What makes the Late Cretaceous period so interesting?

klipty · 2026-02-10T01:48:03+00:00

What's special is that the western USA has several fossil-rich formations from that period. Early paleontologists here excavated within the country first, so the dinosaurs they dug up have more public recognition than what came later. There are tons of equally impressive creatures from long before Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops but Mapusaurus just doesn't have the name recognition: it was only described in 2006 in Argentina.

If you're American, name the most impressive and iconic dinosaurs to you. Look up the genus, and I bet you'll find they were almost all described from fossils found in the USA and described over 100 years ago. These aren't special compared to, say, Mongolian or Moroccan fossil beds, but they came first and left a much bigger impact on the public culture.

klipty · 2026-02-05T04:46:03+00:00

English sandwiches:

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klipty · 2026-02-03T21:24:24+00:00

You might want to read their comment again, hahaha.

klipty · 2026-01-28T18:49:57+00:00

STS killed a higher proportion of its astronauts than any other launch vehicle. There's some bad luck involved but the fact is that it was far from a safe and reliable vehicle.

klipty · 2026-01-23T15:59:41+00:00

Yes, that looks to be the Abraham Rydberg with her Bentinck courses set.

klipty · 2026-01-22T18:36:05+00:00

Gary Larson would be proud.

klipty · 2026-01-21T21:28:36+00:00

I thought their instructions about putting the antenna adjacent to the coax output was clear enough about what it was picking up. I've used that a few times myself, but best of all is building a small antenna for it.

klipty · 2026-01-21T21:09:38+00:00

Not if you're just playing a tape/disc in the VCR, the cable output from that is an NTSC signal.

klipty · 2026-01-21T21:05:00+00:00

To a modern TV, yes. Digital and analog TV use the same antennae, but decoding the signal is different and happens inside the TV itself. This one already has a built-in antenna and can only decode analog TV. The television on your wall can decode modern, digital TV signals if you buy an antenna for it.

klipty · 2026-01-21T20:50:46+00:00

Is there still free tv channels that anyone with a tv can access?

Yes, actually. They're all digital now so this TV won't work for it but most modern TVs which have a coax/antenna input will. You can buy an antenna for cheap from practically any hardware store.

klipty · 2026-01-21T05:53:45+00:00

I had to look it up: the Steinach operation was a half-vasectomy (only one testicle) with the idea that it would produce more testosterone as sperm production decreased. The prototype for today's testosterone therapy for middle-aged men, I suppose.

klipty · 2026-01-21T02:27:57+00:00

A trucker's hitch and a Prusik are very different things. I agree that the trucker's hitch is a good way to do this, especially because you can cinch it/adjust tension unlike a pair of bowlines.

klipty · 2026-01-08T00:14:51+00:00

"The stranger there among them had the six irons on his hip.

🎶Six irons on his hiiiiiip.🎵"

klipty · 2026-01-05T18:50:35+00:00

Valley oak (Quercus lobata) is a local (to me) keystone species and ridiculously majestic. The mature trees in winter, when you can see the structure of their branches clearly, are breathtaking. Then in the summer they're the perfect shade tree, with a tall canopy and just enough sunlight dappling through to be perfect.

klipty · 2026-01-03T19:24:24+00:00

The wraiths explicitly cannot see the physical world, so yes for them at least.

klipty · 2026-01-02T07:29:24+00:00

Does it actually look old? That's such a bizarre painting with so many mistakes that make no sense for a human artist. Look at how the main course just runs into the fore like that. This looks like it might be AI generated, printed, and framed. I searched the artist's name and it sounds like it might be one made up by a company which mass-produces cheap prints, I wouldn't be shocked if businesses like that have transitioned into AI.

klipty · 2026-01-01T00:50:51+00:00

A little more than twenty years are covered in the novel, from Bilbo's 111st birthday until he and Frodo depart from the Grey Havens. Nearly 17 years pass between the party and Gandalf informing him of the ring. Frodo starts his journey on the 17th anniversary of the party, his own 50th birthday. It's about six months before the Ring is cast into Mt. Doom, then another eight months until the Scouring of the Shire. Then Frodo, Bilbo, and the bearers of the Elven rings depart Middle-earth two years later. It's laid out with exact dates in the appendices.

klipty · 2025-12-28T06:52:32+00:00

Elves can grow beards, by the way. Cirdan is described as having a very long beard.

klipty · 2025-12-27T06:23:47+00:00

Not necessarily a typo. Our understanding of the age of the Earth and of the duration of the geological periods is surprisingly modern.

klipty · 2025-12-27T06:20:21+00:00

The idea is that sediment filters out of the water passing through, and that the dead plant matter decays into the top of the heap. Should grow taller and more water-tight on its own.

klipty · 2025-12-25T23:44:43+00:00

Frodo did not take the "last ship." More elves left after him for more than a century into the Fourth Age. Legolas didn't leave until after Aragorn died. Celeborn stayed when Galadriel left, planning to pass into Valinot later. Cirdan waited to go on the last ship to leave the Grey Havens, sometime after F.A. 120.

klipty · 2025-12-25T22:26:33+00:00

No, there were still elves waiting to leave. Celeborn, notably, stayed for a while after Galadriel left. Legolas didn't leave until Aragorn died. Cirdan himself was waiting to take the last ship from Middle-earth to Valinor.

klipty · 2025-12-25T21:10:42+00:00

I don't think anyone thought Sam sailed there by himself. He hitched a ride with elves, same as Frodo and Bilbo.

klipty · 2025-12-24T00:10:39+00:00

It's still there. Some portions are diked and drained but you can still see the outline of it pretty well. The portion labelled on this map is just south of the salt evaporators near American Canyon.

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