Musings of a Beetle

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 02:51:47 GMT

Folks, I give you - perhaps the singlest dumbest statement of 2009

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:12:13 GMT

Whoa weeeeird.

Just found the "not gonna get released in the US" Robot Heroes; Inferno/Tigatron, Predaking/Stepper, "Bomb"shell/Perceptor and BM Cheetor/Tankorr. No sign of Slag, Gnaw, Laserbeak etc.. yet...

If I had a kerjillion dollars.

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 13:52:44 GMT

I was in the shower, my mind running a million miles a minute, when I came to thinking about the phrase, "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." An old adage, but one that almost seems redundant in my mind. I mean, you have to understand evil to be able to stop it. If you see and hear it, you can speak out against it. Then my mind got onto creationism, etc. and then my brain struck upon something I would do if I had won the lottery.

A statue to scientific endeavour, and using three "men of science" as the basis. Yes, I realise there are as many women who've contributed to science - look, this is what my brain comes up with in the shower. It was either gonna be something like this, or an overly detailed Transformers rewrite.

So, visual this, if you will.

Obviously, larger than life, the three figures stand back to back in triangular formation. Ideally, the statue is made of something like granite from the Yilgarn craton, amongst the oldest rocks in the world (representing geology and the age of the universe, diametrically opposed to the Young Earth Creation model).

Part of me would want to see them dressed in the style of, say, men of science from the Renaissance, but that's being a tad silly.
Jamie Hyneman of MythBusters is one. He's got one leg raised, foot perched upon a large piece of a real meteorite (astronomy). In one hand, held in front of him, palm up, he has a carbon-12 atom (physics, chemistry, component of life on Earth). His other hand is raised over his eyes, gazing to the horizon (exploration).

The next is Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, of Australian radio and tv. Dr. Karl has a Microraptor gui perched on his shoulder (palaeontology). In his hand, he holds a cluster of fern fronds (botany) and a stethoscope hangs around his neck (medicine, human biology). His head is turned to one side, because his free hand is cupped to his ear, which faces out on the 120 degree angle.

Lastly, Adam Savage, also of MythBusters. Adam holds a large strand of DNA in his hands (specifically, a section of code from the common fruit fly, one of which should be carved onto his clothes somewhere). Hanging from his belt should be a sextant, representing the history of scientific exploration. His free hand is raised to his mouth, and he is shouting.

I chose these three because I feel they represent some of the best examples of people who bring the reality and wonder of science to the general public. Adam and Jamie through tv, Dr. Karl through tv and radio. They explain things to people, they show them how to look at the world, and how to learn about it.

See science and the world around you; listen to science and the world around you; speak of science and the world around you, to others.

Quiz!

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 02:15:37 GMT

Name this celebrity:

Stephen Colbert, as "Raven" in Wigfield.

MIND. BROKEN.

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:08:01 GMT

Hrm.

Well, apparently, RAC is only gonna give me $800 towards my repairs, since it turns out

a) at some point prior to owning the car, they replaced the headlights, and did a really dodgy job welding them back in
b) when they've reattached the front bumper, they.. completely forgot to put this insulatory material behind it

The guy who inspected it says it's entirely plausible they'll remove the bumper and find a BUNCH of things wrong, which they can't cover. As is, they won't cover the lights, either. So I can only hope that any repairs will come in under, say, $600 leaving me a little wiggle room.

Sense of foreboding - high

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:27:16 GMT

Woke up at 5:20am to thunder. My neurons said it would be a bad day.

It's now 8:25am, and they were right. Left early for work, since I needed to collect a daily cash float. Noone in cashier's room until after I need to be at the Centre. Get to Centre. Massive tree limb down blocking the entry road. Dragged that off the road. Get in, look out back window. Massive tree that stood alongside the river is now at a 30 degree angle to the ground, leaving a huge wall of soil upturned, and the revegetation project area is now reclaimed by the river.

Plus side? We had two pelicans sitting on the dirtwall kicked up by the tree's death.

Only another 8 hours of work to go..

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 06:34:59 GMT

Was just in a minor car accident; my fault, I hit the back of someone. It was less than a metre's distance though, going from a dead stop, so it appears to entirely be cosmetic damage to my front and their rear bumper.

Thing is, only the passenger (presumably the owner) gave me his details, and he hasn't responded to my SMS yet about the details for the woman who was driving. I've already contacted the cops (done a report) and contacted my insurance company and lodged a claim.

Now it's just a waiting game.

I'm completely fine though. A little queasy and headachy, presumably from adrenalin.

In good news WOO! Ravage, Mudflap, Cannon Bumblebee and Interrogator Barricade.

Revenge of the Fallen.

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 01:23:05 GMT

There's so much to say about Robot Movie 2, and I'm kinda burnt out, mentally. Suffice to say I really enjoyed it, despite the terrible flaws at times.

I'm probably seeing it again tonight, so I can watch for bits I missed, and try to pick up on notes. Our cinema didn't fit the projection to the screen, so all the placenames and Cybertronian dialogue subtitles were obscured..

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 02:14:23 GMT

Pretty frickin' sweet. Megaman 2.5D

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:11:28 GMT

Mixmaster's hybrid/weapons mode? He's clearly a hermit crab.

Rampage is a crab.

They all have spider-ish faces.

Constructicons?

Or INSECTICONS?

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:22:18 GMT

Things that are awesome:

my girl

finding Bludgeon/Whirl, Sideways, Sideswipe, Mixmaster, Rampage, Breakaway, TFA Sunstorm and TFA Shockwave

Gabe having a Son of Gabe

tomorrow is my day off

deciding I will have pizza for lunch

Photos!

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 03:29:28 GMT

I took lots of new photos at the Perth Zoo at the end of May. Go, browse, enjoy. (I wish one could comment on pics, a la facebook.)

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:00:49 GMT

I think I've found the most FAIL wikipedia entry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Fictional_life_forms

Basically, it's... a completely random dumping ground. There's no rhyme or reason to it at all - Wookiees are in, but next to no other Star Wars creatures. There are singular entries for very specific creatures, and then some for very vague, practically empty entries. And then there's "individual" creatures, versus entire species or conceptual creatures. It's terribly disorganised.

The universe is an awesome place.

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 10:33:39 GMT

Mr T provided the voice for the Jabberwock in the 1987 animated TV film adaptation of "Alice Through the Looking Glass".

Fri, 29 May 2009 06:54:02 GMT

Oh, TRU. How you mock the world.

Your Ultra class figures cost as much as Leader class at another store. You even charge me $10 more than the shelf price.

But then, you would be the ones to get the lovely repaints.

You're also selling things for 50% more than your rivals. So in some way, the money I spent with you today is being saved elsewhere.

in other words, wheeee, Darkwing and Countdown!

Fri, 29 May 2009 03:12:08 GMT

Big-ass salmon. I also read about a monster pike being caught that was around 68 pounds, whereas the normal "maximum" for pike is around 48. And then there's a report skull of a pike that was found washed up measuring some 18" long - indicating an animal up to 10 *feet* long, and weighing in the realm of 90 pounds.

Impressive, and a little terrifying.

Fri, 29 May 2009 02:04:45 GMT

Quick hands up:

Is it cool to take someone else's friends-locked lj post, repost it in your own journal, and then post it to an lj community?

Because apparently

a) some people think that's entirely alright to do, especially if that person is then unable to comment on their own post in response

b) LJ admin think so, since they're not willing to act on it.

Thu, 28 May 2009 13:34:28 GMT

Leader Megatron *looks* good in either pose, but... I cannot for the life of me lock his left "leg" into the left half of his "torso" in vehicle mode. It just cannot do it.

Leader Prime is REALLY hard to transform, being very fiddly and intricate; he's meant to have sounds in truck mode, but buggered if I can figure out how or where they're activated.

Thu, 28 May 2009 10:24:32 GMT

Movie 2 Demolishor has a pretty cool techspec.

"Demolishor isn't very bright, but he knows when to fight, and when to run and hide. Arriving on Earth to find Megatron destroyed, hiding seemed like the best option. Since then, he's taken a few smaller Decepticons under his protection, and built quite a little community. It hasn't been easy, hiding among the humans that creep like a disease over this planet, but he and his companions are content to wait until a new Decepticon leader emerges to guide them back to glory."

Shame his design means he can only sort of squat in this one posture, with a wheel to the front, and his arms held behind him for support. You can't articulate them forward to balance him in a more ape-like posture.

Also found Leader Megs and Prime. I passed on the BeeHelm for now, it'll come down in price soon enough.

Tue, 26 May 2009 07:34:25 GMT

what

I ordered some DVDs from Amazon Canada a month and then some ago. (Trailer Park Boys stuff, if you must know). The same day, I ordered stuff off Amazon UK.

The Amazon UK stuff took *three days* to ship, at the cheapest option.

I just checked the Canadian stuff. It's still got another two months to go before arrival. Yes, it takes three months to send.

I'm pretty sure sea otters can swim *faster* than that, even if they have to tow the dvds with them.

How is it one can be so damn fast, while the other so slow? I've had stuff from Amazon US show up in under six weeks.. Is the Canadian postal service constantly under moose-riding Sasquatch attacks or something?

Fri, 22 May 2009 13:10:11 GMT

Playing with new movie Dead End. I decide to give him a quadruped mode, as per his tech spec.

If you slide his head backwards, so he would be looking forward in a quadrupedal stance?

IT SHOWS A WIDE LOWER JAW LINED WITH SHARP TEETH

MAN this stuff is detailed at times.

Fri, 22 May 2009 09:50:45 GMT

[17:33] Finback: OK, um.. are toy-based texts considered spoilers? Only.. this is confusing me.
[17:43] Finback: OK, REALLY confused now.
[17:43] Finback: Although I think it's a cockup.
[17:45] Finback: Wait, no.
[17:46] Finback: There's a way to explain it canonically.
[17:46] Finback: LoC Jetfire is a Decepticon.
[17:46] Finback: But the Leader class figure is an Autobot.
[17:47] Finback: But reading his techspec on the big guy, it says he got tired of the Decepticon goals. He went AWOL, shut down, and when he was reawakened, he decided to go with the 'bots.
[17:47] Finback: So the LoC is Young Jetfire.
[17:48] Finback: And the first thing my brain has done with this?
[17:48] Finback: LoC Jetfire = Batman.
[17:49] Finback: Leader Jetfire - Batman Beyond Bruce Wayne.
[17:49] Finback: So who gets to be Terry McGinnisfire?!

Wed, 20 May 2009 01:29:24 GMT

So why is it that scans_daily got nuked, but right this very second, I'm looking at a lj community that is nothing but scans of recent comics art?

Drummer Man-Boy.

Tue, 19 May 2009 06:35:34 GMT

Mon, 18 May 2009 09:16:59 GMT

feeling kind of down

I think it's post-adrenalin highs of the weekend.