Potpourri CXXV

Not too much craziness tonight, but let's get right to it, shall we?

Loretta Whitesides has a good piece at OpenNASA.com on perfectionism that resonated with me.

From Martin: If you thought I had too much time on my hands, consider this guy, who created Minas Tirith out of matches. Dang.

From Twila: I haven't watched this yet, but Jay Barbree is a long-time space journalist and fan. He gets things right about 1/3 to 1/2 the time, but what the heck.

From Tracy: A Wall Street Journal article on a possible "Plan B" response to Congress on the NASA budget. I have already complained about this, of course.

From Kristina: There's a new web site for posting events in the Tennessee Valley, just in case you're interested.

From myself, about two years ago. I was clearing out some emails, and I found this bit of whimsy. Someone started doing a Chuck Norris riff on someone I'd never heard of named Anna, and I just added to the mix. Here's what happens when I'm allowed to free associate for ten minutes.

Who is Anna?

No one knows where Anna is from.
Anna swept in mysteriously one night from a place with frozen tundra and only fair pizza.
Anna makes farm animals restless from 50 miles away.
We aren’t 100 percent sure, but we think Anna built the pyramids.
Anna can jam NORAD radars.
Anna raises and lowers meeting room chairs when nobody is looking.
Anna caused sea level to rise, but no one noticed because the land rose the same amount.
Anna’s bullets ricochet off tall buildings.
Despite what you think, Anna did not fix the 1919 World Series.
Anna has 357 unpaid parking tickets.
Anna is the one who steals socks from the dryer.
Anna is secretly running the space program.
Anna keeps 55-gallon drums of bubbles in her office.
Anna knows what happened to Jimmy Hoffa.
Anna knows the true meaning of lagniappe.
Don’t mess with Anna on days when she’s carrying a clipboard.
Anna brought back bell bottoms and disco, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Anna keeps an android of herself that is so lifelike it was declared a national treasure.
Anna knows where the next asteroid is going to hit, and when.
Anna has made Twinkies.
Anna knows the secret ingredients of every food chain’s specials.
If you’re not careful, Anna will steal your leftovers.
Anna defies gravity, and gravity defies right back.
When Anna throws toast in the air, it always lands butter side up.
Anna singlehandedly moved the city of Irvine, California three feet to the left.
Don’t give Anna matches. Ever. No, really. I’m not kidding.
Anna is standing right behind you.

What the heck is a CubeSat? Try this.

From Greg: An audio file that explains how missile guidance systems work. 'Cause you just never know when you'll need such useful information.

From the NASA PAO: A couple of NASA instruments on India's Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbiter have detected a LOT more water at the lunar north pole than ever previously suspected. This is awesome news! Too bad the President wants to shut down our human space exploration program, isn't it? Well, maybe the Indians can make something of it when they get there. Or the Chinese.

From D2: A company is now selling personal jet packs. Some things really SHOULD be licensed... 

And lastly, some pictures from Sarah, one of my fellow tourees, of last year's adventure through Europe. Fun!