What was going to be a lame joke about various possible successors to the Apple iPod and iPad—namely the iPed, iPid, and iPud—got derailed (thank goodness, I can hear you all saying!) when a search for the abbreviation "PID" led to a Wikipedia article about Proportional Integral-Derivative controllers. Fascinating stuff! And the example used to explain how a PID works—the challenge of adjusting hot and cold water faucets to get the right temperature while taking a shower—is brilliantly engaging. Son Robin the mechanical engineer will to have to teach his Old Man some Control Theory soon. A glance at the Wikipedia discussion of that topic leads quickly to Chaos Theory, yet another area that I know a tiny bit about and wish I understood better. And that leads to ...

^z - 2010-03-15