Math matters, NASA; the joy of Musica; PR logistics and the Baltimore Bridge.
Math matters, NASA; the joy of Musica; PR logistics and the Baltimore Bridge.
3 Things link round up and a poem that looks to Mars
We got our cardboard eclipse glasses in the mail. How about you?
The real question is, How do we know they’re the real deal?
As many in North America look to the sky to be reminded for 3 short minutes of the wide and marvellous breadth of the cosmos and how small we are when set against events beyond our control, I hope you protect your retinas.
And remember the wonderful advice from G. K. Chesterton: How much larger your life would be if your self could become smaller in it.
Thanks for spending part of your weekend with Things I Wrote Down. Here’s 3 links and a poem about tomatoes on Mars.
Math matters, NASA
The big eclipse is tomorrow and word on the street is it's gonna be cloudy in southwest Ontario.
If you thought celestial events had lost their allure, think again. It seems everyone I bump into is taking about it and making plans!
If you're counting on seeing the totality with your $2 cardboard glasses, make sure you double check your maps. Scientists discovered the original path NASA mapped might be a wee bit off.
I think we finally have the answer to the age old question, “When am I ever gonna use this math stuff in real life?!”
No matter what happens or what you see, you'll have a story to tell for the next 40n years.
The joy of Musica
Not since I cried on an airplane watching Marcell the Shell with Shoes on have I experienced the sheer joy of film. I had a smile on my face for almost every scene of Musica.
It's filled with surprises and laughs and is a truly creative experience.
I don't know how I'd never heard of it until the algorithm served it up to me on Prime. And I think more people should know about it.
PR logistics and the Baltimore Bridge
The cargo ship that was a mass casualty event, destroyed Baltimore's main bridge and has disrupted the economy was only a few weeks ago, but has slipped out of the news. Remember that?
I know little about global logistics, but saw the viral tweet by Ryan Petersen, who explained why it was significant.
His industry-specific analysis was widely read (I've highlighted in the photo how many people it reached), and because it was so widely read, it opened the door for his first op-ed in the New York Times:
Lulu Cheng Meservey went to X to highlight why now is the time for founders and thought leaders to go direct with messaging. It's a fascinating take on how information flows and the importance of speed and substance.
The two threads are fascinating look at the logistics of goods and info, respectively.
A poem that reaches for Mars
I can't poke fun at NASA and then not share a poem that alludes to the red planet.
I love stories about space (ues, I'm an acolyte of STNG and read me some sci-fi). Today I’m sharing a poem of reflection.
Together we examine my heart, seven years later i. I swear it was right here the last time I checked cold and sticky as a frog frantic except when cupped in your hand uglier, more fascinating than expected ii. you should have known it would be a costly endeavour that it would take time to examine approached it with the energy of a NASA scientist dreaming of colonies, greenhouses that grow tomatoes on Mars never to leave the grey-walled cubicle float weightless in space never to see or breathe or walk the planet just dream it sense it, feel toward it through meticulous science probing from afar stubborn, damned wonder tucked in your shirt pocket beside all the pencils creating a way to see iii. this new vision means a new blindness too you strain to see the planets and forget the shape of mountains blades of grass what it is to trudge through the mud and scrape off your boots iv. I heard of a city miles high and just as wide inside street after street concrete billboards and endless building projects the skyline smudged with smog v. come away with me take my hand we’ll run to a place that is quiet where we can remember laughter, get out of the city sit as long as it takes until we see again wait for the stars
PS: I released Chapter 6 in Book One of my Ten Silver Coins series. You can read it free, week-by-week right here.