Retro 2001

Here's a cool video that combines Disney's "Man in Space" animation with the "Blue Danube" scene from "2001: A Space Odyssey".

That Which Does Not Destroy Us...

Makes us old!

Sim Environments

A few years ago, I spent a few minutes playing with Microsoft's Train Simulator while riding on Amtrak. I found that the actual motion of the train made the sim a more realistic experience.

What might be better?

Watching Star Trek on the International Space Station

Marketing

If business has been slow for the past couple of years, maybe it is because I lack this kind of marketing genius:

Or maybe I should have recognized a long time ago that just because the Cold War was over, didn't mean that the global market for missiles was going to be in trouble.

Gruntled

Last week my workplace laid off approximately half of the office staff and there was considerable concern about disgruntled former employees. This led me to wonder about the word "Disgruntled". Is it the opposite of "Gruntled"? Can a former employee who has become  disgruntled become "Regruntled" if rehired?

It turns out, "Gruntled" is a word, but it has been a while since it has been applicable to many American workers.

My Doubleminusbad Newspeak Grammar

What is the opposite of "Doubleplusgood" (and should doubleplus have a hyphen)? I have been using "Doubleminusbad", since bad is the opposite of good and minus is the opposite of plus. However, in correct "Newspeak" the opposite meanings of words are removed as redundant, so "bad" became "ungood".  And I have been using minus and doubleminus in the same way grades and credit ratings do. For example,  F- is worse than F+.  However, in correct Newspeak, plus and doubleplus are intensifiers (very good is plusgood and excellent would be doubleplusgood). So the correct opposite of "Doubleplusgood" should be "Doubleplusungood". But, I think I'll keep using "Doubleminusbad" just to honk off the Thought Police (Bureau of Grammar Crime Division).

Missed it by That Much

Turns out that the Four Corners marker for Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah is off by a couple of miles.