Flying for Fun
Editorial Comment: One of the cardinal rules of journalism involves the difference between news and commentary. As an example: "Miss Melanie hosted a sixth birthday party last Sunday," is news; adding "and a good time was had by all" is no longer news but an editorial comment, since it expresses a personal opinion. And a good time really was had by all! AMA hosted Celebration of Eagles at the national flying site in Muncie the first weekend of July 1996, and everyone had a fun-filled weekend. I was there and saw nothing but ear-to-ear smiles, heard nearly continuous laughter, and everyone I talked to raved about the really good time they were having!
Flying for Fun
OXYMORONS: Webster defines an oxymoron as "A combination of contradictory or incongruous words." Some classic examples are: "military intelligence," "sanitary landfill," "new antiques," and my pet, "converted rice." Modeling also seems to have created its share of these contradictory phrases. The amusing aspect of this phenomenon is our tendency to verbalize and write them without much consideration. I often catch myself saying and writing phrases that are rather embarrassing when I stop and think about them. As an example, "glow and ignition engines" doesn't hold up well to analytical process. Don't glow plugs ignite the fuel/air mixture too? In reality we mean "glow and spark," don't we?
Flying for Fun
My wife subscribes to her weekly hometown newspaper. As is unfortunately typical of these village papers, the editor is responsible for everything from selling ads to delivering the finished product for mailing. Obviously there are no funds for hiring a photographer, so the harried editor must not only cover the events, then write articles about them, and she must also take the needed pictures, with no time should retakes be required. I recently saw a front page photo taken in a Legion hall of two ladies involved in some sort of award presentation. Unfortunately, one lady was positioned relative to the photographer in such a way that the brass eagle on top of the flag behind her appeared to be jutting out of the top of her head.
Flying for Fun
Gravity and Stuff: Everyone knows about Sir Isaac Newton and his adventures underneath a tree (how fortunate for him that he chose to sit under an apple tree rather than a coconut palm). That experience led him to develop a series of mathematical calculations relating to gravitational forces, and those calculations have bedeviled physics students ever since. (Oddly, Isaac Newton became immortal while the contribution to mankind by his brother Fig, a baker, has been all but forgotten.) Unfortunately, Newton's law of gravitation contains an error! Gravity is not distributed evenly above Earth! Modelers are aware of this, but as a result of observation rather than fancy mathematics.
Flying for Fun
PREVIOUS NEWCOMER Issue columns have directed philosophical comments toward the structured portions of the hobby and toward their recruitment of newcomers. My intent is to welcome new modelers and to offer something that the experienced modeler can pass on to increase the newcomers' long-term enjoyment of the hobby - the cardinal rule for operating engine-powered model airplanes: Do not get your body parts entangled in spinning propellers! Many people have seen modelers (newcomers and experts alike) get chewed up by props, but anyone with common sense can recognize the potential for injury from a rotating propeller blade.
