News helicopters collide, killing four

Over downtown Phoenix, while covering a police chase, from CNN.com this afternoon:

Piltdown in progress

Here’s a snap of a new painting in progress, Piltdown Manifesto. I like how the blue tape works here both to frame and conceal — I’m going to have to work that into a future painting, since it’s about to come off this one. UPDATE 8.31.07: I just posted this finished painting: Piltdown Manifesto.

Charles Babbage on public cynicism of the new

Quoted by Doron Swade in his book, The Difference Engine: Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer, this seems pretty much universally relevant: Propose to an Englishman any principle, or any instrument, however admirable, and you will observe that the whole effort of the English mind is directed to find a difficulty, [...]

Fireworks Mishap in Washington D.C.

From CNN.com: “A man runs away as fireworks explode on the ground on the National Mall in Washington.” Nothing serious, apparently, but a nice AP photo resulted: