"At 23 I dont think it's quite time to settle for drug dealers or prophets."
--a girl close to my heart
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
They Called Him the Man Who Invented the 20th Century
Before last night this was about all I knew about Nikola Tesla.
Then, I heard a radio show about him as I was driving through the rain-drenched streets of San Francisco and couldn't stop listening to his amazing history.
Born at midnight during a lightning storm (or so the story goes), Tesla began his career working with Edison, but their differing views on electrical current (Edison's DC current required a power station every two miles, but Tesla's stronger AC current could light a whole city) began a lifelong feud.
Tesla gained notoriety for hundreds of inventions, including remote control, spark plugs, radio, and wireless communications. With financial support from tycoon JP Morgan, Tesla began building his Wardenclyffe Tower - a huge transmitter which would supply unlimited energy worldwide. When Morgan heard about this, he exclaimed "If anyone can draw on the power, where do we put the meter?" and promptly withdrew his support, forcing construction to end. Sadly, the remains of the 187-foot tower were used for scrap metal during the first world war.
In addition to his fascinating contributions to life today, there's an eerie mysticism surrounding Tesla. He was very eccentric, obsessed with germs, celibate, spoke eight languages, would listen to radio waves for hours thinking he heard signals from Mars, and at the time of his death was working on a machine that could read memories.
Years after his death, during the Cold War, officials became concerned The Enemy had gotten hold of Tesla's writings for a "Death Ray" - a theoretical machine involving charged particle beams and enormous amounts of energy. Though so far the energy could only be manifest in a vacuum, the fear prompted the Star Wars initiative.
Want to know more? Me too. Here's an interesting short video. Click.
Then, I heard a radio show about him as I was driving through the rain-drenched streets of San Francisco and couldn't stop listening to his amazing history.
Born at midnight during a lightning storm (or so the story goes), Tesla began his career working with Edison, but their differing views on electrical current (Edison's DC current required a power station every two miles, but Tesla's stronger AC current could light a whole city) began a lifelong feud.
Tesla gained notoriety for hundreds of inventions, including remote control, spark plugs, radio, and wireless communications. With financial support from tycoon JP Morgan, Tesla began building his Wardenclyffe Tower - a huge transmitter which would supply unlimited energy worldwide. When Morgan heard about this, he exclaimed "If anyone can draw on the power, where do we put the meter?" and promptly withdrew his support, forcing construction to end. Sadly, the remains of the 187-foot tower were used for scrap metal during the first world war.
In addition to his fascinating contributions to life today, there's an eerie mysticism surrounding Tesla. He was very eccentric, obsessed with germs, celibate, spoke eight languages, would listen to radio waves for hours thinking he heard signals from Mars, and at the time of his death was working on a machine that could read memories.
Years after his death, during the Cold War, officials became concerned The Enemy had gotten hold of Tesla's writings for a "Death Ray" - a theoretical machine involving charged particle beams and enormous amounts of energy. Though so far the energy could only be manifest in a vacuum, the fear prompted the Star Wars initiative.
Want to know more? Me too. Here's an interesting short video. Click.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Bienvenue, Mon Petit Chou
My cousin had a baby today!
Kairo Alexander Hook getting his hair washed for the first time. I didn't know hospitals do that.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Tonight's Sunset from My Room
Wow. I'm still speechless.
I was making some chai on the stove when I noticed the intense light streaking sideways across the kitchen floor. It seemed bizarre, since it was grey and rainy all day. I peeked out the front window and the houses across the street were luminated a bright orange against the denim sky. I grabbed my camera and shot this photo from my bedroom right before the sun faded.
I was making some chai on the stove when I noticed the intense light streaking sideways across the kitchen floor. It seemed bizarre, since it was grey and rainy all day. I peeked out the front window and the houses across the street were luminated a bright orange against the denim sky. I grabbed my camera and shot this photo from my bedroom right before the sun faded.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Tuesday, Wednesday Break My Heart
Sometimes my heart literally hurts when I think about how much I miss SLO... The good news is, two days 'til I'm back! I can't wait.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
iTunes My Mind Toward Politics!
In the iTunes store, search for "presidential candidate profiles" for an interesting series of short videos ABC News made on the biography each of the leading candidates. It's not entirely still applicable, since I found out right after watching them that Joe Biden and Chris Dodds have now dropped out of the race.
What is interesting is how almost all of these interviewees have had an inordinate amount of hardship in their lives, whether it was emotional (Obama's abandonment, Edwards's son's death) or physical (McCain's POW torture). Is the response of overcoming a hardship to strive for "success" only evident in extroverts (and how could you not be one if you were running for president?) or is this response universal? In other words, is it just circumstance that these men have had difficult lives or have their experiences caused them to achieve the places they are today?
What is interesting is how almost all of these interviewees have had an inordinate amount of hardship in their lives, whether it was emotional (Obama's abandonment, Edwards's son's death) or physical (McCain's POW torture). Is the response of overcoming a hardship to strive for "success" only evident in extroverts (and how could you not be one if you were running for president?) or is this response universal? In other words, is it just circumstance that these men have had difficult lives or have their experiences caused them to achieve the places they are today?
"How dare you, D'Artagnan! And smack 'em"
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