100 and Done! (Countries that is...)

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We are back! This last trip brought the total countries visited to 100! It is a crazy milestone. It is difficult, time-consuming and can be (IS) expensive. After I got back from Antarctica in 2007, I started thinking about it. After 2010 I was thinking about it more (as I moved from NY to Georgia) and in 2014 it had become a real goal. Between Angie and I we have been to 109 Countries. We are tied at 100 countries each. We have 9 countries different in our lists. For example, I have been to San Marino. She has not. She has been to Israel. I have not, yet. There has been some fun competition in this area. That's why we had to establish rules. 1.) Must be listed (as a country) with the US State Department 2.) Being in an airport doesn't count. You have to get through immigration somehow and not in a DMZ or a no-mans-land 3.) A passport stamp is not required. I have been to Canada, Paraguay, and Uruguay without getting my passport stamped. There are friendly borders in many places...
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Ya know, as a student of information science and a legacy of philosophers and technical folk. I think some pretty weird stuff sometimes. I mean, for instance, It seems to me that we are (as a human society) on the verge of a new enlightenment.

The older methods of experimentation, observation and exposition of conclusions are pretty much out the window for practical science. Today, it seems that we take a shot, miss and kinda guess. We will make it up as needed in the future. Our older procedures have overrun themselves and we don't have time to reflect or correct (and of course we gave up years ago on documenting the whole mess).

Today we must have faith in chaos, abiguity and failure.

Some of the thoughts I am having lately are born of the notion that information and science and philosophy are the same thing. (there is a lot more on this, standby) The very nature of scientific thought is subject only to the confines of protocols set hundreds or thousands of years ago. It is true that these thoughts have "paid the bills" for many many years, but the time has come to set the intellect free. We must not hide behind art or social consciousness. Human thought is important, and must be nourished, guided, encouraged.

"Reality is 'that which resists' (Latour, 1987)"

The best technological breakthroughs will be a result of an increased efficiencies of scientific thought.

I will study more on chaos.

The truck seems to be fixed. I had to pay for the warrantee deductable (BAH!) and the oil change as well as the inspection.

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