Flights of Freedom

Origin of Terms Series The "Today QiYun Learnt" Digest Alright, here's another fun fact for the day: The English word "salary" is derived from the Latin phrase salarium argentum , which means "salt money'. This was because salt was so valuable even in those times that it was also used as a currency, and was part of the payment made to soldiers in Rome.

Today I learnt that disposing of a Singapore flag is permitted, but it has to be concealed and not prominently visible in the rubbish bin etc. So for instance, it has to be sealed properly in a black trash bag. This makes sense too, as it looks quite disrespectful to see a national flag sticking out of a rubbish bin. That's all for today.  Source:  https://www.nhb.gov.sg/what-we-do/our-work/community-engagement/education/resources/national-symbols/national-flag#:~:text=Any%20worn%20out%20or%20damaged,bag%20before%20being%20disposed%20of.

Today, while closing my windows before I turned in for the night, I realised the night sky was clear and cloudless and a distinctive formation of four bright stars caught my eye. Three of them were in a straight line, and the fourth and brightest was well-aligned with the centre star. Needless to say, curiosity took over, and Today QiYun Learnt that he was looking at a part of Cygnus, the Swan of the north (also called the Northern Cross). Without further ado... Navigating with Cygnus (The "Today QiYun Learnt" Digest: Celestial Navigation Series ) The Legend of Cygnus First, let me tell you a story about the swan Cygnus. There are many legends, so the one I am telling you here is but one of them. There were once two Greek gods: Cycnus and Phaeton (son of Apollo),who were best friends. One day, they decided to have a race. Being too focused on the race, they did not pay attention to where they were going and flew too close to the sun. Under the intense heat, their chariots beg...

Trebuchet MS  (The "Today QiYun Learnt" Digest:  Origins of Terms Series) Trebuchet MS Font Face Alright, so the context was: I saw on my YouTube feed, some video about a trebuchet. Now a trebuchet is a gravity-operated catapult device used in the olden days for sieges against castles and fortified embankments. The name seemed really familiar to me and I wondered where I had seen it before. Then it dawned on me - it was the name of a nice font that I used to use, before I came to try out Helvetica, Century Gothic etc.  And then came my million dollar question: what could possibly be the link between that font and an ancient gravity-operated catapult? So today I learnt that, according to Wikipedia: The name was inspired by a puzzle question that Vincent Connare (the font's designer) heard at Microsoft headquarters: "Can you make a trebuchet that could launch a person from main campus to the new consumer campus about a mile away? Mathematically, is it po...

Navigating with Scorpius  (The "Today QiYun Learnt" Digest:  Celestial Navigation Series) On the way back from my run, I stared into the night sky and saw a couple of stars that looked like Orion's Belt (belonging to the constellation Orion) at first, but found that it was a bit dim. So I used the app Sky Map to search it up, and found that it was Scorpius, and what I saw was Scorpius' tail, not Orion's belt. In fact, Orion and Scorpius will never appear in the night sky together as they are opposite sides of the sun. As the myth goes, Scorpius will eternally chase Orion around the Earth but will never catch him. In the Summer night sky, in the Northern Hemisphere, you will see Scorpius, and in Winter, you will see Orion.  I searched it up a bit more and today I learnt how to use the Scorpius constellation to navigate and find one's direction.  Finding South with Scorpius To find South, there are two conditions/scenarios to consider: 1. When the head is more o...

The "Today QiYun Learnt" Digest  An Introduction I am starting this miniature Digest to collect the miscellaneous bits and pieces of information which my curiosity has bade me to investigate. I shall start recording these pieces of information from the point of time of writing this post. For some posts that cover a similar topic, I will group them together in " Series ". Important Disclaimer:  Since I am starting this digest as a side hobby/project to consolidate and record down the pieces of information that I have found out, they will necessarily not be overly detailed, nor will I be as meticulous as I normally would be, in investigating the sources of the information. I will, of course, try to ensure that the information that I reflect here, be reliable. But as I am merely writing a small informal Digest or blog, and not a research paper, I will be less meticulous in selecting and citing my sources, and the scope and depth of my research will necessarily be limit...