Three Years Ago Today: Fukushima-Daiichi

Partly because I am a cyclist, I am concerned about the environment and its effects on our health and well-being.  Therefore, I could not help but to note that three years ago today, a tsunami caused a catastrophic failure, which led to a meltdown, in the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan.

Fukushima-Daichi Nuclear Power Plant

Last month, higher-than-normal levels of radioactive isotopes were found in Pacific Ocean water off British Colombia, Canada.  Scientists say that those same infected tides could wash up on beaches and cliffs in California, Oregon and Washington State next month.

This catastrophe came less than a year after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  Consequences of that disaster are still unfolding, but it seems that the aftermath of Fukushima could be even longer-lasting and reach even further.

I don't mean to rain on anybody's brevet or audax.  I just want to have an environment in which we can ride--and otherwise play, and live and work, in good health and peace.

A Straightforward Oxymoron?

The first time you saw or heard the word "oxymoron", what did you think?

Perhaps it's indicative of the time in my life when I learned it that I thought about a stupid kid with zits.  Back then, a product for treating acne that had "Oxy" in its name had recently been introduced.  Is that product still being made?

Anyway, being the sort of person who remembers examples better than abstract definitions, whenever I heard the word "oxymoron", I would think of "military intelligence", "dietetic candy", "authentic reproduction" and "business ethics".  Oh, and there was a sign I saw in a supermarket:  "Fresh frozen jumbo baby shrimp."

Here's another one to add to the list:  a riderless bicycle.   

From Wired.com

Now, such a thing may be plausible, at least in an etymological or epistemological sense.  (I teach college. I have to use words like those at least once a year.  There, I got it over with!)  After all, a bicycle is nothing more than a vehicle with two wheels.  So, I suppose, one could have a bicycle without a rider.  Of course, I have to ask:  Why?

Well, someone seems to have a reason:  research.  Yes, you can get away with inventing practically anything for research purposes. But I think this project may have practical applications:  The riderless bicycle's creators are trying to learn more about gyroscopic forces and what keeps wheeled vehicles stable.

Maybe one day, if I have money to burn, I'll buy one of those bicycles for someone whom I tried, and failed, to turn into a cyclist!

What You Can't Leave Home Without

Seems that some people believe in carrying absolutely everything:

That image comes to you from a post on strange bicycles from Japan (where else?) in TechEBlog.