On Aliens

Funny news and weather: it's raining, aliens, hallelujah, in three separate sections. Amen.

1. It's raining. Well, it was raining; now it's just cloudy. Yesterday, however, was NOT rainy and was actually quite nice (apparently this volcano has blown over, or at least not up), so Jo and I decided to go for a little walk around the neighborhood. Nine miles later, we'd walked to lower Horsforth, to the Abbey Inn, and down along the canal all the way into town. It's 127 miles from Leeds to Liverpool along the canal, and I've now done at least four of them. Met some students paddling up the canal in inflatable boats; Jo says students in Cambridge go punting on the Cam, and students in Leeds try sailing to Liverpool. We all gotta have goals, I say. Someday I might just walk all the way to Liverpool. Not all in one go, mind, but that's why God made canal-side pubs. (Now accepting applications for a Leeds-to-Liverpool Non-Professional Summertime Wander '10/'11/'12/whenever)

Anyway.

2. Aliens. Two stories here really:

2a. The first being Oh Em Gee, have you seen the new Dr. Who? Matt Smith has the dubious honour of being the 11th Doctor Who, taking over from the amazing David Tennant who transmogrified during the overly dramatic Christmas/New Year two-part special. The New Who has all the geeky strangeness of a university physics student on a sugar high in clothes borrowed from their tutor. But in space. With a time machine. And a new (green) sonic screwdriver. And an attractive redhead companion. And, and, oh so much and. Take a look:



2b. Stephen Hawking has warned that while it is "perfectly rational" to believe aliens exist, actually seeking them out might not be such a great idea. Far from the Spielbergian event we envision (or, at least, Spielberg envisioned), Hawking believes that we might not like our cosmic neighbors when they show up. Quoth the Hawking: "We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet." Oh snap Earth, Hawking served you! He has no problem with the possibility of aliens, he just doesn't like the probability that they'll be as big of jerks as we are when they get here. In other words, "Mathematically speaking, aliens exist. And mathematically speaking, they could kick our asses." Now imagine it in Hawking computer-voice. Awesome.

3. Hallelujah. I lied; there are only two sections.

Good night, Gracie.