Life With Procrastinator The Younger
Procrastinator Jr. just took up the guitar at school. He's in fifth grade and he doesn't really know the Guitar Gods, but he knows a good riff or two. I tried to teach him the letters of the six strings (E, A, D, G, B, and E) via a mnemonic, but sadly my improvisational skills are lacking. The best I could come up with in a couple of minutes was, "Every Apple Doesn't Go Bananas, Everytime."
I'm sure that somebody out there in Blogdom could come up with a better mnemonic than that, right?
Yesterday the offspring caught the tail-end of a show I was watching on PBS that dealt with the Hindenberg disaster. In the documentary, former NASA scientist and hydrogen specialist, Addison Bain proved that the disaster more than likely was not the result of a hydrogen explosion, but a result of the powdered aluminum that was in the blimp's skin for cosmetic reasons (it made is shiny and pretty).
Powdered aluminum has a low flashpoint and the skin of the dirigible apparently absorbed a good amount of static electricity. A recipe for disaster, to say the least.
Toward the conclusion, the documentary had Addison Bain, explain his theory to an actual American member of the Lake Hurst, New Jersey ground crew who saw the explosion. Of course the ground crew member who saw the whole tragedy, couldn't be convinced that it was anything but hydrogen.
I explained to Procrastinator Jr. that much of history is like this, one perspective versus another and neither party can be convinced otherwise. On a different note, it also brought to mind this quote for me...
I'm sure that somebody out there in Blogdom could come up with a better mnemonic than that, right?
Yesterday the offspring caught the tail-end of a show I was watching on PBS that dealt with the Hindenberg disaster. In the documentary, former NASA scientist and hydrogen specialist, Addison Bain proved that the disaster more than likely was not the result of a hydrogen explosion, but a result of the powdered aluminum that was in the blimp's skin for cosmetic reasons (it made is shiny and pretty).
Powdered aluminum has a low flashpoint and the skin of the dirigible apparently absorbed a good amount of static electricity. A recipe for disaster, to say the least.
Toward the conclusion, the documentary had Addison Bain, explain his theory to an actual American member of the Lake Hurst, New Jersey ground crew who saw the explosion. Of course the ground crew member who saw the whole tragedy, couldn't be convinced that it was anything but hydrogen.
I explained to Procrastinator Jr. that much of history is like this, one perspective versus another and neither party can be convinced otherwise. On a different note, it also brought to mind this quote for me...
"Some people say that history is a lie that is agreed upon."
-David Milch from the "Deadwood" DVD commentary
-David Milch from the "Deadwood" DVD commentary
posted by Writeprocrastinator at 6:50 PM
7 Comments:
I watched the Discovery channel's quasi-documentary on the history of dragons and it was done so well that I just choose to believe now that dragons really did exist. And they're all sweet as pie and talk like Sean Connery.
I can't think of a mnemonic. I'm so ashamed.
I recently reread the Hobbit. Life would rather interesting indeed if Dragons really did exist.
Thanks for the info on the Hindenburgh.
Becka,
I've seen people on TV swear that dragons exist...all I want to see is just one dragon skeleton.
"And they're all sweet as pie and talk like Sean Connery."
That's why they were killed off. They came across as too smug and no one could understand their accent outside of the Highlands.
Rand,
You're welcome and you should see the episode. The scenario that the scientist put forth was the most likely, yet the only way to completely verify it was if the footage was in color, instead of the black & white which would've been the only available film for the newsreel cameras.
If there was color film, a blue flame which would've indicated that hydrogen was the main accelerant.
I admire anyone who uses "Deadwood" to develop his historical philosophies.
Beth,
I'm only on episode five of season one, but I am astounded. Everytime I rewatch an episode, I see something different or something that I missed on a conscious level.
While Milch & company obviously have to imagine the majority of dialogue and they fiddle some with the actual chronology, it is as realistic a historical drama, as possible.
I explained to a coworker who is an avid western fan, that the westerns that he watches are sanitized for his protection, while "Deadwood" is pretty much the real thing.
Milch's quote was also accurate again for:
1) The "Secrets of The Dead: The Hindenberg." Because just two witnesses were on the other side of the blimp, where the fire originated. Obviously the film and the majority of witnesses who were on the other side of the blimp, saw everything from another perspective and they have a different opinion.
2) Situations like that of the OK Corral, where we will never know what happened in terms of who shot first or how much of it was an ambush. Milch did mention that Dodge City was just a continuation of the Civil War and that the former Confederate soldiers would drive the cattle there, get drunk and rowdy. Then the city would hire former Union soldiers to kill them, to allegedly keep law and order.
darling... historical interpretation is based soley on the following criterion: religious affiliation: ethnicity: and of course all of this is contingent upon how much guilt and shame you harbor or forgot to harbor.
"darling... historical interpretation is based soley on the following criterion: religious affiliation: ethnicity:"
Absolutely. Especially the "saving the savages from themselves," mode.
"and of course all of this is contingent upon how much guilt and shame you harbor or forgot to harbor."
I've never seen a great lack of empathy from this administration. They make Nixon look like a humanitarian in comparison.
Post a Comment
<< Home