link dump #9

 

I follow a lot of RSS feeds which makes it easier for me to discover interesting web pages without having to visit my list of interesting blogs which aren't updated often.  I hate to send these interesting links via email since it feels too much like a teacher giving homework... here, go read all of these web pages and report back to me.  Instead I think collecting them in a blog post is a friendlier way to pass links along.

My Google Alert for stories about Andy Weir alerted me to the news that the directories of the movie Project Hail Mary are planning to adapt the first book from Dennis E. Taylor's Bobiverse series as their next film project.  If you enjoy SciFi books and haven't read this series, you're in for a treat.
https://www.cbr.com/universal-hard-sci-fi-bobiverse-next-step-after-project-hail-mary/

I love old Blues music so this story about a new recording of Cross Road Blues by Robert Johnson grabbed my attention.  This recording is amazingly clear and provides insight into how revolutionary his music was in the 1930s.  It gives a better context for how the rumor about him selling his soul to the devil for his outstanding guitar skills came about.  Wow, I love the way a slide guitar sounds when played by a expert musician.
https://www.openculture.com/2026/04/recording-lets-you-hear-delta-blues-legend-robert-johnson-in-stunning-clarity.html

I follow NASA's APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day) because the pictures are always interesting.  This photo is one of my favorites.  I love taking pictures of crepuscular rays.  I had no idea that anticrepuscular rays existed.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250204.html

As a film buff, this story about younger viewers no longer having the attention span requires to watch a full length film saddens me.  Apparently many feel the need to glance at their phones.  Alamo Drafthouse used to be my favorite venue for movies thanks to their strict policy of ejecting customers using their phones in the theater. but that may no longer be the case  Apparently their new policy of allowing phone ordering has degraded the experience.
https://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2026/01/attention-span-problems-viewing-movies.html

Voice AI tools are threatening the livelihoods of voice actors.  I enjoy animated programs and movies and can't imagine them without the work of the talented humans who help bring them to life.  I feel the same way about the narrators of audiobooks.  Their performance can add so much to my enjoyment of a book.
https://restofworld.org/2026/ai-voice-actors-hollywood-dubbing/

Lawrence of Arabia is one of my favorite movies.  This quote illustrates Lawrence's irreverent attitude towards authority.
https://www.quotes.net/mquote/1194085

I recently found a mention of Margaret Hamilton, who reportedly coined the term "software engineer" while working at NASA.  I've long been an admirer since first seeing the famous picture of her standing next to her assembly language listings.  The quality of her code is legendary.  The link below contains a story of her daughter uncovering a bug in the AGC (Apollo Guidance Computer) in a simulator while playing with it was really interesting.  If you prefer video, Youtube has a short video of her talking about the incident.
https://wehackthemoon.com/people/margaret-hamilton-her-daughters-simulation

I've been a fan of Penn & Teller for a long time.  This story surprised me a bit.  While Penn often shares his political views, I don't recall them taking such an active stance as this.  I guess the fight against pseudo-scientific thinking is never ending.
https://hoodline.com/2026/04/penn-teller-crash-supreme-court-fight-over-texas-hypnosis-death-row-case/

I found this story about kids making the trek from Oklahoma to New York on their own in 1910 fascinating.
https://texascooppower.com/the-astonishing-ride-of-the-abernathy-boys/

link dump #8

 

I follow a lot of RSS feeds which makes it easier for me to discover interesting web pages without having to visit my list of interesting blogs which aren't updated often.  I hate to send these interesting links via email since it feels too much like a teacher giving homework... here, go read all of these web pages and report back to me.  Instead I think collecting them in a blog post is a friendlier way to pass links along.

Here's an interesting look at how NASA engineered a fault-tolerant computer for the Artemis II mission.  It is able to handle bit flips due to cosmic rays which apparently aren't uncommon in space travel.
https://cacm.acm.org/news/how-nasa-built-artemis-iis-fault-tolerant-computer/

I'm an avid follower of space technology and was interested to hear that a new memory device which could withstand the exceptionally high temperatures on Venus has been invented.  I wonder whether a CPU to function in such a hostile environment can be created and whether there's a way to connect them.
https://www.sciencealert.com/a-new-computer-chip-could-finally-withstand-the-hellscape-of-venus

Apparently rich techies are paying to get on a waiting list to have their brains digitized.  The process is 100% fatal.  There seems to be a ridiculous leap of faith required to take advantage of this technology.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/tech/science/5809555/sam-altman-nectome-brain-computer/

This essay echoes many of my feelings about using Apple devices these days.  I still like their hardware but their software continues evolving in ways I don't find particularly useful and occasionally I find myself wondering what the hell they're thinking customers want.
https://taoofmac.com/space/blog/2026/04/12/1330

Physicists have managed to entangle two helium atoms which has interesting possibilities.
https://www.livescience.com/physics-mathematics/quantum-physics/really-really-weird-physicists-entangle-two-moving-atoms-for-the-first-time-validating-spooky-quantum-theory

NASA has a Daily Moon Guide which might be useful.
https://science.nasa.gov/moon/daily-moon-guide/

This poll which indicates that print books still dominate American reading habits surprised me.  The convenience of e-books and e-audiobooks had made print books a last resort for me.  I only use them for books not available in electronic form.
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/04/09/americans-still-opt-for-print-books-over-digital-or-audio-versions-few-are-in-book-clubs/ 

For a while, Scotland seemed to dominate original thinking.  It's amazing how many fields they excelled at - economics, engineering, medicine, etc.
https://www.ageofinvention.xyz/p/age-of-invention-why-scotland-succeeded

I've read a number of books about the early days of hacking which included phone phreaking but I don't recall reading about a blind hacker who called himself "Joybubbles".  Apparently his exploits inspired other phone hackers.
https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/joybubbles-documentary-rachael-morrison-interview

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

link dump #7

I follow a lot of RSS feeds which makes it easier for me to discover interesting web pages without having to visit my list of interesting blogs which aren't updated often.  I hate to send these interesting links via email since it feels too much like a teacher giving homework... here, go read all of these web pages and report back to me.  Instead I think collecting them in a blog post is a friendlier way to pass links along.

Given the fact that Microsoft is warning people that their CoPilot AI assistant is for entertainment purposes only and should not be trusted, this study showing people blindly trust AI results is disturbing.  I believe the results from this study since so many people fall for phishing emails which contain painfully obvious errors.
https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/study-do-what-chatgpt-tells-us

Speaking of absurd beliefs, apparently some people think that blood banks maintain separate supplies from donors who have never been vaccinated.  I've been donating blood for over 50 years and have seen no evidence that separate blood supplies exist.
https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/more-people-requesting-unvaccinated-blood-themselves-or-their-children

This article about the memory devices used in the AGC (Apollo Guidance Computer) also contains detailed descriptions of other memory devices used during that time which were considered.  I remember these older technologies since I'm older than dirt.
https://2earth.github.io/website/20260304.html

I'm not surprised that repeated clonings from different generations of the same line of cloned mice has caused problems.  Entropy is a cruel mistress.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a70861443/scientists-cloned-a-mouse-for-58-generations-the-results-were-catastrophic/

Recently a magnetic tape containing source code for UNIX v4 was discovered.  I found the procedure used to extract the data from that old tape fascinating.  Stories about magnetic tape make me nostalgic for large computer rooms.  A row of tape drives constantly seeking and reading is a visual indication of a busy computer.  Tape drives were always my favorite peripheral devices to maintain.
https://irreal.org/blog/?p=13661

I'm not sure I would trust any Internet connection sufficiently to try using it to install directly from it to an SD card to boot Linux.  That being said, the technique is quite interesting.
https://astrid.tech/2026/03/24/0/curl-to-dev-sda/

Here's an account of the role which the Parkes Observatory in Australia played in monitoring the Apollo 11 mission.
https://www.parkes.atnf.csiro.au/news_events/apollo11/

Too often people focus on negative stereotypes of people on the autism spectrum while ignoring their creativity and other gifts.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/positively-different/202601/what-the-world-got-wrong-about-autistic-people

It makes me happy to know that John Fogerty has regained control over his music catalog.  His songs are in many of my favorite playlists I have on my phone.  This NPR Tiny Desk Concert shows what I love about his music.
https://laughingsquid.com/john-fogerty-npr-tiny-desk/ 

link dump #6

 

I follow a lot of RSS feeds which makes it easier for me to discover interesting web pages without having to visit my list of interesting blogs which aren't updated often.  I hate to send these interesting links via email since it feels too much like a teacher giving homework... here, go read all of these web pages and report back to me.  Instead I think collecting them in a blog post is a friendlier way to pass links along.

Tracy Kidder, the author of the excellent book The Soul of a New Machine, died recently.  Here's some memories of Tracy from the daughter of one of the engineers featured in the book.  Her memories emphasize the importance of not letting work interfere with spending time with your family.
https://www.jessamyn.com/journal/2026/03/tracy-kidder-rip

I plan on re-reading The Soul of a New Machine.  A while back I had saved a link to an article with interesting notes on the book so I could access them while enjoying the book.
https://auxiliarymemory.com/2017/01/06/rereading-the-soul-of-a-new-machine-by-tracy-kidder/

Kim Stanley Robinson, author of several books about Mars, has pointed out how ridiculous the idea of emigrating to Mars is.
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2520312-author-of-red-mars-calls-bullshit-on-emigrating-to-the-planet/

NASA's plans for a moonbase seem rushed to me.  I worry that they'll be sacrificing safety to meet arbitrary goals.
https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration/nasa-announces-near-impossible-space-plans-including-usd20b-moon-base-and-humanitys-first-nuclear-powered-interplanetary-spacecraft

It's getting harder to get a look at the night sky which is clear of satellites. That's sad since seeing stars is one of many reasons I enjoy living in a more rural area.
https://petapixel.com/2026/03/21/as-spacex-launches-its-10000th-satellite-a-photographer-captures-the-impact-on-the-night-sky/

CERN has succeeded in transporting antimatter particles in a containment trap.  This allows them to distribute samples for experimentation at other laboratories.
https://home.cern/news/press-release/experiments/base-experiment-cern-succeeds-transporting-antimatter

Scientists have byproducts of bourbon production into super capacitors, probably extra tasty super capacitors.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/03/how-chemists-turned-bourbon-waste-into-super-capacitors/

There's evidence that Romans used a weapon similar to a machine gun 2000 years ago.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/archaeology/a70698814/archeologists-uncovered-evidence-of-a-2000-year-old-machine-gunand-the-damage-it-did/

Stephen Colbert and his son are developing a new Lord of the Rings film.  This article also mentions Andy Serkis' project, The Hunt for Gollum, which I haven't heard about in a while.
https://variety.com/2026/film/news/lord-of-the-rings-movie-stephen-colbert-warner-bros-1236698684/

Recently I read about a documentary about Lowell George of Little Feat fame.  It's available to watch free on Youtube at the link below and I enjoyed watching it yesterday.  I hadn't realized that Lowell collaborated with Frank Zappa.  I had also never noticed that he used a Craftsman 11/16" spark plug socket as the slide for his guitar.  Apparently his reasoning was that it would be easy to replace if it ever got lost while it might be hard to find the same type of bottle had he used if he used a bottle neck as many musicians who play a slide guitar do.
https://youtu.be/VZ8EKw46Ce8?si=TESumuPdWsGPj-f3

link dump #3

I follow a lot of RSS feeds which makes it easier for me to discover interesting web pages without visiting a lot of favorite blogs which haven't been updated.  I hate to send these interesting links via email since it feels too much like a teacher giving homework... here, go read all of these web pages and report back to me.  Instead collecting them in a blog post seems like a friendlier way to pass links along.

Nathan Fillion has been dropping hints lately which make are making fans suspect that some type of Firefly sequel might be in the works.  If I had the power to bring back a single show, it would definitely be Firefly.
https://www.ign.com/articles/nathan-fillion-is-getting-firefly-fans-all-sorts-of-excited-over-20-years-after-the-show-was-canceled 

I find a lot of anti-AI sentiment among techies and artistic types in various places.  I've lost the link, but I recently saw a CTO complaining that he got the axe because his company was replacing some executives with AI.  There's a company I definitely wouldn't want to work for or to reply upon as a customer.  I'm lucky because I'm very close to retirement with more than enough work to keep me busy until I pull the ripcord.  I feel sorry for younger engineers who have to deal with the instability AI is causing.
https://www.scottsmitelli.com/articles/you-dont-have-to/

NASA's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) just managed to nudge a binary asteroid system.  There may be hope if we manage to detect a killer asteroid early enough to launch a mission.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/03/nasas-dart-mission-shifted-the-orbits-of-two-asteroids/

The news that younger males are clinging harder to outdated gender roles than older generations do depresses me.  One can only hope that they alienate partners before managing to reproduce.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/05/gen-z-men-baby-boomers-wives-should-obey-husbands

Videos of launching small cars via trebuchet are entertaining but I really wish they has stuck to launching Yugos or other worthless cars.  A classic Austin Mini seems too valuable to waste this way.
https://www.jalopnik.com/2117130/watch-cars-launched-by-trebuchet/

Space DVDs

I just started watching a DVD set I recently picked up of the HBO series From the Earth to the Moon. I hadn't watched this series since it was first aired on HBO in 1998 so I'd forgotten just how great it was. It really stresses just how monumental the task of landing a man on the moon really was.

It also serves as a great companion to Ron Howard's film Apollo 13, another magnificent film for science geeks.

If you haven't seen either of these, I highly recommend both. I'm something of a space program buff so I watch any film about it which comes out. I also liked The Right Stuff (both the film and the book) a lot.

Needless to say, I'm excited about NASA's recently announced plans to return to the moon. This is the type of challenge that people like me with an engineering mindset dream about.