The Varieties of Scientific Experience: A Personal View of the Search for God by Carl Sagan
A Crowd of One: The Future of Individual Identity by John Henry Clippinger
The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
NewsHad an awesome time in the UP snowmobiling. Have posted a bunch of pictures on Flickr - check ‘em out.
Additionally, Andy has posted a trip report, with the routes we took each day (recorded by his trusty…and luckily weatherproof Garmin). Check out his trip report here.
Last time I checked, we have a couple of months to go before April 1st. I’ve often been a big fan of NASA in the past, but I’m not sure exactly what this effort is trying to prove. C’mon guys - I want NASA sending people to Mars, or creating the next zeroG toilet, or something like that.
I’m sure if someone wanted to send Beatles music to deep space, the folks over at SETI would have been more than willing to do so.
The anticipation is killing me now…less than two weeks away from my annual snowmobile trip, and can’t wait to hit the trails. Normally I head up to St. Germain, but this year we’re headed up to the UP instead, in hopes for better snow.
Its up around Ontonagon - the trail report looks promising.
Don’t usually write posts about vitamins…but I gotta tell you, they’ve worked pretty well for me. The vitamins are called SuperFood, and supposedly they are completely natural, and readily absorbable nutrients.
Not sure about all of that - but you do get a pretty good energy kick about 40 minutes after you take them.
I do have a friend that is big into Chinese herbal supplements - check them out here.
[from Wikipedia] The Walleye (Sander vitreus vitreus, formerly Stizostedion vitreum vitreum) is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch. The walleye is sometimes also called the yellow walleye to distinguish it from the extinct blue walleye.
Here’s the place we’re headed to in a few weeks. The undeveloped portage in the top part of the map is actually developed now, so one can gain easier access to a source of Blue Walleye (not sure its actual Blue Walleye, since they’re supposed to be extinct - we’ll see).
Given the fishing trip coming up, I thought I’d do a little research on one of our chief adversaries - the Northern Pike.
First - a short definition from Wikipedia:
The northern pike, Esox lucius, is a carnivorous fish of brackish and freshwaters of the northern hemisphere. It is also known by the somewhat misleading folk-name, “water wolf”. Its found throughout the Northern Hemisphere, and isn’t in the least bit endangered.
Northern pikes are most often olive, shading into yellowish or whitish on belly with short, light barlike spots on body and some dark spots on the fins. The lower half of their gill cover lacks scales and they have large pores on their head and lower jaw. Unlike the similar-looking muskellunge, the northern pike has light markings on a dark body background and less than six pores on the underside of its jaw. Looks like a freshwater version of a barracuda.
Pike grow to a relatively large size: lengths of 150 cm and weight of 25 kg are not unheard of. Currently, the IGFA recognizes a 55 lb, 1 oz pike caught by Lothar Louis in Lake of Grefeern, Germany on October 16, 1986 as the all-tackle Northern Pike world record. Northern Pikes in North America seldom reach the size of their European counterparts, however, one of the largest being a 20.9 kg (46 lbs) specimen from New York state.
Behavior
The Northern Pike is an aggressive predator, laying in wait for its prey in shallow weedy places, perfectly still, and then using explosive acceleration nabs its prey. It is also found in sluggish streams and cold, rocky waters. It goes in for the kill by biting at is prey with its razor sharp teeth sideways, before lining it up lengthwise to eat it.
What it eats
Just about anything. It eats fish, including each other. Its also been known to eat water voles and ducklings - which I guess is the point of the following bait:
So how can I catch one (several)?
There are several types of baits that have proven to be effective against the northern pike:
Spoons - low-tech, but still one of the best overall ways to catch a pike, and a must have in the tacklebox. For the most part, the basic pike spoon should be between 4-6″ long - the heavier the spoon, the deeper and quicker it should run. Baits should be between 1 - 1.5 oz., as this will assure good spoon action, and make for easy casting. If you’re going to troll, then use a heavier spoon, so it reaches the desired depth quickly. As far as shape goes, the larger the bend the better - this generates more vibration and motion, which are two of the main things that attract pike
Crankbaits - modeled after baitfish, a properly used crankbait can be quite effective, and can cover a range of depths with good action. As a jerkbait, it can be manipulated to simulate the behavior of a wounded baitfish, which allows the ravenous pike all the time they need to move in for the kill.
Buzzbaits / Topwaters - Its a beautiful thing to watch a pike hit a topwater, when it crashes down on a surface bait. Pike love to hit prey on the surface, and its one of the more exciting ways to fish for ‘em when they’re feeding on the top, or especially when water levels are lower, and the fish are driven to the top anyway. Pike respond to speed and noise…so make sure you get baits with large props / buzzers as well as a large skirt.
Others work well to - a soft jerkbait is good for when the pike are not overly active, or are sticking close to weeds, logs, or other cover. Colors? Bright colors are the best, but mostly for the fisherman, since it helps to see the lure and better control the action.
Eating the Pike
Northern Pike is one of the best tasting freshwater fish, provided its properly prepared. Bones can be tricky, but the flesh is white, firm, and flaky. Nutrionally, every 100g of meat contains 84 calories, 0.5g of fat, and 19g of protien, and is a great source of calzium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and B vitamins.
Preparing it can be done a few ways. If you’re boiling it, remove the skin; otherwise leave the skin on. The Pike has a second row of bones that can make it tricky to prepare, but with a little skill they can be easily removed. Just chew carefully when you eat it - and its taste and texture will keep you coming back for more.
ENTERTAINMENT: Well, if you’re headed out to the middle of nowhere, better pack a serious radio - who knows, a well-timed weather forecast could save you’re life? Also, listening to the BBC or al-jazeera may make for some serious late night debates.
Given that - who could ask for more than the Sangean ATS-909?
Widely hailed as the best in portable shortwave radios, and can be modified for additional capabilities and sensitivity. I look forward to testing its capabilities way up north. If the mood strikes me, I may even give a user report here.
That’s it for the Canada trip - I even thought about upgrading the sat link for internet, or a nice XBOX-360 + a widescreen LCD…but c’mon, we’re supposed to be roughing it. Bringing that stuff would be ridiculous…
A few friends and I are headed up to Northwest Canada for a fishing trip. You know - beer, fishing, communing with nature, beer - that kind of thing. Its located in a pretty remote location, away from it all…one room fishing shack, no power, no cell phones…just friends and fish; the simple life.
I found that concept relaxing…until I started hyperventilating at the thought of being totally unplugged. So, once I took a few deep breaths, I found a few items that might make this sort of peaceful isolation a little more tolerable:
POWER: Always a necessity just in case a few gadgets are required for safety or creature comforts. Why not tap the unlimited power of the sun?
Here it is strapped to a backpack…
…and all zipped up 
Its rated at 20W of power, and also has an 8Ah battery back - ample to power many portable devices. And at less than 4lbs, it won’t break your back either. Get yours at RadioLabs.
COMMUNICATIONS: The remoteness of where we’re going means that cell phones aren’t gonna cut it. Thank goodness for Satellite Phones. I’m renting the Globalstar GSP-1600 from satellitephonestore.com - they’ve got an affordable unlimited daily rate, which is far better than $1.59 / minute.
ENTERTAINMENT: Coming soon!
Saw this update posted on Techweb…gotta love the one-two punch of an unfunded mandate and broad privacy concerns.
…Last week, Washington became the fourth state to pass legislation opposing the Real ID Act. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, one of 600 groups opposed to the federal law, Arkansas and Idaho have passed similar legislation. Maine pioneered the states’ revolt against Real ID. Here’s the article.