Have you ever read Dr. Seuss’ Sneeches on Beaches?

If you pick and choose, some kosher laws (Kashrut) certainly look health-related. Pork certainly could carry disease. But so could beef. We’re well aware of salmonella, yet there are no restrictions on chicken, eggs, etc. Further, other cultures placed no such restrictions on pork, in spite of the apparent risk. …

Nobody really knows. I suspect Jewish dietary laws arose as a deliberate contrast to the eating habits of others in the region. It draws an us/them line, just as does the LDS Word of Wisdom. It reminds you of who you belong with, and who you don’t. No health rationale required.

Dietary laws are not about science or health or anything else. They’re about reminding you of what you believe. If you’re an observant Jew, there are some things you don’t do, and some ways you do things that make you distinctive. If you’re an observant Latter-day Saint, there are some things you don’t do, and some…

It’s the fat.  I was taught to use butter, and it works for most stickers.

The way your body reacts to coffee changes over time (and there are probably varying concentrations of caffeine). By the time I was in college I could drink ~15 10oz cups a day, no problem. In grad school, a large mug of espresso was my bedtime drink.

Fireworks, yes, but Autumn leaves as well.

I was able to understand that Ford needed an inexpensive car at the time—I have a vivid memory of advertising selling the Pinto for $1995 (I think!). But the baffle in the tank was a simple fix that would have pushed the price by about $15, IIRC. The bottom line turned out to be costly; as the Car Guys used to say,…

I was in college in the second half of the ‘70s. Some time around ‘79 or so, I was in a criminology class, and the professor let me take over for an hour to discuss Iacocca and the Pinto.

You know, I am not a car guy. I don’t care about displacement or horsepower, though I do enjoy the fact that my car gets 38 MPG on average.

My initial reaction was “It’s the Ghostbusters hearse!”

My father was a scientist and brought home test tubes, beakers, cylinders, flasks, and the like. Even a huge old glass syringe, a clear barrel with a blue glass plunger (no needle, which was probably a good thing). He also used to bring home catalogs of laboratory supplies—some of these were hard-bound and 2-3" thick,…

The “new notes” problem is a big one. I like OneNote for taking very specific notes, but even then, serendipity vanishes.  When you page through a notebook to get to a blank sheet, you are refreshing your memory.  When you have random access, not so much.

It depends. I’ve recently been struggling a little with this question myself.

Unfortunately, both cyclists and drivers flout the law, to the detriment of both. Seven years ago, I was hit when a driver rolled through a stop sign (on a side street—I had right of way and no stop sign), necessitating a hip replacement. And I’ve seen cyclists scare pedestrians and require cars to emergency brake.

Men, 13B, flat, here. The Z/2 have a toe loop that makes these the best sandals for my Morlocks-style feet.

1. After I read this article, I got some Z/2 sandals (toe loop included, better retention) and they actually fit my men’s size 13B feet.

In high school, we had two ASR33 teletypes, and that was the extent of computerization (I graduated in 1976). So I learned to type by taking a typing class as an elective, and learned on manual machines. I graduated to an electric for college (some kids got cars as high school graduation presents, I got a…

If you happen to be in the Greater New Haven area, go here:

My dad died two years ago March.

My dad died two years ago March.