Monthly Archives: November 2011

Autumn gold

Posted on 29 November 2011 by

My parents recently emailed about their yard cleaning chores, and how they filled a truck bed two times with fallen leaves to take to the town compost heap. Autumn is so different here. We do have some trees that drop … Continue reading →

Posted in life, Portugal | 6 Comments

Wallpaper Monday

Posted on 28 November 2011 by

A wallpaper for the holiday season! Blue, red, snow…can’t ask for more than that. The photographer snapped this image in crisp -10 degree air, in Sulegan, Tehran. I must admit that the name “Tehran” doesn’t conjure up scenes like this … Continue reading →

Posted in wallpaper | 1 Comment

Saturday picture show: rocket launch

Posted on 26 November 2011 by

This afternoon I happily watched the launch of the Atlas V rocket carrying Curiosity, the next generation Mars rover. Viewing it live, I was utterly dismayed at an interruption in the live stream at the exact moment of liftoff. By … Continue reading →

Posted in science, tech, USA | 9 Comments

“Ultralight metallic microlattice” = cool

Posted on 25 November 2011 by

A University of California (Irvine) team is pursuing the “ultralight material” trophy with this creation, a metallic microlattice that exhibits “complete recovery after compression exceeding 50% strain, and energy absorption similar to elastomers.” Via The Atlantic, which calls it “the … Continue reading →

Posted in science | Leave a comment

Portuguese word for Thanksgiving activity

Posted on 24 November 2011 by

Today is Thanksgiving back home, and all of my friends and family in the US are partaking in the great tradition of stuffing themselves to the limit with food. Afterwards, they will partake in the next great tradition: loosening their … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Portugal, USA | 7 Comments

Oregon in the world news

Posted on 23 November 2011 by

Last week Oregon was in the international news because of the police crackdown on the Occupy Portland protesters. I thought that was fairly remarkable because the number of times I’ve seen my home state featured in international media is minuscule. … Continue reading →

Posted in good news, Oregon | 7 Comments

Good news link dump

Posted on 22 November 2011 by

In the midst of all the bad news rolling into my newsreader — and wow does there seem to be a lot of it all of a sudden — I’ve decided it’s time for a small link dump of stories … Continue reading →

Posted in good news, life, science | 5 Comments

Wallpaper Monday

Posted on 21 November 2011 by

From the National Geographic archives: A man passes one of the lakes of central Afghanistan’s Band-e-Amir, a series of five mineral-enriched, sapphire lakes that punctuate the dusty, travertine peaks near central Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush. Legend has it the lakes were … Continue reading →

Posted in wallpaper | 1 Comment

Nerd quality of life

Posted on 19 November 2011 by

From one of my favorite nerd/geek web comics, Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, a comic that surely describes the majority of visitors to this blog: It may take longer than we could wish, but we win in the end!

Posted in humor | 10 Comments

Canon doesn’t want you to refill

Posted on 18 November 2011 by

This is the yellow ink cartridge that came with our new Canon MG6150 printer. Notice anything interesting about it? If not, here’s a hint: this is the yellow ink cartridge that came with the previous model of our printer. This … Continue reading →

Posted in tech | Leave a comment