Magnetic Mountain

Back in 2018, I designed an "incredibly sensitive" magnetometer (said the publishers). It was published in Silicon Chip Magazine in December 2018. The first time I took it for a field test, I took it here -- to the lower slopes of Table Mountain. But the pebbles that one sees were all magnetic. My magnetometer picked up the whole mountain!

Life on the Far Side

My tales of life on the far side of Africa continue. I ordered three printed mugs for Christmas, one with the ALL BLACKS logo. "Twenty minutes," said the proprietor (to print them). I said I'd step out of the shop for a moment, and return -- which I did after sixty minutes. "Just a few more minutes!" said the proprietor, as he pulled down some blank, white mugs from the shelf. About half an hour later, he appeared with a mug. "It is a little bit upside down," he said (see the image). Then, "I will give it to you free!" Next came payment. "I am sorry," he smiled, and showed me a broken card machine. I said I'd send an electronic transfer. But now my whole bank was down -- no doubt overloaded before Christmas. And this isn't half the story.

Closer to a Cure

My late wife Mirjam died of an incurable and basically untreatable cancer at the beginning of 2011. The BBC reported today that they have reversed a connected cancer which was incurable until now. OBSERVATION: I didn't really know, when they diagnosed my wife with myelofibrosis, that there were completely incurable, unstoppable cancers. In her case, everything was palliative care. It propped up the patient without being able to undo any of the damage.

Provost

I liked this shot I got of the provost of the Baptist Seminary on Saturday -- wearing Gucci glasses, looking like James Bond, and surrounded by graduands. With a hint of chiaroscuro lighting.

Photo or Not

I asked this young lady, "Can I have a photo?" She said, "No!" I said, "Well, that's it, then. You can't have a photo." Soon she started hanging around in front of me. I said, "Would you like a photo?" She said, "Yes!"

Spinthariscopes

Back in the day, in high school, we would directly observe radioactive scintillation -- individual nuclear disintegrations -- through a spinthariscope. Today, I still remember using one. They are generally thought to be safe, although they pose a radiation risk if they are damaged or broken. Here and in the USA, they must now be licensed. In the UK, I think, one may still find them "knocking about" in schools.

Graduation Ceremony

I attended a graduation ceremony today, as a member of faculty. As is so typical of South Africa, this crowd swelled by another half before the graduation was through. The photo is taken with a fisheye lens.

Roosterbrood

At a loss as to what to post tonight, these are coals for making roosterbrood, or roast bread -- a country favourite in South Africa. The dough will be put above these coals on a steel frame, and turned by hand. One might compare it to Panini bread, although roosterbrood is in my view tastier, moister, fresher ... better.

Invigilating

This is a rare photo of me. Someone took this photo of me last month invigilating exams -- or about to invigilate exams -- at seminary. I was joined by several other invigilators.

Cultural Blind Spots

Years ago, I wrote in my journal about three cultural blind spots I found in multi-cultural congregations. 1. One was the “unseeing eye”. For example, someone puts a roster together, but they only see those of their own cultural group. 2. Another blind spot is difficult to describe. I might call it the “worldly eye”. Here, people don't see God's activity in the lives of other cultures. They seem to think they are spiritually dead. And 3. is the failure to understand that different cultures deal with deliberations differently. In particular, Africans may have a meditative way with them, while people of European stock are more aggressive. OBSERVATION: This is not to say that these are all the blind spots -- but they are more obvious ones.

Sound Level Meter Reading

My neighbours bought themselves a new sound system and turned up the African beat. This sound level meter reading shows the volume at my side of a double brick wall: 83.9 dB. This is about as loud as a petrol lawnmower. OBSERVATION: At their side, they are likely damaging their hearing. 85.0 dB or higher can cause hearing loss. I sent them the meter reading ... and they turned the sound down. 

People (Not) Commodities

The last time I was in Europe, earlier this year, I found that Europe had a nasty edge to it now. People were too often treated as mere commodities. I really didn't enjoy it, what it has become. Thankfully, there seem to be only pockets of that in South Africa. South Africa is in too much turmoil, and too close to ancient culture, for people to treat people as commodities. It is more laid back -- even if that can often be an annoyance.

Odds of a Deal

I have received eleven requests from literary agents for my The Lost Philosopher manuscript. xAI applies its super-intelligence to this as follows: "Applying basic probability to independent trials, the odds of a deal after eleven requests stand at about 69% ... Persistence remains key despite mounting requests." OBSERVATION: I have had quite enough persistence, thank you very much. With no requests from literary agents, the odds of a deal could be around 0.1%. 

Soldier's Bath

This is just a post about everyday life in South Africa. In this home (pictured), in the very early morning, a young girl delivered a basin of shallow, steaming hot water to my room -- heated on a wood stove. It is sometimes called "a soldier's bath". While I say "room", this was not an enclosed space. One then washes with a lather, and discards the water outside on the grass. The gas lamp on the left is reserved for special Church events. OBSERVATION: As for the privy, it depends whether there is one. In this home, there wasn't one -- neither inside nor outside.

Fisheye Technique

I experiment a lot with fisheye photography. The technique is fundamentally different to standard photography, and it is difficult to get good shots. In standard photography, one often has a single origin (the camera), and a single vanishing point. With fisheye photography, one often has a single origin, and four vanishing points (shown). OBSERVATION: Apart from thinking on the origin and vanishing points, the most basic thing one can do is obscure vanishing points (say, by filling a corner with chaos, or whiting out all corners).