take part in it. They're the next generation of engineers that're going to take us to Mars and beyond.

Enjoy the picture, click for full size. The rocket is an upscale of the Centuri Groove Tube, which was a tube-finned kit from the 70's and 80's. My version is about five foot tall, is 2.6" in diameter, and it's taking off on an Aerotech H165 Redline motor. The intensity of the flame washes out in photographs, but it's bright screaming red (yes, sorta like my ears). This is an amazing photo, and Enrique did an excellent job capturing a difficult shot.

Posted by: Ted at 01:00 PM | category: Rocketry
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Today and tomorrow. Yay!

Supposed to be beautiful weather here, hope it's as nice where you live. Have a great weekend.

About the picture: These are some downscaled models I built based on classic Estes kits from the 70's and 80's. They are (from left to right) Cherokee D, Big Bertha, Der Red Max, Alpha and Goblin. They're not all to the same scale. The Red Max (center) is just under 6" tall, and the brown cylinder next to it is a standard Estes rocket motor.

Posted by: Ted at 07:32 AM | category: Rocketry
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This week's collection of recipes is being hosted by Aussie Wife. Check it out!

Posted by: Ted at 06:36 PM | category: Recipes
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Nine out of ten doctors surveyed believed that a daily visit to Rocket Jones was good for stress relief. Doctor Kevorkian suggested a radically different approach.

Posted by: Ted at 05:57 AM | category: Square Pegs
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Not the TV series, and not the number of the greatest baseball player of all time (Willie Mays), but the number of a race car.

NASCAR's number 24 has a new prime sponsor: Bourdreaux's Butt Paste.

The driver is Kim Crosby. I don't follow NASCAR, is she the only female on the circuit? Anyways, it's like Stroker Ace come to life.

Thanks to McQ at Q&O for the pointer.

Posted by: Ted at 11:45 AM | category: Links
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I heard a commercial where AIDs was described as a "life challenging" condition.

Terminal. The word is "terminal". You get AIDs, you're gonna die from it. Eventually it's going to kill you. Coming up with yet another polite phrase to sugar coat reality isn't doing anyone any favors, it just degrades the message being communicated.

Update: From the comments and email, I've been reminded that more people die "with" than "from" diseases these days. While I understand the point and even agree with it somewhat, I think that our medical arts have advanced enough to prolong life despite whatever the terminal disease is. I'd guess that more HIV positive people die from pneumonia than from the actual AIDs itself, but that doesn't mean the AIDs didn't kill them, just that another complication facilitated by the AIDs was the final step.

People who succumb to cancer don't get that kind of consideration. And in the end, does it really matter?

Still, maybe "terminal" isn't the correct term to use. My objection (badly put it seems) was to the politically correct term "life challenging". The attempt to not offend anyone is vague enough to encompass everything after conception (or birth, depending on your viewpoint). I commuted to work this morning in the fog and rain on an interstate highway, that also fits the definition of life challenging.

Posted by: Ted at 11:35 AM | category: Square Pegs
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1 I respectfully beg to differ. You are going to die with it (for now), but not necessarily from it. It was a goal, back in the days when I worked on the clinical trials, to make HIV/AIDS a manageable condition like asthma or diabetes (albeit an infectious one, adding more levels of education and support to the management).

Posted by: nic at April 07, 2005 12:10 PM (etHvD)

2 I don't know - I have good friends now who have been living with AIDS for 10, 15 years now. It seems to me to be a completely changed landscape than it was in the 80s and 90s, when it was most definitely a death sentence (and one that would come relatively quickly). I agree with the diabetes analogy above.

Posted by: red at April 07, 2005 12:16 PM (qxKkx)

3 I have to agree with Nic, and not just because I live with her She's pretty much nailed it: with proper management, it seems as if HIV/AIDS is no more fatal than diabetes is. I concede she and I may be dreamers, but as Red said, people are living longer now with HIV/AIDS than they were expected to twenty years ago.

In fact, nowadays there are, IMO, very few truly terminal "common" diseases, save one: Life--No one has gotten out of it alive.

Posted by: Victor at April 07, 2005 06:32 PM (etHvD)

4 Hmmm.
I volunteer at what used to be an AIDS service organization, but in the last couple of years they have expanded their services to include clients who have "other live challeging conditions," I believe is how they phrase it. That includes cancer, ALS, anything where the clients are unable to shop for their own food and prepare their own meals because of their condition. Some clients need the services for a specific period...e.g., right after a round of chemo until they regain strength...others until they end up in institutional care or, well, die.
I don't see the phrase as politically correct B.S., I see it as a shorthand way to describe the situation.
And when I said that people may die with AIDS and not from it, I wasn't talking about pneumonia or another opportunistic infection that was fatal because of the HIV-compromised immune system...I'm talking about someone having a heart attack at 80.

Posted by: nic at April 08, 2005 08:30 AM (JijW0)

5 I want to aplogize if my last comment is too troll-like. I admit this is a hotbutton issue for me; and I probably hit "post" a little too fast there. Sorry, Ted.

Posted by: nic at April 08, 2005 08:58 AM (JijW0)

6 Nic, we've disagreed before and we both know that's ok. Your experience in this area is obviously greater than mine. I'm learning a lot from your comments, so fire away.

Posted by: Ted at April 08, 2005 09:34 AM (blNMI)

7 This reminds me of one of my favorite moments in radio.

Bob Edwards was interviewing a doctor on Morning Edition, who was describing some sort of long-term survey the details of which I forget. The doctor said (this is from memory, but close), "Four percent of the test subjects underwent the mortality experience."

There was a sound from Edwards that was probably a spit-take. He interrupted the good doctor. "Excuse me. They 'underwent the mortality experience?' Do you mean that they died?"

"Well, yes," said the doctor. "They underwent the mortality experience."

Edwards made it through the rest of the interview; he's a pro. But you could tell it was one of the most absurd things he'd ever heard from a guest.

Posted by: Doug Pratt at April 12, 2005 12:30 PM (D6ZyB)

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It's been so bad the last couple of days, that Spork posted on it too.

Here's a relavant quote from the Tagline Archives:

Imagine standing at a street corner and spitting on people to get their attention, then trying to sell them something. Spamming is a better marketing method than that only in that you get punched less often. -- Esa A. Peuha

So true.

Posted by: Ted at 06:11 AM | category: Square Pegs
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We have entries in the Rocket Jones Banner Contest!

Go check 'em out (yep, it's another linkevent).

Derek, who names computers after dairy products.

Amy, who is flamboyantly and extravagantly carnivorous.

These are wonderful and I can't wait to see what you come up with. Yes, you.

Posted by: Ted at 06:09 AM | category: Links
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1 Man, it's hard to compete with those.

Posted by: Victor at April 07, 2005 07:35 AM (L3qPK)

2 Would it help if I changed the "contest" into outright begging for new banners from everyone? That's what it is, basically.

Posted by: Ted at April 07, 2005 09:05 AM (blNMI)

3 Well, it'd be more honest.

Posted by: Victor at April 07, 2005 10:22 AM (L3qPK)

4 aww, man, We're supposed to be COMPETING!? I've gotta go make more better ones.

Posted by: Derek at April 07, 2005 04:22 PM (wEVXE)

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Lynn S posts this hilarious conversation between God and St. Francis.

Subject? Yardwork.

Yips to the Llamas for the pointer.

Posted by: Ted at 04:25 AM | category: Links
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I heard a commercial on the radio advertising half-off plastic surgery.

That's like "buy one tit, get the second tit free".

Posted by: Ted at 08:33 PM | category: Square Pegs
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1 How does this apply to nose jobs or breast reduction surgery?

Posted by: Brian J. at April 06, 2005 10:01 PM (V04ml)

2 A woman in my neighborhood had breast enhancement. While in there, the doc told her if she wanted her eyes done, he'd give her a discount if she got everything done together.

I said to my husband, "What is this? Get one set of eyes done, get the other at 1/2 off?"

The guy was a quack and botched up her eyes... the ones on her face. Too bad. She was all of 36.

Posted by: Boudicca at April 07, 2005 12:00 AM (z7nbM)

3 Perhaps Tom Green can finally get himself a pair of stunt doubles!
Or,if I get an extension do they have to be parallel or in series?HAHAHA!!!!

Posted by: Russ at April 07, 2005 12:04 AM (ObxzR)

4 At a meeting today, someone mentioned getting "a hummer for a whole weekend." Imagine the men's dismay when the speaker was talking about the car as an item in a silent auction.

Posted by: dawn at April 08, 2005 03:57 PM (jFpDX)

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I heard on the radio that 5,000 people are attending Johnny Cochran's funeral. That's impressive.

Then I heard that an estimated one million people have stood in line to view Pope John Paul II's body in state.

Posted by: Ted at 04:10 PM | category: Square Pegs
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Brian J. Noggle celebrated his 3rd blog anniversary yesterday.

Why aren't you a Munuvian?

Posted by: Ted at 12:25 PM | category: Links
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Kicks ass.

Posted by: Ted at 06:12 AM | category: Links
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