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Factoid?
Off on a nasty 3-week trip. Baltimore. Kiawah Island, South Carolina. Milwaukee. Everett, WA. Denver. Saudi Arabia. London. Warsaw. Bogotá. D.C. Copenhagen. (Home, if I'm allowed.) But here's the question: I'm packing for three weeks (2 computers, a dozen plug adaptors, 5 back-up 1-gig memory sticks, lightweight camera, iPod, Bose headset, airplane voltage converter, etc.); my bag is FULL ... but I want to stuff a backpack in for rambles. I DO!!!!! Though I'm trained as a scientist, I truly believe there is always room for "one more item" in one's bag. Query: COULD, USING THE "ONE MORE ITEM PRINCIPLE," ONE STUFF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE/GALAXY INTO ONE QUARTO BAG? (IS THE BAG A "BLACK HOLE"?)
Comments
Glad to hear from you again, Tom. There´s been almost a revolution for your absence. There will sure be many happy faces in the blog today.
Posted by felix gerena at May 9, 2005 10:15 AM
Not only is the bag a black hole, but it may end up being a black cloud as well. Researchers at the University of London have recently found that the floods of e-mails, cell-phone calls, and text messages that bombard modern workers are lowering their IQs significantly. I wonder what the flood of attention-diverting stuff (computers, iPods, cameras, DVDs, etc.) is doing on the same front, as well as to our EQs?
God speed Tom!
Posted by Tom Asacker at May 9, 2005 10:38 AM
Sounds like fun Tom I was in Milwaukee last week for a cub game. Very nice people, but boring town. Great German food though!
Posted by Carmen Salerno at May 9, 2005 11:10 AM
Tom
Remember to pack your favorite pen - the basics are the new cutting edge
Great to see you back - enjoy your trip.
You really need a good English cup of tea on that long journey!
Trevor
Posted by Trevor Gay at May 9, 2005 11:34 AM
Travel is a black hole endeavor? Perhaps the "travel light - live light" eco approach to globe trotting: own/pack only essential items - donate the rest.
Packing plenty of sports' caps may be a must - easy to change identity each day with them.
Posted by Sean at May 9, 2005 12:43 PM
Cool international travel web site: www.magellans.com
You can plug in your destination from the upper right hand corner and get specific info on each destination and gadget reccomendation stuff. I find their electrical supply and phone/modem section in each country most helpful.
VT is gorgeous this time of year... are you crazy?
Posted by James Hathaway at May 9, 2005 12:43 PM
Wasn't the electronic age suppose to make our lives simpler? Now our gadget bag is as big as our suitcase (and more valuable).
Yes, pack a good pen and a journal. Take some time to write fun stuff...notes to yourself, etc. Doodle.
And do post about your trip. You voice here has been missed.
Posted by Jill Hurst-Wahl at May 9, 2005 12:51 PM
Well, there's a formula for determining a black hole's "point of no return" where you cannot escape its clutches. It's called the Schwarzchild radius.
(3×10(to the 5th power)cm) x (M / Msun), where M is the mass of the black hole and Msun is the mass of the Sun.
Maybe the formula for packing is as follows:
(3P + T + 2N) x M / S
P = passion for item
T = anticipated free time
N = anticipated necessity of item
M = item's mass
S = luggage space remaining
I'd say passion outweighs necessity while anticipated free time is always overestimated.
Posted by Dustin at May 9, 2005 12:59 PM
Tom - knock em out at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals/JIWA Development Centre in Dhahran. Make sure you try some Arabic coffee "Qahwah" with dates. As for "one more item", suggest some Bain de Soleil No. 25. Regards, Paul (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia).
Posted by Paul Ross at May 9, 2005 1:21 PM
Tom, what's interesting about black holes, as I'm sure you know, is that they are exit points for energy and matter in our time and space. Stuffing into your luggage huge quantities of useless items you're going to have absolutely no time for on your trip is bound to create exit points for energy, matter and the odd 1 gigabyte memory stick.
Should you manage without bursting your bag to create the density required to produce a black hole, not only will your bag suddenly cease to exist in our time and space, but it, you, and all of your equipment will be travelling a lot farther than Copenhagen.
Don't forget your towel!
Noel Guinane
Posted by Noel Guinane at May 9, 2005 6:35 PM
Come on Tom, your trip sounds like a blast!
In fact, your the first speaker in the new Lynnwood Convention Center (Everett,WA).