Science!
What is behind the bright spot on Venus? Spotlight on the spotlink. A massive volcanic eruption? Energetic atmospheric particles? It is my somber duty, fellow Earthlings, to warn you that there may well be an altogether more sinister cause: mindlink.

Back in the realm of science non-fiction and also from our sister planet's copious atmosphere: mysterylink. There's little else I love so much as the scientific certainty and specificity of "a mysterious chemical." A mysterious chemical, eh? Quickly, we must publish these results before an even more vague theory emerges!

The science of motorsport: helmetlink. Reading this article last night, I asked myself, "Is this why I've taken so enthusiastically to F1? The sport's top-to-bottom dedication to and celebration of science?" In the case of Formula One, it is science applied quite specifically to the twins goals of propelling a man around a circuit at mind-boggling speeds and making him as safe at those speeds as possible, but science all the same. There is a terrific amount of driver skill to be considered, but even the most proficient driver cannot race competitively unless the design and engineering skills of his team have given him a scientific marvel of a motor car, as the early-season tribulations of reigning World Champion Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes-powered McLaren MP4-24 attest. Is science why I am fast becoming a rapid fan of F1? I say now is not the moment for such probing introspection (though the race gods knows I've got to do something to keep the F1 momentum going in the four-week layoff between the Hungarian and European Grands Prix), now is the moment simply to savor yet another thrilling example of the march of science!

Science!

This Week in Motorsport
Potentially very good news on the condition of Felipe Massa, the driver who by all rights should have been killed last weekend: Brazillink. And just what was it that saved Massa's life when he was struck in the helmet by a one-and-a-half pound suspension spring at a tremendous 175 m.p.h.? The science of helmet-making lauded above.

The Rebel Black Dot Songs of the Day
Fountains of Wayne, "Sick Day" from Fountains of Wayne (T.L.A.M.)

Commentary:

"She's a hell of a girl,
She's alone in the world,
And she likes to say, 'Hey, good-lookin'.'"

Freitag, 31 Juli
The Skatalites, "James Bond Theme" via iTunes (T.L.A.M.)