I’m normally not much for these little viral blog exercises. Too often they seem like an excuse to avoid posting real content, but this one seemed fun and more in spirit with the noveling. Rob over at Writing Tips From the Trenches came up with this one;

“Go to Wikipedia. Type in your birth date (but not year). List three events that happened on your birthday. List two important birthdays and one interesting death. Post this in your journal.”

July 2nd Events:

• 1679 – Europeans first visit my home state of Minnesota and see headwaters of Mississippi – led by Daniel Greysolon de Du Luth.
• 1776 – The Continental Congress adopts a resolution severing ties with Great Britain, though a formal Declaration of Independence is not adopted until July 4.

July 2nd Births:

• 1877 – Hermann Hesse, German-born writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1962)
• 1903 – King Olav V of Norway (d. 1991) – I’m part Norwegian.

July 2nd deaths:

• 1961 – Ernest Hemingway, American writer, Nobel Prize laureate (suicide) (b. 1899)
• 1977 – Vladimir Nabokov, Russian-born writer (b. 1899)
• 1999 – Mario Puzo, American author (b. 1920)

It seems like my birthday is a good day for writers to die. Nabokov was right on the money, dying both the day and year I was born. I never knew that.

This wall-climbing robot looks like something straight out of sci-fi. Think that’s something? Check out this 4-legged trotting ‘Big Dog’ robot. Watch the video. See when the guy tried to kick it over? If that’s not downright creepy in an exhilerating way, then you don’t appreciate the future!

Sometimes I think Vernor Vinge exaggerated The Singularity a little too much. Likewise, Ray Kurzweil seems a bit too optimistic in his technology predictions from time to time. I have to admit when I see great robotic demonstrations like these, the Cranky Critic in me shuts up, because the future isn’t so far away after all.

If this isn’t the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. Scroll down.

I have to say I’m tempted to try it.

Thanks to SF-Signal for the heads up on that one.