Various, sundry!

Goodies:
So, some presents arrive in the mail that can wait for my birthday, like the one from home via SweetsInBloom.com.
Others, like the one I carried back from Florida from my grandmother, could've waited if I hadn't been told, "Remember, those are handmade," which piqued my curiosity. Two very nice pairs of socks, those are, which are currently rewrapped back in the box. *grin*
And then a large box arrived today from Visioneer, which just couldn't wait. ;) This one turned out to be a Visioneer OneTouch 8700USB flatbed scanner, which kicks ass--as my old scanner, an Agfa SnapScan EZ, is a) slow as dirt due to its parallel port connection, and b) nonfunctional due to missing its 16V power supply (absent for over 2 years, now).

Errands:

Stopped by NAPA Auto Parts and picked up a coolant temperature sender/switch and ordered a Chilton's repair manual for my truck. All the major auto parts stores in town have switched to Haynes, which was at least formerly regarded as not as good, so I wanted to replace the falling-apart Haynes manual I had with Chilton's. As for the temp sender--the book mentioned both sensor and sender, only mentioned replacement of sender, and the store (AutoZone) only had the sensor. NAPA, on the other hand, knew what was going on and how to look up the sender, and got me one. :)

Stopped by Wegmans to drop off the recycling for deposits, forgot to use said deposit receipts 20 minutes later, and dropped off my tux for dry-cleaning (ahead of time, this time! Go me!) and picked up some beer (mmm, Boddington's, and Pete's Wiched Winter Brew) for the two of us and soda for Katia.

And, that's about that. Maybe I'll get some homework done tonight. :)

*sizzle*

Look at the inhabitants of a small city block through a magnifying glass in Ant City.. and keep in mind that the sun is overhead, and be careful with gas trucks. *grin*

See the Segway in action..

Video here:

http://www.segway.com.edgesuite.net/consumer/video/

Although really, I think the concept and technology (as presented in the article I posted yesterday) are more impressive than actually watching it go.. it's a remarkable technology used for a possibly suboptimal application.

On the other hand, one of the uses presented--replacing most cars and public transportation in cities--is much more energy efficient, less dangerous and generally more sensible, as long as you don't need to carry a lot of stuff or tote younger or handicapped people.

Well quoted..

From a coworker:

"What can be more palpably absurd than the prospect held out of locomotives traveling twice as fast as stagecoaches? "
- The Quarterly Review, England (March 1825)

"Men might as well project a voyage to the Moon as attempt to employ steam navigation against the stormy North Atlantic Ocean. "
- Dr. Dionysus Lardner (1838) Professor of Natural Philosophy and Astronomy, University College, London

"Well informed people know it is impossible to transmit the voice over wires and that were it possible to do so, the thing would be of no practical value."
- Editorial in the Boston Post (1865)

"Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible."
- Lord Kelvin, ca. 1895, British mathematician and physicist

"Radio has no future"
- Lord Kelvin, ca. 1897.

"That the automobile has practically reached the limit of its development is suggested by the fact that during the past year no improvements of a radical nature have been introduced. "
- Scientific American, Jan. 2, 1909

"While theoretically and technically television may be feasible, commercially and financially I consider it an impossibility, a development of which we need waste little time dreaming. "
- Lee DeForest, 1926 (American radio pioneer)

"But what ... is it good for?"
- Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip.

"There is no need for any individual to have a computer in their home."
- Ken Olson, 1977, President, Digital Equipment Corp.


Feeling skeptical? You never know..