ColinTheRobot.com

Well, it’s iDay (a nickname given by AT&T marking the release of the iPhone) and I am sick of hearing about and reading about the iPhone. If you live in the US and have $499 (plus contract fees) to blow on a cell phone, then by all means. I’m much more concerned about the most recent terrorist attempts in London in the past day or so. Fortunately neither car bomb was actually detonated. Microwaves are being used to turn plastic into oil and gas, effectively reversing the process by which it was created. The only drawback I can see immediately is that the device, the Hawk-10, burns the same fossil fuel it produces rather than being powered by a greener form of energy. Environmental (more…)

The space shuttle Atlantis touched down safely today after it’s extended trip to the International Space Station, which is now back up and running normally after a week of computer problems. Now you can dry your hands at 400 mph thanks to a company normally known for making vacuums. Robot farmers might be picking fruit sooner than you might have thought, and they’ll be showing us how it’s supposed to be done. Research in the field of psychology out at the University of California sheds a little light on why my intelligence outshines that of my younger brothers (even if it’s only by a couple points). Forget the iPod, the 605 from Archos, which will be released later this summer, has (more…)

It’s Saturday night, and I’m… sitting at the computer (but only cause I managed to drag myself off the couch for a bit). I came across a couple interesting articles today, and here they are in no particular order: The International Space Station seems to be on the mend after some “jury-rigging” by the astronauts aboard the I.S.S. yesterday, things seem to be running smoothly again and they hope to restore full control to the system after a bit more testing. Apparently NBC/Universal thinks piracy is of far more concern than fraud, burglary, and bank-robbing combined. Somehow I doubt that’s true. This is a great short film about a quick-talking politician. Check out (more…)

Just a few things tonight that I wanted to mention. In spite of continued issues involving the Russian computer systems which control the orientation of the International Space Station, it looks like things are improving. “The Russians believe that the problem is related to the additional power from new solar panels, and is not a problem with the computers’ software”. It’s a good thing they’ve got the Space Shuttle Atlantis to lend a hand should they need it, at least for the time being. Although the shuttle has trouble of its own, needing some repairs to the heat shield.

Some moderately good news for (more…)

According to a study conducted by researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, some plants are able to distinguish between ‘strangers’ and plants of similar genealogical lineage when sharing a pot.
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I’ve never felt more like a gangster than I did tonight as I travelled back to my parents’ home on the eve of the christening of my niece (my cousin’s daughter actually, but we were like siblings growing up). I carried my entirely black suit, with the exception of my black and white tie, an envelope containing several thousand dollars in cash, a license plate, and my vintage leather jacket, as well as the rest of my ‘motorcycle’ gear. The explanation for the suit should be pretty obvious, the money is because I finally sold my scooter after months of fruitless effort, and the bike gear and license plate because I’m finally picking up my new Vespa this weekend and want to (more…)

I was reading about the Creation Museum in Kentucky that just opened a couple weeks ago. I heard about it through an article on Slashdot, and felt compelled to share how ridiculous I find the whole thing to be. It’s an oxymoron. Consider if you will:
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Two things are readily apparent to me right now: the smell of gasoline curbs my appetite a fair bit, and skin seems to retain the smell of gasoline quite well even in the face of thorough washing. I was filling up after work tonight, and this has been a long running fear of mine since an incident last summer where I spilled some gas filling up my scooter cause the pump didn’t stop when the tank was full. Tonight’s incident was quite a bit more unnerving. Once again, the pump didn’t stop when my tank was full, so gasoline started spraying out the top of my tank and running down the sides of my scooter. I had never seen a fountain of gasoline in person before, nor would I ever want to be (more…)

Shortly after waking up this morning I vaguely recalled a few details from what I would describe as a strange dream. I was riding a motorcycle (or possibly my scooter) trying to fend off and escape from some stranger. What really makes it unusual though, is the way in which I was being attacked… by 7UP. The guy was throwing bottles and cans of 7UP at me as I zipped around on my bike, and the cans were big, like the kind you’d find at the beer store or something. He had them in a basket or rack like a milkman would use. I found the whole thing quite amusing, and couldn’t help but think of the episode of Futurama where Fry discovers his dream about underwear of the year 3000 (more…)

Once again, things don’t really go how I planned, or really wanted for that matter. I can’t say I’m surprised, but I’m getting tired of being uncertain about things and not being able to count on people. I’ve been emailing back and forth with some guy out in capital city (better know as Ottawa), attempting to sell my scooter as I prepare to upgrade to a more powerful model (the streets of the big city weren’t dangerous enough, so its time to try my hand at the freeway on two wheels). So after several weeks of postponed arrangements, he finally backed out of the sale entirely. On a completely related note, anyone interested in purchasing a well cared for 2006 Vespa LX 50 painted dragon red (more…)