The etiology of "The shrimp fucks the cabbage"

here at the wonderful Language Log.

My first computer :-)

Just found an old bill from the Vobis Data Computer GmbH: I bought my first computer, a wonderful Sinclair ZX81, on 11 Oct 1983 (when I was 11 years old). It cost 148 DM, or about 75 EUR.

It had 1 KB of RAM, a membrane keyboard, and a graphical resolution of 44 x 64 pixels. I computed Mandelbrot sets on it (Apfelmännchen) - it would plot one pixel every few seconds. The CPU (a Zilog Z80 running at 3.25 MHz) had to render the screen, and there was a FAST mode that would disable screen rendering and run computations 4 times as fast. Storage was on a MC tape recorder.

The 16KB RAM extension cost 85 DM. The MacBook Pro I'm writing this on, 25 years later, has about 125000 times as much RAM (a compound growth rate of about 47% p.a. - remarkably close to Moore's law!).

Spiderman

This guy climbed up the Four Seasons today during lunch, and why not? (You'll probably have to click on the picture to see him - there are better pictures out there, I'm sure:)

Highlights from the JP Morgan conference call on the Bear Stearns acquisition

Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
Okay, I think we're going to take just one or two more, operator.
Unidentified Participant:
Hi, this is (inaudible). I'm an individual investor. I was just wondering how this valuation helps the Bear Stearns shareholders rather than go through a Chapter 11 and an orderly liquidation of the assets of the company?
Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
I'm afraid you have to ask that question to Bear Stearns.
Unidentified Participant:
Well, I vote not to approve the sale.
Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
Okay. Next question, operator?

and, close to the end:

Susan Katzke - Credit Suisse - Analyst:
Okay. And just to clarify, does Bear Stearns own its building?

Bear Stearns shares traded at $170 a year ago, now they're bought by JPM for $2 a share because of (mostly) mortgage write-downs, and analysts worry whether that price at least includes the building...