Clip art of meshed or locked gears

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On November 17, 2020 I blogged about Smoothly meshing gears or jammed gears. Meshed gears describe graphically how individuals or parts of an organization can work together smoothly (as is shown above via an image modified from OpenClipArt).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jammed gears describe the opposite. At OpenClipArt there is a set of three gears locked together, shown above.

 

There is a long article by Bartoz Ciechanowski on February 12, 2020 titled Gears with discussions, animations, multiple gears, and three jammed ones at the very end.

 

 

A fraudulent email asking for a Bitcoin payment of $600, and a fraudulent text message

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I go through the junk mail folder of the email account for this blog about once a week. One time I did in Mid-March there was an email from March 12 claiming to have all of my personal information. And, as shown above in a colorized version, he gave me just a day to respond. But more than a day already had passed, and NOTHING bad had happened. Furthermore, the same email had been sent to me on March 5. I concluded that the ONLY personal information he really had was my email address, since he didn’t even include my first or last name. That same email had been discussed by Brian Roche at WGAL8 on March 2, 2026 in an article titled Protect yourself | Email scam threatens to sell personal information online.

 

A few days ago I got a fraudulent text message claiming that I needed to pay the State of Idaho a fine for a vehicle infraction. Fortunately my iPhone displayed the country code for the message was a +66 (Thailand) rather than +1 (United States). 

  

To be in this speaking contest you also need to be a cowboy or cowgirl

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is an article by Kanzie Johnson at FortWorth on March 9, 2026 titled Debunking the myth of the quiet cowboy, and subtitled There aren’t many public speaking competitions that require being a cowboy as a prerequisite, but we know of at least one that happened right here in Fort Worth.

 

It is called the Bridles and Brains Collegiate Ranch Horse Competition. Each rider competes in two-partner ranch penning, ranch roping, ranch trail, ranch reining, public speaking, and a media interview. Those horse-related events are as follows:

 

“The ranch roping event is built upon the practicalities of working on a farm. At least 10 numbered cattle and a handful of unnumbered ones fill the pen, with two cows assigned to each number. When the rider enters, a number is called and they’re free to rope either cow wearing it.

Two-partner team penning is the only on-horse event done in pairs, where riders work together to move a herd of numbered cattle from one pen to another. When a number is called, the team must separate that cow and drive it into the catch pen as quickly as possible. 

Ranch trail replicates challenges riders might encounter during a day on a ranch, such as crossing ground poles, dragging an object by rope or opening a mailbox from horseback.

Ranch reining, meanwhile, is a higher-energy display where contestants follow a pattern with maneuvers like sliding stops and spins to showcase the horse’s responsiveness.”

The 1907 theater poster came from the Library of Congress.

Tourons and the Disneyland Syndrome

 

 

 

 

 

Touron is a portmanteau word combining the first four letters from tourist with the last two from moron, as shown above. There is an article by Gig Morris at TheTravel on February 19, 2025 titled “Tourons” on the loose: Travelers are behaving so badly that they’ve earned their own nickname. For example, at Yellowstone National Park, they get injured after they come 11 feet from a bison rather than the recommended minimum of 75 feet. She said of touron:

 

“It sounds new, but the word can be traced to the mid-1970s within the National Park System.”

 

Another article by Katie Jackson at the New York Post on October 3, 2024 is titled Moronic tourists are ruining travel – how not to be one on your next vacation. I found the word discussed in a very profane four-minute YouTube video from Lewis Black on March 27, 2026 titled Tourists, Morons, & Lava | Lewis Black’s Rantcast Clips.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But I was aware of the concept long ago. In the mid-1980s my brother Tom and I had visited the Smoky Mountain National Park. We wanted to get a great view by climbing to the highest point in Tennessee, Clingman’s Dome (Kuwohi). There is a mile-long paved trail leading to the concrete observation tower (shown above) via a spiral ramp.

 

That morning the sky already was medium to dark gray, so it was not a matter of if it would rain, just when. Both of us wore jackets. I got a big golf umbrella out from my car and used it as a walking stick on the way up from the parking lot.

 

Lots of tourists on the trail were without umbrellas or even hooded windbreakers. Just as we began heading back down it began to pour. We stayed dry, but most tourists got thoroughly soaked. I later referred to their behavior as the Disneyland Syndrome – behaving as if they just were in an amusement park rather than a national park.  

 

 

Telling someone just to “be yourself” might be terrible advice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The F Minus cartoon by Tony Carrillo on February 1, 2026 has a caption that says:

 

“For too long, we’ve ignored the devastating effects that ‘be yourself’ messaging can have on those people who happen to have rotten selves.”

 

Back on March 19, 2010 I blogged about Just be yourself (act naturally)? and I asked:

 

“Well, which self would you like to see: best or worst, relaxed or scared, et cetera?”

 

And there is a LinkedIn Pulse article on April 2, 2024 by Laura Bergells titled The Trouble with ‘Just Be Yourself’: A Deeper Look into Public Speaking Anxiety. A Mathew Hussey blog post on September 22, 2013 titled ‘Be Yourself’ – Bad Advice says:

 

“When someone says ‘be yourself’ all it does is give us validation for staying the same and not taking risks.”

 

My cartoon was adapted from a tee shirt and dragon at OpenClipArt.

 

 

A fraudulent letter asking me to renew a Home Warranty - that I don’t have

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

In today’s mail I received an undated letter titled Final Notice to create urgency. Its heading only says Home Warranty Division, Private & Confidential and does not identify either the organization or their mailing address. (And there was no return address on the envelope, which was mailed from St. Louis, Missouri).

 

The message is:

 

“RESPONSE TO THIS NOTICE REQUESTED

 

Attention: Richard Garber

 

It is important you contact our office at 1-888-413-5452 upon receiving this notice to avoid any unnecessary delays in your coverage before 4/10/2026. This notice is to inform you that the Home Warranty for your property in Boise, ID may be expiring or has already expired. Our records indicate that you have not contacted us yet to get your Home Warranty up to date. Please call immediately as this will be our final attempt to notify you about activating your Home Warranty. 

 

Failure to call and prevent a potential lapse in coverage could result in you being liable for all costs associated with any home repairs. However, you may still have time to activate a warranty on your home before it’s too late. No inspection will be required and final acceptance is subject to your ability to meet eligibility requirements. We reserve the right to revoke your eligibility for service coverage after the Expiration Date of 4/10/2026. Please respond immediately by calling 1-888-413-5452.

 

Sincerely, Vicky Mercer – Program Director”

 

Of course, I did NOT call her and give out any payment information. This message had previously been reported to the BBB [Better Business Bureau] Scam Tracker today, on March 19, 2026, and January 21, 2026, and at least five times in 2025.

 

My red letter cartoon was modifed from one at OpenClipArt.

 

 

Can jokes liven up scientific conferences?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a serious article by Stefano Mammola et al. in the Royal Society Proceedings B for March 2026 (Volume 293, Number 2067) titled Statistically significant chuckles: who is using humor at scientific conferences? The abstract says that:

 

“We’ve all been there: 11.47, swamped by a long stretch of dense scientific talks at a conference. Six slides into a hyper-technical presentation, the speaker suddenly cracks a joke. The room erupts. Shoulders relax. Minds re-engage. Humour is a powerful but underused tool in scientific communication, often sidelined by academic norms that view levity as unprofessional. Social biases can further shape who feels safe joking without risking credibility. 

 

At 14 biology-related conferences, we collected data on humour use across 531 talks. Jokes clustered at the beginnings and ends of talks, with an extra bump in successful jokes midway through. Most jokes (66%) earned only polite chuckles. Humour success was unrelated to the type of joke or form of delivery; however, male speakers told about 0.35 more jokes per talk, and both male and native speakers had a 10% higher probability of eliciting laughter. 

 

This suggests how social dynamics influence who feels comfortable using humour and whose jokes resonate with the audience. Until academia reckons with these biases, humour will remain a privilege. Still, for those brave enough or granted the social licence, a well-placed zinger can turn a forgettable talk into one people actually remember—and perhaps even enjoy.”

 

There were only 870 unique jokes, with 223 speakers telling none. 367 jokes were about situational hiccups, 161 were about subject matter, only 52 were about popular culture unrelated to academia, and 30 were inside jokes about the academic community or conference. 707 were delivered orally, 133 relied on visuals, and just 30 used physical comedy.

 

I found out about this article from another by Phie Jacobs at Science on March 17, 2026 titled Scientific conferences can be a bore. Can jokes liven them up? Yet another is by Nicola James at Nature on March 18, 2026 titled Knock knock, no one’s there. Study finds scientists’ jokes mostly fall flat.

 

The cartoon audience was modified from a couple and another couple at OpenClipArt.