March 09, 2006

Polymath

My wife tells me that I am a Renaissance Man because I have varied interests and I tend to throw myself into all of them, one after another. I was looking up various things on Wikipedia when I came across the term Polymath. I quote the wiki:

A polymath (also known as a polyhistor) is a person who excels in multiple fields, particularly in both arts and sciences. The most common other term for this phenomenon is Renaissance Man....

It goes on:

Many notable polymaths lived during the European Renaissance period, and a rounded approach to education was typical of the ideals of the humanists of the time. A gentleman or coutier of that era was expected to speak several languages, play a musical instrument, write poetry and so on, thus fulfilling the Renaissance ideal…

Later:

Although it is generally considered a compliment to be called well-rounded, or a Renaissance Man, there is a potentially negative connotation as well: that by sacrificing depth for breadth, one becomes the jack of all trades, but the master of none.

It also lists some famous Polymaths throughout history:

Aristotle, Caesar, Plato, Ptolemy, Francis Bacon (didn't he invent the BLT?), Copernicus, Erasmus, da Vinci, Darwin, Descartes, Edison, Ben Franklin, Gauss, Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Newton, Pascal, Asimov, Alexander Graham Bell, Buckminster Fuller, Howard Hughes, von Neumann, Steve Martin, Sartre, Ben Stein and Frank Zappa.

I would not mind being lumped into that group, in spite of a lack of depth in any one area.

In actuality, I do have a wide range of interests in both the arts and sciences. In some ways, I think of myself as an anomaly because, although I could have gone to a prestigious university and become a famous academic, I did not. I could have gone into music professionally, but did not. I could have gone into the visual arts, becoming a famous filmmaker, videographer, illustrator or cartoonist, but did not. What is my deal?

What is your I.Q.? you may ask. I don't really know. I've taken some of those cheesy online I.Q. tests and they place me anywhere between 136 and 140, just shy of genius. Of course, I.Q. does not translate to good common sense. I have blind spots. In fact, my ability to spell almost any word properly, a skill that I highly prize, has been declining over the past year. I chalk it up to being 41 with a brain that is continually rotting.

Every time I watch The Beatles' animated feature Yellow Submarine, I get a kick out of watching the Nowhere Man because I think of myself as another one of him. He can do all these amazing things, but he's just stuck out in the middle of nowhere.

Anyway, enough about me.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 11:58 AM | Comments (0)

February 19, 2006

Nebraska Powerball Winner

I just read that the $363 million jackpot was won by some soul in Nebraska. I feel sorry for them. Their life is about to be turned upside down. It will never be the same. If they have children, they will have to remove them from public schooling for fear of kidnapping. If they have good friends, loyalties will be tested to the breaking point. The bank accounts will be well padded, but nothing will stop envious stalkers from making life a living hell.

I didn't even bother to purchase a lottery ticket. I'd rather win a small jackpot -- one where I can slip under the national radar. This poor person won't be able to move anywhere without being tracked by the loonies from all over. I would at least like to be able to move out of state to restore sanity if pushed.

Anyway, sorry about your good and back luck, whomever.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 09:42 AM | Comments (0)

September 19, 2005

200,000 Miles and Counting

I have a 1992 Toyota Camry that will eventually die a horrible death. Until then, I will push it as far as possible. Here it is as I pushed it to 200,000 miles.

If you watch this, please email me to let me know what you think of it. This time, you will need Quicktime 7 to watch this video.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 07:43 PM | Comments (0)

July 08, 2005

Millennium Force Roller Coaster

I don't think words are enough to fully convey the ecstacy of riding the Millennium Force roller coaster at Cedar Point. This roller coaster went into operation summer of 2000 and I finally rode it yesterday, July 7, 2005.

I used to regard The Beast at King’s Island as the epitome of coaster perfection, but no longer — Millennium Force is arguably the finest roller coaster ever built.

It is as smooth as butter. Most roller coasters, including the aforementioned Beast, shake you to pieces while they hurl you through the stratosphere. Not this one.

The view is spectacular. You go higher than almost every visible landmark. You feel on top of the world as you reach the summit in record speed. As you tumble over the first peak, your downward curl is so extreme that you might swear you were going beneath the track you just passed.

It is fast. Speed ratings are meaningless — fast is fast. In the front seat (why would I sit anywhere else on my first ride?) I was in hurricane-force wind that seemed to only add excitement rather than mar the experience.

You float. There were several points where you experience decent airtime. Not many coasters do this well — the floating is typically accompanied by pain as you slam against the shoulder harness. Here the hovering was effortless and beautiful.

There are tunnels. Tunnels are so cool on a roller coaster. It always looks like you're going to be decapitated as you enter and you rarely are.

Flying. From the front seat, the Millennium Force imparts as much a sensation of flying through the trees and tunnels as anything I have experienced.

Here is a very good article on the Millennium Force, complete with pictures.

I am planning a trip just for myself and anyone else who is willing to accompany me. I will purchase my $34.50 AAA-discounted ticket, drive 2-1/2 hours from Columbus, Ohio to Cedar Point in Sandusky, pay the $9 car parking fee, get my hand “Freeway” stamped twice for the Millennium Force, and wait in line from the moment they open until 1:30 A.M., when the last riders of the day get their thrills. My goal is to ride it at least eight times in one day, if possible. I want to ride in the front again, the middle (where the loft is supposed to be better on some hills), and from the back.

If you want to go with me, please let me know.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 08:49 PM | Comments (0)

May 12, 2005

Intruder Alert!

After reading about the seasoned pilot and the student pilot who flew into restricted airspace over Washington D.C., I just have to laugh at their stupidity. One of the first things you learn as a student pilot is the concept of restricted airspace, proper airport approach procedures and flight planning.

Maybe it’s just me, but if I were flying within 50 miles of Washington D.C., I would put myself on alert to the fact that, if I’m not careful, there might be an F-16 coming to knock me out of the sky. I would pay more careful attention to where I was flying.

Not only that, but if I were unable to contact a tower, I would make absolutely sure that I could not see the Washington Monument, Capital Building and White House out my front window.

In the final analysis, these are the kinds of pilots that make airspace unsafe. They do not plan well, they do not make good decisions in the air and they pretend a threat does not exist even when it’s inbound with air-to-air missiles.

In a word — dumb.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 08:06 AM | Comments (0)

April 23, 2005

Comments

I have enabled the ability for viewers to post comments to my postings. So, if you have an opinion that you’d like to share, please do so. However, for unregistered commenters, I will need to “approve” your comment before it goes live. I will only censor spamming posts and not those expressing an opinion contrary to my own.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 01:39 PM | Comments (1)

April 22, 2005

One More Blog

Welcome to the first Blog that I have ever created and maintained. It’s sure to be one of millions of non-essential and ignored collections of ramblings in, around and under the web.

As a favor to my faithful fan base, I assure you that I will be posting updates as often as I feel like it.

Posted by Nathan Dickson at 05:47 PM | Comments (0)