La vérité is out there

Sterling, Tallahassee, FL — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 23:22:27 GMT

Isn't wearing earplugs while riding a motorcycle risky? Don't you need to hear traffic and other potential dangers around you? I don't ride a motorcycle but friends who do always tell me how dangerous and crazy other drivers are on the road. Putting in ear plugs seems to only compound that problem. Yeah/Nay? Thanks for the links. I'm sharing the sphere game with my students. The family tree of the gods I'll be sending to the history department at my school. You always seem to find such interesting links.

La vérité is out there

Will Femia — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 01:35:45 GMT

Sterling, that's a fair point, but the ear plugs, even in the Slate piece, don't block out all sound. It's probably no more quiet than having your head inside a full helmet. When you're not wearing a full helmet there's a lot of wind noise so the ear plugs muffle that and give a very similar feeling that what is described in the Slate piece. I've seen a lot of guys riding with ear plugs but I alwasy thought it was just guys who ride in groups with loud exhaust.
Anyway, yes you have to hear, no plugs don't necessarily prevent that, and YES crazy other drivers are hazard #1 for motorcycles (with crazy defined as anything from road rage to cell phone chatting).

La vérité is out there

Sarah H, Kansas City, Mo. — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 05:08:20 GMT

Ah, thank you for the X-Files reference. I'm happy to report that Byers, one of the Lone Gunmen, makes a brief appearance in "The Last Mimzy." It was nice to see an old X-Files alumnus in an otherwise really disappointing film. Oh, and in case you hadn't heard, all three of the Harry Potter kids have signed on for the remaining films. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20015370,00.html Thank goodness!

La vérité is out there

Jeff Weidner, San Clemente, CA — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 05:17:44 GMT

Will, regarding the T-shirts on display, yes, sad enough that a 9/11 shirt is displayed with a beer police shirt...but even more depressing was the black shirt in the foreground - Welcome to America, Now Speak English.

La vérité is out there

Steve, Granbury, Texas — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 06:48:02 GMT

It's entirely possible to see upwards of 100 decibels while riding a motorcycle at around 60 mph. Even a full-face helmet does not help much. When I lived in the UK 10 years ago, the government and motorcycling organizations were recommending earplugs when riding. In an industrial situation, earplugs are mandatory when sounds reach 85 decibels. Permanent hearing damage can occur after only 15 minutes of 90 decibel exposure (Approx 50mph on a motorcycle) I work in construction, and the rule of thumb is that if you need to raise your voice to be heard, you need ear plugs.

La vérité is out there

Rob B, Harrisburg, PA — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 11:23:38 GMT

What makes the 9/11 - Beer Police photo ever better is the "Welcome to America, now speak English" shirt on the left.

La vérité is out there

Don Tuite, California — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 17:35:35 GMT

Sounds are additive. If you can hear a sound over the wind noise (which is the loudest component of noise when riding a motorcycle), you can hear it with the ear plugs in. You'll probably hear it better. Meanwhile, the lower noise level reduces fatigue and diminishes permanent hearing loss (Mother Nature's ear plugs).

La vérité is out there

Larry Naegle, Bismarck, ND — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 19:42:33 GMT

Will, In reference to podiobooks, we used to call it "Radio". I'm sixty so I got in on the last years of radio programming. There are several good sites where you can download or stream the old shows. My lady is twenty years younger and we both enjoy winding down the night with "Nero Wolfe" or "The Saint" or maybe "Sam Spade". They really hold up well. Vincent Price was the Saint and Nero Wolfe was played by Sidney Greenstreet, the fat villain in "The Maltese Falcon". Sam Spade was played by Bogart in that movie. My son, 24, has got his friends turned on to them now. We download to a CD and play them as we go to sleep. We load the disk with a show and then gentle rain or babbling brook tracks. Great links today, and thanks for looking for me.

La vérité is out there

1hen2ducks, cupertino,CA — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 21:21:32 GMT

Will, Wearing earplugs while riding a motorcycle does reduce fatigue caused by earaches and headaches that are caused by wind noise. This is especially true on long trips.

La vérité is out there

Lee, San Diego, CA — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 23:31:06 GMT

Here is a link for old movies and TV shows just in case you get a case of nostalgia. They are available in different formats for iPod, PSP and Google video. http://www.publicdomaintorrents.com/nshowcat.html?category=ALL Enjoy!

La vérité is out there

AJ, Ohio — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:09:21 GMT

I don't like that brownie pan at all - my favorite parts are the soft inside pieces!

La vérité is out there

Kristen, Kansas City — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:34:25 GMT

I agree with AJ. The inside pieces are so much better without the burnt gross pieces!

La vérité is out there

Dana, VA — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 20:26:04 GMT

Re podiobooks, well, I listen to a lot of audiobooks at bedtime myself (on tape or CD from the library). While listening while lying in bed in the dark can be a great way to settle down, if a book is too good, sometimes I find it just too easy to think "just one more CD...." It can be the audio equivalent of sitting up half the night with a good paperback.

La vérité is out there

Anyonymous — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 20:35:09 GMT

If you prefer the soft middle to the edges of brownies, try using a round cake pan instead. Circles have less edge (circumference) for the same area than a square does, plus it'll bake more evenly.

La vérité is out there

Don Tuite, California — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 00:43:14 GMT

Calvin Trillin said something like "The brown crispy bits are the best part of anything." I can't find a link with precisely that quote, but there are lots of hits on "trillin" and "crispy bits." "Crispy" may be pushing brownies a little too far, but with that in mind, I submit this link: http://www.mercurynews.com/search/ci_5485270

La vérité is out there

sweatpantsmom — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 07:16:03 GMT

I love the brownie pan, but I'm hoping the inventors can use their powers for even greater good - inventing a chicken that gives every serving a luscious, tasty, crunchy and sometimes chewy piece of skin.

La vérité is out there

Rudy Patton — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 00:40:35 GMT

Big fan for a long time. Thanks.

La vérité is out there

Sima Tanplix — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 02:57:48 GMT

Regarding the top-only muffin tray, here's one example: http://www.surlatable.com/product/id/124033.do

La vérité is out there

*G* — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 14:06:59 GMT

Scribd looks like a "Youtube" for Documents. (Txt/Doc/PDF) I found a Few Comics on there. There is a Sin City yarn http://www.scribd.com/doc/7256/Sin-City-That-Yellow-Bastard-1 These is a Frank Miller Spawn/Batman Comic http://www.scribd.com/doc/3393/comics-Spawn-Batman-Miller-McFarlane . If more people started uploading more Documents. It would probably start getting in to the legal hotbead youtube currently is in.

La vérité is out there

Mickey, Houston, TX — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 19:51:32 GMT

concerning "The Riches" and thier accents...watch closely and you will see that they vary thier accents depending on who is around them - they are consistent. Love Eddie - I only have 5 of his DVDs.

La vérité is out there

Will Femia — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 20:00:50 GMT

Mickey, that's genius and would totally explain why it seems like the accents were slipping. Now I have to go back and watch for that. Thanks for the tip.

La vérité is out there

@51m, Chicago — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 22:07:20 GMT

Speaking of (don't sue me for copyright infringement please) giant trees, I remember visiting this Banyan tree on a school trip in India. Trying to search about it online, the only references I found were these. According to this link it's supposed to cover 3.7 acres. Some pictures, http://www.jdroche.com/index.php?id_lang=1&page=detail&idProdDet=117&navId=4&PHPSESSID=980c10b609d3cc9cb611d2cf184c09b1 It's ironic that the only pictures I found were on a site written in spanish.