24Jul 2013 by Vincent Summers 2 Comments

Wissahickon Creek Garnets

Geology
[caption id="attachment_4022" align="alignright" width="440"] Wissahickon Creek[/caption] Childhood memories are intense. They can last into adulthood. One memory I haveconcerns a trip to see my grandparents. They lived in Manayunk, PA. I lived in Camden County, NJ. Toward the end of the trip, we would pass the Wissahickon Creek. The area of the Wissahickon is beautiful, both for its natural scenery and its architecture. Especially so for the Henry Street Bridge. I was about ten years old at the time, in 1958. I had a deep interest in rock hounding, so I would gaze admiringly at the Wissahickon Creek. Just the same, we never did stop there. What was it that fascinated me so? The Wissahickon's garnet schist. [caption id="attachment_4024" align="alignright" width="405"] Henry Avenue Bridge crosses the Wissahickon[/caption] Wissahickon Creek Garnet…
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12Jul 2013 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

I’ve Got Your Number

Mathematics
[caption id="attachment_3965" align="alignright" width="380"] Paul Erdos - GNU Free Documentation License 1.2 by Kmhkmh[/caption] The next time someone says, I've got your number, pay close attention. There was a play on Broadway called “Six Degrees of Separation.” The premise is as follows: given any persons, A and H, there exist at most six other persons B, C, D, E, F and G such that A has met B, B has met C, C has met D, D has met E, E has met F, F has met G, G has met H. Mathematicians think five degrees of separation are sufficient; they call this theory the “Handshake Conjecture.” Mathematicians also have the concept of The Paul Erdos Number. Your Erdos number is one if you have co-authored a paper with Erdos.…
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12Jul 2013 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

Geometry Stop the World – I Want to Get Off

Mathematics
[caption id="attachment_3951" align="alignright" width="440"] Space Time Curvature - GNU Free Documentation License Version 1.2 by Johnstone[/caption] Many of us had to take plane geometry in high school. If you remember it was, “Theorem, Proof, Theorem, Proof...” What kind of ammunition did you use for the proof of a theorem? The axioms and previously proven theorems. I know, I know. Some of you want to forget the anguish. But I want you to recall the fifth axiom... Plane Geometry - Diagram 1 Look at Diagram 1. directly below. Line a is parallel to line b. That is lines a and b don’t meet. Axiom V: Through the point where line t meets line a there is no other line that can be drawn parallel to b. Now it took about 2,000…
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01Jul 2013 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

What is Grappa?

Food
[caption id="attachment_3921" align="alignright" width="480"] Grappa - CCA Share Alike 2.0 Generic by Carsten Tolkmit[/caption] I feel compelled to write this article. Why? My namesake, Vincent Summers of Australia, died from drinking grappa. Or, rather, what he thought was that beverage. It appears it was actually biofuel. What is the stuff? Before describing it, let's clarify terms. Glossary of Terms Brandy – spirit produced distilling wine Grappa – a grape-based pomace brandy Pomace – the solid remains, stems, skins, pulp, and seeds, after pressing out the juice After crushing grapes to produce wine, and pressing the wine from the solids, the remains are distilled to—in part—avoid waste, and to produce a tasty spirit. Although originally the drink may have been something to be endured as much as it was something to…
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24Jun 2013 by Vincent Summers 3 Comments

Yum! Cicada Stir Fry

Food
[caption id="attachment_3897" align="alignright" width="480"] Cicada Stir Fry - Erik K. & Jason H.[/caption] My friends, Erik K. and Jason H., are adventurous in many respects. They love camping; they love eating. Above all, they like strange! To them, however, the idea of cooking and eating a cicada stir fry isn’t strange at all. But why don’t I let Erik do the explaining? Also Sprach Erik! Jason & I often think of new and interesting (read daring) things to eat. Insects always seem like something worth working our way into since so much of the world’s population is already way ahead of us on this front. [caption id="attachment_3899" align="alignleft" width="300"] Showcase Ingredient[/caption] Cicada Stir Fry We cooked up the Cicadas by simply par-boiling, then stir-frying. Set them aside and stir-fry in…
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13May 2013 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Imagine ME – a TV Star!

History, People
[caption id="attachment_3849" align="alignright" width="440"] Camera - Fletcher6 - CCA-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License[/caption] Me a TV Star? What is the world coming to? One day I received a telephone call from my stock broker, Rich Muhlberg of Metis Advisors in Cherry Hill, NJ. I owned shares of LifeCycle mutual fund. LifeCycle’s managers reviewed each customer’s portfolio on his birthday. At this time some of the growth stock was sold and more income producing stock was purchased. The former has more risk and less income than the latter, so this process is appropriate action as one ages. I Am Informed Rich said that LifeCycle was hiring a video company to make an infomercial for the company. Did I want to participate by giving a testimonial? I valued the securities and jumped…
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12May 2013 by Vincent Summers No Comments

What is the Origin of Races?

Bible, People
[caption id="attachment_3831" align="alignright" width="440"] Race - Image: IIpdigital, US Embassy[/caption] Interestingly, the origin of races of mankind is quite easy to understand if one does not assume that mankind evolved, but was created as in the Bible account. The Bible indicates the first human couple was directly created, and that the rest of natural born mankind came about through the process of procreation, the passing on of life from one person to the next. From Adam to Noah Adam and Eve were the ancestors of Noah and of Noah’s wife, that one’s name being unknown. By the day of Noah, and under the influence of the demon angels, the world of mankind became violently wicked. Noah was thus told by God to build an ark to carry those who would…
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28Apr 2013 by Vincent Summers 1 Comment

Nouns Have Gender; People Have Sex – A Wandering into the Vagaries of Language

Humor, Language
[caption id="attachment_3714" align="alignright" width="480"] Word Puzzle[/caption] Language is straight-forward, right? Wrong. In speaking English or any language, much can happen. Usages Changes Some decades ago the word “sex” was used to describe the reproductive function of a human being. Now the word’s use in this way is apparently unacceptable and been replace by “gender”. In my 1979 dictionary, “gender” is defined as “… any set of two or more categories, such as masculine, feminine and neuter into which words are divided…”; “sex is defined as “The property or quality by which organisms are  classified according to their reproductive functions”. When Ruth Bader Ginsburg came to the Supreme Court and used “sex” in some of her written communications, she was advised by an assistant to use the more polite word, “gender”,…
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23Apr 2013 by Vincent Summers 3 Comments

Euthanasia (Mercy Killing) in 1904 Pennsylvania

Genealogy, History
[caption id="attachment_17483" align="alignright" width="480"] Death certificate.[/caption] Late in the 20th century, political discussions arose over whether it would be the right thing to euthanize a suffering individual. The practice has been a common one for animals for time immemorial. But the idea of euthanasia has still not gained serious acceptance. Or has it? I’m the family historian, researching the family lines as far back as possible: my two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, and so forth. I also included siblings, cousins, nieces, and nephews. I tossed in a few extra, as well, if they seemed to merit consideration for some particular reason. One of my lines was that of my mother’s mother’s father’s line, that man being John Elwood Jr. Stockham, of Camden, New Jersey. He died in his 30s…
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22Apr 2013 by Vincent Summers No Comments

Pituitary Gigantism and Acromegaly

Health, Medicine
[caption id="attachment_3690" align="alignright" width="380"] Pio Pico (1858) Mexican Governor of California[/caption] The pituitary gland is very small. It produces or regulates many hormones. It is located in the center of the head. Shaped like a garlic clove that hangs by a thread, there is a very small space surrounding it. The pituitary often forms tumors. Happily, rarely cancerous. Tumor Effects Some pituitary tumors affect production of the hormone prolactin. Prolactin promotes lactation (milk production). Another tumor type results in a growth hormone excess. In this case, the outcome is age dependent. Before puberty, one grows considerably taller (gigantism). Pituitary Problems Before / After Puberty Older sufferers do not undergo much vertical growth. They do not become giants. Still, some abnormal bone growth will occur. This is called acromegaly. The video…
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