Check out this short but fascinating video of sperm whales interacting with free divers. What I found interesting was the description of how this interaction is different than when the encounter scuba divers, also the insight into their brain structure and size. I love whales!
Review: AeroPress coffee maker
So, this is really more of a long term review, of my favorite coffee making machine! It’s called the AeroPress (~$30 at Amazon), and if you think it’s basically a French Press…well you’re right…but looking at it the wrong way. Meaning…it’s more like an upside down French Press!
Here’s how it works. Stick a filter in the black cap part, screw that to the sleeve, add coffee, and set it on top of a cup. Add hot water…wait…then use the plunger to push the water out, into the cup. Similar to a French press so far, but now it’s time for cleanup…unscrew the black cap…the coffee grounds stay inside, just position over a compost container, push the plunger, and eject the coffee grounds into the compost. Rinse the parts, and enjoy your coffee! It’s quick, easy, and produces great tasting coffee.
Now, the filter…in the image here I’m stainless steel filter…this is an optional accessory I bought (<$15 at Amazon); the regular AeroPress comes with a few hundred disposable paper filters. Disposable is not my thing, so I opted for the reusable one (though I’m stuck with 350 paper filters that came with it…I’ll either use them up, or find some other use, I don’t want to just throw them away!).
Also note my picture has two AeroPresses…well, my original finally wore out (the clear one on the right), after over five years of heavy use. The plunger seal deteriorated and won’t hold pressure, so it makes it tough to push the coffee out…and since the pressure you apply can affect the flavor, it was time for a new one. The design hasn’t changed much…you can see they’re now using a tinted plastic (probably to hide coffee stains if you just rinse it instead of washing it), and the plunger doesn’t have the exterior ribs on it anymore so is a bit of a looser fit in the sleeve (with no noticeable impact on performance). Other than that, it’s the same.
Some people get pretty obsessed with technique…precisely measuring the coffee, or water temp, or even *inverting* the press during brewing. You can have a lot of fun with these, but they don’t require that level of obsession to produce great coffee!
If you’re looking for an unbreakable, convenient, easy to clean way of making coffee, get an AeroPress!
The health benefits of a plant-based diet
In 2017, I switched to a vegetarian diet…I admit I tried full vegan but found the occasional eggs and real cheese to be hard to give up. I’ll work my way towards 100% plant-based eventually…especially as I keep reading about the various health benefits of such a diet! If you’re curious, check out this link at Forks Over Knives, it’s a great, brief summary of the health reasons for choosing a plant-based diet. It’s really pretty crazy when so many ailments in our lives can be addressed with a simple change in diet…and yes, giving up meat really *is* simple! Well except for eggs and cheese. 😉 But if those can at least be minimized, your health will still benefit!
The problem with self-driving cars
Lately I’ve been pretty optimistic about self-driving cars…the technology seems to be maturing so quickly, I’ve been expecting them to become commonplace in a matter of years, not decades. A recent photo from Apple has me questioning that – and it’s not a problem unique to Apple, all self-driving automotive technology currently has this limitation.
Take a look at that picture, what do you see? An incredibly complex array of optical-based sensors. Some are lasers, some are cameras. All self-driving cars use something similar, at least based on what’s publicly known right now (GPS is also used, but it just provides approximate location, with no insight into obstacles on the road).
So. Optical sensors. What happens when the lenses get dirty? I used to live in CA so sure, out there they can stay clean for months. Or, as Apple recently announced, the technology can be improved to deal with some raindrops on the lens. But drivers in most of the country have an honest four seasons to deal with, and of course the worst is areas with snow. Not just for the snow that can accumulate on the lenses, but when that snow melts, the dirty airborne mist kicked up by other cars coats your own in a deep layer of muck.
The automotive industry has developed washers for headlights to partially address this problem, but those are imperfect…but maybe good enough for this application? Ideally, I think a true wiper-based solution is needed for each lens.
How will this be solved? I really don’t know…maybe improving the technology used to clean some car headlights. Until then, I do expect self-driving cars to become commonplace, but only in mild-climate urban areas.