Fourth of July

One quip from Spin Control stands out. It's probably an old Jeff Foxworthy joke. "You know you're a redneck if you think the last four words of the national anthem are 'Gentlemen, start your engines.'"

The characters in Spin Control deride Americans, Americanism, and American religion. The Americans are the book's hands-down bad guys. Of the people who die in the book, there are but two. One is an American. Another betrays the good guys to the Americans.

As the 232nd anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence approaches, I look at the US and see good and bad. On one hand, Americans delude themselves. Fooling ourselves could be our national pastime. We have a mesmerizing fascination with coming in first and being the best. We can't bear to admit the truth.

On the other hand, we have great guiding principles that can revitalize our country no matter how it fails us from time to time. The Constitution serves as our greatest achievement. Without the guarantees of personal freedom enshrined in that document, American could not have achieved anything.

Innovation, technology, art - the fruits of civilization - flourish and grow here because we offer the rule of law. Our law guarantees freedom. Freedom guarantees diversity. We may not match the French for sophistication or the Chinese for efficiency. But we are number one in this important aspect: we are diverse.

Come Enjoy a Red-Headed Slut

Here's a link to a recipe for one of my favorite cocktails.

This was how my wife got me over to her place the first time.

Novels with Bibliographies

I've been reading Chris Moriarty's novel, Spin Control. (You can also visit Moriarty's personal website). I'll write more about the novel when I'm done - I still have 20 pages to read. Right now, I want to talk about the bibliography at the back of the book.

I object to bibliographies in fiction. Why? Isn't it better to give the reader maximal information, sourcing your ideas, offering avenues for exploration, and so on?

No, I don't think so. I look on fiction as more art than science. I want it to look as effortless as the over-the-shoulder catch an outfielder makes of a long fly ball. See, it only looks effortless. Only the most naive spectator thinks it's easy.

If the novel extrapolates at all, if it contains any conjecture, I expect the narrative to sweep me along. I don't trust the science because I can't tell where it's flimsy. Well, except in those areas where I really am an expert, like simple computer stuff.

Moriarty isn't flimsy. But the bibliography proves that more thoroughly than the story does. That makes the novel look much more complex than it really is. Not a good artistic effect.

Demagogue Journalism

The Sacramento Bee allows readers to post comments to its online news stories. This follows a trend toward increased reader involvement. Desperate to resuscitate a dying industry, online newspapers all over the country allow readers to vent their goo.

Problem is, newspapers serve a different role than myface or spacebook. In traditional print journalism, social networking intersects with journalism in the letters to the editor. Editors vet comments. They even reply to some letters.

Giving readers a platform to expand ignorant, prejudiced ideas beneath a professionally written and edited story diminishes the newspaper.

Packing and Unpacking

We would take years, moving at near light speed, to reach the nearest planet.

To reach light speed (c), you need

• 354 days at 1G
• 1 day at 354G

You need the same time to slow down once you near your destination.

Those numbers assume constant acceleration, which assumes infinite energy. They also don't consider time dilation effects as you get close to light speed.

In reality, it will take centuries to reach even a nearby planet. People can't live in a spaceship for centuries. How to solve the problem?

• Sex: Treat a spaceship like the family home. It may take centuries to get there, but your great-to-the-tenth-power grandkids will have a nice, clean planet to terraform.
• Cold sleep: Deep freeze the human cargo. Thaw it out when you get there. Sure, some will die, but many will live. Exploring space carries dangers, don't you know?
• Packing and unpacking: You still freeze the human cargo, but then your nanorobots pack the human molecules into compressed modules. When you reach the destination, the nanorobots unpack them.

I like the idea of packing and unpacking. Just as we compress data now, we can compress organisms in the future. A compressed organism could survive as long as the nanorobot swarm holding its unpacking instructions exists. Interesting idea.

Going Camping

Tomorrow I'm taking the family on a three day trip to Camp Sacramento.

We'll

• stay in a tent cabin
• chow down in a dining hall
• sleep in sleeping bags
• eat s'mores by the fire
• swim in the river

We'll also be blissfully disconnected from electronic devices. I wonder how the kids will like three days of no TV.