Dollar Menu Bait

The unofficial record bass for Lake Bardwell, located directly south of Dallas in Ennis, TX, was recently caught on nothing less than a McDonald's McNugget. Weighing in at 11 pounds and 24.5 inches long, the bass was their first catch of the day and they took it quickly to their local marina. Ultimately, they threw the fish back in the lake claiming "I can almost guarantee you that fish will never eat another McNugget." As far as his next venture, Matthew McNellis says, "I might try some of Wendy's seasoned fries." Morale of the story: next time you make a fast food pit stop before heading out to fish, it just may be worth grabbing a couple extra items off the dollar menu.

Largest Airplane in the World Complete

The world's largest airplane is ready for take off with six 747 jet engines, 28 wheels, 60 miles of wiring, and weighing in at 1.3 million pounds when fueled. Not to mention, the wingspan is 385 feet, overcoming Howard Hughes's Spruce Goose by 65 feet. "Stratolaunch" has been in construction quietly in the California desert and just rolled out of its hangar for the first time yesterday. However, this plane isn't selling to commercial airlines anytime soon. Rather, Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft and owner of the Seattle Seahawks, built this behemoth to launch rockets in low orbit to send satellites into space with intentions of providing "ways to beam the Internet all across the globe".  

Twitter War of Words

Looks like the United States isn't the only one brushing up on their social media engagement. Yesterday, the verified Ukrainian and Russian Twitter accounts exchanged a mix of words, pictures, and memes over their history. According to Metro.co.uk, this all started when "Vladimir Putin met new French president Emmanuel Macron on Monday and spoke about the historic links between their two countries. He said Anna Yaroslavna was married to the Medievel king of France Henri I...this annonyed Ukraine, who said she was not from Russia but from Ukraine, as demonstrated by her name Anne of Kiev."

Galaxies No Longer Far, Far Away?

What seems to be something straight out of a Science Fiction movie, is moving full throttle ahead. The European - Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) has been designed to look back to the first galaxies, discover smaller planets, further research larger ones (even determine atmospheric details to warrant evidence of life) and more. It's being built in Chile's Atacama Desert atop a 3,000 meter mountain and set to begin operation in 2024.

 

Business Prevails

Good day in Texas where legislation rules to keep business moving forward: today the governor signed a bill overruling "local rules set by cities".  In the article, Abbott stated, "In Texas we don't believe in heavy-handed, top-down, one-sided regulatory environments that erect barriers for businesses. In Austin, Texas, we're going to override burdensome, wrongheaded regulatory barriers that disrupt the free-enterprise system upon which Texas has been based and upon which has elevated Texas to be the No. 1 state in the entire country for doing business." 

2,300 MPH is Now a Speed of the Past

Challenging early on due to friction and heat, "hypersonic" spacecrafts are now on the United States Military's project radar travelling anywhere from to five to ten times Mach 1. "The new Lockheed Skunk Works project, called the SR-72, is a proposal envisioning an unmanned aircraft that cruises at Mach 6—roughly twice as fast as the 2,300-mile-per-hour SR-71—meaning 'an adversary would have no time to react or hide,' Lockheed Martin says in its promotional materials." These efforts would not only allow for worldwide access within three hours, but also offer commercial benefits for many companies looking "to launch constellations of small satellites...[such as] Elon Musk's SpaceX."

Sophisticated Snakes

"A scientist from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville has discovered that a species of snake, the Cuban boa, hunts in groups, and through teamwork improve their chances of catching prey. It's the first time that reptiles have been observed to have been involved in 'coordinated hunting,' where individual animals take into account the location of others of the same species to maximize their hunting successes."

Adulting is Hard, Anxiety is Harder

Today's post comes from a place closer to home rather than the latest news or technology endeavor: "Anxiety disorders affect nearly 1 in 5 American adults each year." That's 20%! As many that know me would attest, I tend towards logical thinking rather than emotions; however, a few years after college that changed - anxiety hit me like a brick wall. I thankfully had a strong support system and sought help in learning how to cope from day to day; it's amazing the turnaround I saw just by practicing simple daily techniques that I previously would've scoffed at. For those who have it, it's not just one step - it's one of thousands and an everyday fight, but most importantly, know that you're not alone. (After all, 64.28 MILLION of us deal with anxiety here in the US!) And, lastly, feel free to call me if there's anyway I can help.

STEM for Girls

Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) has been a focus area with girls for industry leaders over the past couple of decades. Although there has been an increase in women within the field, the overwhelming majority are still men. As my wife could tell you, the opportunities are vast for a female coming out of college in these disciplines and it's important to share the growth potential (and, at times, excitement) that can be discovered in these fields as young women are starting to think about their futures. I applaud the work of Oklahoma Women in Technology's Behind the Scenes retreat for 7th to 12th graders and spurring their interest. It's programs such as these (similar to one my wife went to at the University of Texas in 7th grade) that pave the way with opportunities, such as scholarships, for women in STEM.

40,000 Year Old Bracelet Uncovered

Such a neat discovery - a bracelet tracing back 40,000 years was found in the Denisova Cave in Siberia next to woolly mammoth and other animal remains dating back to 125,000 years. The cave is named after the Denisovan people - "a mysterious species of hominins from the Homo genus, who are genetically different from both Homo sapiens and Neanderthals". This is officially the oldest piece of jewelry ever discovered and its craftsmanship "shows a level of technique at least 30,000 years ahead of its time". Certain areas of the bracelet indicate the use of a type of tool similar to that of a "modern drill". It's also believed that this artifact belonged to an elite in the society. How incredible to think of life thousands of years ago and what this small, yet powerful piece of jewelry may have seen.

RESPECT THE POSITION

A group of Notre Dame students recently walked out during Vice President Mike Pence's commencement address at his Alma Mater. This outrages me; at the minimum, be respectful of the man's position. As many know, I'm a business driven republican who has his fair share of opinions, but in 1997, I had the fortunate opportunity to hear President Bill Clinton speak and even spend five minutes talking to him after his event. It was a highlight of my life! I may not have voted for him (I was too young), but I still respected his position enough to listen to him. Sometimes sitting on your hands is harder than throwing them up in protest, but find sound reasoning worth doing so. Do we as millennials really want to be known as the generation that, when we didn't get our way or our participation trophy, we protested? 

Respect the position and find the positive.

Fidget Spinnners - More Than Just a Toy?

Fidget spinners are one of the latest crazes in the toy gadget world, claiming to calm those having a tough time keeping still. From a six year old getting a cut of the toy shaped into his hair to an eight year old boy starting his own entrepreneurial venture with the toys, kids worldwide are becoming attracted to their lure. These spinners may have true value for some kids; however, as with the overwhelming majority of toys, many are just a fad. It's always interesting to see how far some are willing to take their obsession.

In-N-Out is No Longer America's Favorite Burger!

I know this article will cause riots in many parts of the country, but In-N-Out was just voted "out" of the number one spot for America's favorite hamburger. This will come as a shock to some, but to others, Five Guys has been flipping a-many of paddies to earn this title. As for my personal opinion: Make no minced-steak, I relish that these competitors mustard the skill to ketchup to the competition but there can only be one champion and this year it was Five Guys who walked away with the golden spatula.

Anyone else out there appreciate a cheesy pun or two?

 

Ford Focuses on Future

Amidst a continuous decline in stock price, Ford is forced to reassess their strategic direction in an effort to appease Wall Street and find their long term stride. A few plans have been cited on the CEO's agenda including "scaling back production of cars [during time of increased demand in larger vehicles], paying down debt..., willingness to exit businesses or parts of the world..., and/or creating new companies...to be a big player in the autonomous industry". However, in the meantime, there has been discussion of a cut in headcount in order to quickly start this rebound period. Although losing valued employees is never easy, personnel is one of the higher costs in a company's expenses and an understandable initial focus area. 

Incredible Dinosaur Remains Found in Canadian Oil Sands

Back in 2011, "an unsuspecting excavator operator uncovered [this] historic discovery while digging in an oil sands mine". Six years later and the nodosaur is now fully restored and making is display debut in the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Alberta, Canada. Based on research, this new species is a guesstimated 110 million years old herbivore that "walked on four legs...covered in tank-like armor and dotted with spikes for protection". This discovery leads to the question - what else could be down there?

North Korea Bought Time with Letter & Fires Test Missile

Did I call it? (Referencing previous post). North Korea fired a test missile early Sunday morning that soared around 30 minutes before landing in the Sea of Japan. Although not posing a direct threat to the United States, millions of lives remain at risk should an all out attack prevail. President Trump seems to understand the weight of the situation citing that "North Korea may be more important than trade" in discussion of China's continued assistance to the North via their trade relations. However, our government needs to act quickly before anyone gets hurt.

North Korea Changes Up Message Medium

What a rare occasion - North Korea sent a letter to Congress calling recent US sanctions a "heinous act against humanity". For the first time in quite awhile, the country chose to use words rather than test fires to convey a message. However, I bet they are just using this as a distraction to buy time for something...

Tesla Solar is a step in the right direction but still WILL NOT WORK...yet

Let me say this loud and proud: 

Until battery storage technology catches up to solar panel technology, THIS WILL NOT WORK! When I say work though, know that I mean with a reasonable ROI (Return on Investment). It is the same problem with all renewable energy platforms, because of peak demand, the lack of energy storage and the unreliability of the supply, renewables will not be a reliable source of power until technology catches up.