Sunday, February 15, 2026
Saturday, February 14, 2026
AI question
what are the three largest oceans on earth, and what are the three smallest oceans on earth?
1 minute ago
The 3 Largest Oceans
These three bodies of water make up the vast majority of the Earth's hydrosphere.
| Rank | Ocean | Approximate Area (sq miles) | Key Characteristic |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pacific Ocean | ~63 million | Covers more area than all the Earth's landmasses combined. |
| 2 | Atlantic Ocean | ~41 million | Known for the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the world's longest mountain range. |
| 3 | Indian Ocean | ~27 million | The warmest ocean in the world, bounded by Africa, Asia, and Australia. |
The 3 Smallest Oceans
- Arctic Ocean (~5.4 million sq miles): By far the smallest and shallowest ocean on Earth.
- It is mostly covered by ice throughout the year.
- Southern Ocean (~7.8 million sq miles): Encircling Antarctica, this ocean was formerly considered the southern portions of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans.
- Indian Ocean (~27 million sq miles): While it is the third
- largest, it is also the third smallest in a five-ocean system.
Play notice
Congratulations, John. Sapience has been accepted for presentation in the Play Lab at the thirty-fourth annual Valdez Theatre Conference, June 6-13. The full list of invitees is posted here.
To participate, you must be in Valdez for the reading of your play. Minimum attendance is four days, but the longer you’re with us, the more you’ll get from the experience and for the expense. You are responsible for your travel costs; we have limited free communal housing available. There will also be a 2:00 p.m. seven-hour bus shuttle from Anchorage to Valdez on June 6; the return shuttle arrives in Anchorage at approximately 3:00 p.m. on June 14.
Registration for the event is $250; registration will open by March 31. It includes daily lunch the closing gala meal, all Conference activities and classes, and a two-hour Stan Stephens Cruise to Shoupe Glacier.
I will host a Zoom meeting for Play Lab playwrights on Sunday, February 22, at 2:00 p.m. Alaska-time (3:00 PST; 6:00 EST). I’ll discuss our history, programming, processes, and philosophies; there will be lots of chances to ask questions. A recording will be available afterward for those unable to attend live.
Please let me know by March 15 if you plan to attend. If you know you won’t be with us, please tell me, as we have alternate playwrights waiting to find out if there’s room for their work. If you’re certain you’re coming, you can get a jump on the stuff we’ll need from you by filling out the Play Confirmation Form. This is where we gather info on your play like the synopsis, trigger warnings, and cast descriptions.
Readings in the Play Lab are mostly stationary. Scripts will be assigned a director by April 15 unless you tell me you’d prefer to direct your reading. Playwrights will be connected with both your director and lead responding panelist prior to the event to discuss the play. Readings will be cast by approximately May 7 by the Play Lab Coordinator, Ryan Buen, and emailed to the performers. In Valdez, there is one rehearsal the day prior to the reading. After the reading, there will be a response section with three panelists and audience comments. After that, writers will have a private half-hour one-on-one session with their lead panelist.
All of the readings stream live on YouTube; the recordings will remain available for a month after the Conference ends. There will be other opportunities to have your work presented through the Monologue Workshop, Ten-Minute Play Slam, and Valdez Theatre Fringe. Writers are also encouraged to be a part of the Play Lab cast and directing team if that’s in their wheelhouse.
All of these elements will be the subject of future emails with more details, but any questions you have, please don’t hesitate to ask: communicating with playwrights and helping them have a great experience in Valdez is one of my favorite parts of the job. There’s a wealth of mostly current information on our website about how travel and housing work, the current draft of the schedule, artistic staffing, our history… you know, a website. Avoiding these update emails is another great reason to let me know if you’re not coming. =)
Again, whether you join us or not, congratulations on Sapience‘s selection. I’m excited about the line-up; you can see the full invitation list here. I look forward to hearing from you.
Dawson Moore, Coordinator
Valdez Theatre Conference
Thursday, February 12, 2026
dear diary
hmm--well?
political science, i've been state by state contacting political science chairs at colleges/universities, pitching them to let their students hold an open convention on their campus, some response too. started in maine and have been working down the east coast. nice you can use ai to identify them quickly.
the issue with the insurer has destroyed my natural life since oct 15 last year, and have subsequently documented/constructed foundation to writ and am now perfecting it. hope to file before two weeks are up.
i know i have some poems in the notes on phone but have not looked.
can't wait until legal matter is resolved one way or the other.
Saturday, February 7, 2026
Monday, February 2, 2026
Internet reply
Based on the latest data, the odds are extremely high - essentially 100% - that 3I/ATLAS will reach Jupiter's Hill sphere. Here's why:
The Numbers
According to NASA's JPL Horizons calculations using data from approximately 230 observatories, 3I/ATLAS will arrive at a minimum distance of 53.445 (+/- 0.06) million kilometers from Jupiter on March 16, 2026 (PRIMETIMER) .
Jupiter's Hill radius on that same date will be 53.502 million kilometers (PRIMETIMER) .
The difference? Only 0.057 million kilometers (57,000 km).
This means 3I/ATLAS will pass within the margin of error of Jupiter's Hill sphere boundary. The 3-sigma uncertainty in the object's position at closest approach is only ±790 km, making this one of the most precisely tracked interstellar objects ever.
What Makes This Remarkable
The precision is striking for several reasons:
It's within one standard deviation - the predicted closest approach matches Jupiter's Hill radius almost exactly within the measurement uncertainty
Non-gravitational acceleration matters - 3I/ATLAS experienced non-gravitational acceleration near perihelion that caused a small trajectory shift. Without this correction, 3I/ATLAS would have missed the Hill sphere (Veritas News)
The timing is perfect - it will arrive at this precise distance on March 16, 2026, when Jupiter is at exactly the right position in its orbit
Why Scientists Are Paying Attention
The Lagrange points L1 and L2 are located at the Hill radius and are ideal locations for technological satellites, since orbital corrections and fuel requirements are minimal there (Medium) .
If any objects were released at this distance to orbit Jupiter, they would need propulsion to cancel out 3I/ATLAS's 65.9 km/s relative velocity, since the escape speed at the Hill radius is only 2.2 km/s (Medium) .
So yes, 3I/ATLAS will definitely reach Jupiter's Hill sphere - the question is what happens when it gets there.
Sunday, February 1, 2026
Wednesday, January 28, 2026
Monday, January 26, 2026
Saturday, January 24, 2026
After asking if that poem was going to be published:
Hi John,
Yes! It was actually published in 2025. I'm not quite sure why, but apparently the final email (reminding you of the publication date) didn't go through to you! You'll find it in the Breath of Nature issue, as planned: https://www.mockingowlroost.com/blog/breath-of-nature/
--Rita
Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Tuesday, January 20, 2026
Sunday, January 18, 2026
dear diary
Wow, world spinning faster than ever. So many things. Sometime back I had to tell the Malibu Art Association to knock it off regarding sales at Legacy Park, which lead me to attend the City Arts Commision monthly meeting to suggest a Malibu Art Walk. I have been in touch with a City Council Member about it an BCC them on emails. Early January I emailed the secretaries of the Commision if there had been any thoughts about an art walk, and should I bring it up at the next meeting. One secretary called within minutes telling me no, no, no, use and permitting issues are too much and that it's a no-go. Then, about two hours later, the City Council Member replies to the email saying they think it's a great idea, and that someone else thought there should be music too, and look forward to next meeting to discuss. So, the annoyance with the art association led me to dig deeper, and now looks like we have a good shot at inaugurating an art walk. Music and spoken word too, so I'll probably end up reading poetry.... When you go to an art walk it's all kinds of art all over the place, was thinking maybe the art walk should have sections--figurative/abstract/sculpture/photography/textiles/crafts. And think it should have a really need tip jar where folks can q-code tips for the people who make it happen. And, because a monthly art walk can get long in the tooth, maybe only have a spring/summer/fall/holidays art walk, so it's a little more heightened when it happens.
The thing with the insurance company processing a fraudulent claim against me has resulted in much drilling down on the issue (never thought I'd say thank the heavens for AI), and I've got all incoming/outgoing calls screenshotted, all voicemails, and a screen shot from the property manager and a jewelry store, both with front-center views of where the incident took place, texting they were not contacted by an insurance agent asking for content, and they failed many good-faith measures, so I'm not going after the guy who caused all this by filing a false claim, I'm going after the insurance company for failing statues regarding conducting investigations in good faith. I know I have them, going to start with an Interrogatory Filing followed by a Motion to Compel, and because they won't be able to show a good faith investigation that would be grounds, hopefully, for settlement. If not, part of me does want to tell a judge or jury what happened backed on a narrative of documented facts. Not fun; has basically derailed my life, but if I nail it down right the compensation ought to be substantial.
Have found a hidden little canyon across the street and have taken a machete and created a path back far enough to some shade beneath an oak next to a gurgling creak. You can't hear anything but nature. Very nice. Still gearing up for a big poison oak eradication day where I cover myself up and tape all cuffs.
Saturday, January 17, 2026
Saturday, January 10, 2026
Friday, January 9, 2026
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