Most Latin words in -us have plural in -i, but not all, & so zeal not according to knowledge issues in such oddities as hiati, octopi, omnibi & ignorami … H.W. Fowler, A Dictionary Of Modern English Usage (1926) Writing about the noun form of bogus recently made me think about nouns ending in … Continue reading Latin Plurals: Nouns Ending in -us
All posts by Oikofuge
Two Books About Longitude
A review of “Greenwich Time and the Longitude”, by Derek Howse, and “Finding Longitude” by Richard Dunn & Rebekah Higgitt.
Glen Prosen: Mayar and Driesh
Mayar (NO 240737, 928m) Driesh (NO 271735, 947m) 20.4 kilometres 860m of ascent I’ve climbed these two hills from all sorts of directions, including a previous report from Glen Doll. But I’ve never come at them from the Glen Prosen side. While Glen Doll has a sort of bustling cosmopolitan feel to it, with its … Continue reading Glen Prosen: Mayar and Driesh
Ardnamurchan
May’s always a good time to visit the west coast of Scotland. This time, we had a pleasantly sunny stay on the Ardnamurchan peninsula, north of Mull. The main road in Ardnamurchan is the B8007, a classification that pretty much says it all—it’s a winding single-track with passing places, which sticks largely to the shore … Continue reading Ardnamurchan
Coriolis Effect In A Rotating Space Habitat (Supplement)
I’ve received a few enquiries in response to my post “Coriolis Effect In A Rotating Space Habitat”, concerning something I didn’t address at the time—what happens to the trajectory of objects moving parallel to the axis of rotation. (Though I did mention this topic in passing in my post about the Coriolis effect in general.) … Continue reading Coriolis Effect In A Rotating Space Habitat (Supplement)
Lindberg 1/96 Moon Ship (Revised)
This is a rickety old kit, first issued in 1958 by Lindberg. The version I’m building is a nostalgic reissue by Round2. During its sixty-year history, it has undergone various metamorphoses: shifting its supposed scale between 1:96 and 1:200; changing its name from U.S. Moon Ship (1958) to Star Probe Space Shuttle (1980s) to Lunar … Continue reading Lindberg 1/96 Moon Ship (Revised)
Bogus
ˈbəʊɡəs bogus (noun): a press for producing counterfeit coins; a counterfeit coinbogus (adjective): not real, counterfeit, existing in order to deceivebogus (adjective, 21st Century): bad, wrong, inappropriate Bogus is a potentially expensive word. Back in 2008, the science writer Simon Singh wrote an opinion piece for The Guardian newspaper, entitled “Beware The Spinal Trap“, in … Continue reading Bogus
Braes Of The Carse: Glen of Rait to Den of Pitroddie
Montague Hill (NO 196285, 227m) Beal Hill (NO 203273, 257m) Evelick Hill (NO 199257, c270m) Pole Hill (NO 195260, 288m) 17.9 kilometres 580m of ascent So, another little segment in my exploration of the Braes of the Carse. This time I parked in the Glen of Rait, in a little pull-off below the crags of … Continue reading Braes Of The Carse: Glen of Rait to Den of Pitroddie
Arthur Gould Lee: No Parachute & Open Cockpit
I reflect on how amazing it is that I’m here at all, sailing along nearly three miles up in a flimsy contraption made of wood and quivering fabric, suspended on air, sustained only by the wind rushing under the wings. I think how not long ago the aeroplane didn’t exist at all, no man had … Continue reading Arthur Gould Lee: No Parachute & Open Cockpit
Revell 1/96 Saturn V: S-IVB Aft Interstage
Having finished building the S-IVB third stage of my Saturn V, I moved on to the S-IVB Aft Interstage—a conical support structure that separated the 6.6m-diameter S-IVB above from the 10-m diameter S-II second stage below. The real thing was assembled into the Saturn V stack as part of the S-IVB, but after launch it … Continue reading Revell 1/96 Saturn V: S-IVB Aft Interstage