Category: Activities (Page 19 of 49)
Activities are gatherings that occur on a regular schedule, usually weekly, to enjoy a specific pastime.
An up-close account of the otherworldly trajectory of tech magnate Elon Musk.
Ars Technica editor Berger opens with a telling scene set in South Texas in late September 2019, when Musk visited a factory building a rocket that one day will be bound for Mars. Sending that ship—and people—to the red planet is of a parcel with Musk’s pioneering work in “remaking the global aerospace industry,” which includes privatizing efforts that had long belonged to government agencies such as NASA—which, though funded to the tune of some $25 billion per year, still “remains several giant leaps away from sending a few astronauts to Mars.” Getting the SpaceX rocket safely to distant Mars “may not work,” Musk confessed before adding, “But it probably will.” By Berger’s swiftly moving account, it will, not just because Musk is an endlessly driven, intensely focused sort who could use a little more fun in life—at one point, Musk ruefully allows that “it wouldn’t have hurt to have just one cocktail on the damn beach” of a distant Pacific atoll used in test flights—but also because Musk is surrounded by brilliant scientists recruited from academia and industry who are thoroughly invested in the project’s success. “They want that golden ticket for the world’s greatest thrill ride,” Berger writes, evoking another obsessed genius, Willie Wonka. Musk now leads not just SpaceX, but also the Tesla electric automobile company as well as a neural technology company and a firm devoted to digging new transportation tunnels below overcrowded cities. Even so, he remains closely attentive to matters that aviation engineers have often overlooked, such as recycling rocket stages: “If an airline discarded a 747 jet after every transcontinental flight,” writes the author, “passengers would have to pay $1 million for a ticket.”
Readers interested in business and entrepreneurship, as well as outer space, will find Berger’s book irresistible.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Bob Plunkett
Twelve hikers along with two dogs walked the trails of Waveny Park in New Canaan this morning. It was a great way to get outdoors and celebrate the first full day of spring. We enjoyed our conversations, the mild weather, and abundant sunshine.
Moderated by Jan Selkowitz, an entrepreneur and businessman who has been dealing with Asia for over five decades, and has family ties to China. Friday, March 18th at 11 am. Zoom only
Nikki Haley: “Why China keeps me up at night.”
China’s Economic Reckoning: The Price of Failed Reform
HIKING GREENWICH POINT
OLD GREENWICH, CT
FEBRUARY 24, 2022
10:00 AM
We will meet in the first parking lot on the right after you pass the gatehouse and walk around the perimeter of the park, about 2.5 miles. If the weather is good, the hike is on. If it turns out to be a day that you would not go out on a walk, don’t come and I won’t either. There will be no announcement but you can call or email me as below to check to see if the hike is on.
Greenwich Point is a special place and we non-Greenwich types can only go in the winter. Wonderful views and a solid walking surface but it can be very windy. Layer up! No lunch after. Dogs on a leash welcome as are guests as always.
We had 18 hikers at Sherwood Island last month, let’s beat that number!
GPS and Waze for directions off either Exit 6 or 5 of I-95.
Dave McCollum
Recap:
“An enthusiastic group of 16 braved cold and windy, but bright conditions…”. That was the start of our report after the December 9 tour of Greenwich Point. Copy that for today! Sixteen of us, including three new hikers plus two dogs encountered the very same weather on this trip around the peninsula. If we get the same weather this coming December, we’re going to send the data to The Old Farmer’s Almanac. Once they print it, we’ll pick another day!
Despite the cold, all had a great time with only one slight mishap when Tom Igoe tripped but was rescued on the way to the ground by Charles Salmans. Teamwork is what the DMA is all about!
We’ll have one more winter hike at Waveny Park in New Canaan on Monday, March 21. In April we will return to our traditional hikes in area forests.
Dave McCollum and Bob Plunkett
Super Bowl LVI Contest
Next Tuesday, February 1, the Wanderers will be at the DCA building, in the vestibule at some card tables, selling entries to the 2022 DMA Super Bowl Contest. David Mace, Greg Glashan, Taylor Strubinger and Joe Spain will be there on duty from ten o’clock to noon on Tuesday. If all the entries are not sold that day, they will be there again at the same time on Friday morning, February 4 to sell the balance. The Super Bowl Game itself will be on Sunday February 13.
We have had this traditional DMA event during the Wanderers’ off-season for more than ten years now. It is a pool lottery; and, prizes will be awarded based upon the actual final score of the Super Bowl game for the Grand Prize winner, and, for the runner up winners, based upon the actual score of the game at half-time, as well as at the end of the first and third quarters.
Members can enter by picking their boxes on this year’s ten-by-ten chart of one hundred boxes, and paying two dollars for each box chosen, with a limit of two boxes per member. The boxes are set up on a large sheet of poster board (see photo of this year’s chart by clicking on the link below); and, as each box is sold, the member writes his name in the box(es) he has chosen.
When all boxes are sold and entrants’ names entered on the chart, the numbers zero through nine will be randomly assigned to the ten horizontal rows in the grid. These row numbers are set to be matched against the second digit of the NFC team’s game score. Another set of the ten numbers will be randomly assigned to the grid’s ten vertical columns, and those column numbers are set to be matched against the second digit of the AFC team’s game score. These two sets of random numbers will be picked out of a hat and will define the two numerals assigned to each of the one hundred boxes on the contest grid.
The AFC numbers along the tops of the columns of boxes and the NFC numbers along the left of the rows of boxes give every box a pair of single digit numbers that are designed to correspond to the points that will be scored during the Super Bowl game by the AFC Team and the NFC Team. Prizes in the contest will be awarded to the box in which its two numbers match the second or final digit of the points scored by each of the two teams at four designated times during the game: end of 1st quarter, half-time, end of 3rd quarter and end of game. At each of those four breaks in the Game, the second or final digit of each team’s score will be noted, and the box having those two numbers will be the winning box for that prize.
For example: if, at the end of the first half, the AFC team is ahead by the score of 28 to 14, then one of the boxes that is in the column that has the number 8 at its top will be the winner of the half-time prize. Also, one of the boxes that is in the row that has the number 4 at its left end will be the winner of that half-time prize. This is because it is the second or final digit of each team’s score that is used to determine which column and which row contain the winning box for that score. The NFC team’s score final digit determines which row has that winning box, and the AFC team’s score final digit determines which column contains that winning box. Each box, as a result of the random choice of that box’s row and column numbers, thus is assigned a fixed pair of numbers. And it is the scoring during of the Game, and the final digits of the teams’ points at the four key measuring times during play that will determine which specific box is the winner at each of those times.
The apparent winning box changes as the score changes. And we simply need to look at the score at those four stopping points in the game to determine each winning box, using the attached ten-by-ten chart. So, staying with the example, if the NFC team were to come back in the second half and win by a score of 35 to 31, the Grand Prize winning box would be at the intersection of the “5” row (finding the NFC score final digit 5 among the numbers along the left side of the chart) with the “1” column (finding the AFC score final digit 1 among the numbers along the top of the chart).
So, each contestant will have his name in one of the boxes of the chart, and can go to the top of his column to get his AFC team’s score number; and then look at the left end of his row for his NFC team’s score number. We will circulate a copy of this year’s completed chart, so all can see what the numbers are for each column and each row and, therefore, for each box. Contestants can make a note of both numbers for their reference while watching the Game on Sunday, February 13. If you are a winner, we shall announce that and the prizes during the DMA Wednesday meeting on February 16.
As indicated, there will be four places in the Game when one of the boxes is designated as a winner based upon the Game score at that time. The box that wins on the basis of the score at the end of the Game is the Grand Prize winner, and his prize is $100 dollars. For the half-time winning box, the winner receives $50 dollars. And for the boxes that win based upon the Game score at end of the first and the third quarters, each winner receives $25 dollars.
If anyone has questions, please contact Greg Glashan or Joe Spain by phone or email, and we shall be happy to assist.
Good Luck to all in the 2022 DMA Super Bowl LVI Contest!
Winners!
The winners were Matteo Harding ( represented by his grandfather Dick H. ) who won the first quarter prize. Tom Taylor, who won the half-time prize. Carol Hooper ( represented by her husband Bryan ) who won the third quarter prize. And Tom Taylor, who came through again to win the Grand Prize based upon the final score of the game.
The Great Halifax Explosion : a World War I Story of Treachery, Tragedy, and Extraordinary Heroism
From the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author, a gripping narrative-nonfiction account of the world’s largest manmade explosion before the atomic bomb. In December 1917, a freighter carrying 3,000 tons of explosives sailed from Brooklyn bound for the trenches of World War I—en route, a cataclysmic disaster awaited . . .
Entering World War I’s fourth demoralizing year, the Allies hoped to break the grueling stalemate by sending thousands of fresh American troops and more munitions than ever to the trenches of France. Before the French freighter Mont-Blanc set sail from Brooklyn on December 1, 1917, with a staggering 3,000 tons of explosives, the captain banned his crew from lighting a single match, and secured the volatile cargo with copper nails because they don’t spark when struck.
For four harrowing days, the floating powder keg bobbed up the Eastern seaboard, plowing through a wicked snowstorm and waters infested with German U-Boats, which had already torpedoed a thousand Allied ships that year alone. On December 6, the exhausted crew finally slipped into Halifax Harbour—just as the relief ship Imo was rushing to leave. At 8:45 a.m., the Imo struck the Mont-Blanc’s bow, knocking over barrels of airplane fuel. Fire swept across the decks, sending the Mont-Blanc’s crew scurrying to their lifeboats, while Halifax longshoremen, office workers, and schoolchildren walked down to watch it burn.
At 9:04:35 a.m., the Mont-Blanc erupted, leveling 2.5 square miles of Halifax, killing 2,000 people, and wounding 9,000 more—all in one-fifteenth of a second.
In this definitive account, bestselling author John U. Bacon recreates the recklessness that caused the tragedy, the selfless rescue efforts that saved thousands, and the inspiring resilience that rebuilt the town. Just hours after the explosion, Boston alone sent 100 doctors, 300 nurses, and a million dollars. The explosion would revolutionize ophthalmology and pediatrics; transform Canada and the U.S. from adversaries to allies; and show J. Robert Oppenheimer, who studied Halifax closely, how much destruction an atomic bomb could inflict on a city.
Bacon brings to light one of the most dramatic events of the twentieth century, exploring the long shadow the world’s first “weapon of mass destruction” still casts on our world today.
HIKING SHERWOOD ISLAND
WESTPORT, CT
JANUARY 24, 2022
10:00 AM
We will meet in the parking lot closest to the pavilion and hike the perimeter of the park which is about 2.5 miles.
If the weather is good, the hike is on. If it turns out to be a day that you would not go out on a walk, don’t come and I probably won’t either! There will be no announcement but you can email or call me as below to check on whether or not it is on.
Sherwood will most likely be windy so layer up!
There will be no lunch after, just a walk on the beach!
Dogs on a leash and guests welcome.
Sherwood Island is off of Exit 18 on I-95.
David McCollum
Recap:
After a little semi-threatening snow on a Monday morning the weather turned mostly sunny but cold for 18 (count ‘em 18) DMA hikers and friends to walk and talk for 90 minutes at beautiful Sherwood Island State Park in Westport.
For those who have not been to Sherwood Island there are trails through wooded areas in addition to the vast open expanse of lawn and beach. The Park contains a 911 Memorial to all those Connecticut residents who died in the attacks. The memorial is sited on a point of land which has a direct line of sight to Manhattan.
The next hike is scheduled for Monday, February 14 at 10:00 at Greenwich Point. Bring your Valentine!
Dave McCollum and Bob Plunkett
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If scarce resources were maximally devoted to reducing emissions then would the result be worth the cost? If not then how do we efficiently allocate resources to ameliorate and adapt to the changing environment?
YouTube presentations
Keeping Your Cool on the Climate Debate with Bjorn Lomborg
Why renewables can’t save the planet Michael Shellenberger
Youtube Presentation
Blogpost
Germany’s Climate Chancellor Angela Merkel grossly mis-allocated resources and failed the climate
Wall Street’s Green Push Exposes New Conflicts of Interest
https://netzeroamerica.princeton.edu
Originally published in 1926, The Sun Also Rises is Ernest Hemingway’s first novel and a classic example of his spare but powerful writing style. A poignant look at the disillusionment and angst of the post-World War I generation, the novel introduces two of Hemingway’s most unforgettable characters: Jake Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley. Based on Hemingway’s experiences, ‘The Sun Also Rises’ is the story of a group of American and English expatriates living in Paris who take an excursion to Pamplona, Spain. The novel has forever associated Hemingway with bullfights and the running of the bulls. This powerful work of modern fiction, filled with memorable characters and universal themes, is summarized in this volume, which is enhanced by thought-provoking critical extracts, focused biographical details, and an annotated bibliography. This book helped to establish Hemingway as one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century
Host: Jan Selkowitz
Chairman: Frank DeLeo
Bell Ringing at Palmer’s for Darien Human Services
Raising funds to help needy Darienites by soliciting donations from Palmer’s shoppers at Christmas has been a long-standing DMA tradition. Due to COVID-19, we couldn’t perform this important service in 2020. Fortunately, we were able to re-start this activity this year with teams of 2 (and one team of 3) ringing a handbell and greeting shoppers on their way in and out of the store on Sunday, December 12 and Monday, December 20. We had 25 people participate, including 3 members who rang on both days as well as a wife and granddaughter who joined their respective DMA members. Thanks to all who helped and to Palmer’s for letting us use their space and leverage their shoppers.
For several reasons, our historical relationship with the Salvation Army for this activity was no longer an option. So, we partnered directly with the Darien Human Services Department (DHS) (who had been our historical benefactor and go-between with the Salvation Army), focusing on their direct funding activities related to housing, energy, food and clothing assistance. We also had brochures about DHS at our table to help publicize the breadth of services they provide. By partnering directly with DHS, we were able to ensure that the funds raised would go 100% to Darien residents.
We were blessed with good weather on both days (sunny and not too chilly). Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of Darien residents/Palmer’s shoppers (and the warmth and engaging demeanor of our bell ringers – many of whom enhanced the spirit of the season by wearing Santa hats), we raised $1,350 on the 12th and $1,125 on the 20th, for a grand total of $2,475. The DHS Director was thrilled and extremely appreciative since past years’ daily donations were typically in the $400-$800 range. What a great way to re-institute one of our traditional Community Service activities. We not only made a significant contribution to our neighbors, but we also raised the bar for future holiday fund raising at Palmer’s!
