Do Something This Weekend of May 30, 2008
“I am very fond of sunsets. Come, let us go look at a sunset…”1
Geek Out
Look at a sunset. Today is the second day of Manhattanhenge, the period during which the sun sets in alignment with the Manhattan street grid, resulting in a stirring vista and billions of Flickr pictures. May 29 (yesterday) is considered by some to be the best viewing day, along with its “sister” date July 12, because the sun dips below the horizon at the moment of best alignment—a phenomenon termed “half sun on grid” by astronomer Neil deGrasse Tyson, who coined the phrase “Manhattanhenge.”
Tonight’s sunset will be of the “full sun on grid” variety, but the most striking effect is not so much the sunset as the red sunlight shining across the city’s tall corridors. July 11 and 12 will see the sun in the same position again, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll get the same clear forecast as we’ve been lucky enough to have today and yesterday. (I’ll have a full writeup of the Manhattanhenge spectacle on Monday.)
Blind yourself with science. Rather than blinding yourself with the sun, that is. As noted yesterday, this weekend sees the World Science Festival come to New York. Check out yesterday’s post for some highlights, or visit the official site to see the full schedule.
Geek In
Root out the Reds. Friend of GONY Hank Leukart was in town over Memorial Day Weekend, and we got in a couple matches of one of my favorite board games, Twilight Struggle. While we were reliving the Cold War through a deck of cards and flimsy cardboard markers, Hank said that he recently played a simpler card game that ran along the same lines, Cold War: CIA vs. KGB. Espionage is probably the most overhyped aspect of the Cold War in terms of real-life impact, but there’s little spying in Twilight Struggle2, and I miss it. I’ll definitely be picking this game up soon.
All contents copyright © 2007-2008 John Teti.
