You learn something new...

Maybe I am a little slow and I'm learning things everyone already knows. But, I learned a few new things in the last few days that I am so stoked about.

1. dictionary.com has an audible pronunciation feature. I had never noticed the little speaker icon before the other day, I clicked it next to a word I was trying to learn and it was amazing. One incredible feature. The word was escutcheon. es ku chun. It means a shield displaying a coat of arms.
2. Every star in the universe has a unique infrared signature. Today at my singles ward's FHE we had a guest speaker who is one of 93 people who qualified to fly the blackbird--SR71 spy plane used during the cold war. The plane uses the stars to navigate even during the day when you can't see the stars by identifying the most prominent star in the sky by it's infared waves (i.e. energy/vibe) and then from there, identifying two more stars creating a triangle to use for navigation. amazing. I love the stars and their spiritual significance--so I'm already thinking of ways to incorporate that into my personal gospel perspective. This presentation was so rad. example...the blackbird cruised at speeds of 35 miles per minute and at altitudes around 80,000 ft. Flight time from LA to London was 3:47:39, coast-to-coast in just over 1 hour! That would come in handy for me in the near future. Pres Reagan, shortly after his inauguration, started sending the plane over Cuba to let out a sonic boom here and there to send a message to Castro (I like that one). It only took 20 second to get airborne. Can you imagine the g-forces on your body?? It wasn't uncommon from the altitudes it flew for the pilots to see the curvature of the earth. The line of sight was 500 miles...meaning from the air, they could monitor LA and San Francisco at the same time. What a cool plane. ps, there's one in the Smithsonian annex at Dulles airport.
3. Anyone can sell books on Amazon.com. it is SO easy and I am having SO much fun with this! I posted the majority of my text and reference books from grad school, just under the lowest price already posted, and within 24 hours I have already sold 11 books. I'll be using the money I make for my first month's rent... oh, but that's for another post. stay tuned for some exciting news. Well, I'm excited.