china_shop: Chu Shuzhi wearing a black face mask with a cat mouth and whiskers on it. (Guardian - CSZ cat mask)
The Gauche in the Machine ([personal profile] china_shop) wrote2025-12-19 11:17 am

Aha!

With the help of multiple people, I finally got the ancient $15 scanner to talk to my computer via shareware. Woohoo!

(Meanwhile, I can't write a story to save my life. Argh!)
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-18 03:36 pm

Dinosaurs

Italy makes a surprising discovery ahead of the Winter Olympics: dinosaur tracks

On Tuesday, Italian officials announced the discovery of thousands of dinosaur tracks on "nearly vertical dolomite walls" in Stelvio National Park, a protected area in the central Alps of northern Italy.
[---8<---]
"The tracks, preserved in excellent condition despite the altitude, show traces of toes and claws imprinted on the walls when they were tidal flats at the end of the Triassic," the Natural History Museum says. That period spanned 252 to 201 million years ago.

Della Ferrara notified authorities of his findings, setting paleontological research into motion. Preliminary analyses suggest most of the tracks came from "herbivorous prosauropod dinosaurs" — the long-necked creatures that predate enormous sauropods like the ones depicted in the "Jurassic Park" franchise.


Read more... )
siria: (the pitt - side by side)
this is not in the proper spirit of rumspringa ([personal profile] siria) wrote2025-12-18 03:56 pm

2570 / Fic - The Pitt

Nobody Puts Baby in the Pumpkin
The Pitt | Jack/Robby | ~1100 words | For [personal profile] traveller, with thanks to [personal profile] sheafrotherdon for betaing.

(Also on AO3)

It had been a running joke at first, and then passed into a simple fact of life together: Robby ran cold and Jack ran hot. )
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-18 01:37 pm

Birdfeeding

Today is cloudy, chilly, windy, and wet.  It's drizzling now.  At least all the snow and ice melted off though.

I fed the birds.  Unsurprisingly I haven't seen any.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 12/18/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 12/18/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

It's been raining off and on all day.  It was raining so briskly in the afternoon that not all the outside tasks got done.  Fortunately it's just drizzling now so I finished up what I could.  I haven't seen any wildlife all day, which is sensible of them.

The sky has been so cloudy all day that it was perennially twilight.  At sunset, the sun hit a band of less clouds, so now 3/4 of the sky is bizarre shades of orange-purple.  The road is wet and catching the last light of day like a ribbon of gold.

I am done for the night.
 
sholio: (B5-station)
Sholio ([personal profile] sholio) wrote2025-12-18 10:23 am
Entry tags:

Still thinking about B5? More likely than you think!

And writing about it instead of getting ready to check out of my Airbnb as I ought to be.

Spoilers obviously, especially for character death/survival )
badly_knitted: (Rose)
badly_knitted ([personal profile] badly_knitted) wrote2025-12-18 04:49 pm

The Fantastic Journey Triple Drabble: Apples

 


Title: Apples
Fandom: The Fantastic Journey
Author: 
[personal profile] badly_knitted
Characters: Varian, Scott, the Travellers.
Rating: PG
Written For: Challenge 480: Amnesty 48 at 
[community profile] drabble_zone, using Challenge 41: Fruit.
Setting: After the series.
Summary: The travellers make the most of whatever food they can collect along the way.
Disclaimer: I don’t own The Fantastic Journey, or the characters. They belong to their creators.
A/N: Triple drabble.
 


 
Apples... )
badly_knitted: (I'll Take This One)
badly_knitted ([personal profile] badly_knitted) wrote2025-12-18 04:40 pm

Ficlet: Always And Forever

 

Title: Always And Forever
Author: 
[personal profile] badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 551
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Ianto had always expected to die young, and he’d done so. He just hadn’t expected to find himself living forever.
Written For: The prompt ‘Any, any, I will fall in love with you / Over and over again’, at 
[community profile] threesentenceficathon.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
 


 
cimorene: Olive green willow leaves on a parchment background (foliage)
Cimorene ([personal profile] cimorene) wrote2025-12-18 03:08 pm

Aggressive trees and greenery

The last time [personal profile] waxjism rearranged plants she put the three biggest ones - trees, they are trees - all at the west livingroom window.



Left to right (above) are Benjamin the ficus benjamina or weeping fig - inherited from Wax's granny and at least 25 years old; Jules Feiffer the pachira aquatica or money tree - bought as a baby from a nursery because I really wanted it (love the braided trunk) between 2014-2016, so it's pretty old, but it's only ever grown up and it never gets any fatter and barely has any roots; and Nelly the Hibiscus × rosa-sinensis, known colloquially as Chinese hibiscus, China rose, Hawaiian hibiscus, rose mallow and shoeblack plant - this was MIL's pride and joy and I think Wax said it's older than her, so probably at least 50 now. Jules especially is apparently crazy about the light there, even though the grow light died and Wax replaced it temporarily with a normal lightbulb. The window is a jungle.

The north window shelf is covered with three Thanksgiving cacti, two dormant orchids, a philodendron Henderson's Pride, and a polka dotted begonia. This shelf has been more cluttered at times, but it still gives a very strongly planty impression.
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 08:28 pm

History

This 8,000-year-old art shows math before numbers existed

Over 8,000 years ago, early farming communities in northern Mesopotamia were already thinking mathematically—long before numbers were written down. By closely studying Halafian pottery, researchers uncovered floral and plant designs arranged with precise symmetry and numerical patterns, revealing a surprisingly advanced sense of geometry.


People learned to count and do math, sometimes rather sophisticated math, long before they got around to writing numerals or equations.  As for geometry, it's very easy to obtain workable patterns that scale well by examining nature.  Fibonacci sequence and fractals both yield very useful parameters.
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 06:22 pm

Birdfeeding

Today is partly sunny and chilly.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches plus a male cardinal.
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 05:51 pm

Today's Adventures

Today we went shopping in Mattoon.

Read more... )
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 05:04 pm

Three for the Memories Coming Back Next Month!

[community profile] threeforthememories 2025 session will be open for posts on January 3, 2026 and will run for 3 weeks until January 24. Do let others know about us, as anyone can participate by just joining the community.

Just a reminder of how the event runs:

1) Three photos only per person during each annual session. Members are encouraged to discuss the reason for their choices.

2) Photos can be hosted at Dreamwidth or elsewhere, and should not be larger than 800 px width or height.

3) All three photos should be in the same post. Cut tags should be placed after the first photo
.


Three For the Memories banner
badly_knitted: (Rose)
badly_knitted ([personal profile] badly_knitted) wrote2025-12-17 04:58 pm

BtVS Double Drabble: Safety Measures

 


Title: Safety Measures
Fandom: BtVS
Author: 
[personal profile] badly_knitted
Characters: Cordelia.
Rating: PG
Written For: Challenge 480: Amnesty 48 at 
[community profile] drabble_zone, using Challenge 476: Sunset.
Spoilers/Setting: The Wish.
Summary: Everyone knows how to stay safe, except Cordelia.
Disclaimer: I don’t own BtVS, or the characters.
A/N: Double drabble.
 


 
badly_knitted: (Dee & Ryo black & white)
badly_knitted ([personal profile] badly_knitted) wrote2025-12-17 04:50 pm

FAKE Triple Drabble: Appreciation

 


Title: Appreciation
Fandom: FAKE
Author: 
[personal profile] badly_knitted
Characters: Dee, Ryo.
Rating: PG
Setting: After the manga.
Summary: Dee thinks the NYPD should show more appreciation for his and Ryo’s efforts on catching a killer.
Written Using: The dw100 prompt ‘Reward’.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
A/N: Triple drabble.
 


 
badly_knitted: (Pout)
badly_knitted ([personal profile] badly_knitted) wrote2025-12-17 04:41 pm

Double Drabble: Feeling Ridiculous

 


Title: Feeling Ridiculous
Author: 
[personal profile] badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Written For: Challenge 896: Carry, at 
[community profile] torchwood100.
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Ianto is injured again and needs help getting back to the SUV.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
A/N: Double drabble.
 
 


ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 12:50 am
Entry tags:

Early Humans

Scientists reveal a 1.5-million-year-old human face

A 1.5-million-year-old face is forcing scientists to rethink the origins and diversity of early humans.

Scientists have digitally reconstructed the face of a 1.5-million-year-old Homo erectus fossil from Ethiopia, uncovering an unexpectedly primitive appearance. While its braincase fits with classic Homo erectus, the face and teeth resemble much older human ancestors. This discovery challenges long-held ideas about where and how Homo erectus evolved. It also hints at a complex web of migrations and possible mixing between early human species.



The actual image shows a reconstruction of the skull, rather than a paleoforensic art rendering of the face when alive.  But it's still cool.
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 12:48 am
Entry tags:

Hard Things

Life is full of things which are hard or tedious or otherwise unpleasant that need doing anyhow. They help make the world go 'round, they improve skills, and they boost your sense of self-respect. But doing them still kinda sucks. It's all the more difficult to do those things when nobody appreciates it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our accomplishments and pat each other on the back.

What are some of the hard things you've done recently? What are some hard things you haven't gotten to yet, but need to do? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your hard things a little easier?

ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-12-17 12:37 am

Photos: Testing Pens on Plant Labels

This year I've been running an experiment to see which type of pen lasts the longest for labeling plants outdoors. I have compiled links to the previous posts and added pictures from each month where I hadn't already posted them. Results: Sharpie Oil Pen lasted longest, Craft Smart Oil Pen was still legible at the end of the year, and Sharpie Permanent Marker faded very fast. If you're labeling plants outdoors, buy an oil paint pen, preferably Sharpie.

These are the other posts regarding the labels.
1/3/25 Photos: Testing Pens on Plant Labels
2/3/25 Photos: House Yard and South Lot
3/3/25 Photos: House Yard and South Lot
4/4/25 Photos: South Lot
5/6/25 Photos: South Lot
6/2/25 Photos: House Yard
11/3/25 Photos: Lantern Terrarium Assembly Part 2 Testing the Fit (labels at bottom)
Photos: House Yard 12-16-25

Let's do science to it... )
sholio: sun on winter trees (Default)
Sholio ([personal profile] sholio) wrote2025-12-16 08:09 pm
Entry tags:

The chaotic Dragaera reread continues

.... but much more slowly. I reread Vallista this past week, and that book sure hits different in a few ways after reading Tsalmoth!

Spoilers for both Vallista and Tsalmoth )