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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>>... On Behalf Of BillK<br>Subject: Re: [ExI] list test</p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>On Sun, Jul 28, 2013 at 10:27 PM, Ben Zaiboc wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>> "spike" <<a href="mailto:spike@rainier66.com"><span style='color:windowtext;text-decoration:none'>spike@rainier66.com</span></a>> observed:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>>>>... I'll be back home tomorrow. ... no internet, no cell phone, nothing. It was hell.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>>>... Now that's an interesting observation.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>> For some people, being 'off grid' is an ordeal, for others, it's <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>> necessary to recharge their batteries, or restore their sanity. I know, because I'm one of them... Ben<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>>...And, vice versa, it was hell for everyone else while spike was away. ;) BillK<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'>BillK you are too kind, sir. Ben, being internetless was for me a hellish reminder of how it was in the old days, before about 1995, when we didn't have the web, or at least I didn’t. We went around not knowing stuff. I don't like not knowing stuff. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'>My camping trip did give me a chance to deeply ponder what I really want in life. I want to have some kind of system with voice recognition and image recognition, so that when I see some unfamiliar beast for instance, it could figure out the species and send me to web pages describing the unique characteristics of that beast.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'>Consider for instance this magnificent beauty:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><img border=0 width=254 height=148 id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image002.jpg@01CE8BDA.D8B51300" alt="Mt. Rainier Tiger Beetle - Cicindela depressula"></span><span style='color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoPlainText>I have been hiking for years up at Mount Rainier, and had never seen one of these that I recall. The photo above is about 2x actual size. I spent some time observing them, after having the good fortune of showing up apparently right after they hatched. I yearned to know more about these beasts, while I was still there on site to observe. Later I found out it is likely a Cicindela depressula. Kewall!<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Thanks to Nomadofthehills for the photo. Hers is better than any of the dozens I took.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Years ago, there was an advertisement, I don’t even recall where I saw it or when. There is no dialog at all. A guy is in the woods sitting on a log. Suddenly a snake slithers up his pants. In sheer panic, he taps in a description of the snake. A web page comes up, identifying the species. It says: non-poisonous. He gets a look of relief. Then it says: constrictor. He gets a look of panic again. Then gets an ambiguous look of: Hmmmm, this might work out OK for both of us…<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Hilarious, memorable advertising, brilliant!<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>I want that, only I want Google Glass (or equivalent) to identify the beast and do some kind of image recognition and find the site, then tell me the information in my ear so my eyes are free to observe and my hands are free to manage the camera. I want to have something analogous to a really well-informed entomology professor with me at all times, only better: I want one who can hike as well as I can, and see as well as I can, but be a thousand times smarter about bugs. That’s all I really want. When we get that, it will be the next step, equivalent to how it was when we first got the web. Now you computer jockeys and internet hipsters, how do I get that?<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>spike<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>