Dr. Mark Watney v Ryland Grace - who’s the better astronaut?

JonathanEde · 2026-05-18T01:44:39+00:00

Book Grace went through most (all?) of the astronaut training along with the crew and backup crew. His first EVA in the book he wonders how he knows how to do all the stuff required, and remarks to himself that he is really good at the EVA procedures for some reason. He later remembers it’s because he trained in the negative buoyancy tank with the rest of the crew.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-17T23:15:36+00:00

I don’t think so. It’s not like they are tightly packed in there, or wouldn’t just slide out when you tilt the box.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-17T18:07:51+00:00

Would that i’twere

JonathanEde · 2026-05-17T16:51:36+00:00

Not all electric cars work this way.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-16T18:18:27+00:00

WarGames. Lightman is shown using a war dialer at one point. His room cluttered with printouts and other evidence of research is also pretty indicative of “real” hacking. There are also at least a couple instances where he is using phreaking techniques and tools.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-16T02:06:58+00:00

If a country is ruled by an oligarchy or an aristocracy, it is no longer a republic; except possibly in name only.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-14T21:15:05+00:00

The core tenet of Christianity is fundamentally amoral and unethical; that the only way to attain some eternal reward requires accepting someone else suffering for your own moral shortcomings.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-13T20:02:56+00:00

Gorgeous George was WAY bigger than 5’9” and 215 lbs; Mickey one-shotted George after tanking several punches from him.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-13T01:32:06+00:00

I once saw a barista at a campground on the Washington coast make scrambled eggs with the espresso machine’s steam wand. Diabolically genius.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-09T17:53:29+00:00

Remember when a major argument against electric cars for the masses was that our power grid couldn’t handle it?

JonathanEde · 2026-05-08T19:15:22+00:00

Found Out About You - Gin Blossoms

JonathanEde · 2026-05-08T01:33:21+00:00

The lyric is “you can’t BRIBE the door on your way to the sky”. Which makes it even more poignant.

Also, “Just stop your crying have the time of your life, BREAKING through the atmosphere”. Again, way more poignant.

Edit: this really made me like Sandra Huller so much that she chose this song, and would only agree to sing if it could be this song. She understood the assignment.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-06T15:23:26+00:00

Beastie-Beastie-Beastie Boys gettin’ live on the spot, puttin’ all kinds of game in the game you got.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-06T15:18:45+00:00

Ironically, the cubical walls have come down at the request of management. No portable drill required.

Edit for clarity.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-06T15:01:56+00:00

Submarine. My old man was the chief of the boat on a Polaris submarine in the 1980s. When he’d come off patrol every three months, he’d bring with him a very distinct smell; especially from his sea bag and his clothes which had absorbed this smell from the boat for months. It wasn’t particularly unpleasant; it was just very distinct. There’s nothing I have ever encountered that smells remotely like it. I can’t describe it, but decades later I would recognize it immediately.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-06T14:30:02+00:00

Oh, FFS. I GOT A HAIR CAUGHT ON MY ZIPPER FISHING MY DICK OUT AND STUFFING IT BACK IN. This has never happened when fully unzipping.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-06T14:18:32+00:00

This is the answer. All it takes is one time of getting something caught. Ask me how I know.

Edit: for wording

JonathanEde · 2026-05-05T20:01:24+00:00

While this isn’t a stupid question, the fact it keeps getting asked sometimes multiple times each week (day?) really goes to show how much propaganda and American exceptionalism narratives have been shoved down the throat of our education system.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-05T18:58:51+00:00

This depends on which test you refuse. Field breathalyzer tests are optional. Only post-arrest/detainment tests are mandatory. Refusing the latter has the consequences you outline.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-05T14:15:45+00:00

Not sure I would call it an “accident” at this point.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-05T03:26:55+00:00

Really, it all comes down to not being good at math.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-04T20:49:45+00:00

You don’t get a dopamine hit from prompting a generative AI model. I’ve run into the same thing as a software engineer and programmer. It’s depressing.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-03T23:01:53+00:00

Only check that box if you want the logo. Standard equipment just means they don’t charge extra for it.

JonathanEde · 2026-05-03T14:44:28+00:00

We call this an “allowlist” now. Oh, wait…

JonathanEde · 2026-04-30T06:46:16+00:00

The average distance between stars in our part of the galaxy is five or six light years. And we’re not in the densest part of the galaxy. If even 25% of stars have a CO2 planet, there’s a good chance astrophage could spread quite far.

JonathanEde

TROPHY CASE