Older guy's memory

As I age, I have more and more trouble remembering what I know.  I know his name.  I certainly know hers.  But what the hell are their names? I just talked about them yesterday.  No, maybe it was an hour ago.  Yeah, yeah, I know I can pull that phone from my pocket and find their names in several different places.  But, I am too stubborn.  What are their names?  

Much of the time, I have a strong feeling what letter their names begin with.  One way or another, I find the elusive names.  I am wrong about the initial letter most of the time. 

Testing guys like me (I have taught the history and creation of school tests) know that there is a difference between "recall" (typical full remembering) and "recognition" (like a police lineup, when I select the right names from several offered).

I have had the book "Why Learn History When It is Already on Your Phone" by Sam Wineburg for quite a while but I haven't read it.

David Hand's "The Improbability Principle"

David Hand's "The Improbability Principle" is one of the few books on probability that is both fascinating and memorable. It is also one of the few books where I took advantage of the Kindle Book ability to record my fingertip selections of notable sentences and create a single file of them.  The file can be downloaded and used in some quite helpful ways. I am not sure that the file I made was done very well but I did paste it on the web page.  https://sites.google.com/view/kirbyvariety1/improbability-principle-by-david-hand

I remember the woman who came irritatingly close to winning the state lotteries of two states, the man who was haunted by lightning strikes in life and even after his burial and the principle that improbable events happen all the time.

Here is more: t.ly/Z-bd6

Foxtrot comic today

This Foxtrot comic in today's local paper caught my eye:

https://www.gocomics.com/foxtrot/2024/12/29

It seems natural to me to communicate with others.  It is good for the composer and good for the recipients.

Fwd: Pocket’s Greatest Hits 2024: Most Read

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Pocket <team@today.getpocket.com>
Date: Sat, Dec 28, 2024 at 9:14 AM
Subject: Pocket's Greatest Hits 2024: Most Read

There are other Pocket Greatest Hits of 2024 on science, technology and food.  I found them using Duckduckgo and quote marks around the search terms.

The Air Fryer Is a Hoax. The Big Lie About Sleep.

December 28, 2024 Pocket's Greatest Hits: Most Read The Newsletter's Most-Read Stories of 2024, Including Amazon Scams, Hidden Cameras, and the Ideal Vacation Length 1   The Air Fryer Is a Hoax The air fryer is just a little oven that blows, and the idea that air frying is a new cooking technique is a myth. Quartz Maxwell Zeff Save   SPONSORED A message from BookBub Stop Overpaying for Ebooks in 2025 Ready to learn the secret that only publishing insiders know? BookBub can help you save up to 95% off ebooks, from bestsellers to hidden gems. Learn More 2   The Big Lie About Sleep When it comes to slumber, what matters most is how rich you are. Business Insider Jeremy Ney Save 3   Stop Setting Your Thermostat at 72 Let's settle the heated debate over your AC, once and for all. Vox Adam Clark Estes Save 4   6 Of The Most Passive-Aggressive Phrases You're Probably Using (But Shouldn't Be) Plus, the sneaky reason we communicate this way in the first place. HuffPost Kelsey Borresen Save 5   How to Find Hidden Cameras in Hotels and House Rentals: We Tested Five Ways — and One's the Clear Winner CNBC teamed with a spycam company, who hid 27 cameras in a house. CNBC Monica Pitrelli Save 6   Why Biden Finally Quit The Saturday night decision that ended Biden's reelection campaign. POLITICO Staff Save 7   The Ideal Vacation Length for Peak Relaxation, According to Experts It's an inherently subjective subject, but health and travel experts have common advice for the amount of time it takes to disconnect from life's obligations. The Washington Post Andrea Sachs Save 8   How I Fell for an Amazon Scam Call and Handed Over $50,000 I'm still trying to understand why I fell for it. The Cut Charlotte Cowles Save 9   Why Don't Rich People Eat Anymore? Extreme dieting is the latest way for the mega-rich to signal their wealth and status. Dazed Serena Smith Save 10   The Drug Pilots Take to Stay Awake Military organisations have been grappling with pilot fatigue for decades – and they have a surprising solution. BBC Zaria Gorvett Save Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with a friend. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe now to get Pocket in your inbox every day. Take Pocket everywhere You're receiving this email because you subscribed to Pocket. Unsubscribe • Manage Preferences • Privacy Policy • Help Center • Advertise © 2024 Mozilla Corporation, 149 New Montgomery St, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105

"Home Alone"- a fine job

Lynn gave me some James Bond movies and the movies "Home Alone" and "Home Alone 2".  We watched Home Alone again the other night.  What a great production!  Macaulay Culkin, the star (and a half!) was ten years old when he made that movie.  I am confident that he had fine direction and advice continuously but he is still amazing.

Working on an equation

I like to change

Ordinary vs. Marvelous

to

Ordinary = Marvelous

It isn't that hard and it shouldn't be overdone.  A person can be fascinated by a shiny object to the point of not noticing an earthquake.  However, it seems to be a good idea to try to appreciate how marvelous our lives, our bodies, our activities, our inventions and many other marvelous items, creatures and ideas are.

The 6888 Unit movie

My friend told me not to miss seeing the "6 triple 8" movie on Netflix.  We did see it and I am telling you to do the same thing.  The 6 triple 8 battalion - Central Postal Directory Battalion - was given the mission in early WWII to sort the backed up 17 million pieces of backup Army mail.  Morale of the soldiers was low.  Family back home hadn't heard from loved ones over there.  Much of the mail was incompletely or poorly addressed.  They got the whole thing done in half the planned time, despite the widespread, oft expressed doubt that anyone with Black skin couldn't do much of anything, doubly so for women.

Fwd: Pocket’s Greatest Hits 2024: Science

I am posting early in anticipation of being even busier later.   If you want, look into using the Firefox browser and its Pocket article offering and saving service.    Bill

------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Pocket <team@today.getpocket.com>
Date: Tue, Dec 24, 2024 at 9:14 AM
Subject: Pocket's Greatest Hits 2024: Science
To: <olderkirby@gmail.com>

13 Inventors Killed By Their Own Inventions. The New Science of Death.

December 24, 2024 Pocket's Greatest Hits: Science The Newsletter's Best Science Stories of 2024, Including Aliens, Arctic Warming, and What Your Appendix Does 1   13 Inventors Killed By Their Own Inventions From the inventor who disappeared along with the lighthouse he designed to the daredevil whose contraptions cut his life short, these are the sad stories of inventors killed by their own inventions. Mental Floss Kat Long Save 2   The New Science of Death: 'There's Something Happening in the Brain That Makes No Sense' New research into the dying brain suggests the line between life and death may be less distinct than previously thought. The Guardian Alex Blasdel Save 3   Your Appendix Is Not, in Fact, Useless. This Anatomy Professor Explains A sudden appendectomy as a child made Heather Smith curious about what the appendix is for and why it gets inflamed. Now as an anatomy researcher, she's finding answers. NPR Selena Simmons-Duffin Save 4   Everyone Is Wrong About "Love Languages." Here's Why. Big Think spoke to the author of "The 5 Love Languages" about the popular relationship theory — and its lack of scientific support. Big Think Ross Pomeroy Save 5   Why Daylight Saving Time Messes With Your Brain To "spring forward" is more damaging to our health than to "fall back," according to some surprising science. Atlas Obscura Beth Ann Malow Save 6   No, Aliens Haven't Visited the Earth Why are so many smart people insisting otherwise? New York Magazine Nicholson Baker Save 7   The Cement That Could Turn Your House Into a Giant Battery Concrete is perhaps the most commonly used building material in the world. With a bit of tweaking, it could help to power our homes too. BBC Tom Ough Save 8   Scientists Strapped Cameras to a Bunch of Polar Bears. The Footage Is Breathtaking — and Alarming. As the Arctic warms, these iconic bears are spending more time on land. New videos reveal why that's a problem. Vox Benji Jones Save 9   The Science of Having a Great Conversation Forming meaningful bonds with others can improve your health, make you mentally sharper, and fuel creativity. WIRED David Robson Save 10   Why Do Dogs Wag Their Tails? Scientists Examine the Endearing Behavior Dogs communicate through tail-wagging, and humans may have selected for the trait during domestication. Smithsonian Magazine Sarah Kuta Save Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with a friend. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe now to get Pocket in your inbox every day. Take Pocket everywhere You're receiving this email because you subscribed to Pocket. Unsubscribe • Manage Preferences • Privacy Policy • Help Center • Advertise © 2024 Mozilla Corporation, 149 New Montgomery St, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105