Psi Phi Society Discussion Group–Spring Session

Sunday and I would like to report on the Psi Phi (ΨΦ) Discussion Group Spring Session…..not affiliated with SciFi genre in any way……

The group is a formation of several friends that get together about 4 times a year for a dinner and drinks and a discussion  of a subject chosen by the group…..members are me, a high school history teacher, professor of archeology, a nurse, a computer programmer, a math teacher and an anthropologist…..if there cannot be at least 5 members for a meeting then we postpone to a later date….I had to miss the Winter Meeting because of my surgery and recovery….I did get updates on what was covered by friends……

We meet at a local steak house owned by a friend…..we have a good meal, drinks and then the selection of a subject……we all write a subject on a piece of paper and put into a stainless steel bed pan….the owner of steak house picks the subject out of that bed pan.

The lucky topic was the Voynich Manuscript…..Written in Central Europe at the end of the 15th or during the 16th century, the origin, language, and date of the Voynich Manuscript—named after the Polish-American antiquarian bookseller, Wilfrid M. Voynich, who acquired it in 1912—are still being debated as vigorously as its puzzling drawings and undeciphered text. Described as a magical or scientific text, nearly every page contains botanical, figurative, and scientific drawings of a provincial but lively character, drawn in ink with vibrant washes in various shades of green, brown, yellow, blue, and red.

Based on the subject matter of the drawings, the contents of the manuscript falls into six sections: 1) botanicals containing drawings of 113 unidentified plant species; 2) astronomical and astrological drawings including astral charts with radiating circles, suns and moons, Zodiac symbols such as fish (Pisces), a bull (Taurus), and an archer (Sagittarius), nude females emerging from pipes or chimneys, and courtly figures; 3) a biological section containing a myriad of drawings of miniature female nudes, most with swelled abdomens, immersed or wading in fluids and oddly interacting with interconnecting tubes and capsules; 4) an elaborate array of nine cosmological medallions, many drawn across several folded folios and depicting possible geographical forms; 5) pharmaceutical drawings of over 100 different species of medicinal herbs and roots portrayed with jars or vessels in red, blue, or green, and 6) continuous pages of text, possibly recipes, with star-like flowers marking each entry in the margins.

We all went the printer and printed out the pages and an hour to work out our version of the meaning……

Of course this argument went on and on and no ….and as normal there was no consensus to its meaning…..

I have enclosed a couple of sites in case you would like to join in the debate……

http://www.voynich.nu/

https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/public/voynich-manuscript-solution/

http://www.edithsherwood.com/voynich_decoded/

This is a fascinating topic and one that is a joy to attempt to de-code…..try it…it can be addicting.

In case inquiry minds want to know….I ate a 8 oz Filet with baked potato with lots of butter and sour cream with a small salad with blue cheese dressing…..and a glass of Pinot Noir (name withheld until I am compensated)…….

Peace Out my friends…..chuq

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3-D Printing

Hopefully my Sunday will be better than my Saturday…..for my time in the garden was cut short by monsoon rains all afternoon and into the evening…..

Homelessness is a big problem for many of our cities and towns and local governments have treated it like the plague…..they have made sleep illegal, made so benches could not be used for naps and put in spikes in places that would be good for napping….in other words a problem with these “bums” as so many like to call them….

While doing my reading I came across an article that I found very interesting……and it involves 3-D printing……

Food, water, and shelter are basic human needs, but 1.2 billion people in the world live without adequate housing, according to a report by the World Resources Institute’s Ross Center for Sustainable Cities. Today at SXSW, an Austin-based startup will unveil its approach to combat that deficiency by using low-cost 3D printing as a potential solution.

ICON has developed a method for printing a single-story 650-square-foot house out of cement in only 12 to 24 hours, a fraction of the time it takes for new construction. If all goes according to plan, a community made up of about 100 homes will be constructed for residents in El Salvador next year. The company has partnered with New Story, a nonprofit that is vested in international housing solutions. “We have been building homes for communities in Haiti, El Salvador, and Bolivia,” Alexandria Lafci, co-founder of New Story, tells The Verge.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/12/17101856/3d-printed-housing-icon-shelter-housing-crisis

A fascinating way to use 3-D printing and it would provide a much needed service to the community…..

Please let me have your thoughts on this…..
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