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Where is the Tesla that SpaceX sent into space?
SpaceX launched a car into space on February 6, 2018. Some dismissed as a stupid rich guy thing. I enjoyed it immensely. SpaceX is doing remarkable work, with NASA’s help, in getting the space effort going again. Putting the Tesla Roadster, and a space dummy, on a trajectory towards Mars caught the public’s attention. If…
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Thankfulness
Today is Thanksgiving, a time to be thankful. I am very thankful for my health. Knock on wood, I have dodged severe health issues. I am very thankful for my family. The household I grew up in had love and books, both of which, through zero effort on my part, set me on a good…
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Rainier: Remembering a great dog
In 1999, our family moved back from Seattle, WA to St. Paul, MN. Shortly after arriving, we got a dog. A black lab/springer spaniel mix that we named Rainier. In 2012, Rainier passed away. He was a great dog. I wrote a short piece when he died. https://johnbredesen.com/2014/10/07/rainier-the-perfect-gentleman/ A quick note about the photo. The…
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The glass matters: A Guinness Story
If you are not a fan of Stout beer, or staring at beer watching bubbles, this post is not for you. Feel free to move along, I won’t mind.
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Scoregami: an amusing sport stat
Came across ‘Scorigami’ the other day. It is a ‘Scorigami!’ when a US Football game ends in a score that has never happened before. The web site https://nflscorigami.com/ gives the current state of them. It is fun to wander around a bit. There is also a baseball one at https://scorigami.danaben.net/t. There have been at least…
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Class Of 2023 Mindset
This is a list of many things that have been true since the birth of those entering in college this year (thus the ‘Class of 2023’). This list used to be at the Beloit College website, but they moved it to a different place. The complete list is here: https://www.marist.edu/mindset-list Here are a few highlights…
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Ford Pinto Wagon – my first car
My folks owned a Ford Pinto wagon that eventually came to me. The story about how I got it and what happened to it are lost to my late teen/early 20s memory gaps. The picture in this post is the closest I could find. I don’t even remember what year the car was or what…
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Video: How They Make Aluminum Foil
About 5 minutes long. From a big block of aluminum to 12.7 kilometers of aluminum foil by basically continually squeezing it until it is thin enough. And don’t tear it! Video by the “How It’s Made” show.
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I’m 59 years old and I just got a tattoo
I never wanted a tattoo. It isn’t that I had anything against them. I remember seeing them as a kid. It wasn’t very often but some of them were pretty cool. But I never had a drive to get one. Until now…
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Perspective on the lottery — and even bigger numbers.
Large numbers are interesting. The following quote about a hedgehog sneezing is a good example. The article at the link uses that as a starting point and goes large. Really large. Makes the brain hurt a bit to try and grasp it and doesn’t really serve any useful purpose outside of math research…but it is…
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Definitely Not
The Pet Shelter. And Children. An almost overwhelming combination. Almost. Written May 2019. Fiction. ~3000 words. I knew I was doomed from the start. The wide pleading eyes looking up at me. The little voice saying, “Please, Daddy?” But I also knew that I had to put up some kind of fight.
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Chew on this: Inside Scotland’s traditional sweetie factory – BBC News
The Golden Casket factory in Greenock produces thousands of tonnes of confectionery each year. Managing director Crawford Rae gave the BBC a behind the scenes look at the production line, where sweets such as toffees, sour plooms and humbugs are manufactured for sweet-toothed customers around world. Chew on this: Inside Scotland’s traditional sweetie factory –…
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Why aren’t all cocktails served in the same glass?
Did you know the current martini glass is much bigger than they were back in the “3 martini lunch” days? But then, even the small ones are at least a shot of booze, so that would still be ridiculous. The PBS Ideas Channel talks to Brooklyn bar owner Ivy Mix about all the different kinds…
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Music Is Magic: Foo Fighters with Kiss Guy
In the last few years, some bands have been bringing up audience members during a concert to play a song. I don’t know if they do anything to make sure the person knows how to play, but I have seen videos of people that didn’t know how to play and the road crew pulls them…
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Helping People Understand Data
We are flooded with data and we don’t understand most of it. While the below HBR tip of the day has specifics about communicating outside the company, I think that the basic concept — helping people understand the data — is a fundamental part of being a Business Analyst. The standard mantra you hear is…
John Bredesen: Remember, wherever you go, there you are.