fortunes revision 1.37
1!07/11 PDP a ni deppart m'I !pleH 2% 3(1) Alexander the Great was a great general. 4(2) Great generals are forewarned. 5(3) Forewarned is forearmed. 6(4) Four is an even number. 7(5) Four is certainly an odd number of arms for a man to have. 8(6) The only number that is both even and odd is infinity. 9 10Therefore, Alexander the Great had an infinite number of arms. 11% 12(1) Everything depends. 13(2) Nothing is always. 14(3) Everything is sometimes. 15% 161.79 x 10^12 furlongs per fortnight -- it's not just a good idea, it's 17the law! 18% 1910.0 times 0.1 is hardly ever 1.0. 20% 21100 buckets of bits on the bus 22100 buckets of bits 23Take one down, short it to ground 24FF buckets of bits on the bus 25 26FF buckets of bits on the bus 27FF buckets of bits 28Take one down, short it to ground 29FE buckets of bits on the bus 30 31ad infinitum... 32% 33$100 invested at 7% interest for 100 years will become $100,000, at 34which time it will be worth absolutely nothing. 35 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 36% 37101 USES FOR A DEAD MICROPROCESSOR 38 (1) Scarecrow for centipedes 39 (2) Dead cat brush 40 (3) Hair barrettes 41 (4) Cleats 42 (5) Self-piercing earrings 43 (6) Fungus trellis 44 (7) False eyelashes 45 (8) Prosthetic dog claws 46 . 47 . 48 . 49 (99) Window garden harrow (pulled behind Tonka tractors) 50 (100) Killer velcro 51 (101) Currency 52% 53186,282 miles per second: 54 55It isn't just a good idea, it's the law! 56% 572180, U.S. History question: 58 What 20th Century U.S. President was almost impeached and what 59office did he later hold? 60% 61$3,000,000 62% 63355/113 -- Not the famous irrational number PI, but an incredible 64simulation! 65% 663 syncs represent the trinity -- init, the child and the eternal zombie 67process. In doing 3, you're paying homage to each and I think such 68traditions are important in this shallow, mercurial business we find 69ourselves in. 70 -- Jordan K. Hubbard 71% 7243rd Law of Computing: 73 Anything that can go wr 74fortune: Segmentation violation -- Core dumped 75% 7677. HO HUM -- The Redundant 77 78------- (7) This hexagram refers to a situation of extreme 79--- --- (8) boredom. Your programs always bomb off. Your wife 80------- (7) smells bad. Your children have hives. You are working 81---O--- (6) on an accounting system, when you want to develop the 82---X--- (9) GREAT AMERICAN COMPILER. You give up hot dates to 83--- --- (8) nurse sick computers. What you need now is sex. 84 85Nine in the second place means: 86 The yellow bird approaches the malt shop. Misfortune. 87 88Six in the third place means: 89 In former times men built altars to honor the Internal Revenue 90 Service. Great Dragons! Are you in trouble! 91% 927:30, Channel 5: The Bionic Dog (Action/Adventure) 93 The Bionic Dog drinks too much and kicks over the National 94 Redwood Forest. 95% 967:30, Channel 5: The Bionic Dog (Action/Adventure) 97 The Bionic Dog gets a hormonal short-circuit and violates the 98 Mann Act with an interstate Greyhound bus. 99% 10099 blocks of crud on the disk, 10199 blocks of crud! 102You patch a bug, and dump it again: 103100 blocks of crud on the disk! 104 105100 blocks of crud on the disk, 106100 blocks of crud! 107You patch a bug, and dump it again: 108101 blocks of crud on the disk! ... 109% 110A "No" uttered from deepest conviction is better and greater than a 111"Yes" merely uttered to please, or what is worse, to avoid trouble. 112 -- Mahatma Gandhi 113% 114A [golf] ball hitting a tree shall be deemed not to have hit the tree. 115Hitting a tree is simply bad luck and has no place in a scientific 116game. The player should estimate the distance the ball would have 117traveled if it had not hit the tree and play the ball from there, 118preferably atop a nice firm tuft of grass. 119 -- Donald A. Metz 120% 121A [golf] ball sliced or hooked into the rough shall be lifted and 122placed in the fairway at a point equal to the distance it carried or 123rolled into the rough. Such veering right or left frequently results 124from friction between the face of the club and the cover of the ball 125and the player should not be penalized for the erratic behavior of the 126ball resulting from such uncontrollable physical phenomena. 127 -- Donald A. Metz 128% 129A baby is an alimentary canal with a loud voice at one end and no 130responsibility at the other. 131% 132A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on. 133 -- Carl Sandburg 134% 135A bachelor is a selfish, undeserving guy who has cheated some woman out 136of a divorce. 137 -- Don Quinn 138% 139A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining 140and wants it back the minute it begins to rain. 141 -- Mark Twain 142% 143A billion here, a couple of billion there -- first thing you know it 144adds up to be real money. 145 -- Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen 146% 147A bird in the bush usually has a friend in there with him. 148% 149A bird in the hand is worth what it will bring. 150% 151A bird in the hand makes it awfully hard to blow your nose. 152% 153... A booming voice says, "Wrong, cretin!", and you notice that you 154have turned into a pile of dust. 155% 156A bore is someone who persists in holding his own views after we have 157enlightened him with ours. 158% 159A budget is just a method of worrying before you spend money, as well 160as afterward. 161% 162A candidate is a person who gets money from the rich and votes from the 163poor to protect them from each other. 164% 165A celebrity is a person who is known for his well-knownness. 166% 167A child can go only so far in life without potty training. It is not 168mere coincidence that six of the last seven presidents were potty 169trained, not to mention nearly half of the nation's state legislators. 170 -- Dave Barry 171% 172A child of five could understand this! Fetch me a child of five. 173% 174A chubby man with a white beard and a red suit will approach you soon. 175Avoid him. He's a Commie. 176% 177A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but 178won't cross the street to vote in a national election. 179 -- Bill Vaughan 180% 181A city is a large community where people are lonesome together. 182 -- Herbert Prochnow 183% 184A classic is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody 185wants to read. 186 -- Mark Twain, "The Disappearance of Literature" 187% 188A closed mouth gathers no foot. 189% 190A conclusion is simply the place where someone got tired of thinking. 191% 192A CONS is an object which cares. 193 -- Bernie Greenberg 194% 195A consultant is a person who borrows your watch, tells you what time it 196is, pockets the watch, and sends you a bill for it. 197% 198A continuing flow of paper is sufficient to continue the flow of paper. 199 -- Dyer 200% 201A copy of the universe is not what is required of art; one of the 202damned things is ample. 203 -- Rebecca West 204% 205A countryman between two lawyers is like a fish between two cats. 206 -- Ben Franklin 207% 208A cynic is a person searching for an honest man, with a stolen 209lantern. 210 -- Edgar A. Shoaff 211% 212A day for firm decisions!!!!! Or is it? 213% 214A day without sunshine is like night. 215% 216A diplomat is a man who can convince his wife she'd look stout in a fur 217coat. 218% 219A diplomat is someone who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that 220you will look forward to the trip. 221% 222 A disciple of another sect once came to Drescher as he was 223eating his morning meal. "I would like to give you this personality 224test", said the outsider, "because I want you to be happy." 225 Drescher took the paper that was offered him and put it into 226the toaster -- "I wish the toaster to be happy too". 227% 228A diva who specializes in risqu'e arias is an off-coloratura soprano ... 229% 230 A doctor, an architect, and a computer scientist were arguing 231about whose profession was the oldest. In the course of their 232arguments, they got all the way back to the Garden of Eden, whereupon 233the doctor said, "The medical profession is clearly the oldest, because 234Eve was made from Adam's rib, as the story goes, and that was a simply 235incredible surgical feat." 236 The architect did not agree. He said, "But if you look at the 237Garden itself, in the beginning there was chaos and void, and out of 238that, the Garden and the world were created. So God must have been an 239architect." 240 The computer scientist, who had listened to all of this said, 241"Yes, but where do you think the chaos came from?" 242% 243A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of. 244 -- Ogden Nash 245% 246A famous Lisp Hacker noticed an Undergraduate sitting in front of a 247Xerox 1108, trying to edit a complex Klone network via a browser. 248Wanting to help, the Hacker clicked one of the nodes in the network 249with the mouse, and asked "what do you see?" Very earnestly, the 250Undergraduate replied "I see a cursor." The Hacker then quickly 251pressed the boot toggle at the back of the keyboard, while 252simultaneously hitting the Undergraduate over the head with a thick 253Interlisp Manual. The Undergraduate was then Enlightened. 254% 255A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the 256subject. 257 -- Winston Churchill 258% 259A fool must now and then be right by chance. 260% 261A fool's brain digests philosophy into folly, science into 262superstition, and art into pedantry. Hence University education. 263 -- G. B. Shaw 264% 265A fool-proof method for sculpting an elephant: first, get a huge block 266of marble; then you chip away everything that doesn't look like an 267elephant. 268% 269A formal parsing algorithm should not always be used. 270 -- D. Gries 271% 272A fractal is by definition a set for which the Hausdorff Besicovitch 273dimension strictly exceeds the topological dimension. 274 -- Mandelbrot, "The Fractal Geometry of Nature" 275% 276A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular. 277 -- Adlai Stevenson 278% 279A Galileo could no more be elected president of the United States than 280he could be elected Pope of Rome. Both high posts are reserved for men 281favored by God with an extraordinary genius for swathing the bitter 282facts of life in bandages of self-illusion. 283 -- H. L. Mencken 284% 285A general leading the State Department resembles a dragon commanding 286ducks. 287 -- New York Times, Jan. 20, 1981 288% 289A girl and a boy bump into each other -- surely an accident. 290A girl and a boy bump and her handkerchief drops -- surely another accident. 291But when a girl gives a boy a dead squid -- *____that ___had __to ____mean _________something*. 292 -- S. Morgenstern, "The Silent Gondoliers" 293% 294A gleekzorp without a tornpee is like a quop without a fertsneet (sort 295of). 296% 297A good question is never answered. It is not a bolt to be tightened 298into place but a seed to be planted and to bear more seed toward the 299hope of greening the landscape of idea. 300 -- John Ciardi 301% 302A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely 303rearranging their prejudices. 304 -- William James 305% 306A great nation is any mob of people which produces at least one honest 307man a century. 308% 309A hypothetical paradox: 310 What would happen in a battle between an Enterprise security 311team, who always get killed soon after appearing, and a squad of 312Imperial Stormtroopers, who can't hit the broad side of a planet? 313 -- Tom Galloway 314% 315A is for Amy who fell down the stairs, B is for Basil assaulted by bears. 316C is for Clair who wasted away, D is for Desmond thrown out of the sleigh. 317E is for Ernest who choked on a peach, F is for Fanny, sucked dry by a leech. 318G is for George, smothered under a rug, H is for Hector, done in by a thug. 319I is for Ida who drowned in the lake, J is for James who took lye, by mistake. 320K is for Kate who was struck with an axe, L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks. 321M is for Maud who was swept out to sea, N is for Nevil who died of ennui. 322O is for Olive, run through with an awl, P is for Prue, trampled flat in a brawl 323Q is for Quinton who sank in a mire, R is for Rhoda, consumed by a fire. 324S is for Susan who parished of fits, T is for Titas who flew into bits. 325U is for Una who slipped down a drain, V is for Victor, squashed under a train. 326W is for Winnie, embedded in ice, X is for Xerxes, devoured by mice. 327Y is for Yoric whose head was bashed in, Z is for Zilla who drank too much gin. 328 -- Edward Gorey "The Gashlycrumb Tinies" 329% 330A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance. 331% 332A jury consists of 12 persons chosen to decide who has the better lawyer. 333 -- Robert Frost 334% 335A lack of leadership is no substitute for inaction. 336% 337A lady with one of her ears applied 338To an open keyhole heard, inside, 339Two female gossips in converse free -- 340The subject engaging them was she. 341"I think", said one, "and my husband thinks 342That she's a prying, inquisitive minx!" 343As soon as no more of it she could hear 344The lady, indignant, removed her ear. 345"I will not stay," she said with a pout, 346"To hear my character lied about!" 347 -- Gopete Sherany 348% 349A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming is 350not worth knowing. 351% 352A language that doesn't have everything is actually easier to program 353in than some that do. 354 -- Dennis M. Ritchie 355% 356A large number of installed systems work by fiat. That is, they work 357by being declared to work. 358 -- Anatol Holt 359% 360A Law of Computer Programming: 361 Make it possible for programmers to write in English and you 362will find the programmers cannot write in English. 363% 364A LISP programmer knows the value of everything, but the cost of 365nothing. 366 -- Alan Perlis 367% 368A little inaccuracy sometimes saves tons of explanation. 369 -- H. H. Munroe, "Saki" 370% 371A long memory is the most subversive idea in America. 372% 373A long-forgotten loved one will appear soon. Buy the negatives at any 374price. 375% 376A Los Angeles judge ruled that "a citizen may snore with immunity in 377his own home, even though he may be in possession of unusual and 378exceptional ability in that particular field." 379% 380A lot of people are afraid of heights. Not me. I'm afraid of widths. 381 -- Steve Wright 382% 383A lot of people I know believe in positive thinking, and so do I. I 384believe everything positively stinks. 385 -- Lew Col 386% 387 A man goes to a tailor to try on a new custom-made suit. The 388first thing he notices is that the arms are too long. 389 "No problem," says the tailor. "Just bend them at the elbow 390and hold them out in front of you. See, now it's fine." 391 "But the collar is up around my ears!" 392 "It's nothing. Just hunch your back up a little ... no, a 393little more ... that's it." 394 "But I'm stepping on my cuffs!" the man cries in desperation. 395 "Nu, bend you knees a little to take up the slack. There you 396go. Look in the mirror -- the suit fits perfectly." 397 So, twisted like a pretzel, the man lurches out onto the 398street. Reba and Florence see him go by. 399 "Oh, look," says Reba, "that poor man!" 400 "Yes," says Florence, "but what a beautiful suit." 401 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 402% 403A man said to the Universe: "Sir, I exist!" 404 405"However," replied the Universe, "the fact has not created in me a 406sense of obligation." 407 -- Stephen Crane 408% 409A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package. 410% 411 A master was explaining the nature of Tao to one of his 412novices. "The Tao is embodied in all software -- regardless of how 413insignificant," said the master. 414 415 "Is Tao in a hand-held calculator?" asked the novice. 416 417 "It is," came the reply. 418 419 "Is the Tao in a video game?" continued the novice. 420 421 "It is even in a video game," said the master. 422 423 "And is the Tao in the DOS for a personal computer?" 424 425 The master coughed and shifted his position slightly. "The 426lesson is over for today," he said. 427 -- "The Tao of Programming" 428% 429A mathematician is a machine for converting coffee into theorems. 430% 431A Mexican newspaper reports that bored Royal Air Force pilots stationed 432on the Falkland Islands have devised what they consider a marvelous new 433game. Noting that the local penguins are fascinated by airplanes, the 434pilots search out a beach where the birds are gathered and fly slowly 435along it at the water's edge. Perhaps ten thousand penguins turn their 436heads in unison watching the planes go by, and when the pilots turn 437around and fly back, the birds turn their heads in the opposite 438direction, like spectators at a slow-motion tennis match. Then, the 439paper reports, "The pilots fly out to sea and directly to the penguin 440colony and overfly it. Heads go up, up, up, and ten thousand penguins 441fall over gently onto their backs. 442 443 -- Audubon Society Magazine 444 445 446[From the BBC, 2001-02-02: 447 For five weeks, a team from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) 448monitored 1,000 king penguins on the island of South Georgia as Lynx 449helicopters passed overhead. 450 "Not one king penguin fell over when the helicopters came over," 451said team leader Dr. Richard Stone. 452 "As the aircraft approached, the birds went quiet and stopped 453calling to each other, and adolescent birds that were not associated 454with nests began walking away from the noise. Pure animal instinct, 455really." 456 The conclusion, said Dr. Stone, is that flights over 305 metres 457(1,000 feet) caused "only minor and transitory ecological effects" on 458king penguins.] 459% 460 A musician of more ambition than talent composed an elegy at 461the death of composer Edward MacDowell. She played the elegy for the 462pianist Josef Hoffman, then asked his opinion. "Well, it's quite 463nice," he replied, but don't you think it would be better if ..." 464 "If what?" asked the composer. 465 "If ... if you had died and MacDowell had written the elegy?" 466% 467A neighbor came to Nasrudin, asking to borrow his donkey. "It is out 468on loan," the teacher replied. At that moment, the donkey brayed 469loudly inside the stable. "But I can hear it bray, over there." "Whom 470do you believe," asked Nasrudin, "me or a donkey?" 471% 472A new koan: 473 474 If you have some ice cream, I will give it to you. 475 476 If you have no ice cream, I will take it away from you. 477 478It is an ice cream koan. 479% 480A new supply of round tuits has arrived and are available from Mary. 481Anyone who has been putting off work until they got a round tuit now 482has no excuse for further procrastination. 483% 484A New York City judge ruled that if two women behind you at the movies 485insist on discussing the probable outcome of the film, you have the 486right to turn around and blow a Bronx cheer at them. 487% 488A New York City ordinance prohibits the shooting of rabbits from the 489rear of a Third Avenue street car -- if the car is in motion. 490% 491 A novel approach is to remove all power from the system, which 492removes most system overhead so that resources can be fully devoted to 493doing nothing. Benchmarks on this technique are promising; tremendous 494amounts of nothing can be produced in this manner. Certain hardware 495limitations can limit the speed of this method, especially in the 496larger systems which require a more involved & less efficient 497power-down sequence. 498 An alternate approach is to pull the main breaker for the 499building, which seems to provide even more nothing, but in truth has 500bugs in it, since it usually inhibits the systems which keep the beer 501cool. 502% 503A novice was trying to fix a broken Lisp machine by turning the power 504off and on. Knight, seeing what the student was doing spoke sternly: 505"You can not fix a machine by just power-cycling it with no 506understanding of what is going wrong." Knight turned the machine off 507and on. The machine worked. 508% 509A nuclear war can ruin your whole day. 510% 511A pedestal is as much a prison as any small, confined space. 512 -- Gloria Steinem 513% 514A penny saved is ridiculous. 515% 516A person is just about as big as the things that make them angry. 517% 518A physicist is an atom's way of knowing about atoms. 519 -- George Wald 520% 521A pig is a jolly companion, 522Boar, sow, barrow, or gilt -- 523A pig is a pal, who'll boost your morale, 524Though mountains may topple and tilt. 525When they've blackballed, bamboozled, and burned you, 526When they've turned on you, Tory and Whig, 527Though you may be thrown over by Tabby and Rover, 528You'll never go wrong with a pig, a pig, 529You'll never go wrong with a pig! 530 -- Thomas Pynchon, "Gravity's Rainbow" 531% 532 A Plan for the Improvement of English Spelling 533 by Mark Twain 534 535 For example, in Year 1 that useless letter "c" would be dropped 536to be replased either by "k" or "s", and likewise "x" would no longer 537be part of the alphabet. The only kase in which "c" would be retained 538would be the "ch" formation, which will be dealt with later. Year 2 539might reform "w" spelling, so that "which" and "one" would take the 540same konsonant, wile Year 3 might well abolish "y" replasing it with 541"i" and Iear 4 might fiks the "g/j" anomali wonse and for all. 542 Jenerally, then, the improvement would kontinue iear bai iear 543with Iear 5 doing awai with useless double konsonants, and Iears 6-12 544or so modifaiing vowlz and the rimeining voist and unvoist konsonants. 545Bai Iear 15 or sou, it wud fainali bi posibl tu meik ius ov thi 546ridandant letez "c", "y" and "x" -- bai now jast a memori in the maindz 547ov ould doderez -- tu riplais "ch", "sh", and "th" rispektivli. 548 Fainali, xen, aafte sam 20 iers ov orxogrefkl riform, wi wud 549hev a lojikl, kohirnt speling in ius xrewawt xe Ingliy-spiking werld. 550% 551A power so great, it can only be used for Good or Evil! 552 -- The Firesign Theatre, "The Giant Rat of Sumatra" 553% 554A priest asked: What is Fate, Master? 555 556And the Master answered: 557 558It is that which gives a beast of burden its reason for existence. 559 560It is that which men in former times had to bear upon their backs. 561 562It is that which has caused nations to build byways from City to City 563upon which carts and coaches pass, and alongside which inns have come 564to be built to stave off Hunger, Thirst and Weariness. 565 566And that is Fate? said the priest. 567 568Fate ... I thought you said Freight, responded the Master. 569 570That's all right, said the priest. I wanted to know what Freight was 571too. 572 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 573% 574 A priest was walking along the cliffs at Dover when he came 575upon two locals pulling another man ashore on the end of a rope. 576"That's what I like to see", said the priest, "A man helping his fellow 577man". 578 As he was walking away, one local remarked to the other, "Well, 579he sure doesn't know the first thing about shark fishing." 580% 581A professor is one who talks in someone else's sleep. 582% 583A programmer is a person who passes as an exacting expert on the basis 584of being able to turn out, after innumerable punching, an infinite 585series of incomprehensible answers calculated with micrometric 586precisions from vague assumptions based on debatable figures taken from 587inconclusive documents and carried out on instruments of problematical 588accuracy by persons of dubious reliability and questionable mentality 589for the avowed purpose of annoying and confounding a hopelessly 590defenseless department that was unfortunate enough to ask for the 591information in the first place. 592 -- IEEE Grid news magazine 593% 594A psychiatrist is a person who will give you expensive answers that 595your wife will give you for free. 596% 597A public debt is a kind of anchor in the storm; but if the anchor be 598too heavy for the vessel, she will be sunk by that very weight which 599was intended for her preservation. 600 -- Colton 601% 602A putt that stops close enough to the cup to inspire such comments as 603"you could blow it in" may be blown in. This rule does not apply if 604the ball is more than three inches from the hole, because no one wants 605to make a travesty of the game. 606 -- Donald A. Metz 607% 608A raccoon tangled with a 23,000 volt line today. The results blacked 609out 1400 homes and, of course, one raccoon. 610 -- Steel City News 611% 612A radioactive cat has eighteen half-lives. 613% 614A reading from the Book of Armaments, Chapter 4, Verses 16 to 20: 615 616Then did he raise on high the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, saying, 617"Bless this, O Lord, that with it thou mayst blow thine enemies to tiny 618bits, in thy mercy." And the people did rejoice and did feast upon the 619lambs and toads and tree-sloths and fruit-bats and orangutans and 620breakfast cereals ... Now did the Lord say, "First thou pullest the 621Holy Pin. Then thou must count to three. Three shall be the number of 622the counting and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt 623thou not count, neither shalt thou count two, excepting that thou then 624proceedeth to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being 625the number of the counting, be reached, then lobbest thou the Holy Hand 626Grenade in the direction of thine foe, who, being naughty in my sight, 627shall snuff it." 628 -- Monty Python, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" 629% 630A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices 631that the system works. 632% 633A real person has two reasons for doing anything ... a good reason and 634the real reason. 635% 636A recent study has found that concentrating on difficult off-screen 637objects, such as the faces of loved ones, causes eye strain in computer 638scientists. Researchers into the phenomenon cite the added 639concentration needed to "make sense" of such unnatural three 640dimensional objects ... 641% 642A Riverside, California, health ordinance states that two persons may 643not kiss each other without first wiping their lips with carbolized 644rosewater. 645% 646A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man 647contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral. 648 -- Antoine de Saint-Exupery 649% 650A sense of humor keen enough to show a man his own absurdities will 651keep him from the commission of all sins, or nearly all, save those 652that are worth committing. 653 -- Samuel Butler 654% 655 A Severe Strain on the Credulity 656 657As a method of sending a missile to the higher, and even to the highest 658parts of the earth's atmospheric envelope, Professor Goddard's rocket 659is a practicable and therefore promising device. It is when one 660considers the multiple-charge rocket as a traveler to the moon that one 661begins to doubt ... for after the rocket quits our air and really 662starts on its journey, its flight would be neither accelerated nor 663maintained by the explosion of the charges it then might have left. 664Professor Goddard, with his "chair" in Clark College and countenancing 665of the Smithsonian Institution, does not know the relation of action to 666re-action, and of the need to have something better than a vacuum 667against which to react ... Of course he only seems to lack the 668knowledge ladled out daily in high schools. 669 -- New York Times Editorial, 1920 670% 671A sine curve goes off to infinity or at least the end of the blackboard. 672 -- Prof. Steiner 673% 674... A solemn, unsmiling, sanctimonious old iceberg who looked like he 675was waiting for a vacancy in the Trinity. 676 -- Mark Twain 677% 678A straw vote only shows which way the hot air blows. 679 -- O'Henry 680% 681A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many 682bad measures. 683 -- Daniel Webster 684% 685A student who changes the course of history is probably taking an 686exam. 687% 688A student, in hopes of understanding the Lambda-nature, came to 689Greenblatt. As they spoke a Multics system hacker walked by. "Is it 690true," asked the student, "that PL-1 has many of the same data types as 691Lisp?" Almost before the student had finished his question, Greenblatt 692shouted, "FOO!", and hit the student with a stick. 693% 694A successful [software] tool is one that was used to do something 695undreamed of by its author. 696 -- S. C. Johnson 697% 698A system admin's life is a sorry one. The only advantage he has over 699Emergency Room doctors is that malpractice suits are rare. On the 700other hand, ER doctors never have to deal with patients installing 701new versions of their own innards! 702 -- Michael O'Brien 703% 704A tautology is a thing which is tautological. 705% 706A total abstainer is one who abstains from everything but abstention, 707and especially from inactivity in the affairs of others. 708 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 709% 710A transistor protected by a fast-acting fuse will protect the fuse by 711blowing first. 712% 713A triangle which has an angle of 135 degrees is called an obscene 714triangle. 715% 716A truly wise man never plays leapfrog with a unicorn. 717% 718A university is what a college becomes when the faculty loses interest 719in students. 720 -- John Ciardi 721% 722A University without students is like an ointment without a fly. 723 -- Ed Nather, professor of astronomy at UT Austin 724% 725A vacuum is a hell of a lot better than some of the stuff that nature 726replaces it with. 727 -- Tennessee Williams 728% 729A well adjusted person is one who makes the same mistake twice without 730getting nervous. 731% 732A witty saying proves nothing, but saying something pointless gets 733people's attention. 734% 735A witty saying proves nothing. 736 -- Voltaire 737% 738A wizard cannot do everything; a fact most magicians are reticent to 739admit, let alone discuss with prospective clients. Still, the fact 740remains that there are certain objects, and people, that are, for one 741reason or another, completely immune to any direct magical spell. It 742is for this group of beings that the magician learns the subtleties of 743using indirect spells. It also does no harm, in dealing with these 744matters, to carry a large club near your person at all times. 745 -- The Teachings of Ebenezum, Volume VIII 746% 747A year spent in artificial intelligence is enough to make one believe in God. 748% 749A.A.A.A.A.: 750 An organization for drunks who drive 751% 752AAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaccccccccckkkkkk!!!!!!!!! 753You brute! Knock before entering a ladies room! 754% 755Abandon the search for Truth; settle for a good fantasy. 756% 757About the time we think we can make ends meet, somebody moves the ends. 758 -- Herbert Hoover 759% 760Absence makes the heart go wander. 761% 762Absent, adj.: 763 Exposed to the attacks of friends and acquaintances; defamed; 764slandered. 765% 766Absentee, n.: 767 A person with an income who has had the forethought to remove 768himself from the sphere of exaction. 769 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 770% 771Abstainer, n.: 772 A weak person who yields to the temptation of denying himself a 773pleasure. 774 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 775% 776Absurdity, n.: 777 A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own 778opinion. 779 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 780% 781Academic politics is the most vicious and bitter form of politics, 782because the stakes are so low. 783 -- Wallace Sayre 784% 785Accident, n.: 786 A condition in which presence of mind is good, but absence of 787body is better. 788 -- Foolish Dictionary 789% 790Accidents cause History. 791 792If Sigismund Unbuckle had taken a walk in 1426 and met Wat Tyler, the 793Peasant's Revolt would never have happened and the motor car would not 794have been invented until 2026, which would have meant that all the oil 795could have been used for lamps, thus saving the electric light bulb and 796the whale, and nobody would have caught Moby Dick or Billy Budd. 797 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 798% 799According to Arkansas law, Section 4761, Pope's Digest: "No person 800shall be permitted under any pretext whatever, to come nearer than 801fifty feet of any door or window of any polling room, from the opening 802of the polls until the completion of the count and the certification of 803the returns." 804% 805According to Kentucky state law, every person must take a bath at least 806once a year. 807% 808According to my best recollection, I don't remember. 809 -- Vincent "Jimmy Blue Eyes" Alo 810% 811According to the latest official figures, 43% of all statistics are 812totally worthless. 813% 814According to the obituary notices, a mean and unimportant person never 815dies. 816% 817According to the Rand McNally Places-Rated Almanac, the best place to 818live in America is the city of Pittsburgh. The city of New York came 819in twenty-fifth. Here in New York we really don't care too much. 820Because we know that we could beat up their city anytime. 821 -- David Letterman 822% 823Accordion, n.: 824 A bagpipe with pleats. 825% 826Accuracy, n.: 827 The vice of being right. 828% 829 ACHTUNG!!! 830 831Das machine is nicht fur gefingerpoken und mittengrabben. Ist easy 832schnappen der springenwerk, blowenfusen und corkenpoppen mit 833spitzensparken. Ist nicht fur gewerken by das dummkopfen. Das 834rubbernecken sightseeren keepen hands in das pockets. Relaxen und 835vatch das blinkenlights!!! 836% 837Acid -- better living through chemistry. 838% 839Acid absorbs 47 times its weight in excess Reality. 840% 841Acquaintance, n.: 842 A person whom we know well enough to borrow from, but not well 843enough to lend to. 844 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 845% 846Acting is an art which consists of keeping the audience from coughing. 847% 848Actor: "I'm a smash hit. Why, yesterday during the last act, I had 849 everyone glued in their seats!" 850Oliver Herford: "Wonderful! Wonderful! Clever of you to think of 851 it!" 852% 853Actor: So what do you do for a living? 854Doris: I work for a company that makes deceptively shallow serving 855 dishes for Chinese restaurants. 856 -- Woody Allen, "Without Feathers" 857% 858Actors will happen even in the best-regulated families. 859% 860ADA, n.: 861 Something you need only know the name of to be an Expert in 862Computing. Useful in sentences like, "We had better develop an ADA 863awareness." 864 -- "Datamation", January 15, 1984 865% 866Admiration, n.: 867 Our polite recognition of another's resemblance to ourselves. 868 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 869% 870Adolescence, n.: 871 The stage between puberty and adultery. 872% 873Adopted kids are such a pain -- you have to teach them how to look 874like you ... 875 -- Gilda Radner 876% 877Adore, v.: 878 To venerate expectantly. 879 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 880% 881Adult, n.: 882 One old enough to know better. 883% 884Advertising is a valuable economic factor because it is the cheapest 885way of selling goods, particularly if the goods are worthless. 886 -- Sinclair Lewis 887% 888Advice to young men: Be ascetic, and if you can't be ascetic, 889then at least be aseptic. 890% 891After [Benjamin] Franklin came a herd of Electrical Pioneers whose 892names have become part of our electrical terminology: Myron Volt, Mary 893Louise Amp, James Watt, Bob Transformer, etc. These pioneers conducted 894many important electrical experiments. For example, in 1780 Luigi 895Galvani discovered (this is the truth) that when he attached two 896different kinds of metal to the leg of a frog, an electrical current 897developed and the frog's leg kicked, even though it was no longer 898attached to the frog, which was dead anyway. Galvani's discovery led 899to enormous advances in the field of amphibian medicine. Today, 900skilled veterinary surgeons can take a frog that has been seriously 901injured or killed, implant pieces of metal in its muscles, and watch it 902hop back into the pond just like a normal frog, except for the fact 903that it sinks like a stone. 904 -- Dave Barry, "What is Electricity?" 905% 906After a few boring years, socially meaningful rock 'n' roll died out. 907It was replaced by disco, which offers no guidance to any form of life 908more advanced than the lichen family. 909 -- Dave Barry, "Kids Today: They Don't Know Dum Diddly Do" 910% 911After a number of decimal places, nobody gives a damn. 912% 913... After all, all he did was string together a lot of old, well-known 914quotations. 915 -- H. L. Mencken, on Shakespeare 916% 917After all, what is your hosts' purpose in having a party? Surely not 918for you to enjoy yourself; if that were their sole purpose, they'd have 919simply sent champagne and women over to your place by taxi. 920 -- P. J. O'Rourke 921% 922After an instrument has been assembled, extra components will be found 923on the bench. 924% 925 After his Ignoble Disgrace, Satan was being expelled from 926Heaven. As he passed through the Gates, he paused a moment in thought, 927and turned to God and said, "A new creature called Man, I hear, is soon 928to be created." 929 "This is true," He replied. 930 "He will need laws," said the Demon slyly. 931 "What! You, his appointed Enemy for all Time! You ask for the 932right to make his laws?" 933 "Oh, no!" Satan replied, "I ask only that he be allowed to 934make his own." 935 It was so granted. 936 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 937% 938After I asked him what he meant, he replied that freedom consisted of 939the unimpeded right to get rich, to use his ability, no matter what the 940cost to others, to win advancement. 941 -- Norman Thomas 942% 943After I run your program, let's make love like crazed weasels, OK? 944% 945After living in New York, you trust nobody, but you believe 946everything. Just in case. 947% 948After the last of 16 mounting screws has been removed from an access 949cover, it will be discovered that the wrong access cover has been 950removed. 951% 952Afternoon very favorable for romance. Try a single person for a 953change. 954% 955Afternoon, n.: 956 That part of the day we spend worrying about how we wasted the 957morning. 958% 959Age before beauty; and pearls before swine. 960 -- Dorothy Parker 961% 962Age, n.: 963 That period of life in which we compound for the vices that we 964still cherish by reviling those that we no longer have the enterprise 965to commit. 966 -- Ambrose Bierce 967% 968Ah say, son, you're about as sharp as a bowlin' ball. 969% 970Ah, but the choice of dreams to live, 971there's the rub. 972 973For all dreams are not equal, 974some exit to nightmare 975most end with the dreamer 976 977But at least one must be lived ... and died. 978% 979Ah, you know the type. They like to blame it all on the Jews or the 980Blacks, 'cause if they couldn't, they'd have to wake up to the fact 981that life's one big, scary, glorious, complex and ultimately 982unfathomable crapshoot -- and the only reason THEY can't seem to keep 983up is they're a bunch of misfits and losers. 984 -- A analysis of Neo-Nazis, from "The Badger" comic 985% 986Air is water with holes in it. 987% 988Alas, I am dying beyond my means. 989 -- Oscar Wilde, as he sipped champagne on his deathbed 990% 991Albert Einstein, when asked to describe radio, replied: "You see, wire 992telegraph is a kind of a very, very long cat. You pull his tail in New 993York and his head is meowing in Los Angeles. Do you understand this? 994And radio operates exactly the same way: you send signals here, they 995receive them there. The only difference is that there is no cat." 996% 997Alden's Laws: 998 (1) Giving away baby clothes and furniture is the major cause 999 of pregnancy. 1000 (2) Always be backlit. 1001 (3) Sit down whenever possible. 1002% 1003Aleph-null bottles of beer on the wall, 1004Aleph-null bottles of beer, 1005 You take one down, and pass it around, 1006Aleph-null bottles of beer on the wall. 1007% 1008Alex Haley was adopted! 1009% 1010Alexander Graham Bell is alive and well in New York, and still waiting 1011for a dial tone. 1012% 1013Alimony is a system by which, when two people make a mistake, one of 1014them keeps paying for it. 1015 -- Peggy Joyce 1016% 1017All [zoos] actually offer to the public in return for the taxes spent 1018upon them is a form of idle and witless amusement, compared to which a 1019visit to a penitentiary, or even to a State legislature in session, is 1020informing, stimulating and ennobling. 1021 -- H. L. Mencken 1022% 1023All bridge hands are equally likely, but some are more equally likely 1024than others. 1025 -- Alan Truscott 1026% 1027All extremists should be taken out and shot. 1028% 1029All Finagle Laws may be bypassed by learning the simple art of doing 1030without thinking. 1031% 1032"All flesh is grass" 1033 -- Isaiah 1034Smoke a friend today. 1035% 1036All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy. 1037% 1038All I ask of life is a constant and exaggerated sense of my own 1039importance. 1040% 1041All I can think of is a platter of organic PRUNE CRISPS being trampled 1042by an army of swarthy, Italian LOUNGE SINGERS ... 1043% 1044All I want is a warm bed and a kind word and unlimited power. 1045 -- Ashleigh Brilliant 1046% 1047All men are mortal. Socrates was mortal. Therefore, all men are 1048Socrates. 1049 -- Woody Allen 1050% 1051All my friends and I are crazy. That's the only thing that keeps us sane. 1052% 1053All my life I wanted to be someone; I guess I should have been more 1054specific. 1055 -- Jane Wagner 1056% 1057All of the true things I am about to tell you are shameless lies. 1058 -- The Book of Bokonon / Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 1059% 1060All other things being equal, a bald man cannot be elected President of 1061the United States. 1062 -- Vic Gold 1063% 1064All power corrupts, but we need electricity. 1065% 1066All programmers are playwrights and all computers are lousy actors. 1067% 1068All progress is based upon a universal innate desire on the part of 1069every organism to live beyond its income. 1070 -- Samuel Butler, "Notebooks" 1071% 1072All science is either physics or stamp collecting. 1073 -- Ernest Rutherford 1074% 1075All snakes who wish to remain in Ireland will please raise their right 1076hands. 1077 -- Saint Patrick 1078% 1079All syllogisms have three parts; therefore this is not a syllogism. 1080% 1081All the big corporations depreciate their possessions, and you can, 1082too, provided you use them for business purposes. For example, if you 1083subscribe to the Wall Street Journal, a business-related newspaper, you 1084can deduct the cost of your house, because, in the words of U.S. 1085Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger in a landmark 1979 tax 1086decision: "Where else are you going to read the paper? Outside? What 1087if it rains?" 1088 -- Dave Barry, "Sweating Out Taxes" 1089% 1090... all the modern inconveniences ... 1091 -- Mark Twain 1092% 1093All the passions make us commit faults; love makes us commit the most 1094ridiculous ones. 1095 -- La Rochefoucauld 1096% 1097All the taxes paid over a lifetime by the average American are spent by 1098the government in less than a second. 1099 -- Jim Fiebig 1100% 1101All the world's a stage and most of us are desperately unrehearsed. 1102 -- Sean O'Casey 1103% 1104All the world's a VAX, 1105And all the coders merely butchers; 1106They have their exits and their entrails; 1107And one int in his time plays many widths, 1108His sizeof being _N bytes. At first the infant, 1109Mewling and puking in the Regent's arms. 1110And then the whining schoolboy, with his Sun, 1111And shining morning face, creeping like slug 1112Unwillingly to school. 1113 -- A Very Annoyed PDP-11 1114% 1115All theoretical chemistry is really physics; 1116and all theoretical chemists know it. 1117 -- Richard P. Feynman 1118% 1119All things are possible, except skiing thru a revolving door. 1120% 1121All this wheeling and dealing around, why, it isn't for money, it's for 1122fun. Money's just the way we keep score. 1123 -- Henry Tyroon 1124% 1125All true wisdom is found on T-shirts. 1126% 1127All wars are civil wars, because all men are brothers ... Each one owes 1128infinitely more to the human race than to the particular country in 1129which he was born. 1130 -- Francois Fenelon 1131% 1132Alliance, n.: 1133 In international politics, the union of two thieves who have 1134their hands so deeply inserted in each other's pocket that they cannot 1135separately plunder a third. 1136 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1137% 1138Alone, adj.: 1139 In bad company. 1140 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1141% 1142Although golf was originally restricted to wealthy, overweight 1143Protestants, today it's open to anybody who owns hideous clothing. 1144 -- Dave Barry 1145% 1146Although the moon is smaller than the earth, it is farther away. 1147% 1148Although we modern persons tend to take our electric lights, radios, 1149mixers, etc., for granted, hundreds of years ago people did not have 1150any of these things, which is just as well because there was no place 1151to plug them in. Then along came the first Electrical Pioneer, 1152Benjamin Franklin, who flew a kite in a lighting storm and received a 1153serious electrical shock. This proved that lighting was powered by the 1154same force as carpets, but it also damaged Franklin's brain so severely 1155that he started speaking only in incomprehensible maxims, such as "A 1156penny saved is a penny earned." Eventually he had to be given a job 1157running the post office. 1158 -- Dave Barry, "What is Electricity?" 1159% 1160Although written many years ago, Lady Chatterley's Lover has just been 1161reissued by the Grove Press, and this pictorial account of the 1162day-to-day life of an English gamekeeper is full of considerable 1163interest to outdoor minded readers, as it contains many passages on 1164pheasant-raising, the apprehending of poachers, ways to control vermin, 1165and other chores and duties of the professional gamekeeper. 1166Unfortunately, one is obliged to wade through many pages of extraneous 1167material in order to discover and savour those sidelights on the 1168management of a midland shooting estate, and in this reviewer's opinion 1169the book cannot take the place of J. R. Miller's "Practical 1170Gamekeeping." 1171 -- Ed Zern, "Field and Stream" (Nov. 1959) 1172% 1173Always borrow money from a pessimist; he doesn't expect to be paid 1174back. 1175% 1176Always remember that you are unique. Just like everyone else. 1177% 1178Always try to do things in chronological order; it's less confusing 1179that way. 1180% 1181Am I ranting? I hope so. My ranting gets raves. 1182% 1183 AMAZING BUT TRUE ... 1184 1185If all the salmon caught in Canada in one year were laid end to end 1186across the Sahara Desert, the smell would be absolutely awful. 1187% 1188 AMAZING BUT TRUE ... 1189 1190There is so much sand in Northern Africa that if it were spread out it 1191would completely cover the Sahara Desert. 1192% 1193Ambidextrous, adj.: 1194 Able to pick with equal skill a right-hand pocket or a left. 1195 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1196% 1197Ambition is a poor excuse for not having sense enough to be lazy. 1198 -- Charlie McCarthy 1199% 1200America may be unique in being a country which has leapt from barbarism 1201to decadence without touching civilization. 1202 -- John O'Hara 1203% 1204America was discovered by Amerigo Vespucci and was named after him, 1205until people got tired of living in a place called "Vespuccia" and 1206changed its name to "America". 1207 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 1208% 1209American business long ago gave up on demanding that prospective 1210employees be honest and hardworking. It has even stopped hoping for 1211employees who are educated enough that they can tell the difference 1212between the men's room and the women's room without having little 1213pictures on the doors. 1214 -- Dave Barry, "Urine Trouble, Mister" 1215% 1216Amnesia used to be my favorite word, but then I forgot it. 1217% 1218An age is called Dark not because the light fails to shine, but because 1219people refuse to see it. 1220 -- James Michener, "Space" 1221% 1222An American's a person who isn't afraid to criticize the President but 1223is always polite to traffic cops. 1224% 1225An anthropologist at Tulane has just come back from a field trip to 1226New Guinea with reports of a tribe so primitive that they have Tide but 1227not new Tide with lemon-fresh Borax. 1228 -- David Letterman 1229% 1230An apple every eight hours will keep three doctors away. 1231% 1232 An architect's first work is apt to be spare and clean. He 1233knows he doesn't know what he's doing, so he does it carefully and with 1234great restraint. 1235 As he designs the first work, frill after frill and 1236embellishment after embellishment occur to him. These get stored away 1237to be used "next time". Sooner or later the first system is finished, 1238and the architect, with firm confidence and a demonstrated mastery of 1239that class of systems, is ready to build a second system. 1240 This second is the most dangerous system a man ever designs. 1241When he does his third and later ones, his prior experiences will 1242confirm each other as to the general characteristics of such systems, 1243and their differences will identify those parts of his experience that 1244are particular and not generalizable. 1245 The general tendency is to over-design the second system, using 1246all the ideas and frills that were cautiously sidetracked on the first 1247one. The result, as Ovid says, is a "big pile". 1248 -- Frederick Brooks, "The Mythical Man Month" 1249% 1250An artist should be fit for the best society and keep out of it. 1251% 1252An attorney was defending his client against a charge of first-degree 1253murder. "Your Honor, my client is accused of stuffing his lover's 1254mutilated body into a suitcase and heading for the Mexican border. 1255Just north of Tijuana a cop spotted her hand sticking out of the 1256suitcase. Now, I would like to stress that my client is *not* a 1257murderer. A sloppy packer, maybe..." 1258% 1259An authority is a person who can tell you more about something than you 1260really care to know. 1261% 1262An effective way to deal with predators is to taste terrible. 1263% 1264An elephant is a mouse with an operating system. 1265% 1266An English judge, growing weary of the barrister's long-winded 1267summation, leaned over the bench and remarked, "I've heard your 1268arguments, Sir Geoffrey, and I'm none the wiser!" Sir Geoffrey 1269responded, "That may be, Milord, but at least you're better informed!" 1270% 1271An Englishman never enjoys himself, except for a noble purpose. 1272 -- A. P. Herbert 1273% 1274An excellence-oriented '80s male does not wear a regular watch. He 1275wears a Rolex watch, because it weighs nearly six pounds and is 1276advertised only in excellence-oriented publications such as Fortune and 1277Rich Protestant Golfer Magazine. The advertisements are written in 1278incomplete sentences, which is how advertising copywriters denote 1279excellence: 1280 1281The Rolex Hyperion. An elegant new standard in quality excellence and 1282discriminating handcraftsmanship. For the individual who is truly able 1283to discriminate with regard to excellent quality standards of crafting 1284things by hand. Fabricated of 100 percent 24-karat gold. No watch 1285parts or anything. Just a great big chunk on your wrist. Truly a 1286timeless statement. For the individual who is very secure. Who 1287doesn't need to be reminded all the time that he is very successful. 1288Much more successful than the people who laughed at him in high 1289school. Because of his acne. People who are probably nowhere near as 1290successful as he is now. Maybe he'll go to his 20th reunion, and 1291they'll see his Rolex Hyperion. Hahahahahahahahaha. 1292 -- Dave Barry, "In Search of Excellence" 1293% 1294An exotic journey in downtown Newark is in your future. 1295% 1296... an experienced, industrious, ambitious, and often quite often 1297picturesque liar. 1298 -- Mark Twain 1299% 1300An idea is an eye given by God for the seeing of God. Some of these 1301eyes we cannot bear to look out of, we blind them as quickly as 1302possible. 1303 -- Russell Hoban, "Pilgermann" 1304% 1305An idea is not responsible for the people who believe in it. 1306% 1307 An old Jewish man reads about Einstein's theory of relativity 1308in the newspaper and asks his scientist grandson to explain it to him. 1309 "Well, zayda, it's sort of like this. Einstein says that if 1310you're having your teeth drilled without Novocain, a minute seems like 1311an hour. But if you're sitting with a beautiful woman on your lap, an 1312hour seems like a minute." 1313 The old man considers this profound bit of thinking for a 1314moment and says, "And from this he makes a living?" 1315 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 1316% 1317An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of purge. 1318% 1319Anarchy may not be the best form of government, but it's better than no 1320government at all. 1321% 1322And as we stand on the edge of darkness 1323Let our chant fill the void 1324That others may know 1325 1326 In the land of the night 1327 The ship of the sun 1328 Is drawn by 1329 The grateful dead. 1330 1331 -- Tibetan "Book of the Dead," ca. 4000 BC. 1332% 1333... and furthermore ... I don't like your trousers. 1334% 1335And I heard Jeff exclaim, 1336As they strolled out of sight, 1337"Merry Christmas to all -- 1338You take credit cards, right?" 1339 -- "Outsiders" comic 1340% 1341... And malt does more than Milton can 1342To justify God's ways to man 1343 -- A. E. Housman 1344% 1345And on the seventh day, He exited from append mode. 1346% 1347... And remember: if you don't like the news, go out and make some of 1348your own. 1349 -- "Scoop" Nisker, KFOG radio reporter 1350 Preposterous Words 1351% 1352And so, men, we can see that human skin is an even more complex and 1353fascinating organ than we thought it was, and if we want to keep it 1354looking good, we have to care for it as though it were our own. One 1355approach is to undergo a painful surgical procedure wherein your skin 1356is turned inside-out, so the young cells are on the outside, but then 1357of course you have the unpleasant side effect that your insides 1358gradually fill up with dead old cells and you explode. So this 1359procedure is pretty much limited to top Hollywood stars for whom 1360youthful beauty is a career necessity, such as Elizabeth Taylor and 1361Orson Welles. 1362 -- Dave Barry, "Saving Face" 1363% 1364...and the fully armed nuclear warheads, are, of course, merely a 1365courtesy detail. 1366% 1367And this is a table ma'am. What in essence it consists of is a 1368horizontal rectilinear plane surface maintained by four vertical 1369columnar supports, which we call legs. The tables in this laboratory, 1370ma'am, are as advanced in design as one will find anywhere in the 1371world. 1372 -- Michael Frayn, "The Tin Men" 1373% 1374 "And what will you do when you grow up to be as big as me?" 1375asked the father of his little son. 1376 "Diet." 1377% 1378And yet, seasons must be taken with a grain of salt, for they too have 1379a sense of humor, as does history. Corn stalks comedy, comedy stalks 1380tragedy, and this too is historic. And yet, still, when corn meets 1381tragedy face to face, we have politics. 1382 -- Dalglish, Larsen and Sutherland, "Root Crops and 1383 Ground Cover" 1384% 1385Andrea: Unhappy the land that has no heroes. 1386Galileo: No, unhappy the land that _____needs heroes. 1387 -- Bertolt Brecht, "Life of Galileo" 1388% 1389Angels we have heard on High 1390Tell us to go out and Buy. 1391 -- Tom Lehrer 1392% 1393Ankh if you love Isis. 1394% 1395Anoint, v.: 1396 To grease a king or other great functionary already 1397sufficiently slippery. 1398 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1399% 1400 Another Glitch in the Call 1401 ------- ------ -- --- ---- 1402 (Sung to the tune of a recent Pink Floyd song.) 1403 1404We don't need no indirection 1405We don't need no flow control 1406No data typing or declarations 1407Did you leave the lists alone? 1408 1409 Hey! Hacker! Leave those lists alone! 1410 1411Chorus: 1412 All in all, it's just a pure-LISP function call. 1413 All in all, it's just a pure-LISP function call. 1414% 1415Another good night not to sleep in a eucalyptus tree. 1416% 1417Another possible source of guidance for teenagers is television, but 1418television's message has always been that the need for truth, wisdom 1419and world peace pales by comparison with the need for a toothpaste that 1420offers whiter teeth *___and* fresher breath. 1421 -- Dave Barry, "Kids Today: They Don't Know Dum Diddly Do" 1422% 1423 Answers to Last Fortune's Questions: 1424 1425(1) None. (Moses didn't have an ark). 1426(2) Your mother, by the pigeonhole principle. 1427(3) I don't know. 1428(4) Who cares? 1429(5) 6 (or maybe 4, or else 3). Mr. Alfred J. Duncan of Podunk, 1430 Montana, submitted an interesting solution to Problem 5. 1431(6) There is an interesting solution to this problem on page 1029 of my 1432 book, which you can pick up for $23.95 at finer bookstores and 1433 bathroom supply outlets (or 99 cents at the table in front of 1434 Papyrus Books). 1435% 1436Anthony's Law of Force: 1437 Don't force it; get a larger hammer. 1438% 1439Anthony's Law of the Workshop: 1440 Any tool when dropped, will roll into the least accessible 1441 corner of the workshop. 1442 1443Corollary: 1444 On the way to the corner, any dropped tool will first strike 1445 your toes. 1446% 1447Antonym, n.: 1448 The opposite of the word you're trying to think of. 1449% 1450Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art. 1451 -- Charles McCabe 1452% 1453Any dramatic series the producers want us to take seriously as a 1454representation of contemporary reality cannot be taken seriously as a 1455representation of anything -- except a show to be ignored by anyone 1456capable of sitting upright in a chair and chewing gum simultaneously. 1457 -- Richard Schickel 1458% 1459Any excuse will serve a tyrant. 1460 -- Aesop 1461% 1462Any father who thinks he's all important should remind himself that 1463this country honors fathers only one day a year while pickles get a 1464whole week. 1465% 1466Any fool can paint a picture, but it takes a wise person to be able to 1467sell it. 1468% 1469Any great truth can -- and eventually will -- be expressed as a cliche 1470-- a cliche is a sure and certain way to dilute an idea. For instance, 1471my grandmother used to say, "The black cat is always the last one off 1472the fence." I have no idea what she meant, but at one time, it was 1473undoubtedly true. 1474 -- Solomon Short 1475% 1476Any philosophy that can be put "in a nutshell" belongs there. 1477 -- Sydney J. Harris 1478% 1479Any small object that is accidentally dropped will hide under a larger 1480object. 1481% 1482Any stone in your boot always migrates against the pressure gradient to 1483exactly the point of most pressure. 1484 -- Milt Barber 1485% 1486Any sufficiently advanced bug is indistinguishable from a feature. 1487 -- Rich Kulawiec 1488% 1489Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a rigged 1490demo. 1491% 1492Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. 1493 -- Arthur C. Clarke 1494% 1495Any time things appear to be going better, you have overlooked 1496something. 1497% 1498Any two philosophers can tell each other all they know in two hours. 1499 -- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. 1500% 1501Anybody can win, unless there happens to be a second entry. 1502% 1503Anybody who doesn't cut his speed at the sight of a police car is 1504probably parked. 1505% 1506Anybody with money to burn will easily find someone to tend the fire. 1507% 1508Anyone can do any amount of work provided it isn't the work he is 1509supposed to be doing at the moment. 1510 -- Robert Benchley 1511% 1512Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm. 1513 -- Publius Syrus 1514% 1515Anyone can make an omelet with eggs. The trick is to make one with 1516none. 1517% 1518Anyone who cannot cope with mathematics is not fully human. At best he 1519is a tolerable subhuman who has learned to wear shoes, bathe and not 1520make messes in the house. 1521 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 1522% 1523Anyone who goes to a psychiatrist ought to have his head examined. 1524 -- Samuel Goldwyn 1525% 1526Anyone who hates Dogs and Kids Can't be All Bad. 1527 -- W. C. Fields 1528% 1529Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no 1530account be allowed to do the job. 1531 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 1532% 1533Anyone who uses the phrase "easy as taking candy from a baby" has never 1534tried taking candy from a baby. 1535 -- Robin Hood 1536% 1537Anything free is worth what you pay for it. 1538% 1539Anything is good if it's made of chocolate. 1540% 1541Anything labeled "NEW" and/or "IMPROVED" isn't. The label means the 1542price went up. The label "ALL NEW", "COMPLETELY NEW", or "GREAT NEW" 1543means the price went way up. 1544% 1545Anything that is good and useful is made of chocolate. 1546% 1547Anything worth doing is worth overdoing. 1548% 1549Apathy is not the problem, it's the solution. 1550% 1551Aphorism, n.: 1552 A concise, clever statement. 1553Afterism, n.: 1554 A concise, clever statement you don't think of until too late. 1555 -- James Alexander Thom 1556% 1557APL is a mistake, carried through to perfection. It is the language of 1558the future for the problems of the past: it creates a new generation of 1559coding bums. 1560% 1561APL is a write-only language. I can write programs in APL, but I 1562can't read any of them. 1563 -- Roy Keir 1564% 1565Aquadextrous, adj.: 1566 Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off 1567with your toes. 1568 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 1569% 1570AQUARIUS (Jan 20 - Feb 18) 1571 You have an inventive mind and are inclined to be progressive. 1572 You lie a great deal. On the other hand, you are inclined to 1573 be careless and impractical, causing you to make the same 1574 mistakes over and over again. People think you are stupid. 1575% 1576Arbitrary systems, pl.n.: 1577 Systems about which nothing general can be said, save "nothing 1578general can be said." 1579% 1580ARCHDUKE FERDINAND FOUND ALIVE -- 1581 FIRST WORLD WAR A MISTAKE 1582% 1583Are you a turtle? 1584% 1585Arguments with furniture are rarely productive. 1586 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 1587% 1588ARIES (Mar 21 - Apr 19) 1589 You are the pioneer type and hold most people in contempt. You 1590 are quick tempered, impatient, and scornful of advice. You are 1591 not very nice. 1592% 1593Arithmetic is being able to count up to twenty without taking off your 1594shoes. 1595 -- Mickey Mouse 1596% 1597Armadillo: 1598 To provide weapons to a Spanish pickle 1599% 1600Arnold's Laws of Documentation: 1601 (1) If it should exist, it doesn't. 1602 (2) If it does exist, it's out of date. 1603 (3) Only documentation for useless programs transcends the 1604 first two laws. 1605% 1606Around computers it is difficult to find the correct unit of time to 1607measure progress. Some cathedrals took a century to complete. Can you 1608imagine the grandeur and scope of a program that would take as long? 1609 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 1610% 1611Art is anything you can get away with. 1612 -- Marshall McLuhan 1613% 1614Art is either plagiarism or revolution. 1615 -- Paul Gauguin 1616% 1617Arthur's Laws of Love: 1618 (1) People to whom you are attracted invariably think you 1619 remind them of someone else. 1620 (2) The love letter you finally got the courage to send will be 1621 delayed in the mail long enough for you to make a fool of 1622 yourself in person. 1623% 1624Artistic ventures highlighted. Rob a museum. 1625% 1626As a professional humorist, I often get letters from readers who are 1627interested in the basic nature of humor. "What kind of a sick 1628perverted disgusting person are you," these letters typically ask, 1629"that you make jokes about setting fire to a goat?" 1630 -- Dave Barry, "Why Humor is Funny" 1631% 1632As an adolescent I aspired to lasting fame, I craved factual 1633certainty, and I thirsted for a meaningful vision of human life -- so I 1634became a scientist. This is like becoming an archbishop so you can 1635meet girls. 1636 -- Matt Cartmill 1637% 1638As far as the laws of mathematics refer to reality, they are not 1639certain, and as far as they are certain, they do not refer to reality. 1640 -- Albert Einstein 1641% 1642As far as we know, our computer has never had an undetected error. 1643 -- Weisert 1644% 1645As I was going up Punch Card Hill, 1646 Feeling worse and worser, 1647There I met a C.R.T. 1648 And it drop't me a cursor. 1649 1650C.R.T., C.R.T., 1651 Phosphors light on you! 1652If I had fifty hours a day 1653 I'd spend them all at you. 1654 1655 -- Uncle Colonel's Cursory Rhymes 1656% 1657As I was passing Project MAC, 1658I met a Quux with seven hacks. 1659Every hack had seven bugs; 1660Every bug had seven manifestations; 1661Every manifestation had seven symptoms. 1662Symptoms, manifestations, bugs, and hacks, 1663How many losses at Project MAC? 1664% 1665As long as I am mayor of this city [Jersey City, New Jersey] the great 1666industries are secure. We hear about constitutional rights, free 1667speech and the free press. Every time I hear these words I say to 1668myself, "That man is a Red, that man is a Communist". You never hear a 1669real American talk like that. 1670 -- Frank Hague (1896-1956) 1671% 1672As long as the answer is right, who cares if the question is wrong? 1673% 1674As long as war is regarded as wicked, it will always have its 1675fascination. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be 1676popular. 1677 -- Oscar Wilde 1678% 1679As of next week, passwords will be entered in Morse code. 1680% 1681As part of the conversion, computer specialists rewrote 1,500 1682programs; a process that traditionally requires some debugging. 1683 -- USA Today, referring to the IRS switchover to a new 1684 computer system. 1685% 1686As soon as we started programming, we found to our surprise that it 1687wasn't as easy to get programs right as we had thought. Debugging had 1688to be discovered. I can remember the exact instant when I realized 1689that a large part of my life from then on was going to be spent in 1690finding mistakes in my own programs. 1691 -- Maurice Wilkes discovers debugging, 1949 1692% 1693As the poet said, "Only God can make a tree" -- probably because it's 1694so hard to figure out how to get the bark on. 1695 -- Woody Allen 1696% 1697As the trials of life continue to take their toll, remember that there 1698is always a future in Computer Maintenance. 1699 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 1700% 1701As Will Rogers would have said, "There is no such thing as a free 1702variable." 1703% 1704As with most fine things, chocolate has its season. There is a simple 1705memory aid that you can use to determine whether it is the correct time 1706to order chocolate dishes: any month whose name contains the letter A, 1707E, or U is the proper time for chocolate. 1708 -- Sandra Boynton, "Chocolate: The Consuming Passion" 1709% 1710As you know, birds do not have sexual organs because they would 1711interfere with flight. [In fact, this was the big breakthrough for the 1712Wright Brothers. They were watching birds one day, trying to figure 1713out how to get their crude machine to fly, when suddenly it dawned on 1714Wilbur. "Orville," he said, "all we have to do is remove the sexual 1715organs!" You should have seen their original design.] As a result, 1716birds are very, very difficult to arouse sexually. You almost never 1717see an aroused bird. So when they want to reproduce, birds fly up and 1718stand on telephone lines, where they monitor telephone conversations 1719with their feet. When they find a conversation in which people are 1720talking dirty, they grip the line very tightly until they are both 1721highly aroused, at which point the female gets pregnant. 1722 -- Dave Barry, "Sex and the Single Amoeba: What Every 1723 Teen Should Know" 1724% 1725As you reach for the web, a venomous spider appears. Unable to pull 1726your hand away in time, the spider promptly, but politely, bites you. 1727The venom takes affect quickly causing your lips to turn plaid along 1728with your complexion. You become dazed, and in your stupor you fall 1729from the limbs of the tree. Snap! Your head falls off and rolls all 1730over the ground. The instant before you croak, you hear the whoosh of 1731a vacuum being filled by the air surrounding your head. Worse yet, the 1732spider is suing you for damages. 1733% 1734As Zeus said to Narcissus, "Watch yourself." 1735% 1736ASHes to ASHes, DOS to DOS. 1737% 1738Ask five economists and you'll get five different explanations (six if 1739one went to Harvard). 1740 -- Edgar R. Fiedler 1741% 1742Ask not for whom the <CONTROL-G> tolls. 1743% 1744Ask Not for whom the Bell Tolls, and You will Pay only the 1745Station-to-Station rate. 1746% 1747Ask not for whom the telephone bell tolls ... if thou art in the 1748bathtub, it tolls for thee. 1749% 1750Ask your boss to reconsider -- it's so difficult to take "Go to hell" 1751for an answer. 1752% 1753Asked by reporters about his upcoming marriage to a forty-two-year-old 1754woman, director Roman Polanski told reporters, `The way I look at it, 1755she's the equivalent of three fourteen-year-olds.' 1756 -- David Letterman 1757% 1758Ass, n.: 1759 The masculine of "lass". 1760% 1761Associate with well-mannered persons and your manners will improve. 1762Run with decent folk and your own decent instincts will be 1763strengthened. Keep the company of bums and you will become a bum. 1764Hang around with rich people and you will end by picking up the check 1765and dying broke. 1766 -- Stanley Walker 1767% 1768At a recent meeting in Snowmass, Colorado, a participant from Los 1769Angeles fainted from hyperoxygenation, and we had to hold his head 1770under the exhaust of a bus until he revived. 1771% 1772At any given moment, an arrow must be either where it is or where it is 1773not. But obviously it cannot be where it is not. And if it is where 1774it is, that is equivalent to saying that it is at rest. 1775 -- Zeno's paradox of the moving (still?) arrow 1776% 1777At Group L, Stoffel oversees six first-rate programmers, a managerial 1778challenge roughly comparable to herding cats. 1779 -- The Washington Post Magazine, June 9, 1985 1780% 1781... at least I thought I was dancing, 'til somebody stepped on my hand. 1782 -- J. B. White 1783% 1784At least they're ___________EXPERIENCED incompetents 1785% 1786At no time is freedom of speech more precious than when a man hits his 1787thumb with a hammer. 1788 -- Marshall Lumsden 1789% 1790At the source of every error which is blamed on the computer you will 1791find at least two human errors, including the error of blaming it on 1792the computer. 1793% 1794Atlanta makes it against the law to tie a giraffe to a telephone pole 1795or street lamp. 1796% 1797Atlee is a very modest man. And with reason. 1798 -- Winston Churchill 1799% 1800Authors (and perhaps columnists) eventually rise to the top of whatever 1801depths they were once able to plumb. 1802 -- Stanley Kaufman 1803% 1804Automobile, n.: 1805 A four-wheeled vehicle that runs up hills and down pedestrians. 1806% 1807Avoid Quiet and Placid persons unless you are in Need of Sleep. 1808 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 1809% 1810Avoid reality at all costs. 1811% 1812Avoid revolution or expect to get shot. Mother and I will grieve, but 1813we will gladly buy a dinner for the National Guardsman who shot you. 1814 -- Dr. Paul Williamson, father of a student entering 1815 school in the fall after the Kent State shootings 1816% 1817Bacchus, n.: 1818 A convenient deity invented by the ancients as an excuse for 1819getting drunk. 1820 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1821% 1822Bagbiter: 1823 1. n.; Equipment or program that fails, usually 1824intermittently. 2. adj.: Failing hardware or software. "This 1825bagbiting system won't let me get out of spacewar." Usage: verges on 1826obscenity. Grammatically separable; one may speak of "biting the 1827bag". Synonyms: LOSER, LOSING, CRETINOUS, BLETCHEROUS, BARFUCIOUS, 1828CHOMPER, CHOMPING. 1829% 1830Bagdikian's Observation: 1831 Trying to be a first-rate reporter on the average American 1832newspaper is like trying to play Bach's "St. Matthew Passion" on a 1833ukulele. 1834% 1835Baker's First Law of Federal Geometry: 1836 A block grant is a solid mass of money surrounded on all sides 1837by governors. 1838% 1839Ban the bomb. Save the world for conventional warfare. 1840% 1841Banectomy, n.: 1842 The removal of bruises on a banana. 1843 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 1844% 1845Bank error in your favor. Collect $200. 1846% 1847Barach's Rule: 1848 An alcoholic is a person who drinks more than his own physician. 1849% 1850Bare feet magnetize sharp metal objects so they point upward from the 1851floor -- especially in the dark. 1852% 1853Barometer, n.: 1854 An ingenious instrument which indicates what kind of weather we 1855are having. 1856 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 1857% 1858Barth's Distinction: 1859 There are two types of people: those who divide people into two 1860types, and those who don't. 1861% 1862Baruch's Observation: 1863 If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. 1864% 1865Baseball is a skilled game. It's America's game -- it, and high 1866taxes. 1867 -- Will Rogers 1868% 1869Basic is a high level languish. 1870APL is a high level anguish. 1871% 1872BASIC is the Computer Science equivalent of `Scientific Creationism'. 1873% 1874BASIC, n.: 1875 A programming language. Related to certain social diseases in 1876that those who have it will not admit it in polite company. 1877% 1878Bathquake, n.: 1879 The violent quake that rattles the entire house when the water 1880faucet is turned on to a certain point. 1881 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 1882% 1883Be a better psychiatrist and the world will beat a psychopath to your 1884door. 1885% 1886BE ALERT!!!! (The world needs more lerts ...) 1887% 1888Be assured that a walk through the ocean of most Souls would scarcely 1889get your Feet wet. Fall not in Love, therefore: it will stick to your 1890face. 1891 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 1892% 1893Be braver -- you can't cross a chasm in two small jumps. 1894% 1895Be careful of reading health books. You might die of a misprint. 1896 -- Mark Twain 1897% 1898Be different: conform. 1899% 1900Be free and open and breezy! Enjoy! Things won't get any better so 1901get used to it. 1902% 1903Be security conscious -- National Defense is at stake. 1904% 1905Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors and 1906miss 1907 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 1908% 1909Bees are very busy souls 1910They have no time for birth controls 1911And that is why in times like these 1912There are so many Sons of Bees. 1913% 1914 Before he became a hermit, Zarathud was a young Priest, and 1915took great delight in making fools of his opponents in front of his 1916followers. 1917 One day Zarathud took his students to a pleasant pasture and 1918there he confronted The Sacred Chao while She was contentedly grazing. 1919 "Tell me, you dumb beast," demanded the Priest in his 1920commanding voice, "why don't you do something worthwhile? What is your 1921Purpose in Life, anyway?" 1922 Munching the tasty grass, The Sacred Chao replied "MU". (The 1923Chinese ideogram for NO-THING.) 1924 Upon hearing this, absolutely nobody was enlightened. 1925 Primarily because nobody understood Chinese. 1926 -- Camden Benares, "Zen Without Zen Masters" 1927% 1928Before Xerox, five carbons were the maximum extension of anybody's ego. 1929% 1930Begathon, n.: 1931 A multi-day event on public television, used to raise money so 1932you won't have to watch commercials. 1933% 1934Behold the warranty ... the bold print giveth and the fine print taketh 1935away. 1936% 1937Beifeld's Principle: 1938 The probability of a young man meeting a desirable and 1939receptive young female increases by pyramidal progression when he is 1940already in the company of: (1) a date, (2) his wife, (3) a better 1941looking and richer male friend. 1942% 1943"Being disintegrated makes me ve-ry an-gry!" <huff, huff> 1944% 1945Bell Labs Unix -- Reach out and grep someone. 1946% 1947Bennett's Laws of Horticulture: 1948 (1) Houses are for people to live in. 1949 (2) Gardens are for plants to live in. 1950 (3) There is no such thing as a houseplant. 1951% 1952Benson, you are so free of the ravages of intelligence. 1953 -- Time Bandits 1954% 1955Besides the device, the box should contain: 1956 1957* Eight little rectangular snippets of paper that say "WARNING" 1958 1959* A plastic packet containing four 5/17 inch pilfer grommets and two 1960 club-ended 6/93 inch boxcar prawns. 1961 1962YOU WILL NEED TO SUPPLY: a matrix wrench and 60,000 feet of tram 1963cable. 1964 1965IF ANYTHING IS DAMAGED OR MISSING: You IMMEDIATELY should turn to your 1966spouse and say: "Margaret, you know why this country can't make a car 1967that can get all the way through the drive-through at Burger King 1968without a major transmission overhaul? Because nobody cares, that's 1969why." 1970 1971WARNING: This is assuming your spouse's name is Margaret. 1972 -- Dave Barry, "Read This First!" 1973% 1974Best of all is never to have been born. Second best is to die soon. 1975% 1976better !pout !cry 1977better watchout 1978lpr why 1979santa claus <north pole >town 1980 1981cat /etc/passwd >list 1982ncheck list 1983ncheck list 1984cat list | grep naughty >nogiftlist 1985cat list | grep nice >giftlist 1986santa claus <north pole > town 1987 1988who | grep sleeping 1989who | grep awake 1990who | egrep 'bad|good' 1991for (goodness sake) { 1992 be good 1993} 1994% 1995Better dead than mellow. 1996% 1997Between 1950 and 1952, a bored weatherman, stationed north of Hudson 1998Bay, left a monument that neither government nor time can eradicate. 1999Using a bulldozer abandoned by the Air Force, he spent two years and 2000great effort pushing boulders into a single word. 2001 2002It can be seen from 10,000 feet, silhouetted against the snow. 2003Government officials exchanged memos full of circumlocutions (no Latin 2004equivalent exists) but failed to word an appropriation bill for the 2005destruction of this cairn, that wouldn't alert the press and embarrass 2006both Parliament and Party. 2007 2008It stands today, a monument to human spirit. If life exists on other 2009planets, this may be the first message received from us. 2010 -- The Realist, November, 1964 2011% 2012Beware of bugs in the above code; I have only proved it correct, not 2013tried it. 2014 -- Donald Knuth 2015% 2016Beware of computerized fortune-tellers! 2017% 2018Beware of low-flying butterflies. 2019% 2020Beware of Programmers who carry screwdrivers. 2021 -- Leonard Brandwein 2022% 2023Beware of self-styled experts: an ex is a has-been, and a spurt is a 2024drip under pressure. 2025% 2026Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and 2027finds himself no wiser than before," Bokonon tells us. "He is full of 2028murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by 2029their ignorance the hard way. 2030 -- Kurt Vonnegut, "Cat's Cradle" 2031% 2032Beware of the Turing Tar-pit in which everything is possible but 2033nothing of interest is easy. 2034% 2035Binary, adj.: 2036 Possessing the ability to have friends of both sexes. 2037% 2038Biology is the only science in which multiplication means the same 2039thing as division. 2040% 2041Bipolar, adj.: 2042 Refers to someone who has homes in Nome, Alaska, and Buffalo, 2043New York 2044% 2045Birth, n.: 2046 The first and direst of all disasters. 2047 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2048% 2049Bizarreness is the essence of the exotic. 2050% 2051Bizoos, n.: 2052 The millions of tiny individual bumps that make up a 2053basketball. 2054 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 2055% 2056... bleakness ... desolation ... plastic forks ... 2057% 2058Blessed are the young for they shall inherit the national debt. 2059 -- Herbert Hoover 2060% 2061Blessed are they who Go Around in Circles, 2062for they Shall be Known as Wheels. 2063% 2064BLISS is ignorance. 2065% 2066Blood flows down one leg and up the other. 2067% 2068Blood is thicker than water, and much tastier. 2069% 2070Blore's Razor: 2071 Given a choice between two theories, take the one which is 2072funnier. 2073% 2074Board the windows, up your car insurance, and don't leave any booze in 2075plain sight. It's St. Patrick's day in Chicago again. The legend has 2076it that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. In fact, he was 2077arrested for drunk driving. The snakes left because people kept 2078throwing up on them. 2079% 2080Boling's postulate: 2081 If you're feeling good, don't worry. You'll get over it. 2082% 2083Bolub's Fourth Law of Computerdom: 2084 Project teams detest weekly progress reporting because it so 2085vividly manifests their lack of progress. 2086% 2087Bombeck's Rule of Medicine: 2088 Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died. 2089% 2090BOO! We changed Coke again! BLEAH! BLEAH! 2091% 2092Boob's Law: 2093 You always find something in the last place you look. 2094% 2095Bore, n.: 2096 A guy who wraps up a two-minute idea in a two-hour vocabulary. 2097 -- Walter Winchell 2098% 2099Bore, n.: 2100 A person who talks when you wish him to listen. 2101 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2102% 2103Boren's Laws: 2104 (1) When in charge, ponder. 2105 (2) When in trouble, delegate. 2106 (3) When in doubt, mumble. 2107% 2108Boss, n.: 2109 According to the Oxford English Dictionary, in the Middle Ages 2110the words "boss" and "botch" were largely synonymous, except that boss, 2111in addition to meaning "a supervisor of workers" also meant "an 2112ornamental stud." 2113% 2114Boston State House is the hub of the Solar System. You couldn't pry 2115that out of a Boston man if you had the tire of all creation 2116straightened out for a crowbar. 2117 -- O. W. Holmes 2118% 2119Boston, n.: 2120 Ludwig van Beethoven being jeered by 50,000 sports fans for 2121finishing second in the Irish jig competition. 2122% 2123Boy, life takes a long time to live. 2124 -- Steven Wright 2125% 2126Boy, n.: 2127 A noise with dirt on it. 2128% 2129Boys are beyond the range of anybody's sure understanding, at least 2130when they are between the ages of 18 months and 90 years. 2131 -- James Thurber 2132% 2133Boys will be boys, and so will a lot of middle-aged men. 2134 -- Kim Hubbard 2135% 2136Brace yourselves. We're about to try something that borders on the 2137unique: an actually rather serious technical book which is not only 2138(gasp) vehemently anti-Solemn, but also (shudder) takes sides. I tend 2139to think of it as `Constructive Snottiness.' 2140 -- Mike Padlipsky, Foreword to "Elements of Networking Style" 2141% 2142Bradley's Bromide: 2143 If computers get too powerful, we can organize them into a 2144committee -- that will do them in. 2145% 2146Brady's First Law of Problem Solving: 2147 When confronted by a difficult problem, you can solve it more 2148easily by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger have 2149handled this?" 2150% 2151Brain fried -- Core dumped 2152% 2153Brain, n.: 2154 The apparatus with which we think that we think. 2155 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2156% 2157Brain, v. [as in "to brain"]: 2158 To rebuke bluntly, but not pointedly; to dispel a source of 2159error in an opponent. 2160 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2161% 2162Breast Feeding should not be attempted by fathers with hairy chests, 2163since they can make the baby sneeze and give it wind. 2164 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 2165% 2166Bride, n.: 2167 A woman with a fine prospect of happiness behind her. 2168 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2169% 2170Bringing computers into the home won't change either one, but may 2171revitalize the corner saloon. 2172% 2173British Israelites: 2174 The British Israelites believe the white Anglo-Saxons of 2175Britain to be descended from the ten lost tribes of Israel deported by 2176Sargon of Assyria on the fall of Sumeria in 721 B.C. ... They further 2177believe that the future can be foretold by the measurements of the 2178Great Pyramid, which probably means it will be big and yellow and in 2179the hand of the Arabs. They also believe that if you sleep with your 2180head under the pillow a fairy will come and take all your teeth. 2181 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 2182% 2183Broad-mindedness, n.: 2184 The result of flattening high-mindedness out. 2185% 2186Brontosaurus Principle: 2187 Organizations can grow faster than their brains can manage them 2188in relation to their environment and to their own physiology: when 2189this occurs, they are an endangered species. 2190 -- Thomas K. Connellan 2191% 2192Brook's Law: 2193 Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later 2194% 2195Brooke's Law: 2196 Whenever a system becomes completely defined, some damn fool 2197discovers something which either abolishes the system or expands it 2198beyond recognition. 2199% 2200Bubble Memory, n.: 2201 A derogatory term, usually referring to a person's 2202intelligence. See also "vacuum tube". 2203% 2204Bucy's Law: 2205 Nothing is ever accomplished by a reasonable man. 2206% 2207Bug, n.: 2208 An aspect of a computer program which exists because the 2209programmer was thinking about Jumbo Jacks or stock options when s/he 2210wrote the program. 2211 2212Fortunately, the second-to-last bug has just been fixed. 2213 -- Ray Simard 2214% 2215Bugs, pl. n.: 2216 Small living things that small living boys throw on small 2217living girls. 2218% 2219BULLWINKLE: "You just leave that to my pal. He's the brains of the 2220 outfit." 2221GENERAL: "What does that make YOU?" 2222BULLWINKLE: "What else? An executive." 2223 -- Jay Ward 2224% 2225Bumper sticker: 2226 2227All the parts falling off this car are of the very finest British 2228manufacture. 2229% 2230Bureaucrat, n.: 2231 A person who cuts red tape sideways. 2232 -- J. McCabe 2233% 2234Bureaucrat, n.: 2235 A politician who has tenure. 2236% 2237Bureaucrats cut red tape -- lengthwise. 2238% 2239Burn's Hog Weighing Method: 2240 (1) Get a perfectly symmetrical plank and balance it across a 2241 sawhorse. 2242 (2) Put the hog on one end of the plank. 2243 (3) Pile rocks on the other end until the plank is again 2244 perfectly balanced. 2245 (4) Carefully guess the weight of the rocks. 2246 -- Robert Burns 2247% 2248 But as records of courts and justice are admissible, it can 2249easily be proved that powerful and malevolent magicians once existed 2250and were a scourge to mankind. The evidence (including confession) 2251upon which certain women were convicted of witchcraft and executed was 2252without a flaw; it is still unimpeachable. The judges' decisions based 2253on it were sound in logic and in law. Nothing in any existing court 2254was ever more thoroughly proved than the charges of witchcraft and 2255sorcery for which so many suffered death. If there were no witches, 2256human testimony and human reason are alike destitute of value. 2257 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2258% 2259But don't you worry, its for a cause -- feeding global corporations paws. 2260% 2261But I don't like Spam!!!! 2262% 2263 But if we laugh with derision, we will never understand. Human 2264intellectual capacity has not altered for thousands of years so far as 2265we can tell. If intelligent people invested intense energy in issues 2266that now seem foolish to us, then the failure lies in our understanding 2267of their world, not in their distorted perceptions. Even the standard 2268example of ancient nonsense -- the debate about angels on pinheads -- 2269makes sense once you realize that theologians were not discussing 2270whether five or eighteen would fit, but whether a pin could house a 2271finite or an infinite number. 2272 -- S. J. Gould, "Wide Hats and Narrow Minds" 2273% 2274But in our enthusiasm, we could not resist a radical overhaul of the 2275system, in which all of its major weaknesses have been exposed, 2276analyzed, and replaced with new weaknesses. 2277 -- Bruce Leverett, "Register Allocation in Optimizing 2278 Compilers" 2279% 2280But officer, I was only trying to gain enough speed so I could coast 2281to the nearest gas station. 2282% 2283But scientists, who ought to know 2284Assure us that it must be so. 2285Oh, let us never, never doubt 2286What nobody is sure about. 2287 -- Hilaire Belloc 2288% 2289But soft you, the fair Ophelia: 2290Ope not thy ponderous and marble jaws, 2291But get thee to a nunnery -- go! 2292 -- Mark "The Bard" Twain 2293% 2294But the greatest Electrical Pioneer of them all was Thomas Edison, who 2295was a brilliant inventor despite the fact that he had little formal 2296education and lived in New Jersey. Edison's first major invention in 22971877, was the phonograph, which could soon be found in thousands of 2298American homes, where it basically sat until 1923, when the record was 2299invented. But Edison's greatest achievement came in 1879, when he 2300invented the electric company. Edison's design was a brilliant 2301adaptation of the simple electrical circuit: the electric company sends 2302electricity through a wire to a customer, then immediately gets the 2303electricity back through another wire, then (this is the brilliant 2304part) sends it right back to the customer again. 2305 2306This means that an electric company can sell a customer the same batch 2307of electricity thousands of times a day and never get caught, since 2308very few customers take the time to examine their electricity closely. 2309In fact the last year any new electricity was generated in the United 2310States was 1937; the electric companies have been merely re-selling it 2311ever since, which is why they have so much free time to apply for rate 2312increases. 2313 -- Dave Barry, "What is Electricity?" 2314% 2315But this has taken us far afield from interface, which is not a bad 2316place to be, since I particularly want to move ahead to the kludge. 2317Why do people have so much trouble understanding the kludge? What is a 2318kludge, after all, but not enough Ks, not enough ROMs, not enough RAMs, 2319poor quality interface and too few bytes to go around? Have I 2320explained yet about the bytes? 2321% 2322... But we've only fondled the surface of that subject. 2323 -- Virginia Masters 2324% 2325But what we need to know is, do people want nasally-insertable 2326computers? 2327% 2328Buzz off, Banana Nose; Relieve mine eyes 2329Of hateful soreness, purge mine ears of corn; 2330Less dear than army ants in apple pies 2331Art thou, old prune-face, with thy chestnuts worn, 2332Dropt from thy peeling lips like lousy fruit; 2333Like honeybees upon the perfum'd rose 2334They suck, and like the double-breasted suit 2335Are out of date; therefore, Banana Nose, 2336Go fly a kite, thy welcome's overstayed; 2337And stem the produce of thy waspish wits: 2338Thy logick, like thy locks, is disarrayed; 2339Thy cheer, like thy complexion, is the pits. 2340Be off, I say; go bug somebody new, 2341Scram, beat it, get thee hence, and nuts to you. 2342% 2343By doing just a little every day, you can gradually let the task 2344completely overwhelm you. 2345% 2346By necessity, by proclivity, and by delight, we all quote. In fact, 2347it is as difficult to appropriate the thoughts of others as it is to 2348invent. 2349 -- R. Emerson 2350 -- Quoted from a fortune cookie program 2351 (whose author claims, "Actually, stealing IS easier.") 2352 [to which I reply, "You think it's easy for me to 2353 misconstrue all these misquotations?!?"] 2354% 2355By the time they had diminished from 50 to 8, the other dwarves began 2356to suspect 'Hungry' ... 2357 -- Gary Larson, "The Far Side" 2358% 2359By trying, we can easily learn to endure adversity -- another man's, I 2360mean. 2361 -- Mark Twain 2362% 2363Bypasses are devices that allow some people to dash from point A to 2364point B very fast while other people dash from point B to point A very 2365fast. People living at point C, being a point directly in between, are 2366often given to wonder what's so great about point A that so many people 2367from point B are so keen to get there and what's so great about point B 2368that so many people from point A are so keen to get _____there. They often 2369wish that people would just once and for all work out where the hell 2370they wanted to be. 2371 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 2372% 2373C, n.: 2374 A programming language that is sort of like Pascal except more 2375like assembly except that it isn't very much like either one, or 2376anything else. It is either the best language available to the art 2377today, or it isn't. 2378 -- Ray Simard 2379% 2380Cabbage, n.: 2381 A familiar kitchen-garden vegetable about as large and wise as 2382a man's head. 2383 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2384% 2385Cable is not a luxury, since many areas have poor TV reception. 2386 -- The mayor of Tucson, Arizona, 1989 2387% 2388Cahn's Axiom: 2389 When all else fails, read the instructions. 2390% 2391California is a fine place to live -- if you happen to be an orange. 2392 -- Fred Allen 2393% 2394California, n.: 2395 From Latin "calor", meaning "heat" (as in English "calorie" or 2396Spanish "caliente"); and "fornia'" for "sexual intercourse" or 2397"fornication." Hence: Tierra de California, "the land of hot sex." 2398 -- Ed Moran 2399% 2400Call on God, but row away from the rocks. 2401 -- Indian proverb 2402% 2403Calling J-Man Kink. Calling J-Man Kink. Hash missile sighted, target 2404Los Angeles. Disregard personal feelings about city and intercept. 2405% 2406Calvin Coolidge looks as if he had been weaned on a pickle. 2407 -- Alice Roosevelt Longworth 2408% 2409Calvin Coolidge was the greatest man who ever came out of Plymouth 2410Corner, Vermont. 2411 -- Clarence Darrow 2412% 2413Campus sidewalks never exist as the straightest line between two 2414points. 2415 -- M. M. Johnston 2416% 2417Canada Bill Jone's Motto: 2418 It's morally wrong to allow suckers to keep their money. 2419 2420Supplement: 2421 A .44 magnum beats four aces. 2422% 2423Canada Post doesn't really charge 32 cents for a stamp. It's 2 cents 2424for postage and 30 cents for storage. 2425 -- Gerald Regan, Cabinet Minister, 12/31/83 Financial Post 2426% 2427Cancel me not -- for what then shall remain? 2428Abscissas, some mantissas, modules, modes, 2429A root or two, a torus and a node: 2430The inverse of my verse, a null domain. 2431 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 2432% 2433CANCER (June 21 - July 22) 2434 You are sympathetic and understanding to other people's 2435problems. They think you are a sucker. You are always putting things 2436off. That's why you'll never make anything of yourself. Most welfare 2437recipients are Cancer people. 2438% 2439Canonical, adj.: 2440 The usual or standard state or manner of something. A true 2441story: One Bob Sjoberg, new at the MIT AI Lab, expressed some 2442annoyance at the use of jargon. Over his loud objections, we made a 2443point of using jargon as much as possible in his presence, and 2444eventually it began to sink in. Finally, in one conversation, he used 2445the word "canonical" in jargon-like fashion without thinking. 2446 Steele: "Aha! We've finally got you talking jargon too!" 2447 Stallman: "What did he say?" 2448 Steele: "He just used `canonical' in the canonical way." 2449% 2450CAPRICORN (Dec 23 - Jan 19) 2451 You are conservative and afraid of taking risks. You don't do 2452much of anything and are lazy. There has never been a Capricorn of any 2453importance. Capricorns should avoid standing still for too long as 2454they take root and become trees. 2455% 2456Captain Penny's Law: 2457 You can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of 2458the people all of the time, but you Can't Fool Mom. 2459% 2460Carelessly planned projects take three times longer to complete than 2461expected. Carefully planned projects take four times longer to 2462complete than expected, mostly because the planners expect their 2463planning to reduce the time it takes. 2464% 2465Carmel, New York, has an ordinance forbidding men to wear coats and 2466trousers that don't match. 2467% 2468Carperpetuation (kar' pur pet u a shun), n.: 2469 The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a 2470dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then 2471putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance. 2472 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 2473% 2474Cat, n.: 2475 Lapwarmer with built-in buzzer. 2476% 2477Cauliflower is nothing but Cabbage with a College Education. 2478 -- Mark Twain, "Pudd'nhead Wilson" 2479% 2480Caution: breathing may be hazardous to your health. 2481% 2482CChheecckk yyoouurr dduupplleexx sswwiittcchh.. 2483% 2484Cecil, you're my final hope 2485Of finding out the true Straight Dope 2486For I have been reading of Schrodinger's cat 2487But none of my cats are at all like that. 2488This unusual animal (so it is said) 2489Is simultaneously alive and dead! 2490What I don't understand is just why he 2491Can't be one or the other, unquestionably. 2492My future now hangs in between eigenstates. 2493In one I'm enlightened, in the other I ain't. 2494If *you* understand, Cecil, then show me the way 2495And rescue my psyche from quantum decay. 2496But if this queer thing has perplexed even you, 2497Then I will *___and* I won't see you in Schrodinger's zoo. 2498 -- Randy F., Chicago, "The Straight Dope, a compendium 2499 of human knowledge" by Cecil Adams 2500% 2501Celebrate Hannibal Day this year. Take an elephant to lunch. 2502% 2503Celestial navigation is based on the premise that the Earth is the 2504center of the universe. The premise is wrong, but the navigation 2505works. An incorrect model can be a useful tool. 2506 -- Kelvin Throop III 2507% 2508Census Taker to Housewife: Did you ever have the measles, and, if so, 2509how many? 2510% 2511Cerebus: I'd love to lick apricot brandy out of your navel. 2512Jaka: Look, Cerebus-- Jaka has to tell you ... something 2513Cerebus: If Cerebus had a navel, would you lick apricot brandy 2514 out of it? 2515Jaka: Ugh! 2516Cerebus: You don't like apricot brandy? 2517 -- Cerebus #6, "The Secret" 2518% 2519Certain old men prefer to rise at dawn, taking a cold bath and a long 2520walk with an empty stomach and otherwise mortifying the flesh. They 2521then point with pride to these practices as the cause of their sturdy 2522health and ripe years; the truth being that they are hearty and old, 2523not because of their habits, but in spite of them. The reason we find 2524only robust persons doing this thing is that it has killed all the 2525others who have tried it. 2526 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2527% 2528Certainly there are things in life that money can't buy, 2529But it's very funny-- 2530 Did you ever try buying them without money? 2531 -- Ogden Nash 2532% 2533 Chapter 1 2534 2535The story so far: 2536 2537 In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot 2538of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move. 2539% 2540Character Density, n.: 2541 The number of very weird people in the office. 2542% 2543Checkuary, n.: 2544 The thirteenth month of the year. Begins New Year's Day and 2545ends when a person stops absentmindedly writing the old year on his 2546checks. 2547% 2548Chef, n.: 2549 Any cook who swears in French. 2550% 2551Chemicals, n.: 2552 Noxious substances from which modern foods are made. 2553% 2554Chemistry is applied theology. 2555 -- Augustus Stanley Owsley III 2556% 2557Chicago law prohibits eating in a place that is on fire. 2558% 2559Chicago Transit Authority Rider's Rule #36: 2560 Never ever ask the tough looking gentleman wearing El Rukn 2561headgear where he got his "pyramid powered pizza warmer". 2562 -- Chicago Reader 3/27/81 2563% 2564Chicago Transit Authority Rider's Rule #84: 2565 The CTA has complimentary pop-up timers available on request 2566for overheated passengers. When your timer pops up, the driver will 2567cheerfully baste you. 2568 -- Chicago Reader 5/28/82 2569% 2570Chicago, n.: 2571 Where the dead still vote ... early and often! 2572% 2573Chicken Little only has to be right once. 2574% 2575Chicken Little was right. 2576% 2577Chicken Soup, n.: 2578 An ancient miracle drug containing equal parts of aureomycin, 2579cocaine, interferon, and TLC. The only ailment chicken soup can't cure 2580is neurotic dependence on one's mother. 2581 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 2582% 2583Children are natural mimics who act like their parents despite every 2584effort to teach them good manners. 2585% 2586Children are unpredictable. You never know what inconsistency they're 2587going to catch you in next. 2588 -- Franklin P. Jones 2589% 2590Children aren't happy without something to ignore, 2591And that's what parents were created for. 2592 -- Ogden Nash 2593% 2594Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for 2595word what you shouldn't have said. 2596% 2597Chism's Law of Completion: 2598 The amount of time required to complete a government project is 2599precisely equal to the length of time already spent on it. 2600% 2601Chisolm's First Corollary to Murphy's Second Law: 2602 When things just can't possibly get any worse, they will. 2603% 2604Chivalry, Schmivalry! 2605 Roger the thief has a 2606 method he uses for 2607 sneaky attacks: 2608Folks who are reading are 2609 Characteristically 2610 Always Forgetting to 2611 Guard their own bac ... 2612% 2613Christ: 2614 A man who was born at least 5,000 years ahead of his time. 2615% 2616Churchill's Commentary on Man: 2617 Man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the 2618time he will pick himself up and continue on. 2619% 2620Cigarette, n.: 2621 A fire at one end, a fool at the other, and a bit of tobacco in 2622between. 2623% 2624Cinemuck, n.: 2625 The combination of popcorn, soda, and melted chocolate which 2626covers the floors of movie theaters. 2627 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 2628% 2629Clairvoyant, n.: 2630 A person, commonly a woman, who has the power of seeing that 2631which is invisible to her patron -- namely, that he is a blockhead. 2632 -- Ambrose Bierce 2633% 2634Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like 2635shoveling the walk before it stops snowing. 2636 -- Phyllis Diller 2637% 2638Cleanliness is next to impossible. 2639% 2640Cleveland still lives. God ____must be dead. 2641% 2642Cleveland? Yes, I spent a week there one day. 2643% 2644Cloning is the sincerest form of flattery. 2645% 2646Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on 2647society. 2648 -- Mark Twain 2649% 2650COBOL programs are an exercise in Artificial Inelegance. 2651% 2652Cocaine -- the thinking man's Dristan. 2653% 2654Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum -- 2655"I think that I think, therefore I think that I am." 2656 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2657% 2658Cogito ergo I'm right and you're wrong. 2659 -- Blair Houghton 2660% 2661Coincidence, n.: 2662 You weren't paying attention to the other half of what was 2663going on. 2664% 2665Coincidences are spiritual puns. 2666 -- G. K. Chesterton 2667% 2668Cold, adj.: 2669 When the local flashers are handing out written descriptions. 2670% 2671Cold, adj.: 2672 When the politicians walk around with their hands in their own 2673pockets. 2674% 2675Collaboration, n.: 2676 A literary partnership based on the false assumption that the 2677other fellow can spell. 2678% 2679College football is a game which would be much more interesting if the 2680faculty played instead of the students, and even more interesting if 2681the trustees played. There would be a great increase in broken arms, 2682legs, and necks, and simultaneously an appreciable diminution in the 2683loss to humanity. 2684 -- H. L. Mencken 2685% 2686Colvard's Logical Premises: 2687 All probabilities are 50%. Either a thing will happen or it 2688 won't. 2689 2690Colvard's Unconscionable Commentary: 2691 This is especially true when dealing with someone you're 2692 attracted to. 2693 2694Grelb's Commentary 2695 Likelihoods, however, are 90% against you. 2696% 2697Come, every frustum longs to be a cone, 2698And every vector dreams of matrices. 2699Hark to the gentle gradient of the breeze: 2700It whispers of a more ergodic zone. 2701 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 2702% 2703Come, let us hasten to a higher plane, 2704Where dyads tread the fairy fields of Venn, 2705Their indices bedecked from one to _n, 2706Commingled in an endless Markov chain! 2707 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 2708% 2709Command, n.: 2710 Statement presented by a human and accepted by a computer in 2711such a manner as to make the human feel as if he is in control. 2712% 2713 COMMENT 2714 2715Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song, 2716A medley of extemporanea; 2717And love is thing that can never go wrong; 2718And I am Marie of Roumania. 2719 -- Dorothy Parker 2720% 2721Commitment, n.: 2722 Commitment can be illustrated by a breakfast of ham and eggs. 2723The chicken was involved, the pig was committed. 2724% 2725Committee Rules: 2726 (1) Never arrive on time, or you will be stamped a beginner. 2727 (2) Don't say anything until the meeting is half over; this 2728 stamps you as being wise. 2729 (3) Be as vague as possible; this prevents irritating the 2730 others. 2731 (4) When in doubt, suggest that a subcommittee be appointed. 2732 (5) Be the first to move for adjournment; this will make you 2733 popular -- it's what everyone is waiting for. 2734% 2735Committee, n.: 2736 A group of men who individually can do nothing but as a group 2737decide that nothing can be done. 2738 -- Fred Allen 2739% 2740Committees have become so important nowadays that subcommittees have to 2741be appointed to do the work. 2742% 2743Common sense and a sense of humor are the same thing, moving at 2744different speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. 2745 -- Clive James 2746% 2747Common sense is instinct, and enough of it is genius. 2748 -- Josh Billings 2749% 2750Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen. 2751 -- Albert Einstein 2752% 2753Comparing information and knowledge is like asking whether the fatness 2754of a pig is more or less green than the designated hitter rule." 2755 -- David Guaspari 2756% 2757Computer programmers do it byte by byte. 2758% 2759Computer Science is merely the post-Turing decline in formal systems 2760theory. 2761% 2762Computers are not intelligent. They only think they are. 2763% 2764Computers are useless. They can only give you answers. 2765 -- Pablo Picasso 2766% 2767Computers can figure out all kinds of problems, except the things in 2768the world that just don't add up. 2769% 2770Computers will not be perfected until they can compute how much more 2771than the estimate the job will cost. 2772% 2773Conceit causes more conversation than wit. 2774 -- La Rochefoucauld 2775% 2776Concept, n.: 2777 Any "idea" for which an outside consultant billed you more than 2778$25,000. 2779% 2780... [concerning quotation marks] even if we *___did* quote anybody in this 2781business, it probably would be gibberish. 2782 -- Thom McLeod 2783% 2784Condense soup, not books! 2785% 2786Confession is good for the soul only in the sense that a tweed coat is 2787good for dandruff. 2788 -- Peter de Vries 2789% 2790Confidence is the feeling you have before you understand the situation. 2791% 2792Congratulations! You have purchased an extremely fine device that 2793would give you thousands of years of trouble-free service, except that 2794you undoubtedly will destroy it via some typical bonehead consumer 2795maneuver. Which is why we ask you to PLEASE FOR GOD'S SAKE READ THIS 2796OWNER'S MANUAL CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU UNPACK THE DEVICE. YOU ALREADY 2797UNPACKED IT, DIDN'T YOU? YOU UNPACKED IT AND PLUGGED IT IN AND TURNED 2798IT ON AND FIDDLED WITH THE KNOBS, AND NOW YOUR CHILD, THE SAME CHILD 2799WHO ONCE SHOVED A POLISH SAUSAGE INTO YOUR VIDEOCASSETTE RECORDER AND 2800SET IT ON "FAST FORWARD", THIS CHILD ALSO IS FIDDLING WITH THE KNOBS, 2801RIGHT? AND YOU'RE JUST NOW STARTING TO READ THE INSTRUCTIONS, 2802RIGHT??? WE MIGHT AS WELL JUST BREAK THESE DEVICES RIGHT AT THE 2803FACTORY BEFORE WE SHIP THEM OUT, YOU KNOW THAT? 2804 -- Dave Barry, "Read This First!" 2805% 2806Connector Conspiracy, n: 2807 [probably came into prominence with the appearance of the 2808KL-10, none of whose connectors match anything else] The tendency of 2809manufacturers (or, by extension, programmers or purveyors of anything) 2810to come up with new products which don't fit together with the old 2811stuff, thereby making you buy either all new stuff or expensive 2812interface devices. 2813% 2814Conscience is a mother-in-law whose visit never ends. 2815 -- H. L. Mencken 2816% 2817Conscience is the inner voice that warns us somebody is looking. 2818 -- H. L. Mencken, "A Mencken Chrestomathy" 2819% 2820Conscience is what hurts when everything else feels so good. 2821% 2822Conscious is when you are aware of something and conscience is when you 2823wish you weren't. 2824% 2825Consequences, Schmonsequences, as long as I'm rich. 2826 -- "Ali Baba Bunny" [1957, Chuck Jones] 2827% 2828Consultants are mystical people who ask a company for a number and then 2829give it back to them. 2830% 2831"Contrariwise," continued Tweedledee, "if it was so, it might be, and 2832if it were so, it would be; but as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic!" 2833 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 2834% 2835Contrary to popular belief, penguins are not the salvation of modern 2836technology. Neither do they throw parties for the urban proletariat. 2837% 2838Conversation, n.: 2839 A vocal competition in which the one who is catching his breath 2840is called the listener. 2841% 2842Conway's Law: 2843 In any organization there will always be one person who knows 2844 what is going on. 2845 2846 This person must be fired. 2847% 2848Coronation, n.: 2849 The ceremony of investing a sovereign with the outward and 2850visible signs of his divine right to be blown skyhigh with a dynamite 2851bomb. 2852 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2853% 2854Corrupt, adj.: 2855 In politics, holding an office of trust or profit. 2856% 2857Corrupt, stupid grasping functionaries will make at least as big a 2858muddle of socialism as stupid, selfish and acquisitive employers can 2859make of capitalism. 2860 -- Walter Lippmann 2861% 2862Corruption is not the #1 priority of the Police Commissioner. His job 2863is to enforce the law and fight crime. 2864 -- P.B.A. President E. J. Kiernan 2865% 2866Court, n.: 2867 A place where they dispense with justice. 2868 -- Arthur Train 2869% 2870Coward, n.: 2871 One who in a perilous emergency thinks with his legs. 2872 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2873% 2874[Crash programs] fail because they are based on the theory that, with 2875nine women pregnant, you can get a baby a month. 2876 -- Wernher von Braun 2877% 2878Crime does not pay ... as well as politics. 2879 -- A. E. Neuman 2880% 2881Critic, n.: 2882 A person who boasts himself hard to please because nobody tries 2883to please him. 2884 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2885% 2886Croll's Query: 2887 If tin whistles are made of tin, what are foghorns made of? 2888% 2889cursor address, n: 2890 "Hello, cursor!" 2891 -- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary" 2892% 2893Cutting the space budget really restores my faith in humanity. It 2894eliminates dreams, goals, and ideals and lets us get straight to the 2895business of hate, debauchery, and self-annihilation. 2896 -- Johnny Hart 2897% 2898Cynic, n.: 2899 A blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not 2900as they ought to be. Hence the custom among the Scythians of plucking 2901out a cynic's eyes to improve his vision. 2902 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2903% 2904Cynic, n.: 2905 One who looks through rose-colored glasses with a jaundiced eye. 2906% 2907Dare to be naive. 2908 -- R. Buckminster Fuller 2909% 2910Darth Vader sleeps with a Teddywookie. 2911% 2912Dave Mack: "Your stupidity, Allen, is simply not up to par." 2913Allen Gwinn: "Yours is." 2914% 2915Dawn, n.: 2916 The time when men of reason go to bed. 2917 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 2918% 2919Day of inquiry. You will be subpoenaed. 2920% 2921%DCL-E-MEM-BAD, bad memory 2922-VMS-F-PDGERS, pudding between the ears 2923% 2924Dealing with failure is easy: work hard to improve. Success is also 2925easy to handle: you've solved the wrong problem. Work hard to 2926improve. 2927% 2928Dear Lord: 2929 I just want *___one* one-armed manager so I never have to hear "On 2930the other hand", again. 2931% 2932Dear Miss Manners: 2933 My home economics teacher says that one must never place one's 2934elbows on the table. However, I have read that one elbow, in between 2935courses, is all right. Which is correct? 2936 2937Gentle Reader: 2938 For the purpose of answering examinations in your home 2939economics class, your teacher is correct. Catching on to this 2940principle of education may be of even greater importance to you now 2941than learning correct current table manners, vital as Miss Manners 2942believes that is. 2943% 2944Dear Miss Manners: 2945 Please list some tactful ways of removing a man's saliva from 2946your face. 2947 2948Gentle Reader: 2949 Please list some decent ways of acquiring a man's saliva on 2950your face ... 2951% 2952Dear Mister Language Person: I am curious about the expression, "Part 2953of this complete breakfast". The way it comes up is, my 5-year-old 2954will be watching TV cartoon shows in the morning, and they'll show a 2955commercial for a children's compressed breakfast compound such as 2956"Froot Loops" or "Lucky Charms", and they always show it sitting on a 2957table next to some actual food such as eggs, and the announcer always 2958says: "Part of this complete breakfast". Don't that really mean, 2959"Adjacent to this complete breakfast", or "On the same table as this 2960complete breakfast"? And couldn't they make essentially the same claim 2961if, instead of Froot Loops, they put a can of shaving cream there, or a 2962dead bat? 2963 2964Answer: Yes. 2965 -- Dave Barry, "Tips for Writer's" 2966% 2967Dear Mister Language Person: What is the purpose of the apostrophe? 2968 2969Answer: The apostrophe is used mainly in hand-lettered small business 2970signs to alert the reader than an "S" is coming up at the end of a 2971word, as in: WE DO NOT EXCEPT PERSONAL CHECK'S, or: NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR 2972ANY ITEM'S. Another important grammar concept to bear in mind when 2973creating hand- lettered small-business signs is that you should put 2974quotation marks around random words for decoration, as in "TRY" OUR HOT 2975DOG'S, or even TRY "OUR" HOT DOG'S. 2976 -- Dave Barry, "Tips for Writer's" 2977% 2978Death is God's way of telling you not to be such a wise guy. 2979% 2980Death is life's way of telling you you've been fired. 2981 -- R. Geis 2982% 2983Death is Nature's way of recycling human beings. 2984% 2985Death is nature's way of saying `Howdy'. 2986% 2987Death is nature's way of telling you to slow down. 2988% 2989Death is only a state of mind. 2990 2991Only it doesn't leave you much time to think about anything else. 2992% 2993Death to all fanatics! 2994% 2995Decision maker, n.: 2996 The person in your office who was unable to form a task force 2997before the music stopped. 2998% 2999Decisions of the judges will be final unless shouted down by a really 3000overwhelming majority of the crowd present. Abusive and obscene 3001language may not be used by contestants when addressing members of the 3002judging panel, or, conversely, by members of the judging panel when 3003addressing contestants (unless struck by a boomerang). 3004 -- Mudgeeraba Creek Emu-Riding and Boomerang-Throwing Assoc. 3005% 3006 Deck Us All With Boston Charlie 3007 3008Deck us all with Boston Charlie, 3009Walla Walla, Wash., an' Kalamazoo! 3010Nora's freezin' on the trolley, 3011Swaller dollar cauliflower, alleygaroo! 3012 3013Don't we know archaic barrel, 3014Lullaby Lilla Boy, Louisville Lou. 3015Trolley Molly don't love Harold, 3016Boola boola Pensacoola hullabaloo! 3017 -- Walt Kelly 3018% 3019"Deep" is a word like "theory" or "semantic" -- it implies all sorts of 3020marvelous things. It's one thing to be able to say "I've got a 3021theory", quite another to say "I've got a semantic theory", but, ah, 3022those who can claim "I've got a deep semantic theory", they are truly 3023blessed. 3024 -- Randy Davis 3025% 3026default, n.: 3027 [Possibly from Black English "De fault wid dis system is you, 3028mon."] The vain attempt to avoid errors by inactivity. "Nothing will 3029come of nothing: speak again." -- King Lear 3030 -- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary" 3031% 3032#define BITCOUNT(x) (((BX_(x)+(BX_(x)>>4)) & 0x0F0F0F0F) % 255) 3033#define BX_(x) ((x) - (((x)>>1)&0x77777777) \ 3034 - (((x)>>2)&0x33333333) \ 3035 - (((x)>>3)&0x11111111)) 3036 3037 -- really weird C code to count the number of bits in a word 3038% 3039Definitions of hardware and software for dummies: 3040 Hardware is what you kick; 3041 Software is what you curse. 3042% 3043 DELETE A FORTUNE! 3044 3045Don't some of these fortunes just drive you nuts?! Wouldn't you like 3046to see some of them deleted from the system? You can! Just mail to 3047"fortune" with the fortune you hate most, and we MIGHT make sure it 3048gets expunged. 3049% 3050Deliberation, n.: 3051 The act of examining one's bread to determine which side it is 3052buttered on. 3053 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 3054% 3055Deliver yesterday, code today, think tomorrow. 3056% 3057Demand the establishment of the government 3058in its rightful home at Disneyland. 3059% 3060Democracy is a device that insures we shall be governed no better than 3061we deserve. 3062 -- George Bernard Shaw 3063% 3064Democracy is a form of government in which it is permitted to wonder 3065aloud what the country could do under first-class management. 3066 -- Senator Soaper 3067% 3068Democracy is a form of government that substitutes election by the 3069incompetent many for appointment by the corrupt few. 3070 -- G. B. Shaw 3071% 3072Democracy is a government where you can say what you think even if you 3073don't think. 3074% 3075Democracy is also a form of worship. It is the worship of Jackals by 3076Jackasses. 3077 -- H. L. Mencken 3078% 3079Democracy is good. I say this because other systems are worse. 3080 -- Jawaharlal Nehru 3081% 3082Democracy is the recurrent suspicion that more than half of the people 3083are right more than half of the time. 3084 -- E. B. White 3085% 3086Democracy, n.: 3087 A government of the masses. Authority derived through mass 3088meeting or any other form of direct expression. Results in mobocracy. 3089Attitude toward property is communistic... negating property rights. 3090Attitude toward law is that the will of the majority shall regulate, 3091whether it is based upon deliberation or governed by passion, 3092prejudice, and impulse, without restraint or regard to consequences. 3093Result is demagogism, license, agitation, discontent, anarchy. 3094 -- U. S. Army Training Manual No. 2000-25 (1928-1932), 3095 since withdrawn. 3096% 3097Demographic polls show that you have lost credibility across the 3098board. Especially with those 14 year-old Valley girls. 3099% 3100Dentist, n.: 3101 A Prestidigitator who, putting metal in one's mouth, pulls 3102coins out of one's pockets. 3103 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 3104% 3105Dessert is probably the most important stage of the meal, since it will 3106be the last thing your guests remember before they pass out all over 3107the table. 3108 -- The Anarchist Cookbook 3109% 3110 DETERIORATA 3111 3112Go placidly amid the noise and waste, 3113And remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereof. 3114Avoid quiet and passive persons, unless you are in need of sleep. 3115Rotate your tires. 3116Speak glowingly of those greater than yourself, 3117And heed well their advice -- even though they be turkeys. 3118Know what to kiss -- and when. 3119Remember that two wrongs never make a right, 3120But that three do. 3121Wherever possible, put people on "HOLD". 3122Be comforted, that in the face of all aridity and disillusionment, 3123And despite the changing fortunes of time, 3124There is always a big future in computer maintenance. 3125 3126 You are a fluke of the universe ... 3127 You have no right to be here. 3128 Whether you can hear it or not, the universe 3129 Is laughing behind your back. 3130 -- National Lampoon 3131% 3132DeVries's Dilemma: 3133 If you hit two keys on the typewriter, the one you don't want 3134hits the paper. 3135% 3136Did I say 2? I lied. 3137% 3138Did you know ... 3139 3140That no-one ever reads these things? 3141% 3142Did you know that clones never use mirrors? 3143 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 3144% 3145Did you know that if you took all the economists in the world and lined 3146them up end to end, they'd still point in the wrong direction? 3147% 3148Did you know that the voice tapes easily identify the Russian pilot 3149that shot down the Korean jet? At one point he definitely states: 3150 3151 "Natasha! First we shoot jet, then we go after moose and 3152 squirrel." 3153 3154 -- ihuxw!tommyo 3155% 3156Die, v.: 3157 To stop sinning suddenly. 3158 -- Elbert Hubbard 3159% 3160Die? I should say not, dear fellow. No Barrymore would allow such a 3161conventional thing to happen to him. 3162 -- John Barrymore's dying words 3163% 3164Different all twisty a of in maze are you, passages little. 3165% 3166Dimensions will always be expressed in the least usable term. 3167Velocity, for example, will be expressed in furlongs per fortnight. 3168% 3169Diplomacy is the art of saying "nice doggy" until you can find a rock. 3170% 3171Disc space -- the final frontier! 3172% 3173Disclaimer: "These opinions are my own, though for a small fee they be 3174yours too." 3175 -- Dave Haynie 3176% 3177Disclaimer: Any resemblance between the above views and those of my 3178employer, my terminal, or the view out my window are purely 3179coincidental. Any resemblance between the above and my own views is 3180non-deterministic. The question of the existence of views in the 3181absence of anyone to hold them is left as an exercise for the reader. 3182The question of the existence of the reader is left as an exercise for 3183the second god coefficient. (A discussion of non-orthogonal, 3184non-integral polytheism is beyond the scope of this article.) 3185% 3186Disco is to music what Etch-A-Sketch is to art. 3187% 3188Distinctive, adj.: 3189 A different color or shape than our competitors. 3190% 3191Distress, n.: 3192 A disease incurred by exposure to the prosperity of a friend. 3193 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 3194% 3195District of Columbia pedestrians who leap over passing autos to escape 3196injury, and then strike the car as they come down, are liable for any 3197damage inflicted on the vehicle. 3198% 3199Do infants have as much fun in infancy as adults do in adultery? 3200% 3201Do molecular biologists wear designer genes? 3202% 3203Do not believe in miracles -- rely on them. 3204% 3205Do not drink coffee in early a.m. It will keep you awake until noon. 3206% 3207Do not meddle in the affairs of troff, for it is subtle and quick to 3208anger. 3209% 3210Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for you are crunchy and good 3211with ketchup. 3212% 3213Do not read this fortune under penalty of law. 3214Violators will be prosecuted. 3215(Penal Code sec. 2.3.2 (II.a.)) 3216% 3217Do not sleep in a eucalyptus tree tonight. 3218% 3219Do not try to solve all life's problems at once -- learn to dread each 3220day as it comes. 3221 -- Donald Kaul 3222% 3223Do something unusual today. Pay a bill. 3224% 3225Do what comes naturally now. Seethe and fume and throw a tantrum. 3226% 3227Do you have lysdexia? 3228% 3229Do you realize how many holes there could be if people would just take 3230the time to take the dirt out of them? 3231% 3232"Do you think what we're doing is wrong?" 3233"Of course it's wrong! It's illegal!" 3234"I've never done anything illegal before." 3235"I thought you said you were an accountant!" 3236% 3237Documentation is like sex: when it is good, it is very, very good; and 3238when it is bad, it is better than nothing. 3239 -- Dick Brandon 3240% 3241Documentation is the castor oil of programming. Managers know it must 3242be good because the programmers hate it so much. 3243% 3244Does the name Pavlov ring a bell? 3245% 3246Don't abandon hope: your Tom Mix decoder ring arrives tomorrow. 3247% 3248Don't be humble ... you're not that great. 3249 -- Golda Meir 3250% 3251Don't believe everything you hear or anything you say. 3252% 3253Don't change the reason, just change the excuses! 3254 -- Joe Cointment 3255% 3256"Don't come back until you have him", the Tick-Tock Man said quietly, 3257sincerely, extremely dangerously. 3258 3259They used dogs. They used probes. They used cardio plate crossoffs. 3260They used teepers. They used bribery. They used stick tites. They 3261used intimidation. They used torment. They used torture. They used 3262finks. They used cops. They used search and seizure. They used 3263fallaron. They used betterment incentives. They used finger prints. 3264They used the bertillion system. They used cunning. They used guile. 3265They used treachery. They used Raoul-Mitgong but he wasn't much help. 3266They used applied physics. They used techniques of criminology. And 3267what the hell, they caught him. 3268 3269 -- Harlan Ellison, "Repent, Harlequin, said the Tick-Tock Man" 3270% 3271Don't cook tonight -- starve a rat today! 3272% 3273Don't feed the bats tonight. 3274% 3275Don't get even -- get odd! 3276% 3277Don't get suckered in by the comments -- they can be terribly 3278misleading. Debug only code. 3279 -- Dave Storer 3280% 3281Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes 3282you nothing. It was here first. 3283 -- Mark Twain 3284% 3285Don't go surfing in South Dakota for a while. 3286% 3287Don't hate yourself in the morning -- sleep till noon. 3288% 3289Don't hit a man when he's down -- kick him; it's easier. 3290% 3291Don't kiss an elephant on the lips today. 3292% 3293Don't knock President Fillmore. He kept us out of Vietnam. 3294% 3295Don't let people drive you crazy when you know it's in walking distance. 3296% 3297Don't let your mind wander -- it's too little to be let out alone. 3298% 3299Don't look back, the lemmings are gaining on you. 3300% 3301Don't put off for tomorrow what you can do today, because if you enjoy 3302it today you can do it again tomorrow. 3303% 3304Don't say yes until I finish talking. 3305 -- Darryl F. Zanuck 3306% 3307Don't steal; thou'lt never thus compete successfully in business. 3308Cheat. 3309 -- Ambrose Bierce 3310% 3311Don't suspect your friends -- turn them in! 3312 -- "Brazil" 3313% 3314Don't take life so serious, son, it ain't nohow permanent. 3315 -- Walt Kelly 3316% 3317Don't take life too seriously -- you'll never get out of it alive. 3318% 3319Don't tell any big lies today. Small ones can be just as effective. 3320% 3321Don't tell me I'm burning the candle at both ends -- tell me where to 3322get more wax!! 3323% 3324Don't worry about avoiding temptation -- as you grow older, it starts 3325avoiding you. 3326 -- The Old Farmer's Almanac 3327% 3328Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any 3329good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats. 3330 -- Howard Aiken 3331% 3332Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already 3333tomorrow in Australia. 3334 -- Charles Schultz 3335% 3336Don't worry over what other people are thinking about you. They're too 3337busy worrying over what you are thinking about them. 3338% 3339Don't you feel more like you do now than you did when you came in? 3340% 3341Don Ameche: I didn't know you had a cousin Penelope, Bill! Was she 3342 pretty? 3343W. C.: Well, her face was so wrinkled it looked like seven miles of 3344 bad road. She had so many gold teeth, Don, she use to have to 3345 sleep with her head in a safe. She died in Bolivia. 3346Don: Oh Bill, it must be hard to lose a relative. 3347W. C.: It's almost impossible. 3348 -- W. C. Fields, from "The Further Adventures of Larson 3349 E. Whipsnade and other Tarradiddles" 3350% 3351 Double Bucky 3352 (Sung to the tune of "Rubber Duckie") 3353 3354Double bucky, you're the one! 3355You make my keyboard lots of fun 3356 Double bucky, an additional bit or two: 3357(Vo-vo-de-o!) 3358Control and Meta side by side, 3359Augmented ASCII, nine bits wide! 3360 Double bucky, a half a thousand glyphs, plus a few! 3361 3362Oh, I sure wish that I, 3363Had a couple of bits more! 3364Perhaps a set of pedals to make the number of bits four. 3365 3366Double bucky, left and right 3367OR'd together, outta sight! 3368 Double bucky, I'd like a whole word of 3369 Double bucky, I'm happy I heard of 3370 Double bucky, I'd like a whole word of you! 3371 3372 -- (C) 1978 by Guy L. Steele, Jr. 3373 (to Nicholas Wirth, who suggested that an extra bit 3374 be added to terminal codes on 36-bit machines for use 3375 by screen editors. [to the tune of "Rubber Ducky"]) 3376% 3377Double-Blind Experiment, n.: 3378 An experiment in which the chief researcher believes he is 3379fooling both the subject and the lab assistant. Often accompanied by a 3380strong belief in the tooth fairy. 3381% 3382Down with categorical imperative! 3383% 3384Drawing on my fine command of language, I said nothing. 3385% 3386Drew's Law of Highway Biology: 3387 The first bug to hit a clean windshield lands directly in front 3388of your eyes. 3389% 3390Drink Canada Dry! You might not succeed, but it *__is* fun trying. 3391% 3392Drive defensively. Buy a tank. 3393% 3394Drugs may be the road to nowhere, but at least they're the scenic route! 3395% 3396Ducharme's Axiom: 3397 If you view your problem closely enough you will recognize 3398yourself as part of the problem. 3399% 3400Ducharme's Precept: 3401 Opportunity always knocks at the least opportune moment. 3402% 3403Duct tape is like the force. It has a light side, and a dark side, and 3404it holds the universe together. 3405 -- Carl Zwanzig 3406% 3407Due to a shortage of devoted followers, the production of great leaders 3408has been discontinued. 3409% 3410Due to circumstances beyond your control, you are master of your fate 3411and captain of your soul. 3412% 3413Due to lack of disk space, this fortune database has been 3414discontinued. 3415% 3416 During a grouse hunt in North Carolina two intrepid sportsmen 3417were blasting away at a clump of trees near a stone wall. Suddenly a 3418red-faced country squire popped his head over the wall and shouted, 3419"Hey, you almost hit my wife." 3420 "Did I?" cried the hunter, aghast. "Terribly sorry. Have a 3421shot at mine, over there." 3422% 3423During the next two hours, the system will be going up and down several 3424times, often with lin~po_~{po ~poz~ppo\~{ o n~po_~{o[po ~y oodsou>#w4k**n~po_~{ol;lkld;f;g;dd;po\~{o 3425% 3426Dying is a very dull, dreary affair. And my advice to you is to have 3427nothing whatever to do with it. 3428 -- W. Somerset Maugham (last words) 3429% 3430E Pluribus Unix 3431% 3432Eagleson's Law: 3433 Any code of your own that you haven't looked at for six or more 3434months, might as well have been written by someone else. (Eagleson is 3435an optimist, the real number is more like three weeks.) 3436% 3437Earn cash in your spare time -- blackmail your friends 3438% 3439/earth is 98% full ... please delete anyone you can. 3440% 3441Earth is a beta site. 3442% 3443Earth is a great, big funhouse without the fun. 3444 -- Jeff Berner 3445% 3446Easiest Color to Solve on a Rubik's Cube: 3447 Black. Simply remove all the little colored stickers on the 3448cube, and each of side of the cube will now be the original color of 3449the plastic underneath -- black. According to the instructions, this 3450means the puzzle is solved. 3451 -- Steve Rubenstein 3452% 3453Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow they may make it illegal. 3454% 3455Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow you may work. 3456% 3457Economics is extremely useful as a form of employment for economists. 3458 -- John Kenneth Galbraith 3459% 3460Economics, n.: 3461 Economics is the study of the value and meaning of J. K. 3462Galbraith ... 3463 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 3464% 3465Economists can certainly disappoint you. One said that the economy 3466would turn up by the last quarter. Well, I'm down to mine and it 3467hasn't. 3468 -- Robert Orben 3469% 3470Economists state their GNP growth projections to the nearest tenth of a 3471percentage point to prove they have a sense of humor. 3472 -- Edgar R. Fiedler 3473% 3474Ed Sullivan will be around as long as someone else has talent. 3475 -- Fred Allen 3476% 3477Education is the process of casting false pearls before real swine. 3478 -- Irsin Edman 3479% 3480Eeny, Meeny, Jelly Beanie, the spirits are about to speak! 3481 -- Bullwinkle Moose 3482% 3483Eggheads unite! You have nothing to lose but your yolks. 3484 -- Adlai Stevenson 3485% 3486Eggnog is a traditional holiday drink invented by the English. Many 3487people wonder where the word "eggnog" comes from. The first syllable 3488comes from the English word "egg", meaning "egg". I don't know where 3489the "nog" comes from. 3490 3491To make eggnog, you'll need rum, whiskey, wine gin and, if they are in 3492season, eggs... 3493% 3494Egotism is the anesthetic given by a kindly nature to relieve the pain 3495of being a damned fool. 3496 -- Bellamy Brooks 3497% 3498Egotist, n.: 3499 A person of low taste, more interested in himself than me. 3500 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 3501% 3502Ehrman's Commentary: 3503 (1) Things will get worse before they get better. 3504 (2) Who said things would get better? 3505% 3506Eighty percent of air pollution comes from plants and trees. 3507 -- Ronald Reagan, famous movie star 3508% 3509Eleanor Rigby 3510 Sits at the keyboard 3511 And waits for a line on the screen 3512Lives in a dream 3513Waits for a signal 3514 Finding some code 3515 That will make the machine do some more. 3516What is it for? 3517 3518All the lonely users, where do they all come from? 3519All the lonely users, why does it take so long? 3520 3521Hacker MacKensie 3522Writing the code for a program that no one will run 3523It's nearly done 3524Look at him working, fixing the bugs in the night when there's nobody there. 3525What does he care? 3526 3527All the lonely users, where do they all come from? 3528All the lonely users, why does it take so long? 3529Ah, look at all the lonely users. 3530Ah, look at all the lonely users. 3531% 3532Electrical Engineers do it with less resistance. 3533% 3534 Electricity is actually made up of extremely tiny particles, 3535called electrons, that you cannot see with the naked eye unless you 3536have been drinking. Electrons travel at the speed of light, which in 3537most American homes is 110 volts per hour. This is very fast. In the 3538time it has taken you to read this sentence so far, an electron could 3539have traveled all the way from San Francisco to Hackensack, New Jersey, 3540although God alone knows why it would want to. 3541 The five main kinds of electricity are alternating current, 3542direct current, lightning, static, and European. Most American homes 3543have alternating current, which means that the electricity goes in one 3544direction for a while, then goes in the other direction. This prevents 3545harmful electron buildup in the wires. 3546 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 3547% 3548Electrocution, n.: 3549 Burning at the stake with all the modern improvements. 3550% 3551Elevators smell different to midgets. 3552% 3553Emerson's Law of Contrariness: 3554 Our chief want in life is somebody who shall make us do what we 3555can. Having found them, we shall then hate them for it. 3556% 3557Encyclopedia Salesmen: 3558 Invite them all in. Nip out the back door. Phone the police 3559and tell them your house is being burgled. 3560 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 3561% 3562Endless Loop: n., see Loop, Endless. 3563Loop, Endless: n., see Endless Loop. 3564 -- Random Shack Data Processing Dictionary 3565% 3566Entropy isn't what it used to be. 3567% 3568Enzymes are things invented by biologists that explain things which 3569otherwise require harder thinking. 3570 -- Jerome Lettvin 3571% 3572Epperson's law: 3573 When a man says it's a silly, childish game, it's probably 3574something his wife can beat him at. 3575% 3576Equal bytes for women. 3577% 3578Error in operator: add beer 3579% 3580Es brilig war. Die schlichte Toven 3581 Wirrten und wimmelten in Waben; 3582Und aller-m"umsige Burggoven 3583 Dir mohmen R"ath ausgraben. 3584 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 3585% 3586Eternal nothingness is fine if you happen to be dressed for it. 3587 -- Woody Allen 3588% 3589Etymology, n.: 3590 Some early etymological scholars came up with derivations that 3591were hard for the public to believe. The term "etymology" was formed 3592from the Latin "etus" ("eaten"), the root "mal" ("bad"), and "logy" 3593("study of"). It meant "the study of things that are hard to swallow." 3594 -- Mike Kellen 3595% 3596Even if you do learn to speak correct English, whom are you going to 3597speak it to? 3598 -- Clarence Darrow 3599% 3600Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. 3601 -- Will Rogers 3602% 3603Even the best of friends cannot attend each other's funeral. 3604 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 3605% 3606Even though they raised the rate for first class mail in the United 3607States we really shouldn't complain -- it's still only two cents a 3608day. 3609% 3610Ever notice that even the busiest people are never too busy to tell you 3611just how busy they are? 3612% 3613Ever since prehistoric times, wise men have tried to understand what, 3614exactly, make people laugh. That's why they were called "wise men." 3615All the other prehistoric people were out puncturing each other with 3616spears, and the wise men were back in the cave saying: "How about: 3617Would you please take my wife? No. How about: Here is my wife, please 3618take her right now. No How about: Would you like to take something? 3619My wife is available. No. How about ..." 3620 -- Dave Barry, "Why Humor is Funny" 3621% 3622Every absurdity has a champion who will defend it. 3623% 3624Every creature has within him the wild, uncontrollable urge to punt. 3625% 3626Every four seconds a woman has a baby. Our problem is to find this 3627woman and stop her. 3628% 3629Every group has a couple of experts. And every group has at least one 3630idiot. Thus are balance and harmony (and discord) maintained. It's 3631sometimes hard to remember this in the bulk of the flamewars that all 3632of the hassle and pain is generally caused by one or two 3633highly-motivated, caustic twits. 3634 -- Chuq Von Rospach, about Usenet 3635% 3636Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired 3637signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not 3638fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not 3639spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the 3640genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. This is not a way 3641of life at all in any true sense. Under the clouds of war, it is 3642humanity hanging on a cross of iron. 3643 -- Dwight D. Eisenhower, April 16, 1953 3644% 3645Every Horse has an Infinite Number of Legs (proof by intimidation): 3646 3647Horses have an even number of legs. Behind they have two legs, and in 3648front they have fore-legs. This makes six legs, which is certainly an 3649odd number of legs for a horse. But the only number that is both even 3650and odd is infinity. Therefore, horses have an infinite number of 3651legs. Now to show this for the general case, suppose that somewhere, 3652there is a horse that has a finite number of legs. But that is a horse 3653of another color, and by the [above] lemma ["All horses are the same 3654color"], that does not exist. 3655% 3656Every improvement in communication makes the bore more terrible. 3657 -- Frank Moore Colby 3658% 3659Every journalist has a novel in him, which is an excellent place for it. 3660% 3661Every little picofarad has a nanohenry all its own. 3662 -- Don Vonada 3663% 3664Every man has his price. Mine is $3.95. 3665% 3666Every man is as God made him, ay, and often worse. 3667 -- Miguel de Cervantes 3668% 3669Every morning, I get up and look through the 'Forbes' list of the 3670richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work. 3671 -- Robert Orben 3672% 3673Every nonzero finite dimensional inner product space has an orthonormal basis. 3674 3675It makes sense, when you don't think about it. 3676% 3677Every program has at least one bug and can be shortened by at least one 3678instruction -- from which, by induction, one can deduce that every 3679program can be reduced to one instruction which doesn't work. 3680% 3681Every program has two purposes -- one for which it was written and 3682another for which it wasn't. 3683% 3684Every program is a part of some other program, and rarely fits. 3685% 3686Every solution breeds new problems. 3687% 3688Every successful person has had failures but repeated failure is no 3689guarantee of eventual success. 3690% 3691Every time I think I know where it's at, they move it. 3692% 3693Every word is like an unnecessary stain on silence and nothingness. 3694 -- Beckett 3695% 3696Everybody is somebody else's weirdo. 3697 -- Dykstra 3698% 3699Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die. 3700% 3701Everyone can be taught to sculpt: Michelangelo would have had to be 3702taught how ___not to. So it is with the great programmers. 3703% 3704Everyone is a genius. It's just that some people are too stupid to 3705realize it. 3706% 3707Everyone knows that dragons don't exist. But while this simplistic 3708formulation may satisfy the layman, it does not suffice for the 3709scientific mind. The School of Higher Neantical Nillity is in fact 3710wholly unconcerned with what ____does exist. Indeed, the banality of 3711existence has been so amply demonstrated, there is no need for us to 3712discuss it any further here. The brilliant Cerebron, attacking the 3713problem analytically, discovered three distinct kinds of dragon: the 3714mythical, the chimerical, and the purely hypothetical. They were all, 3715one might say, nonexistent, but each nonexisted in an entirely 3716different way ... 3717 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 3718% 3719Everyone talks about apathy, but no one ____does anything about it. 3720% 3721Everything is controlled by a small evil group to which, unfortunately, 3722no one we know belongs. 3723% 3724Everything is worth precisely as much as a belch, the difference being 3725that a belch is more satisfying. 3726 -- Ingmar Bergman 3727% 3728Everything journalists write is true, except when they write about 3729something you know. 3730 -- Dag-Erling Smorgrav, 3731 June 1999, FreeBSD-Stable Mailing List 3732% 3733Everything should be built top-down, except the first time. 3734% 3735Everything you know is wrong! 3736% 3737Everything you've learned in school as "obvious" becomes less and less 3738obvious as you begin to study the universe. For example, there are no 3739solids in the universe. There's not even a suggestion of a solid. 3740There are no absolute continuums. There are no surfaces. There are no 3741straight lines. 3742 -- R. Buckminster Fuller 3743% 3744 Excellence is THE trend of the '80s. Walk into any shopping 3745mall bookstore, go to the rack where they keep the best-sellers such as 3746"Garfield Gets Spayed", and you'll see a half-dozen books telling you 3747how to be excellent: "In Search of Excellence", "Finding Excellence", 3748"Grasping Hold of Excellence", "Where to Hide Your Excellence at Night 3749So the Cleaning Personnel Don't Steal It", etc. 3750 -- Dave Barry, "In Search of Excellence" 3751% 3752Excellent day for drinking heavily. Spike the office water cooler. 3753% 3754Excellent day for putting Slinkies on an escalator. 3755% 3756Excellent day to have a rotten day. 3757% 3758Excellent time to become a missing person. 3759% 3760Excess on occasion is exhilarating. It prevents moderation from 3761acquiring the deadening effect of a habit. 3762 -- W. Somerset Maugham 3763% 3764Excessive login or logout messages are a sure sign of senility. 3765% 3766Executive ability is deciding quickly and getting somebody else to do 3767the work. 3768 -- John G. Pollard 3769% 3770Expect the worst. It's the least you can do. 3771% 3772Expense Accounts, n.: 3773 Corporate food stamps. 3774% 3775Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it. 3776 -- Olivier 3777% 3778Experience is that marvelous thing that enables you recognize a mistake 3779when you make it again. 3780 -- Franklin P. Jones 3781% 3782Experience is the worst teacher. It always gives the test first and 3783the instruction afterward. 3784% 3785Experience is what causes a person to make new mistakes instead of old 3786ones. 3787% 3788Experience is what you get when you were expecting something else. 3789% 3790Experience varies directly with equipment ruined. 3791% 3792Expert, n.: 3793 Someone who comes from out of town and shows slides. 3794% 3795Extract from Official Sweepstakes Rules: 3796 3797 NO PURCHASE REQUIRED TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE 3798 3799To claim your prize without purchase, do the following: (a) Carefully 3800cut out your computer-printed name and address from upper right hand 3801corner of the Prize Claim Form. (b) Affix computer-printed name and 3802address -- with glue or cellophane tape (no staples or paper clips) -- 3803to a 3x5 inch index card. (c) Also cut out the "No" paragraph (lower 3804left hand corner of Prize Claim Form) and affix it to the 3x5 card 3805below your address label. (d) Then print on your 3x5 card, above your 3806computer-printed name and address the words "CARTER & VAN PEEL 3807SWEEPSTAKES" (Use all capital letters.) (e) Finally place 3x5 card 3808(without bending) into a plain envelope [NOTE: do NOT use the 3809Official Prize Claim and CVP Perfume Reply Envelope or you may be 3810disqualified], and mail to: CVP, Box 1320, Westbury, NY 11595. Print 3811this address correctly. Comply with above instructions carefully and 3812completely or you may be disqualified from receiving your prize. 3813% 3814F u cn rd ths u cnt spl wrth a dm! 3815% 3816f u cn rd ths, itn tyg h myxbl cd. 3817% 3818f u cn rd ths, u cn gt a gd jb n cmptr prgrmmng. 3819% 3820F: When into a room I plunge, I 3821 Sometimes find some VIOLET FUNGI. 3822 Then I linger, darkly brooding 3823 On the poison they're exuding. 3824 -- The Roguelet's ABC 3825% 3826Facts are stubborn, but statistics are more pliable. 3827% 3828Fairy Tale, n.: 3829 A horror story to prepare children for the newspapers. 3830% 3831Faith is the quality that enables you to eat blackberry jam on a picnic 3832without looking to see whether the seeds move. 3833% 3834Faith, n: 3835 That quality which enables us to believe what we know to be 3836untrue. 3837% 3838Fakir, n: 3839 A psychologist whose charismatic data have inspired almost 3840religious devotion in his followers, even though the sources seem to 3841have shinnied up a rope and vanished. 3842% 3843Familiarity breeds attempt. 3844% 3845Families, when a child is born 3846Want it to be intelligent. 3847I, through intelligence, 3848Having wrecked my whole life, 3849Only hope the baby will prove 3850Ignorant and stupid. 3851Then he will crown a tranquil life 3852By becoming a Cabinet Minister 3853 -- Su Tung-p'o 3854% 3855Famous last words: 3856% 3857Famous last words: 3858 (1) "Don't worry, I can handle it." 3859 (2) "You and what army?" 3860 (3) "If you were as smart as you think you are, you wouldn't be 3861 a cop." 3862% 3863Famous last words: 3864 (1) Don't unplug it, it will just take a moment to fix. 3865 (2) Let's take the shortcut, he can't see us from there. 3866 (3) What happens if you touch these two wires tog-- 3867 (4) We won't need reservations. 3868 (5) It's always sunny there this time of the year. 3869 (6) Don't worry, it's not loaded. 3870 (7) They'd never (be stupid enough to) make him a manager. 3871 (8) Don't worry! Women love it! 3872% 3873Famous, adj.: 3874 Conspicuously miserable. 3875 -- Ambrose Bierce 3876% 3877Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the 3878Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun. 3879Orbiting this at a distance of roughly ninety-eight million miles is an 3880utterly insignificant little blue-green planet whose ape-descended life 3881forms are so amazingly primitive that they still think digital watches 3882are a pretty neat idea. 3883 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 3884% 3885Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it 3886every six months. 3887 -- Oscar Wilde 3888% 3889Fats Loves Madelyn. 3890% 3891Feel disillusioned? I've got some great new illusions ... 3892% 3893Fertility is hereditary. If your parents didn't have any children, 3894neither will you. 3895% 3896 Festivity Level 1: Your guests are chatting amiably with each 3897other, admiring your Christmas-tree ornaments, singing carols around 3898the upright piano, sipping at their drinks and nibbling hors 3899d'oeuvres. 3900 Festivity Level 2: Your guests are talking loudly -- sometimes 3901to each other, and sometimes to nobody at all, rearranging your 3902Christmas-tree ornaments, singing "I Gotta Be Me" around the upright 3903piano, gulping their drinks and wolfing down hors d'oeuvres. 3904 Festivity Level 3: Your guests are arguing violently with 3905inanimate objects, singing "I can't get no satisfaction," gulping down 3906other peoples' drinks, wolfing down Christmas tree ornaments and 3907placing hors d'oeuvres in the upright piano to see what happens when 3908the little hammers strike. 3909 Festivity Level 4: Your guests, hors d'oeuvres smeared all over 3910their naked bodies are performing a ritual dance around the burning 3911Christmas tree. The piano is missing. 3912 3913 You want to keep your party somewhere around level 3, unless 3914you rent your home and own Firearms, in which case you can go to level 39154. The best way to get to level 3 is egg-nog. 3916% 3917Fifth Law of Applied Terror: 3918 If you are given an open-book exam, you will forget your book. 3919 3920Corollary: 3921 If you are given a take-home exam, you will forget where you live. 3922% 3923Fifth Law of Procrastination: 3924 Procrastination avoids boredom; one never has the feeling that 3925there is nothing important to do. 3926% 3927Fifty flippant frogs 3928Walked by on flippered feet 3929And with their slime they made the time 3930Unnaturally fleet. 3931% 3932 FIGHTING WORDS 3933 3934Say my love is easy had, 3935 Say I'm bitten raw with pride, 3936Say I am too often sad -- 3937 Still behold me at your side. 3938 3939Say I'm neither brave nor young, 3940 Say I woo and coddle care, 3941Say the devil touched my tongue -- 3942 Still you have my heart to wear. 3943 3944But say my verses do not scan, 3945 And I get me another man! 3946 -- Dorothy Parker 3947% 3948Fights between cats and dogs are prohibited by statute in Barber, North 3949Carolina. 3950% 3951Finagle's Creed: 3952 Science is true. Don't be misled by facts. 3953% 3954Finagle's First Law: 3955 If an experiment works, something has gone wrong. 3956% 3957Finagle's Fourth Law: 3958 Once a job is fouled up, anything done to improve it only makes 3959it worse. 3960% 3961Finagle's Second Law: 3962 No matter what the anticipated result, there will always be 3963someone eager to (a) misinterpret it, (b) fake it, or (c) believe it 3964happened according to his own pet theory. 3965% 3966Finagle's Third Law: 3967 In any collection of data, the figure most obviously correct, 3968 beyond all need of checking, is the mistake. 3969 3970Corollaries: 3971 (1) Nobody whom you ask for help will see it. 3972 (2) The first person who stops by, whose advice you really 3973 don't want to hear, will see it immediately. 3974% 3975Finding out what goes on in the C.I.A. is like performing acupuncture 3976on a rock. 3977 -- New York Times, Jan. 20, 1981 3978% 3979Fine day to throw a party. Throw him as far as you can. 3980% 3981Fine day to work off excess energy. Steal something heavy. 3982% 3983Fine's Corollary: 3984 Functionality breeds Contempt. 3985% 3986Finish the sentence below in 25 words or less: 3987 3988 "Love is what you feel just before you give someone a good ..." 3989 3990Mail your answer along with the top half of your supervisor to: 3991 3992 P.O. Box 35 3993 Baffled Greek, Michigan 3994% 3995First Corollary of Taber's Second Law: 3996 Machines that piss people off get murdered. 3997 -- Pat Taber 3998% 3999First Law of Bicycling: 4000 No matter which way you ride, it's uphill and against the 4001wind. 4002% 4003First Law of Procrastination: 4004 Procrastination shortens the job and places the responsibility 4005for its termination on someone else (i.e., the authority who imposed 4006the deadline). 4007% 4008First Law of Socio-Genetics: 4009 Celibacy is not hereditary. 4010% 4011First Rule of History: 4012 History doesn't repeat itself -- historians merely repeat each 4013other. 4014% 4015First things first -- but not necessarily in that order 4016 -- The Doctor, "Doctor Who" 4017% 4018First, a few words about tools. 4019 4020Basically, a tool is an object that enables you to take advantage of 4021the laws of physics and mechanics in such a way that you can seriously 4022injure yourself. Today, people tend to take tools for granted. If 4023you're ever walking down the street and you notice some people who look 4024particularly smug, the odds are that they are taking tools for 4025granted. If I were you, I'd walk right up and smack them in the face. 4026 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 4027% 4028Five is a sufficiently close approximation to infinity. 4029 -- Robert Firth 4030% 4031FLASH! Intelligence of mankind decreasing. Details at ... uh, when 4032the little hand is on the .... 4033% 4034Flon's Law: 4035 There is not now, and never will be, a language in which it is 4036the least bit difficult to write bad programs. 4037% 4038Florence Flask was ... dressing for the opera when she turned to her 4039husband and screamed, "Erlenmeyer! My joules! Someone has stolen my 4040joules!" 4041 4042"Now, now, my dear," replied her husband, "keep your balance and reflux 4043a moment. Perhaps they're mislead." 4044 4045"No, I know they're stolen," cried Florence. "I remember putting them 4046in my burette ... We must call a copper." 4047 4048Erlenmeyer did so, and the flatfoot who turned up, one Sherlock Ohms, 4049said the outrage looked like the work of an arch-criminal by the name 4050of Lawrence Ium. 4051 4052"We must be careful -- he's a free radical, ultraviolet, and 4053dangerous. His girlfriend is a chlorine at the Palladium. Maybe I can 4054catch him there." With that, he jumped on his carbon cycle in an 4055activated state and sped off along the reaction pathway ... 4056 -- Daniel B. Murphy, "Precipitations" 4057% 4058flowchart, n. & v.: 4059 [From flow "to ripple down in rich profusion, as hair" + chart 4060"a cryptic hidden-treasure map designed to mislead the uninitiated."] 40611. n. The solution, if any, to a class of Mascheroni construction 4062problems in which given algorithms require geometrical representation 4063using only the 35 basic ideograms of the ANSI template. 2. n. Neronic 4064doodling while the system burns. 3. n. A low-cost substitute for 4065wallpaper. 4. n. The innumerate misleading the illiterate. "A 4066thousand pictures is worth ten lines of code." -- The Programmer's 4067Little Red Vade Mecum, Mao Tse T'umps. 5. v.intrans. To produce 4068flowcharts with no particular object in mind. 6. v.trans. To obfuscate 4069(a problem) with esoteric cartoons. 4070 -- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary" 4071% 4072Flugg's Law: 4073 When you need to knock on wood is when you realize that the 4074world is composed of vinyl, naugahyde and aluminum. 4075% 4076Flying saucers on occasion 4077 Show themselves to human eyes. 4078Aliens fume, put off invasion 4079 While they brand these tales as lies. 4080% 4081Fog Lamps, n.: 4082 Excessively (often obnoxiously) bright lamps mounted on the 4083fronts of automobiles; used on dry, clear nights to indicate that the 4084driver's brain is in a fog. 4085 4086See also "Idiot Lights". 4087% 4088Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing. 4089 -- Walt Kelly, "Putluck Pogo" 4090% 4091For 20 dollars, I'll give you a good fortune next time ... 4092% 4093For a man to truly understand rejection, he must first be ignored by a 4094cat. 4095% 4096For an adequate time call 555-3321. 4097% 4098For an idea to be fashionable is ominous, since it must afterwards be 4099always old-fashioned. 4100% 4101For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat, 4102and wrong. 4103 -- H. L. Mencken 4104% 4105For every credibility gap, there is a gullibility fill. 4106 -- R. Clopton 4107% 4108 "For I perceive that behind this seemingly unrelated sequence 4109of events, there lurks a singular, sinister attitude of mind." 4110 4111 "Whose?" 4112 4113 "MINE! HA-HA!" 4114% 4115For large values of one, one equals two, for small values of two. 4116% 4117For my son, Robert, this is proving to be the high-point of his entire 4118life to date. He has had his pajamas on for two, maybe three days 4119now. He has the sense of joyful independence a 5-year-old child gets 4120when he suddenly realizes that he could be operating an acetylene torch 4121in the coat closet and neither parent [because of the flu] would have 4122the strength to object. He has been foraging for his own food, which 4123means his diet consists entirely of "food" substances which are 4124advertised only on Saturday-morning cartoon shows; substances that are 4125the color of jukebox lights and that, for legal reasons, have their 4126names spelled wrong, as in New Creemy Chok-'n'-Cheez Lumps o' Froot 4127("part of this complete breakfast"). 4128 -- Dave Barry, "Molecular Homicide" 4129% 4130For perfect happiness, remember two things: 4131 (1) Be content with what you've got. 4132 (2) Be sure you've got plenty. 4133% 4134For some reason a glaze passes over people's faces when you say 4135"Canada". Maybe we should invade South Dakota or something. 4136 -- Sandra Gotlieb, wife of the Canadian ambassador to 4137 the U.S. 4138% 4139For some reason, this fortune reminds everyone of Marvin Zelkowitz. 4140% 4141For that matter, compare your pocket computer with the massive jobs of 4142a thousand years ago. Why not, then, the last step of doing away with 4143computers altogether? 4144 -- Jehan Shuman 4145% 4146For those who like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing they like. 4147 -- Abraham Lincoln 4148% 4149For three days after death hair and fingernails continue to grow but 4150phone calls taper off. 4151 -- Johnny Carson 4152% 4153For years a secret shame destroyed my peace -- 4154I'd not read Eliot, Auden or MacNiece. 4155But now I think a thought that brings me hope: 4156Neither had Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Pope. 4157 -- Justin Richardson 4158% 4159For your penance, say five Hail Marys and one loud BLAH! 4160% 4161Forgetfulness, n.: 4162 A gift of God bestowed upon debtors in compensation for their 4163destitution of conscience. 4164% 4165Forms follow function, and often obliterate it. 4166% 4167FORTUNE DISCUSSES THE OBSCURE FILMS! #6 4168 4169RAZORBACK: Paul Harbride, 1984, 2 hours 25 min. 4170 One of the great Australian films of the early 1980's, and 4171 arguably the best movie ever made about a large, man-eating 4172 hog. Some violence. With Gregory Harrison. 4173% 4174fortune's Contribution of the Month to the Animal Rights Debate: 4175 4176 I'll stay out of animals' way if they'll stay out of mine. 4177 "Hey you, get off my plate" 4178 -- Roger Midnight 4179% 4180Fortune's Fictitious Country Song Title of the Week: 4181 "How Can I Miss You if You Won't Go Away?" 4182% 4183Fortune's graffito of the week (or maybe even month): 4184 4185 Don't Write On Walls! 4186 4187 (and underneath) 4188 4189 You want I should type? 4190% 4191Fortune's Law of the Week (this week, from Kentucky): 4192 No female shall appear in a bathing suit at any airport in this 4193State unless she is escorted by two officers or unless she is armed 4194with a club. The provisions of this statute shall not apply to females 4195weighing less than 90 pounds nor exceeding 200 pounds, nor shall it 4196apply to female horses. 4197% 4198Fortune's nomination for All-Time Champion and Protector of Youthful 4199Morals goes to Representative Clare E. Hoffman of Michigan. During an 4200impassioned House debate over a proposed bill to "expand oyster and 4201clam research," a sharp-eared informant transcribed the following 4202exchange between our hero and Rep. John D. Dingell, also of Michigan. 4203 4204DINGELL: There are places in the world at the present time where we are 4205 having to artificially propagate oysters and clams. 4206HOFFMAN: You mean the oysters I buy are not nature's oysters? 4207DINGELL: They may or may not be natural. The simple fact of the matter 4208 is that female oysters through their living habits cast out 4209 large amounts of seed and the male oysters cast out large 4210 amounts of fertilization ... 4211HOFFMAN: Wait a minute! I do not want to go into that. There are many 4212 teenagers who read The Congressional Record. 4213% 4214Fortune's Office Door Sign of the Week: 4215 4216 Incorrigible punster -- Do not incorrige. 4217% 4218FORTUNE'S PARTY TIPS #14 4219 4220Tired of finding that other people are helping themselves to your good 4221liquor at BYOB parties? Take along a candle, which you insert and 4222light after you've opened the bottle. No one ever expects anything 4223drinkable to be in a bottle which has a candle stuck in its neck. 4224% 4225Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #18: 4226 4227Q: Are you married? 4228A: No, I'm divorced. 4229Q: And what did your husband do before you divorced him? 4230A: A lot of things I didn't know about. 4231% 4232Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #19: 4233 4234Q: Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead people? 4235A: All my autopsies have been performed on dead people. 4236% 4237Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #29: 4238 4239THE JUDGE: Now, as we begin, I must ask you to banish all present 4240 information and prejudice from your minds, if you have 4241 any ... 4242% 4243Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #32: 4244 4245Q: Do you know how far pregnant you are right now? 4246A: I will be three months November 8th. 4247Q: Apparently then, the date of conception was August 8th? 4248A: Yes. 4249Q: What were you and your husband doing at that time? 4250% 4251Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #37: 4252 4253Q: Did he pick the dog up by the ears? 4254A: No. 4255Q: What was he doing with the dog's ears? 4256A: Picking them up in the air. 4257Q: Where was the dog at this time? 4258A: Attached to the ears. 4259% 4260Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #3: 4261 4262Q: When he went, had you gone and had she, if she wanted to and were 4263 able, for the time being excluding all the restraints on her not to 4264 go, gone also, would he have brought you, meaning you and she, with 4265 him to the station? 4266MR. BROOKS: Objection. That question should be taken out and shot. 4267% 4268Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #41: 4269 4270Q: Now, Mrs. Johnson, how was your first marriage terminated? 4271A: By death. 4272Q: And by whose death was it terminated? 4273% 4274Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #52: 4275 4276Q: What is your name? 4277A: Ernestine McDowell. 4278Q: And what is your marital status? 4279A: Fair. 4280% 4281Fortune's Real-Life Courtroom Quote #7: 4282 4283Q: What happened then? 4284A: He told me, he says, "I have to kill you because you can identify 4285 me." 4286Q: Did he kill you? 4287A: No. 4288% 4289fortune: CPU time/usefulness ratio too high -- core dumped. 4290% 4291Fortune: You will be attacked next Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. by six samurai 4292sword wielding purple fish glued to Harley-Davidson motorcycles. 4293 4294Oh, and have a nice day! 4295 -- Bryce Nesbitt '84 4296% 4297Fourth Law of Applied Terror: 4298 The night before the English History mid-term, your Biology 4299instructor will assign 200 pages on planaria. 4300 4301Corollary: 4302 Every instructor assumes that you have nothing else to do 4303except study for that instructor's course. 4304% 4305Fourth Law of Revision: 4306 It is usually impractical to worry beforehand about 4307interferences -- if you have none, someone will make one for you. 4308% 4309Fourth Law of Thermodynamics: If the probability of success is not 4310almost one, it is damn near zero. 4311 -- David Ellis 4312% 4313Frankfort, Kentucky, makes it against the law to shoot off a 4314policeman's tie. 4315% 4316Fresco's Discovery: 4317 If you knew what you were doing you'd probably be bored. 4318% 4319Friends, Romans, Hipsters, 4320Let me clue you in; 4321I come to put down Caesar, not to groove him. 4322The square kicks some cats are on stay with them; 4323The hip bits, like, go down under; so let it lay with Caesar. The cool Brutus 4324Gave you the message: Caesar had big eyes; 4325If that's the sound, someone's copping a plea, 4326And, like, old Caesar really set them straight. 4327Here, copacetic with Brutus and the studs, -- for Brutus is a real cool cat; 4328So are they all, all cool cats, -- 4329Come I to make this gig at Caesar's laying down. 4330% 4331Frisbeetarianism, n.: 4332 The belief that when you die, your soul goes up on the roof and 4333gets stuck. 4334% 4335Frobnicate, v.: 4336 To manipulate or adjust, to tweak. Derived from FROBNITZ. 4337Usually abbreviated to FROB. Thus one has the saying "to frob a 4338frob". See TWEAK and TWIDDLE. Usage: FROB, TWIDDLE, and TWEAK 4339sometimes connote points along a continuum. FROB connotes aimless 4340manipulation; TWIDDLE connotes gross manipulation, often a coarse 4341search for a proper setting; TWEAK connotes fine-tuning. If someone is 4342turning a knob on an oscilloscope, then if he's carefully adjusting it 4343he is probably tweaking it; if he is just turning it but looking at the 4344screen he is probably twiddling it; but if he's just doing it because 4345turning a knob is fun, he's frobbing it. 4346% 4347Frobnitz, pl. Frobnitzem (frob'nitsm) n.: 4348 An unspecified physical object, a widget. Also refers to 4349electronic black boxes. This rare form is usually abbreviated to 4350FROTZ, or more commonly to FROB. Also used are FROBNULE, FROBULE, and 4351FROBNODULE. Starting perhaps in 1979, FROBBOZ (fruh-bahz'), pl. 4352FROBBOTZIM, has also become very popular, largely due to its exposure 4353via the Adventure spin-off called Zork (Dungeon). These can also be 4354applied to non-physical objects, such as data structures. 4355% 4356[From an announcement of a congress of the International Ontopsychology 4357Association, in Rome]: 4358 4359The Ontopsychological school, availing itself of new research criteria 4360and of a new telematic epistemology, maintains that social modes do not 4361spring from dialectics of territory or of class, or of consumer goods, 4362or of means of power, but rather from dynamic latencies capillarized in 4363millions of individuals in system functions which, once they have 4364reached the event maturation, burst forth in catastrophic phenomenology 4365engaging a suitable stereotype protagonist or duty marionette (general, 4366president, political party, etc.) to consummate the act of social 4367schizophrenia in mass genocide. 4368% 4369From the "Guiness Book of World Records", 1973: 4370 4371Certain passages in several laws have always defied interpretation and 4372the most inexplicable must be a matter of opinion. A judge of the 4373Court of Session of Scotland has sent the editors of this book his 4374candidate which reads, "In the Nuts (unground), (other than ground 4375nuts) Order, the expression nuts shall have reference to such nuts, 4376other than ground nuts, as would but for this amending Order not 4377qualify as nuts (unground)(other than ground nuts) by reason of their 4378being nuts (unground)." 4379% 4380From the moment I picked your book up until I put it down I was 4381convulsed with laughter. Some day I intend reading it. 4382 -- Groucho Marx, from "The Book of Insults" 4383% 4384[From the operation manual for the CI-300 Dot Matrix Line Printer, made 4385in Japan]: 4386 4387The excellent output machine of MODEL CI-300 as extraordinary DOT 4388MATRIX LINE PRINTER, built in two MICRO-PROCESSORs as well as EAROM, is 4389featured by permitting wonderful co-existence such as; "high quality 4390against low cost", "diversified functions with compact design", 4391"flexibility in accessibleness and durability of approx. 2000,000,00 4392Dot/Head", "being sophisticated in mechanism but possibly agile 4393operating under noises being extremely suppressed" etc. 4394 4395And as a matter of course, the final goal is just simply to help 4396achieve "super shuttle diplomacy" between cool data, perhaps earned by 4397HOST COMPUTER, and warm heart of human being. 4398% 4399From the Pro 350 Pocket Service Guide, p. 49, Step 5 of the 4400instructions on removing an I/O board from the card cage, comes a new 4401experience in sound: 4402 4403 5. Turn the handle to the right 90 degrees. The pin-spreading 4404 sound is normal for this type of connector. 4405% 4406From too much love of living, 4407From hope and fear set free, 4408We thank with brief thanksgiving, 4409Whatever gods may be, 4410That no life lives forever, 4411That dead men rise up never, 4412That even the weariest river winds somewhere safe to sea. 4413 -- Swinburne 4414% 4415Fuch's Warning: 4416 If you actually look like your passport photo, you aren't well 4417enough to travel. 4418% 4419Fudd's First Law of Opposition: 4420 Push something hard enough and it will fall over. 4421% 4422Furbling, v.: 4423 Having to wander through a maze of ropes at an airport or bank 4424even when you are the only person in line. 4425 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 4426% 4427Furious activity is no substitute for understanding. 4428 -- H. H. Williams 4429% 4430Future looks spotty. You will spill soup in late evening. 4431% 4432G. B. Shaw to William Douglas Home: "Go on writing plays, my boy. One 4433of these days a London producer will go into his office and say to his 4434secretary, `Is there a play from Shaw this morning?' and when she says 4435`No,' he will say, `Well, then we'll have to start on the rubbish.' And 4436that's your chance, my boy." 4437% 4438Garbage In -- Gospel Out. 4439% 4440Garter, n.: 4441 An elastic band intended to keep a woman from coming out of her 4442stockings and desolating the country. 4443 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 4444% 4445Gauls! We have nothing to fear; except perhaps that the sky may fall 4446on our heads tomorrow. But as we all know, tomorrow never comes!! 4447 -- Adventures of Asterix 4448% 4449Gay shlafen: Yiddish for "go to sleep". 4450 4451 Now doesn't "gay shlafen" have a softer, more soothing sound 4452than the harsh, staccato "go to sleep"? Listen to the difference: 4453 "Go to sleep, you little wretch!" ... "Gay shlafen, darling." 4454Obvious, isn't it? 4455 Clearly the best thing you can do for you children is to start 4456speaking Yiddish right now and never speak another word of English as 4457long as you live. This will, of course, entail teaching Yiddish to all 4458your friends, business associates, the people at the supermarket, and 4459so on, but that's just the point. It has to start with committed 4460individuals and then grow ... 4461 Some minor adjustments will have to be made, of course: those 4462signs written in what look like Yiddish letters won't be funny when 4463everything is written in Yiddish. And we'll have to start driving on 4464the left side of the road so we won't be reading the street signs 4465backwards. But is that too high a price to pay for world peace? I 4466think not, my friend, I think not. 4467 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 4468% 4469 "Gee, Mudhead, everyone at More Science High has an 4470extracurricular activity except you." 4471 "Well, gee, doesn't Louise count?" 4472 "Only to ten, Mudhead." 4473 -- The Firesign Theatre 4474% 4475Gee, Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore. 4476% 4477GEMINI (May 21 - June 20) 4478 You are a quick and intelligent thinker. People like you 4479because you are bisexual. However, you are inclined to expect too much 4480for too little. This means you are cheap. Geminis are known for 4481committing incest. 4482% 4483GEMINI (May 21 to Jun. 20) 4484 Good news and bad news highlighted. Enjoy the good news while 4485you can; the bad news will make you forget it. You will enjoy praise 4486and respect from those around you; everybody loves a sucker. A short 4487trip is in the stars, possibly to the men's room. 4488% 4489Genderplex, n.: 4490 The predicament of a person in a restaurant who is unable to 4491determine his or her designated restroom (e.g., turtles and 4492tortoises). 4493 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 4494% 4495Genetics explains why you look like your father, and if you don't, why 4496you should. 4497% 4498Genius may have its limitations, but stupidity is not thus 4499handicapped. 4500 -- Elbert Hubbard 4501% 4502Genius, n.: 4503 A chemist who discovers a laundry additive that rhymes with 4504"bright". 4505% 4506George Orwell 1984. Northwestern 0. 4507 -- Chicago Reader 10/15/82 4508% 4509George Orwell was an optimist. 4510% 4511George Washington was first in war, first in peace -- and the first to 4512have his birthday juggled to make a long weekend. 4513 -- Ashley Cooper 4514% 4515Gerrold's Laws of Infernal Dynamics: 4516 (1) An object in motion will always be headed in the wrong 4517 direction. 4518 (2) An object at rest will always be in the wrong place. 4519 (3) The energy required to change either one of these states 4520 will always be more than you wish to expend, but never so 4521 much as to make the task totally impossible. 4522% 4523Get forgiveness now -- tomorrow you may no longer feel guilty. 4524% 4525 Get GUMMed 4526 --- ------ 4527The Gurus of Unix Meeting of Minds (GUMM) takes place Wednesday, April 45281, 2076 (check THAT in your perpetual calendar program), 14 feet above 4529the ground directly in front of the Milpitas Gumps. Members will grep 4530each other by the hand (after intro), yacc a lot, smoke filtered 4531chroots in pipes, chown with forks, use the wc (unless uuclean), fseek 4532nice zombie processes, strip, and sleep, but not, we hope, od. Three 4533days will be devoted to discussion of the ramifications of whodo. Two 4534seconds have been allotted for a complete rundown of all the user- 4535friendly features of Unix. Seminars include "Everything You Know is 4536Wrong", led by Tom Kempson, "Batman or Cat:man?" led by Richie Dennis 4537"cc C? Si! Si!" led by Kerwin Bernighan, and "Document Unix, Are You 4538Kidding?" led by Jan Yeats. No Reader Service No. is necessary because 4539all GUGUs (Gurus of Unix Group of Users) already know everything we 4540could tell them. 4541 -- Dr. Dobb's Journal, June '84 4542% 4543Get Revenge! Live long enough to be a problem for your children! 4544% 4545 -- Gifts for Children -- 4546 4547This is easy. You never have to figure out what to get for children, 4548because they will tell you exactly what they want. They spend months 4549and months researching these kinds of things by watching Saturday- 4550morning cartoon-show advertisements. Make sure you get your children 4551exactly what they ask for, even if you disapprove of their choices. If 4552your child thinks he wants Murderous Bob, the Doll with the Face You 4553Can Rip Right Off, you'd better get it. You may be worried that it 4554might help to encourage your child's antisocial tendencies, but believe 4555me, you have not seen antisocial tendencies until you've seen a child 4556who is convinced that he or she did not get the right gift. 4557 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 4558% 4559 -- Gifts for Men -- 4560 4561Men are amused by almost any idiot thing -- that is why professional 4562ice hockey is so popular -- so buying gifts for them is easy. But you 4563should never buy them clothes. Men believe they already have all the 4564clothes they will ever need, and new ones make them nervous. For 4565example, your average man has 84 ties, but he wears, at most, only 4566three of them. He has learned, through humiliating trial and error, 4567that if he wears any of the other 81 ties, his wife will probably laugh 4568at him ("You're not going to wear THAT tie with that suit, are you?"). 4569So he has narrowed it down to three safe ties, and has gone several 4570years without being laughed at. If you give him a new tie, he will 4571pretend to like it, but deep inside he will hate you. 4572 4573If you want to give a man something practical, consider tires. More 4574than once, I would have gladly traded all the gifts I got for a new set 4575of tires. 4576 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 4577% 4578 Gimmie That Old Time Religion 4579We will follow Zarathustra, We will worship like the Druids, 4580Zarathustra like we use to, Dancing naked in the woods, 4581I'm a Zarathustra booster, Drinking strange fermented fluids, 4582And he's good enough for me! And it's good enough for me! 4583 (chorus) (chorus) 4584 4585In the church of Aphrodite, 4586The priestess wears a see-through nightie, 4587She's a mighty righteous sightie, 4588And she's good enough for me! 4589 (chorus) 4590 4591CHORUS: Give me that old time religion, 4592 Give me that old time religion, 4593 Give me that old time religion, 4594 'Cause it's good enough for me! 4595% 4596Ginsberg's Theorem: 4597 (1) You can't win. 4598 (2) You can't break even. 4599 (3) You can't even quit the game. 4600 4601Freeman's Commentary on Ginsberg's theorem: 4602 Every major philosophy that attempts to make life seem 4603 meaningful is based on the negation of one part of Ginsberg's 4604 Theorem. To wit: 4605 4606 (1) Capitalism is based on the assumption that you can win. 4607 (2) Socialism is based on the assumption that you can break even. 4608 (3) Mysticism is based on the assumption that you can quit the game. 4609% 4610Give me a Plumber's friend the size of the Pittsburgh dome, and a place 4611to stand, and I will drain the world. 4612% 4613Give me enough medals, and I'll win any war. 4614 -- Napoleon 4615% 4616Give me the Luxuries, and the Hell with the Necessities! 4617% 4618Give thought to your reputation. Consider changing name and moving to 4619a new town. 4620% 4621Give your child mental blocks for Christmas. 4622% 4623Given the choice between accomplishing something and just lying 4624around, I'd rather lie around. No contest. 4625 -- Eric Clapton 4626% 4627Giving up on assembly language was the apple in our Garden of Eden: 4628Languages whose use squanders machine cycles are sinful. The LISP 4629machine now permits LISP programmers to abandon bra and fig-leaf. 4630 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 4631% 4632Glib's Fourth Law of Unreliability: 4633 Investment in reliability will increase until it exceeds the 4634probable cost of errors, or until someone insists on getting some 4635useful work done. 4636% 4637Gnagloot, n.: 4638 A person who leaves all his ski passes on his jacket just to 4639impress people. 4640 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 4641% 4642Go 'way! You're bothering me! 4643% 4644Go climb a gravity well! 4645% 4646Go placidly amid the noise and waste, and remember what value there may 4647be in owning a piece thereof. 4648 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 4649% 4650//GO.SYSIN DD *, DOODAH, DOODAH 4651% 4652God did not create the world in seven days; he screwed around for six 4653days and then pulled an all-nighter. 4654% 4655God doesn't play dice. 4656 -- Albert Einstein 4657% 4658"God gives burdens; also shoulders" 4659 4660Jimmy Carter cited this Jewish saying in his concession speech at the 4661end of the 1980 election. At least he said it was a Jewish saying; I 4662can't find it anywhere. I'm sure he's telling the truth though; why 4663would he lie about a thing like that? 4664 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 4665% 4666God has intended the great to be great and the little to be little ... 4667The trade unions, under the European system, destroy liberty ... I do 4668not mean to say that a dollar a day is enough to support a workingman 4669... not enough to support a man and five children if he insists on 4670smoking and drinking beer. But the man who cannot live on bread and 4671water is not fit to live! A family may live on good bread and water in 4672the morning, water and bread at midday, and good bread and water at 4673night! 4674 -- Rev. Henry Ward Beecher 4675% 4676God is a comic playing to an audience that's afraid to laugh. 4677% 4678God is a polytheist. 4679% 4680God is Dead 4681 -- Nietzsche 4682Nietzsche is Dead 4683 -- God 4684Nietzsche is God 4685 -- The Dead 4686% 4687God is not dead! He's alive and autographing bibles at Cody's 4688% 4689God is real, unless declared integer. 4690% 4691God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the 4692elephant and the cat. He has no real style, He just goes on trying 4693other things. 4694 -- Pablo Picasso 4695% 4696God is the tangential point between zero and infinity. 4697 -- Alfred Jarry 4698% 4699God isn't dead, he just couldn't find a parking place. 4700% 4701God made machine language; all the rest is the work of man. 4702% 4703God made the Idiot for practice, and then He made the School Board 4704 -- Mark Twain 4705% 4706God made the integers; all else is the work of Man. 4707 -- Kronecker 4708% 4709God made the world in six days, and was arrested on the seventh. 4710% 4711God may be subtle, but He isn't plain mean. 4712 -- Albert Einstein 4713% 4714God must love the Common Man; He made so many of them. 4715% 4716God rest ye CS students now, 4717Let nothing you dismay. 4718The VAX is down and won't be up, 4719Until the first of May. 4720The program that was due this morn, 4721Won't be postponed, they say. 4722 4723 Oh, tidings of comfort and joy, 4724 Comfort and joy, 4725 Oh, tidings of comfort and joy. 4726 4727The bearings on the drum are gone, 4728The disk is wobbling, too. 4729We've found a bug in Lisp, and Algol 4730Can't tell false from true. 4731And now we find that we can't get 4732At Berkeley's 4.2. 4733 4734 (chorus) 4735% 4736Going to church does not make a person religious, nor does going to 4737school make a person educated, any more than going to a garage makes a 4738person a car. 4739% 4740Gold, n.: 4741 A soft malleable metal relatively scarce in distribution. It 4742is mined deep in the earth by poor men who then give it to rich men who 4743immediately bury it back in the earth in great prisons, although gold 4744hasn't done anything to them. 4745 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 4746% 4747Goldenstern's Rules: 4748 (1) Always hire a rich attorney. 4749 (2) Never buy from a rich salesman. 4750% 4751Good advice is something a man gives when he is too old to set a bad 4752example. 4753 -- La Rochefoucauld 4754% 4755Good day for a change of scene. Repaper the bedroom wall. 4756% 4757Good day for overcoming obstacles. Try a steeplechase. 4758% 4759Good day to avoid cops. Crawl to school. 4760% 4761Good day to let down old friends who need help. 4762% 4763Good leaders being scarce, following yourself is allowed. 4764% 4765Good news is just life's way of keeping you off balance. 4766% 4767Good news. Ten weeks from Friday will be a pretty good day. 4768% 4769Good night to spend with family, but avoid arguments with your mate's 4770new lover. 4771% 4772Good-bye. I am leaving because I am bored. 4773 -- George Saunders' dying words 4774% 4775Gordon's first law: 4776 If a research project is not worth doing, it is not worth doing 4777well. 4778% 4779Gosh that takes me back... or is it forward? That's the trouble with 4780time travel, you never can tell. 4781 -- Doctor Who, "Androids of Tara" 4782% 4783Got Mole problems? 4784Call Avogadro 6.02 x 10^23 4785% 4786Goto, n.: 4787 A programming tool that exists to allow structured programmers 4788to complain about unstructured programmers. 4789 -- Ray Simard 4790% 4791Government [is] an illusion the governed should not encourage. 4792 -- John Updike, "Couples" 4793% 4794Government lies, and newspapers lie, but in a democracy they are 4795different lies. 4796% 4797Government spending? I don't know what it's all about. I don't know 4798any more about this thing than an economist does, and, God knows, he 4799doesn't know much. 4800 -- Will Rogers 4801% 4802Grabel's Law: 4803 2 is not equal to 3 -- not even for large values of 2. 4804% 4805Graduate life -- it's not just a job, it's an indenture. 4806% 4807Graduate life: It's not just a job. It's an indenture. 4808% 4809Grandpa Charnock's Law: 4810 You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive. 4811% 4812Gravity is a myth: the Earth sucks. 4813% 4814Gray's Law of Programming: 4815 `_n+1' trivial tasks are expected to be accomplished in the same 4816time as `_n' tasks. 4817 4818Logg's Rebuttal to Gray's Law: 4819 `_n+1' trivial tasks take twice as long as `_n' trivial tasks. 4820% 4821Great minds run in great circles. 4822% 4823 GREAT MOMENTS IN AMERICAN HISTORY #21 -- July 30, 1917 4824 4825On this day, New York City hotel detectives burst in and caught then- 4826Senator Warren G. Harding in bed with an underage girl. He bought them 4827off with a $20 bribe, and later remarked thankfully, "I thought I 4828wouldn't get out of that under $1000!" Always one to learn from his 4829mistakes, in later years President Harding carried on his affairs in a 4830tiny closet in the White House Cabinet Room while Secret Service men 4831stood lookout. 4832% 4833Green light in A.M. for new projects. 4834Red light in P.M. for traffic tickets. 4835% 4836Greener's Law: 4837 Never argue with a man who buys ink by the barrel. 4838% 4839Grelb's Reminder: 4840 Eighty percent of all people consider themselves to be above 4841average drivers. 4842% 4843Grub first, then ethics. 4844 -- Bertolt Brecht 4845% 4846Gurmlish, n.: 4847 The red warning flag at the top of a club sandwich which 4848prevents the person from biting into it and puncturing the roof of his 4849mouth. 4850 -- Rich Hall & Friends, "Sniglets" 4851% 4852Gyroscope, n.: 4853 A wheel or disk mounted to spin rapidly about an axis and also 4854free to rotate about one or both of two axes perpendicular to each 4855other and the axis of spin so that a rotation of one of the two 4856mutually perpendicular axes results from application of torque to the 4857other when the wheel is spinning and so that the entire apparatus 4858offers considerable opposition depending on the angular momentum to any 4859torque that would change the direction of the axis of spin. 4860 -- Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary 4861% 4862H. L. Mencken suffers from the hallucination that he is H. L. 4863Mencken -- there is no cure for a disease of that magnitude. 4864 -- Maxwell Bodenheim 4865% 4866H. L. Mencken's Law: 4867 Those who can -- do. 4868 Those who can't -- teach. 4869 4870Martin's Extension: 4871 Those who cannot teach -- administrate. 4872% 4873H: If a 'GOBLIN (HOB) waylays you, 4874 Slice him up before he slays you. 4875 Nothing makes you look a slob 4876 Like running from a HOB'LIN (GOB). 4877 -- The Roguelet's ABC 4878% 4879Hacker's Law: 4880 The belief that enhanced understanding will necessarily stir a 4881nation to action is one of mankind's oldest illusions. 4882% 4883Hacking's just another word for nothing left to kludge. 4884% 4885Had this been an actual emergency, we would have fled in terror, 4886and you would not have been informed. 4887% 4888Hail to the sun god 4889He sure is a fun god 4890Ra! Ra! Ra! 4891% 4892Hain't we got all the fools in town on our side? And hain't that a big 4893enough majority in any town? 4894 -- Mark Twain, "Huckleberry Finn" 4895% 4896Half Moon tonight. (At least it's better than no Moon at all.) 4897% 4898Half-done: 4899 This is the best way to eat a kosher dill -- when it's still 4900crunchy, light green, yet full of garlic flavor. The difference 4901between this and the typical soggy dark green cucumber corpse is like 4902the difference between life and death. 4903 You may find it difficult to find a good half-done kosher dill 4904there in Seattle, so what you should do is take a cab out to the 4905airport, fly to New York, take the JFK Express to Jay Street-Borough 4906Hall, transfer to an uptown F, get off at East Broadway, walk north on 4907Essex (along the park), make your first left onto Hester Street, walk 4908about fifteen steps, turn ninety degrees left, and stop. Say to the 4909man, "Let me have a nice half-done." 4910 Worth the trouble, wasn't it? 4911 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 4912% 4913Hall's Laws of Politics: 4914 (1) The voters want fewer taxes and more spending. 4915 (2) Citizens want honest politicians until they want something 4916 fixed. 4917 (3) Constituency drives out consistency (i.e., liberals defend 4918 military spending, and conservatives social spending in 4919 their own districts). 4920% 4921Hand, n.: 4922 A singular instrument worn at the end of a human arm and 4923commonly thrust into somebody's pocket. 4924 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 4925% 4926Hanlon's Razor: 4927 Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by 4928stupidity. 4929% 4930Hanson's Treatment of Time: 4931 There are never enough hours in a day, but always too many days 4932before Saturday. 4933% 4934Happiness is having a scratch for every itch. 4935 -- Ogden Nash 4936% 4937Happiness isn't something you experience; it's something you remember. 4938 -- Oscar Levant 4939% 4940Happiness, n.: 4941 An agreeable sensation arising from contemplating the misery of 4942another. 4943 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 4944% 4945Hard work may not kill you, but why take chances? 4946% 4947Hardware, n.: 4948 The parts of a computer system that can be kicked. 4949% 4950Hark ye, Clinker, you are a most notorious offender. You stand 4951convicted of sickness, hunger, wretchedness, and want. 4952 -- Tobias Smollet 4953% 4954Hark, Hark, the dogs do bark 4955The Duke is fond of kittens 4956He likes to take their insides out 4957And use them for his mittens 4958 From "The Thirteen Clocks" 4959% 4960Hark, the Herald Tribune sings, 4961Advertising wondrous things. 4962 -- Tom Lehrer 4963% 4964Harris's Lament: 4965 All the good ones are taken. 4966% 4967Harrisberger's Fourth Law of the Lab: 4968 Experience is directly proportional to the amount of equipment 4969ruined. 4970% 4971Harry is heavily into camping, and every year in the late fall, he 4972makes us all go to Assateague, which is an island on the Atlantic Ocean 4973famous for its wild horses. I realize that the concept of wild horses 4974probably stirs romantic notions in many of you, but this is because you 4975have never met any wild horses in person. In person, they are like 4976enormous hooved rats. They amble up to your camp site, and their 4977attitude is: "We're wild horses. We're going to eat your food, knock 4978down your tent and poop on your shoes. We're protected by federal law, 4979just like Richard Nixon." 4980 -- Dave Barry, "Tenting Grandpa Bob" 4981% 4982Hartley's First Law: 4983 You can lead a horse to water, but if you can get him to float 4984on his back, you've got something. 4985% 4986Hartley's Second Law: 4987 Never sleep with anyone crazier than yourself. 4988% 4989Harvard Law: 4990 Under the most rigorously controlled conditions of pressure, 4991temperature, volume, humidity, and other variables, the organism will 4992do as it damn well pleases. 4993% 4994"Has anyone had problems with the computer accounts?" 4995"Yes, I don't have one." 4996"Okay, you can send mail to one of the tutors ..." 4997 -- E. D'Azevedo, Computer Science 372 4998% 4999Has everyone noticed that all the letters of the word "database" are 5000typed with the left hand? Now the layout of the QWERTYUIOP typewriter 5001keyboard was designed, among other things, to facilitate the even use 5002of both hands. It follows, therefore, that writing about databases is 5003not only unnatural, but a lot harder than it appears. 5004% 5005 Has your family tried 'em? 5006 5007 POWDERMILK BISCUITS 5008 5009 Heavens, they're tasty and expeditious! 5010 5011 They're made from whole wheat, to give shy persons the 5012 strength to get up and do what needs to be done. 5013 5014 POWDERMILK BISCUITS 5015 5016 Buy them ready-made in the big blue box with the picture of the 5017 biscuit on the front, or in the brown bag with the dark stains 5018 that indicate freshness. 5019% 5020Hatred, n.: 5021 A sentiment appropriate to the occasion of another's 5022superiority. 5023 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 5024% 5025Have an adequate day. 5026% 5027Have people realized that the purpose of the fortune cookie program is 5028to defuse project tensions? When did you ever see a cheerful cookie, a 5029non-cynical, or even an informative cookie? 5030 5031Perhaps inadvertently, we have a channel for our aggressions. This 5032still begs the question of whether the cookie releases the pressure or 5033only serves to blunt the warning signs. 5034 5035 Long live the revolution! 5036 Have a nice day. 5037% 5038Have you ever noticed that the people who are always trying to tell 5039you, "There's a time for work and a time for play," never find the time 5040for play? 5041% 5042Have you ever wondered what makes Californians so calm? Besides drugs, 5043I mean. The answer is hot tubs. A hot tub is a redwood container 5044filled with water that you sit in naked with members of the opposite 5045sex, none of whom is necessarily your spouse. After a few hours in 5046their hot tubs, Californians don't give a damn about earthquakes or 5047mass murderers. They don't give a damn about anything , which is why 5048they are able to produce "Laverne and Shirley" week after week. 5049 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 5050% 5051"Have you lived here all your life?" 5052"Oh, twice that long." 5053% 5054Have you noticed that all you need to grow healthy, vigorous grass is a 5055crack in your sidewalk? 5056% 5057Have you noticed the way people's intelligence capabilities decline 5058sharply the minute they start waving guns around? 5059 -- Dr. Who 5060% 5061Have you reconsidered a computer career? 5062% 5063He did decide, though, that with more time and a great deal of mental 5064effort, he could probably turn the activity into an acceptable 5065perversion. 5066 -- Mick Farren, "When Gravity Fails" 5067% 5068He flung himself on his horse and rode madly off in all directions. 5069 -- Stephen Leacock 5070% 5071He had occasional flashes of silence that made his conversation 5072perfectly delightful. 5073 -- Sydney Smith 5074% 5075He had that rare weird electricity about him -- that extremely wild and 5076heavy presence that you only see in a person who has abandoned all hope 5077of ever behaving "normally." 5078 -- Hunter S. Thompson, "Fear and Loathing '72" 5079% 5080He hadn't a single redeeming vice. 5081 -- Oscar Wilde 5082% 5083He is now rising from affluence to poverty. 5084 -- Mark Twain 5085% 5086He looked at me as if I was a side dish he hadn't ordered. 5087% 5088He played the king as if afraid someone else would play the ace. 5089 -- John Mason Brown, drama critic 5090% 5091He thought he saw an albatross 5092That fluttered 'round the lamp. 5093He looked again and saw it was 5094A penny postage stamp. 5095"You'd best be getting home," he said, 5096"The nights are rather damp." 5097% 5098He was a fiddler, and consequently a rogue. 5099 -- Jonathan Swift 5100% 5101He was a modest, good-humored boy. It was Oxford that made him insufferable. 5102% 5103He was so narrow minded he could see through a keyhole with both eyes. 5104% 5105He who attacks the fundamentals of the American broadcasting industry 5106attacks democracy itself. 5107 -- William S. Paley, chairman of CBS 5108% 5109He who Laughs, Lasts. 5110% 5111He's just a politician trying to save both his faces ... 5112% 5113He's the kind of guy, that, well, if you were ever in a jam he'd be 5114there ... with two slices of bread and some chunky peanut butter. 5115% 5116He's the kind of man for the times that need the kind of man he is ... 5117% 5118HE: Let's end it all, bequeathin' our brains to science. 5119SHE: What?!? Science got enough trouble with their ___OWN brains. 5120 -- Walt Kelley 5121% 5122Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die. 5123% 5124Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying 5125of nothing. 5126 -- Redd Foxx 5127% 5128Heaven, n.: 5129 A place where the wicked cease from troubling you with talk of 5130their personal affairs, and the good listen with attention while you 5131expound your own. 5132 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 5133% 5134Heavy, adj.: 5135 Seduced by the chocolate side of the force. 5136% 5137Heisenberg may have slept here. 5138% 5139Hell hath no fury like a bureaucrat scorned. 5140 -- Milton Friedman 5141% 5142Heller's Law: 5143 The first myth of management is that it exists. 5144 5145Johnson's Corollary: 5146 Nobody really knows what is going on anywhere within the 5147organization. 5148% 5149"Hello," he lied. 5150 -- Don Carpenter quoting a Hollywood agent 5151% 5152Help a swallow land at Capistrano. 5153% 5154Help fight continental drift. 5155% 5156Help me, I'm a prisoner in a Fortune cookie file! 5157% 5158Help stamp out and abolish redundancy. 5159% 5160Help! I'm trapped in a PDP 11/70! 5161% 5162HELP! MY TYPEWRITER IS BROKEN! 5163 -- E. E. CUMMINGS 5164% 5165Her locks an ancient lady gave 5166Her loving husband's life to save; 5167And men -- they honored so the dame -- 5168Upon some stars bestowed her name. 5169 5170But to our modern married fair, 5171Who'd give their lords to save their hair, 5172No stellar recognition's given. 5173There are not stars enough in heaven. 5174% 5175Here at the Phone Company, we serve all kinds of people; from 5176Presidents and Kings to the scum of the earth ... 5177% 5178Here I sit, broken-hearted, 5179All logged in, but work unstarted. 5180First net.this and net.that, 5181And a hot buttered bun for net.fat. 5182 5183The boss comes by, and I play the game, 5184Then I turn back to net.flame. 5185Is there a cure (I need your views), 5186For someone trapped in net.news? 5187 5188I need your help, I say 'tween sobs, 5189'Cause I'll soon be listed in net.jobs. 5190% 5191Here in my heart, I am Helen; 5192 I'm Aspasia and Hero, at least. 5193I'm Judith, and Jael, and Madame de Sta"el; 5194 I'm Salome, moon of the East. 5195 5196Here in my soul I am Sappho; 5197 Lady Hamilton am I, as well. 5198In me R'ecamier vies with Kitty O'Shea, 5199 With Dido, and Eve, and poor nell. 5200 5201I'm all of the glamorous ladies 5202 At whose beckoning history shook. 5203But you are a man, and see only my pan, 5204 So I stay at home with a book. 5205 -- Dorothy Parker 5206% 5207Here is a simple experiment that will teach you an important electrical 5208lesson: On a cool, dry day, scuff your feet along a carpet, then reach 5209your hand into a friend's mouth and touch one of his dental fillings. 5210Did you notice how your friend twitched violently and cried out in 5211pain? This teaches us that electricity can be a very powerful force, 5212but we must never use it to hurt others unless we need to learn an 5213important electrical lesson. 5214 5215It also teaches us how an electrical circuit works. When you scuffed 5216your feet, you picked up batches of "electrons", which are very small 5217objects that carpet manufacturers weave into carpets so they will 5218attract dirt. The electrons travel through your bloodstream and 5219collect in your finger, where they form a spark that leaps to your 5220friend's filling, then travels down to his feet and back into the 5221carpet, thus completing the circuit. 5222 5223Amazing Electronic Fact: If you scuffed your feet long enough without 5224touching anything, you would build up so many electrons that your 5225finger would explode! But this is nothing to worry about unless you 5226have carpeting. 5227 -- Dave Barry, "What is Electricity?" 5228% 5229 Here is the fact of the week, maybe even the fact of the 5230month. According to probably reliable sources, the Coca-Cola people 5231are experiencing severe marketing anxiety in China. 5232 The words "Coca-Cola" translate into Chinese as either 5233(depending on the inflection) "wax-fattened mare" or "bite the wax 5234tadpole". 5235 Bite the wax tadpole. 5236 There is a sort of rough justice, is there not? 5237 The trouble with this fact, as lovely as it is, is that it's 5238hard to get a whole column out of it. I'd like to teach the world to 5239bite a wax tadpole. Coke -- it's the real wax-fattened mare. Not bad, 5240but broad satiric vistas do not open up. 5241 -- John Carroll, San Francisco Chronicle 5242% 5243Here's something to think about: How come you never see a headline like 5244`Psychic Wins Lottery'? 5245 -- Jay Leno 5246% 5247Heuristics are bug ridden by definition. If they didn't have bugs, 5248then they'd be algorithms. 5249% 5250Hey! Who took the cork off my lunch??! 5251 -- W. C. Fields 5252% 5253Hi there! This is just a note from me, to you, to tell you, the person 5254reading this note, that I can't think up any more famous quotes, jokes, 5255nor bizarre stories, so you may as well go home. 5256% 5257"Hi, I'm Preston A. Mantis, president of Consumers Retail Law Outlet. 5258As you can see by my suit and the fact that I have all these books of 5259equal height on the shelves behind me, I am a trained legal attorney. 5260Do you have a car or a job? Do you ever walk around? If so, you 5261probably have the makings of an excellent legal case. Although of 5262course every case is different, I would definitely say that based on my 5263experience and training, there's no reason why you shouldn't come out 5264of this thing with at least a cabin cruiser. 5265 5266"Remember, at the Preston A. Mantis Consumers Retail Law Outlet, our 5267motto is: 'It is very difficult to disprove certain kinds of pain.'" 5268 -- Dave Barry, "Pain and Suffering" 5269% 5270Hier liegt ein Mann ganz ohnegleich; 5271Im Leibe dick, an Suenden reich. 5272Wir haben ihn in das Grab gesteckt, Here lies a man with sundry flaws 5273Weil es uns duenkt er sei verreckt. And numerous Sins upon his head; 5274 We buried him today because 5275 As far as we can tell, he's dead. 5276 -- PDQ Bach's epitaph, as requested by his cousin Betty-Sue 5277 Bach and written by the local doggerel catcher; 5278 "The Definitive Biography of PDQ Bach", Peter Schickele 5279% 5280Higgledy Piggledy, 5281Hamlet of Elsinore 5282Ruffled the critics by 5283Dropping this bomb: 5284"Phooey on Freud and his 5285Psychoanalysis -- 5286Oedipus, Shmoedipus, 5287I just loved Mom." 5288% 5289Hindsight is an exact science. 5290% 5291Hippogriff, n.: 5292 An animal (now extinct) which was half horse and half griffin. 5293The griffin was itself a compound creature, half lion and half eagle. 5294The hippogriff was actually, therefore, only one quarter eagle, which 5295is two dollars and fifty cents in gold. The study of zoology is full 5296of surprises. 5297 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 5298% 5299Hire the morally handicapped. 5300% 5301His great aim was to escape from civilization, and, as soon as he had 5302money, he went to Southern California. 5303% 5304His mind is like a steel trap -- full of mice. 5305 -- Foghorn Leghorn 5306% 5307His super power is to turn into a scotch terrier. 5308% 5309History is curious stuff 5310 You'd think by now we had enough 5311Yet the fact remains I fear 5312 They make more of it every year. 5313% 5314History repeats itself. That's one thing wrong with history. 5315% 5316History, n.: 5317 Papa Hegel he say that all we learn from history is that we 5318learn nothing from history. I know people who can't even learn from 5319what happened this morning. Hegel must have been taking the long 5320view. 5321 -- Chad C. Mulligan, "The Hipcrime Vocab" 5322% 5323Hlade's Law: 5324 If you have a difficult task, give it to a lazy person -- they 5325will find an easier way to do it. 5326% 5327Hoare's Law of Large Problems: 5328 Inside every large problem is a small problem struggling to get out. 5329% 5330Hofstadter's Law: 5331 It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take 5332Hofstadter's Law into account. 5333% 5334Hollywood is where if you don't have happiness you send out for it. 5335 -- Rex Reed 5336% 5337 Home centers are designed for the do-it-yourselfer who's 5338willing to pay higher prices for the convenience of being able to shop 5339for lumber, hardware, and toasters all in one location. Notice I say 5340"shop for", as opposed to "obtain". This is the major drawback of home 5341centers: they are always out of everything except artificial Christmas 5342trees. The home center employees have no time to reorder merchandise 5343because they are too busy applying little price stickers to every 5344object -- every board, washer, nail and screw -- in the entire store ... 5345 Let's say a piece in your toilet tank breaks, so you remove the 5346broken part, take it to the home center, and ask an employee if he has 5347a replacement. The employee, who has never is his life even seen the 5348inside of a toilet tank, will peer at the broken part in very much the 5349same way that a member of a primitive Amazon jungle tribe would look at 5350an electronic calculator, and then say, "We're expecting a shipment of 5351these sometime around the middle of next week". 5352 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 5353% 5354Home of Doberman Propulsion Laboratories: 5355The ultimate in watchdog weaponry. 5356 -- Chris Shaw 5357% 5358Honesty is the best policy, but insanity is a better defense. 5359% 5360Honesty pays, but it doesn't seem to pay enough to suit some people. 5361 -- F. M. Hubbard 5362% 5363Honk if you hate bumper stickers that say "Honk if ..." 5364% 5365Honk if you love peace and quiet. 5366% 5367Honorable, adj.: 5368 Afflicted with an impediment in one's reach. In legislative 5369bodies, it is customary to mention all members as honorable; as, "the 5370honorable gentleman is a scurvy cur." 5371 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 5372% 5373Horngren's Observation: 5374 Among economists, the real world is often a special case. 5375% 5376Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on 5377people. 5378 -- W. C. Fields 5379% 5380Horses are forbidden to eat fire hydrants in Marshalltown, Iowa. 5381% 5382Houston, Tranquillity Base here. The Eagle has landed. 5383 -- Neil Armstrong 5384% 5385How can you be in two places at once when you're not anywhere at all? 5386% 5387How come only your friends step on your new white sneakers? 5388% 5389How come wrong numbers are never busy? 5390% 5391How do I love thee? My accumulator overflows. 5392% 5393How do you explain school to a higher intelligence? 5394 -- Elliot, "E.T." 5395% 5396How doth the little crocodile 5397 Improve his shining tail, 5398And pour the waters of the Nile 5399 On every golden scale! 5400 5401How cheerfully he seems to grin, 5402 How neatly spreads his claws, 5403And welcomes little fishes in, 5404 With gently smiling jaws! 5405 -- Lewis Carroll, "Alice in Wonderland" 5406% 5407How doth the VAX's C compiler 5408Improve its object code. 5409And even as we speak does it 5410Increase the system load. 5411 5412How patiently it seems to run 5413And spit out error flags, 5414While users, with frustration, all 5415Tear their clothes to rags. 5416% 5417How I love to watch the morn, 5418 With golden sun that shines, 5419Up above to nicely warm 5420 These frosty toes of mine. 5421 5422The wind doth taste so bitter sweet, 5423 Like Jaspar wine and sugar, 5424It must have blown through someone's feet, 5425 Like those of ... Caspar Weinberger. 5426 -- P. Opus (Bloom County) 5427% 5428How doth the VAX's C-compiler 5429Improve its object code. 5430And even as we speak does it 5431Increase the system load. 5432 5433How patiently it seems to run 5434And spit out error flags, 5435While users, with frustration, all 5436Tear all their clothes to rags. 5437% 5438How long a minute is depends on which side of the bathroom door you're 5439on. 5440% 5441How many hardware engineers does it take to change a lightbulb? 5442None: "We'll fix it in software." 5443 5444How many software engineers does it take to change a lightbulb? 5445None: "We'll document it in the manual." 5446 5447How many tech writers does it take to change a lightbulb? 5448None: "The user can work it out." 5449% 5450How many hors d'oeuvres you are allowed to take off a tray being 5451carried by a waiter at a nice party? 5452 5453Two, but there are ways around it, depending on the style of the hors 5454d'oeuvre. If they're those little pastry things where you can't tell 5455what's inside, you take one, bite off about two-thirds of it, then 5456say: "This is cheese! I hate cheese!" Then you put the rest of it 5457back on the tray and bite another one and go, "Darn it! Another 5458cheese!" and so on. 5459 -- Dave Barry, "The Stuff of Etiquette" 5460% 5461 How many seconds are there in a year? If I tell you there are 54623.155 x 10^7, you won't even try to remember it. On the other hand, 5463who could forget that, to within half a percent, pi seconds is a 5464nanocentury. 5465 -- Tom Duff, Bell Labs 5466% 5467How much does it cost to entice a dope-smoking UNIX system guru to Dayton? 5468 -- Brian Boyle, UNIX/WORLD's First Annual Salary Survey 5469% 5470How wonderful opera would be if there were no singers. 5471% 5472HOW YOU CAN TELL THAT IT'S GOING TO BE A ROTTEN DAY: 5473 #1040 Your income tax refund cheque bounces. 5474% 5475HOW YOU CAN TELL THAT IT'S GOING TO BE A ROTTEN DAY: 5476 #15 Your pet rock snaps at you. 5477% 5478HOW YOU CAN TELL THAT IT'S GOING TO BE A ROTTEN DAY: 5479 #32: You call your answering service and they've never heard of you. 5480% 5481Howe's Law: 5482 Everyone has a scheme that will not work. 5483% 5484However, never daunted, I will cope with adversity in my traditional 5485manner ... sulking and nausea. 5486 -- Tom K. Ryan 5487% 5488HR 3128. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation, Fiscal 1986. Martin, R-Ill., 5489motion that the House recede from its disagreement to the Senate 5490amendment making changes in the bill to reduce fiscal 1986 deficits. 5491The Senate amendment was an amendment to the House amendment to the 5492Senate amendment to the House amendment to the Senate amendment to the 5493bill. The original Senate amendment was the conference agreement on 5494the bill. Agreed to. 5495 -- Albuquerque Journal 5496% 5497 Hug O' War 5498 5499I will not play at tug o' war. 5500I'd rather play at hug o' war, 5501Where everyone hugs 5502Instead of tugs, 5503Where everyone giggles 5504And rolls on the rug, 5505Where everyone kisses, 5506And everyone grins, 5507And everyone cuddles, 5508And everyone wins. 5509 -- Shel Silverstein 5510% 5511Human beings were created by water to transport it uphill. 5512% 5513Human cardiac catheterization was introduced by Werner Forssman in 55141929. Ignoring his department chief, and tying his assistant to an 5515operating table to prevent his interference, he placed a urethral 5516catheter into a vein in his arm, advanced it to the right atrium [of 5517his heart], and walked upstairs to the x-ray department where he took 5518the confirmatory x-ray film. In 1956, Dr. Forssman was awarded the 5519Nobel Prize. 5520% 5521Hummingbirds never remember the words to songs. 5522% 5523Humor is a drug which it's the fashion to abuse. 5524 -- William Gilbert 5525% 5526Hurewitz's Memory Principle: 5527 The chance of forgetting something is directly proportional 5528to ..... to ........ uh .............. 5529% 5530I also believe that academic freedom should protect the right of a 5531professor or student to advocate Marxism, socialism, communism, or any 5532other minority viewpoint -- no matter how distasteful to the majority. 5533 -- Richard M. Nixon 5534 5535What are our schools for if not indoctrination against Communism? 5536 -- Richard M. Nixon 5537% 5538I am convinced that the manufacturers of carpet odor removing powder 5539have included encapsulated time released cat urine in their products. 5540This technology must be what prevented its distribution during my mom's 5541reign. My carpet smells like piss, and I don't have a cat. Better go 5542buy some more. 5543 -- timw@zeb.USWest.COM 5544% 5545I am more bored than you could ever possibly be. Go back to work. 5546% 5547I am not an Economist. I am an honest man! 5548 -- Paul McCracken 5549% 5550I am not now, and never have been, a girlfriend of Henry Kissinger. 5551 -- Gloria Steinem 5552% 5553I am not now, nor have I ever been, a member of the demigodic party. 5554 -- Dennis M. Ritchie 5555% 5556I am not sure what this is, but an `F' would only dignify it. 5557 -- English Professor 5558% 5559I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the 5560great ordeal of meeting me is another matter. 5561 -- Winston Churchill 5562% 5563I am returning this otherwise good typing paper to you because someone 5564has printed gibberish all over it and put your name at the top. 5565 -- English Professor, Ohio University 5566% 5567I am so optimistic about beef prices that I've just leased a pot roast 5568with an option to buy. 5569% 5570I am the mother of all things, and all things should wear a sweater. 5571% 5572I am, in point of fact, a particularly haughty and exclusive person, 5573of pre-Adamite ancestral descent. You will understand this when I tell 5574you that I can trace my ancestry back to a protoplasmal primordial 5575atomic globule. Consequently, my family pride is something 5576inconceivable. I can't help it. I was born sneering. 5577 -- Pooh-Bah, "The Mikado", Gilbert & Sullivan 5578% 5579I appreciate the fact that this draft was done in haste, but some of 5580the sentences that you are sending out in the world to do your work for 5581you are loitering in taverns or asleep beside the highway. 5582 -- Dr. Dwight Van de Vate, Professor of Philosophy, 5583 University of Tennessee at Knoxville 5584% 5585I argue very well. Ask any of my remaining friends. I can win an 5586argument on any topic, against any opponent. People know this, and 5587steer clear of me at parties. Often, as a sign of their great respect, 5588they don't even invite me. 5589 -- Dave Barry 5590% 5591I believe in getting into hot water; it keeps you clean. 5592 -- G. K. Chesterton 5593% 5594I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat. 5595 -- Will Rogers 5596% 5597I bet the human brain is a kludge. 5598 -- Marvin Minsky 5599% 5600I brake for chezlogs! 5601% 5602I call them as I see them. If I can't see them, I make them up. 5603 -- Biff Barf 5604% 5605I can feel for her because, although I have never been an Alaskan 5606prostitute dancing on the bar in a spangled dress, I still get very 5607bored with washing and ironing and dishwashing and cooking day after 5608relentless day. 5609 -- Betty MacDonald 5610% 5611I can read your mind, and you should be ashamed of yourself. 5612% 5613I can remember when a good politician had to be 75 percent ability and 561425 percent actor, but I can well see the day when the reverse could be 5615true. 5616 -- Harry S. Truman 5617% 5618I can resist anything but temptation. 5619% 5620I can't complain, but sometimes I still do. 5621 -- Joe Walsh 5622% 5623I can't decide whether to commit suicide or go bowling. 5624 -- Florence Henderson 5625% 5626I can't understand it. I can't even understand the people who can 5627understand it. 5628 -- Queen Juliana of the Netherlands. 5629% 5630I can't understand why a person will take a year or two to write a 5631novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars. 5632 -- Fred Allen 5633% 5634I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year's fashions. 5635 -- Lillian Hellman 5636% 5637I cannot conceive that anybody will require multiplications at the rate 5638of 40,000 or even 4,000 per hour ... 5639 -- F. H. Wales (1936) 5640% 5641I cannot overemphasize the importance of good grammar. 5642 5643What a crock. I could easily overemphasize the importance of good 5644grammar. For example, I could say: "Bad grammar is the leading cause 5645of slow, painful death in North America," or "Without good grammar, the 5646United States would have lost World War II." 5647 -- Dave Barry, "An Utterly Absurd Look at Grammar" 5648% 5649 "I cannot read the fiery letters," said Frito Bugger in a 5650quavering voice. 5651 "No," said GoodGulf, "but I can. The letters are Elvish, of 5652course, of an ancient mode, but the language is that of Mordor, which 5653I will not utter here. They are lines of a verse long known in 5654Elven-lore: 5655 5656 "This Ring, no other, is made by the elves, 5657 Who'd pawn their own mother to grab it themselves. 5658 Ruler of creeper, mortal, and scallop, 5659 This is a sleeper that packs quite a wallop. 5660 The Power almighty rests in this Lone Ring. 5661 The Power, alrighty, for doing your Own Thing. 5662 If broken or busted, it cannot be remade. 5663 If found, send to Sorhed (with postage prepaid)." 5664 -- Harvard Lampoon, "Bored of the Rings" 5665% 5666I changed my headlights the other day. I put in strobe lights 5667instead! Now when I drive at night, it looks like everyone else is 5668standing still ... 5669 -- Steven Wright 5670% 5671I could dance till the cows come home. On second thought, I'd rather 5672dance with the cows till you come home. 5673 -- Groucho Marx 5674% 5675I couldn't remember when I had been so disappointed. Except perhaps 5676the time I found out that M&Ms really *do* melt in your hand ... 5677 -- Peter Oakley 5678% 5679I didn't know it was impossible when I did it. 5680% 5681I didn't like the play, but I saw it under adverse conditions. The 5682curtain was up. 5683% 5684 I disapprove of the F-word, not because it's dirty, but because 5685we use it as a substitute for thoughtful insults, and it frequently 5686leads to violence. What we ought to do, when we anger each other, say, 5687in traffic, is exchange phone numbers, so that later on, when we've had 5688time to think of witty and learned insults or look them up in the 5689library, we could call each other up: 5690 5691 You: Hello? Bob? 5692 Bob: Yes? 5693 You: This is Ed. Remember? The person whose parking space you 5694 took last Thursday? Outside of Sears? 5695 Bob: Oh yes! Sure! How are you, Ed? 5696 You: Fine, thanks. Listen, Bob, the reason I'm calling is: 5697 "Madam, you may be drunk, but I am ugly, and ..." No, wait. 5698 I mean: "you may be ugly, but I am Winston Churchill 5699 and ..." No, wait. (Sound of reference book thudding onto 5700 the floor.) S-word. Excuse me. Look, Bob, I'm going to 5701 have to get back to you. 5702 Bob: Fine. 5703 -- Dave Barry, "$#$%#^%!^%&@%@!" 5704% 5705I do hate sums. There is no greater mistake than to call arithmetic an 5706exact science. There are permutations and aberrations discernible to 5707minds entirely noble like mine; subtle variations which ordinary 5708accountants fail to discover; hidden laws of number which it requires a 5709mind like mine to perceive. For instance, if you add a sum from the 5710bottom up, and then again from the top down, the result is always 5711different. 5712 -- Mrs. La Touche (19th cent.) 5713% 5714I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them. 5715 -- Isaac Asimov 5716% 5717I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us 5718with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forego their use. 5719 -- Galileo Galilei 5720% 5721I do not know myself, and God forbid that I should. 5722 -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 5723% 5724I don't believe in astrology. But then I'm an Aquarius, and Aquarians 5725don't believe in astrology. 5726 -- James R. F. Quirk 5727% 5728I don't believe there really IS a GAS SHORTAGE.. I think it's all just 5729a BIG HOAX on the part of the plastic sign salesmen -- to sell more 5730numbers!! 5731% 5732I don't care for the Sugar Smacks commercial. I don't like the idea of 5733a frog jumping on my Breakfast. 5734 -- Lowell, Chicago Reader 10/15/82 5735% 5736I don't care who does the electing as long as I get to do the 5737nominating. 5738 -- Boss Tweed 5739% 5740I don't have any solution but I certainly admire the problem. 5741 -- Ashleigh Brilliant 5742% 5743I don't have to take this abuse from you -- I've got hundreds of 5744people waiting to abuse me. 5745 -- Bill Murray, "Ghostbusters" 5746% 5747I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to. 5748 -- Elvis Presley 5749% 5750 "I don't know what you mean by `glory,'" Alice said 5751 Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. "Of course you don't -- 5752till I tell you. I meant `there's a nice knock-down argument for 5753you!'" 5754 "But glory doesn't mean `a nice knock-down argument,'" Alice 5755objected. 5756 "When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful 5757tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor 5758less." 5759 "The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean 5760so many different things." 5761 "The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master-- 5762that's all." 5763 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 5764% 5765I don't like spinach, and I'm glad I don't, because if I liked it I'd 5766eat it, and I just hate it. 5767 -- Clarence Darrow 5768% 5769I don't mind going nowhere as long as it's an interesting path. 5770 -- Ronald Mabbitt 5771% 5772I don't mind what Congress does, as long as they don't do it in the 5773streets and frighten the horses. 5774 -- Victor Hugo 5775% 5776I don't object to sex before marriage, but two minutes before?!? 5777% 5778"I don't think so," said Ren'e Descartes. Just then, he vanished. 5779% 5780I don't think they could put him in a mental hospital. On the other 5781hand, if he were already in, I don't think they'd let him out. 5782% 5783I don't want to alarm anybody, but there is an excellent chance that 5784the Earth will be destroyed in the next several days. Congress is 5785thinking about eliminating a federal program under which scientists 5786broadcast signals to alien beings. This would be a large mistake. 5787Alien beings have nuclear blaster death cannons. You cannot cut off 5788their federal programs as if they were merely poor people ... 5789 -- Davy Barry, "THE ALIENS ARE COMING, THE ALIENS ARE 5790 COMING!" 5791% 5792I doubt, therefore I might be. 5793% 5794I dread success. To have succeeded is to have finished one's business 5795on earth, like the male spider, who is killed by the female the moment 5796he has succeeded in his courtship. I like a state of continual 5797becoming, with a goal in front and not behind. 5798 -- George Bernard Shaw 5799% 5800I drink to make other people interesting. 5801 -- George Jean Nathan 5802% 5803I fell asleep reading a dull book, and I dreamt that I was reading on, 5804so I woke up from sheer boredom. 5805% 5806I for one cannot protest the recent M.T.A. fare hike and the 5807accompanying promises that this would in no way improve service. For 5808the transit system, as it now operates, has hidden advantages that 5809can't be measured in monetary terms. 5810 5811Personally, I feel that it is well worth 75 cents or even $1 to have 5812that unimpeachable excuse whenever I am late to anything: "I came by 5813subway." Those four words have such magic in them that if Godot should 5814someday show up and mumble them, any audience would instantly 5815understand his long delay. 5816% 5817I found out why my car was humming. It had forgotten the words. 5818% 5819I gained nothing at all from Supreme Enlightenment, and for that very 5820reason it is called Supreme Enlightenment. 5821 -- Gautama Buddha 5822% 5823I gave up Smoking, Drinking and Sex. It was the most *__________horrifying* 20 5824minutes of my life! 5825% 5826I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it. 5827 -- Mae West 5828% 5829I get up each morning, gather my wits. 5830 Pick up the paper, read the obits. 5831If I'm not there I know I'm not dead. 5832 So I eat a good breakfast and go back to bed. 5833% 5834I get up each morning, gather my wits. 5835Pick up the paper, read the obits. 5836If I'm not there I know I'm not dead. 5837So I eat a good breakfast and go back to bed. 5838 5839Oh, how do I know my youth is all spent? 5840My get-up-and-go has got-up-and-went. 5841But in spite of it all, I'm able to grin, 5842And think of the places my get-up has been. 5843 -- Pete Seeger 5844% 5845I had this sudden vision of a klein pizza containing all the mozarella 5846in the world. 5847 -- Peter da Silva 5848% 5849I had to censor everything my sons watched ... even on the Mary Tyler 5850Moore show I heard the word 'damn'! 5851 -- Mary Lou Bax 5852% 5853I had to hit him -- he was starting to make sense. 5854% 5855I hate it when my foot falls asleep during the day cause that means 5856it's going to be up all night. 5857 -- Steven Wright 5858% 5859I hate quotations. 5860 -- Ralph Waldo Emerson 5861% 5862I have a simple philosophy: 5863 5864 Fill what's empty. 5865 Empty what's full. 5866 Scratch where it itches. 5867 -- A. R. Longworth 5868% 5869I have a very firm grasp on reality! I can reach out and strangle it 5870any time! 5871% 5872I have come up with a sure-fire concept for a hit television show, 5873which would be called `A Live Celebrity Gets Eaten by a Shark'. 5874 -- Dave Barry, "The Wonders of Sharks on TV" 5875% 5876I have discovered the art of deceiving diplomats. I tell them the truth 5877and they never believe me. 5878 -- Camillo Di Cavour 5879% 5880I have great faith in fools -- self confidence my friends call it. 5881 -- Edgar Allan Poe 5882% 5883I have just read your lousy review buried in the back pages. You 5884sound like a frustrated old man who never made a success, an 5885eight-ulcer man on a four-ulcer job, and all four ulcers working. I 5886have never met you, but if I do you'll need a new nose and plenty of 5887beefsteak and perhaps a supporter below. Westbrook Pegler, a 5888guttersnipe, is a gentleman compared to you. You can take that as more 5889of an insult than as a reflection on your ancestry. 5890 -- President Harry S. Truman 5891% 5892I have learned 5893To spell hors d'oeuvres 5894Which still grates on 5895Some people's n'oeuvres. 5896 -- Warren Knox 5897% 5898I have made mistakes but I have never made the mistake of claiming 5899that I have never made one. 5900 -- James Gordon Bennett 5901% 5902I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to 5903make it shorter. 5904 -- Blaise Pascal 5905% 5906I have more humility in my little finger than you have in your whole 5907____BODY! 5908 -- from "Cerebus" #82 5909% 5910I have seen the future and it is just like the present, only longer. 5911 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 5912% 5913I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best. 5914 -- Oscar Wilde 5915% 5916I have the world's largest collection of seashells. I keep it 5917scattered around the beaches of the world ... Perhaps you've seen it. 5918 -- Steven Wright 5919% 5920I have to convince you, or at least snow you ... 5921 -- Prof. Romas Aleliunas, CS 435 5922% 5923I have two very rare photographs: one is a picture of Houdini locking 5924his keys in his car; the other is a rare photograph of Norman Rockwell 5925beating up a child. 5926 -- Steven Wright 5927% 5928I have yet to see any problem, however complicated, which, when looked 5929at in the right way, did not become still more complicated. 5930 -- Poul Anderson 5931% 5932I haven't lost my mind -- it's backed up on tape somewhere. 5933% 5934I haven't lost my mind; I know exactly where I left it. 5935% 5936I just forgot my whole philosophy of life!!! 5937% 5938I just need enough to tide me over until I need more. 5939 -- Bill Hoest 5940% 5941I know it all. I just can't remember it all at once. 5942% 5943I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World 5944War IV will be fought with sticks and stones. 5945 -- Albert Einstein 5946% 5947I know the answer! The answer lies within the heart of all mankind! 5948The answer is twelve? I think I'm in the wrong building. 5949 -- Charles Schulz 5950% 5951I like being single. I'm always there when I need me. 5952 -- Art Leo 5953% 5954I like to believe that people in the long run are going to do more to 5955promote peace than our governments. Indeed, I think that people want 5956peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of 5957the way and let them have it. 5958 -- Dwight D. Eisenhower 5959% 5960I like work ... I can sit and watch it for hours. 5961% 5962I like your game but we have to change the rules. 5963% 5964I love Saturday morning cartoons, what classic humour! This is what 5965entertainment is all about ... Idiots, explosives and falling anvils. 5966 -- Calvin and Hobbes, Bill Watterson 5967% 5968"I love to eat them Smurfies 5969 Smurfies what I love to eat 5970 Bite they ugly heads off, 5971 Nibble on they bluish feet." 5972% 5973I may appear to be just sitting here like a bucket of tapioca, but 5974don't let appearances fool you. I'm approaching old age ... at the 5975speed of light. 5976 -- Prof. Cosmo Fishhawk 5977% 5978I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent. 5979 -- Ashleigh Brilliant 5980% 5981I must have a prodigious quantity of mind; it takes me as much as a 5982week sometimes to make it up. 5983 -- Mark Twain, "The Innocents Abroad" 5984% 5985I must have slipped a disk -- my pack hurts 5986% 5987I never fail to convince an audience that the best thing they could do 5988was to go away. 5989% 5990I never met a piece of chocolate I didn't like. 5991% 5992I often quote myself; it adds spice to my conversation. 5993 -- G. B. Shaw 5994% 5995I only touch base with reality on an as-needed basis! 5996 -- Royal Floyd Mengot (Klaus) 5997% 5998I played lead guitar in a band called The Federal Duck, which is the 5999kind of name that was popular in the '60s as a result of controlled 6000substances being in widespread use. Back then, there were no 6001restrictions, in terms of talent, on who could make an album, so we 6002made one, and it sounds like a group of people who have been given 6003powerful but unfamiliar instruments as a therapy for a degenerative 6004nerve disease. 6005 -- Dave Barry, "The Snake" 6006% 6007I predict that today will be remembered until tomorrow! 6008% 6009I profoundly believe it takes a lot of practice to become a moral slob. 6010 -- William F. Buckley 6011% 6012 "I quite agree with you," said the Duchess; "and the moral of 6013that is -- `Be what you would seem to be' -- or, if you'd like it put 6014more simply -- `Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it 6015might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not 6016otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be 6017otherwise.'" 6018 -- Lewis Carroll, "Alice in Wonderland" 6019% 6020I realize that the MX missile is none of our concern. I realize that 6021the whole point of living in a democracy is that we pay professional 6022congresspersons to concern themselves with things like the MX missile 6023so we can be free to concern ourselves with getting hold of the 6024plumber. 6025 6026But from time to time, I feel I must address major public issues such 6027as this, because in a free and open society, where the very future of 6028the world hinges on decisions made by our elected leaders, you never 6029win large cash journalism awards if you stick to the topics I usually 6030write about, such as nose-picking. 6031 -- Dave Barry, "At Last, the Ultimate Deterrent Against 6032 Political Fallout" 6033% 6034I really hate this damned machine 6035I wish that they would sell it. 6036It never does quite what I want 6037But only what I tell it. 6038% 6039I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed person. 6040% 6041I see a good deal of talk from Washington about lowering taxes. I hope 6042they do get 'em lowered enough so people can afford to pay 'em. 6043 -- Will Rogers 6044% 6045I see the eigenvalue in thine eye, 6046I hear the tender tensor in thy sigh. 6047Bernoulli would have been content to die 6048Had he but known such _a-squared cos 2(phi)! 6049 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 6050% 6051I sent a letter to the fish, 6052I told them, "This is what I wish." 6053The little fishes of the sea, 6054They sent an answer back to me. 6055The little fishes' answer was 6056"We cannot do it, sir, because ..." 6057I sent a letter back to say 6058It would be better to obey. 6059But someone came to me and said 6060"The little fishes are in bed." 6061I said to him, and I said it plain 6062"Then you must wake them up again." 6063I said it very loud and clear, 6064I went and shouted in his ear. 6065But he was very stiff and proud, 6066He said "You needn't shout so loud." 6067And he was very proud and stiff, 6068He said "I'll go and wake them if ..." 6069I took a kettle from the shelf, 6070I went to wake them up myself. 6071But when I found the door was locked 6072I pulled and pushed and kicked and knocked, 6073And when I found the door was shut, 6074I tried to turn the handle, But ... 6075 6076 "Is that all?" asked Alice. 6077 "That is all." said Humpty Dumpty. "Goodbye." 6078 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 6079% 6080I shot an arrow into the air, and it stuck. 6081 -- Graffito in Los Angeles 6082% 6083"... I should explain that I was wearing a black velvet cape that was 6084supposed to make me look like the dashing, romantic Zorro but which 6085actually made me look like a gigantic bat wearing glasses ..." 6086 -- Dave Barry, "The Wet Zorro Suit and Other Turning 6087 Points in l'Amour" 6088% 6089I stayed up all night playing poker with tarot cards. I got a full 6090house and four people died. 6091 -- Steven Wright 6092% 6093I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to 6094see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph. 6095 -- Shirley Temple 6096% 6097I suggest you locate your hot tub outside your house, so it won't do 6098too much damage if it catches fire or explodes. First you decide which 6099direction your hot tub should face for maximum solar energy. After 6100much trial and error, I have found that the best direction for a hot 6101tub to face is up. 6102 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 6103% 6104I think it is true for all _n. I was just playing it safe with _n >= 3 6105because I couldn't remember the proof. 6106 -- Baker, Pure Math 351a 6107% 6108I think sex is better than logic, but I can't prove it. 6109% 6110I think that all good, right thinking people in this country are sick 6111and tired of being told that all good, right thinking people in this 6112country are fed up with being told that all good, right thinking people 6113in this country are fed up with being sick and tired. I'm certainly 6114not, and I'm sick and tired of being told that I am. 6115 -- Monty Python 6116% 6117I think that I shall never see 6118A billboard lovely as a tree. 6119Perhaps, unless the billboards fall 6120I'll never see a tree at all. 6121 -- Ogden Nash 6122% 6123I think that I shall never see 6124A thing as lovely as a tree. 6125But as you see the trees have gone 6126They went this morning with the dawn. 6127A logging firm from out of town 6128Came and chopped the trees all down. 6129But I will trick those dirty skunks 6130And write a brand new poem called 'Trunks'. 6131% 6132I think the sky is blue because it's a shift from black through purple 6133to blue, and it has to do with where the light is. You know, the 6134farther we get into darkness, and there's a shifting of color of light 6135into the blueness, and I think as you go farther and farther away from 6136the reflected light we have from the sun or the light that's bouncing 6137off this earth, uh, the darker it gets ... I think if you look at the 6138color scale, you start at black, move it through purple, move it on 6139out, it's the shifting of color. We mentioned before about the stars 6140singing, and that's one of the effects of the shifting of colors. 6141 -- Pat Robertson, The 700 Club 6142% 6143I think we can all agree that there is not enough common courtesy shown 6144... HEY! PAY ATTENTION WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU DAMMIT! I said I think 6145we can all agree that there is not enough common courtesy shown today. 6146When we take the time to be courteous to each other, we find that we 6147are happier and less likely to engage in nuclear war. This point was 6148driven home by the recent summit talks, where Nancy Reagan and Raisa 6149Gorbachev, each of whose husband thinks the other's husband is vermin, 6150were able to sit down at a high-level tea and engage in courteous 6151conversation ... 6152 -- Dave Barry, "The Stuff of Etiquette" 6153% 6154"I thought you were trying to get into shape." 6155"I am. The shape I've selected is a triangle." 6156% 6157 ... I told my doctor I got all the exercise I needed being a 6158pallbearer for all my friends who run and do exercises! 6159 -- Winston Churchill 6160% 6161I took a course in speed reading and was able to read War and Peace in 6162twenty minutes. It's about Russia. 6163 -- Woody Allen 6164% 6165I used to be an agnostic, but now I'm not so sure. 6166% 6167I used to get high on life but lately I've built up a resistance. 6168% 6169I used to think I was indecisive, but now I'm not so sure. 6170% 6171I used to think that the brain was the most wonderful organ in my 6172body. Then I realized who was telling me this. 6173 -- Emo Phillips 6174% 6175I used to work in a fire hydrant factory. You couldn't park anywhere 6176near the place. 6177 -- Steven Wright 6178% 6179I value kindness to human beings first of all, and kindness to 6180animals. I don't respect the law; I have a total irreverence for 6181anything connected with society except that which makes the roads 6182safer, the beer stronger, the food cheaper, and old men and women 6183warmer in the winter, and happier in the summer. 6184 -- Brendan Behan 6185% 6186I want to buy a husband who, every week when I sit down to watch `St. 6187Elsewhere', won't scream, `FORGET IT, BLANCHE ... IT'S TIME FOR "HEE 6188HAW"!!' 6189 -- Berke Breathed, "Bloom County" 6190% 6191I was born because it was a habit in those days, people didn't know 6192anything else ... I was not a Child Prodigy, because a Child Prodigy is 6193a child who knows as much when it is a child as it does when it grows 6194up. 6195 -- Will Rogers 6196% 6197I was drunk last night, crawled home across the lawn. By accident I 6198put the car key in the door lock. The house started up. So I figured 6199what the hell, and drove it around the block a few times. I thought I 6200should go park it in the middle of the freeway and yell at everyone to 6201get off my driveway. 6202 -- Steven Wright 6203% 6204I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I 6205didn't know. 6206 -- Mark Twain 6207% 6208I was part of that strange race of people aptly described as spending 6209their lives doing things they detest to make money they don't want to 6210buy things they don't need to impress people they dislike. 6211 -- Emile Henry Gauvreay 6212% 6213I was playing poker the other night ... with Tarot cards. I got a full 6214house and four people died. 6215 -- Steven Wright 6216% 6217I went into a general store, and they wouldn't sell me anything specific. 6218 -- Steven Wright 6219% 6220I went on to test the program in every way I could devise. I strained 6221it to expose its weaknesses. I ran it for high-mass stars and low-mass 6222stars, for stars born exceedingly hot and those born relatively cold. 6223I ran it assuming the superfluid currents beneath the crust to be 6224absent -- not because I wanted to know the answer, but because I had 6225developed an intuitive feel for the answer in this particular case. 6226Finally I got a run in which the computer showed the pulsar's 6227temperature to be less than absolute zero. I had found an error. I 6228chased down the error and fixed it. Now I had improved the program to 6229the point where it would not run at all. 6230 -- George Greenstein, "Frozen Star: Of Pulsars, Black 6231 Holes and the Fate of Stars" 6232% 6233I went to a job interview the other day, the guy asked me if I had any 6234questions , I said yes, just one, if you're in a car traveling at the 6235speed of light and you turn your headlights on, does anything happen? 6236 6237He said he couldn't answer that, I told him sorry, but I couldn't work 6238for him then. 6239 -- Steven Wright 6240% 6241I went to the hardware store and bought some used paint. It was in 6242the shape of a house. I also bought some batteries, but they weren't 6243included. 6244 -- Steven Wright 6245% 6246I went to the museum where they had all the heads and arms from the 6247statues that are in all the other museums. 6248 -- Steven Wright 6249% 6250I went to the race track once and bet on a horse that was so good that 6251it took seven others to beat him! 6252% 6253I wish there was a knob on the TV to turn up the intelligence. 6254There's a knob called `brightness', but it doesn't work. 6255 -- Gallagher 6256% 6257I wouldn't recommend sex, drugs or insanity for everyone, but they've 6258always worked for me. 6259 -- Hunter S. Thompson 6260% 6261I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous. 6262% 6263I'd love to go out with you, but I did my own thing and now I've got 6264to undo it. 6265% 6266I'd love to go out with you, but I have to floss my cat. 6267% 6268I'd love to go out with you, but I have to stay home and see if I snore. 6269% 6270I'd love to go out with you, but I never go out on days that end in `Y.' 6271% 6272I'd love to go out with you, but I want to spend more time with my blender. 6273% 6274I'd love to go out with you, but I'm attending the opening of my garage door. 6275% 6276I'd love to go out with you, but I'm converting my calendar watch from 6277Julian to Gregorian. 6278% 6279I'd love to go out with you, but I'm doing door-to-door collecting for 6280static cling. 6281% 6282I'd love to go out with you, but I'm having all my plants neutered. 6283% 6284I'd love to go out with you, but I'm staying home to work on my 6285cottage cheese sculpture. 6286% 6287I'd love to go out with you, but I'm taking punk totem pole carving. 6288% 6289I'd love to go out with you, but I've been scheduled for a karma transplant. 6290% 6291I'd love to go out with you, but it's my parakeet's bowling night. 6292% 6293I'd love to go out with you, but my favorite commercial is on TV. 6294% 6295I'd love to go out with you, but the last time I went out, I never came back. 6296% 6297I'd love to go out with you, but the man on television told me to stay tuned. 6298% 6299I'd love to go out with you, but there are important world issues that 6300need worrying about. 6301% 6302I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy. 6303% 6304I'll carry your books, I'll carry a tune, I'll carry on, carry over, 6305carry forward, Cary Grant, cash & carry, Carry Me Back To Old Virginia, 6306I'll even Hara Kari if you show me how, but I will *not* carry a gun. 6307 -- Hawkeye, M*A*S*H 6308% 6309I'll defend to the death your right to say that, but I never said I'd 6310listen to it! 6311 -- Tom Galloway with apologies to Voltaire 6312% 6313I'll grant thee random access to my heart, 6314Thoul't tell me all the constants of thy love; 6315And so we two shall all love's lemmas prove 6316And in our bound partition never part. 6317 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 6318% 6319I'll rob that rich person and give it to some poor deserving slob. 6320That will *prove* I'm Robin Hood. 6321 -- Daffy Duck, "Robin Hood Daffy", [1958, Chuck Jones] 6322% 6323I'm a creationist; I refuse to believe that I could have evolved from man. 6324% 6325I'm a Lisp variable -- bind me! 6326% 6327I'm all for computer dating, but I wouldn't want one to marry my sister. 6328% 6329I'm changing my name to Chrysler 6330I'm going down to Washington, D.C. 6331I'll tell some power broker 6332 What they did for Iacocca 6333Will be perfectly acceptable to me! 6334I'm changing my name to Chrysler, 6335I'm heading for that great receiving line. 6336When they hand a million grand out, 6337 I'll be standing with my hand out, 6338Yessir, I'll get mine! 6339 -- Tom Paxton 6340% 6341I'm defending her honor, which is more than she ever did. 6342% 6343I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to 6344die in. 6345 -- George McGovern 6346% 6347I'm going to Boston to see my doctor. He's a very sick man. 6348 -- Fred Allen 6349% 6350I'm going to live forever, or die trying! 6351 -- Spider Robinson 6352% 6353... I'm IMAGINING a sensuous GIRAFFE, CAVORTING in the BACK ROOM of a 6354KOSHER DELI!! 6355% 6356I'm in Pittsburgh. Why am I here? 6357 -- Harold Urey, Nobel Laureate 6358% 6359I'm living so far beyond my income that we may almost be said to be 6360living apart. 6361 -- e. e. cummings 6362% 6363I'm N-ary the tree, I am, 6364N-ary the tree, I am, I am. 6365I'm getting traversed by the parser next door, 6366She's traversed me seven times before. 6367And ev'ry time it was an N-ary (N-ary!) 6368Never wouldn't ever do a binary. (No sir!) 6369I'm 'er eighth tree that was N-ary. 6370N-ary the tree I am, I am, 6371N-ary the tree I am. 6372% 6373I'm not under the alkafluence of inkahol that some thinkle peep I am. 6374It's just the drunker I sit here the longer I get. 6375% 6376I'm prepared for all emergencies but totally unprepared for everyday life. 6377% 6378I'm proud to be paying taxes in the United States. The only thing is 6379-- I could be just as proud for half the money. 6380 -- Arthur Godfrey 6381% 6382I'm rated PG-34!! 6383% 6384I'm really enjoying not talking to you ... Let's not talk again ____REAL 6385soon ... 6386% 6387I'm returning this note to you, instead of your paper, because it 6388(your paper) presently occupies the bottom of my bird cage. 6389 -- English Professor, Providence College 6390% 6391I'm very good at integral and differential calculus, 6392I know the scientific names of beings animalculous; 6393In short, in matters vegetable, animal, and mineral, 6394I am the very model of a modern Major-General. 6395 -- Gilbert & Sullivan, "Pirates of Penzance" 6396% 6397I'm willing to sacrifice anything for this cause, even other people's lives 6398% 6399I've built a better model than the one at Data General 6400For data bases vegetable, animal, and mineral 6401My OS handles CPUs with multiplexed duality; 6402My PL/1 compiler shows impressive functionality. 6403My storage system's better than magnetic core polarity, 6404You never have to bother checking out a bit for parity; 6405There isn't any reason to install non-static floor matting; 6406My disk drive has capacity for variable formatting. 6407 6408I feel compelled to mention what I know to be a gloating point: 6409There's lots of room in memory for variables floating-point, 6410Which shows for input vegetable, animal, and mineral 6411I've built a better model than the one at Data General. 6412 6413 -- Steve Levine, "A Computer Song" (To the tune of 6414 "Modern Major General", from "Pirates of Penzance", 6415 by Gilbert & Sullivan) 6416% 6417I've enjoyed just about as much of this as I can stand. 6418% 6419I've found my niche. If you're wondering why I'm not there, there was 6420this little hole in the bottom ... 6421 -- John Croll 6422% 6423I've given up reading books; I find it takes my mind off myself. 6424% 6425I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it. 6426 -- Groucho Marx 6427% 6428I've known him as a man, as an adolescent and as a child -- sometimes 6429on the same day. 6430% 6431I've seen better heads on half a pint of beer. 6432% 6433I've seen, I SAY, I've seen better heads on a mug of beer. 6434 -- Senator Claghorn 6435% 6436I've seen Sun monitors on fire off the side of the multimedia lab. 6437I've seen NTU lights glitter in the dark near the Mail Gate. 6438All these things will be lost in time, like the root partition last week. 6439Time to die... 6440 -- Peter Gutmann 6441% 6442I've touch'd the highest point of all my greatness; 6443And from that full meridian of my glory 6444I haste now to my setting. I shall fall, 6445Like a bright exhalation in the evening 6446And no man see me more. 6447 -- William Shakespeare 6448% 6449IBM had a PL/I, 6450 Its syntax worse than JOSS; 6451And everywhere this language went, 6452 It was a total loss. 6453% 6454Idaho state law makes it illegal for a man to give his sweetheart a box 6455of candy weighing less than fifty pounds. 6456% 6457Ideas don't stay in some minds very long because they don't like 6458solitary confinement. 6459% 6460Idiot Box, n.: 6461 The part of the envelope that tells a person where to place the 6462stamp when they can't quite figure it out for themselves. 6463 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 6464% 6465Idiot, n.: 6466 A member of a large and powerful tribe whose influence in human 6467affairs has always been dominant and controlling. 6468 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 6469% 6470If a 6600 used paper tape instead of core memory, it would use up tape 6471at about 30 miles/second. 6472 -- Grishman, Assembly Language Programming 6473% 6474If A = B and B = C, then A = C, except where void or prohibited by law. 6475 -- Roy Santoro 6476% 6477If a camel flies, no one laughs if it doesn't get very far. 6478 -- Paul White 6479% 6480If a camel is a horse designed by a committee, then a consensus 6481forecast is a camel's behind. 6482 -- Edgar R. Fiedler 6483% 6484If A equals success, then the formula is _A = _X + _Y + _Z. _X is work. _Y 6485is play. _Z is keep your mouth shut. 6486 -- Albert Einstein 6487% 6488If a group of _N persons implements a COBOL compiler, there will be _N-1 6489passes. Someone in the group has to be the manager. 6490 -- T. Cheatham 6491% 6492If a jury in a criminal trial stays out for more than twenty-four 6493hours, it is certain to vote acquittal, save in those instances where 6494it votes guilty. 6495 -- Joseph C. Goulden 6496% 6497If a listener nods his head when you're explaining your program, wake 6498him up. 6499% 6500If a President doesn't do it to his wife, he'll do it to his country. 6501% 6502If a putt passes over the hole without dropping, it is deemed to have 6503dropped. The law of gravity holds that any object attempting to 6504maintain a position in the atmosphere without something to support it 6505must drop. The law of gravity supersedes the law of golf. 6506 -- Donald A. Metz 6507% 6508If a team is in a positive frame of mind, it will have a good 6509attitude. If it has a good attitude, it will make a commitment to 6510playing the game right. If it plays the game right, it will win -- 6511unless, of course, it doesn't have enough talent to win, and no manager 6512can make goose-liver pate out of goose feathers, so why worry? 6513 -- Sparky Anderson 6514% 6515If all be true that I do think, 6516There be Five Reasons why one should Drink; 6517Good friends, good wine, or being dry, 6518Or lest we should be by-and-by, 6519Or any other reason why. 6520% 6521If all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular 6522error. 6523 -- John Kenneth Galbraith 6524% 6525If all the Chinese simultaneously jumped into the Pacific off a 10 foot 6526platform erected 10 feet off their coast, it would cause a tidal wave 6527that would destroy everything in this country west of Nebraska. 6528% 6529If all the world's a stage, I want to operate the trap door. 6530 -- Paul Beatty 6531% 6532If all the world's economists were laid end to end, we wouldn't reach a 6533conclusion. 6534 -- William Baumol 6535% 6536If an S and an I and an O and a U 6537With an X at the end spell Su; 6538And an E and a Y and an E spell I, 6539Pray what is a speller to do? 6540Then, if also an S and an I and a G 6541And an HED spell side, 6542There's nothing much left for a speller to do 6543But to go commit siouxeyesighed. 6544 -- Charles Follen Adams, "An Orthographic Lament" 6545% 6546If anything can go wrong, it will. 6547% 6548If at first you don't succeed, give up. No use being a damn fool. 6549% 6550If at first you don't succeed, redefine success. 6551% 6552If bankers can count, how come they have eight windows and only four 6553tellers? 6554% 6555If dolphins are so smart, why did Flipper work for television? 6556% 6557If entropy is increasing, where is it coming from? 6558% 6559If everybody minded their own business, the world would go 6560around a deal faster. 6561 -- The Duchess, "Through the Looking Glass" 6562% 6563If everything is coming your way then you're in the wrong lane. 6564% 6565... If forced to travel on an airplane, try and get in the cabin with 6566the Captain, so you can keep an eye on him and nudge him if he falls 6567asleep or point out any mountains looming up ahead ... 6568 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 6569% 6570If God didn't mean for us to juggle, tennis balls wouldn't come three 6571to a can. 6572% 6573If God had intended Man to Smoke, He would have set him on Fire. 6574% 6575If God had intended Man to Walk, He would have given him Feet. 6576% 6577If God had intended Man to Watch TV, He would have given him Rabbit Ears. 6578% 6579If God had intended Men to Smoke, He would have put Chimneys in their Heads. 6580% 6581If God had meant for us to be in the Army, we would have been born with 6582green, baggy skin. 6583% 6584If God had meant for us to be naked, we would have been born that way. 6585% 6586If God had not given us sticky tape, it would have been necessary to 6587invent it. 6588% 6589If God had wanted you to go around nude, He would have given you bigger 6590hands. 6591% 6592If God is dead, who will save the Queen? 6593% 6594If God is perfect, why did He create discontinuous functions? 6595% 6596If God lived on Earth, people would knock out all His windows. 6597 -- Yiddish saying 6598% 6599If God wanted us to be brave, why did he give us legs? 6600 -- Marvin Kitman 6601% 6602If I am elected, the concrete barriers around the WHITE HOUSE will be 6603replaced by tasteful foam replicas of ANN MARGARET! 6604% 6605If I could drop dead right now, I'd be the happiest man alive! 6606 -- Samuel Goldwyn 6607% 6608If I don't drive around the park, 6609I'm pretty sure to make my mark. 6610If I'm in bed each night by ten, 6611I may get back my looks again. 6612If I abstain from fun and such, 6613I'll probably amount to much; 6614But I shall stay the way I am, 6615Because I do not give a damn. 6616 -- Dorothy Parker 6617% 6618If I don't see you in the future, I'll see you in the pasture. 6619% 6620If I had a plantation in Georgia and a home in Hell, I'd sell the 6621plantation and go home. 6622 -- Eugene P. Gallagher 6623% 6624If I had any humility I would be perfect. 6625 -- Ted Turner 6626% 6627If I had only known, I would have been a locksmith. 6628 -- Albert Einstein 6629% 6630If I have seen farther than others, it is because I was standing on the 6631shoulders of giants. 6632 -- Isaac Newton 6633 6634In the sciences, we are now uniquely privileged to sit side by side 6635with the giants on whose shoulders we stand. 6636 -- Gerald Holton 6637 6638If I have not seen as far as others, it is because giants were standing 6639on my shoulders. 6640 -- Hal Abelson 6641 6642In computer science, we stand on each other's feet. 6643 -- Brian K. Reid 6644% 6645If I kiss you, that is a psychological interaction. 6646 6647On the other hand, if I hit you over the head with a brick, that is 6648also a psychological interaction. 6649 6650The difference is that one is friendly and the other is not so 6651friendly. 6652 6653The crucial point is if you can tell which is which. 6654 -- Dolph Sharp, "I'm O.K., You're Not So Hot" 6655% 6656If I traveled to the end of the rainbow 6657As Dame Fortune did intend, 6658Murphy would be there to tell me 6659The pot's at the other end. 6660 -- Bert Whitney 6661% 6662If ignorance is bliss, why aren't there more happy people? 6663% 6664If it's Tuesday, this must be someone else's fortune. 6665% 6666If Jesus Christ were to come today, people would not even crucify him. 6667They would ask him to dinner, and hear what he had to say, and make fun 6668of it. 6669 -- Thomas Carlyle 6670% 6671If just one piece of mail gets lost, well, they'll just think they 6672forgot to send it. But if *two* pieces of mail get lost, hell, they'll 6673just think the other guy hasn't gotten around to answering his mail. 6674And if *fifty* pieces of mail get lost, can you imagine it, if *fifty* 6675pieces of mail get lost, why they'll think someone *else* is broken! 6676And if 1Gb of mail gets lost, they'll just *know* that Arpa is down and 6677think it's a conspiracy to keep them from their God given right to 6678receive Net Mail ... 6679 -- Leith (Casey) Leedom 6680% 6681If life is a stage, I want some better lighting. 6682% 6683If little else, the brain is an educational toy. 6684 -- Tom Robbins 6685% 6686If little green men land in your back yard, hide any little green women 6687you've got in the house. 6688 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 6689% 6690If mathematically you end up with the wrong answer, try multiplying by 6691the page number. 6692% 6693If money can't buy happiness, I guess you'll just have to rent it. 6694% 6695If once a man indulges himself in murder, very soon he comes to think 6696little of robbing; and from robbing he next comes to drinking and 6697Sabbath-breaking, and from that to incivility and procrastination. 6698 -- Thomas De Quincey (1785 - 1859) 6699% 6700If one studies too zealously, one easily loses his pants. 6701 -- Albert Einstein 6702% 6703If only God would give me some clear sign! Like making a large deposit 6704in my name at a Swiss bank. 6705 -- Woody Allen, "Without Feathers" 6706% 6707If only I could be respected without having to be respectable. 6708% 6709If only one could get that wonderful feeling of accomplishment without 6710having to accomplish anything. 6711% 6712If Patrick Henry thought that taxation without representation was bad, 6713he should see how bad it is with representation. 6714% 6715If scientific reasoning were limited to the logical processes of 6716arithmetic, we should not get very far in our understanding of the 6717physical world. One might as well attempt to grasp the game of poker 6718entirely by the use of the mathematics of probability. 6719 -- Vannevar Bush 6720% 6721If someone had told me I would be Pope one day, I would have studied 6722harder. 6723 -- Pope John Paul I 6724% 6725If that makes any sense to you, you have a big problem. 6726 -- C. Durance, Computer Science 234 6727% 6728If the aborigine drafted an IQ test, all of Western civilization would 6729presumably flunk it. 6730 -- Stanley Garn 6731% 6732If the code and the comments disagree, then both are probably wrong. 6733 -- Norm Schryer 6734% 6735If the colleges were better, if they really had it, you would need to 6736get the police at the gates to keep order in the inrushing multitude. 6737See in college how we thwart the natural love of learning by leaving 6738the natural method of teaching what each wishes to learn, and insisting 6739that you shall learn what you have no taste or capacity for. The 6740college, which should be a place of delightful labor, is made odious 6741and unhealthy, and the young men are tempted to frivolous amusements to 6742rally their jaded spirits. I would have the studies elective. 6743Scholarship is to be created not by compulsion, but by awakening a pure 6744interest in knowledge. The wise instructor accomplishes this by 6745opening to his pupils precisely the attractions the study has for 6746himself. The marking is a system for schools, not for the college; for 6747boys, not for men; and it is an ungracious work to put on a professor. 6748 -- Ralph Waldo Emerson 6749% 6750If the King's English was good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me! 6751 -- "Ma" Ferguson, Governor of Texas (circa 1920) 6752% 6753If the odds are a million to one against something occurring, chances 6754are 50-50 it will. 6755% 6756If the weather is extremely bad, church attendance will be down. 6757If the weather is extremely good, church attendance will be down. 6758If the bulletin covers are in short supply, however, church attendance 6759will exceed all expectations. 6760 -- Reverend Chichester 6761% 6762If there are epigrams, there must be meta-epigrams. 6763% 6764If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that 6765will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong. 6766% 6767If there is no God, who pops up the next Kleenex? 6768 -- Art Hoppe 6769% 6770If they can make penicillin out of moldy bread, they can sure make 6771something out of you. 6772 -- Muhammad Ali 6773% 6774If this fortune didn't exist, somebody would have invented it. 6775% 6776If this is timesharing, give me my share right now. 6777% 6778If time heals all wounds, how come the belly button stays the same? 6779% 6780If today is the first day of the rest of your life, what the hell was 6781yesterday? 6782% 6783If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is 6784doing the thinking. 6785 -- Lyndon Baines Johnson 6786% 6787If two wrongs don't make a right, try three. 6788 -- Laurence J. Peter 6789% 6790If value corrupts then absolute value corrupts absolutely 6791% 6792If we were meant to fly, we wouldn't keep losing our luggage. 6793% 6794If while you are in school, there is a shortage of qualified personnel 6795in a particular field, then by the time you graduate with the necessary 6796qualifications, that field's employment market is glutted. 6797 -- Marguerite Emmons 6798% 6799If you are a fatalist, what can you do about it? 6800 -- Ann Edwards-Duff 6801% 6802If you can count your money, you don't have a billion dollars. 6803 -- J. Paul Getty 6804% 6805If you can lead it to water and force it to drink, it isn't a horse. 6806% 6807If you can read this, you're too close. 6808% 6809If you can survive death, you can probably survive anything. 6810% 6811If you can't be good, be careful. 6812If you can't be careful, give me a call. 6813% 6814If you can't learn to do it well, learn to enjoy doing it badly. 6815% 6816If you cannot convince them, confuse them. 6817 -- Harry S. Truman 6818% 6819If you didn't get caught, did you really do it? 6820% 6821If you don't care where you are, then you ain't lost. 6822% 6823If you don't go to other men's funerals they won't go to yours. 6824 -- Clarence Day 6825% 6826If you don't have a nasty obituary you probably didn't matter. 6827 -- Freeman Dyson 6828% 6829If you don't want your dog to have bad breath, do what I do: Pour a little 6830Lavoris in the toilet. 6831 -- Jay Leno 6832% 6833If you eat a live frog in the morning, nothing worse will happen to 6834either of you for the rest of the day. 6835% 6836If you ever want to get anywhere in politics, my boy, you're going to 6837have to get a toehold in the public eye. 6838% 6839If you explain so clearly that nobody can misunderstand, somebody 6840will. 6841% 6842If you give Congress a chance to vote on both sides of an issue, it 6843will always do it. 6844 -- Les Aspin, D., Wisconsin 6845% 6846If you go on with this nuclear arms race, all you are going to do is 6847make the rubble bounce. 6848 -- Winston Churchill 6849% 6850If you had any brains, you'd be dangerous. 6851% 6852If you have a procedure with 10 parameters, you probably missed some. 6853% 6854If you have to hate, hate gently. 6855% 6856If you just try long enough and hard enough, you can always manage to 6857boot yourself in the posterior. 6858 -- A. J. Liebling, "The Press" 6859% 6860If you keep anything long enough, you can throw it away. 6861% 6862If you live in a country run by committee, be on the committee. 6863 -- Graham Summer 6864% 6865If you live to the age of a hundred you have it made because very few 6866people die past the age of a hundred. 6867 -- George Burns 6868% 6869If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; 6870but if you really make them think they'll hate you. 6871% 6872If you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail. 6873 -- Maslow 6874% 6875If you perceive that there are four possible ways in which a procedure 6876can go wrong, and circumvent these, then a fifth way will promptly 6877develop. 6878% 6879If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite 6880you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man. 6881 -- Mark Twain 6882% 6883If you push the "extra ice" button on the soft drink vending machine, 6884you won't get any ice. If you push the "no ice" button, you'll get 6885ice, but no cup. 6886% 6887If you put garbage in a computer nothing comes out but garbage. But 6888this garbage, having passed through a very expensive machine, is 6889somehow ennobled and none dare criticize it. 6890% 6891If you sit down at a poker game and don't see a sucker, get up. You're 6892the sucker. 6893% 6894If you stand on your head, you will get footprints in your hair. 6895% 6896If you think education is expensive, try ignorance. 6897 -- Derek Bok, president of Harvard 6898% 6899If you think last Tuesday was a drag, wait till you see what happens 6900tomorrow! 6901% 6902If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car 6903payments. 6904 -- Earl Wilson 6905% 6906If you think technology can solve your security problems, then you 6907don't understand the problems and you don't understand the technology. 6908 -- Bruce Schneier 6909% 6910If you think the problem is bad now, just wait until we've solved it. 6911 -- Arthur Kasspe 6912% 6913If you think the United States has stood still, who built the largest 6914shopping center in the world? 6915 -- Richard M. Nixon 6916% 6917If you throw a New Year's Party, the worst thing that you can do would 6918be to throw the kind of party where your guests wake up today, and call 6919you to say they had a nice time. Now you'll be be expected to throw 6920another party next year. 6921 6922What you should do is throw the kind of party where your guest wake up 6923several days from now and call their lawyers to find out if they've 6924been indicted for anything. You want your guests to be so anxious to 6925avoid a recurrence of your party that they immediately start planning 6926parties of their own, a year in advance, just to prevent you from 6927having another one ... 6928 6929If your party is successful, the police will knock on your door, unless 6930your party is very successful in which case they will lob tear gas 6931through your living room window. As host, your job is to make sure 6932that they don't arrest anybody. Or if they're dead set on arresting 6933someone, your job is to make sure it isn't you ... 6934 -- Dave Barry 6935% 6936If you took all the students that felt asleep in class and laid them 6937end to end, they'd be a lot more comfortable. 6938 -- "Graffiti in the Big Ten" 6939% 6940If you understand what you're doing, you're not learning anything. 6941 -- A. L. 6942% 6943If you want divine justice, die. 6944 -- Nick Seldon 6945% 6946If you want to know what god thinks of money, just look at the people 6947he gave it to. 6948 -- Dorothy Parker 6949% 6950If you want to understand your government, don't begin by reading the 6951Constitution. It conveys precious little of the flavor of today's 6952statecraft. Instead, read selected portions of the Washington 6953telephone directory containing listings for all the organizations with 6954titles beginning with the word "National". 6955 -- George Will 6956% 6957If you want your spouse to listen and pay strict attention to every 6958word you say, talk in your sleep. 6959% 6960If you wants to get elected president, you'se got to think up some 6961memoraboble homily so's school kids can be pestered into memorizin' it, 6962even if they don't know what it means. 6963 -- Walt Kelly, "The Pogo Party" 6964% 6965If you wish to live wisely, ignore sayings -- including this one. 6966% 6967If you're going to do something tonight that you'll be sorry for 6968tomorrow morning, sleep late. 6969 -- Henny Youngman 6970% 6971If you're happy, you're successful. 6972% 6973 If you're like most homeowners, you're afraid that many repairs 6974around your home are too difficult to tackle. So, when your furnace 6975explodes, you call in a so-called professional to fix it. The 6976"professional" arrives in a truck with lettering on the sides and 6977deposits a large quantity of tools and two assistants who spend the 6978better part of the week in your basement whacking objects at random 6979with heavy wrenches, after which the "professional" returns and gives 6980you a bill for slightly more money than it would cost you to run a 6981successful campaign for the U.S. Senate. 6982 And that's why you've decided to start doing things yourself. 6983You figure, "If those guys can fix my furnace, then so can I. How 6984difficult can it be?" 6985 Very difficult. In fact, most home projects are impossible, 6986which is why you should do them yourself. There is no point in paying 6987other people to screw things up when you can easily screw them up 6988yourself for far less money. This article can help you. 6989 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 6990% 6991If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate. 6992% 6993If you're not very clever you should be conciliatory. 6994 -- Benjamin Disraeli 6995% 6996If you're right 90% of the time, why quibble about the remaining 3%? 6997% 6998If you've done six impossible things before breakfast, why not round it 6999off with dinner at Milliway's, the restaurant at the end of the universe? 7000% 7001If you've seen one redwood, you've seen them all. 7002 -- Ronald Reagan 7003% 7004Ignisecond, n.: 7005 The overlapping moment of time when the hand is locking the car 7006door even as the brain is saying, "my keys are in there!" 7007 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 7008% 7009Il brilgue: les t^oves libricilleux 7010 Se gyrent et frillant dans le guave, 7011Enm^im'es sont les gougebosquex, 7012 Et le m^omerade horgrave. 7013 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 7014% 7015Iles's Law: 7016 There is always an easier way to do it. When looking directly 7017at the easy way, especially for long periods, you will not see it. 7018Neither will Iles. 7019% 7020Illinois isn't exactly the land that God forgot -- it's more like the 7021land He's trying to ignore. 7022% 7023Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality. 7024 -- Jules de Gaultier 7025% 7026Imagine if every Thursday your shoes exploded if you tied them the 7027usual way. This happens to us all the time with computers, and nobody 7028thinks of complaining. 7029 -- Jeff Raskin, interviewed in Doctor Dobb's Journal 7030% 7031Imagine that Cray computer decides to make a personal computer. It has 7032a 150 MHz processor, 200 megabytes of RAM, 1500 megabytes of disk 7033storage, a screen resolution of 4096 x 4096 pixels, relies entirely on 7034voice recognition for input, fits in your shirt pocket and costs $300. 7035What's the first question that the computer community asks? 7036 7037"Is it PC compatible?" 7038% 7039Immigration is the sincerest form of flattery. 7040 -- Jack Paar 7041% 7042Immortality -- a fate worse than death. 7043 -- Edgar A. Shoaff 7044% 7045Impartial, adj.: 7046 Unable to perceive any promise of personal advantage from 7047espousing either side of a controversy or adopting either of two 7048conflicting opinions. 7049 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7050% 7051Important letters which contain no errors will develop errors in the 7052mail. Corresponding errors will show up in the duplicate while the 7053Boss is reading it. 7054% 7055Impossible, adj.: 7056 (1) I wouldn't like it and when it happens I won't approve; 7057 (2) I can't be bothered; 7058 (3) God can't be bothered. 7059Meaning (3) may perhaps be valid but the others are 101% whaledreck. 7060 -- Chad C. Mulligan, "The Hipcrime Vocab" 7061% 7062In 1750 Issac Newton became discouraged when he fell up a flight of 7063stairs. 7064% 7065In 1869 the waffle iron was invented for people who had wrinkled waffles. 7066% 7067In 1880 the French captured Detroit but gave it back ... they couldn't 7068get parts. 7069% 7070In 1914, the first crossword puzzle was printed in a newspaper. The 7071creator received $4000 down ... and $3000 across. 7072% 7073In 1915 pancake make-up was invented but most people still preferred 7074syrup. 7075% 7076In a five year period we can get one superb programming language. Only 7077we can't control when the five year period will begin. 7078% 7079 In a forest a fox bumps into a little rabbit, and says, "Hi, 7080junior, what are you up to?" 7081 "I'm writing a dissertation on how rabbits eat foxes," said the 7082rabbit. 7083 "Come now, friend rabbit, you know that's impossible!" 7084 "Well, follow me and I'll show you." They both go into the 7085rabbit's dwelling and after a while the rabbit emerges with a satisfied 7086expression on his face. 7087 Comes along a wolf. "Hello, what are we doing these days?" 7088 "I'm writing the second chapter of my thesis, on how rabbits 7089devour wolves." 7090 "Are you crazy? Where is your academic honesty?" 7091 "Come with me and I'll show you." As before, the rabbit comes 7092out with a satisfied look on his face and a diploma in his paw. 7093Finally, the camera pans into the rabbit's cave and, as everybody 7094should have guessed by now, we see a mean-looking, huge lion sitting 7095next to some bloody and furry remnants of the wolf and the fox. 7096 7097The moral: It's not the contents of your thesis that are important -- 7098it's your PhD advisor that really counts. 7099% 7100In a medium in which a News Piece takes a minute and an "In-Depth" 7101Piece takes two minutes, the Simple will drive out the Complex. 7102 -- Frank Mankiewicz 7103% 7104In a museum in Havana, there are two skulls of Christopher Columbus, 7105"one when he was a boy and one when he was a man." 7106 -- Mark Twain 7107% 7108In Africa some of the native tribes have a custom of beating the ground 7109with clubs and uttering spine chilling cries. Anthropologists call 7110this a form of primitive self-expression. In America we call it golf. 7111% 7112In America today ... we have Woody Allen, whose humor has become so 7113sophisticated that nobody gets it any more except Mia Farrow. All 7114those who think Mia Farrow should go back to making movies where the 7115devil gets her pregnant and Woody Allen should go back to dressing up 7116as a human sperm, please raise your hands. Thank you. 7117 -- Dave Barry, "Why Humor is Funny" 7118% 7119In America, any boy may become president and I suppose that's just one 7120of the risks he takes. 7121 -- Adlai Stevenson 7122% 7123In an organization, each person rises to the level of his own 7124incompetency 7125 -- The Peter Principle 7126% 7127In any formula, constants (especially those obtained from handbooks) 7128are to be treated as variables. 7129% 7130In any world menu, Canada must be considered the vichyssoise of 7131nations -- it's cold, half-French, and difficult to stir. 7132 -- Stuart Keate 7133% 7134In Blythe, California, a city ordinance declares that a person must own 7135at least two cows before he can wear cowboy boots in public. 7136% 7137In Boston, it is illegal to hold frog-jumping contests in nightclubs. 7138% 7139In case of atomic attack, the federal ruling against prayer in schools 7140will be temporarily canceled. 7141% 7142In case of injury notify your superior immediately. He'll kiss it and 7143make it better. 7144% 7145In Columbia, Pennsylvania, it is against the law for a pilot to tickle 7146a female flying student under her chin with a feather duster in order 7147to get her attention. 7148% 7149In Corning, Iowa, it's a misdemeanor for a man to ask his wife to ride 7150in any motor vehicle. 7151% 7152In defeat, unbeatable; in victory, unbearable. 7153 -- Winston Churchill, of Montgomery 7154% 7155In Denver it is unlawful to lend your vacuum cleaner to your next-door 7156neighbor. 7157% 7158In Devon, Connecticut, it is unlawful to walk backwards after sunset. 7159% 7160In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last 7161resort of the scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but 7162inferior lexicographer I beg to submit that it is the first. 7163 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7164% 7165In English, every word can be verbed. Would that it were so in our 7166programming languages. 7167% 7168In Greene, New York, it is illegal to eat peanuts and walk backwards on 7169the sidewalks when a concert is on. 7170% 7171In India, "cold weather" is merely a conventional phrase and has come 7172into use through the necessity of having some way to distinguish 7173between weather which will melt a brass door-knob and weather which 7174will only make it mushy. 7175 -- Mark Twain 7176% 7177In Lexington, Kentucky, it's illegal to carry an ice cream cone in your 7178pocket. 7179% 7180In Lowes Crossroads, Delaware, it is a violation of local law for any 7181pilot or passenger to carry an ice cream cone in their pocket while 7182either flying or waiting to board a plane. 7183% 7184In Memphis, Tennessee, it is illegal for a woman to drive a car unless 7185there is a man either running or walking in front of it waving a red 7186flag to warn approaching motorists and pedestrians. 7187% 7188In Ohio, if you ignore an orator on Decoration day to such an extent as 7189to publicly play croquet or pitch horseshoes within one mile of the 7190speaker's stand, you can be fined $25.00. 7191% 7192In order to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the 7193universe. 7194 -- Carl Sagan, Cosmos 7195% 7196In our civilization, and under our republican form of government, 7197intelligence is so highly honored that it is rewarded by exemption from 7198the cares of office. 7199 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7200% 7201In Pocataligo, Georgia, it is a violation for a woman over 200 pounds 7202and attired in shorts to pilot or ride in an airplane. 7203% 7204In Pocatello, Idaho, a law passed in 1912 provided that "The carrying 7205of concealed weapons is forbidden, unless same are exhibited to public 7206view." 7207% 7208In Riemann, Hilbert or in Banach space 7209Let superscripts and subscripts go their ways. 7210Our asymptotes no longer out of phase, 7211We shall encounter, counting, face to face. 7212 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 7213% 7214In Seattle, Washington, it is illegal to carry a concealed weapon that 7215is over six feet in length. 7216% 7217In seeking the unattainable, simplicity only gets in the way. 7218 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 7219% 7220In short, _N is Richardian if, and only if, _N is not Richardian. 7221% 7222In specifications, Murphy's Law supersedes Ohm's. 7223% 7224In Tennessee, it is illegal to shoot any game other than whales from a 7225moving automobile. 7226% 7227[In the 60's] there was madness in any direction, at any hour ... You 7228could strike sparks anywhere. There was a fantastic universal sense 7229that whatever we were doing was `right', that we were winning ... 7230 7231And that, I think, was the handle -- the sense of inevitable victory 7232over the forces of Old and Evil. Not in any mean or military sense; we 7233didn't need that. Our energy would simply `prevail'. There was no 7234point in fighting -- on our side or theirs. We had all the momentum; 7235we were riding the crest of a high and beautiful wave .... 7236 7237So now, less than five years later, you can go up on a steep hill in 7238Las Vegas and look West, and with the right kind of eyes you can almost 7239___see the high-water mark -- the place where the wave finally broke and 7240rolled back. 7241 -- Hunter S. Thompson, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" 7242% 7243In the beginning was the word. 7244But by the time the second word was added to it, 7245there was trouble. 7246For with it came syntax ... 7247 -- John Simon 7248% 7249In the days when Sussman was a novice Minsky once came to him as he sat 7250hacking at the PDP-6. "What are you doing?", asked Minsky. "I am 7251training a randomly wired neural net to play Tic-Tac-Toe." "Why is the 7252net wired randomly?", asked Minsky. "I do not want it to have any 7253preconceptions of how to play." Minsky shut his eyes. "Why do you 7254close your eyes?", Sussman asked his teacher. "So the room will be 7255empty." At that moment, Sussman was enlightened. 7256% 7257In the force if Yoda's so strong, construct a sentence with words in 7258the proper order then why can't he? 7259% 7260In the land of the dark, the Ship of the Sun is driven by the Grateful 7261Dead. 7262 -- Egyptian Book of the Dead 7263% 7264In the long run, every program becomes rococo, and then rubble. 7265 -- Alan Perlis 7266% 7267In the olden days in England, you could be hung for stealing a sheep or 7268a loaf of bread. However, if a sheep stole a loaf of bread and gave it 7269to you, you would only be tried for receiving, a crime punishable by 7270forty lashes with the cat or the dog, whichever was handy. If you 7271stole a dog and were caught, you were punished with twelve rabbit 7272punches, although it was hard to find rabbits big enough or strong 7273enough to punch you. 7274 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 7275% 7276In the space of one hundred and seventy-six years the Mississippi has 7277shortened itself two hundred and forty-two miles. Therefore ... in the 7278Old Silurian Period the Mississippi River was upward of one million 7279three hundred thousand miles long ... seven hundred and forty-two years 7280from now the Mississippi will be only a mile and three-quarters long. 7281... There is something fascinating about science. One gets such 7282wholesome returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of 7283fact. 7284 -- Mark Twain 7285% 7286In the Top 40, half the songs are secret messages to the teen world to 7287drop out, turn on, and groove with the chemicals and light shows at 7288discotheques. 7289 -- Art Linkletter 7290% 7291In those days he was wiser than he is now -- he used to frequently take 7292my advice. 7293 -- Winston Churchill 7294% 7295In Tulsa, Oklahoma, it is against the law to open a soda bottle without 7296the supervision of a licensed engineer. 7297% 7298In West Union, Ohio, No married man can go flying without his spouse 7299along at any time, unless he has been married for more than 12 months. 7300% 7301Incumbent, n.: 7302 Person of liveliest interest to the outcumbents. 7303 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7304% 7305... indifference is a militant thing ... when it goes away it leaves 7306smoking ruins, where lie citizens bayonetted through the throat. It is 7307not a children's pastime like mere highway robbery. 7308 -- Stephen Crane 7309% 7310Indifference will be the downfall of mankind, but who cares? 7311% 7312Individualists unite! 7313% 7314Infancy, n.: 7315 The period of our lives when, according to Wordsworth, "Heaven 7316lies about us." The world begins lying about us pretty soon 7317afterward. 7318 -- Ambrose Bierce 7319% 7320Information Center, n.: 7321 A room staffed by professional computer people whose job it is 7322to tell you why you cannot have the information you require. 7323% 7324Ingrate, n.: 7325 A man who bites the hand that feeds him, and then complains of 7326indigestion. 7327% 7328Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. 7329 -- Martin Luther King, Jr. 7330% 7331Ink, n.: 7332 A villainous compound of tannogallate of iron, gum-arabic, and 7333water, chiefly used to facilitate the infection of idiocy and promote 7334intellectual crime. 7335 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7336% 7337Innovation is hard to schedule. 7338 -- Dan Fylstra 7339% 7340Insanity is hereditary. You get it from your kids. 7341% 7342Insanity is the final defense ... It's hard to get a refund when the 7343salesman is sniffing your crotch and baying at the moon. 7344% 7345Interpreter, n.: 7346 One who enables two persons of different languages to 7347understand each other by repeating to each what it would have been to 7348the interpreter's advantage for the other to have said. 7349 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7350% 7351Intolerance is the last defense of the insecure. 7352% 7353I/O, I/O, 7354It's off to disk I go, 7355A bit or byte to read or write, 7356I/O, I/O, I/O 7357% 7358 INVENTORY 7359Four be the things I am wiser to know: 7360Idleness, sorrow, a friend, and a foe. 7361 7362Four be the things I'd been better without: 7363Love, curiosity, freckles, and doubt. 7364 7365Three be the things I shall never attain: 7366Envy, content, and sufficient champagne. 7367 7368Three be the things I shall have till I die: 7369Laughter and hope and a sock in the eye. 7370% 7371Iron Law of Distribution: 7372 Them that has, gets. 7373% 7374Irrationality is the square root of all evil 7375 -- Douglas Hofstadter 7376% 7377Is it possible that software is not like anything else, that it is 7378meant to be discarded: that the whole point is to always see it as a 7379soap bubble? 7380% 7381Is not marriage an open question, when it is alleged, from the 7382beginning of the world, that such as are in the institution wish to get 7383out, and such as are out wish to get in? 7384 -- Ralph Emerson 7385% 7386Is your job running? You'd better go catch it! 7387% 7388Isn't it interesting that the same people who laugh at science fiction 7389listen to weather forecasts and economists? 7390 -- Kelvin Throop III 7391% 7392Isn't it strange that the same people that laugh at gypsy fortune 7393tellers take economists seriously? 7394% 7395Issawi's Laws of Progress: 7396 7397 The Course of Progress: 7398 Most things get steadily worse. 7399 7400 The Path of Progress: 7401 A shortcut is the longest distance between two points. 7402% 7403It appears that after his death, Albert Einstein found himself working 7404as the doorkeeper at the Pearly Gates. One slow day, he found that he 7405had time to chat with the new entrants. To the first one he asked, 7406"What's your IQ?" The new arrival replied, "190". They discussed 7407Einstein's theory of relativity for hours. When the second new arrival 7408came, Einstein once again inquired as to the newcomer's IQ. The answer 7409this time came "120". To which Einstein replied, "Tell me, how did the 7410Cubs do this year?" and they proceeded to talk for half an hour or so. 7411To the final arrival, Einstein once again posed the question, "What's 7412your IQ?". Upon receiving the answer "70", Einstein smiled and asked, 7413"Got a minute to tell me about VMS 4.0?" 7414% 7415It happened that a fire broke out backstage in a theater. The clown 7416came out to inform the public. They thought it was just a jest and 7417applauded. He repeated his warning, they shouted even louder. So I 7418think the world will come to an end amid general applause from all the 7419wits, who believe that it is a joke. 7420 -- S. A. Kierkegaard (1813-1855) 7421% 7422It has been observed that one's nose is never so happy as when it is 7423thrust into the affairs of another, from which some physiologists have 7424drawn the inference that the nose is devoid of the sense of smell. 7425 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7426% 7427It has been said [by Anatole France], "it is not by amusing oneself 7428that one learns," and, in reply: "it is *____only* by amusing oneself that 7429one can learn." 7430 -- Edward Kasner and James R. Newman 7431% 7432It has been said that man is a rational animal. All my life I have 7433been searching for evidence which could support this. 7434 -- Bertrand Russell 7435% 7436It has just been discovered that research causes cancer in rats. 7437% 7438It is against the grain of modern education to teach children to 7439program. What fun is there in making plans, acquiring discipline in 7440organizing thoughts, devoting attention to detail, and learning to be 7441self-critical? 7442 -- Alan Perlis 7443% 7444It is against the law for a monster to enter the corporate limits of 7445Urbana, Illinois. 7446% 7447It is always preferable to visit home with a friend. Your parents will 7448not be pleased with this plan, because they want you all to themselves 7449and because in the presence of your friend, they will have to act like 7450mature human beings ... 7451 -- Playboy, January 1983 7452% 7453It is amusing that a virtue is made of the vice of chastity; and it's a 7454pretty odd sort of chastity at that, which leads men straight into the 7455sin of Onan, and girls to the waning of their color. 7456 -- Voltaire 7457% 7458It is an important and popular fact that things are not always what 7459they seem. For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed 7460that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so 7461much -- the wheel, New York wars and so on -- whilst all the dolphins 7462had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But 7463conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more 7464intelligent than man -- for precisely the same reasons. 7465 7466Curiously enough, the dolphins had long known of the impending 7467destruction of the of the planet Earth and had made many attempts to 7468alert mankind to the danger; but most of their communications were 7469misinterpreted ... 7470 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 7471% 7472It is better for civilization to be going down the drain than to be 7473coming up it. 7474 -- Henry Allen 7475% 7476It is better never to have been born. But who among us has such luck? 7477One in a million, perhaps. 7478% 7479It is better to kiss an avocado than to get in a fight with an aardvark 7480% 7481It is by the fortune of God that, in this country, we have three 7482benefits: freedom of speech, freedom of thought, and the wisdom never 7483to use either. 7484 -- Mark Twain 7485% 7486It is difficult to produce a television documentary that is both 7487incisive and probing when every twelve minutes one is interrupted by 7488twelve dancing rabbits singing about toilet paper. 7489 -- Rod Serling 7490% 7491It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is 7492lightly greased. 7493 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 7494% 7495It is easier to be a "humanitarian" than to render your own country its 7496proper due; it is easier to be a "patriot" than to make your community 7497a better place to live in; it is easier to be a "civic leader" than to 7498treat your own family with loving understanding; for the smaller the 7499focus of attention, the harder the task. 7500 -- Sydney J. Harris 7501% 7502It is easier to change the specification to fit the program than vice versa. 7503% 7504It is easier to get forgiveness than permission. 7505% 7506It is easier to write an incorrect program than understand a correct one. 7507% 7508It is generally agreed that "Hello" is an appropriate greeting because 7509if you entered a room and said "Goodbye," it could confuse a lot of 7510people. 7511 -- Dolph Sharp, "I'm O.K., You're Not So Hot" 7512% 7513It is illegal to drive more than two thousand sheep down Hollywood 7514Boulevard at one time. 7515% 7516It is illegal to say "Oh, Boy" in Jonesboro, Georgia. 7517% 7518It is impossible to experience one's death objectively and still carry 7519a tune. 7520 -- Woody Allen 7521% 7522It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so 7523ingenious. 7524% 7525It is impossible to travel faster than light, and certainly not 7526desirable, as one's hat keeps blowing off. 7527 -- Woody Allen 7528% 7529It is Mr. Mellon's credo that $200,000,000 can do no wrong. Our 7530offense consists in doubting it. 7531 -- Justice Robert H. Jackson 7532% 7533It is much easier to suggest solutions when you know nothing about the 7534problem. 7535% 7536It is necessary for the welfare of society that genius should be 7537privileged to utter sedition, to blaspheme, to outrage good taste, to 7538corrupt the youthful mind, and generally to scandalize one's uncles. 7539 -- George Bernard Shaw 7540% 7541It is not enough to succeed. Others must fail. 7542 -- Gore Vidal 7543% 7544It is not true that life is one damn thing after another -- it's one 7545damn thing over and over. 7546 -- Edna St. Vincent Millay 7547% 7548It is now 10 p.m. Do you know where Henry Kissinger is? 7549 -- Elizabeth Carpenter 7550% 7551It is now pitch dark. If you proceed, you will likely fall into a pit. 7552% 7553It is one of the superstitions of the human mind to have imagined that 7554virginity could be a virtue. 7555 -- Voltaire 7556% 7557It is only people of small moral stature who have to stand on their 7558dignity. 7559% 7560It is only the great men who are truly obscene. If they had not dared 7561to be obscene, they could never have dared to be great. 7562 -- Havelock Ellis 7563% 7564It is practically impossible to teach good programming style to 7565students that have had prior exposure to BASIC: as potential 7566programmers they are mentally mutilated beyond hope of 7567regeneration. 7568 -- Edsger W. Dijkstra, SIGPLAN Notices, Volume 17, Number 5 7569% 7570It is said that the lonely eagle flies to the mountain peaks while the 7571lowly ant crawls the ground, but cannot the soul of the ant soar as 7572high as the eagle? 7573% 7574It is something to be able to paint a particular picture, or to carve a 7575statue, and so to make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more 7576glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through 7577which we look, which morally we can do. To affect the quality of the 7578day, that is the highest of arts. 7579 -- Henry David Thoreau, "Where I Live" 7580% 7581It is Texas law that when two trains meet each other at a railroad 7582crossing, each shall come to a full stop, and neither shall proceed 7583until the other has gone. 7584% 7585It is the business of little minds to shrink. 7586 -- Carl Sandburg 7587% 7588It is the business of the future to be dangerous. 7589 -- Hawkwind 7590% 7591It is true that if your paperboy throws your paper into the bushes for 7592five straight days it can be explained by Newton's Law of Gravity. But 7593it takes Murphy's law to explain why it is happening to you. 7594% 7595It is very difficult to prophesy, especially when it pertains to the 7596future. 7597% 7598It looks like blind screaming hedonism won out. 7599% 7600It may be bad manners to talk with your mouth full, but it isn't too 7601good either if you speak when your head is empty. 7602% 7603It may be that your whole purpose in life is simply to serve as a 7604warning to others. 7605% 7606It runs like _x, where _x is something unsavory 7607 -- Prof. Romas Aleliunas, CS 435 7608% 7609It seems like the less a statesman amounts to, the more he loves the 7610flag. 7611% 7612It shall be unlawful for any suspicious person to be within the 7613municipality. 7614 -- Local ordinance, Euclid Ohio 7615% 7616It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, 7617but I couldn't give up because by that time I was too famous. 7618 -- Robert Benchly 7619% 7620It was a book to kill time for those who liked it better dead. 7621% 7622It was a virgin forest, a place where the Hand of Man had never set foot. 7623% 7624It was one of those perfect summer days -- the sun was shining, a 7625breeze was blowing, the birds were singing, and the lawn mower was 7626broken ... 7627 -- James Dent 7628% 7629It was pleasant to me to get a letter from you the other day. Perhaps 7630I should have found it pleasanter if I had been able to decipher it. I 7631don't think that I mastered anything beyond the date (which I knew) and 7632the signature (which I guessed at). There's a singular and a perpetual 7633charm in a letter of yours; it never grows old, it never loses its 7634novelty .... Other letters are read and thrown away and forgotten, but 7635yours are kept forever -- unread. One of them will last a reasonable 7636man a lifetime. 7637 -- Thomas Aldrich 7638% 7639 It was the next morning that the armies of Twodor marched east 7640laden with long lances, sharp swords, and death-dealing hangovers. The 7641thousands were led by Arrowroot, who sat limply in his sidesaddle, 7642nursing a whopper. Goodgulf, Gimlet, and the rest rode by him, praying 7643for their fate to be quick, painless, and if possible, someone else's. 7644 Many an hour the armies forged ahead, the war-merinos bleating 7645under their heavy burdens and the soldiers bleating under their melting 7646icepacks. 7647 -- The Harvard Lampoon, "Bored of the Rings" 7648% 7649It wasn't that she had a rose in her teeth, exactly. It was more like 7650the rose and the teeth were in the same glass. 7651% 7652It will be advantageous to cross the great stream ... the Dragon is on 7653the wing in the Sky ... the Great Man rouses himself to his Work. 7654% 7655It will be generally found that those who sneer habitually at human 7656nature and affect to despise it, are among its worst and least pleasant 7657examples. 7658 -- Charles Dickens 7659% 7660It would be nice if the Food and Drug Administration stopped issuing 7661warnings about toxic substances and just gave me the names of one or 7662two things still safe to eat. 7663 -- Robert Fuoss 7664% 7665It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word. 7666 -- Andrew Jackson 7667% 7668It's a dog-eat-dog world out there, and I'm wearing Milkbone underwear. 7669 -- Cheers 7670% 7671It's a good thing we don't get all the government we pay for. 7672% 7673It's a small world, but I wouldn't want to have to paint it. 7674 -- Steven Wright 7675% 7676"It's a summons." 7677"What's a summons?" 7678"It means summon's in trouble." 7679 -- Rocky and Bullwinkle 7680% 7681It's a very *__UN*lucky week in which to be took dead. 7682 -- Churchy La Femme 7683% 7684It's always darkest just before it gets pitch black. 7685% 7686It's bad luck to be superstitious. 7687 -- Andrew W. Mathis 7688% 7689It's better to be wanted for murder than not to be wanted at all. 7690 -- Marty Winch 7691% 7692"It's easier said than done." 7693 7694... and if you don't believe it, try proving that it's easier done than 7695said, and you'll see that "it's easier said that `it's easier done than 7696said' than it is done", which really proves that "it's easier said than 7697done". 7698% 7699It's easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them. 7700% 7701It's easier to get forgiveness for being wrong than forgiveness for 7702being right. 7703% 7704It's Fabulous! We haven't seen anything like it in the last half an hour! 7705 -- Macy's 7706% 7707It's illegal in Wilbur, Washington, to ride an ugly horse. 7708% 7709It's is not, it isn't ain't, and it's it's, not its, if you mean it 7710is. If you don't, it's its. Then too, it's hers. It isn't her's. It 7711isn't our's either. It's ours, and likewise yours and theirs. 7712 -- Oxford University Press, "Edpress News" 7713% 7714It's just a jump to the left 7715 And then a step to the right. 7716Put your hands on your hips 7717 And pull your knees in tight. 7718But it's the pelvic thrust 7719 That really drives you insa-a-a-a-a-ane! 7720 7721 LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN! 7722 7723 -- Rocky Horror Picture Show 7724% 7725It's kind of fun to do the impossible. 7726 -- Walt Disney 7727% 7728"It's Like This" 7729 7730Even the samurai 7731have teddy bears, 7732and even the teddy bears 7733get drunk. 7734% 7735It's lucky you're going so slowly, because you're going in the wrong 7736direction. 7737% 7738It's men like him that give the Y chromosome a bad name. 7739% 7740It's more than magnificent -- it's mediocre. 7741 -- Sam Goldwyn 7742% 7743It's no surprise that things are so screwed up: everyone that knows how 7744to run a government is either driving taxicabs or cutting hair. 7745 -- George Burns 7746% 7747It's not an optical illusion, it just looks like one. 7748 -- Phil White 7749% 7750It's not Camelot, but it's not Cleveland, either. 7751 -- Kevin White, mayor of Boston 7752% 7753It's not enough to be Hungarian; you must have talent too. 7754 -- Alexander Korda 7755% 7756It's not just a computer -- it's your ass. 7757 -- Cal Keegan 7758% 7759It's not reality or how you perceive things that's important -- it's 7760what you're taking for it... 7761% 7762It's not so hard to lift yourself by your bootstraps once you're off 7763the ground. 7764 -- Daniel B. Luten 7765% 7766It's not that I'm afraid to die. I just don't want to be there when it 7767happens. 7768 -- Woody Allen 7769% 7770It's not the valleys in life I dread so much as the dips. 7771 -- Garfield 7772% 7773It's odd, and a little unsettling, to reflect upon the fact that 7774English is the only major language in which "I" is capitalized; in many 7775other languages "You" is capitalized and the "i" is lower case. 7776 -- Sydney J. Harris 7777% 7778It's raisins that make Post Raisin Bran so raisiny ... 7779% 7780It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles. 7781% 7782It's so stupid of modern civilization to have given up believing in the 7783Devil when he is the only explanation of it. 7784% 7785It's the opinion of some that crops could be grown on the moon. Which 7786raises the fear that it may not be long before we're paying somebody 7787not to. 7788 -- Franklin P. Jones 7789% 7790It's the thought, if any, that counts! 7791% 7792 JACK AND THE BEANSTACK 7793 by Mark Isaak 7794 7795 Long ago, in a finite state far away, there lived a JOVIAL 7796character named Jack. Jack and his relations were poor. Often their 7797hash table was bare. One day Jack's parent said to him, "Our matrices 7798are sparse. You must go to the market to exchange our RAM for some 7799BASICs." She compiled a linked list of items to retrieve and passed it 7800to him. 7801 So Jack set out. But as he was walking along a Hamilton path, 7802he met the traveling salesman. 7803 "Whither dost thy flow chart take thou?" prompted the salesman 7804in high-level language. 7805 "I'm going to the market to exchange this RAM for some chips 7806and Apples," commented Jack. 7807 "I have a much better algorithm. You needn't join a queue 7808there; I will swap your RAM for these magic kernels now." 7809 Jack made the trade, then backtracked to his house. But when 7810he told his busy-waiting parent of the deal, she became so angry she 7811started thrashing. 7812 "Don't you even have any artificial intelligence? All these 7813kernels together hardly make up one byte," and she popped them out the 7814window ... 7815% 7816Jacquin's Postulate on Democratic Government: 7817 No man's life, liberty, or property are safe while the 7818legislature is in session. 7819% 7820James Joyce -- an essentially private man who wished his total 7821indifference to public notice to be universally recognized. 7822 -- Tom Stoppard 7823% 7824Jenkinson's Law: 7825 It won't work. 7826% 7827Jesus Saves, 7828Moses Invests, 7829But only Buddha pays Dividends. 7830% 7831Job Placement, n.: 7832 Telling your boss what he can do with your job. 7833% 7834Joe's sister puts spaghetti in her shoes! 7835% 7836Johnson's First Law: 7837 When any mechanical contrivance fails, it will do so at the 7838most inconvenient possible time. 7839% 7840Join in the new game that's sweeping the country. It's called 7841"Bureaucracy". Everybody stands in a circle. The first person to do 7842anything loses. 7843% 7844Join the march to save individuality! 7845% 7846Jone's Law: 7847 The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone 7848to blame it on. 7849% 7850Jone's Motto: 7851 Friends come and go, but enemies accumulate. 7852% 7853Jones's First Law: 7854 Anyone who makes a significant contribution to any field of 7855endeavor, and stays in that field long enough, becomes an obstruction 7856to its progress -- in direct proportion to the importance of their 7857original contribution. 7858% 7859Just about every computer on the market today runs Unix, except the Mac 7860(and nobody cares about it). 7861 -- Bill Joy 6/21/85 7862% 7863Just as most issues are seldom black or white, so are most good 7864solutions seldom black or white. Beware of the solution that requires 7865one side to be totally the loser and the other side to be totally the 7866winner. The reason there are two sides to begin with usually is 7867because neither side has all the facts. Therefore, when the wise 7868mediator effects a compromise, he is not acting from political 7869motivation. Rather, he is acting from a deep sense of respect for the 7870whole truth. 7871 -- Stephen R. Schwambach 7872% 7873Just because everything is different doesn't mean anything has 7874changed. 7875 -- Irene Peter 7876% 7877Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they AREN'T after you. 7878% 7879Just because your doctor has a name for your condition doesn't mean he 7880knows what it is. 7881% 7882Just go with the flow control, roll with the crunches, and, when you 7883get a prompt, type like hell. 7884% 7885Just once, I wish we would encounter an alien menace that wasn't 7886immune to bullets. 7887 -- The Brigader, "Dr. Who" 7888% 7889Just out of curiosity does this actually mean something or have some 7890of the few remaining bits of your brain just evaporated? 7891 -- Patricia O Tuama, rissa@killer.DALLAS.TX.US 7892% 7893Just remember, it all started with a mouse. 7894 -- Walt Disney 7895% 7896Just remember: when you go to court, you are trusting your fate to 7897twelve people that weren't smart enough to get out of jury duty! 7898% 7899`Just the place for a Snark!' the Bellman cried, 7900 As he landed his crew with care; 7901Supporting each man on the top of the tide 7902 By a finger entwined in his hair. 7903 7904'Just the place for a Snark! I have said it twice: 7905 That alone should encourage the crew. 7906Just the place for a Snark! I have said it thrice: 7907 What I tell you three times is true.' 7908% 7909Just when you thought you were winning the rat race, along comes a 7910faster rat!!! 7911% 7912Justice always prevails ... three times out of seven! 7913 -- Michael J. Wagner 7914% 7915Justice is incidental to law and order. 7916 -- J. Edgar Hoover 7917% 7918Justice, n.: 7919 A decision in your favor. 7920% 7921K: Cobalt's metal, hard and shining; 7922 Cobol's wordy and confining; 7923 KOBOLDS topple when you strike them; 7924 Don't feel bad, it's hard to like them. 7925 -- The Roguelet's ABC 7926% 7927Kansas state law requires pedestrians crossing the highways at night to 7928wear tail lights. 7929% 7930Katz' Law: 7931 Man and nations will act rationally when all other 7932possibilities have been exhausted. 7933% 7934Keep America beautiful. Swallow your beer cans. 7935% 7936Keep Cool, but Don't Freeze 7937 - Hellman's Mayonnaise 7938% 7939Keep emotionally active. Cater to your favorite neurosis. 7940% 7941Keep grandma off the streets -- legalize bingo. 7942% 7943Keep in mind always the two constant Laws of Frisbee: 7944 (1) The most powerful force in the world is that of a disc 7945 straining to land under a car, just out of reach (this 7946 force is technically termed "car suck"). 7947 (2) Never precede any maneuver by a comment more predictive 7948 than "Watch this!" 7949% 7950Keep your Eye on the Ball, 7951Your Shoulder to the Wheel, 7952Your Nose to the Grindstone, 7953Your Feet on the Ground, 7954Your Head on your Shoulders. 7955Now ... try to get something DONE! 7956% 7957Ken Thompson has an automobile which he helped design. Unlike most 7958automobiles, it has neither speedometer, nor gas gage, nor any of the 7959numerous idiot lights which plague the modern driver. Rather, if the 7960driver makes any mistake, a giant "?" lights up in the center of the 7961dashboard. "The experienced driver", he says, "will usually know 7962what's wrong." 7963% 7964Kerr's Three Rules for a Successful College: 7965 Have plenty of football for the alumni, sex for the students, 7966and parking for the faculty. 7967% 7968Kids have *_____never* taken guidance from their parents. If you could 7969travel back in time and observe the original primate family in the 7970original tree, you would see the primate parents yelling at the primate 7971teenager for sitting around and sulking all day instead of hunting for 7972grubs and berries like dad primate. Then you'd see the primate 7973teenager stomp up to his branch and slam the leaves. 7974 -- Dave Barry, "Kids Today: They Don't Know Dum Diddly Do" 7975% 7976Kin, n.: 7977 An affliction of the blood. 7978% 7979Kinkler's First Law: 7980 Responsibility always exceeds authority. 7981 7982Kinkler's Second Law: 7983 All the easy problems have been solved. 7984% 7985Kirk to Enterprise -- beam down yeoman Rand and a six-pack. 7986% 7987Kirkland, Illinois, law forbids bees to fly over the village or through 7988any of its streets. 7989% 7990Kiss me twice. I'm schizophrenic. 7991% 7992Kiss your keyboard goodbye! 7993% 7994Klein bottle for rent -- inquire within. 7995% 7996Kleptomaniac, n.: 7997 A rich thief. 7998 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 7999% 8000Know thyself. If you need help, call the C.I.A. 8001% 8002Know what I hate most? Rhetorical questions. 8003 -- Henry N. Camp 8004% 8005Krogt, n. (chemical symbol: Kr): 8006 The metallic silver coating found on fast-food game cards. 8007 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 8008% 8009Labor, n.: 8010 One of the processes by which A acquires property for B. 8011 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8012% 8013Lackland's Laws: 8014 (1) Never be first. 8015 (2) Never be last. 8016 (3) Never volunteer for anything 8017% 8018Lactomangulation, n.: 8019 Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk carton so badly 8020that one has to resort to using the "illegal" side. 8021 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 8022% 8023Ladybug, ladybug, 8024Look to your stern! 8025Your house is on fire, 8026Your children will burn! 8027So jump ye and sing, for 8028The very first time 8029The four lines above 8030Have been put into rhyme. 8031 -- Walt Kelly 8032% 8033Laetrile is the pits 8034% 8035Langsam's Laws: 8036 (1) Everything depends. 8037 (2) Nothing is always. 8038 (3) Everything is sometimes. 8039% 8040Larkinson's Law: 8041 All laws are basically false. 8042% 8043Lassie looked brilliant, in part because the farm family she lived with 8044was made up of idiots. Remember? One of them was always getting 8045pinned under the tractor, and Lassie was always rushing back to the 8046farmhouse to alert the other ones. She'd whimper and tug at their 8047sleeves, and they'd always waste precious minutes saying things: "Do 8048you think something's wrong? Do you think she wants us to follow her? 8049What is it, girl?", etc., as if this had never happened before, instead 8050of every week. What with all the time these people spent pinned under 8051the tractor, I don't see how they managed to grow any crops 8052whatsoever. They probably got by on federal crop supports, which 8053Lassie filed the applications for. 8054 -- Dave Barry 8055% 8056Last night, I came home and realized that everything in my apartment 8057had been stolen and replaced with an exact duplicate. I told this to 8058my friend -- he said, `Do I know you?' 8059 -- Steven Wright 8060% 8061Last week a cop stopped me in my car. He asked me if I had a police 8062record. I said, no, but I have the new DEVO album. Cops have no sense 8063of humor. 8064% 8065Last yeer I kudn't spel Engineer. Now I are won. 8066% 8067Laugh at your problems; everybody else does. 8068% 8069Laughter is the closest distance between two people." 8070 -- Victor Borge 8071% 8072Law of Communications: 8073 The inevitable result of improved and enlarged communications 8074between different levels in a hierarchy is a vastly increased area of 8075misunderstanding. 8076% 8077Law of Probable Dispersal: 8078 Whatever it is that hits the fan will not be evenly 8079distributed. 8080% 8081Law of Selective Gravity: 8082 An object will fall so as to do the most damage. 8083 8084Jenning's Corollary: 8085 The chance of the bread falling with the buttered side down is 8086directly proportional to the cost of the carpet. 8087 8088Law of the Perversity of Nature: 8089 You cannot successfully determine beforehand which side of the 8090bread to butter. 8091% 8092Laws of Serendipity: 8093 8094 (1) In order to discover anything, you must be looking for 8095 something. 8096 (2) If you wish to make an improved product, you must already 8097 be engaged in making an inferior one. 8098% 8099Lazlo's Chinese Relativity Axiom: 8100 No matter how great your triumphs or how tragic your defeats -- 8101approximately one billion Chinese couldn't care less. 8102% 8103Learned men are the cisterns of knowledge, not the fountainheads. 8104% 8105Learning French is trivial: the word for horse is cheval, and 8106everything else follows in the same way. 8107 -- Alan J. Perlis 8108% 8109Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse. 8110% 8111Legalize free-enterprise murder: why should governments have all the 8112fun? 8113% 8114Legislation proposed in the Illinois State Legislature, May, 1907: 8115 "Speed upon county roads will be limited to ten miles an hour 8116unless the motorist sees a bailiff who does not appear to have had a 8117drink in 30 days, when the driver will be permitted to make what he 8118can." 8119% 8120Leibowitz's Rule: 8121 When hammering a nail, you will never hit your finger if you 8122hold the hammer with both hands. 8123% 8124LEO (July 23 - Aug 22) 8125 You consider yourself a born leader. Others think you are 8126 pushy. Most Leo people are bullies. You are vain and dislike 8127 honest criticism. Your arrogance is disgusting. Leo people 8128 are thieves. 8129% 8130LEO (July 23 - Aug 22) 8131 Your determination and sense of humor will come to the fore. 8132 Your ability to laugh at adversity will be a blessing because 8133 you've got a day coming you wouldn't believe. As a matter of 8134 fact, if you can laugh at what happens to you today, you've got 8135 a sick sense of humor. 8136% 8137Let He who taketh the Plunge Remember to return it by Tuesday. 8138% 8139Let me assure you that to us here at First National, you're not just a 8140number. You're two numbers, a dash, three more numbers, another dash 8141and another number. 8142 -- James Estes 8143% 8144Let us live!!! 8145Let us love!!! 8146Let us share the deepest secrets of our souls!!! 8147 8148You first. 8149% 8150Let's just say that where a change was required, I adjusted. In every 8151relationship that exists, people have to seek a way to survive. If you 8152really care about the person, you do what's necessary, or that's the 8153end. For the first time, I found that I really could change, and the 8154qualities I most admired in myself I gave up. I stopped being loud and 8155bossy ... Oh, all right. I was still loud and bossy, but only behind 8156his back. 8157 -- Kate Hepburn, on Tracy and Hepburn 8158% 8159Let's say your wedding ring falls into your toaster, and when you stick 8160your hand in to retrieve it, you suffer Pain and Suffering as well as 8161Mental Anguish. You would sue: 8162 8163* The toaster manufacturer, for failure to include, in the instructions 8164 section that says you should never never never ever stick you hand 8165 into the toaster, the statement "Not even if your wedding ring falls 8166 in there". 8167 8168* The store where you bought the toaster, for selling it to an obvious 8169 cretin like yourself. 8170 8171* Union Carbide Corporation, which is not directly responsible in this 8172 case, but which is feeling so guilty that it would probably send you 8173 a large cash settlement anyway. 8174 -- Dave Barry 8175% 8176Let's talk about how to fill out your 1984 tax return. Here's an often 8177overlooked accounting technique that can save you thousands of 8178dollars: For several days before you put it in the mail, carry your 8179tax return around under your armpit. No IRS agent is going to want to 8180spend hours poring over a sweat-stained document. So even if you owe 8181money, you can put in for an enormous refund and the agent will 8182probably give it to you, just to avoid an audit. What does he care? 8183It's not his money. 8184 -- Dave Barry, "Sweating Out Taxes" 8185% 8186LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (The Times of London) 8187 8188Dear Sir, 8189 8190I am firmly opposed to the spread of microchips either to the home or 8191to the office. We have more than enough of them foisted upon us in 8192public places. They are a disgusting Americanism, and can only result 8193in the farmers being forced to grow smaller potatoes, which in turn 8194will cause massive unemployment in the already severely depressed 8195agricultural industry. 8196 8197Yours faithfully, 8198 Capt. Quinton D'Arcy, J. P. 8199 Sevenoaks 8200% 8201Lewis's Law of Travel: 8202 The first piece of luggage out of the chute doesn't belong to 8203anyone, ever. 8204% 8205Liar, n.: 8206 A lawyer with a roving commission. 8207 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8208% 8209Liberty is always dangerous, but it is the safest thing we have. 8210 -- Harry Emerson Fosdick 8211% 8212LIBRA (Sep. 23 to Oct. 22) 8213 Your desire for justice and truth will be overshadowed by your 8214 desire for filthy lucre and a decent meal. Be gracious and 8215 polite. Someone is watching you, so stop staring like that. 8216% 8217LIBRA (Sept 23 - Oct 22) 8218 You are the artistic type and have a difficult time with 8219 reality. If you are a man, you are more than likely gay. 8220 Chances for employment and monetary gains are excellent. Most 8221 Libra women are prostitutes. All Libra people die of venereal 8222 disease. 8223% 8224Lie, n.: 8225 A very poor substitute for the truth, but the only one 8226discovered to date. 8227% 8228Lieberman's Law: 8229 Everybody lies, but it doesn't matter since nobody listens. 8230% 8231Life is a whim of several billion cells to be you for a while. 8232% 8233Life is a yo-yo, and mankind ties knots in the string. 8234% 8235Life is like a bowl of soup with hairs floating on it. You have to 8236eat it nevertheless. 8237 -- Flaubert 8238% 8239Life is like a buffet; it's not good but there's plenty of it. 8240% 8241Life is like a simile. 8242% 8243Life is like an analogy. 8244% 8245Life is like an onion: you peel off layer after layer, then you find 8246there is nothing in it. 8247% 8248Life is too important to take seriously. 8249 -- Corky Siegel 8250% 8251Life may have no meaning -- or even worse, it may have a meaning of 8252which I disapprove. 8253% 8254Life to you is a bold and dashing responsibility. 8255 -- a Mary Chung's fortune cookie 8256% 8257Life would be much simpler and things would get done much faster if it 8258weren't for other people. 8259 -- Blore 8260% 8261Life would be so much easier if we could just look at the source code. 8262% 8263Life, loathe it or ignore it, you can't like it. 8264 -- Marvin, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 8265% 8266Like so many Americans, she was trying to construct a life that made 8267sense from things she found in gift shops. 8268 -- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. 8269% 8270Like the ski resort of girls looking for husbands and husbands looking 8271for girls, the situation is not as symmetrical as it might seem. 8272 -- Alan McKay 8273% 8274Line Printer paper is strongest at the perforations. 8275% 8276Linus: I guess it's wrong always to be worrying about tomorrow. Maybe 8277 we should think only about today. 8278Charlie Brown: 8279 No, that's giving up. I'm still hoping that yesterday will get 8280 better. 8281% 8282Living in LA is like not having a date on Saturday night. 8283 -- Candice Bergen 8284% 8285Living on Earth may be expensive, but it includes an annual free trip 8286around the Sun. 8287% 8288Living your life is a task so difficult, it has never been attempted 8289before. 8290% 8291Lizzie Borden took an axe, 8292And plunged it deep into the VAX; 8293Don't you envy people who 8294Do all the things ___YOU want to do? 8295% 8296Loan-department manager: "There isn't any fine print. At these 8297interest rates, we don't need it." 8298% 8299Lobster: 8300 Everyone loves these delectable crustaceans, but many cooks are 8301squeamish about placing them into boiling water alive, which is the 8302only proper method of preparing them. Frankly, the easiest way to 8303eliminate your guilt is to establish theirs by putting them on trial 8304before they're cooked. The fact is, lobsters are among the most 8305ferocious predators on the sea floor, and you're helping reduce crime 8306in the reefs. Grasp the lobster behind the head, look it right in its 8307unmistakably guilty eyestalks and say, "Where were you on the night of 8308the 21st?", then flourish a picture of a scallop or a sole and shout, 8309"Perhaps this will refresh that crude neural apparatus you call a 8310memory!" The lobster will squirm noticeably. It may even take a swipe 8311at you with one of its claws. Incorrigible. Pop it into the pot. 8312Justice has been served, and shortly you and your friends will be, 8313too. 8314 -- Dave Barry, "Cooking: The Art of Using Appliances and 8315 Utensils into Excuses and Apologies" 8316% 8317Lockwood's Long Shot: 8318 The chances of getting eaten up by a lion on Main Street aren't 8319one in a million, but once would be enough. 8320% 8321Logic is a little bird, sitting in a tree; that smells *_____awful*. 8322% 8323... Logically incoherent, semantically incomprehensible, and 8324legally ... impeccable! 8325% 8326Logicians have but ill defined 8327As rational the human kind. 8328Logic, they say, belongs to man, 8329But let them prove it if they can. 8330 -- Oliver Goldsmith 8331% 8332Look out! Behind you! 8333% 8334Look, we play the Star Spangled Banner before every game. You want us 8335to pay income taxes, too? 8336 -- Bill Veeck, Chicago White Sox 8337% 8338Loose bits sink chips. 8339% 8340Losing your drivers' license is just God's way of saying 8341"BOOGA, BOOGA!" 8342% 8343Lost interest? It's so bad I've lost apathy. 8344% 8345Loud burping while walking around the airport is prohibited in 8346Halstead, Kansas. 8347% 8348Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea. 8349% 8350Love at first sight is one of the greatest labor-saving devices the 8351world has ever seen. 8352% 8353Love cannot be much younger than the lust for murder. 8354 -- Sigmund Freud 8355% 8356Love is a snowmobile racing across the tundra and then suddenly it 8357flips over, pinning you underneath. At night, the ice weasels come. 8358 -- Matt Groening 8359% 8360Love is a word that is constantly heard, 8361Hate is a word that is not. 8362Love, I am told, is more precious than gold. 8363Love, I have read, is hot. 8364But hate is the verb that to me is superb, 8365And Love but a drug on the mart. 8366Any kiddie in school can love like a fool, 8367But Hating, my boy, is an Art. 8368 -- Ogden Nash 8369% 8370Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing; a confusion of the real with 8371the ideal never goes unpunished. 8372 -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 8373% 8374Love is sentimental measles. 8375% 8376Love is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. 8377 -- H. L. Mencken 8378% 8379Love means having to say you're sorry every five minutes. 8380% 8381Love thy neighbor as thyself, but choose your neighborhood. 8382 -- Louise Beal 8383% 8384Love your enemies: they'll go crazy trying to figure out what you're up to. 8385% 8386 Love's Drug 8387 8388My love is like an iron wand 8389 That conks me on the head, 8390My love is like the valium 8391 That I take before my bed, 8392My love is like the pint of scotch 8393 That I drink when I be dry; 8394And I shall love thee still, my dear, 8395 Until my wife is wise. 8396% 8397Lowery's Law: 8398 If it jams -- force it. If it breaks, it needed replacing 8399anyway. 8400% 8401LSD melts in your mind, not in your hand. 8402% 8403Lubarsky's Law of Cybernetic Entomology: 8404 There's always one more bug. 8405% 8406Lunatic Asylum, n.: 8407 The place where optimism most flourishes. 8408% 8409Lysistrata had a good idea. 8410% 8411MacDonald has the gift on compressing the largest amount of words into 8412the smallest amount of thoughts. 8413 -- Winston Churchill 8414% 8415Machine-Independent, adj.: 8416 Does not run on any existing machine. 8417% 8418Machines certainly can solve problems, store information, correlate, 8419and play games -- but not with pleasure. 8420 -- Leo Rosten 8421% 8422Mad, adj.: 8423 Affected with a high degree of intellectual independence. 8424 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8425% 8426Madam, there's no such thing as a tough child -- if you parboil them 8427first for seven hours, they always come out tender. 8428 -- W. C. Fields 8429% 8430MAFIA, n: 8431 [Acronym for Mechanized Applications in Forced Insurance 8432Accounting.] An extensive network with many on-line and offshore 8433subsystems running under OS, DOS, and IOS. MAFIA documentation is 8434rather scanty, and the MAFIA sales office exhibits that testy 8435reluctance to bona fide inquiries which is the hallmark of so many DP 8436operations. From the little that has seeped out, it would appear that 8437MAFIA operates under a non-standard protocol, OMERTA, a tight-lipped 8438variant of SNA, in which extended handshakes also perform complex 8439security functions. The known timesharing aspects of MAFIA point to a 8440more than usually autocratic operating system. Screen prompts carry an 8441imperative, nonrefusable weighting (most menus offer simple YES/YES 8442options, defaulting to YES) that precludes indifference or delay. 8443Uniquely, all editing under MAFIA is performed centrally, using a 8444powerful rubout feature capable of erasing files, filors, filees, and 8445entire nodal aggravations. 8446 -- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary" 8447% 8448Magnet, n.: Something acted upon by magnetism. 8449 8450Magnetism, n.: Something acting upon a magnet. 8451 8452The two definition immediately preceding are condensed from the works 8453of one thousand eminent scientists, who have illuminated the subject 8454with a great white light, to the inexpressible advancement of human 8455knowledge. 8456 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8457% 8458Magnocartic, adj.: 8459 Any automobile that, when left unattended, attracts shopping carts. 8460 -- Sniglets, "Rich Hall & Friends" 8461% 8462Magpie, n.: 8463 A bird whose thievish disposition suggested to someone that it 8464might be taught to talk. 8465 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8466% 8467Maier's Law: 8468 If the facts don't conform to the theory, they must be disposed of. 8469 8470Corollaries: 8471 (1) The bigger the theory, the better. 8472 (2) The experiment may be considered a success if no more than 8473 50% of the observed measurements must be discarded to 8474 obtain a correspondence with the theory. 8475% 8476Main's Law: 8477 For every action there is an equal and opposite government program. 8478% 8479Maintainer's Motto: 8480 If we can't fix it, it ain't broke. 8481% 8482Major Premise: Sixty men can do a piece of work sixty times as quickly 8483 as one man. 8484 8485Minor Premise: One man can dig a posthole in sixty seconds. 8486 8487Conclusion: Sixty men can dig a posthole in one second. 8488 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8489% 8490Majority, n.: 8491 That quality that distinguishes a crime from a law. 8492% 8493Make it myself? But I'm a physical organic chemist! 8494% 8495Making files is easy under the UNIX operating system. Therefore, users 8496tend to create numerous files using large amounts of file space. It 8497has been said that the only standard thing about all UNIX systems is 8498the message-of-the-day telling users to clean up their files. 8499 -- System V.2 administrator's guide 8500% 8501Malek's Law: 8502 Any simple idea will be worded in the most complicated way. 8503% 8504Man 1: Ask me the what the most important thing about telling a good 8505 joke is. 8506 8507Man 2: OK, what is the most impo -- 8508 8509Man 1: ______TIMING! 8510% 8511Man invented language to satisfy his deep need to complain. 8512 -- Lily Tomlin 8513% 8514Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when he is called 8515upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason. 8516 -- Oscar Wilde 8517% 8518Man is the best computer we can put aboard a spacecraft ... and the 8519only one that can be mass produced with unskilled labor. 8520 -- Wernher von Braun 8521% 8522Man is the only animal that blushes -- or needs to. 8523 -- Mark Twain 8524% 8525Man is the only animal that can remain on friendly terms with the 8526victims he intends to eat until he eats them. 8527 -- Samuel Butler (1835-1902) 8528% 8529Man usually avoids attributing cleverness to somebody else -- unless it 8530is an enemy. 8531 -- Albert Einstein 8532% 8533Man, n.: 8534 An animal so lost in rapturous contemplation of what he thinks 8535he is as to overlook what he indubitably ought to be. His chief 8536occupation is extermination of other animals and his own species, which, 8537however, multiplies with such insistent rapidity as to infest the whole 8538habitable earth and Canada. 8539 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8540% 8541Mandrell: "You know what I think?" 8542Doctor: "Ah, ah that's a catch question. With a brain your size you 8543 don't think, right?" 8544 -- Dr. Who 8545% 8546Mankind's yearning to engage in sports is older than recorded history, 8547dating back to the time millions of years ago, when the first primitive 8548man picked up a crude club and a round rock, tossed the rock into the 8549air, and whomped the club into the sloping forehead of the first 8550primitive umpire. 8551 8552What inner force drove this first athlete? Your guess is as good as 8553mine. Better, probably, because you haven't had four beers. 8554 -- Dave Barry, "Sports is a Drag" 8555% 8556Manual, n.: 8557 A unit of documentation. There are always three or more on a 8558given item. One is on the shelf; someone has the others. The 8559information you need is in the others. 8560 -- Ray Simard 8561% 8562Many years ago in a period commonly know as Next Friday Afternoon, 8563there lived a King who was very Gloomy on Tuesday mornings because he 8564was so Sad thinking about how Unhappy he had been on Monday and how 8565completely Mournful he would be on Wednesday ... 8566 -- Walt Kelly 8567% 8568Mark's Dental-Chair Discovery: 8569 Dentists are incapable of asking questions that require a 8570simple yes or no answer. 8571% 8572Marriage is the only adventure open to the cowardly. 8573 -- Voltaire 8574% 8575Maryel brought her bat into Exit once and started whacking people on 8576the dance floor. Now everyone's doing it. It's called grand slam 8577dancing. 8578 -- Ransford, Chicago Reader 10/7/83 8579% 8580Maternity pay? Now every Tom, Dick and Harry will get pregnant. 8581 -- Malcolm Smith 8582% 8583Math is like love -- a simple idea but it can get complicated. 8584 -- R. Drabek 8585% 8586Mathematicians are like Frenchmen: whatever you say to them they 8587translate into their own language, and forthwith it is something 8588entirely different. 8589 -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 8590% 8591Mathematicians often resort to something called Hilbert space, which is 8592described as being n-dimensional. Like modern sex, any number can 8593play. 8594 -- Dr. Thor Wald, in "Beep/The Quincunx of Time", by 8595 James Blish 8596% 8597Matrimony isn't a word, it's a sentence. 8598% 8599Matter cannot be created or destroyed, 8600nor can it be returned without a receipt. 8601% 8602Maturity is only a short break in adolescence. 8603 -- Jules Feiffer 8604% 8605May a Misguided Platypus lay its Eggs in your Jockey Shorts. 8606% 8607May Euell Gibbons eat your only copy of the manual! 8608% 8609May the Fleas of a Thousand Camels infest one of your Erogenous Zones. 8610% 8611May your Tongue stick to the Roof of your Mouth with the Force of a 8612Thousand Caramels. 8613% 8614Maybe Computer Science should be in the College of Theology. 8615 -- R. S. Barton 8616% 8617Maybe you can't buy happiness, but these days you can certainly charge 8618it. 8619% 8620McGowan's Madison Avenue Axiom: 8621 If an item is advertised as "under $50", you can bet it's not 8622$19.95. 8623% 8624Meader's Law: 8625 Whatever happens to you, it will previously have happened to 8626everyone you know, only more so. 8627% 8628Meeting, n.: 8629 An assembly of people coming together to decide what person or 8630department not represented in the room must solve a problem. 8631% 8632Men were real men, women were real women, and small, furry creatures 8633from Alpha Centauri were REAL small, furry creatures from Alpha 8634Centauri. Spirits were brave, men boldly split infinitives that no man 8635had split before. Thus was the Empire forged. 8636 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 8637% 8638Men's skin is different from women's skin. It is usually bigger, and 8639it has more snakes tattooed on it. Also, if you examine a woman's skin 8640very closely, inch by inch, starting at her shapely ankles, then gently 8641tracing the slender curve of her calves, then moving up to her ... 8642 [EDITOR'S NOTE: To make room for news articles about important 8643 world events such as agriculture, we're going to delete the 8644 next few square feet of the woman's skin. Thank you.] 8645... until finally the two of you are lying there, spent, smoking your 8646cigarettes, and suddenly it hits you: Human skin is actually made up of 8647billions of tiny units of protoplasm, called "cells"! And what is even 8648more interesting, the ones on the outside are all dying! This is a 8649fact. Your skin is like an aggressive modern corporation, where the 8650older veteran cells, who have finally worked their way to the top and 8651obtained offices with nice views, are constantly being shoved out the 8652window head first, without so much as a pension plan, by younger 8653hotshot cells moving up from below. 8654 -- Dave Barry, "Saving Face" 8655% 8656Mencken and Nathan's Fifteenth Law of The Average American: 8657 The worst actress in the company is always the manager's wife. 8658% 8659Mencken and Nathan's Ninth Law of The Average American: 8660 The quality of a champagne is judged by the amount of noise the 8661cork makes when it is popped. 8662% 8663Mencken and Nathan's Second Law of The Average American: 8664 All the postmasters in small towns read all the postcards. 8665% 8666Mencken and Nathan's Sixteenth Law of The Average American: 8667 Milking a cow is an operation demanding a special talent that 8668is possessed only by yokels, and no person born in a large city can 8669never hope to acquire it. 8670% 8671Menu, n.: 8672 A list of dishes which the restaurant has just run out of. 8673% 8674Meskimen's Law: 8675 There's never time to do it right, but there's always time to 8676do it over. 8677% 8678MESSAGE ACKNOWLEDGED -- The Pershing II missiles have been launched. 8679% 8680Message will arrive in the mail. Destroy, before the FBI sees it. 8681% 8682methionylglutaminylarginyltyrosylglutamylserylleucylphenylalanylalanylglutamin- 8683ylleucyllysylglutamylarginyllysylglutamylglycylalanylphenylalanylvalylprolyl- 8684phenylalanylvalylthreonylleucylglycylaspartylprolylglycylisoleucylglutamylglu- 8685taminylserylleucyllysylisoleucylaspartylthreonylleucylisoleucylglutamylalanyl- 8686glycylalanylaspartylalanylleucylglutamylleucylglycylisoleucylprolylphenylala- 8687nylserylaspartylprolylleucylalanylaspartylglycylprolylthreonylisoleucylgluta- 8688minylasparaginylalanylthreonylleucylarginylalanylphenylalanylalanylalanylgly- 8689cylvalylthreonylprolylalanylglutaminylcysteinylphenylalanylglutamylmethionyl- 8690leucylalanylleucylisoleucylarginylglutaminyllysylhistidylprolylthreonylisoleu- 8691cylprolylisoleucylglycylleucylleucylmethionyltyrosylalanylasparaginylleucylva- 8692lylphenylalanylasparaginyllysylglycylisoleucylaspartylglutamylphenylalanyltyro- 8693sylalanylglutaminylcysteinylglutamyllysylvalylglycylvalylaspartylserylvalylleu- 8694cylvalylalanylaspartylvalylprolylvalylglutaminylglutamylserylalanylprolylphe- 8695nylalanylarginylglutaminylalanylalanylleucylarginylhistidylasparaginylvalylala- 8696nylprolylisoleucylphenylalanylisoleucylcysteinylprolylprolylaspartylalanylas- 8697partylaspartylaspartylleucylleucylarginylglutaminylisoleucylalanylseryltyrosyl- 8698glycylarginylglycyltyrosylthreonyltyrosylleucylleucylserylarginylalanylglycyl- 8699valylthreonylglycylalanylglutamylasparaginylarginylalanylalanylleucylprolylleu- 8700cylasparaginylhistidylleucylvalylalanyllysylleucyllysylglutamyltyrosylasparagi- 8701nylalanylalanylprolylprolylleucylglutaminylglycylphenylalanylglycylisoleucylse- 8702rylalanylprolylaspartylglutaminylvalyllysylalanylalanylisoleucylaspartylalanyl- 8703glycylalanylalanylglycylalanylisoleucylserylglycylserylalanylisoleucylvalylly- 8704sylisoleucylisoleucylglutamylglutaminylhistidylasparaginylisoleucylglutamylpro- 8705lylglutamyllysylmethionylleucylalanylalanylleucyllysylvalylphenylalanylvalyl- 8706glutaminylprolylmethionyllysylalanylalanylthreonylarginylserine, n.: 8707 The chemical name for tryptophan synthetase A protein, a 8708 1,913-letter enzyme with 267 amino acids. 8709 -- Mrs. Bryne's Dictionary of Unusual, Obscure, and 8710 Preposterous Words 8711% 8712Mickey Mouse wears a Spiro Agnew watch. 8713% 8714Micro Credo: 8715 Never trust a computer bigger than you can lift. 8716% 8717Microwave oven? Whaddya mean, it's a microwave oven? I've been 8718watching Channel 4 on the thing for two weeks. 8719% 8720Might as well be frank, monsieur. It would take a miracle to get you 8721out of Casablanca and the Germans have outlawed miracles. 8722 -- Casablanca 8723% 8724Mike: "The Fourth Dimension is a shambles?" 8725Bernie: "Nobody ever empties the ashtrays. People are SO 8726 inconsiderate." 8727 -- Gary Trudeau, "Doonesbury" 8728% 8729Miksch's Law: 8730 If a string has one end, then it has another end. 8731% 8732Military intelligence is a contradiction in terms. 8733 -- Groucho Marx 8734% 8735Military justice is to justice what military music is to music. 8736 -- Groucho Marx 8737% 8738Millihelen, adj: 8739 The amount of beauty required to launch one ship. 8740% 8741Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with 8742themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon. 8743 -- Susan Ertz 8744% 8745Millions of sensible people are too high-minded to concede that 8746politics is almost always the choice of the lesser evil. "Tweedledum 8747and Tweedledee," they say, "I will not vote." Having abstained, they 8748are presented with a President who appoints the people who are going to 8749rummage around in their lives for the next four years. Consider all 8750the people who sat home in a stew in 1968 rather than vote for Hubert 8751Humphrey. They showed Humphrey. Those people who taught Hubert 8752Humphrey a lesson will still be enjoying the Nixon Supreme Court when 8753Tricia and Julie begin to find silver threads among the gold and the 8754black. 8755 -- Russel Baker, "Ford without Flummery" 8756% 8757Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there 8758is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been inclined, 8759myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in 8760the trade. But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile; and my 8761unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Country's done for. You 8762will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as 8763dead as a door-nail. 8764% 8765Minnie Mouse is a slow maze learner. 8766% 8767Minors in Kansas City, Missouri, are not allowed to purchase cap 8768pistols; they may buy shotguns freely, however. 8769% 8770Misery loves company, but company does not reciprocate. 8771% 8772Misery no longer loves company. Nowadays it insists on it. 8773 -- Russell Baker 8774% 8775Misfortune, n.: 8776 The kind of fortune that never misses. 8777 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8778% 8779Miss, n.: 8780 A title with which we brand unmarried women to indicate that 8781they are in the market. 8782 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8783% 8784Mistakes are often the stepping stones to utter failure. 8785% 8786Mitchell's Law of Committees: 8787 Any simple problem can be made insoluble if enough meetings are 8788held to discuss it. 8789% 8790MOCK APPLE PIE (No Apples Needed) 8791 8792 Pastry to two crust 9-inch pie 36 RITZ Crackers 87932 cups water 2 cups sugar 87942 teaspoons cream of tartar 2 tablespoons lemon juice 8795 Grated rind of one lemon Butter or margarine 8796 Cinnamon 8797 8798Roll out bottom crust of pastry and fit into 9-inch pie plate. Break 8799RITZ Crackers coarsely into pastry-lined plate. Combine water, sugar 8800and cream of tartar in saucepan, boil gently for 15 minutes. Add lemon 8801juice and rind. Cool. Pour this syrup over Crackers, dot generously 8802with butter or margarine and sprinkle with cinnamon. Cover with top 8803crust. Trim and flute edges together. Cut slits in top crust to let 8804steam escape. Bake in a hot oven (425 F) 30 to 35 minutes, until crust 8805is crisp and golden. Serve warm. Cut into 6 to 8 slices. 8806 -- Found lurking on a Ritz Crackers box 8807% 8808Modern man is the missing link between apes and human beings. 8809% 8810Mohandas K. Gandhi often changed his mind publicly. An aide once asked 8811him how he could so freely contradict this week what he had said just 8812last week. The great man replied that it was because this week he knew 8813better. 8814% 8815Molecule, n.: 8816 The ultimate, indivisible unit of matter. It is distinguished 8817from the corpuscle, also the ultimate, indivisible unit of matter, by a 8818closer resemblance to the atom, also the ultimate, indivisible unit of 8819matter ... The ion differs from the molecule, the corpuscle and the 8820atom in that it is an ion ... 8821 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8822% 8823Mollison's Bureaucracy Hypothesis: 8824 If an idea can survive a bureaucratic review and be implemented 8825it wasn't worth doing. 8826% 8827Monday is an awful way to spend one seventh of your life. 8828% 8829Monday, n.: 8830 In Christian countries, the day after the baseball game. 8831 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 8832% 8833Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons. 8834% 8835Money is the root of all evil, and man needs roots. 8836% 8837Money is the root of all wealth. 8838% 8839Moon, n.: 8840 1. A celestial object whose phase is very important to 8841hackers. See PHASE OF THE MOON. 2. Dave Moon (MOON@MC). 8842% 8843Mophobia, n.: 8844 Fear of being verbally abused by a Mississippian. 8845% 8846 MORE SPORTS RESULTS: 8847The Beverly Hills Freudians tied the Chicago Rogerians 0-0 last 8848Saturday night. The match started with a long period of silence while 8849the Freudians waited for the Rogerians to free associate and the 8850Rogerians waited for the Freudians to say something they could 8851paraphrase. The stalemate was broken when the Freudians' best player 8852took the offensive and interpreted the Rogerians' silence as reflecting 8853their anal-retentive personalities. At this the Rogerians' star player 8854said "I hear you saying you think we're full of ka-ka." This started a 8855fight and the match was called by officials. 8856% 8857More than any time in history, mankind now faces a crossroads. One 8858path leads to despair and utter hopelessness, the other to total 8859extinction. Let us pray that we have the wisdom to choose correctly. 8860 -- Woody Allen, "Side Effects" 8861% 8862Mosher's Law of Software Engineering: 8863 Don't worry if it doesn't work right. If everything did, you'd 8864be out of a job. 8865% 8866Most fish live underwater, which is a terrible place to have sex 8867because virtually anywhere you lie down there will be stinging crabs 8868and large quantities of little fish staring at you with buggy little 8869eyes. So generally when two fish want to have sex, they swim around 8870and around for hours, looking for someplace to go, until finally the 8871female gets really tired and has a terrible headache, and she just 8872dumps her eggs right on the sand and swims away. Then the male, driven 8873by some timeless, noble instinct for survival, eats the eggs. So the 8874truth is that fish don't reproduce at all, but there are so many of 8875them that it doesn't make any difference. 8876 -- Dave Barry, "Sex and the Single Amoeba: What Every 8877 Teen Should Know" 8878% 8879Most people can't understand how others can blow their noses differently 8880than they do. 8881 -- Turgenev 8882% 8883Most people wouldn't know music if it came up and bit them on the ass. 8884 -- Frank Zappa 8885% 8886Mother is far too clever to understand anything she does not like. 8887 -- Arnold Bennett 8888% 8889Mother is the invention of necessity. 8890% 8891Mother told me to be good, but she's been wrong before. 8892% 8893Mr. Cole's Axiom: 8894 The sum of the intelligence on the planet is a constant; the 8895population is growing. 8896% 8897"Multiply in your head" (ordered the compassionate Dr. Adams) 8898"365,365,365,365,365,365 by 365,365,365,365,365,365. He [ten-year-old 8899Truman Henry Safford] flew around the room like a top, pulled his 8900pantaloons over the tops of his boots, bit his hands, rolled his eyes 8901in their sockets, sometimes smiling and talking, and then seeming to be 8902in an agony, until, in not more than one minute, said he, 8903133,491,850,208,566,925,016,658,299,941,583,225!" An electronic 8904computer might do the job a little faster but it wouldn't be as much 8905fun to watch. 8906 -- James R. Newman (The World of Mathematics) 8907% 8908Murphy's Discovery: 8909 Do you know Presidents talk to the country the way men talk to 8910women? They say, "Trust me, go all the way with me, and everything 8911will be all right." And what happens? Nine months later, you're in 8912trouble! 8913% 8914Murphy's Law is recursive. Washing your car to make it rain doesn't 8915work. 8916% 8917Murphy's Law of Research: 8918 Enough research will tend to support your theory. 8919% 8920Murphy's Law, that brash proletarian restatement of Goedel's Theorem ... 8921 -- Thomas Pynchon, "Gravity's Rainbow" 8922% 8923 Murray and Esther, a middle-aged Jewish couple, are touring 8924Chile. Murray just got a new camera and is constantly snapping 8925pictures. One day, without knowing it, he photographs a top-secret 8926military installation. In an instant, armed troops surround Murray and 8927Esther and hustle them off to prison. 8928 They can't prove who they are because they've left their 8929passports in their hotel room. For three weeks they're tortured day 8930and night to get them to name their contacts in the liberation 8931movement.. Finally they're hauled in front of a military court, 8932charged with espionage, and sentenced to death. 8933 The next morning they're lined up in front of the wall where 8934they'll be shot. The sergeant in charge of the firing squad asks them 8935if they have any lasts requests. Esther wants to know if she can call 8936her daughter in Chicago. The sergeant says he's sorry, that's not 8937possible, and turns to Murray. 8938 "This is crazy!" Murray shouts. "We're not spies!" And he 8939spits in the sergeants face. 8940 "Murray!" Esther cries. "Please! Don't make trouble." 8941 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 8942% 8943Mustgo, n.: 8944 Any item of food that has been sitting in the refrigerator so 8945long it has become a science project. 8946 -- Sniglets, "Rich Hall & Friends" 8947% 8948My advice to you, my violent friend, is to seek out gold and sit on it. 8949 -- "Grendel", by John Gardner 8950% 8951My band career ended late in my senior year when John Cooper and I 8952threw my amplifier out the dormitory window. We did not act in haste. 8953First we checked to make sure the amplifier would fit through the 8954frame, using the belt from my bathrobe to measure, then we picked up 8955the amplifier and backed up to my bedroom door. Then we rushed 8956forward, shouting "The WHO! The WHO!" and we launched my amplifier 8957perfectly, as though we had been doing it all our lives, clean through 8958the window and down onto the sidewalk, where a small but appreciative 8959crowd had gathered. I would like to be able to say that this was a 8960symbolic act, an effort on my part to break cleanly away from one state 8961in my life and move on to another, but the truth is, Cooper and I 8962really just wanted to find out what it would sound like. It sounded 8963OK. 8964 -- Dave Barry, "The Snake" 8965% 8966My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four. Unless 8967there are three other people. 8968 -- Orson Welles 8969% 8970My God, I'm depressed! Here I am, a computer with a mind a thousand 8971times as powerful as yours, doing nothing but cranking out fortunes and 8972sending mail about softball games. And I've got this pain right 8973through my ALU. I've asked for it to be replaced, but nobody ever 8974listens. I think it would be better for us both if you were to just 8975log out again. 8976% 8977My life is a soap opera, but who has the rights? 8978 -- MadameX 8979% 8980My love runs by like a day in June, 8981 And he makes no friends of sorrows. 8982He'll tread his galloping rigadoon 8983 In the pathway or the morrows. 8984He'll live his days where the sunbeams start 8985 Nor could storm or wind uproot him. 8986My own dear love, he is all my heart -- 8987 And I wish somebody'd shoot him. 8988 -- Dorothy Parker 8989% 8990My love, he's mad, and my love, he's fleet, 8991 And a wild young wood-thing bore him! 8992The ways are fair to his roaming feet, 8993 And the skies are sunlit for him. 8994As sharply sweet to my heart he seems 8995 As the fragrance of acacia. 8996My own dear love, he is all my dreams -- 8997 And I wish he were in Asia. 8998 -- Dorothy Parker 8999% 9000My mother loved children -- she would have given anything if I had been one. 9001 -- Groucho Marx 9002% 9003My opinions may have changed, but not the fact that I am right. 9004% 9005My own dear love, he is strong and bold 9006 And he cares not what comes after. 9007His words ring sweet as a chime of gold, 9008 And his eyes are lit with laughter. 9009He is jubilant as a flag unfurled -- 9010 Oh, a girl, she'd not forget him. 9011My own dear love, he is all my world -- 9012 And I wish I'd never met him. 9013 -- Dorothy Parker 9014% 9015My pants just went on a wild rampage through a Long Island Bowling Alley!! 9016 -- Zippy the Pinhead 9017% 9018My pen is at the bottom of a page, 9019Which, being finished, here the story ends; 9020'Tis to be wished it had been sooner done, 9021But stories somehow lengthen when begun. 9022 -- Byron 9023% 9024My theology, briefly, is that the universe was dictated but not signed. 9025 -- Christopher Morley 9026% 9027My weight is perfect for my height -- which varies 9028% 9029Mythology, n.: 9030 The body of a primitive people's beliefs concerning its 9031origin, early history, heroes, deities and so forth, as distinguished 9032from the true accounts which it invents later. 9033 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 9034% 9035 n = ((n >> 1) & 0x55555555) | ((n << 1) & 0xaaaaaaaa); 9036 n = ((n >> 2) & 0x33333333) | ((n << 2) & 0xcccccccc); 9037 n = ((n >> 4) & 0x0f0f0f0f) | ((n << 4) & 0xf0f0f0f0); 9038 n = ((n >> 8) & 0x00ff00ff) | ((n << 8) & 0xff00ff00); 9039 n = ((n >> 16) & 0x0000ffff) | ((n << 16) & 0xffff0000); 9040 9041 -- C code which reverses the bits in a word. 9042% 9043Naeser's Law: 9044 You can make it foolproof, but you can't make it 9045damnfoolproof. 9046% 9047NAPOLEON: What shall we do with this soldier, Guiseppe? Everything he 9048 says is wrong. 9049GUISEPPE: Make him a general, Excellency, and then everything he says 9050 will be right. 9051 -- G. B. Shaw, "The Man of Destiny" 9052% 9053Nasrudin called at a large house to collect for charity. The servant 9054said "My master is out." Nasrudin replied, "Tell your master that next 9055time he goes out, he should not leave his face at the window. Someone 9056might steal it." 9057% 9058Nasrudin returned to his village from the imperial capital, and the 9059villagers gathered around to hear what had passed. "At this time," 9060said Nasrudin, "I only want to say that the King spoke to me." All the 9061villagers but the stupidest ran off to spread the wonderful news. The 9062remaining villager asked, "What did the King say to you?" "What he 9063said -- and quite distinctly, for everyone to hear -- was 'Get out of 9064my way!'" The simpleton was overjoyed; he had heard words actually 9065spoken by the King, and seen the very man they were spoken to. 9066% 9067Nasrudin walked into a shop one day, and the owner came forward to 9068serve him. Nasrudin said, "First things first. Did you see me walk 9069into your shop?" "Of course." "Have you ever seen me before?" 9070"Never." "Then how do you know it was me?" 9071% 9072Nasrudin walked into a teahouse and declaimed, "The moon is more useful 9073than the sun." "Why?", he was asked. "Because at night we need the 9074light more." 9075% 9076Nasrudin was carrying home a piece of liver and the recipe for liver 9077pie. Suddenly a bird of prey swooped down and snatched the piece of 9078meat from his hand. As the bird flew off, Nasrudin called after it, 9079"Foolish bird! You have the liver, but what can you do with it without 9080the recipe?" 9081% 9082Nature abhors a hero. For one thing, he violates the law of 9083conservation of energy. For another, how can it be the survival of the 9084fittest when the fittest keeps putting himself in situations where he 9085is most likely to be creamed? 9086 -- Solomon Short 9087% 9088Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night, 9089God said, "Let Newton be," and all was light. 9090 9091It did not last; the devil howling "Ho! 9092Let Einstein be!" restored the status quo. 9093% 9094Nature is by and large to be found out of doors, a location where, it 9095cannot be argued, there are never enough comfortable chairs. 9096 -- Fran Leibowitz 9097% 9098Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's 9099character, give him power. 9100 -- Abraham Lincoln 9101% 9102Necessity is a mother. 9103% 9104Neckties strangle clear thinking. 9105 -- Lin Yutang 9106% 9107Never be led astray onto the path of virtue. 9108% 9109Never call a man a fool. Borrow from him. 9110% 9111Never commit yourself! Let someone else commit you. 9112% 9113Never count your chickens before they rip your lips off. 9114% 9115Never drink Coke in a moving elevator. The elevator's motion coupled 9116with the chemicals in Coke produce hallucinations. People tend to 9117change into lizards and attack without warning, and large bats usually 9118fly in the window. Additionally, you begin to believe that elevators 9119have windows. 9120% 9121Never eat more than you can lift. 9122 -- Miss Piggy 9123% 9124Never hit a man with glasses. Hit him with a baseball bat. 9125% 9126Never let your schooling interfere with your education. 9127% 9128Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right. 9129 -- Salvor Hardin, "Foundation" 9130% 9131Never make anything simple and efficient when a way can be found to 9132make it complex and wonderful. 9133% 9134Never offend people with style when you can offend them with substance. 9135 -- Sam Brown, "The Washington Post", January 26, 1977 9136% 9137Never put off till tomorrow what you can avoid all together. 9138% 9139Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a 9140law against it by that time. 9141% 9142Never settle with words what you can accomplish with a flame thrower. 9143% 9144Never tell a lie unless it is absolutely convenient. 9145% 9146Never try to outstubborn a cat. 9147 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 9148% 9149Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes. 9150 -- Dr. Warren Jackson, Director, UTCS 9151% 9152Never underestimate the power of a small tactical nuclear weapon. 9153% 9154Never worry about theory as long as the machinery does what it's 9155supposed to do. 9156 -- R. A. Heinlein 9157% 9158New crypt. See /usr/news/crypt. 9159% 9160New Hampshire law forbids you to tap your feet, nod your head, or in 9161any way keep time to the music in a tavern, restaurant, or cafe. 9162% 9163New members are urgently needed in the Society for Prevention of 9164Cruelty to Yourself. Apply within. 9165% 9166New members urgently required for SUICIDE CLUB, Watford area. 9167 -- Monty Python's Big Red Book 9168% 9169New systems generate new problems. 9170% 9171New Year's Eve is the time of year when a man most feels his age, and 9172his wife most often reminds him to act it. 9173 -- Webster's Unafraid Dictionary 9174% 9175New York is real. The rest is done with mirrors. 9176% 9177New York's got the ways and means; 9178Just won't let you be. 9179 -- The Grateful Dead 9180% 9181Newlan's Truism: 9182 An "acceptable" level of unemployment means that the government 9183economist to whom it is acceptable still has a job. 9184% 9185NEWS FLASH!! 9186 Today the East German pole-vault champion became the West 9187 German pole-vault champion. 9188% 9189 *** NEWSFLASH *** 9190Russian tanks steamrolling through New Jersey!!!! Details at eleven! 9191% 9192Newton's Fourth Law: Every action has an equal and opposite satisfaction. 9193% 9194Newton's Little-Known Seventh Law: 9195 A bird in the hand is safer than one overhead. 9196% 9197Next Friday will not be your lucky day. 9198As a matter of fact, you don't have a lucky day this year. 9199% 9200Next to being shot at and missed, nothing is really quite as satisfying 9201as an income tax refund. 9202 -- F. J. Raymond 9203% 9204Nice boy, but about as sharp as a sack of wet mice. 9205 -- Foghorn Leghorn 9206% 9207Nihilism should commence with oneself. 9208% 9209Niklaus Wirth has lamented that, whereas Europeans pronounce his name 9210correctly (Ni-klows Virt), Americans invariably mangle it into 9211(Nick-les Worth). Which is to say that Europeans call him by name, but 9212Americans call him by value. 9213% 9214Nine megs for the secretaries fair, 9215Seven megs for the hackers scarce, 9216Five megs for the grads in smoky lairs, 9217Three megs for system source; 9218 9219One disk to rule them all, 9220One disk to bind them, 9221One disk to hold the files 9222And in the darkness grind 'em. 9223% 9224Nine-track tapes and seven-track tapes 9225 And tapes without any tracks; 9226Stretchy tapes and snarley tapes 9227 And tapes mixed up on the racks -- 9228 Take hold of the tape 9229 And pull off the strip, 9230 And then you'll be sure 9231 Your tape drive will skip. 9232 9233 -- Uncle Colonel's Cursory Rhymes 9234% 9235Ninety percent of the time things turn out worse than you thought they 9236would. The other ten percent of the time you had no right to expect 9237that much. 9238 -- Augustine 9239% 9240Ninety-Ninety Rule of Project Schedules: 9241 The first ninety percent of the task takes ninety percent of 9242the time, and the last ten percent takes the other ninety percent. 9243% 9244Nirvana? That's the place where the powers that be and their friends 9245hang out. 9246 -- Zonker Harris 9247% 9248No animal should ever jump on the dining room furniture unless 9249absolutely certain he can hold his own in conversation. 9250 -- Fran Leibowitz 9251% 9252No committee could ever come up with anything as revolutionary as a 9253camel -- anything as practical and as perfectly designed to perform 9254effectively under such difficult conditions. 9255 -- Laurence J. Peter 9256% 9257No good deed goes unpunished. 9258 -- Clare Boothe Luce 9259% 9260No man in the world has more courage than the man who can stop after 9261eating one peanut. 9262 -- Channing Pollock 9263% 9264No man is an island, but some of us are long peninsulas. 9265% 9266No matter how subtle the wizard, a knife in the shoulder blades will 9267seriously cramp his style. 9268% 9269No matter what other nations may say about the United States, 9270immigration is still the sincerest form of flattery. 9271% 9272No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. 9273 -- Eleanor Roosevelt 9274% 9275No one gets too old to learn a new way of being stupid. 9276% 9277No part of this message may reproduce, store itself in a retrieval 9278system, or transmit disease, in any form, without the permissiveness of 9279the author. 9280 -- Chris Shaw 9281% 9282No plain fanfold paper could hold that fractal Puff -- 9283He grew so fast no plotting pack could shrink him far enough. 9284Compiles and simulations grew so quickly tame 9285And swapped out all their data space when Puff pushed his stack frame. 9286CHORUS: 9287 Puff the fractal dragon was written in C, 9288 And frolicked while processes switched in mainframe memory. 9289 Puff the fractal dragon was written in C, 9290 And frolicked while processes switched in mainframe memory. 9291Puff, he grew so quickly, while others moved like snails 9292And mini-Puffs would perch themselves on his gigantic tail. 9293All the student hackers loved that fractal Puff 9294But DCS did not like Puff, and finally said, "Enough!" 9295 (chorus) 9296Puff used more resources than DCS could spare. 9297The operator killed Puff's job -- he didn't seem to care. 9298A gloom fell on the hackers; it seemed to be the end, 9299But Puff trapped the exception, and grew from naught again! 9300 (chorus) 9301% 9302No problem is so formidable that you can't just walk away from it. 9303 -- C. Schulz 9304% 9305No problem is so large it can't be fit in somewhere. 9306% 9307No proper program contains an indication which as an operator-applied 9308occurrence identifies an operator-defining occurrence which as an 9309indication-applied occurrence identifies an indication-defining 9310occurrence different from the one identified by the given indication as 9311an indication-applied occurrence. 9312 -- ALGOL 68 Report 9313% 9314No self-respecting fish would want to be wrapped in that kind of paper. 9315 -- Mike Royko on the Chicago Sun-Times after it was 9316 taken over by Rupert Murdoch 9317% 9318No violence, gentlemen -- no violence, I beg of you! Consider the furniture! 9319 -- Sherlock Holmes 9320% 9321No, `Eureka' is Greek for `This bath is too hot.' 9322 -- Dr. Who 9323% 9324Nobody can be exactly like me. Sometimes even I have trouble doing it. 9325 -- Tallulah Bankhead 9326% 9327NOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION. 9328% 9329Nobody said computers were going to be polite. 9330% 9331Nobody suffers the pain of birth or the anguish of loving a child in 9332order for presidents to make wars, for governments to feed on the 9333substance of their people, for insurance companies to cheat the young 9334and rob the old. 9335 -- Lewis Lapham 9336% 9337Nobody wants constructive criticism. It's all we can do to put up with 9338constructive praise. 9339% 9340Non-Reciprocal Laws of Expectations: 9341 Negative expectations yield negative results. 9342 Positive expectations yield negative results. 9343% 9344Non-sequiturs make me eat lampshades. 9345% 9346Noncombatant, n.: 9347 A dead Quaker. 9348 -- Ambrose Bierce 9349% 9350Nondeterminism means never having to say you are wrong. 9351% 9352Nostalgia isn't what it used to be. 9353% 9354Not far from here, by a white sun, behind a green star, lived the 9355Steelypips, illustrious, industrious, and they hadn't a care: no spats 9356in their vats, no rules, no schools, no gloom, no evil influence of the 9357moon, no trouble from matter or antimatter -- for they had a machine, a 9358dream of a machine, with springs and gears and perfect in every 9359respect. And they lived with it, and on it, and under it, and inside 9360it, for it was all they had -- first they saved up all their atoms, 9361then they put them all together, and if one didn't fit, why they 9362chipped at it a bit, and everything was just fine ... 9363 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 9364% 9365Not Hercules could have knock'd out his brains, for he had none. 9366 -- William Shakespeare 9367% 9368Not only is this incomprehensible, but the ink is ugly and the paper 9369is from the wrong kind of tree. 9370 -- Professor W., EECS, George Washington University 9371% 9372Notes for a ballet, "The Spell": ... Suddenly Sigmund hears the flutter 9373of wings, and a group of wild swans flies across the moon ... Sigmund 9374is astounded to see that their leader is part swan and part woman -- 9375unfortunately, divided lengthwise. She enchants Sigmund, who is 9376careful not to make any poultry jokes ... 9377 -- Woody Allen 9378% 9379Nothing astonishes men so much as common sense and plain dealing. 9380 -- Ralph Waldo Emerson 9381% 9382Nothing cures insomnia like the realization that it's time to get up. 9383% 9384Nothing is faster than the speed of light ... 9385 9386To prove this to yourself, try opening the refrigerator door before the 9387light comes on. 9388% 9389Nothing is illegal if one hundred businessmen decide to do it. 9390 -- Andrew Young 9391% 9392Nothing is more admirable than the fortitude with which millionaires 9393tolerate the disadvantages of their wealth. 9394 -- Nero Wolfe 9395% 9396Nothing makes one so vain as being told that one is a sinner. 9397Conscience makes egotists of us all. 9398 -- Oscar Wilde 9399% 9400Nothing recedes like success. 9401 -- Walter Winchell 9402% 9403Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love. 9404 -- Charlie Brown 9405% 9406November, n.: 9407 The eleventh twelfth of a weariness. 9408 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 9409% 9410Now and then an innocent person is sent to the legislature. 9411% 9412Now I lay me down to sleep 9413I pray the double lock will keep; 9414May no brick through the window break, 9415And, no one rob me till I awake. 9416% 9417Now is the time for all good men to come to. 9418 -- Walt Kelly 9419% 9420Now that you've read Fortune's diet truths, you'll be prepared the next 9421time some housewife or boutique-owner-turned-diet-expert appears on TV 9422to plug her latest book. And, if you still feel a twinge of guilt for 9423eating coffee cake while listening to her exhortations, ask yourself 9424the following questions: 9425 9426(1) Do I dare trust a person who actually considers alfalfa sprouts a 9427 food? 9428(2) Was the author's sole motive in writing this book to get rich 9429 exploiting the forlorn hopes of chubby people like me? 9430(3) Would a longer life be worthwhile if it had to be lived as 9431 prescribed ... without French-fried onion rings, pizza with 9432 double cheese, or the occasional Mai-Tai? (Remember, living 9433 right doesn't really make you live longer, it just *seems* like 9434 longer.) 9435 9436That, and another piece of coffee cake, should do the trick. 9437% 9438Now the Lord God planted a garden East of Whittier in a place called 9439Yorba Linda, and out of the ground he made to grow orange trees that 9440were good for food and the fruits thereof he labeled SUNKIST ... 9441 -- "The Begatting of a President" 9442% 9443Now this is a totally brain damaged algorithm. Gag me with a smurfette. 9444 -- P. Buhr, Computer Science 354 9445% 9446... Now you're ready for the actual shopping. Your goal should be to 9447get it over with as quickly as possible, because the longer you stay in 9448the mall, the longer your children will have to listen to holiday songs 9449on the mall public-address system, and many of these songs can damage 9450children emotionally. For example: "Frosty the Snowman" is about a 9451snowman who befriends some children, plays with them until they learn 9452to love him, then melts. And "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" is about 9453a young reindeer who, because of a physical deformity, is treated as an 9454outcast by the other reindeer. Then along comes good, old Santa. Does 9455he ignore the deformity? Does he look past Rudolph's nose and respect 9456Rudolph for the sensitive reindeer he is underneath? No. Santa asks 9457Rudolph to guide his sleigh, as if Rudolph were nothing more than some 9458kind of headlight with legs and a tail. So unless you want your 9459children exposed to this kind of insensitivity, you should shop 9460quickly. 9461 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 9462% 9463 Now, you might ask, "How do I get one of those complete home 9464tool sets for under $4?" An excellent question. 9465 Go to one of those really cheap discount stores where they sell 9466plastic furniture in colors visible from the planet Neptune and where 9467they have a food section specializing in cardboard cartons full of 9468Raisinets and malted milk balls manufactured during the Nixon 9469administration. In either the hardware or housewares department, 9470you'll find an item imported from an obscure Oriental country and 9471described as "Nine Tools in One", consisting of a little handle with 9472interchangeable ends representing inscrutable Oriental notions of tools 9473that Americans might use around the home. Buy it. 9474 This is the kind of tool set professionals use. Not only is it 9475inexpensive, but it also has a great safety feature not found in the 9476so-called quality tools sets: The handle will actually break right off 9477if you accidentally hit yourself or anything else, or expose it to 9478direct sunlight. 9479 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 9480% 9481Nuclear war can ruin your whole compile. 9482 -- Karl Lehenbauer 9483% 9484Nuclear war would mean abolition of most comforts, and disruption of 9485normal routines, for children and adults alike. 9486 -- Willard F. Libby, "You *Can* Survive Atomic Attack" 9487% 9488Nuclear war would really set back cable. 9489 -- Ted Turner 9490% 9491[Nuclear war] ... may not be desirable. 9492 -- Edwin Meese III 9493% 9494Nudists are people who wear one-button suits. 9495% 9496(null cookie; hope that's ok) 9497% 9498Numeric stability is probably not all that important when you're guessing. 9499% 9500O give me a home, 9501Where the buffalo roam, 9502Where the deer and the antelope play, 9503Where seldom is heard 9504A discouraging word, 9505'Cause what can an antelope say? 9506% 9507O'Toole's Commentary on Murphy's Law: 9508 Murphy was an optimist. 9509% 9510Of ______course it's the murder weapon. Who would frame someone with a 9511fake? 9512% 9513Of all possible committee reactions to any given agenda item, the 9514reaction that will occur is the one which will liberate the greatest 9515amount of hot air. 9516 -- Thomas L. Martin 9517% 9518Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable. 9519 -- Plato 9520% 9521Of all the words of witch's doom 9522There's none so bad as which and whom. 9523The man who kills both which and whom 9524Will be enshrined in our Who's Whom. 9525 -- Fletcher Knebel 9526% 9527Of course power tools and alcohol don't mix. Everyone knows power 9528tools aren't soluble in alcohol ... 9529 -- Crazy Nigel 9530% 9531Of course there's no reason for it, it's just our policy. 9532% 9533Of what you see in books, believe 75%. Of newspapers, believe 50%. 9534And of TV news, believe 25% -- make that 5% if the anchorman wears a 9535blazer. 9536% 9537Office Automation, n.: 9538 The use of computers to improve efficiency by removing anyone 9539you would want to talk with over coffee. 9540% 9541Ogden's Law: 9542 The sooner you fall behind, the more time you have to catch 9543up. 9544% 9545Oh Dad! We're ALL Devo! 9546% 9547Oh don't the days seem lank and long 9548 When all goes right and none goes wrong, 9549And isn't your life extremely flat 9550 With nothing whatever to grumble at! 9551% 9552Oh, I am a C programmer and I'm okay 9553 I muck with indices and structs all day 9554And when it works, I shout hoo-ray 9555 Oh, I am a C programmer and I'm okay 9556% 9557Oh, I don't blame Congress. If I had $600 billion at my disposal, I'd 9558be irresponsible, too. 9559 -- Lichty & Wagner 9560% 9561Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth, 9562And danced the skies on laughter silvered wings; 9563Sunward I've climbed and joined the tumbling mirth 9564Of sun-split clouds and done a hundred things 9565You have not dreamed of -- 9566Wheeled and soared and swung 9567High in the sunlit silence. 9568Hovering there 9569I've chased the shouting wind along and flung 9570My eager craft through footless halls of air. 9571Up, up along delirious, burning blue 9572I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace, 9573Where never lark, or even eagle flew; 9574And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod 9575The high untrespassed sanctity of space, 9576Put out my hand, and touched the face of God. 9577 -- John Gillespie Magee Jr., "High Flight" 9578% 9579Oh, well, I guess this is just going to be one of those lifetimes. 9580% 9581Oh, when I was in love with you, 9582 Then I was clean and brave, 9583And miles around the wonder grew 9584 How well did I behave. 9585 9586And now the fancy passes by, 9587 And nothing will remain, 9588And miles around they'll say that I 9589 Am quite myself again. 9590 -- A. E. Housman 9591% 9592Oh, wow! Look at the moon! 9593% 9594OK, now let's look at four dimensions on the blackboard. 9595 -- Dr. Joy 9596% 9597OK, so you're a Ph.D. Just don't touch anything. 9598% 9599Old age is the most unexpected of things that can happen to a man. 9600 -- Trotsky 9601% 9602Old programmers never die. They just branch to a new address. 9603% 9604Old soldiers never die. Young ones do. 9605% 9606Oliver's Law: 9607 Experience is something you don't get until just after you need 9608it. 9609% 9610Omnibiblious, adj.: 9611 Indifferent to type of drink. "Oh, you can get me anything. 9612I'm omnibiblious." 9613% 9614OMNIVERSAL AWARENESS?? Oh, YEH!! First you need four GALLONS of 9615JELL-O and a BIG WRENCH!! ... I think you drop th' WRENCH in the JELL-O 9616as if it was a FLAVOR, or an INGREDIENT ... or ... I ... um ... 9617WHERE'S the WASHING MACHINES? 9618% 9619On a paper submitted by a physicist colleague: 9620 9621This isn't right. This isn't even wrong. 9622 -- Wolfgang Pauli 9623% 9624On account of being a democracy and run by the people, we are the only 9625nation in the world that has to keep a government four years, no matter 9626what it does. 9627 -- Will Rogers 9628% 9629 On his first day as a bus driver, Maxey Eckstein handed in 9630receipts of $65. The next day his take was $67. The third day's 9631income was $62. But on the fourth day, Eckstein emptied no less than 9632$283 on the desk before the cashier. 9633 "Eckstein!" exclaimed the cashier. "This is fantastic. That 9634route never brought in money like this! What happened?" 9635 "Well, after three days on that cockamamie route, I figured 9636business would never improve, so I drove over to Fourteenth Street and 9637worked there. I tell you, that street is a gold mine!" 9638% 9639On Monday mornings I am dedicated to the proposition that all men are 9640created jerks. 9641 -- H. Allen Smith, "Let the Crabgrass Grow" 9642% 9643On the road, ZIPPY is a pinhead without a purpose, but never without a 9644POINT ... 9645% 9646On the subject of C program indentation: 9647 9648 "In My Egotistical Opinion, most people's C programs should be 9649 indented six feet downward and covered with dirt." 9650 -- Blair P. Houghton 9651% 9652On two occasions I have been asked [by members of Parliament!], `Pray, 9653Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right 9654answers come out?' I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of 9655confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question. 9656 -- Charles Babbage 9657% 9658On-line, adj.: 9659 The idea that a human being should always be accessible to a 9660computer. 9661% 9662Once ... in the wilds of Afghanistan, I lost my corkscrew, and we were 9663forced to live on nothing but food and water for days. 9664 -- W. C. Fields, "My Little Chickadee" 9665% 9666Once again, we come to the Holiday Season, a deeply religious time that 9667each of us observes, in his own way, by going to the mall of his 9668choice. 9669 9670In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians 9671called it "Christmas" and went to church; the Jews called it "Hanukkah" 9672and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People 9673passing each other on the street would say "Merry Christmas!" or "Happy 9674Hanukkah!" or (to the atheists) "Look out for the wall!" 9675 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 9676% 9677Once at a social gathering, Gladstone said to Disraeli, "I predict, 9678Sir, that you will die either by hanging or of some vile disease". 9679Disraeli replied, "That all depends upon whether I embrace your 9680principals or your mistress". 9681% 9682Once Law was sitting on the bench 9683 And Mercy knelt a-weeping. 9684"Clear out!" he cried, "disordered wench! 9685 Nor come before me creeping. 9686Upon your knees if you appear, 9687'Tis plain you have no standing here." 9688 9689Then Justice came. His Honor cried: 9690 "YOUR states? -- Devil seize you!" 9691"Amica curiae," she replied -- 9692 "Friend of the court, so please you." 9693"Begone!" he shouted -- "There's the door -- 9694I never saw your face before!" 9695 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 9696% 9697Once the realization is accepted that even between the closest human 9698beings infinite distances continue to exist, a wonderful living side by 9699side can grow up, if they succeed in loving the distance between them 9700which makes it possible for each to see each other whole against the 9701sky. 9702 -- Rainer Rilke 9703% 9704 Once there lived a village of creatures along the bottom of a 9705great crystal river. Each creature in its own manner clung tightly to 9706the twigs and rocks of the river bottom, for clinging was their way of 9707life, and resisting the current what each had learned from birth. But 9708one creature said at last, "I trust that the current knows where it is 9709going. I shall let go, and let it take me where it will. Clinging, I 9710shall die of boredom." 9711 The other creatures laughed and said, "Fool! Let go, and that 9712current you worship will throw you tumbled and smashed across the 9713rocks, and you will die quicker than boredom!" 9714 But the one heeded them not, and taking a breath did let go, 9715and at once was tumbled and smashed by the current across the rocks. 9716Yet, in time, as the creature refused to cling again, the current 9717lifted him free from the bottom, and he was bruised and hurt no more. 9718 And the creatures downstream, to whom he was a stranger, cried, 9719"See a miracle! A creature like ourselves, yet he flies! See the 9720Messiah, come to save us all!" And the one carried in the current 9721said, "I am no more Messiah than you. The river delight to lift us 9722free, if only we dare let go. Our true work is this voyage, this 9723adventure. 9724 But they cried the more, "Saviour!" all the while clinging to 9725the rocks, making legends of a Saviour. 9726% 9727Once upon a time, when I was training to be a mathematician, a group of 9728us bright young students taking number theory discovered the names of 9729the smaller prime numbers. 9730 97312: The Odd Prime -- 9732 It's the only even prime, therefore it's odd. QED. 97333: The True Prime -- 9734 Lewis Carroll: "If I tell you three times, it's true." 973531: The Arbitrary Prime -- 9736 Determined by unanimous unvote. We needed an arbitrary prime 9737 in case the prof asked for one, and so had an election. 91 9738 received the most votes (well, it *looks* prime) and 3+4i the 9739 next most. However, 31 was the only candidate to receive none 9740 at all. 9741 9742Since the composite numbers are formed from primes, their qualities are 9743derived from those primes. So, for instance, the number 6 is "odd but 9744true", while the powers of 2 are all extremely odd numbers. 9745% 9746... Once you're safely in the mall, you should tie your children to you 9747with ropes so the other shoppers won't try to buy them. Holiday 9748shoppers have been whipped into a frenzy by months of holiday 9749advertisements, and they will buy anything small enough to stuff into a 9750shopping bag. If your children object to being tied, threaten to take 9751them to see Santa Claus; that ought to shut them up. 9752 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 9753% 9754Once, adv.: 9755 Enough. 9756 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 9757% 9758One advantage of talking to yourself is that you know at least 9759somebody's listening. 9760 -- Franklin P. Jones 9761% 9762"One basic notion underlying Usenet is that it is a cooperative." 9763 9764Having been on USENET for going on ten years, I disagree with this. 9765The basic notion underlying USENET is the flame. 9766 -- Chuq Von Rospach 9767% 9768One can't proceed from the informal to the formal by formal means. 9769% 9770One cannot make an omelette without breaking eggs -- but it is amazing 9771how many eggs one can break without making a decent omelette. 9772 -- Professor Charles P. Issawi 9773% 9774One day the King decided that he would force all his subjects to tell 9775the truth. A gallows was erected in front of the city gates. A herald 9776announced, "Whoever would enter the city must first answer the truth to 9777a question which will be put to him." Nasrudin was first in line. The 9778captain of the guard asked him, "Where are you going? Tell the truth 9779-- the alternative is death by hanging." "I am going," said Nasrudin, 9780"to be hanged on that gallows." "I don't believe you." "Very well, if 9781I have told a lie, then hang me!" "But that would make it the truth!" 9782"Exactly," said Nasrudin, "your truth." 9783% 9784One difference between a man and a machine is that a machine is quiet 9785when well oiled. 9786% 9787One good reason why computers can do more work than people is that they 9788never have to stop and answer the phone. 9789% 9790One is not superior merely because one sees the world as odious. 9791 -- Chateaubriand (1768-1848) 9792% 9793One learns to itch where one can scratch. 9794 -- Ernest Bramah 9795% 9796One man's brain plus one other will produce one half as many ideas as 9797one man would have produced alone. These two plus two more will 9798produce half again as many ideas. These four plus four more begin to 9799represent a creative meeting, and the ratio changes to one quarter as 9800many ... 9801 -- Anthony Chevins 9802% 9803One man's theology is another man's belly laugh. 9804% 9805One monk said to the other, "The fish has flopped out of the net! How 9806will it live?" The other said, "When you have gotten out of the net, 9807I'll tell you." 9808% 9809One nice thing about egotists: they don't talk about other people. 9810% 9811One of my less pleasant chores when I was young was to read the Bible 9812from one end to the other. Reading the Bible straight through is at 9813least 70 percent discipline, like learning Latin. But the good parts 9814are, of course, simply amazing. God is an extremely uneven writer, but 9815when He's good, nobody can touch Him. 9816 -- John Gardner, NYT Book Review, Jan 1983 9817% 9818One of the lessons of history is that nothing is often a good thing to 9819do and always a clever thing to say. 9820 -- Will Durant 9821% 9822One of the main causes of the fall of the Roman Empire was that, 9823lacking zero, they had no way to indicate successful termination of 9824their C programs. 9825 -- Robert Firth 9826% 9827One of the oldest problems puzzled over in the Talmud is: "Why did God 9828create goyim?" The generally accepted answer is "________somebody has to buy 9829retail." 9830 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 9831% 9832 One of the questions that comes up all the time is: How 9833enthusiastic is our support for UNIX? 9834 Unix was written on our machines and for our machines many 9835years ago. Today, much of UNIX being done is done on our machines. 9836Ten percent of our VAXs are going for UNIX use. UNIX is a simple 9837language, easy to understand, easy to get started with. It's great for 9838students, great for somewhat casual users, and it's great for 9839interchanging programs between different machines. And so, because of 9840its popularity in these markets, we support it. We have good UNIX on 9841VAX and good UNIX on PDP-11s. 9842 It is our belief, however, that serious professional users will 9843run out of things they can do with UNIX. They'll want a real system and 9844will end up doing VMS when they get to be serious about programming. 9845 With UNIX, if you're looking for something, you can easily and 9846quickly check that small manual and find out that it's not there. With 9847VMS, no matter what you look for -- it's literally a five-foot shelf of 9848documentation -- if you look long enough it's there. That's the 9849difference -- the beauty of UNIX is it's simple; and the beauty of VMS 9850is that it's all there. 9851 -- Ken Olsen, President of DEC, 1984 9852% 9853One of the rules of Busmanship, New York style, is never surrender your 9854seat to another passenger. This may seem callous, but it is the best 9855way, really. If one passenger were to give a seat to someone who 9856fainted in the aisle, say, the others on the bus would become 9857disoriented and imagine they were in Topeka, Kansas. 9858% 9859The Seventh Commandments for Technicians 9860 Work thou not on energized equipment, for if thou dost, thy 9861fellow workers will surely buy beers for thy widow and console her in 9862other ways. 9863% 9864The First Commandment for Technicians: 9865 Beware the lightening that lurketh in the undischarged 9866capacitor, lest it cause thee to bounce upon thy buttocks in a most 9867untechnician-like manner. 9868% 9869One Page Principle: 9870 A specification that will not fit on one page of 8.5x11 inch 9871paper cannot be understood. 9872 -- Mark Ardis 9873% 9874One planet is all you get. 9875% 9876One promising concept that I came up with right away was that you could 9877manufacture personal air bags, then get a law passed requiring that 9878they be installed on congressmen to keep them from taking trips. Let's 9879say your congressman was trying to travel to Paris to do a fact-finding 9880study on how the French government handles diseases transmitted by 9881sherbet. Just when he got to the plane, his mandatory air bag, 9882strapped around his waist, would inflate -- FWWAAAAAAPPPP -- thus 9883rendering him too large to fit through the plane door. It could also 9884be rigged to inflate whenever the congressman proposed a law. ("Mr. 9885Speaker, people ask me, why should October be designated as Cuticle 9886Inspection Month? And I answer that FWWAAAAAAPPPP.") This would save 9887millions of dollars, so I have no doubt that the public would violently 9888support a law requiring airbags on congressmen. The problem is that 9889your potential market is very small: there are only around 500 members 9890of Congress, and some of them, such as House Speaker "Tip" O'Neil, are 9891already too large to fit on normal aircraft. 9892 -- Dave Barry, "'Mister Mediocre' Restaurants" 9893% 9894One reason why George Washington 9895Is held in such veneration: 9896He never blamed his problems 9897On the former Administration. 9898 -- George O. Ludcke 9899% 9900One seldom sees a monument to a committee. 9901% 9902One thing the inventors can't seem to get the bugs out of is fresh paint. 9903% 9904One thing they don't tell you about doing experimental physics is that 9905sometimes you must work under adverse conditions ... like a state of 9906sheer terror. 9907 -- W. K. Hartmann 9908% 9909One way to make your old car run better is to look up the price of a 9910new model. 9911% 9912One way to stop a runaway horse is to bet on him. 9913% 9914One, with God, is always a majority, but many a martyr has been burned 9915at the stake while the votes were being counted. 9916 -- Thomas B. Reed 9917% 9918One-Shot Case Study, n.: 9919 The scientific equivalent of the four-leaf clover, from which 9920it is concluded all clovers possess four leaves and are sometimes 9921green. 9922% 9923Only adults have difficulty with childproof caps. 9924% 9925Only God can make random selections. 9926% 9927Only presidents, editors, and people with tapeworms have the right to 9928use the editorial "we." 9929% 9930Only through hard work and perseverance can one truly suffer. 9931% 9932Optimization hinders evolution. 9933% 9934Oregano, n.: 9935 The ancient Italian art of pizza folding. 9936% 9937Oregon, n.: 9938 Eighty billion gallons of water with no place to go on Saturday 9939night. 9940% 9941Organic chemistry is the chemistry of carbon compounds. 9942Biochemistry is the study of carbon compounds that crawl. 9943 -- Mike Adams 9944% 9945Osborn's Law: 9946 Variables won't; constants aren't. 9947% 9948Others will look to you for stability, so hide when you bite your nails. 9949% 9950Our country has plenty of good five-cent cigars, but the trouble is 9951they charge fifteen cents for them. 9952% 9953Our documentation manager was showing her two year old son around the 9954office. He was introduced to me, at which time he pointed out that we 9955were both holding bags of popcorn. We were both holding bottles of 9956juice. But only *__he* had a lollipop. 9957 9958He asked his mother, "Why doesn't HE have a lollipop?" 9959 9960Her reply: 9961 9962 "He can have a lollipop any time he wants to. That's what it 9963 means to be a programmer." 9964% 9965Our OS who art in CPU, UNIX be thy name. 9966 Thy programs run, thy syscalls done, 9967 In kernel as it is in user! 9968% 9969Our policy is, when in doubt, do the right thing. 9970 -- Roy L. Ash, ex-president Litton Industries 9971% 9972... Our second completely true news item was sent to me by Mr. H. Boyce 9973Connell Jr. of Atlanta, Ga., where he is involved in a law firm. One 9974thing I like about the South is, folks there care about tradition. If 9975somebody gets handed a name like "H. Boyce," he hangs on to it, puts it 9976on his legal stationery, even passes it to his son, rather than do what 9977a lesser person would do, such as get it changed or kill himself. 9978 -- Dave Barry, "This Column is Nothing but the Truth!" 9979% 9980Our vision is to speed up time, eventually eliminating it. 9981 -- Alex Schure 9982% 9983Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. 9984 -- General Omar N. Bradley 9985% 9986 OUTCONERR 9987Twas FORTRAN as the doloop goes 9988 Did logzerneg the ifthen block 9989All kludgy were the function flows 9990 And subroutines adhoc. 9991 9992Beware the runtime-bug my friend 9993 squrooneg, the false goto 9994Beware the infiniteloop 9995 And shun the inprectoo. 9996% 9997Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend: and inside a dog, 9998it's too dark to read. 9999 -- Groucho Marx 10000% 10001Over the years, I've developed my sense of deja vu so acutely that now 10002I can remember things that *have* happened before ... 10003% 10004Overdrawn? But I still have checks left! 10005% 10006Overflow on /dev/null, please empty the bit bucket. 10007% 10008Overload -- core meltdown sequence initiated. 10009% 10010Ozman's Laws: 10011 (1) If someone says he will do something "without fail," he 10012 won't. 10013 (2) The more people talk on the phone, the less money they 10014 make. 10015 (3) People who go to conferences are the ones who shouldn't. 10016 (4) Pizza always burns the roof of your mouth. 10017% 10018Painting, n.: 10019 The art of protecting flat surfaces from the weather, and 10020exposing them to the critic. 10021 -- Ambrose Bierce 10022% 10023panic: can't find / 10024% 10025panic: kernel trap (ignored) 10026% 10027Paradise is exactly like where you are right now ... only much, much 10028better. 10029 -- Laurie Anderson 10030% 10031Parallel lines never meet, unless you bend one or both of them. 10032% 10033Paranoia is simply an optimistic outlook on life. 10034% 10035Paranoid schizophrenics outnumber their enemies at least two to one. 10036% 10037Paranoids are people, too; they have their own problems. It's easy to 10038criticize, but if everybody hated you, you'd be paranoid too. 10039 -- D. J. Hicks 10040% 10041Pardo's First Postulate: 10042 Anything good in life is either illegal, immoral, or 10043fattening. 10044 10045Arnold's Addendum: 10046 Everything else causes cancer in rats. 10047% 10048Pardon this fortune. Database under reconstruction. 10049% 10050Parker's Law: 10051 Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clean to the bone. 10052% 10053Parkinson's Fifth Law: 10054 If there is a way to delay an important decision, the good 10055bureaucracy, public or private, will find it. 10056% 10057Parkinson's Fourth Law: 10058 The number of people in any working group tends to increase 10059regardless of the amount of work to be done. 10060% 10061Parsley 10062 is gharsley. 10063 -- Ogden Nash 10064% 10065Parts that positively cannot be assembled in improper order will be. 10066% 10067Pascal is not a high-level language. 10068 -- Steven Feiner 10069% 10070Pascal is Pascal is Pascal is dog meat. 10071 -- M. Devine and P. Larson, Computer Science 340 10072% 10073Pascal Users: 10074 To show respect for the 313th anniversary (tomorrow) of the 10075death of Blaise Pascal, your programs will be run at half speed. 10076% 10077Pascal, n.: 10078 A programming language named after a man who would turn over in 10079his grave if he knew about it. 10080% 10081Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. 10082 -- Eric Hoffer 10083% 10084Patageometry, n.: 10085 The study of those mathematical properties that are invariant 10086under brain transplants. 10087% 10088Paul Revere was a tattle-tale. 10089% 10090Paul's Law: 10091 In America, it's not how much an item costs, it's how much you 10092save. 10093% 10094Paul's Law: 10095 You can't fall off the floor. 10096% 10097Peace, n.: 10098 In international affairs, a period of cheating between two 10099periods of fighting. 10100 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 10101% 10102Peanut Blossoms 10103 101044 cups sugar 16 tbsp. milk 101054 cups brown sugar 4 tsp. vanilla 101064 cups shortening 14 cups flour 101078 eggs 4 tsp. soda 101084 cups peanut butter 4 tsp. salt 10109 10110Shape dough into balls. Roll in sugar and bake on ungreased cookie 10111sheet at 375 F. for 10-12 minutes. Immediately top each cookie with a 10112Hershey's kiss or star pressing down firmly to crack cookie. Makes a 10113hell of a lot. 10114% 10115Pecor's Health-Food Principle: 10116 Never eat rutabaga on any day of the week that has a "y" in 10117it. 10118% 10119Pedaeration, n.: 10120 The perfect body heat achieved by having one leg under the 10121sheet and one hanging off the edge of the bed. 10122 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 10123% 10124Penguin Trivia #46: 10125 Animals who are not penguins can only wish they were. 10126 -- Chicago Reader 10/15/82 10127% 10128People need good lies. There are too many bad ones. 10129 -- Bokonon, "Cat's Cradle" by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. 10130% 10131People often find it easier to be a result of the past than a cause of 10132the future. 10133% 10134People think love is an emotion. Love is good sense. 10135 -- Ken Kesey 10136% 10137People usually get what's coming to them ... unless it's been mailed. 10138% 10139People who are funny and smart and return phone calls get much better 10140press than people who are just funny and smart. 10141 -- Howard Simons, "The Washington Post" 10142% 10143People who claim they don't let little things bother them have never 10144slept in a room with a single mosquito. 10145% 10146People who have what they want are very fond of telling people who 10147haven't what they want that they don't want it. 10148 -- Ogden Nash 10149% 10150People will accept your ideas much more readily if you tell them that 10151Benjamin Franklin said it first. 10152% 10153People will buy anything that's one to a customer. 10154% 10155People will do tomorrow what they did today because that is what they 10156did yesterday. 10157% 10158Pereant, inquit, qui ante nos nostra dixerunt. 10159"Confound those who have said our remarks before us." 10160 -- Aelius Donatus 10161% 10162Perfect day for scrubbing the floor and other exciting things. 10163% 10164Perfection is reached, not when there is no longer anything to add, but 10165when there is no longer anything to take away. 10166 -- Antoine de Saint-Exupery 10167% 10168Personifiers Unite! You have nothing to lose but Mr. Dignity! 10169% 10170Peter's Law of Substitution: 10171 Look after the molehills, and the mountains will look after 10172themselves. 10173% 10174Philadelphia is not dull -- it just seems so because it is next to 10175exciting Camden, New Jersey. 10176% 10177Philogeny recapitulates erogeny; erogeny recapitulates philogeny. 10178% 10179Philosophy will clip an angel's wings. 10180 -- John Keats 10181% 10182Pick another fortune cookie. 10183% 10184Picture the sun as the origin of two intersecting 6-dimensional 10185hyperplanes from which we can deduce a certain transformational 10186sequence which gives us the terminal velocity of a rubber duck ... 10187% 10188Pig, n.: 10189 An animal (Porcus omnivorous) closely allied to the human race 10190by the splendor and vivacity of its appetite, which, however, is 10191inferior in scope, for it balks at pig. 10192 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 10193% 10194PISCES (Feb. 19 - Mar. 20) 10195 You have a vivid imagination and often think you are being 10196followed by the CIA or FBI. You have minor influence over your 10197associates and people resent your flaunting of your power. You lack 10198confidence and you are generally a coward. Pisces people do terrible 10199things to small animals. 10200% 10201PISCES (Feb. 19 to Mar. 20) 10202 Take the high road, look for the good things, carry the 10203American Express card and a weapon. The world is yours today, as 10204nobody else wants it. Your mortgage will be foreclosed. You will 10205probably get run over by a bus. 10206% 10207 Pittsburgh Driver's Test 10208 10209(7) The car directly in front of you has a flashing right tail light 10210 but a steady left tail light. This means 10211 10212 (a) one of the tail lights is broken; you should blow your horn 10213 to call the problem to the driver's attention. 10214 (b) the driver is signaling a right turn. 10215 (c) the driver is signaling a left turn. 10216 (d) the driver is from out of town. 10217 10218The correct answer is (d). Tail lights are used in some foreign 10219countries to signal turns. 10220% 10221 Pittsburgh Driver's Test 10222 10223(8) Pedestrians are 10224 10225 (a) irrelevant. 10226 (b) communists. 10227 (c) a nuisance. 10228 (d) difficult to clean off the front grille. 10229 10230The correct answer is (a). Pedestrians are not in cars, so they are 10231totally irrelevant to driving; you should ignore them completely. 10232% 10233Pity the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 10234 -- Don Marquis 10235% 10236PL/1, "the fatal disease", belongs more to the problem set than to the 10237solution set. 10238 -- Edsger W. Dijkstra, SIGPLAN Notices, Volume 17, Number 5 10239% 10240Plaese porrf raed. 10241 -- Prof. Michael O'Longhlin, S.U.N.Y. Purchase 10242% 10243Plato, by the way, wanted to banish all poets from his proposed Utopia 10244because they were liars. The truth was that Plato knew philosophers 10245couldn't compete successfully with poets. 10246 -- Kilgore Trout (Philip J. Farmer) "Venus on the Half 10247 Shell" 10248% 10249Play Rogue, visit exotic locations, meet strange creatures and kill them. 10250% 10251Playing an unamplified electric guitar is like strumming on a picnic table. 10252 -- Dave Barry, "The Snake" 10253% 10254Please ignore previous fortune. 10255% 10256Please take note: 10257% 10258Please try to limit the amount of "this room doesn't have any bazingas" 10259until you are told that those rooms are "punched out". Once punched 10260out, we have a right to complain about atrocities, missing bazingas, 10261and such. 10262 -- N. Meyrowitz 10263% 10264Please, won't somebody tell me what diddie-wa-diddie means? 10265% 10266 Plumbing is one of the easier of do-it-yourself activities, 10267requiring only a few simple tools and a willingness to stick your arm 10268into a clogged toilet. In fact, you can solve many home plumbing 10269problems, such as annoying faucet drip, merely by turning up the 10270radio. But before we get into specific techniques, let's look at how 10271plumbing works. 10272 A plumbing system is very much like your electrical system, 10273except that instead of electricity, it has water, and instead of wires, 10274it has pipes, and instead of radios and waffle irons, it has faucets 10275and toilets. So the truth is that your plumbing systems is nothing at 10276all like your electrical system, which is good, because electricity can 10277kill you. 10278 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 10279% 10280PLUNDERER'S THEME 10281(to Supercalifragilisticexpialidocius) 10282 10283Pillage, rape, and loot and burn, but all in moderation. 10284If you do the things we say, then you'll soon rule the nation. 10285Kill your foes and enemies and then kill your relations. 10286Pillage, rape, and loot and burn, but all in moderation. 10287% 10288Pohl's law: 10289 Nothing is so good that somebody, somewhere, will not hate it. 10290% 10291Police: Good evening, are you the host? 10292Host: No. 10293Police: We've been getting complaints about this party. 10294Host: About the drugs? 10295Police: No. 10296Host: About the guns, then? Is somebody complaining about the guns? 10297Police: No, the noise. 10298Host: Oh, the noise. Well that makes sense because there are no guns 10299 or drugs here. (An enormous explosion is heard in the 10300 background.) Or fireworks. Who's complaining about the noise? 10301 The neighbors? 10302Police: No, the neighbors fled inland hours ago. Most of the recent 10303 complaints have come from Pittsburgh. Do you think you could 10304 ask the host to quiet things down? 10305Host: No Problem. (At this point, a Volkswagen bug with primitive 10306 religious symbols drawn on the doors emerges from the living 10307 room and roars down the hall, past the police and onto the 10308 lawn, where it smashes into a tree. Eight guests tumble out 10309 onto the grass, moaning.) See? Things are starting to wind 10310 down. 10311% 10312Political T.V. commercials prove one thing: some candidates can tell 10313all their good points and qualifications in just 30 seconds. 10314% 10315Politician, n.: 10316 An eel in the fundamental mud upon which the superstructure of 10317organized society is reared. When he wriggles, he mistakes the 10318agitation of his tail for the trembling of the edifice. As compared 10319with the statesman, he suffers the disadvantage of being alive. 10320 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 10321% 10322Politician, n.: 10323 From the Greek "poly" ("many") and the French "tete" ("head" or 10324"face," as in "tete-a-tete": head to head or face to face). Hence 10325"polytetien", a person of two or more faces. 10326 -- Martin Pitt 10327% 10328Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge even 10329where there is no river. 10330 -- Nikita Khrushchev 10331% 10332Politics is like coaching a football team. You have to be smart enough 10333to understand the game but not smart enough to lose interest. 10334% 10335Polymer physicists are into chains. 10336% 10337Pope Goestheveezl was the shortest reigning pope in the history of the 10338Church, reigning for two hours and six minutes on 1 April 1866. The 10339white smoke had hardly faded into the blue of the Vatican skies before 10340it dawned on the assembled multitudes in St. Peter's Square that his 10341name had hilarious possibilities. The crowds fell about, helpless with 10342laughter, singing 10343 10344 Half a pound of tuppenny rice 10345 Half a pound of treacle 10346 That's the way the chimney smokes 10347 Pope Goestheveezl 10348 10349The square was finally cleared by armed carabinieri with tears of 10350laughter streaming down their faces. The event set a record for 10351hilarious civic functions, smashing the previous record set when Baron 10352Hans Neizant B"ompzidaize was elected Landburgher of K"oln in 1653. 10353 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 10354% 10355Portable, adj.: 10356 Survives system reboot. 10357% 10358Positive, adj.: 10359 Mistaken at the top of one's voice. 10360 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 10361% 10362Pound for pound, the amoeba is the most vicious animal on earth. 10363% 10364Power corrupts. Absolute power is kind of neat. 10365 -- John Lehman, Secretary of the Navy 1981-1987 10366% 10367Power corrupts. And atomic power corrupts atomically. 10368% 10369Power, n: 10370 The only narcotic regulated by the SEC instead of the FDA. 10371% 10372Practical people would be more practical if they would take a little 10373more time for dreaming. 10374 -- J. P. McEvoy 10375% 10376Predestination was doomed from the start. 10377% 10378President Reagan has noted that there are too many economic pundits and 10379forecasters and has decided on an excess prophets tax. 10380% 10381President Thieu says he'll quit if he doesn't get more than 50% of the 10382vote. In a democracy, that's not called quitting. 10383 -- The Washington Post 10384% 10385Pretend to spank me -- I'm a pseudo-masochist! 10386% 10387Preudhomme's Law of Window Cleaning: 10388 It's on the other side. 10389% 10390[Prime Minister Joseph] Chamberlain loves the working man -- he loves 10391to see him work. 10392 -- Winston Churchill 10393% 10394Pro is to con as progress is to Congress. 10395% 10396Probable-Possible, my black hen, 10397She lays eggs in the Relative When. 10398She doesn't lay eggs in the Positive Now 10399Because she's unable to postulate how. 10400 -- Frederick Winsor 10401% 10402Probably the question asked most often is: Do one-celled animals have 10403orgasms? The answer is yes, they have orgasms almost constantly, which 10404is why they don't mind living in pools of warm slime. 10405 -- Dave Barry, "Sex and the Single Amoeba: What Every 10406 Teen Should Know" 10407% 10408Prof: So the American government went to IBM to come up with a data 10409 encryption standard and they came up with ... 10410Student: EBCDIC! 10411% 10412Professor Gorden Newell threw another shutout in last week's Chem. 10413Eng. 130 midterm. Once again no student received a single point on 10414his exam. Newell has now tossed five shutouts this quarter. Newell's 10415earned exam average has now dropped to a phenomenal 30% 10416% 10417Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to 10418build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying 10419to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning. 10420 -- Rich Cook 10421% 10422Proof techniques #1: Proof by Induction. 10423 10424This technique is used on equations with "_n" in them. Induction 10425techniques are very popular; even the military used them. 10426 10427SAMPLE: Proof of induction without proof of induction. 10428 10429 We know it's true for _n equal to 1. Now assume that it's true 10430for every natural number less than _n. _N is arbitrary, so we can take _n 10431as large as we want. If _n is sufficiently large, the case of _n+1 is 10432trivially equivalent, so the only important _n are _n less than _n. We 10433can take _n = _n (from above), so it's true for _n+1 because it's just 10434about _n. 10435 QED. (QED translates from the Latin as "So what?") 10436% 10437Proof techniques #2: Proof by Oddity. 10438 SAMPLE: To prove that horses have an infinite number of legs. 10439(1) Horses have an even number of legs. 10440(2) They have two legs in back and fore legs in front. 10441(3) This makes a total of six legs, which certainly is an odd number of 10442 legs for a horse. 10443(4) But the only number that is both odd and even is infinity. 10444(5) Therefore, horses must have an infinite number of legs. 10445 10446Topics to be covered in future issues include proof by: 10447 Intimidation 10448 Gesticulation (handwaving) 10449 "Try it; it works" 10450 Constipation (I was just sitting there and ...) 10451 Blatant assertion 10452 Changing all the 2's to _n's 10453 Mutual consent 10454 Lack of a counterexample, and 10455 "It stands to reason" 10456% 10457Proposed Additions to the PDP-11 Instruction Set: 10458 10459BBW Branch Both Ways 10460BEW Branch Either Way 10461BBBF Branch on Bit Bucket Full 10462BH Branch and Hang 10463BMR Branch Multiple Registers 10464BOB Branch On Bug 10465BPO Branch on Power Off 10466BST Backspace and Stretch Tape 10467CDS Condense and Destroy System 10468CLBR Clobber Register 10469CLBRI Clobber Register Immediately 10470CM Circulate Memory 10471CMFRM Come From -- essential for truly structured programming 10472CPPR Crumple Printer Paper and Rip 10473CRN Convert to Roman Numerals 10474% 10475Proposed Additions to the PDP-11 Instruction Set: 10476 10477DC Divide and Conquer 10478DMPK Destroy Memory Protect Key 10479DO Divide and Overflow 10480EMPC Emulate Pocket Calculator 10481EPI Execute Programmer Immediately 10482EROS Erase Read Only Storage 10483EXCE Execute Customer Engineer 10484HCF Halt and Catch Fire 10485IBP Insert Bug and Proceed 10486INSQSW Insert into queue somewhere (for FINO queues [First in never out]) 10487PBC Print and Break Chain 10488PDSK Punch Disk 10489% 10490Proposed Additions to the PDP-11 Instruction Set: 10491 10492PI Punch Invalid 10493POPI Punch Operator Immediately 10494PVLC Punch Variable Length Card 10495RASC Read And Shred Card 10496RPM Read Programmers Mind 10497RSSC Reduce Speed, Step Carefully (for improved accuracy) 10498RTAB Rewind Tape and Break 10499RWDSK Rewind Disk 10500RWOC Read Writing On Card 10501SCRBL Scribble to disk - faster than a write 10502SLC Search for Lost Chord 10503SPSW Scramble Program Status Word 10504SRSD Seek Record and Scar Disk 10505STROM Store in Read Only Memory 10506TDB Transfer and Drop Bit 10507WBT Water Binary Tree 10508% 10509Protozoa are small, and bacteria are small, but viruses are smaller 10510than the both put together. 10511% 10512Psychiatrists say that one out of four people are mentally ill. Check 10513three friends. If they're OK, you're it. 10514% 10515Psychotherapy is the theory that the patient will probably get well 10516anyhow and is certainly a damn fool. 10517 -- H. L. Mencken 10518% 10519Puns are little "plays on words" that a certain breed of person loves 10520to spring on you and then look at you in a certain self-satisfied way 10521to indicate that he thinks that you must think that he is by far the 10522cleverest person on Earth now that Benjamin Franklin is dead, when in 10523fact what you are thinking is that if this person ever ends up in a 10524lifeboat, the other passengers will hurl him overboard by the end of 10525the first day even if they have plenty of food and water. 10526 -- Dave Barry, "Why Humor is Funny" 10527% 10528Pure drivel tends to drive ordinary drivel off the TV screen. 10529% 10530Pushing 40 is exercise enough. 10531% 10532Put no trust in cryptic comments. 10533% 10534Put your Nose to the Grindstone! 10535 -- Amalgamated Plastic Surgeons and Toolmakers, Ltd. 10536% 10537Putt's Law: 10538 Technology is dominated by two types of people: 10539 Those who understand what they do not manage. 10540 Those who manage what they do not understand. 10541% 10542Q: Do you know what the death rate around here is? 10543A: One per person. 10544% 10545Q: How did you get into artificial intelligence? 10546A: Seemed logical -- I didn't have any real intelligence. 10547% 10548Q: How many DEC repairmen does it take to fix a flat ? 10549A: Five; four to hold the car up and one to swap tires. 10550% 10551Q: How many DEC repairmen does it take to fix a flat? 10552A: Five; four to hold the car up and one to swap tires. 10553 10554Q: How long does it take? 10555A: It's indeterminate. It will depend upon how many flats they've 10556 brought with them. 10557 10558Q: What happens if you've got TWO flats? 10559A: They replace your generator. 10560% 10561Q: How many existentialists does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 10562A: Two. One to screw it in and one to observe how the lightbulb 10563 itself symbolizes a single incandescent beacon of subjective 10564 reality in a netherworld of endless absurdity reaching out toward a 10565 maudlin cosmos of nothingness. 10566% 10567Q: How many heterosexual males does it take to screw in a light bulb 10568 in San Francisco? 10569A: Both of them. 10570% 10571Q: How many IBM CPUs does it take to do a logical right shift? 10572A: 33. 1 to hold the bits and 32 to push the register. 10573% 10574Q: How many IBM CPUs does it take to execute a job? 10575A: Four; three to hold it down, and one to rip its head off. 10576% 10577Q: How many IBM types does it take to change a light bulb? 10578A: 100. Ten to do it, and 90 to write document number GC7500439-0001, 10579 Multitasking Incandescent Source System Facility, of which 10% of 10580 the pages state only "This page intentionally left blank", and 20% 10581 of the definitions are of the form "A ...... consists of sequences 10582 of non-blank characters separated by blanks". 10583% 10584Q: How many journalists does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 10585A: Three. One to report it as an inspired government program to bring 10586 light to the people, one to report it as a diabolical government 10587 plot to deprive the poor of darkness, and one to win a Pulitzer 10588 prize for reporting that Electric Company hired a lightbulb 10589 assassin to break the bulb in the first place. 10590% 10591Q: How many Martians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 10592A: One and a half. 10593% 10594Q: How many mathematicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 10595A: One. He gives it to six Californians, thereby reducing the problem 10596 to the earlier joke. 10597% 10598Q: How many Oregonians does it take to screw in a light bulb? 10599A: Three. One to screw in the lightbulb and two to fend off all those 10600 Californians trying to share the experience. 10601% 10602Q: How many surrealists does it take to change a light bulb? 10603A: Two. One to hold the giraffe and the other to fill the bathtub 10604 with brightly colored machine tools. 10605% 10606Q: How many Zen masters does it take to screw in a light bulb? 10607A: None. The Universe spins the bulb, and the Zen master stays out 10608 of the way. 10609% 10610Q: What's a light-year? 10611A: One-third less calories than a regular year. 10612% 10613Q: Why did the tachyon cross the road? 10614A: Because it was on the other side. 10615% 10616Q: Why do ducks have flat feet? 10617A: To stamp out forest fires. 10618 10619Q: Why do elephants have flat feet? 10620A: To stamp out flaming ducks. 10621% 10622Q: Why do mountain climbers rope themselves together? 10623A: To prevent the sensible ones from going home. 10624% 10625Q: Somebody just posted that Roman Polanski directed Star Wars. What 10626 should I do? 10627 10628A: Post the correct answer at once! We can't have people go on 10629 believing that! Very good of you to spot this. You'll probably be 10630 the only one to make the correction, so post as soon as you can. No 10631 time to lose, so certainly don't wait a day, or check to see if 10632 somebody else has made the correction. 10633 10634 And it's not good enough to send the message by mail. Since you're 10635 the only one who really knows that it was Francis Coppola, you have 10636 to inform the whole net right away! 10637 10638 -- Brad Templeton, "Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions 10639 on Netiquette" 10640% 10641Quality Control, n.: 10642 The process of testing one out of every 1,000 units coming off 10643a production line to make sure that at least one out of 100 works. 10644% 10645Question: 10646Man Invented Alcohol, 10647God Invented Grass. 10648Who do you trust? 10649% 10650Quick!! Act as if nothing has happened! 10651% 10652Quick, sing me the BUDAPEST NATIONAL ANTHEM!! 10653% 10654Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur. 10655 10656(Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound.) 10657% 10658Quigley's Law: 10659 Whoever has any authority over you, no matter how small, will 10660atttempt to use it. 10661% 10662QUOTE OF THE DAY: 10663 10664 ` 10665 10666% 10667Qvid me anxivs svm? 10668% 10669QWERT (kwirt), n. [MW < OW qwertyuiop, a thirteenth]: 10670 1. a unit of weight equal to 13 poiuyt avoirdupois (or 1.69 10671kiloliks), commonly used in structural engineering; 2. [colloq.] one 10672thirteenth the load that a fully grown sligo can carry; 3. [anat.] a 10673painful irritation of the dermis in the region of the anus; 4. [slang] 10674person who excites in others the symptoms of a qwert. 10675 -- Webster's Middle World Dictionary, 4th ed. 10676% 10677Radioactive cats have 18 half-lives. 10678% 10679Rattling around the back of my head is a disturbing image of something 10680I saw at the airport ... Now I'm remembering, those giant piles of 10681computer magazines right next to "People" and "Time" in the airport 10682store. Does it bother anyone else that half the world is being told 10683all of our hard-won secrets of computer technology? Remember how all 10684the lawyers cried foul when "How to Avoid Probate" was published? Are 10685they taking no-fault insurance lying down? No way! But at the current 10686rate it won't be long before there are stacks of the "Transactions on 10687Information Theory" at the A&P checkout counters. Who's going to be 10688impressed with us electrical engineers then? Are we, as the saying 10689goes, giving away the store? 10690 -- Robert W. Lucky, IEEE President 10691% 10692Ray's Rule of Precision: 10693 Measure with a micrometer. Mark with chalk. Cut with an axe. 10694% 10695Razors pain you; 10696Rivers are damp; 10697Acids stain you; 10698And drugs cause cramp. 10699Guns aren't lawful; 10700Nooses give; 10701Gas smells awful; 10702You might as well live. 10703 -- Dorothy Parker, "Resume", 1926 10704% 10705Re graphics: A picture is worth 10K words -- but only those to describe 10706the picture. Hardly any sets of 10K words can be adequately described 10707with pictures. 10708% 10709Reader, suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of 10710Congress. But I repeat myself. 10711 -- Mark Twain 10712% 10713Real computer scientists admire ADA for its overwhelming aesthetic 10714value but they find it difficult to actually program in it, as it is 10715much too large to implement. Most computer scientists don't notice 10716this because they are still arguing over what else to add to ADA. 10717% 10718Real computer scientists despise the idea of actual hardware. Hardware 10719has limitations, software doesn't. It's a real shame that Turing 10720machines are so poor at I/O. 10721% 10722Real computer scientists don't comment their code. The identifiers are 10723so long they can't afford the disk space. 10724% 10725Real computer scientists don't program in assembler. They don't write 10726in anything less portable than a number two pencil. 10727% 10728Real computer scientists don't write code. They occasionally tinker 10729with `programming systems', but those are so high level that they 10730hardly count (and rarely count accurately; precision is for 10731applications.) 10732% 10733Real computer scientists only write specs for languages that might run 10734on future hardware. Nobody trusts them to write specs for anything homo 10735sapiens will ever be able to fit on a single planet. 10736% 10737Real programmers disdain structured programming. Structured 10738programming is for compulsive neurotics who were prematurely toilet- 10739trained. They wear neckties and carefully line up pencils on otherwise 10740clear desks. 10741% 10742Real programmers don't bring brown-bag lunches. If the vending machine 10743doesn't sell it, they don't eat it. Vending machines don't sell 10744quiche. 10745% 10746Real programmers don't comment their code. It was hard to write, it 10747should be hard to understand. 10748% 10749Real programmers don't draw flowcharts. Flowcharts are, after all, the 10750illiterate's form of documentation. Cavemen drew flowcharts; look how 10751much good it did them. 10752% 10753Real Programmers don't play tennis, or any other sport that requires 10754you to change clothes. Mountain climbing is OK, and real programmers 10755wear their climbing boots to work in case a mountain should suddenly 10756spring up in the middle of the machine room. 10757% 10758Real programmers don't write in BASIC. Actually, no programmers write 10759in BASIC after reaching puberty. 10760% 10761Real programmers don't write in FORTRAN. FORTRAN is for pipe stress 10762freaks and crystallography weenies. FORTRAN is for wimp engineers who 10763wear white socks. 10764% 10765Real Programmers don't write in PL/I. PL/I is for programmers who 10766can't decide whether to write in COBOL or FORTRAN. 10767% 10768Real Programmers think better when playing Adventure or Rogue. 10769% 10770Real Programs don't use shared text. Otherwise, how can they use 10771functions for scratch space after they are finished calling them? 10772% 10773Real software engineers don't debug programs, they verify correctness. 10774This process doesn't necessarily involve execution of anything on a 10775computer, except perhaps a Correctness Verification Aid package. 10776% 10777Real software engineers don't like the idea of some inexplicable and 10778greasy hardware several aisles away that may stop working at any 10779moment. They have a great distrust of hardware people, and wish that 10780systems could be virtual at *___all* levels. They would like personal 10781computers (you know no one's going to trip over something and kill your 10782DFA in mid-transit), except that they need 8 megabytes to run their 10783Correctness Verification Aid packages. 10784% 10785Real software engineers work from 9 to 5, because that is the way the 10786job is described in the formal spec. Working late would feel like 10787using an undocumented external procedure. 10788% 10789Real Time, adj.: 10790 Here and now, as opposed to fake time, which only occurs there 10791and then. 10792% 10793Real Users are afraid they'll break the machine -- but they're never 10794afraid to break your face. 10795% 10796Real Users find the one combination of bizarre input values that shuts 10797down the system for days. 10798% 10799Real Users hate Real Programmers. 10800% 10801Real Users know your home telephone number. 10802% 10803Real Users never know what they want, but they always know when your 10804program doesn't deliver it. 10805% 10806Real Users never use the Help key. 10807% 10808Real World, The n.: 10809 1. In programming, those institutions at which programming may 10810be used in the same sentence as FORTRAN, COBOL, RPG, IBM, etc. 2. To 10811programmers, the location of non-programmers and activities not related 10812to programming. 3. A universe in which the standard dress is shirt and 10813tie and in which a person's working hours are defined as 9 to 5. 108144. The location of the status quo. 5. Anywhere outside a university. 10815"Poor fellow, he's left MIT and gone into the real world." Used 10816pejoratively by those not in residence there. In conversation, talking 10817of someone who has entered the real world is not unlike talking about a 10818deceased person. 10819% 10820Reality is a cop-out for people who can't handle drugs. 10821% 10822Reality is an obstacle to hallucination. 10823% 10824Reality is bad enough, why should I tell the truth? 10825 -- Patrick Sky 10826% 10827Reality is for people who lack imagination. 10828% 10829Reality is for those who can't face Science Fiction. 10830% 10831Reality is just a convenient measure of complexity. 10832 -- Alvy Ray Smith 10833% 10834Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away" 10835 -- Philip K. Dick 10836% 10837Really ?? What a coincidence, I'm shallow too!! 10838% 10839Receiving a million dollars tax free will make you feel better than 10840being flat broke and having a stomach ache. 10841 -- Dolph Sharp, "I'm O.K., You're Not So Hot" 10842% 10843Recession is when your neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you 10844lose your job. These economic downturns are very difficult to predict, 10845but sophisticated econometric modeling houses like Data Resources and 10846Chase Econometrics have successfully predicted 14 of the last 3 10847recessions. 10848% 10849Reclaimer, spare that tree! 10850Take not a single bit! 10851It used to point to me, 10852Now I'm protecting it. 10853It was the reader's CONS 10854That made it, paired by dot; 10855Now, GC, for the nonce, 10856Thou shalt reclaim it not. 10857% 10858 "Reflections on Ice-Breaking" 10859Candy 10860Is dandy 10861But liquor 10862Is quicker. 10863 -- Ogden Nash 10864% 10865"Reintegration complete," ZORAC advised. "We're back in the universe 10866again ..." An unusually long pause followed, "... but I don't know 10867which part. We seem to have changed our position in space." A 10868spherical display in the middle of the floor illuminated to show the 10869starfield surrounding the ship. 10870 10871"Several large, artificial constructions are approaching us," ZORAC 10872announced after a short pause. "The designs are not familiar, but they 10873are obviously the products of intelligence. Implications: we have been 10874intercepted deliberately by a means unknown, for a purpose unknown, and 10875transferred to a place unknown by a form of intelligence unknown. 10876Apart from the unknowns, everything is obvious." 10877 -- James P. Hogan, "Giants Star" 10878% 10879Reisner's Rule of Conceptual Inertia: 10880 If you think big enough, you'll never have to do it. 10881% 10882Religion has done love a great service by making it a sin. 10883 -- Anatole France 10884% 10885Rembrandt's first name was Beauregard, which is why he never used it. 10886 -- Dave Barry 10887% 10888Remember that whatever misfortune may be your lot, it could only be 10889worse in Cleveland. 10890 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 10891% 10892Remember, drive defensively! And of course, the best defense is a good 10893offense! 10894% 10895Remember, even if you win the rat race -- you're still a rat. 10896% 10897Remember, UNIX spelled backwards is XINU. 10898% 10899Remember: Silly is a state of Mind, Stupid is a way of Life. 10900 -- Dave Butler 10901% 10902Renning's Maxim: 10903 Man is the highest animal. Man does the classifying. 10904% 10905Reporter (to Mahatma Gandhi): Mr Gandhi, what do you think of Western 10906 Civilization? 10907Gandhi: I think it would be a good idea. 10908% 10909Reporter, n.: 10910 A writer who guesses his way to the truth and dispels it with a 10911tempest of words. 10912 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 10913% 10914REPORTER: Senator, are you for or against the MX missile system? 10915 10916SENATOR: Bob, the MX missile system reminds me of an old saying that 10917the country folk in my state like to say. It goes like this: "You can 10918carry a pig for six miles, but if you set it down it might run away." 10919I have no idea why the country folk say this. Maybe there's some kind 10920of chemical pollutant in their drinking water. That is why I pledge to 10921do all that I can to protect the environment of this great nation of 10922ours, and put prayer back in the schools, where it belongs. What we 10923need is jobs, not empty promises. I realize I'm risking my political 10924career by being so outspoken on a sensitive issue such as the MX, but 10925that's just the kind of straight-talking honest person I am, and I 10926can't help it. 10927 -- Dave Barry, "On Presidential Politics" 10928% 10929Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. 10930 -- Wernher von Braun 10931% 10932Resisting temptation is easier when you think you'll probably get 10933another chance later on. 10934% 10935Review Questions 10936 10937(1) If Nerd on the planet Nutley starts out in his spaceship at 20 KPH, 10938 and his speed doubles every 3.2 seconds, how long will it be before 10939 he exceeds the speed of light? How long will it be before the 10940 Galactic Patrol picks up the pieces of his spaceship? 10941 10942(2) If Roger Rowdy wrecks his car every week, and each week he breaks 10943 twice as many bones as before, how long will it be before he breaks 10944 every bone in his body? How long will it be before they cut off 10945 his insurance? Where does he get a new car every week? 10946 10947(3) If Johnson drinks one beer the first hour (slow start), four beers 10948 the next hour, nine beers the next, etc., and stacks the cans in a 10949 pyramid, how soon will Johnson's pyramid be larger than King 10950 Tut's? When will it fall on him? Will he notice? 10951% 10952Rhode's Law: 10953 When any principle, law, tenet, probability, happening, 10954circumstance, or result can in no way be directly, indirectly, 10955empirically, or circuitously proven, derived, implied, inferred, 10956induced, deducted, estimated, or scientifically guessed, it will always 10957for the purpose of convenience, expediency, political advantage, 10958material gain, or personal comfort, or any combination of the above, or 10959none of the above, be unilaterally and unequivocally assumed, 10960proclaimed, and adhered to as absolute truth to be undeniably, 10961universally, immutably, and infinitely so, until such time as it 10962becomes advantageous to assume otherwise, maybe. 10963% 10964Right now I'm having amnesia and deja vu at the same time. 10965 -- Steven Wright 10966% 10967Rocky's Lemma of Innovation Prevention 10968 Unless the results are known in advance, funding agencies will 10969 reject the proposal. 10970% 10971Romeo wasn't bilked in a day. 10972 -- Walt Kelly, "Ten Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed Years With Pogo" 10973% 10974ROMEO: Courage, man; the hurt cannot be much. 10975MERCUTIO: No, 'tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church- 10976 door; but 'tis enough, 'twill serve. 10977% 10978Rudin's Law: 10979 If there is a wrong way to do something, most people will do it 10980every time. 10981% 10982Rule 46, Oxford Union Society, London: 10983 Any member introducing a dog into the Society's premises shall 10984be liable to a fine of one pound. Any animal leading a blind person 10985shall be deemed to be a cat. 10986% 10987Rule of Creative Research: 10988 (1) Never draw what you can copy. 10989 (2) Never copy what you can trace. 10990 (3) Never trace what you can cut out and paste down. 10991% 10992Rule of Defactualization: 10993 Information deteriorates upward through bureaucracies. 10994% 10995Rule of Feline Frustration: 10996 When your cat has fallen asleep on your lap and looks utterly 10997content and adorable, you will suddenly have to go to the bathroom. 10998% 10999Rule of the Great: 11000 When people you greatly admire appear to be thinking deep 11001thoughts, they probably are thinking about lunch. 11002% 11003Rules for Academic Deans: 11004 (1) HIDE!!!! 11005 (2) If they find you, LIE!!!! 11006 -- Father Damian C. Fandal 11007% 11008Rules for driving in New York: 11009 (1) Anything done while honking your horn is legal. 11010 (2) You may park anywhere if you turn your four-way flashers 11011 on. 11012 (3) A red light means the next six cars may go through the 11013 intersection. 11014% 11015RULES OF EATING -- THE BRONX DIETER'S CREED 11016 (1) Never eat on an empty stomach. 11017 (2) Never leave the table hungry. 11018 (3) When traveling, never leave a country hungry. 11019 (4) Enjoy your food. 11020 (5) Enjoy your companion's food. 11021 (6) Really taste your food. It may take several portions to 11022 accomplish this, especially if subtly seasoned. 11023 (7) Really feel your food. Texture is important. Compare, 11024 for example, the texture of a turnip to that of a 11025 brownie. Which feels better against your cheeks? 11026 (8) Never eat between snacks, unless it's a meal. 11027 (9) Don't feel you must finish everything on your plate. You 11028 can always eat it later. 11029 (10) Avoid any wine with a childproof cap. 11030 (11) Avoid blue food. 11031 -- Richard Smith, "The Bronx Diet" 11032% 11033Rules: 11034 (1) The boss is always right. 11035 (2) When the boss is wrong, refer to rule 1. 11036% 11037 Safety Tips for the Post-Nuclear Existence 11038 Tip #1: How to tell when you are dead. 11039 11040(1) Little things start bothering you: little things like worms, bugs, 11041 ants. 11042(2) Something is missing in your personal relationships. 11043(3) Your dog becomes overly affectionate. 11044(4) You have a hard time getting a waiter. 11045(5) Exotic birds flock around you. 11046(6) People ignore you at parties. 11047(7) You have a hard time getting up in the morning. 11048(8) You no longer get off on cocaine. 11049% 11050 Safety Tips for the Post-Nuclear Existence 11051(1) Never use an elevator in a building that has been hit by a nuclear 11052 bomb; use the stairs. 11053(2) When you're flying through the air, remember to roll when you hit 11054 the ground. 11055(3) If you're on fire, avoid gasoline and other flammable materials. 11056(4) Don't attempt communication with dead people; it will only lead to 11057 psychological problems. 11058(5) Food will be scarce; you will have to scavenge. Learn to 11059 recognize foods that will be available after the bomb: mashed 11060 potatoes, shredded wheat, tossed salad, ground beef, etc. 11061(6) Put your hand over your mouth when you sneeze; internal organs 11062 will be scarce in the post-nuclear age. 11063(7) Try to be neat; fall only in designated piles. 11064(8) Drive carefully in "Heavy Fallout" areas; people could be 11065 staggering illegally. 11066(9) Nutritionally, hundred dollar bills are equal to ones, but more 11067 sanitary due to limited circulation. 11068(10) Accumulate mannequins now; spare parts will be in short supply on 11069 D-Day. 11070% 11071SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 - Dec 21) 11072 You are optimistic and enthusiastic. You have a reckless 11073 tendency to rely on luck since you lack talent. The majority 11074 of Sagittarians are drunks or dope fiends or both. People 11075 laugh at you a great deal. 11076% 11077San Francisco isn't what it used to be, and it never was. 11078 -- Herb Caen 11079% 11080San Francisco, n.: 11081 Marcel Proust editing an issue of Penthouse. 11082% 11083Sanity is the trademark of a weak mind. 11084 -- Mark Harrold 11085% 11086Santa Claus wears a Red Suit, 11087 He must be a communist. 11088And a beard and long hair, 11089 Must be a pacifist. 11090 11091 What's in that pipe that he's smoking? 11092 -- Arlo Guthrie 11093% 11094Satellite Safety Tip #14: 11095 If you see a bright streak in the sky coming at you, duck. 11096% 11097Sattinger's Law: 11098 It works better if you plug it in. 11099% 11100Saturday night in Toledo Ohio, 11101 Is like being nowhere at all, 11102All through the day how the hours rush by, 11103 You sit in the park and you watch the grass die. 11104 -- John Denver, "Saturday Night in Toledo Ohio" 11105% 11106Sauron is alive in Argentina! 11107% 11108Save energy: be apathetic. 11109% 11110Save the Whales -- Harpoon a Honda. 11111% 11112Save the whales. Collect the whole set. 11113% 11114Saw a sign on a restaurant that said Breakfast, any time -- so I 11115ordered French Toast in the Renaissance. 11116 -- Steven Wright 11117% 11118SCCS, the source motel! Programs check in and never check out! 11119 -- Ken Thompson 11120% 11121Schapiro's Explanation: 11122 The grass is always greener on the other side -- but that's 11123because they use more manure. 11124% 11125Schizophrenia beats being alone. 11126% 11127Schlattwhapper, n.: 11128 The window shade that allows itself to be pulled down, 11129hesitates for a second, then snaps up in your face. 11130 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 11131% 11132Schnuffel, n.: 11133 A dog's practice of continuously nuzzling in your crotch in 11134mixed company. 11135 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 11136% 11137Schwiggle, n.: 11138 The amusing rotation of one's bottom while sharpening a 11139pencil. 11140 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 11141% 11142Science is facts; just as houses are made of stones, so is science made 11143of facts; but a pile of stones is not a house and a collection of facts 11144is not necessarily science. 11145 -- Henri Poincar'e 11146% 11147Science is what happens when preconception meets verification. 11148% 11149Scientists are people who build the Brooklyn Bridge and then buy it. 11150 -- William Buckley 11151 11152% 11153SCORPIO (Oct 23 - Nov 21) 11154 You are shrewd in business and cannot be trusted. You will 11155 achieve the pinnacle of success because of your total lack of 11156 ethics. Most Scorpio people are murdered. 11157% 11158Scott's first Law: 11159 No matter what goes wrong, it will probably look right. 11160% 11161Scott's second Law: 11162 When an error has been detected and corrected, it will be found 11163to have been wrong in the first place. 11164 11165Corollary: 11166 After the correction has been found in error, it will be 11167impossible to fit the original quantity back into the equation. 11168% 11169Scotty: Captain, we din' can reference it! 11170Kirk: Analysis, Mr. Spock? 11171Spock: Captain, it doesn't appear in the symbol table. 11172Kirk: Then it's of external origin? 11173Spock: Affirmative. 11174Kirk: Mr. Sulu, go to pass two. 11175Sulu: Aye aye, sir, going to pass two. 11176% 11177Screw up your courage! You've screwed up everything else. 11178% 11179Scrubbing floors and emptying bedpans has as much dignity as the 11180Presidency. 11181 -- Richard Nixon 11182% 11183Second Law of Business Meetings: 11184 If there are two possible ways to spell a person's name, you 11185will pick the wrong one. 11186 11187Corollary: 11188 If there is only one way to spell a name, you will spell it 11189wrong, anyway. 11190% 11191Section 2.4.3.5 AWNS (Acceptor Wait for New Cycle State). 11192 In AWNS the AH function indicates that it has received a 11193multiline message byte. 11194 In AWNS the RFD message must be sent false and the DAC message 11195must be sent passive true. 11196 The AH function must exit the AWNS and enter: 11197 (1) The ANRS if DAV is false 11198 (2) The AIDS if the ATN message is false and neither: 11199 (a) The LADS is active 11200 (b) Nor LACS is active 11201 11202 -- from the IEEE Standard Digital Interface for 11203 Programmable Instrumentation 11204% 11205Security check: INTRUDER ALERT! 11206% 11207Seduced, shaggy Samson snored. 11208She scissored short. Sorely shorn, 11209Soon shackled slave, Samson sighed, 11210Silently scheming, 11211Sightlessly seeking 11212Some savage, spectacular suicide. 11213 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 11214% 11215See - the thing is - I'm an absolutist. I mean, kind of ... in a way ... 11216% 11217Seleznick's Theory of Holistic Medicine: 11218 Ice Cream cures all ills. 11219% 11220Self Test for Paranoia: 11221 You know you have it when you can't think of anything that's 11222your own fault. 11223% 11224Seminars, n.: 11225 From "semi" and "arse", hence, any half-assed discussion. 11226% 11227Sen. Danforth: "There is nothing on the face of the album which would 11228 notify you if the record has pornographic material or 11229 material glorifying violence?" 11230Tipper Gore: "No, there is nothing that would suggest that to me." 11231Frank Zappa: "I would say that a buzz saw blade between the guy's 11232 legs on the album cover is good indication that it's 11233 not for little Johnny." 11234 11235 -- The Senate Commerce Committee hearing on rock 11236 lyrics, from The Village Voice, 6 Oct 1985 11237% 11238Senate, n.: 11239 A body of elderly gentlemen charged with high duties and 11240misdemeanors. 11241 -- Ambrose Bierce 11242% 11243Serenity through viciousness. 11244% 11245Serocki's Stricture: 11246 Marriage is always a bachelor's last option. 11247% 11248Serving coffee on aircraft causes turbulence. 11249% 11250 "Seven years and six months!" Humpty Dumpty repeated 11251thoughtfully. "An uncomfortable sort of age. Now if you'd asked MY 11252advice, I'd have said `Leave off at seven' -- but it's too late now." 11253 "I never ask advice about growing," Alice said indignantly. 11254 "Too proud?" the other enquired. 11255 Alice felt even more indignant at this suggestion. "I mean," 11256she said, "that one can't help growing older." 11257 "ONE can't, perhaps," said Humpty Dumpty; "but TWO can. With 11258proper assistance, you might have left off at seven." 11259 -- Lewis Carroll 11260% 11261Several years ago, some smart businessmen had an idea: Why not build a 11262big store where a do-it-yourselfer could get everything he needed at 11263reasonable prices? Then they decided, nah, the hell with that, let's 11264build a home center. And before long home centers were springing up 11265like crabgrass all over the United States. 11266 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 11267% 11268Sex is a natural bodily process, like a stroke. 11269% 11270Sex is not the answer. Sex is the question. "Yes" is the answer. 11271 -- Swami X 11272% 11273Sex is the mathematics urge sublimated. 11274 -- M. C. Reed 11275% 11276Sex without love is an empty experience, but, as empty experiences go, 11277it's one of the best. 11278 -- Woody Allen 11279% 11280Shamus, n. [Yiddish]: 11281 A shamus is a guy who takes care of handyman tasks around the 11282temple, and makes sure everything is in working order. 11283 A shamus is at the bottom of the pecking order of synagogue 11284functionaries, and there's a joke about that: 11285 A rabbi, to show his humility before God, cries out in the 11286middle of a service, "Oh, Lord, I am nobody!" The cantor, not to be 11287bested, also cries out, "Oh, Lord, I am nobody!" 11288 The shamus, deeply moved, follows suit and cries, "Oh, Lord, I 11289am nobody!" The rabbi turns to the cantor and says, "Look who thinks 11290he's nobody!" 11291 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 11292% 11293Sharks are as tough as those football fans who take their shirts off 11294during games in Chicago in January, only more intelligent. 11295 -- Dave Barry, "Sex and the Single Amoeba: What Every 11296 Teen Should Know" 11297% 11298Shaw's Principle: 11299 Build a system that even a fool can use, and only a fool will 11300want to use it. 11301% 11302She is descended from a long line that her mother listened to. 11303 -- Gypsy Rose Lee 11304% 11305She is not refined. She is not unrefined. She keeps a parrot. 11306 -- Mark Twain 11307% 11308She liked him; he was a man of many qualities, even if most of them 11309were bad. 11310% 11311She missed an invaluable opportunity to give him a look that you could 11312have poured on a waffle ... 11313% 11314She said, `I know you ... you cannot sing'. I said, `That's nothing, 11315you should hear me play piano.' 11316 -- Morrisey 11317% 11318She's genuinely bogus. 11319% 11320Sherry [Thomas Sheridan] is dull, naturally dull; but it must have 11321taken him a great deal of pains to become what we now see him. Such an 11322excess of stupidity, sir, is not in Nature. 11323 -- Samuel Johnson 11324% 11325SHIFT TO THE LEFT! SHIFT TO THE RIGHT! 11326POP UP, PUSH DOWN, BYTE, BYTE, BYTE! 11327% 11328Show me a man who is a good loser and I'll show you a man who is 11329playing golf with his boss. 11330% 11331Show respect for age. Drink good Scotch for a change. 11332% 11333Signs of crime: screaming or cries for help. 11334 -- from the Brown University Security Crime Prevention Pamphlet 11335% 11336Silverman's Law: 11337 If Murphy's Law can go wrong, it will. 11338% 11339Simon's Law: 11340 Everything put together falls apart sooner or later. 11341% 11342Since I hurt my pendulum 11343My life is all erratic. 11344My parrot, who was cordial, 11345Is now transmitting static. 11346The carpet died, a palm collapsed, 11347The cat keeps doing poo. 11348The only thing that keeps me sane 11349Is talking to my shoe. 11350 -- My Shoe 11351% 11352Since we have to speak well of the dead, let's knock them while they're 11353alive. 11354 -- John Sloan 11355% 11356Since we're all here, we must not be all there. 11357 -- Bob "Mountain" Beck 11358% 11359[Sir Stafford Cripps] has all the virtues I dislike and none of the 11360vices I admire. 11361 -- Winston Churchill 11362% 11363Sixtus V, Pope from 1585 to 1590 authorized a printing of the Vulgate 11364Bible. Taking no chances, the pope issued a papal bull automatically 11365excommunicating any printer who might make an alteration in the text. 11366This he ordered printed at the beginning of the Bible. He personally 11367examined every sheet as it came off the press. Yet the published 11368Vulgate Bible contained so many errors that corrected scraps had to be 11369printed and pasted over them in every copy. The result provoked wry 11370comments on the rather patchy papal infallibility, and Pope Sixtus had 11371no recourse but to order the return and destruction of every copy. 11372% 11373Skinner's Constant (or Flannagan's Finagling Factor): 11374 That quantity which, when multiplied by, divided by, added to, 11375or subtracted from the answer you get, gives you the answer you should 11376have gotten. 11377% 11378Slang is language that takes off its coat, spits on its hands, and goes 11379to work. 11380% 11381Slaves are generally expected to sing as well as to work ... I did not, 11382when a slave, understand the deep meanings of those rude, and 11383apparently incoherent songs. I was myself within the circle, so that I 11384neither saw nor heard as those without might see and hear. They told a 11385tale which was then altogether beyond my feeble comprehension: they 11386were tones, loud, long and deep, breathing the prayer and complaint of 11387souls boiling over with the bitterest anguish. Every tone was a 11388testimony against slavery, and a prayer to God for deliverance from 11389chains. 11390 -- Frederick Douglass 11391% 11392Slick's Three Laws of the Universe: 11393 (1) Nothing in the known universe travels faster than a bad 11394 check. 11395 (2) A quarter-ounce of chocolate = four pounds of fat. 11396 (3) There are two types of dirt: the dark kind, which is 11397 attracted to light objects, and the light kind, which is 11398 attracted to dark objects. 11399% 11400Slowly and surely the unix crept up on the Nintendo user ... 11401% 11402Slurm, n.: 11403 The slime that accumulates on the underside of a soap bar when 11404it sits in the dish too long. 11405 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 11406% 11407Smoking is one of the leading causes of statistics. 11408 -- Fletcher Knebel 11409% 11410Snacktrek, n.: 11411 The peculiar habit, when searching for a snack, of constantly 11412returning to the refrigerator in hopes that something new will have 11413materialized. 11414 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 11415% 11416So as your consumer electronics adviser, I am advising you to donate 11417your current VCR to a grate resident, who will laugh sardonically and 11418hurl it into a dumpster. Then I want you to go out and purchase a vast 11419array of 8-millimeter video equipment. 11420 11421... OK! Got everything? Well, *too bad, sucker*, because while you 11422were gone the electronics industry came up with an even newer format 11423that makes your 8-millimeter VCR look as technologically advanced as 11424toenail dirt. This format is called "3.5 hectare" and it will not be 11425made available until it is outmoded, sometime early next week, by a 11426format called "Elroy", so *order yours now*. 11427 -- Dave Barry, "No Surrender in the Electronics 11428 Revolution" 11429% 11430So far as I can remember, there is not one word in the Gospels in 11431praise of intelligence. 11432 -- Bertrand Russell 11433% 11434... so long as the people do not care to exercise their freedom, those 11435who wish to tyranize will do so; for tyrants are active and ardent, 11436and will devote themselves in the name of any number of gods, religious 11437and otherwise, to put shackles upon sleeping men. 11438 -- Voltarine de Cleyre 11439% 11440 So Richard and I decided to try to catch [the small shark]. 11441With a great deal of strategy and effort and shouting, we managed to 11442maneuver the shark, over the course of about a half-hour, to a sort of 11443corner of the lagoon, so that it had no way to escape other than to 11444flop up onto the land and evolve. Richard and I were inching toward 11445it, sort of crouched over, when all of a sudden it turned around and -- 11446I can still remember the sensation I felt at that moment, primarily in 11447the armpit area -- headed right straight toward us. 11448 Many people would have panicked at this point. But Richard and 11449I were not "many people." We were experienced waders, and we kept our 11450heads. We did exactly what the textbook says you should do when you're 11451unarmed and a shark that is nearly two feet long turns on you in water 11452up to your lower calves: We sprinted I would say 600 yards in the 11453opposite direction, using a sprinting style such that the bottoms of 11454our feet never once went below the surface of the water. We ran all 11455the way to the far shore, and if we had been in a Warner Brothers 11456cartoon we would have run right INTO the beach, and you would have seen 11457these two mounds of sand racing across the island until they bonked 11458into trees and coconuts fell onto their heads. 11459 -- Dave Barry, "The Wonders of Sharks on TV" 11460% 11461So she went into the garden to cut a cabbage leaf to make an apple 11462pie; and at the same time a great she-bear, coming up the street pops 11463its head into the shop. "What! no soap?" So he died, and she very 11464imprudently married the barber; and there were present the Picninnies, 11465and the Grand Panjandrum himself, with the little round button at top, 11466and they all fell to playing the game of catch as catch can, till the 11467gunpowder ran out at the heels of their boots. 11468 -- Samuel Foote 11469% 11470... So the documentary-makers stick with sharks. Generally, their 11471procedure is to scatter bleeding fish pieces around their boat, so as 11472to infest the waters. I would estimate that the primary food source of 11473sharks today is bleeding fish pieces scattered by people making 11474documentaries. Once the sharks arrive, they are generally fairly 11475listless. The general shark attitude seems to be: "Oh God, another 11476documentary." So the divers have to somehow goad them into attacking, 11477under the guise of Scientific Research. "We know very little about the 11478effect of electricity on sharks," the narrator will say, in a deeply 11479scientific voice. "That is why Todd is going to jab this Great White 11480in the testicles with a cattle prod." The divers keep this kind of 11481thing up until the shark finally gets irritated and snaps at them, and 11482then they act as though this was a totally unexpected and very 11483dangerous development, although clearly it is what they wanted all 11484along. 11485 -- Dave Barry, "The Wonders of Sharks on TV" 11486% 11487So, what's with this guy Gideon, anyway? 11488And why can't he ever remember his Bible? 11489% 11490Sodd's Second Law: 11491 Sooner or later, the worst possible set of circumstances is 11492bound to occur. 11493% 11494Software, n.: 11495 Formal evening attire for female computer analysts. 11496% 11497Some don't prefer the pursuit of happiness to the happiness of pursuit. 11498% 11499Some men are alive simply because it is against the law to kill them. 11500 -- Ed Howe 11501% 11502Some of you ... may have decided that, this year, you're going to 11503celebrate it the old-fashioned way, with your family sitting around 11504stringing cranberries and exchanging humble, handmade gifts, like on 11505"The Waltons". Well, you can forget it. If everybody pulled that kind 11506of subversive stunt, the economy would collapse overnight. The 11507government would have to intervene: it would form a cabinet-level 11508Department of Holiday Gift-Giving, which would spend billions and 11509billions of tax dollars to buy Barbie dolls and electronic games, which 11510it would drop on the populace from Air Force jets, killing and maiming 11511thousands. So, for the good of the nation, you should go along with 11512the Holiday Program. This means you should get a large sum of money 11513and go to a mall. 11514 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 11515% 11516Some people are born mediocre, some people achieve mediocrity, and some 11517people have mediocrity thrust upon them. 11518 -- Joseph Heller, "Catch-22" 11519% 11520Some people have a way about them that seems to say: "If I have only 11521one life to live, let me live it as a jerk." 11522% 11523Some people in this department wouldn't recognize subtlety if it hit 11524them on the head. 11525% 11526Some people live life in the fast lane. You're in oncoming traffic. 11527% 11528Some performers on television appear to be horrible people, but when 11529you finally get to know them in person, they turn out to be even 11530worse. 11531 -- Avery 11532% 11533Some points to remember [about animals]: 11534 11535(1) Don't go to sleep under big animals, e.g., elephants, rhinoceri, 11536 hippopotamuses; 11537(2) Don't put animals with sharp teeth or poisonous fangs down the 11538 front of your clothes; 11539(3) Don't pat certain animals, e.g., crocodiles and scorpions or dogs 11540 you have just kicked. 11541 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 11542% 11543Some primal termite knocked on wood. 11544And tasted it, and found it good. 11545And that is why your Cousin May 11546Fell through the parlor floor today. 11547 -- Ogden Nash 11548% 11549Some programming languages manage to absorb change but withstand 11550progress. 11551% 11552Some programming languages manage to absorb change, but withstand 11553progress. 11554 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 11555% 11556Somebody ought to cross ball point pens with coat hangers so that the 11557pens will multiply instead of disappear. 11558% 11559Someone will try to honk your nose today. 11560% 11561Sometimes I simply feel that the whole world is a cigarette and I'm 11562the only ashtray. 11563% 11564Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world. 11565 -- Lily Tomlin 11566% 11567"Somewhere", said Father Vittorini, "did Blake not speak of the 11568Machineries of Joy? That is, did not God promote environments, then 11569intimidate these Natures by provoking the existence of flesh, toy men 11570and women, such as are we all? And thus happily sent forth, at our 11571best, with good grace and fine wit, on calm noons, in fair climes, are 11572we not God's Machineries of Joy?" 11573 11574"If Blake said that", said Father Brian, "he never lived in Dublin." 11575 -- R. Bradbury, "The Machineries of Joy" 11576% 11577Somewhere, just out of sight, the unicorns are gathering. 11578% 11579Song Title of the Week: 11580 "They're putting dimes in the hole in my head to see the change 11581in me." 11582% 11583Sooner or later you must pay for your sins. 11584(Those who have already paid may disregard this fortune). 11585% 11586Sorry, no fortune this time. 11587% 11588Sorry. I forget what I was going to say. 11589% 11590Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- 11591bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the 11592road to the drug store, but that's just peanuts to space. 11593 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 11594% 11595Spare no expense to save money on this one. 11596 -- Samuel Goldwyn 11597% 11598Spark's Sixth Rule for Managers: 11599 If a subordinate asks you a pertinent question, look at him as 11600if he had lost his senses. When he looks down, paraphrase the question 11601back at him. 11602% 11603Speak roughly to your little boy, 11604 And beat him when he sneezes: 11605He only does it to annoy 11606 Because he knows it teases. 11607 11608 Wow! wow! wow! 11609 11610I speak severely to my boy, 11611 And beat him when he sneezes: 11612For he can thoroughly enjoy 11613 The pepper when he pleases! 11614 11615 Wow! wow! wow! 11616 -- Lewis Carroll, "Alice in Wonderland" 11617% 11618Speak roughly to your little VAX, 11619 And boot it when it crashes; 11620It knows that one cannot relax 11621 Because the paging thrashes! 11622 11623 Wow! Wow! Wow! 11624 11625I speak severely to my VAX, 11626 And boot it when it crashes; 11627In spite of all my favorite hacks 11628 My jobs it always thrashes! 11629 11630 Wow! Wow! Wow! 11631% 11632Speak softly and carry a +6 two-handed sword. 11633% 11634Speak softly and own a big, mean Doberman. 11635 -- Dave Millman 11636% 11637Speaking as someone who has delved into the intricacies of PL/I, I am 11638sure that only Real Men could have written such a machine-hogging, 11639cycle-grabbing, all-encompassing monster. Allocate an array and free 11640the middle third? Sure! Why not? Multiply a character string times a 11641bit string and assign the result to a float decimal? Go ahead! Free a 11642controlled variable procedure parameter and reallocate it before 11643passing it back? Overlay three different types of variable on the same 11644memory location? Anything you say! Write a recursive macro? Well, 11645no, but Real Men use rescan. How could a language so obviously 11646designed and written by Real Men not be intended for Real Man use? 11647% 11648Speaking of Godzilla and other things that convey horror: 11649 11650 With a purposeful grimace and a Mongo-like flair 11651 He throws the spinning disk drives in the air! 11652 And he picks up a Vax and he throws it back down 11653 As he wades through the lab making terrible sounds! 11654 Helpless users with projects due 11655 Scream "My God!" as he stomps on the tape drives, too! 11656 11657 Oh, no! He says Unix runs too slow! Go, go, DECzilla! 11658 Oh, yes! He's gonna bring up VMS! Go, go, DECzilla!" 11659 11660* VMS is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation 11661* DECzilla is a trademark of Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of Death, Inc. 11662 -- Curtis Jackson 11663% 11664Speaking of love, one problem that recurs more and more frequently 11665these days, in books and plays and movies, is the inability of people 11666to communicate with the people they love; Husbands and wives who can't 11667communicate, children who can't communicate with their parents, and so 11668on. And the characters in these books and plays and so on (and in real 11669life, I might add) spend hours bemoaning the fact that they can't 11670communicate. I feel that if a person can't communicate, the very _____least 11671he can do is to Shut Up! 11672 -- Tom Lehrer, "That Was the Year that Was" 11673% 11674Speed is subsittute fo accurancy. 11675% 11676Speer's 1st Law of Proofreading: 11677 The visibility of an error is inversely proportional to the 11678number of times you have looked at it. 11679% 11680Spelling is a lossed art. 11681% 11682Spend extra time on hobby. Get plenty of rolling papers. 11683% 11684Spirtle, n.: 11685 The fine stream from a grapefruit that always lands right in 11686your eye. 11687 -- Sniglets, "Rich Hall & Friends" 11688% 11689Spouse, n.: 11690 Someone who'll stand by you through all the trouble you 11691wouldn't have had if you'd stayed single. 11692% 11693Star Wars is adolescent nonsense; Close Encounters is obscurantist 11694drivel; Star Trek can turn your brains to pur'ee of bat guano; and the 11695greatest science fiction series of all time is Doctor Who! And I'll 11696take you all on, one-by-one or all in a bunch to back it up! 11697 -- Harlan Ellison 11698% 11699Stay away from flying saucers today. 11700% 11701Stay away from hurricanes for a while. 11702% 11703Stealing a rhinoceros should not be attempted lightly. 11704% 11705Steele's Plagiarism of Somebody's Philosophy: 11706 Everybody should believe in something -- I believe I'll have 11707another drink. 11708% 11709Steinbach's Guideline for Systems Programming: 11710 Never test for an error condition you don't know how to 11711handle. 11712% 11713Stop searching. Happiness is right next to you. 11714% 11715Stop searching. Happiness is right next to you. 11716Now, if they'd only take a bath ... 11717% 11718Stult's Report: 11719 Our problems are mostly behind us. What we have to do now is 11720fight the solutions. 11721% 11722Stupid, n.: 11723 Losing $25 on the game and $25 on the instant replay. 11724% 11725Stupidity got us into this mess -- why can't it get us out? 11726% 11727Sturgeon's Law: 11728 90% of everything is crud. 11729% 11730Substitute "damn" every time you're inclined to write "very"; your 11731editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be. 11732 -- Mark Twain 11733% 11734Subtlety is the art of saying what you think and getting out of the way 11735before it is understood. 11736% 11737Succumb to natural tendencies. Be hateful and boring. 11738% 11739Suddenly, Professor Liebowitz realizes he has come to the seminar 11740without his duck ... 11741% 11742(Sung to the tune of "The Impossible Dream" from MAN OF LA MANCHA) 11743 11744 To code the impossible code, 11745 To bring up a virgin machine, 11746 To pop out of endless recursion, 11747 To grok what appears on the screen, 11748 11749 To right the unrightable bug, 11750 To endlessly twiddle and thrash, 11751 To mount the unmountable magtape, 11752 To stop the unstoppable crash! 11753% 11754Support bacteria -- it's the only culture some people have! 11755% 11756Support wildlife -- vote for an orgy. 11757% 11758Support your local police force -- steal!! 11759% 11760Support your local Search and Rescue unit -- get lost. 11761% 11762Sure he's sharp as a razor ... he's a two-dimensional pinhead! 11763% 11764Surprise due today. Also the rent. 11765% 11766Surprise your boss. Get to work on time. 11767% 11768Surprise! You are the lucky winner of random I.R.S. Audit! Just type 11769in your name and social security number. Please remember that leaving 11770the room is punishable under law: 11771 11772Name # 11773 11774 11775% 11776Swahili, n.: 11777 The language used by the National Enquirer to print their retractions. 11778 -- Johnny Hart 11779% 11780Sweater, n.: 11781 A garment worn by a child when its mother feels chilly. 11782% 11783Swipple's Rule of Order: 11784 He who shouts the loudest has the floor. 11785% 11786Syntactic sugar causes cancer of the semicolon. 11787 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 11788% 11789Systems have sub-systems and sub-systems have sub-systems and so on ad 11790infinitum -- which is why we're always starting over. 11791 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 11792% 11793 _ 11794 _ / \ o 11795 / \ | | o o o 11796 | | | | _ o o o o 11797 | \_| | / \ o o o 11798 \__ | | | o o 11799 | | | | ______ ~~~~ _____ 11800 | |__/ | / ___--\\ ~~~ __/_____\__ 11801 | ___/ / \--\\ \\ \ ___ <__ x x __\ 11802 | | / /\\ \\ )) \ ( " ) 11803 | | -------(---->>(@)--(@)-------\----------< >----------- 11804 | | // | | //__________ / \ ____) (___ \\ 11805 | | // __|_| ( --------- ) //// ______ /////\ \\ 11806 // | ( \ ______ / <<<< <>-----<<<<< / \\ 11807 // ( ) / / \` \__ \\ 11808 //-------------------------------------------------------------\\ 11809 11810Every now and then when your life gets complicated and the weasels 11811start closing in, the only cure is to load up on heinous chemicals and 11812then drive like a bastard from Hollywood to Las Vegas ... with the 11813music at top volume and at least a pint of ether. 11814 -- H. S. Thompson, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" 11815% 11816T: One big monster, he called TROLL. 11817 He don't rock, and he don't roll; 11818 Drink no wine, and smoke no stogies. 11819 He just Love To Eat Them Roguies. 11820 -- The Roguelet's ABC 11821% 11822Tact is the ability to tell a man he has an open mind when he has a 11823hole in his head. 11824% 11825Tact, n.: 11826 The unsaid part of what you're thinking. 11827% 11828Take everything in stride. Trample anyone who gets in your way. 11829% 11830Take heart amid the deepening gloom that your dog is finally getting 11831enough cheese. 11832 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 11833% 11834Take it easy, we're in a hurry. 11835% 11836Take my word for it, the silliest woman can manage a clever man, but it 11837needs a very clever woman to manage a fool. 11838 -- Kipling 11839% 11840Take the folks at Coca-Cola. For many years, they were content to sit 11841back and make the same old carbonated beverage. It was a good 11842beverage, no question about it; generations of people had grown up 11843drinking it and doing the experiment in sixth grade where you put a 11844nail into a glass of Coke and after a couple of days the nail dissolves 11845and the teacher says: "Imagine what it does to your TEETH!" So 11846Coca-Cola was solidly entrenched in the market, and the management saw 11847no need to improve ... 11848 -- Dave Barry, "In Search of Excellence" 11849% 11850Take your dying with some seriousness, however. Laughing on the way to 11851your execution is not generally understood by less advanced life forms, 11852and they'll call you crazy. 11853 -- "Messiah's Handbook: Reminders for the Advanced Soul" 11854% 11855Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish. 11856 -- Euripides 11857% 11858Talkers are no good doers. 11859 -- William Shakespeare, "Henry VI" 11860% 11861Talking much about oneself can also be a means to conceal oneself. 11862 -- Friedrich Nietzsche 11863% 11864TAURUS (Apr 20 - May 20) 11865 You are practical and persistent. You have a dogged 11866 determination and work like hell. Most people think you are 11867 stubborn and bull headed. You are a Communist. 11868% 11869Tax reform means "Don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that fellow behind 11870the tree." 11871 -- Russell Long 11872% 11873Taxes are going up so fast, the government is likely to price itself 11874out of the market. 11875% 11876Taxes, n.: 11877 Of life's two certainties, the only one for which you can get 11878an extension. 11879% 11880Teach children to be polite and courteous in the home, and, when they 11881grows up, they will never be able to edge their car onto a freeway. 11882% 11883Teamwork is essential -- it allows you to blame someone else. 11884% 11885Technological progress has merely provided us 11886with more efficient means for going backwards. 11887 -- Aldous Huxley 11888% 11889Telephone, n.: 11890 An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the 11891advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance. 11892 -- Ambrose Bierce 11893% 11894Tell me, O Octopus, I begs, 11895Is those things arms, or is they legs? 11896I marvel at thee, Octopus; 11897If I were thou, I'd call me us. 11898 -- Ogden Nash 11899% 11900Ten years of rejection slips is nature's way of telling you to stop 11901writing. 11902 -- R. Geis 11903% 11904Terence, this is stupid stuff: 11905You eat your victuals fast enough; 11906There can't be much amiss, 'tis clear, 11907To see the rate you drink your beer. 11908But oh, good Lord, the verse you make, 11909It gives a chap the belly-ache. 11910The cow, the old cow, she is dead; 11911It sleeps well the horned head: 11912We poor lads, 'tis our turn now 11913To hear such tunes as killed the cow. 11914Pretty friendship 'tis to rhyme 11915Your friends to death before their time. 11916Moping, melancholy mad: 11917Come, pipe a tune to dance to, lad. 11918 -- A. E. Housman 11919% 11920Termiter's argument that God is His own grandmother generated a 11921surprising amount of controversy among Church leaders, who on the one 11922hand considered the argument unsupported by scripture but on the other 11923hand were unwilling to risk offending God's grandmother. 11924 -- Len Cool, "American Pie" 11925% 11926Tertullian was born in Carthage somewhere about 160 A.D. He was a 11927pagan, and he abandoned himself to the lascivious life of his city 11928until about his 35th year, when he became a Christian .... To him is 11929ascribed the sublime confession: Credo quia absurdum est (I believe 11930because it is absurd). This does not altogether accord with historical 11931fact, for he merely said: 11932 11933 "And the Son of God died, which is immediately credible because 11934 it is absurd. And buried he rose again, which is certain 11935 because it is impossible." 11936 11937Thanks to the acuteness of his mind, he saw through the poverty of 11938philosophical and Gnostic knowledge, and contemptuously rejected it. 11939 -- C. G. Jung, in Psychological Types 11940 11941(Tertullian was one of the founders of the Catholic Church). 11942% 11943Test-tube babies shouldn't throw stones. 11944% 11945Texas law forbids anyone to have a pair of pliers in his possession. 11946% 11947Text processing has made it possible to right-justify any idea, even 11948one which cannot be justified on any other grounds. 11949 -- J. Finnegan, USC. 11950% 11951Thank goodness modern convenience is a thing of the remote future. 11952 -- Pogo, by Walt Kelly 11953% 11954That boy's about as sharp as a pound of wet liver. 11955 -- Foghorn Leghorn 11956% 11957That must be wonderful! I don't understand it at all. 11958 -- Moliere 11959% 11960That secret you've been guarding, isn't. 11961% 11962That woman speaks eight languages and can't say "no" in any of them. 11963 -- Dorothy Parker 11964% 11965The 80's -- when you can't tell hairstyles from chemotherapy. 11966% 11967The [Ford Foundation] is a large body of money completely surrounded by 11968people who want some. 11969 -- Dwight MacDonald 11970% 11971The Abrams' Principle: 11972 The shortest distance between two points is off the wall. 11973% 11974The advertisement is the most truthful part of a newspaper 11975 -- Thomas Jefferson 11976% 11977The Advertising Agency Song: 11978 11979 When your client's hopping mad, 11980 Put his picture in the ad. 11981 If he still should prove refractory, 11982 Add a picture of his factory. 11983% 11984The algorithm to do that is extremely nasty. You might want to mug 11985someone with it. 11986 -- M. Devine, Computer Science 340 11987% 11988... The Anarchists' [national] anthem is an international anthem that 11989consists of 365 raspberries blown in very quick succession to the tune 11990of "Camptown Races". Nobody has to stand up for it, nobody has to 11991listen to it, and, even better, nobody has to play it. 11992 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 11993% 11994The Arkansas legislature passed a law that states that the Arkansas 11995River can rise no higher than to the Main Street bridge in Little 11996Rock. 11997% 11998The Army has carried the American ... ideal to its logical conclusion. 11999Not only do they prohibit discrimination on the grounds of race, creed 12000and color, but also on ability. 12001 -- T. Lehrer 12002% 12003The Army needs leaders the way a foot needs a big toe. 12004 -- Bill Murray 12005% 12006The assertion that "all men are created equal" was of no practical use 12007in effecting our separation from Great Britain and it was placed in the 12008Declaration not for that, but for future use. 12009 -- Abraham Lincoln 12010% 12011The average income of the modern teenager is about 2 a.m. 12012% 12013The average woman would rather have beauty than brains, because the 12014average man can see better than he can think. 12015% 12016The bad reputation UNIX has gotten is totally undeserved, laid on by 12017people who don't understand, who have not gotten in there and tried 12018anything. 12019 -- Jim Joyce, owner of Jim Joyce's UNIX Bookstore 12020% 12021The basic idea behind malls is that they are more convenient than 12022cities. Cities contain streets, which are dangerous and crowded and 12023difficult to park in. Malls, on the other hand, have parking lots, 12024which are also dangerous and crowded and difficult to park in, but -- 12025here is the big difference -- in mall parking lots, THERE ARE NO 12026RULES. You're allowed to do anything. You can drive as fast as you 12027want in any direction you want. I was once driving in a mall parking 12028lot when my car was struck by a pickup truck being driven backward by a 12029squat man with a tattoo that said "Charlie" on his forearm, who got out 12030and explained to me, in great detail, why the accident was my fault, 12031his reasoning being that he was violent and muscular, whereas I was 12032neither. This kind of reasoning is legally valid in mall parking 12033lots. 12034 -- Dave Barry, "Christmas Shopping: A Survivor's Guide" 12035% 12036The basic menu item, in fact the ONLY menu item, would be a food unit 12037called the "patty," consisting of -- this would be guaranteed in 12038writing -- "100 percent animal matter of some kind." All patties would 12039be heated up and then cooled back down in electronic devices 12040immediately before serving. The Breakfast Patty would be a patty on a 12041bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, egg, Ba-Ko-Bits, Cheez Whiz, a Special 12042Sauce made by pouring ketchup out of a bottle and a little slip of 12043paper stating: "Inspected by Number 12". The Lunch or Dinner Patty 12044would be any Breakfast Patties that didn't get sold in the morning. 12045The Seafood Lover's Patty would be any patties that were starting to 12046emit a serious aroma. Patties that were too rank even to be Seafood 12047Lover's Patties would be compressed into wads and sold as "Nuggets." 12048 -- Dave Barry, "'Mister Mediocre' Restaurants" 12049% 12050The best book on programming for the layman is "Alice in Wonderland"; 12051but that's because it's the best book on anything for the layman. 12052% 12053The best cure for insomnia is to get a lot of sleep. 12054 -- W. C. Fields 12055% 12056The best defense against logic is ignorance. 12057% 12058The best thing about growing older is that it takes such a long time. 12059% 12060"The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and 12061blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. 12062You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at 12063night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only 12064love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or 12065know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only 12066one thing for it then -- to learn. Learn why the world wags and what 12067wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, 12068never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never 12069dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a 12070lot of things there are to learn." 12071 -- T.H. White, "The Once and Future King" 12072% 12073The best way to make a fire with two sticks is to make sure one of them 12074is a match. 12075 -- Will Rogers 12076% 12077The bigger the theory the better. 12078% 12079The biggest difference between time and space is that you can't reuse 12080time. 12081 -- Merrick Furst 12082% 12083The birds are singing, the flowers are budding, and it is time for Miss 12084Manners to tell young lovers to stop necking in public. 12085 12086It's not that Miss Manners is immune to romance. Miss Manners has been 12087known to squeeze a gentleman's arm while being helped over a curb, and, 12088in her wild youth, even to press a dainty slipper against a foot or two 12089under the dinner table. Miss Manners also believes that the sight of 12090people strolling hand in hand or arm in arm or arm in hand dresses up a 12091city considerably more than the more familiar sight of people shaking 12092umbrellas at one another. What Miss Manners objects to is the kind of 12093activity that frightens the horses on the street ... 12094% 12095The bland leadeth the bland and they both shall fall into the kitsch. 12096% 12097The bogosity meter just pegged. 12098% 12099The brain is a wonderful organ; it starts working the moment you get up 12100in the morning, and does not stop until you get to school. 12101% 12102The Briggs/Chase Law of Program Development: 12103 To determine how long it will take to write and debug a 12104program, take your best estimate, multiply that by two, add one, and 12105convert to the next higher units. 12106% 12107The buffalo isn't as dangerous as everyone makes him out to be. 12108Statistics prove that in the United States more Americans are killed in 12109automobile accidents than are killed by buffalo. 12110 -- Art Buchwald 12111% 12112The bureaucracy is expanding to meet the needs of an expanding 12113bureaucracy. 12114% 12115The C Programming Language -- A language which combines the 12116flexibility and power of assembly language with the readability 12117of assembly language. 12118% 12119The camel has a single hump; 12120The dromedary two; 12121Or else the other way around. 12122I'm never sure. Are you? 12123 -- Ogden Nash 12124% 12125The capacity of human beings to bore one another seems to be vastly 12126greater than that of any other animals. Some of their most esteemed 12127inventions have no other apparent purpose, for example, the dinner 12128party of more than two, the epic poem, and the science of metaphysics. 12129 -- H. L. Mencken 12130% 12131The chain which can be yanked is not the eternal chain. 12132 -- G. Fitch 12133% 12134The chicken that clucks the loudest is the one most likely to show up 12135at the steam fitters' picnic. 12136% 12137The chief cause of problems is solutions. 12138 -- Eric Sevareid 12139% 12140The chief danger in life is that you may take too may precautions. 12141 -- Alfred Adler 12142% 12143The church is near but the road is icy; the bar is far away but I will 12144walk carefully. 12145 -- Russian Proverb 12146% 12147The climate of Bombay is such that its inhabitants have to live elsewhere. 12148% 12149The Computer made me do it. 12150% 12151The computing field is always in need of new cliches. 12152 -- Alan Perlis 12153% 12154The confusion of a staff member is measured by the length of his 12155memos. 12156 -- New York Times, Jan. 20, 1981 12157% 12158The conservation movement is a breeding ground of Communists and other 12159subversives. We intend to clean them out, even if it means rounding up 12160every bird watcher in the country. 12161 -- John Mitchell, Atty. General 1969-1972 12162% 12163The Consultant's Curse: 12164 When the customer has beaten upon you long enough, give him 12165what he asks for, instead of what he needs. This is very strong 12166medicine, and is normally only required once. 12167% 12168The correct way to punctuate a sentence that starts: "Of course it is 12169none of my business, but --" is to place a period after the word "but." 12170Don't use excessive force in supplying such a moron with a period. 12171Cutting his throat is only a momentary pleasure and is bound to get you 12172talked about. 12173 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 12174% 12175The cost of living hasn't affected its popularity. 12176% 12177The cost of living is going up, and the chance of living is going down. 12178% 12179The cow is nothing but a machine which makes grass fit for us people to 12180eat. 12181 -- John McNulty 12182% 12183The Crown is full of it! 12184 -- Nate Harris, 1775 12185% 12186The cry has been that when war is declared, all opposition should 12187therefore be hushed. A sentiment more unworthy of a free country could 12188hardly be propagated. If the doctrine be admitted, rulers have only to 12189declare war and they are screened at once from scrutiny ... In war, 12190then, as in peace, assert the freedom of speech and of the press. 12191Cling to this as the bulwark of all our rights and privileges. 12192 -- William Ellery Channing 12193% 12194The day after tomorrow is the third day of the rest of your life. 12195% 12196The day-to-day travails of the IBM programmer are so amusing to most of 12197us who are fortunate enough never to have been one -- like watching 12198Charlie Chaplin trying to cook a shoe. 12199% 12200The debate rages on: Is PL/I Bachtrian or Dromedary? 12201% 12202The devil finds work for idle circuits to do. 12203% 12204The difference between a misfortune and a calamity? If Gladstone fell 12205into the Thames, it would be a misfortune. But if someone dragged him 12206out again, it would be a calamity. 12207 -- Benjamin Disraeli 12208% 12209The difference between science and the fuzzy subjects is that science 12210requires reasoning while those other subjects merely require scholarship. 12211 -- Robert Heinlein 12212% 12213The distinction between Jewish and goyish can be quite subtle, as the 12214following quote from Lenny Bruce illustrates: 12215 12216 "I'm Jewish. Count Basie's Jewish. Ray Charles is Jewish. 12217Eddie Cantor's goyish. The B'nai Brith is goyish. The Hadassah is 12218Jewish. Marine Corps -- heavy goyish, dangerous. 12219 "Kool-Aid is goyish. All Drake's Cakes are goyish. 12220Pumpernickel is Jewish and, as you know, white bread is very goyish. 12221Instant potatoes -- goyish. Black cherry soda's very Jewish. 12222Macaroons are ____very Jewish. Fruit salad is Jewish. Lime Jell-O is 12223goyish. Lime soda is ____very goyish. Trailer parks are so goyish that 12224Jews won't go near them ..." 12225 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 12226% 12227The District of Columbia has a law forbidding you to exert pressure on 12228a balloon and thereby cause a whistling sound on the streets. 12229% 12230The doctrine of human equality reposes on this: that there is no man 12231really clever who has not found that he is stupid. 12232 -- Gilbert K. Chesterson 12233% 12234The duck hunter trained his retriever to walk on water. Eager to show 12235off this amazing accomplishment, he asked a friend to go along on his 12236next hunting trip. Saying nothing, he fired his first shot and, as the 12237duck fell, the dog walked on the surface of the water, retrieved the 12238duck and returned it to his master. 12239 "Notice anything?" the owner asked eagerly. 12240 "Yes," said his friend, "I see that fool dog of yours can't swim." 12241% 12242The early bird who catches the worm works for someone who comes in late 12243and owns the worm farm. 12244 -- Travis McGee 12245% 12246The earth is like a tiny grain of sand, only much, much heavier. 12247% 12248The easiest way to figure the cost of living is to take your income and 12249add ten percent. 12250% 12251The economy depends about as much on economists as the weather does on 12252weather forecasters. 12253 -- Jean-Paul Kauffmann 12254% 12255The eleventh commandment was `Thou Shalt Compute' or `Thou Shalt Not 12256Compute' -- I forget which. 12257 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 12258% 12259The end of the human race will be that it will eventually die of 12260civilization. 12261 -- Ralph Waldo Emerson 12262% 12263The end of the world will occur at 3:00 p.m., this Friday, with 12264symposium to follow. 12265% 12266The English have no respect for their language, and will not teach 12267their children to speak it. 12268 -- G. B. Shaw 12269% 12270The fact that boys are allowed to exist at all is evidence of a 12271remarkable Christian forbearance among men. 12272 -- Ambrose Bierce 12273% 12274The fact that it works is immaterial. 12275 -- L. Ogborn 12276% 12277The faster we go, the rounder we get. 12278 -- The Grateful Dead 12279% 12280The Fifth Rule: 12281 You have taken yourself too seriously. 12282% 12283The first duty of a revolutionary is to get away with it. 12284 -- Abbie Hoffman 12285% 12286The first Great Steward, Parrafin the Climber, was employed in King 12287Chloroplast's kitchen as second scullery boy when the old King met a 12288tragic death. He apparently fell backward by accident on a dozen salad 12289forks. Simultaneously the true heir, his son Carotene, mysteriously 12290fled the city, complaining of some sort of plot and a lot of 12291threatening notes left on his breakfast tray. At the time, this looked 12292suspicious what with his father's death, and Carotene was suspected of 12293foul play. Then the rest of the King's relatives began to drop dead 12294one after the other in an odd fashion. Some were found strangled with 12295dishrags and some succumbed to food poisoning. A few were found 12296drowned in the soup vats, and one was attacked by assailants unknown 12297and beaten to death with a pot roast. At least three appear to have 12298thrown themselves backward on salad forks, perhaps in a noble gesture 12299of grief over the King's untimely end. Finally there was no one left 12300in Minas Troney who was either eligible or willing to wear the accursed 12301crown, and the rule of Twodor was up for grabs. The scullery slave 12302Parrafin bravely accepted the Stewardship of Twodor until that day when 12303a lineal descendant of Carotene's returns to reclaim his rightful 12304throne, conquer Twodor's enemies, and revamp the postal system. 12305 -- Harvard Lampoon, "Bored of the Rings" 12306% 12307The first myth of management is that it exists. The second myth of 12308management is that success equals skill. 12309 -- Robert Heller 12310% 12311The first riddle I ever heard, one familiar to almost every Jewish 12312child, was propounded to me by my father: 12313 "What is it that hangs on the wall, is green, wet -- and 12314whistles?" 12315 I knit my brow and thought and thought, and in final perplexity 12316gave up. 12317 "A herring," said my father. 12318 "A herring," I echoed. "A herring doesn't hang on the wall!" 12319 "So hang it there." 12320 "But a herring isn't green!" I protested. 12321 "Paint it." 12322 "But a herring isn't wet." 12323 "If it's just painted it's still wet." 12324 "But -- " I sputtered, summoning all my outrage, "-- a herring 12325doesn't whistle!!" 12326 "Right, " smiled my father. "I just put that in to make it 12327hard." 12328 -- Leo Rosten, "The Joys of Yiddish" 12329% 12330The first rule of magic is simple. Don't waste your time waving your 12331hands and hoping when a rock or a club will do. 12332 -- McCloctnik the Lucid 12333% 12334The First Rule of Program Optimization: 12335 Don't do it. 12336 12337The Second Rule of Program Optimization (for experts only!): 12338 Don't do it yet. 12339 -- Michael Jackson 12340% 12341The first time, it's a KLUDGE! 12342The second, a trick. 12343Later, it's a well-established technique! 12344 -- Mike Broido, Intermetrics 12345% 12346The following quote is from page 4-27 of the MSCP Basic Disk Functions 12347Manual which is part of the UDA50 Programmers Doc Kit manuals: 12348 12349As stated above, the host area of a disk is structured as a vector of 12350logical blocks. From a performance viewpoint, however, it is more 12351appropriate to view the host area as a four dimensional hyper-cube, the 12352four dimensions being cylinder, group, track, and sector. 12353 . . . 12354Referring to our hyper-cube analogy, the set of potentially accessible 12355blocks form a line parallel to the track axis. This line moves 12356parallel to the sector axis, wrapping around when it reaches the edge 12357of the hyper-cube. 12358% 12359The fortune program is supported, in part, by user contributions and by 12360a major grant from the National Endowment for the Inanities. 12361% 12362The four building blocks of the universe are fire, water, gravel and vinyl. 12363 -- Dave Barry 12364% 12365The full impact of parenthood doesn't hit you until you multiply the 12366number of your kids by 32 teeth. 12367% 12368The generation of random numbers is too important to be left to 12369chance. 12370% 12371The gentlemen looked one another over with microscopic carelessness. 12372% 12373The geographical center of Boston is in Roxbury. Due north of the 12374center we find the South End. This is not to be confused with South 12375Boston which lies directly east from the South End. North of the South 12376End is East Boston and southwest of East Boston is the North End. 12377% 12378The giraffe you thought you offended last week is willing to be nuzzled 12379today. 12380% 12381The goal of Computer Science is to build something that will last at 12382least until we've finished building it. 12383% 12384The goal of science is to build better mousetraps. 12385The goal of nature is to build better mice. 12386% 12387The gods gave man fire and he invented fire engines. They gave him 12388love and he invented marriage. 12389% 12390THE GOLDEN RULE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES 12391 The one who has the gold makes the rules. 12392% 12393The good Christian should beware of mathematicians and all those who 12394make empty prophecies. The danger already exists that mathematicians 12395have made a covenant with the devil to darken the spirit and confine 12396man in the bonds of Hell. 12397 -- St. Augustine 12398% 12399The good die young -- because they see it's no use living if you've got 12400to be good. 12401% 12402 "The Good Ship Enterprise" (to the tune of "The Good Ship Lollipop") 12403 12404On the good ship Enterprise 12405Every week there's a new surprise 12406Where the Romulans lurk 12407And the Klingons often go berserk. 12408 12409Yes, the good ship Enterprise 12410There's excitement anywhere it flies 12411Where Tribbles play 12412And Nurse Chapel never gets her way. 12413 12414 See Captain Kirk standing on the bridge, 12415 Mr. Spock is at his side. 12416 The weekly menace, ooh-ooh 12417 It gets fried, scattered far and wide. 12418 12419It's the good ship Enterprise 12420Heading out where danger lies 12421And you live in dread 12422If you're wearing a shirt that's red. 12423 -- Doris Robin and Karen Trimble of The L.A. Filkharmonics 12424% 12425The government [is] extremely fond of amassing great quantities of 12426statistics. These are raised to the _nth degree, the cube roots are 12427extracted, and the results are arranged into elaborate and impressive 12428displays. What must be kept ever in mind, however, is that in every 12429case, the figures are first put down by a village watchman, and he puts 12430down anything he damn well pleases. 12431 -- Sir Josiah Stamp 12432% 12433The grand leap of the whale up the Fall of Niagara is esteemed, by all 12434who have seen it, as one of the finest spectacles in nature. 12435 -- Benjamin Franklin 12436% 12437The Great Bald Swamp Hedgehog: 12438 The Great Bald Swamp Hedgehog of Billericay displays, in 12439courtship, his single prickle and does impressions of Holiday Inn desk 12440clerks. Since this means him standing motionless for enormous periods 12441of time he is often eaten in full display by The Great Bald Swamp 12442Hedgehog Eater. 12443 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 12444% 12445The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men 12446of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding. 12447 -- Justice Louis D. Brandeis 12448% 12449The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax. 12450 -- Albert Einstein 12451% 12452The hearing ear is always found close to the speaking tongue, a 12453custom whereof the memory of man runneth not howsomever to the 12454contrary, nohow. 12455% 12456The Heineken Uncertainty Principle: 12457 You can never be sure how many beers you had last night. 12458% 12459The herd instinct among economists makes sheep look like independent 12460thinkers. 12461% 12462The hieroglyphics are all unreadable except for a notation on the back, 12463which reads "Genuine authentic Egyptian papyrus. Guaranteed to be at 12464least 5000 years old." 12465% 12466The human animal differs from the lesser primates in his passion for 12467lists of "Ten Best". 12468 -- H. Allen Smith 12469% 12470The human brain is like an enormous fish -- it is flat and slimy and 12471has gills through which it can see. 12472 -- Monty Python 12473% 12474The human mind ordinarily operates at only ten percent of its 12475capacity -- the rest is overhead for the operating system. 12476% 12477The human mind treats a new idea the way the body treats a strange 12478protein -- it rejects it. 12479 -- P. Medawar 12480% 12481The human race has been fascinated by sharks for as long as I can 12482remember. Just like the bluebird feeding its young, or the spider 12483struggling to weave its perfect web, or the buttercup blooming in 12484spring, the shark reveals to us yet another of the infinite and 12485wonderful facets of nature, namely the facet that it can bite your head 12486off. This causes us humans to feel a certain degree of awe. 12487 -- Dave Barry, "The Wonders of Sharks on TV" 12488% 12489The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter. 12490 -- Mark Twain 12491% 12492The human race is a race of cowards; and I am not only marching in that 12493procession but carrying a banner. 12494 -- Mark Twain 12495% 12496The idea is to die young as late as possible. 12497 -- Ashley Montague 12498% 12499The idea there was that consumers would bring their broken electronic 12500devices, such as television sets and VCR's, to the destruction centers, 12501where trained personnel would whack them (the devices) with 12502sledgehammers. With their devices thus permanently destroyed, 12503consumers would then be free to go out and buy new devices, rather than 12504have to fritter away years of their lives trying to have the old ones 12505repaired at so-called "factory service centers," which in fact consist 12506of two men named Lester poking at the insides of broken electronic 12507devices with cheap cigars and going, "Lookit all them WIRES in there!" 12508 -- Dave Barry, "'Mister Mediocre' Restaurants" 12509% 12510The identical is equal to itself, since it is different. 12511 -- Franco Spisani 12512% 12513The illegal we do immediately. The unconstitutional takes a bit longer. 12514 -- Henry Kissinger 12515% 12516The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf 12517has. Even when you make a tax form out on the level, you don't know 12518when it's through if you are a crook or a martyr. 12519 -- Will Rogers 12520% 12521The individual choice of garnishment of a burger can be an important 12522point to the consumer in this day when individualism is an increasingly 12523important thing to people. 12524 -- Donald N. Smith, president of Burger King 12525% 12526The intelligence of any discussion diminishes with the square of the 12527number of participants. 12528 -- Adam Walinsky 12529% 12530The IQ of the group is the lowest IQ of a member of the group divided 12531by the number of people in the group. 12532% 12533The IRS spends God knows how much of your tax money on these toll-free 12534information hot lines staffed by IRS employees, whose idea of a 12535dynamite tax tip is that you should print neatly. If you ask them a 12536real tax question, such as how you can cheat, they're useless. 12537 12538So, for guidance, you want to look to big business. Big business never 12539pays a nickel in taxes, according to Ralph Nader, who represents a big 12540consumer organization that never pays a nickel in taxes... 12541 -- Dave Barry, "Sweating Out Taxes" 12542% 12543The Kennedy Constant: 12544 Don't get mad -- get even. 12545% 12546The Killer Ducks are coming!!! 12547% 12548The ladies men admire, I've heard, 12549Would shudder at a wicked word. 12550Their candle gives a single light; 12551They'd rather stay at home at night. 12552They do not keep awake till three, 12553Nor read erotic poetry. 12554They never sanction the impure, 12555Nor recognize an overture. 12556They shrink from powders and from paints ... 12557So far, I've had no complaints. 12558 -- Dorothy Parker 12559% 12560The last time somebody said, "I find I can write much better with a 12561word processor," I replied, "They used to say the same thing about 12562drugs." 12563 -- Roy Blount, Jr. 12564% 12565The law will never make men free; it is men who have got to make the 12566law free. 12567 -- Henry David Thoreau 12568% 12569The Law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich, as well as the 12570poor, to sleep under the bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal 12571bread. 12572 -- Anatole France 12573% 12574The lawgiver, of all beings, most owes the law allegiance. He of all 12575men should behave as though the law compelled him. But it is the 12576universal weakness of mankind that what we are given to administer we 12577presently imagine we own. 12578 -- H. G. Wells 12579% 12580 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #10: SIMPLE 12581 12582SIMPLE is an acronym for Sheer Idiot's Monopurpose Programming Language 12583Environment. This language, developed at the Hanover College for 12584Technological Misfits, was designed to make it impossible to write code 12585with errors in it. The statements are, therefore, confined to BEGIN, 12586END and STOP. No matter how you arrange the statements, you can't make 12587a syntax error. Programs written in SIMPLE do nothing useful. Thus 12588they achieve the results of programs written in other languages without 12589the tedious, frustrating process of testing and debugging. 12590% 12591 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #12: LITHP 12592 12593This otherwise unremarkable language is distinguished by the absence of 12594an "S" in its character set; users must substitute "TH". LITHP is said 12595to be useful in protheththing lithtth. 12596% 12597 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #13: SLOBOL 12598 12599SLOBOL is best known for the speed, or lack of it, of its compiler. 12600Although many compilers allow you to take a coffee break while they 12601compile, SLOBOL compilers allow you to travel to Bolivia to pick the 12602coffee. Forty-three programmers are known to have died of boredom 12603sitting at their terminals while waiting for a SLOBOL program to 12604compile. Weary SLOBOL programmers often turn to a related (but 12605infinitely faster) language, COCAINE. 12606% 12607 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #17: SARTRE 12608 12609Named after the late existential philosopher, SARTRE is an extremely 12610unstructured language. Statements in SARTRE have no purpose; they just 12611are. Thus SARTRE programs are left to define their own functions. 12612SARTRE programmers tend to be boring and depressed, and are no fun at 12613parties. 12614% 12615 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #18: C- 12616 12617This language was named for the grade received by its creator when he 12618submitted it as a class project in a graduate programming class. C- is 12619best described as a "low-level" programming language. In fact, the 12620language generally requires more C- statements than machine-code 12621statements to execute a given task. In this respect, it is very 12622similar to COBOL. 12623% 12624 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #18a: FIFTH 12625 12626FIFTH is a precision mathematical language in which the data types 12627refer to quantity. The data types range from CC, OUNCE, SHOT, and 12628JIGGER to FIFTH (hence the name of the language), LITER, MAGNUM and 12629BLOTTO. Commands refer to ingredients such as CHABLIS, CHARDONNAY, 12630CABERNET, GIN, VERMOUTH, VODKA, SCOTCH, and WHATEVERSAROUND. 12631 12632The many versions of the FIFTH language reflect the sophistication and 12633financial status of its users. Commands in the ELITE dialect include 12634VSOP and LAFITE, while commands in the GUTTER dialect include HOOTCH 12635and RIPPLE. The latter is a favorite of frustrated FORTH programmers 12636who end up using this language. 12637% 12638 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #2: RENE 12639 12640Named after the famous French philosopher and mathematician Rene 12641Descartes, RENE is a language used for artificial intelligence. The 12642language is being developed at the Chicago Center of Machine Politics 12643and Programming under a grant from the Jane Byrne Victory Fund. A 12644spokesman described the language as "Just as great as dis [sic] city of 12645ours." 12646 12647The center is very pleased with progress to date. They say they have 12648almost succeeded in getting a VAX to think. However, sources inside the 12649organization say that each time the machine fails to think it ceases to 12650exist. 12651% 12652 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #5: VALGOL 12653From its modest beginnings in Southern California's San Fernando Valley, 12654VALGOL is enjoying a dramatic surge of popularity across the industry. 12655 12656Here is a sample program: 12657 LIKE, Y*KNOW(I MEAN)START 12658 IF PIZZA = LIKE BITCHEN AND GUY = LIKE TUBULAR AND 12659 VALLEY GIRL = LIKE GRODY**MAX(FERSURE)**2 THEN 12660 FOR I = LIKE 1 TO OH*MAYBE 100 12661 DO*WAH - (DITTY**2) 12662 BARF(I)=TOTALLY GROSS(OUT) 12663 SURE 12664 LIKE BAG THIS PROGRAM 12665 REALLY 12666 LIKE TOTALLY (Y*KNOW) 12667 IM*SURE 12668 GOTO THE MALL 12669 12670When the user makes a syntax error, the interpreter displays the message: 12671 12672 GAG ME WITH A SPOON!! 12673% 12674 THE LESSER-KNOWN PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES #8: LAIDBACK 12675 12676This language was developed at the Marin County Center for T'ai Chi, 12677Mellowness and Computer Programming (now defunct), as an alternative to 12678the more intense atmosphere in nearby Silicon Valley. 12679 12680The center was ideal for programmers who liked to soak in hot tubs 12681while they worked. Unfortunately few programmers could survive there 12682because the center outlawed Pizza and Coca-Cola in favor of Tofu and 12683Perrier. 12684 12685Many mourn the demise of LAIDBACK because of its reputation as a gentle 12686and non-threatening language since all error messages are in lower 12687case. For example, LAIDBACK responded to syntax errors with the 12688message: 12689 "i hate to bother you, but i just can't relate to that. can 12690 you find the time to try it again?" 12691% 12692The light at the end of the tunnel is the headlight of an approaching 12693train. 12694% 12695The light at the end of the tunnel may be an oncoming dragon. 12696% 12697The lion and the calf shall lie down together but the calf won't get 12698much sleep. 12699 -- Woody Allen 12700% 12701The longer I am out of office, the more infallible I appear to myself. 12702 -- Henry Kissinger 12703% 12704The Lord gave us farmers two strong hands so we could grab as much as 12705we could with both of them. 12706 -- Joseph Heller, "Catch-22" 12707% 12708The makers may make 12709And the users may use, 12710But the fixers must fix 12711With but minimal clues 12712% 12713The man who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the 12714crowd. The man who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no 12715one has ever been. 12716 -- Alan Ashley-Pitt 12717% 12718The man who sets out to carry a cat by its tail learns something that 12719will always be useful and which never will grow dim or doubtful. 12720 -- Mark Twain 12721% 12722The marvels of today's modern technology include the development of a 12723soda can, when discarded will last forever ... and a $7,000 car which 12724when properly cared for will rust out in two or three years. 12725% 12726... the Mayo Clinic, named after its founder, Dr. Ted Clinic ... 12727 -- Dave Barry 12728% 12729The meek shall inherit the earth -- they are too weak to refuse. 12730% 12731 The men sat sipping their tea in silence. After a while the 12732klutz said, "Life is like a bowl of sour cream." 12733 12734 "Like a bowl of sour cream?" asked the other. "Why?" 12735 12736 "How should I know? What am I, a philosopher?" 12737% 12738The meta-Turing test counts a thing as intelligent if it seeks to 12739devise and apply Turing tests to objects of its own creation. 12740 -- Lew Mammel, Jr. 12741% 12742The misnaming of fields of study is so common as to lead to what might 12743be general systems laws. For example, Frank Harary once suggested the 12744law that any field that had the word "science" in its name was 12745guaranteed thereby not to be a science. He would cite as examples 12746Military Science, Library Science, Political Science, Homemaking 12747Science, Social Science, and Computer Science. Discuss the generality 12748of this law, and possible reasons for its predictive 12749power. 12750 -- Gerald Weinberg, "An Introduction to General Systems 12751 Thinking." 12752% 12753The modern child will answer you back before you've said anything. 12754 -- Laurence J. Peter 12755% 12756The mome rath isn't born that could outgrabe me. 12757 -- Nicol Williamson 12758% 12759The moon is a planet just like the Earth, only it is even deader. 12760% 12761The moon may be smaller than Earth, but it's further away. 12762% 12763The more data I punch in this card, the lighter it becomes, and the 12764lower the mailing cost. 12765 -- Stan Kelly-Bootle, "The Devil's DP Dictionary" 12766% 12767The more laws and order are made prominent, 12768the more thieves and robbers there will be. 12769 -- Lao Tsu 12770% 12771The more things change, the more they stay insane. 12772% 12773The more we disagree, the more chance there is that at least one of us 12774is right. 12775% 12776The mosquito is the state bird of New Jersey. 12777 -- Andy Warhol 12778% 12779The most difficult thing in the world is to know how to do a thing and 12780to watch someone else do it wrong without comment. 12781 -- Theodore H. White 12782% 12783The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new 12784discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but "That's funny ..." 12785 -- Isaac Asimov 12786% 12787The moving cursor writes, and having written, blinks on. 12788% 12789... the MYSTERIANS are in here with my CORDUROY SOAP DISH!! 12790% 12791 "... The name of the song is called 'Haddocks' Eyes'!" 12792 "Oh, that's the name of the song, is it?" Alice said, trying to 12793feel interested. 12794 "No, you don't understand," the Knight said, looking a little 12795vexed. "That's what the name is called. The name really is, 'The Aged 12796Aged Man.'" 12797 "Then I ought to have said "That's what the song is called'?" 12798Alice corrected herself. 12799 "No, you oughtn't: that's quite another thing! The song is 12800called 'Ways and Means': but that's only what it is called you know!" 12801 "Well, what is the song then?" said Alice, who was by this time 12802completely bewildered. 12803 "I was coming to that," the Knight said. "The song really is 12804"A-sitting on a Gate": and the tune's my own invention." 12805 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 12806% 12807The National Association of Theater Concessionaires reported that in 128081986, 60% of all candy sold in movie theaters was sold to Roger Ebert. 12809 -- D. Letterman 12810% 12811The National Short-Sleeved Shirt Association says: 12812 Support your right to bare arms! 12813% 12814The net of law is spread so wide, 12815No sinner from its sweep may hide. 12816Its meshes are so fine and strong, 12817They take in every child of wrong. 12818O wondrous web of mystery! 12819Big fish alone escape from thee! 12820 -- James Jeffrey Roche 12821% 12822The new Congressmen say they're going to turn the government around. I 12823hope I don't get run over again. 12824% 12825The New Testament offers the basis for modern computer coding theory, 12826in the form of an affirmation of the binary number system. 12827 12828 But let your communication be Yea, yea; nay, nay: for 12829 whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. 12830 -- Matthew 5:37 12831% 12832The New York Times is read by the people who run the country. The 12833Washington Post is read by the people who think they run the country. 12834The National Enquirer is read by the people who think Elvis is alive 12835and running the country ... 12836 -- Robert J. Woodhead 12837% 12838The nice thing about standards is that there are so many of them to 12839choose from. 12840 -- Andrew S. Tanenbaum 12841% 12842The notion of a "record" is an obsolete remnant of the days of the 1284380-column card. 12844 -- Dennis M. Ritchie 12845% 12846The notion that the church, the press, and the universities should 12847serve the state is essentially a Communist notion ... In a free society 12848these institutions must be wholly free -- which is to say that their 12849function is to serve as checks upon the state. 12850 -- Alan Barth 12851% 12852The number of arguments is unimportant unless some of them are 12853correct. 12854 -- Ralph Hartley 12855% 12856The objective of all dedicated employees should be to thoroughly 12857analyze all situations, anticipate all problems prior to their 12858occurrence, have answers for these problems, and move swiftly to solve 12859these problems when called upon. 12860 12861However, when you are up to your ass in alligators it is difficult to 12862remind yourself your initial objective was to drain the swamp. 12863% 12864The Official MBA Handbook on business cards: 12865 Avoid overly pretentious job titles such as "Lord of the Realm, 12866Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India" or "Director of Corporate 12867Planning." 12868% 12869The older a man gets, the farther he had to walk to school as a boy. 12870% 12871The older I grow the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age 12872brings wisdom. 12873 -- H. L. Mencken 12874% 12875The older I grow, the less important the comma becomes. Let the reader 12876catch his own breath. 12877 -- Elizabeth Clarkson Zwart 12878% 12879The one good thing about repeating your mistakes is that you know when 12880to cringe. 12881% 12882The only possible interpretation of any research whatever in the 12883`social sciences' is: some do, some don't. 12884 -- Ernest Rutherford 12885% 12886The only problem with being a man of leisure is that you can never stop 12887and take a rest. 12888% 12889The only real way to look younger is not to be born so soon. 12890 -- Charles Schulz, "Things I've Had to Learn Over and 12891 Over and Over" 12892% 12893The only really decent thing to do behind a person's back is pat it. 12894% 12895The only really good place to buy lumber is at a store where the lumber 12896has already been cut and attached together in the form of furniture, 12897finished, and put inside boxes. 12898 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 12899% 12900The only thing to do with good advice is pass it on. 12901It is never any use to oneself. 12902 -- Oscar Wilde 12903% 12904The only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. 12905 -- Hegel 12906 12907I know guys can't learn from yesterday ... Hegel must be taking the 12908long view. 12909 -- John Brunner, "Stand on Zanzibar" 12910% 12911The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. 12912 -- Oscar Wilde 12913% 12914The opossum is a very sophisticated animal. It doesn't even get up 12915until 5 or 6 p.m. 12916% 12917The opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth. 12918 -- Niels Bohr 12919% 12920The optimum committee has no members. 12921 -- Norman Augustine 12922% 12923The other day I put instant coffee in my microwave oven ... I almost 12924went back in time. 12925 -- Steven Wright 12926% 12927The past always looks better than it was. It's only pleasant because 12928it isn't here. 12929 -- Finley Peter Dunne (Mr. Dooley) 12930% 12931The penalty for laughing in a courtroom is six months in jail; if it 12932were not for this penalty, the jury would never hear the evidence. 12933 -- H. L. Mencken 12934% 12935 The people of Halifax invented the trampoline. During the 12936Victorian period the tripe-dressers of Halifax stretched tripe across a 12937large wooden frame and jumped up and down on it to `tender and dress' 12938it. The tripoline, as they called it, degenerated into becoming the 12939apparatus for a spectator sport. 12940 12941 The people of Halifax also invented the harmonium, a device for 12942castrating pigs during Sunday service. 12943 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 12944% 12945The Pig, if I am not mistaken, 12946Gives us ham and pork and Bacon. 12947Let others think his heart is big, 12948I think it stupid of the Pig. 12949 -- Ogden Nash 12950% 12951The pitcher wound up and he flang the ball at the batter. The batter 12952swang and missed. The pitcher flang the ball again and this time the 12953batter connected. He hit a high fly right to the center fielder. The 12954center fielder was all set to catch the ball, but at the last minute 12955his eyes were blound by the sun and he dropped it. 12956 -- Dizzy Dean 12957% 12958The plot was designed in a light vein that somehow became varicose. 12959 -- David Lardner 12960% 12961The polite thing to do has always been to address people as they wish 12962to be addressed, to treat them in a way they think dignified. But it 12963is equally important to accept and tolerate different standards of 12964courtesy, not expecting everyone else to adapt to one's own 12965preferences. Only then can we hope to restore the insult to its proper 12966social function of expressing true distaste. 12967 -- Judith Martin, "Miss Manners' Guide to 12968 Excruciatingly Correct Behavior" 12969% 12970The porcupine with the sharpest quills gets stuck on a tree more often. 12971% 12972The Preacher, the Politician, the Teacher, 12973 Were each of them once a kiddie. 12974A child, indeed, is a wonderful creature. 12975 Do I want one? God Forbiddie! 12976 -- Ogden Nash 12977% 12978The President publicly apologized today to all those offended by his 12979brother's remark, "There's more Arabs in this country than there is 12980Jews!". Those offended include Arabs, Jews, and English teachers. 12981 -- Baltimore, Channel 11 News, on Jimmy Carter 12982% 12983The price of seeking to force our beliefs on others is that someday 12984they might force their beliefs on us. 12985 -- Mario Cuomo 12986% 12987The primary cause of failure in electrical appliances is an expired 12988warranty. Often, you can get an appliance running again simply by 12989changing the warranty expiration date with a 15/64-inch felt-tipped 12990marker. 12991 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 12992% 12993The primary purpose of the DATA statement is to give names to 12994constants; instead of referring to pi as 3.141592653589793 at every 12995appearance, the variable PI can be given that value with a DATA 12996statement and used instead of the longer form of the constant. This 12997also simplifies modifying the program, should the value of pi change. 12998 -- FORTRAN manual for Xerox Computers 12999% 13000The primary requisite for any new tax law is for it to exempt enough 13001voters to win the next election. 13002% 13003The primary theme of SoupCon is communication. The acronym "LEO" 13004represents the secondary theme: 13005 13006 Law Enforcement Officials 13007 13008The overall theme of SoupCon shall be: 13009 13010 Avoiding Communication with Law Enforcement Officials 13011 13012 -- M. Gallaher 13013% 13014... the privileged being which we call human is distinguished from 13015other animals only by certain double-edged manifestations which in 13016charity we can only call "inhuman." 13017 -- R. A. Lafferty 13018% 13019The probability of someone watching you is proportional to the 13020stupidity of your action. 13021% 13022The problem ... is that we have run out of dinosaurs to form oil with. 13023Scientists working for the Department of Energy have tried to form oil 13024using other animals; they've piled thousands of tons of sand and Middle 13025Eastern countries on top of cows, raccoons, haddock, laboratory rats, 13026etc., but so far all they have managed to do is run up an enormous 13027bulldozer-rental bill and anger a lot of Middle Eastern persons. None 13028of the animals turned into oil, although most of the laboratory rats 13029developed cancer. 13030 -- Dave Barry, "Postpetroleum Guzzler" 13031% 13032The problem with any unwritten law is that you don't know where to go 13033to erase it. 13034 -- Glaser and Way 13035% 13036The problem with engineers is that they tend to cheat in order to get 13037results. 13038 13039The problem with mathematicians is that they tend to work on toy 13040problems in order to get results. 13041 13042The problem with program verifiers is that they tend to cheat at toy 13043problems in order to get results. 13044% 13045The problem with people who have no vices is that generally you can be 13046pretty sure they're going to have some pretty annoying virtues. 13047 -- Elizabeth Taylor 13048% 13049The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard. 13050% 13051The Psblurtex is an 18-inch long anaconda that hides in the gentlemen's 13052outfitting departments of Amazonian stores and is often bought by 13053mistake since its colors are those of the London Reform Club. Once 13054tied around its victim's neck, it strangles him gently and then claims 13055the insurance before running off to Germany where it lives in hiding. 13056 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 13057% 13058"The pyramid is opening!" 13059"Which one?" 13060"The one with the ever-widening hole in it!" 13061 -- The Firesign Theatre, "How Can You Be In Two Places At 13062 Once When You're Not Anywhere At All" 13063% 13064The qotc (quote of the con) was Liz's: 13065 "My brain is paged out to my liver" 13066% 13067The question is, why are politicians so eager to be president? What is 13068it about the job that makes it worth revealing, on national television, 13069that you have the ethical standards of a slime-coated piece of 13070industrial waste? 13071 -- Dave Barry, "On Presidential Politics" 13072% 13073The rain it raineth on the just 13074 And also on the unjust fella, 13075But chiefly on the just, because 13076 The unjust steals the just's umbrella. 13077 --Lord Bowen 13078% 13079The reader this message encounters not failing to understand is 13080cursed. 13081% 13082The reason computer chips are so small is computers don't eat much. 13083% 13084The reason it's called "Grape Nuts" is that it contains "dextrose", 13085which is also sometimes called "grape sugar", and also because "Grape 13086Nuts" is catchier, in terms of marketing, than "A Cross Between Gerbil 13087Food and Gravel", which is what it tastes like. 13088 -- Dave Barry, "Tips for Writer's" 13089% 13090The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one 13091persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all 13092progress depends on the unreasonable man. 13093 -- George Bernard Shaw 13094% 13095The revolution will not be televised. 13096% 13097The reward of a thing well done is to have done it. 13098 -- Emerson 13099% 13100The rhino is a homely beast, 13101For human eyes he's not a feast. 13102Farewell, farewell, you old rhinoceros, 13103I'll stare at something less prepoceros. 13104 -- Ogden Nash 13105% 13106The right half of the brain controls the left half of the body. This 13107means that only left handed people are in their right mind. 13108% 13109The Right Honorable Gentleman is indebted to his memory for his jests 13110and to his imagination for his facts. 13111 -- Sheridan 13112% 13113The right to revolt has sources deep in our history. 13114 -- Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas 13115% 13116The rights you have are the rights given you by this Committee [the 13117House Un-American Activities Committee]. We will determine what rights 13118you have and what rights you have not got. 13119 -- J. Parnell Thomas 13120% 13121The road to hell is paved with good intentions. And littered with 13122sloppy analysis! 13123% 13124The Roman Rule 13125 The one who says it cannot be done should never interrupt the 13126 one who is doing it. 13127% 13128The Ruffed Pandanga of Borneo and Rotherham spreads out his feathers in 13129his courtship dance and imitates Winston Churchill and Tommy Cooper on 13130one leg. The padanga is dying out because the female padanga doesn't 13131take it too seriously. 13132 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 13133% 13134The rule on staying alive as a forecaster is to give 'em a number or 13135give 'em a date, but never give 'em both at once. 13136 -- Jane Bryant Quinn 13137% 13138"The Schizophrenic: An Unauthorized Autobiography" 13139% 13140The Schwine-Kitzenger Institute study of 47 men over the age of 100 13141showed that all had these things in common: 13142 13143 (1) They all had moderate appetites. 13144 (2) They all came from middle class homes 13145 (3) All but two of them were dead. 13146% 13147The scum also rises. 13148 -- Dr. Hunter S. Thompson 13149% 13150The seven deadly sins ... Food, clothing, firing, rent, taxes, 13151respectability and children. Nothing can lift those seven milestones 13152from man's neck but money; and the spirit cannot soar until the 13153milestones are lifted. 13154 -- George Bernard Shaw 13155% 13156 The seven eyes of Ningauble the Wizard floated back to his hood 13157as he reported to Fafhrd: "I have seen much, yet cannot explain all. 13158The Gray Mouser is exactly twenty-five feet below the deepest cellar in 13159the palace of Gilpkerio Kistomerces. Even though twenty-four parts in 13160twenty-five of him are dead, he is alive. 13161 13162 "Now about Lankhmar. She's been invaded, her walls breached 13163everywhere and desperate fighting is going on in the streets, by a 13164fierce host which out-numbers Lankhmar's inhabitants by fifty to one -- 13165and equipped with all modern weapons. Yet you can save the city." 13166 13167 "How?" demanded Fafhrd. 13168 13169 Ningauble shrugged. "You're a hero. You should know." 13170 -- Fritz Leiber, from "The Swords of Lankhmar" 13171% 13172The sheep that fly over your head are soon to land. 13173% 13174The shortest distance between two points is under construction. 13175 -- Noelie Alito 13176% 13177The Sixth Commandment of Frisbee: 13178 The greatest single aid to distance is for the disc to be going 13179in a direction you did not want. (Goes the wrong way = Goes a long 13180way.) 13181 -- Dan Roddick 13182% 13183The society which scorns excellence in plumbing as a humble activity 13184and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an exalted 13185activity will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy ... 13186neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water. 13187% 13188The sooner all the animals are dead, the sooner we'll find their 13189money. 13190 -- Ed Bluestone, "The National Lampoon" 13191% 13192The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up! 13193% 13194The sooner you make your first 5000 mistakes, the sooner you will be 13195able to correct them. 13196 -- Nicolaides 13197% 13198The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears. 13199% 13200The Soviet pre-eminence in chess can be traced to the average Russian's 13201readiness to brood obsessively over anything, even the arrangement of 13202some pieces of wood. Indeed, the Russians' predisposition for quiet 13203reflection followed by sudden preventive action explains why they led 13204the field for many years in both chess and ax murders. It is well 13205known that as early as 1970, the U.S.S.R., aware of what a defeat at 13206Reykjavik would do to national prestige, implemented a vigorous program 13207of preparation and incentive. Every day for an entire year, a team of 13208psychologists, chess analysts and coaches met with the top three 13209Russian grand masters and threatened them with a pointy stick. That 13210these tactics proved fruitless is now a part of chess history and a 13211further testament to the American way, which provides that if you want 13212something badly enough, you can always go to Iceland and get it from 13213the Russians. 13214 -- Marshall Brickman, Playboy, April, 1973 13215% 13216 The STAR WARS Song 13217 Sung to the tune of "Lola", by the Kinks: 13218 13219I met him in a swamp down in Dagobah 13220Where it bubbles all the time like a giant cabinet soda 13221 S-O-D-A soda 13222I saw the little runt sitting there on a log 13223I asked him his name and in a raspy voice he said Yoda 13224 Y-O-D-A Yoda, Yo-Yo-Yo-Yo Yoda 13225 13226Well I've been around but I ain't never seen 13227A guy who looks like a Muppet but he's wrinkled and green 13228 Oh my Yoda, Yo-Yo-Yo-Yo Yoda 13229Well I'm not dumb but I can't understand 13230How he can raise me in the air just by raising his hand 13231 Oh my Yoda, Yo-Yo-Yo-Yo Yoda, Yo-Yo-Yo-Yo Yoda 13232% 13233The state law of Pennsylvania prohibits singing in the bathtub. 13234% 13235The steady state of disks is full. 13236 -- Ken Thompson 13237% 13238 THE STORY OF CREATION 13239 or 13240 THE MYTH OF URK 13241 13242In the beginning there was data. The data was without form and null, 13243and darkness was upon the face of the console; and the Spirit of IBM 13244was moving over the face of the market. And DEC said, "Let there be 13245registers"; and there were registers. And DEC saw that they carried; 13246and DEC separated the data from the instructions. DEC called the data 13247Stack, and the instructions they called Code. And there was evening 13248and there was morning, one interrupt. 13249 -- Rico Tudor 13250% 13251The streets are safe in Philadelphia, it's only the people who make 13252them unsafe. 13253 -- Mayor Frank Rizzo 13254% 13255The student in question is performing minimally for his peer group and 13256is an emerging underachiever. 13257% 13258The study of non-linear physics is like the study of non-elephant 13259biology. 13260% 13261The subspace _W inherits the other 8 properties of _V. And there aren't 13262even any property taxes. 13263 -- J. MacKay, Mathematics 134b 13264% 13265The sum of the Universe is zero. 13266% 13267The sun was shining on the sea, 13268Shining with all his might: 13269He did his very best to make 13270The billows smooth and bright -- 13271And this was very odd, because it was 13272The middle of the night. 13273 -- Lewis Carroll, "Through the Looking Glass" 13274% 13275The superfluous is very necessary. 13276 -- Voltaire 13277% 13278The surest protection against temptation is cowardice. 13279 -- Mark Twain 13280% 13281The temperature of Heaven can be rather accurately computed. Our 13282authority is Isaiah 30:26, "Moreover, the light of the Moon shall be as 13283the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be sevenfold, as 13284the light of seven days." Thus Heaven receives from the Moon as much 13285radiation as we do from the Sun, and in addition 7*7 (49) times as much 13286as the Earth does from the Sun, or 50 times in all. The light we 13287receive from the Moon is one 1/10,000 of the light we receive from the 13288Sun, so we can ignore that ... The radiation falling on Heaven will 13289heat it to the point where the heat lost by radiation is just equal to 13290the heat received by radiation, i.e., Heaven loses 50 times as much 13291heat as the Earth by radiation. Using the Stefan-Boltzmann law for 13292radiation, (_H/_E)^4 = 50, where _E is the absolute temperature of the 13293earth (-300K), gives _H as 798K (525C). The exact temperature of Hell 13294cannot be computed ... [However] Revelations 21:8 says "But the 13295fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have their part in the lake which 13296burneth with fire and brimstone." A lake of molten brimstone means 13297that its temperature must be at or below the boiling point, 444.6C. We 13298have, then, that Heaven, at 525C is hotter than Hell at 445C. 13299 -- From "Applied Optics" vol. 11, A14, 1972 13300% 13301The Third Law of Photography: 13302 If you did manage to get any good shots, they will be ruined 13303when someone inadvertently opens the darkroom door and all of the dark 13304leaks out. 13305% 13306The Three Laws of Thermodynamics: 13307 13308The First Law: You can't get anything without working for it. 13309The Second Law: The most you can accomplish by working is to break 13310 even. 13311The Third Law: You can only break even at absolute zero. 13312% 13313 The Three Major Kind of Tools 13314 13315* Tools for hittings things to make them loose or to tighten them up or 13316 jar their many complex, sophisticated electrical parts in such a 13317 manner that they function perfectly. (These are your hammers, maces, 13318 bludgeons, and truncheons.) 13319 13320* Tools that, if dropped properly, can penetrate your foot. (Awls) 13321 13322* Tools that nobody should ever use because the potential danger is far 13323 greater than the value of any project that could possibly result. 13324 (Power saws, power drills, power staplers, any kind of tool that uses 13325 any kind of power more advanced than flashlight batteries.) 13326 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 13327% 13328The trouble with a kitten is that 13329When it grows up, it's always a cat 13330 -- Ogden Nash 13331% 13332The trouble with being poor is that it takes up all your time. 13333% 13334The trouble with being punctual is that nobody's there to appreciate 13335it. 13336 -- Franklin P. Jones 13337% 13338The trouble with being punctual is that people think you have nothing 13339more important to do. 13340% 13341The trouble with doing something right the first time is that nobody 13342appreciates how difficult it was. 13343% 13344The trouble with superheros is what to do between phone booths. 13345 -- Ken Kesey 13346% 13347The truth is what is; what should be is a dirty lie. 13348 -- Lenny Bruce 13349% 13350The truth of a proposition has nothing to do with its credibility. 13351And vice versa. 13352% 13353The turtle lives 'twixt plated decks 13354Which practically conceal its sex. 13355I think it clever of the turtle 13356In such a fix to be so fertile. 13357 -- Ogden Nash 13358% 13359The two most common things in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity. 13360% 13361The typewriting machine, when played with expression, is no more 13362annoying than the piano when played by a sister or near relation. 13363 -- Oscar Wilde 13364% 13365The United States also has its native Fascists who say that they are 13366"100 percent American"... 13367 -- U. S. Army (1945) 13368% 13369The United States is like the guy at the party who gives cocaine to 13370everybody and still nobody likes him. 13371 -- Jim Samuels 13372% 13373The universe does not have laws -- it has habits, and habits can be 13374broken. 13375% 13376The universe is like a safe to which there is a combination -- but the 13377combination is locked up in the safe. 13378 -- Peter DeVries 13379% 13380The University of California Bears announced the signing of Reggie 13381Philbin to a letter of intent to attend Cal next Fall. Philbin is said 13382to make up for no talent by cheating well. Says Philbin of his 13383decision to attend Cal, "I'm in it for the free ride." 13384% 13385The USA is so enormous, and so numerous are its schools, colleges and 13386religious seminaries, many devoted to special religious beliefs ranging 13387from the unorthodox to the dotty, that we can hardly wonder at its 13388yielding a more bounteous harvest of gobbledygook than the rest of the 13389world put together. 13390 -- Sir Peter Medawar 13391% 13392The use of COBOL cripples the mind; its teaching should, therefore, be 13393regarded as a criminal offense. 13394 -- Edsger W. Dijkstra, SIGPLAN Notices, Volume 17, Number 5 13395% 13396The verdict of a jury is the a priori opinion of that juror who smokes 13397the worst cigars. 13398 -- H. L. Mencken 13399% 13400The very ink with which all history is written is merely fluid 13401prejudice. 13402 -- Mark Twain 13403% 13404The very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common. 13405Instead of altering their views to fit the facts, they alter the facts 13406to fit their views ... which can be very uncomfortable if you happen to 13407be one of the facts that needs altering. 13408 -- Doctor Who, "Face of Evil" 13409% 13410The wages of sin are death; but after they're done taking out taxes, 13411it's just a tired feeling: 13412% 13413The wages of sin are high but you get your money's worth. 13414% 13415The warning message we sent the Russians was a calculated ambiguity 13416that would be clearly understood. 13417 -- Alexander Haig 13418% 13419The way to make a small fortune in the commodities market is to start 13420with a large fortune. 13421% 13422 THE WOMBAT 13423 13424The wombat lives across the seas, 13425Among the far Antipodes. 13426He may exist on nuts and berries, 13427Or then again, on missionaries; 13428His distant habitat precludes 13429Conclusive knowledge of his moods. 13430But I would not engage the wombat 13431In any form of mortal combat. 13432% 13433The world is coming to an end ... SAVE YOUR BUFFERS!!! 13434% 13435The world is coming to an end! Repent and return those library books! 13436% 13437The world is coming to an end. Please log off. 13438% 13439The world's as ugly as sin, 13440And almost as delightful. 13441 -- Frederick Locker-Lampson 13442% 13443The years of peak mental activity are undoubtedly between the ages of 13444four and eighteen. At four we know all the questions, at eighteen all 13445the answers. 13446% 13447Then a man said: Speak to us of Expectations. 13448 13449He then said: If a man does not see or hear the waters of the Jordan, 13450then he should not taste the pomegranate or ply his wares in an open 13451market. 13452 13453If a man would not labour in the salt and rock quarries then he should 13454not accept of the Earth that which he refuses to give of himself. 13455 13456Such a man would expect a pear of a peach tree. 13457Such a man would expect a stone to lay an egg. 13458Such a man would expect Sears to assemble a lawnmower. 13459 -- Kehlog Albran, "The Profit" 13460% 13461Then here's to the City of Boston, 13462The town of the cries and the groans. 13463Where the Cabots can't see the Kabotschniks, 13464And the Lowells won't speak to the Cohns. 13465 -- Franklin Pierce Adams 13466% 13467 THEORY 13468Into love and out again, 13469 Thus I went and thus I go. 13470Spare your voice, and hold your pen: 13471 Well and bitterly I know 13472All the songs were ever sung, 13473 All the words were ever said; 13474Could it be, when I was young, 13475 Someone dropped me on my head? 13476 -- Dorothy Parker 13477% 13478There *__is* intelligent life on Earth, but I leave for Texas on Monday. 13479% 13480There are four kinds of homicide: felonious, excusable, justifiable, 13481and praiseworthy ... 13482 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 13483% 13484There are many intelligent species in the universe. They all own 13485cats. 13486% 13487There are no data that cannot be plotted on a straight line if the axis 13488are chosen correctly. 13489% 13490There are no games on this system. 13491% 13492There are no physicists in the hottest parts of hell, because the 13493existence of a "hottest part" implies a temperature difference, and any 13494marginally competent physicist would immediately use this to run a heat 13495engine and make some other part of hell comfortably cool. This is 13496obviously impossible. 13497 -- Richard Davisson 13498% 13499There are people so addicted to exaggeration 13500that they can't tell the truth without lying. 13501 -- Josh Billings 13502% 13503There are really not many jobs that actually require a penis or a 13504vagina, and all other occupations should be open to everyone. 13505 -- Gloria Steinem 13506% 13507 There are some goyisha names that just about guarantee that 13508someone isn't Jewish. For example, you'll never meet a Jew named 13509Johnson or Wright or Jones or Sinclair or Ricks or Stevenson or Reid or 13510Larsen or Jenks. But some goyisha names just about guarantee that 13511every other person you meet with that name will be Jewish. Why is 13512this? 13513 Who knows? Learned rabbis have pondered this question for 13514centuries and have failed to come up with an answer, and you think ___you 13515can find one? Get serious. You don't even understand why it's 13516forbidden to eat crab -- fresh cold crab with mayonnaise -- or lobster 13517-- soft tender morsels of lobster dipped in melted butter. You don't 13518even understand a simple thing like that, and yet you hope to discover 13519why there are more Jews named Miller than Katz? Fat Chance. 13520 -- Arthur Naiman, "Every Goy's Guide to Yiddish" 13521% 13522There are some micro-organisms that exhibit characteristics of both 13523plants and animals. When exposed to light they undergo photosynthesis; 13524and when the lights go out, they turn into animals. But then again, 13525don't we all? 13526% 13527There are those who claim that magic is like the tide; that it swells 13528and fades over the surface of the earth, collecting in concentrated 13529pools here and there, almost disappearing from other spots, leaving 13530them parched for wonder. There are also those who believe that if you 13531stick your fingers up your nose and blow, it will increase your 13532intelligence. 13533 -- The Teachings of Ebenezum, Volume VII 13534% 13535There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics. 13536 -- Disraeli 13537% 13538There are three possibilities: 13539Pioneer's solar panel has turned away from the sun; 13540there's a large meteor blocking transmission; or 13541someone loaded Star Trek 3.2 into our video processor. 13542% 13543There are three possible parts to a date, of which at least two must be 13544offered: entertainment, food, and affection. It is customary to begin 13545a series of dates with a great deal of entertainment, a moderate amount 13546of food, and the merest suggestion of affection. As the amount of 13547affection increases, the entertainment can be reduced proportionately. 13548When the affection IS the entertainment, we no longer call it dating. 13549Under no circumstances can the food be omitted. 13550 -- Miss Manners' Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behavior 13551% 13552There are three principal ways to lose money: wine, women, and 13553engineers. While the first two are more pleasant, the third is by far 13554the more certain. 13555 -- Baron Rothschild, ca. 1800 13556% 13557There are three schools of magic. One: State a tautology, then ring 13558the changes on its corollaries; that's philosophy. Two: Record many 13559facts. Try to find a pattern. Then make a wrong guess at the next 13560fact; that's science. Three: Be aware that you live in a malevolent 13561Universe controlled by Murphy's Law, sometimes offset by Brewster's 13562Factor; that's engineering. 13563% 13564There are three things I always forget. Names, faces -- the third I 13565can't remember. 13566 -- Italo Svevo 13567% 13568There are three ways to get something done: 13569 (1) Do it yourself. 13570 (2) Hire someone to do it for you. 13571 (3) Forbid your kids to do it. 13572% 13573There are three ways to get something done: do it yourself, hire 13574someone, or forbid your kids to do it. 13575% 13576There are times when truth is stranger than fiction and lunch time is 13577one of them. 13578% 13579There are two kinds of solar-heat systems: "passive" systems collect 13580the sunlight that hits your home, and "active" systems collect the 13581sunlight that hits your neighbors' homes, too. 13582 -- Dave Barry, "Postpetroleum Guzzler" 13583% 13584There are two types of people in this world, good and bad. The good 13585sleep better, but the bad seem to enjoy the waking hours much more. 13586 -- Woody Allen 13587% 13588There are two ways of constructing a software design: One way is to 13589make is so simple that there are obviously no deficiencies, and the 13590other way is to make it so complicated that there are no obvious 13591deficiencies. 13592 -- C. A. R. Hoare 13593% 13594There are two ways of disliking poetry; one way is to dislike it, the 13595other is to read Pope. 13596 -- Oscar Wilde 13597% 13598There are two ways to write error-free programs. Only the third one 13599works. 13600% 13601There are very few personal problems that cannot be solved through a 13602suitable application of high explosives. 13603% 13604There can be no twisted thought without a twisted molecule. 13605 -- R. W. Gerard 13606% 13607There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full. 13608 -- Henry Kissinger 13609% 13610There exist tasks which cannot be done by more than 10 men or fewer 13611than 100. 13612 -- Steele's Law 13613% 13614There has been an alarming increase in the number of things you know 13615nothing about. 13616% 13617There is a certain impertinence in allowing oneself to be burned for an 13618opinion. 13619 -- Anatole France 13620% 13621There is a great discovery still to be made in Literature: that of 13622paying literary men by the quantity they do NOT write. 13623% 13624There is a green, multi-legged creature crawling on your shoulder. 13625% 13626There is a Massachusetts law requiring all dogs to have their hind legs 13627tied during the month of April. 13628% 13629There is a natural hootchy-kootchy to a goldfish. 13630 -- Walt Disney 13631% 13632There is a road to freedom. Its milestones are Obedience, Endeavor, 13633Honesty, Order, Cleanliness, Sobriety, Truthfulness, Sacrifice, and 13634love of the Fatherland. 13635 -- Adolf Hitler 13636% 13637There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly 13638what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly 13639disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and 13640inexplicable. 13641 13642There is another theory which states that this has already happened. 13643 13644 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 13645% 13646There is hopeful symbolism in the fact that flags do not wave in a vacuum. 13647 -- Arthur C. Clarke 13648% 13649There is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress. 13650 -- Mark Twain 13651% 13652There is no realizable power that man cannot, in time, fashion the 13653tools to attain, nor any power so secure that the naked ape will not 13654abuse it. So it is written in the genetic cards -- only physics and 13655war hold him in check. And also the wife who wants him home by five, 13656of course. 13657 -- Encyclopedia Apocryphia, 1990 ed. 13658% 13659There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home. 13660 -- Ken Olsen, President of DEC, World Future Society 13661 Convention, 1977 13662% 13663There is no satisfaction in hanging a man who does not object to it. 13664 -- G. B. Shaw 13665% 13666There is no substitute for good manners, except, perhaps, fast reflexes. 13667% 13668There is no such thing as fortune. Try again. 13669% 13670There is no time like the pleasant. 13671% 13672There is no time like the present for postponing what you ought to be 13673doing. 13674% 13675There is no TRUTH. There is no REALITY. There is no CONSISTENCY. 13676There are no ABSOLUTE STATEMENTS I'm very probably wrong. 13677% 13678"There is nothing which cannot be answered by means of my doctrine," 13679said a monk, coming into a teahouse where Nasrudin sat. "And yet just 13680a short time ago, I was challenged by a scholar with an unanswerable 13681question," said Nasrudin. "I could have answered it if I had been 13682there." "Very well. He asked, 'Why are you breaking into my house in 13683the middle of the night?'" 13684% 13685There is nothing wrong with Southern California that a rise in the 13686ocean level wouldn't cure. 13687 -- Ross MacDonald 13688% 13689There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and 13690that is not being talked about. 13691 -- Oscar Wilde 13692% 13693There is something fascinating about science. One gets such wholesale 13694returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of fact. 13695 -- Mark Twain 13696% 13697There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it. 13698 -- C. S. Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia 13699% 13700There was a plane crash over mid-ocean, and only three survivors were 13701left in the life-raft: the Pope, the President, and Mayor Daley. 13702Unfortunately, it was a one-man life-raft, and quickly sinking, so they 13703started debating who should be allowed to stay. 13704 13705The Pope pointed out that he was the spiritual leader of millions all 13706over the world, the President explained that if he died then America 13707would be stuck with the Vice-President, and so forth. Then Mayor Daley 13708said, "Look! We're not solving anything like this! The only fair 13709thing to do is to vote on it." So they did, and Mayor Daley won by 97 13710votes. 13711% 13712There was an interesting development in the CBS-Westmoreland trial: 13713both sides agreed that after the trial, Andy Rooney would be allowed to 13714talk to the jury for three minutes about little things that annoyed him 13715during the trial. 13716 -- David Letterman 13717% 13718There were in this country two very large monopolies. The larger of 13719the two had the following record: the Vietnam War, Watergate, double- 13720digit inflation, fuel and energy shortages, bankrupt airlines, and the 137218-cent postcard. The second was responsible for such things as the 13722transistor, the solar cell, lasers, synthetic crystals, high fidelity 13723stereo recording, sound motion pictures, radio astronomy, negative 13724feedback, magnetic tape, magnetic "bubbles", electronic switching 13725systems, microwave radio and TV relay systems, information theory, the 13726first electrical digital computer, and the first communications 13727satellite. Guess which one got to tell the other how to run the 13728telephone business? 13729% 13730There's a fine line between courage and foolishness. Too bad it's not 13731a fence. 13732% 13733There's an old proverb that says just about whatever you want it to. 13734% 13735There's little in taking or giving, 13736 There's little in water or wine: 13737This living, this living, this living, 13738 Was never a project of mine. 13739Oh, hard is the struggle, and sparse is 13740 The gain of the one at the top, 13741For art is a form of catharsis, 13742 And love is a permanent flop, 13743And work is the province of cattle, 13744 And rest's for a clam in a shell, 13745So I'm thinking of throwing the battle -- 13746 Would you kindly direct me to hell? 13747 -- Dorothy Parker 13748% 13749There's no easy quick way out, we're gonna have to live through our 13750whole lives, win, lose, or draw. 13751 -- Walt Kelly 13752% 13753There's no future in time travel. 13754% 13755There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes. 13756 -- Dr. Who 13757% 13758There's no real need to do housework -- after four years it doesn't get 13759any worse. 13760% 13761There's no room in the drug world for amateurs. 13762% 13763There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government 13764working for you. 13765 -- Will Rodgers 13766% 13767There's nothing in the middle of the road but a yellow stripe and 13768dead armadillos. 13769 -- Jim Hightower, Texas Agricultural Commissioner 13770% 13771There's nothing wrong with teenagers that reasoning with them 13772won't aggravate. 13773% 13774There's only one way to have a happy marriage and as soon as I learn 13775what it is I'll get married again. 13776 -- Clint Eastwood 13777% 13778There's so much plastic in this culture that vinyl leopard skin is 13779becoming an endangered synthetic. 13780 -- Lily Tomlin 13781% 13782"These are DARK TIMES for all mankind's HIGHEST VALUES!" 13783"These are DARK TIMES for FREEDOM and PROSPERITY!" 13784"These are GREAT TIMES to put your money on BAD GUY to kick the CRAP 13785out of MEGATON MAN!" 13786% 13787These days the necessities of life cost you about three times what they 13788used to, and half the time they aren't even fit to drink. 13789% 13790They also surf who only stand on waves. 13791% 13792They make a desert and call it peace. 13793 -- Tacitus (55?-120?) 13794% 13795They spell it "da Vinci" and pronounce it "da Vinchy". Foreigners 13796always spell better than they pronounce. 13797 -- Mark Twain 13798% 13799They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary 13800safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. 13801 -- Benjamin Franklin, 1759 13802% 13803They told me I was gullible ... and I believed them! 13804% 13805They told me you had proven it When they discovered our results 13806 About a month before. Their hair began to curl 13807The proof was valid, more or less Instead of understanding it 13808 But rather less than more. We'd run the thing through PRL. 13809 13810He sent them word that we would try Don't tell a soul about all this 13811 To pass where they had failed For it must ever be 13812And after we were done, to them A secret, kept from all the rest 13813 The new proof would be mailed. Between yourself and me. 13814 13815My notion was to start again 13816 Ignoring all they'd done 13817We quickly turned it into code 13818 To see if it would run. 13819% 13820They're only trying to make me LOOK paranoid! 13821% 13822They're unfriendly, which is fortunate, really. They'd be difficult to like. 13823 -- Avon 13824% 13825Things are more like they used to be than they are now. 13826% 13827Things will be bright in P.M. A cop will shine a light in your face. 13828% 13829Think big. Pollute the Mississippi. 13830% 13831Think honk if you're a telepath. 13832% 13833Think of it! With VLSI we can pack 100 ENIACs in 1 sq. cm.! 13834% 13835Think of your family tonight. Try to crawl home after the computer 13836crashes. 13837% 13838Think twice before speaking, but don't say "think think click click". 13839% 13840"Thirty days hath Septober, 13841April, June, and no wonder. 13842all the rest have peanut butter 13843except my father who wears red suspenders." 13844% 13845This Fortue Examined By INSPECTOR NO. 2-14 13846% 13847This fortune cookie program out of order. For those in desperate need, 13848please use the program "________randchar". This program generates random 13849characters, and, given enough time, will undoubtedly come up with 13850something profound. It will, however, take it no time at all to be 13851more profound than THIS program has ever been. 13852% 13853This fortune intentionally not included. 13854% 13855This fortune is false. 13856% 13857This fortune is inoperative. Please try another. 13858% 13859This is a country where people are free to practice their religion, 13860regardless of race, creed, color, obesity, or number of dangling keys... 13861% 13862This is a job for BOB VIOLENCE and SCUM, the INCREDIBLY STUPID MUTANT DOG. 13863 -- Bob Violence 13864% 13865This is a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. If this had been an 13866actual emergency, do you really think we'd stick around to tell you? 13867% 13868This is an especially good time for you vacationers who plan to fly, 13869because the Reagan administration, as part of the same policy under 13870which it recently sold Yellowstone National Park to Wayne Newton, has 13871"deregulated" the airline industry. What this means for you, the 13872consumer, is that the airlines are no longer required to follow any 13873rules whatsoever. They can show snuff movies. They can charge for 13874oxygen. They can hire pilots right out of Vending Machine Refill 13875Person School. They can conserve fuel by ejecting husky passengers 13876over water. They can ram competing planes in mid-air. These 13877innovations have resulted in tremendous cost savings which have been 13878passed along to you, the consumer, in the form of flights with 13879amazingly low fares, such as $29. Of course, certain restrictions do 13880apply, the main one being that all these flights take you to Newark, 13881and you must pay thousands of dollars if you want to fly back out. 13882 -- Dave Barry, "Iowa -- Land of Secure Vacations" 13883% 13884This is an unauthorized cybernetic announcement. 13885% 13886This is for all ill-treated fellows 13887 Unborn and unbegot, 13888For them to read when they're in trouble 13889 And I am not. 13890 -- A. E. Housman 13891% 13892This is lemma 1.1. We start a new chapter so the numbers all go back 13893to one. 13894 -- Prof. Seager, C&O 351 13895% 13896This is National Non-Dairy Creamer Week. 13897% 13898THIS IS PLEDGE WEEK FOR THE FORTUNE PROGRAM 13899 13900If you like the fortune program, why not support it now with your 13901contribution of a pithy fortune, clean or obscene? We cannot continue 13902without your support. Less than 14% of all fortune users are 13903contributors. That means that 86% of you are getting a free ride. We 13904can't go on like this much longer. Federal cutbacks mean less money 13905for fortunes, and unless user contributions increase to make up the 13906difference, the fortune program will have to shut down between midnight 13907and 8 a.m. Don't let this happen. Mail your fortunes right now to 13908"fortune". Just type in your favorite pithy saying. Do it now before 13909you forget. Our target is 300 new fortunes by the end of the week. 13910Don't miss out. All fortunes will be acknowledged. If you contribute 1391130 fortunes or more, you will receive a free subscription to "The 13912Fortune Hunter", our monthly program guide. If you contribute 50 or 13913more, you will receive a free "Fortune Hunter" coffee mug .... 13914% 13915This is the ____LAST time I take travel suggestions from Ray Bradbury! 13916% 13917This is the first numerical problem I ever did. It demonstrates the 13918power of computers: 13919 13920Enter lots of data on calorie & nutritive content of foods. Instruct 13921the thing to maximize a function describing nutritive content, with a 13922minimum level of each component, for fixed caloric content. The 13923results are that one should eat each day: 13924 13925 1/2 chicken 13926 1 egg 13927 1 glass of skim milk 13928 27 heads of lettuce. 13929 -- Rev. Adrian Melott 13930% 13931This is the story of the bee 13932Whose sex is very hard to see 13933 13934You cannot tell the he from the she 13935But she can tell, and so can he 13936 13937The little bee is never still 13938She has no time to take the pill 13939 13940And that is why, in times like these 13941There are so many sons of bees. 13942% 13943This is your fortune. 13944% 13945This land is full of trousers! 13946this land is full of mausers! 13947 And pussycats to eat them when the sun goes down! 13948 -- The Firesign Theatre 13949% 13950This land is made of mountains, 13951This land is made of mud, 13952This land has lots of everything, 13953For me and Elmer Fudd. 13954 13955This land has lots of trousers, 13956This land has lots of mousers, 13957And pussycats to eat them 13958When the sun goes down. 13959% 13960This life is a test. It is only a test. Had this been an actual life, 13961you would have received further instructions as to what to do and where 13962to go. 13963% 13964This login session: $13.99, but for you $11.88 13965% 13966This novel is not to be tossed lightly aside, but to be hurled with 13967great force. 13968 -- Dorothy Parker 13969% 13970This planet has -- or rather had -- a problem, which was this: most of 13971the people living on it were unhappy for pretty much of the time. Many 13972solutions were suggested for this problem, but most of these were 13973largely concerned with the movements of small green pieces of paper, 13974which is odd because on the whole it wasn't the small green pieces of 13975paper that were unhappy. 13976 -- Douglas Adams 13977% 13978This process can check if this value is zero, and if it is, it does 13979something child-like. 13980 -- Forbes Burkowski, Computer Science 454 13981% 13982This quote is taken from the Diamondback, the University of Maryland 13983student newspaper, of Tuesday, 3/10/87. 13984 13985 One disadvantage of the Univac system is that it does not use 13986 Unix, a recently developed program which translates from one 13987 computer language to another and has a built-in editing system 13988 which identifies errors in the original program. 13989% 13990This sentence contradicts itself -- no actually it doesn't. 13991 -- Douglas Hofstadter 13992% 13993... This striving for excellence extends into people's personal lives 13994as well. When '80s people buy something, they buy the best one, as 13995determined by (1) price and (2) lack of availability. Eighties people 13996buy imported dental floss. They buy gourmet baking soda. If an '80s 13997couple goes to a restaurant where they have made a reservation three 13998weeks in advance, and they are informed that their table is available, 13999they stalk out immediately, because they know it is not an excellent 14000restaurant. If it were, it would have an enormous crowd of 14001excellence-oriented people like themselves waiting, their beepers going 14002off like crickets in the night. An excellent restaurant wouldn't have 14003a table ready immediately for anybody below the rank of Liza Minnelli. 14004 -- Dave Barry, "In Search of Excellence" 14005% 14006This will be a memorable month -- no matter how hard you try to forget it. 14007% 14008 Thompson, if he is to be believed, has sampled the entire 14009rainbow of legal and illegal drugs in heroic efforts to feel better 14010than he does. 14011 As for the truth about his health: I have asked around about 14012it. I am told that he appears to be strong and rosy, and steadily 14013sane. But we will be doing what he wants us to do, I think, if we 14014consider his exterior a sort of Dorian Gray facade. Inwardly, he is 14015being eaten alive by tinhorn politicians. 14016 The disease is fatal. There is no known cure. The most we can 14017do for the poor devil, it seems to me, is to name his disease in his 14018honor. From this moment on, let all those who feel that Americans can 14019be as easily led to beauty as to ugliness, to truth as to public 14020relations, to joy as to bitterness, be said to be suffering from Hunter 14021Thompson's disease. I don't have it this morning. It comes and goes. 14022This morning I don't have Hunter Thompson's disease. 14023 -- Kurt Vonnegut Jr. on Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: Excerpt 14024 from "A Political Disease", Vonnegut's review of "Fear 14025 and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72" 14026% 14027Those of you who think you know everything are very annoying to those 14028of us who do. 14029% 14030Those who can't write, write manuals. 14031% 14032Those who can, do. Those who can't, simulate. 14033% 14034Those who do not do politics will be done in by politics. 14035 -- French Proverb 14036% 14037Those who do not understand Unix are condemned to reinvent it, poorly. 14038 -- Henry Spencer 14039% 14040Those who educate children well are more to be honored than parents, 14041for these only gave life, those the art of living well. 14042 -- Aristotle 14043% 14044Those who express random thoughts to legislative committees are often 14045surprised and appalled to find themselves the instigators of law. 14046 -- Mark B. Cohen 14047% 14048Those who in quarrels interpose, must often wipe a bloody nose. 14049% 14050Those who make peaceful revolution impossible 14051will make violent revolution inevitable. 14052 -- John F. Kennedy 14053% 14054Those who profess to favor freedom, and yet deprecate agitation, are 14055men who want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean 14056without the roar of its many waters. 14057 -- Frederick Douglass 14058% 14059Three great scientific theories of the structure of the universe are 14060the molecular, the corpuscular and the atomic. A fourth affirms, with 14061Haeckel, the condensation or precipitation of matter from ether -- 14062whose existence is proved by the condensation or precipitation ... A 14063fifth theory is held by idiots, but it is doubtful if they know any 14064more about the matter than the others. 14065 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 14066% 14067Time flies like an arrow 14068Fruit flies like a banana 14069% 14070Time flies like an arrow, but fruit flies like a banana. 14071% 14072Time is an illusion; lunchtime, doubly so. 14073 -- Ford Prefect 14074% 14075Time is nature's way of making sure that everything doesn't happen at 14076once. 14077% 14078'Tis the dream of each programmer, 14079Before his life is done, 14080To write three lines of APL, 14081And make the damn things run. 14082% 14083 (to "The Caissons Go Rolling Along") 14084Scratch the disks, dump the core, Shut it down, pull the plug 14085Roll the tapes across the floor, Give the core an extra tug 14086And the system is going to crash. And the system is going to crash. 14087Teletypes smashed to bits. Mem'ry cards, one and all, 14088Give the scopes some nasty hits Toss out halfway down the hall 14089And the system is going to crash. And the system is going to crash. 14090And we've also found Just flip one switch 14091When you turn the power down, And the lights will cease to twitch 14092You turn the disk readers into trash. And the tape drives will crumble 14093 in a flash. 14094Oh, it's so much fun, When the CPU 14095Now the CPU won't run Can print nothing out but "foo," 14096And the system is going to crash. The system is going to crash. 14097% 14098 To A Quick Young Fox: 14099Why jog exquisite bulk, fond crazy vamp, 14100Daft buxom jonquil, zephyr's gawky vice? 14101Guy fed by work, quiz Jove's xanthic lamp -- 14102Zow! Qualms by deja vu gyp fox-kin thrice. 14103 -- Lazy Dog 14104% 14105To be intoxicated is to feel sophisticated but not be able to say it. 14106% 14107To be is to do. 14108 -- I. Kant 14109To do is to be. 14110 -- A. Sartre 14111Yabba-Dabba-Doo! 14112 -- F. Flintstone 14113% 14114To be responsive at this time, though I will simply say, and therefore 14115this is a repeat of what I said previously, that which I am unable to 14116offer in response is based on information available to make no such 14117statement. 14118% 14119To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and, whatever you hit, 14120call it the target. 14121% 14122To err is human, to forgive is Not Company Policy. 14123% 14124To err is human, to forgive, beyond the scope of the Operating System 14125% 14126To err is human, to moo bovine. 14127% 14128To every Ph.D. there is an equal and opposite Ph.D. 14129 -- B. Duggan 14130% 14131To generalize is to be an idiot. 14132 -- William Blake 14133% 14134To get something done, a committee should consist of no more than three 14135men, two of them absent. 14136% 14137To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk. 14138 -- Thomas Edison 14139% 14140To iterate is human, to recurse, divine. 14141 -- Robert Heller 14142% 14143To the best of my recollection, Senator, I can't recall. 14144% 14145To the systems programmer, users and applications serve only to provide 14146a test load. 14147% 14148To those accustomed to the precise, structured methods of conventional 14149system development, exploratory development techniques may seem messy, 14150inelegant, and unsatisfying. But it's a question of congruence: 14151precision and flexibility may be just as dysfunctional in novel, 14152uncertain situations as sloppiness and vacillation are in familiar, 14153well-defined ones. Those who admire the massive, rigid bone structures 14154of dinosaurs should remember that jellyfish still enjoy their very 14155secure ecological niche. 14156 -- Beau Sheil, "Power Tools for Programmers" 14157% 14158To understand this important story, you have to understand how the 14159telephone company works. Your telephone is connected to a local 14160computer, which is in turn connected to a regional computer, which is 14161in turn connected to a loudspeaker the size of a garbage truck on the 14162lawn of Edna A. Bargewater of Lawrence, Kan. 14163 14164Whenever you talk on the phone, your local computer listens in. If it 14165suspects you're going to discuss an intimate topic, it notifies the 14166computer above it, which listens in and decides whether to alert the 14167one above it, until finally, if you really humiliate yourself, maybe 14168break down in tears and tell your closest friend about a sordid 14169incident from your past involving a seedy motel, a neighbor's spouse, 14170an entire religious order, a garden hose and six quarts of tapioca 14171pudding, the top computer feeds your conversation into Edna's 14172loudspeaker, and she and her friends come out on the porch to listen 14173and drink gin and laugh themselves silly. 14174 -- Dave Barry, "Won't It Be Just Great Owning Our Own 14175 Phones?" 14176% 14177To vacillate or not to vacillate, that is the question ... or is it? 14178% 14179To YOU I'm an atheist; to God, I'm the Loyal Opposition. 14180 -- Woody Allen 14181% 14182Today is a good day to bribe a high-ranking public official. 14183% 14184Today is National Existential Ennui Awareness Day. 14185% 14186Today is the first day of the rest of the mess. 14187% 14188Today is the first day of the rest of your lossage. 14189% 14190Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday. 14191% 14192Today's scientific question is: What in the world is electricity? 14193 14194And where does it go after it leaves the toaster? 14195 -- Dave Barry, "What is Electricity?" 14196% 14197Today's thrilling story has been brought to you by Mushies, the great new 14198cereal that gets soggy even without milk or cream. Join us soon for more 14199spectacular adventure starring ... Tippy, the Wonder Dog. 14200 -- Bob & Ray 14201% 14202Today, of course, it is considered very poor taste to use the F-word 14203except in major motion pictures. 14204 -- Dave Barry, "$#$%#^%!^%&@%@!" 14205% 14206Toilet Toup'ee, n.: 14207 Any shag carpet that causes the lid to become top-heavy, thus 14208creating endless annoyance to male users. 14209 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 14210% 14211Tomorrow will be canceled due to lack of interest. 14212% 14213Tonight's the night: Sleep in a eucalyptus tree. 14214% 14215Too clever is dumb. 14216 -- Ogden Nash 14217% 14218Too much of a good thing is WONDERFUL. 14219 -- Mae West 14220% 14221Too much of everything is just enough. 14222 -- Bob Wier 14223% 14224Too often I find that the volume of paper expands to fill the available 14225briefcases. 14226 -- Governor Jerry Brown 14227% 14228Top 10 things likely to be overheard if you had a Klingon Programmer: 14229 10) Specifications are for the weak and timid! 14230 9) You question the worthiness of my code? I should kill you where you stand! 14231 8) Indentation?! - I will show you how to indent when I indent your skull! 14232 7) What is this talk of 'release'? Klingons do not make software 'releases'. 14233 Our software 'escapes' leaving a bloody trail of designers and quality 14234 assurance people in its wake. 14235 6) Klingon function calls do not have 'parameters' - they have 'arguments' 14236 - and they ALWAYS WIN THEM. 14237 5) Debugging? Klingons do not debug. Our software does not coddle the weak. 14238 4) A TRUE Klingon Warrior does not comment his code! 14239 3) Klingon software does NOT have BUGS. It has FEATURES, and those features 14240 are too sophisticated for a Romulan pig like you to understand. 14241 2) You cannot truly appreciate Dilbert unless you've read it in the 14242 original Klingon. 14243 1) Our users will know fear and cower before our software! Ship it! 14244 Ship it and let them flee like the dogs they are! 14245% 14246Top scientists agree that with the present rate of consumption, the 14247earth's supply of gravity will be exhausted before the 24th century. 14248As man struggles to discover cheaper alternatives, we need your help. 14249Please... 14250 14251 CONSERVE GRAVITY 14252 14253Follow these simple suggestions: 14254 14255(1) Walk with a light step. Carry helium balloons if possible. 14256(2) Use tape, magnets, or glue instead of paperweights. 14257(3) Give up skiing and skydiving for more horizontal sports like 14258 curling. 14259(4) Avoid showers ... take baths instead. 14260(5) Don't hang all your clothes in the closet ... Keep them in one big 14261 pile. 14262(6) Stop flipping pancakes 14263% 14264Travel important today; Internal Revenue men arrive tomorrow. 14265% 14266Troubled day for virgins over 16 who are beautiful, wealthy, and live 14267in eucalyptus trees. 14268% 14269Truly great madness can not be achieved without significant intelligence. 14270 -- Henrik Tikkanen 14271% 14272Truth is the most valuable thing we have -- so let us economize it. 14273 -- Mark Twain 14274% 14275Truth will be out this morning. (Which may really mess things up.) 14276% 14277Truthful, adj.: 14278 Dumb and illiterate. 14279 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 14280% 14281Try not to have a good time ... This is supposed to be educational. 14282 -- Charles Schulz 14283% 14284Try to be the best of whatever you are, even if what you are is no good. 14285% 14286Try to find the real tense of the report you are reading: Was it done, 14287is it being done, or is something to be done? Reports are now written 14288in four tenses: past tense, present tense, future tense, and 14289pretense. Watch for novel uses of CONGRAM (CONtractor GRAMmer), 14290defined by the imperfect past, the insufficient present, and the 14291absolutely perfect future. 14292 -- Amrom Katz 14293% 14294Try to get all of your posthumous medals in advance. 14295% 14296Trying to be happy is like trying to build a machine for which the only 14297specification is that it should run noiselessly. 14298% 14299Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth. 14300 -- Alan Watts 14301% 14302Trying to establish voice contact ... please ____yell into keyboard. 14303% 14304Turnaucka's Law: 14305 The attention span of a computer is only as long as its 14306electrical cord. 14307% 14308Tussman's Law: 14309 Nothing is as inevitable as a mistake whose time has come. 14310% 14311TV is chewing gum for the eyes. 14312 -- Frank Lloyd Wright 14313% 14314'Twas midnight, and the UNIX hacks 14315Did gyre and gimble in their cave 14316All mimsy was the CS-VAX 14317And Cory raths outgrabe. 14318 14319"Beware the software rot, my son! 14320The faults that bite, the jobs that thrash! 14321Beware the broken pipe, and shun 14322The frumious system crash!" 14323% 14324 'Twas the Night before Crisis 14325 14326'Twas the night before crisis, and all through the house, 14327 Not a program was working not even a browse. 14328The programmers were wrung out too mindless to care, 14329 Knowing chances of cutover hadn't a prayer. 14330The users were nestled all snug in their beds, 14331 While visions of inquiries danced in their heads. 14332When out in the lobby there arose such a clatter, 14333 I sprang from my tube to see what was the matter. 14334And what to my wondering eyes should appear, 14335 But a Super Programmer, oblivious to fear. 14336More rapid than eagles, his programs they came, 14337 And he whistled and shouted and called them by name; 14338On Update! On Add! On Inquiry! On Delete! 14339 On Batch Jobs! On Closing! On Functions Complete! 14340His eyes were glazed over, his fingers were lean, 14341 From Weekends and nights in front of a screen. 14342A wink of his eye, and a twist of his head, 14343 Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread... 14344% 14345'Twas the nocturnal segment of the diurnal period 14346 preceding the annual Yuletide celebration, And 14347 throughout our place of residence, 14348Kinetic activity was not in evidence among the 14349 possessors of this potential, including that 14350 species of domestic rodent known as Mus musculus. 14351Hosiery was meticulously suspended from the forward 14352 edge of the woodburning caloric apparatus, 14353Pursuant to our anticipatory pleasure regarding an 14354 imminent visitation from an eccentric 14355 philanthropist among whose folkloric appelations 14356 is the honorific title of St. Nicklaus ... 14357% 14358Twenty Percent of Zero is Better than Nothing. 14359 -- Walt Kelly 14360% 14361Two can Live as Cheaply as One for Half as Long. 14362 -- Howard Kandel 14363% 14364Two men came before Nasrudin when he was magistrate. The first man 14365said, "This man has bitten my ear -- I demand compensation." The 14366second man said, "He bit it himself." Nasrudin withdrew to his 14367chambers, and spent an hour trying to bite his own ear. He succeeded 14368only in falling over and bruising his forehead. Returning to the 14369courtroom, Nasrudin pronounced, "Examine the man whose ear was bitten. 14370If his forehead is bruised, he did it himself and the case is 14371dismissed. If his forehead is not bruised, the other man did it and 14372must pay three silver pieces." 14373% 14374Two percent of zero is almost nothing. 14375% 14376Two sure ways to tell a sexy male; the first is, he has a bad memory. 14377I forget the second. 14378% 14379Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do. 14380% 14381U: There's a U -- a Unicorn! 14382 Run right up and rub its horn. 14383 Look at all those points you're losing! 14384 UMBER HULKS are so confusing. 14385 -- The Roguelet's ABC 14386% 14387"Ubi non accusator, ibi non judex." 14388 14389(Where there is no police, there is no speed limit.) 14390 -- Roman Law, trans. Petr Beckmann (1971) 14391% 14392UFO's are for real: the Air Force doesn't exist. 14393% 14394"Uncle Cosmo ... why do they call this a word processor?" 14395 14396"It's simple, Skyler ... you've seen what food processors do to food, 14397right?" 14398 -- MacNelley, "Shoe" 14399% 14400Uncle Ed's Rule of Thumb: 14401 Never use your thumb for a rule. You'll either hit it with a 14402hammer or get a splinter in it. 14403% 14404Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a 14405just man is also a prison. 14406% 14407Under deadline pressure for the next week. If you want something, it 14408can wait. Unless it's blind screaming paroxysmally hedonistic ... 14409% 14410Underlying Principle of Socio-Genetics: 14411 Superiority is recessive. 14412% 14413Unfair animal names: 14414 14415-- tsetse fly -- bullhead 14416-- booby -- duck-billed platypus 14417-- sapsucker -- Clarence 14418 -- Gary Larson 14419% 14420United Nations, New York, December 25. The peace and joy of the 14421Christmas season was marred by a proclamation of a general strike of 14422all the military forces of the world. Panic reigns in the hearts of 14423all the patriots of every persuasion. 14424 14425Meanwhile, fears of universal disaster sank to an all-time low over the 14426world. 14427 -- Isaac Asimov 14428% 14429Universe, n.: 14430 The problem. 14431% 14432University, n.: 14433 Like a software house, except the software's free, and it's 14434usable, and it works, and if it breaks they'll quickly tell you how to 14435fix it, and ... 14436% 14437unix soit qui mal y pense 14438% 14439UNIX was half a billion (500000000) seconds old on 14440Tue Nov 5 00:53:20 1985 GMT (measuring since the time(2) epoch). 14441 -- Andrew S. Tanenbaum 14442% 14443Unnamed Law: 14444 If it happens, it must be possible. 14445% 14446Unquestionably, there is progress. The average American now pays out 14447twice as much in taxes as he formerly got in wages. 14448 -- H. L. Mencken 14449% 14450Usage: fortune -P [] -a [xsz] [Q: [file]] [rKe9] -v6[+] dataspec ... inputdir 14451% 14452User n.: 14453 A programmer who will believe anything you tell him. 14454% 14455USER, n.: 14456 The word computer professionals use when they mean "idiot." 14457 -- Dave Barry, "Claw Your Way to the Top" 14458% 14459Using TSO is like kicking a dead whale down the beach. 14460 -- S. C. Johnson 14461% 14462Utility is when you have one telephone, luxury is when you have two, 14463opulence is when you have three -- and paradise is when you have none. 14464 -- Doug Larson 14465% 14466Vail's Second Axiom: 14467 The amount of work to be done increases in proportion to the 14468amount of work already completed. 14469% 14470Valerie: Aww, Tom, you're going maudlin on me ... 14471Tom: I reserve the right to wax maudlin as I wane eloquent ... 14472 -- Tom Chapin 14473% 14474Van Roy's Law: 14475 An unbreakable toy is useful for breaking other toys. 14476% 14477Vanilla, adj.: 14478 Ordinary flavor, standard. See FLAVOR. When used of food, 14479very often does not mean that the food is flavored with vanilla 14480extract! For example, "vanilla-flavored won ton soup" (or simply 14481"vanilla won ton soup") means ordinary won ton soup, as opposed to hot 14482and sour won ton soup. 14483% 14484Velilind's Laws of Experimentation: 14485 (1) If reproducibility may be a problem, conduct the test only 14486 once. 14487 (2) If a straight line fit is required, obtain only two data 14488 points. 14489% 14490Veni, Vidi, Visa. 14491% 14492 "Verily and forsooth," replied Goodgulf darkly. "In the past 14493year strange and fearful wonders I have seen. Fields sown with barley 14494reap crabgrass and fungus, and even small gardens reject their 14495artichoke hearts. There has been a hot day in December and a blue 14496moon. Calendars are made with a month of Sundays and a blue-ribbon 14497Holstein bore alive two insurance salesmen. The earth splits and the 14498entrails of a goat were found tied in square knots. The face of the 14499sun blackens and the skies have rained down soggy potato chips." 14500 14501 "But what do all these things mean?" gasped Frito. 14502 14503 "Beats me," said Goodgulf with a shrug, "but I thought it made 14504good copy." 14505 -- Harvard Lampoon, "Bored of the Rings" 14506% 14507Very few profundities can be expressed in less than 80 characters. 14508% 14509Vila: "I think I have just made the biggest mistake of my life." 14510Orac: "It is unlikely. I would predict there are far greater mistakes 14511 waiting to be made by someone with your obvious talent for it." 14512% 14513Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. 14514 -- Salvor Hardin 14515% 14516Virginia law forbids bathtubs in the house; tubs must be kept in the 14517yard. 14518% 14519VIRGO (Aug 23 - Sept 22) 14520 Learn something new today, like how to spell or how to count to 14521 ten without using your fingers. Be careful dressing this 14522 morning. You may be hit by a car later in the day and you 14523 wouldn't want to be taken to the doctor's office in some of 14524 that old underwear you own. 14525% 14526VIRGO (Aug 23 - Sept 22) 14527 You are the logical type and hate disorder. This nitpicking is 14528 sickening to your friends. You are cold and unemotional and 14529 sometimes fall asleep while making love. Virgos make good bus 14530 drivers. 14531% 14532"Virtual" means never knowing where your next byte is coming from. 14533% 14534Virtue is its own punishment. 14535% 14536Vital papers will demonstrate their vitality by spontaneously moving 14537from where you left them to where you can't find them. 14538% 14539Vitamin C deficiency is apauling. 14540% 14541VMS is like a nightmare about RSX-11M. 14542% 14543Vote anarchist. 14544% 14545Vote for ME -- I'm well-tapered, half-cocked, ill-conceived and 14546TAX-DEFERRED! 14547% 14548VYARZERZOMANIMORORSEZASSEZANSERAREORSES? 14549% 14550 14551 *** System shutdown message from root *** 14552 14553System going down in 60 seconds 14554 14555 14556% 14557Wagner's music is better than it sounds. 14558 -- Mark Twain 14559% 14560Waiter: "Tea or coffee, gentlemen?" 145611st customer: "I'll have tea." 145622nd customer: "Me, too -- and be sure the glass is clean!" 14563 (Waiter exits, returns) 14564Waiter: "Two teas. Which one asked for the clean glass?" 14565% 14566Walk softly and carry a megawatt laser. 14567% 14568War hath no fury like a non-combatant. 14569 -- Charles Edward Montague 14570% 14571War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ketchup is a vegetable. 14572% 14573 WARNING TO ALL PERSONNEL: 14574 14575Firings will continue until morale improves. 14576% 14577WARNING: 14578 Reading this fortune can affect the dimensionality of your 14579mind, change the curvature of your spine, cause the growth of hair on 14580your palms, and make a difference in the outcome of your favorite war. 14581% 14582Warning: Listening to WXRT on April Fools' Day is not recommended for 14583those who are slightly disoriented the first few hours after waking 14584up. 14585 -- Chicago Reader 4/22/83 14586% 14587Warp 7 -- It's a law we can live with. 14588% 14589Washington [D.C.] is a city of Southern efficiency and Northern charm. 14590 -- John F. Kennedy 14591% 14592Waste not, get your budget cut next year. 14593% 14594Wasting time is an important part of living. 14595% 14596Watson's Law: 14597 The reliability of machinery is inversely proportional to the 14598number and significance of any persons watching it. 14599% 14600We are all agreed that your theory is crazy. The question which 14601divides us is whether it is crazy enough to have a chance of being 14602correct. My own feeling is that it is not crazy enough. 14603 -- Niels Bohr 14604% 14605We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. 14606 -- Oscar Wilde 14607% 14608We are all worms. But I do believe I am a glowworm. 14609 -- Winston Churchill 14610% 14611We ARE as gods and might as well get good at it. 14612 -- Whole Earth Catalog 14613% 14614We are confronted with insurmountable opportunities. 14615 -- Walt Kelly, "Pogo" 14616% 14617We are going to give a little something, a few little years more, to 14618socialism, because socialism is defunct. It dies all by itself. The 14619bad thing is that socialism, being a victim of its ... Did I say 14620socialism? 14621 -- Fidel Castro 14622% 14623We are on the verge: Today our program proved Fermat's next-to-last theorem. 14624 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 14625% 14626We are upping our standards ... so up yours. 14627 -- Pat Paulsen for President, 1988 14628% 14629We can defeat gravity. The problem is the paperwork involved. 14630% 14631We can predict everything, except the future. 14632% 14633We cannot put the face of a person on a stamp unless said person is 14634deceased. My suggestion, therefore, is that you drop dead. 14635 -- James E. Day, Postmaster General 14636% 14637We demand rigidly defined areas of doubt and uncertainty! 14638 -- Vroomfondel 14639% 14640We don't care. We don't have to. We're the Phone Company. 14641% 14642We don't know who discovered water, but we're certain it wasn't a 14643fish. 14644% 14645We don't understand the software, and sometimes we don't understand the 14646hardware, but we can *___see* the blinking lights! 14647% 14648We gave you an atomic bomb, what do you want, mermaids? 14649 -- I. I. Rabi to the Atomic Energy Commission 14650% 14651We had it tough ... I had to get up at 9 o'clock at night, half an 14652hour before I went to bed, eat a lump of dry poison, work 29 hours down 14653mill, and when we came home our Dad would kill us, and dance about on 14654our grave singing Haleleuia ... 14655 -- Monty Python 14656% 14657We have met the enemy, and he is us. 14658 -- Walt Kelly 14659% 14660We have only two things to worry about: That things will never get 14661back to normal, and that they already have. 14662% 14663We have reason to believe that man first walked upright to free his 14664hands for masturbation. 14665 -- Lily Tomlin 14666% 14667We have the flu. I don't know if this particular strain has an 14668official name, but if it does, it must be something like "Martian Death 14669Flu". You may have had it yourself. The main symptom is that you wish 14670you had another setting on your electric blanket, up past "HIGH", that 14671said "ELECTROCUTION". 14672 14673Another symptom is that you cease brushing your teeth, because (a) your 14674teeth hurt, and (b) you lack the strength. Midway through the brushing 14675process, you'd have to lie down in front of the sink to rest for a 14676couple of hours, and rivulets of toothpaste foam would dribble sideways 14677out of your mouth, eventually hardening into crusty little toothpaste 14678stalagmites that would bond your head permanently to the bathroom 14679floor, which is how the police would find you. 14680 14681You know the kind of flu I'm talking about. 14682 -- Dave Barry, "Molecular Homicide" 14683% 14684We may hope that machines will eventually compete with men in all 14685purely intellectual fields. But which are the best ones to start 14686with? Many people think that a very abstract activity, like the 14687playing of chess, would be best. It can also be maintained that it is 14688best to provide the machine with the best sense organs that money can 14689buy, and then teach it to understand and speak English. 14690 -- Alan M. Turing 14691% 14692We may not return the affection of those who like us, but we always 14693respect their good judgement. 14694% 14695We must remember the First Amendment which protects any shrill jackass 14696no matter how self-seeking. 14697 -- F. G. Withington 14698% 14699We ought to be very grateful that we have tools. Millions of years ago 14700people did not have them, and home projects were extremely difficult. 14701For example, when a primitive person wanted to put up paneling, he had 14702to drive the little paneling nails into the cave wall with his bare 14703fist, so generally the paneling wound up getting spattered with 14704primitive blood, which isn't really all that bad when you consider how 14705ugly paneling is to begin with. 14706 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 14707% 14708We really don't have any enemies. It's just that some of our best 14709friends are trying to kill us. 14710% 14711 We were young and our happiness dazzled us with its strength. 14712But there was also a terrible betrayal that lay within me like a Merle 14713Haggard song at a French restaurant. ... 14714 I could not tell the girl about the woman of the tollway, of 14715her milk white BMW and her Jordache smile. There had been a fight. I 14716had punched her boyfriend, who fought the mechanical bulls. Everyone 14717told him, "You ride the bull, senor. You do not fight it." But he was 14718lean and tough like a bad rib-eye and he fought the bull. And then he 14719fought me. And when we finished there were no winners, just men doing 14720what men must do. ... 14721 "Stop the car," the girl said. There was a look of terrible 14722sadness in her eyes. She knew about the woman of the tollway. I knew 14723not how. I started to speak, but she raised an arm and spoke with a 14724quiet and peace I will never forget. 14725 "I do not ask for whom's the tollway belle," she said, "the 14726tollway belle's for thee." 14727 The next morning our youth was a memory, and our happiness was 14728a lie. Life is like a bad margarita with good tequila, I thought as I 14729poured whiskey onto my granola and faced a new day. 14730 -- Peter Applebome, International Imitation Hemingway 14731 Competition 14732% 14733We will have solar energy as soon as the utility companies solve one 14734technical problem -- how to run a sunbeam through a meter. 14735% 14736We will invent new lullabies, new songs, new acts of love, 14737we will cry over things we used to laugh & 14738our new wisdom will bring tears to eyes of gentile 14739creatures from other planets who were afraid of us till then & 14740in the end a summer with wild winds & 14741new friends will be. 14742% 14743We wish you a Hare Krishna 14744We wish you a Hare Krishna 14745We wish you a Hare Krishna 14746And a Sun Myung Moon! 14747 -- Maxwell Smart 14748% 14749We'll cross out that bridge when we come back to it later. 14750% 14751We're deep into the holiday gift-giving season, as you can tell from 14752the fact that everywhere you look, you see jolly old St. Nick urging 14753you to purchase things, to the point where you want to slug him right 14754in his bowl full of jelly. 14755 -- Dave Barry, "Simple, Homespun Gifts" 14756% 14757We're only in it for the volume. 14758 -- Black Sabbath 14759% 14760We've sent a man to the moon, and that's 29,000 miles away. The center 14761of the Earth is only 4,000 miles away. You could drive that in a week, 14762but for some reason nobody's ever done it. 14763 -- Andy Rooney 14764% 14765Weiler's Law: 14766 Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself. 14767% 14768Weinberg's First Law: 14769 Progress is made on alternate Fridays. 14770% 14771Weinberg's Principle: 14772 An expert is a person who avoids the small errors while 14773sweeping on to the grand fallacy. 14774% 14775Weinberg's Second Law: 14776 If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, 14777then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization. 14778% 14779Weiner's Law of Libraries: 14780 There are no answers, only cross references. 14781% 14782Welcome thy neighbor into thy fallout shelter. He'll come in handy if 14783you run out of food. 14784 -- Dean McLaughlin 14785% 14786Well, here it is, 1983, so it won't be long before you start reading a 14787lot of boring stories about people like Vance Hartke. Hartke is a 14788governor or mayor or something from one of the flatter states, and the 14789reason you'll be reading about him is that he's one of the 50 top 14790contenders for the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination. These men 14791will spend the next 18 months going around the country engaging in the 14792most degrading activities imaginable, such as wearing idiot hats and 14793appearing on "Meet the Press". "Meet the Press" is one of those Sunday 14794morning public interest shows that the public is not the least bit 14795interested in. It features a panel of reporters who ask questions of a 14796guest politician, who wins an Amana home freezer if he can get through 14797the entire show without answering a single question ... 14798 -- Dave Barry, "On Presidential Politics" 14799% 14800Well, I would -- if they realized that we -- again if -- if we led them 14801back to that stalemate only because our retaliatory power, our seconds, 14802or strike at them after our first strike, would be so destructive they 14803they couldn't afford it, that would hold them off. 14804 -- President Ronald Reagan, on the MX missile 14805% 14806Well, if you can't believe what you read in a comic book, what *___can* 14807you believe?! 14808 -- Bullwinkle J. Moose [Jay Ward] 14809% 14810Well, my terminal's locked up, and I ain't got any Mail, 14811 And I can't recall the last time that my program didn't fail; 14812I've got stacks in my structs, I've got arrays in my queues, 14813 I've got the : Segmentation violation -- Core dumped blues. 14814 14815If you think that it's nice that you get what you C, 14816 Then go : illogical statement with your whole family, 14817'Cause the Supreme Court ain't the only place with : Bus error views. 14818 I've got the : Segmentation violation -- Core dumped blues. 14819 14820On a PDP-11, life should be a breeze, 14821 But with VAXen in the house even magnetic tapes would freeze. 14822Now you might think that unlike VAXen I'd know who I abuse, 14823 I've got the : Segmentation violation -- Core dumped blues. 14824 -- Core Dumped Blues 14825% 14826"Well, that was a piece of cake, eh K-9?" 14827 14828"Piece of cake, Master? Radial slice of baked confection ... 14829coefficient of relevance to Key of Time: zero." 14830 -- Dr. Who 14831% 14832"Well," Brahma said, "even after ten thousand explanations, a fool is 14833no wiser, but an intelligent man requires only two thousand five 14834hundred." 14835 -- The Mahabharata 14836% 14837Westheimer's Discovery: 14838 A couple of months in the laboratory can frequently save a 14839couple of hours in the library. 14840% 14841Wethern's Law: 14842 Assumption is the mother of all screw-ups. 14843% 14844"What are we going to do?" 14845 14846"Me, I'm examining the major Western religions. I'm looking for 14847something that's soft on morality, generous with holidays, and has a 14848short initiation period." 14849% 14850"What are you doing?" 14851 14852"Examining the world's major religions. I'm looking for something 14853that's light on morals, has lots of holidays, and with a short 14854initiation period." 14855% 14856What color is a chameleon on a mirror? 14857% 14858 "What do you give a man who has everything?" the pretty 14859teenager asked her mother. 14860 "Encouragement, dear," she replied. 14861% 14862What does "it" mean in the sentence "What time is it?"? 14863% 14864What does it mean if there is no fortune for you? 14865% 14866What garlic is to food, insanity is to art. 14867% 14868What garlic is to salad, insanity is to art. 14869% 14870What George Washington did for us was to throw out the British, so 14871that we wouldn't have a fat, insensitive government running our 14872country. Nice try anyway, George. 14873 -- D. J. on KSFO/KYA 14874% 14875What good is a ticket to the good life, if you can't find the 14876entrance? 14877% 14878What good is having someone who can walk on water if you don't follow 14879in his footsteps? 14880% 14881What I do, first thing [in the morning], is I hop into the shower 14882stall. Then I hop right back out, because when I hopped in I landed 14883barefoot right on top of See Threepio, a little plastic robot character 14884from "Star Wars" whom my son, Robert, likes to pull the legs off of 14885while he showers. Then I hop right back into the stall because our 14886dog, Earnest, who has been alone in the basement all night building up 14887powerful dog emotions, has come bounding and quivering into the 14888bathroom and wants to greet me with 60 or 70 thousand playful nips, any 14889one of which -- bear in mind that I am naked and, without my contact 14890lenses, essentially blind -- could result in the kind of injury where 14891you have to learn a whole new part if you want to sing the "Messiah", 14892if you get my drift. Then I hop right back out, because Robert, with 14893that uncanny sixth sense some children have -- you cannot teach it; 14894they either have it or they don't -- has chosen exactly that moment to 14895flush one of the toilets. Perhaps several of them. 14896 -- Dave Barry, "Saving Face" 14897% 14898What I tell you three times is true. 14899% 14900What I think is that the F-word is basically just a convenient nasty- 14901sounding word that we tend to use when we would really like to come up 14902with a terrifically witty insult, the kind Winston Churchill always 14903came up with when enormous women asked him stupid questions at 14904parties. 14905 -- Dave Barry, "$#$%#^%!^%&@%@!" 14906% 14907What I want is all of the power and none of the responsibility. 14908% 14909What I've done, of course, is total garbage. 14910 -- R. Willard, Pure Math 430a 14911% 14912What if everything is an illusion and nothing exists? In that case, I 14913definitely overpaid for my carpet. 14914 -- Woody Allen, "Without Feathers" 14915% 14916What if nothing exists and we're all in somebody's dream? Or what's 14917worse, what if only that fat guy in the third row exists? 14918 -- Woody Allen, "Without Feathers" 14919% 14920What is a magician but a practicing theorist? 14921 -- Obi-Wan Kenobi 14922% 14923What is mind? No matter. 14924What is matter? Never mind. 14925 -- Thomas Hewitt Key, 1799-1875 14926% 14927What is the difference between a Turing machine and the modern 14928computer? It's the same as that between Hillary's ascent of Everest 14929and the establishment of a Hilton on its peak. 14930% 14931"What is the Nature of God?" 14932 14933 CLICK...CLICK...WHIRRR...CLICK...=BEEP!= 14934 1 QT. SOUR CREAM 14935 1 TSP. SAUERKRAUT 14936 1/2 CUT CHIVES. 14937 STIR AND SPRINKLE WITH BACON BITS. 14938 14939"I've just GOT to start labeling my software..." 14940 -- Bloom County 14941% 14942What is the robbing of a bank compared to the FOUNDING of a bank? 14943 -- Bertolt Brecht 14944% 14945What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, 14946which is the exact opposite. 14947 -- Bertrand Russell, "Skeptical_Essays", 1928 14948% 14949What is worth doing is worth the trouble of asking somebody to do. 14950% 14951What makes the universe so hard to comprehend is that there's nothing 14952to compare it with. 14953% 14954What publishers are looking for these days isn't radical feminism. 14955It's corporate feminism -- a brand of feminism designed to sell books 14956and magazines, three-piece suits, airline tickets, Scotch, cigarettes 14957and, most important, corporate America's message, which runs: "Yes, 14958women were discriminated against in the past, but that unfortunate 14959mistake has been remedied; now every woman can attain wealth, prestige 14960and power by dint of individual rather than collective effort." 14961 -- Susan Gordon 14962% 14963What sane person could live in this world and not be crazy? 14964 -- Ursula K. LeGuin 14965% 14966What the hell, go ahead and put all your eggs in one basket. 14967% 14968What the large print giveth, the small print taketh away. 14969% 14970What the world *really* needs is a good Automatic Bicycle Sharpener. 14971% 14972What this country needs is a dime that will buy a good five-cent bagel. 14973% 14974What this country needs is a good five cent ANYTHING! 14975% 14976What this country needs is a good five cent microcomputer. 14977% 14978What this country needs is a good five cent nickel. 14979% 14980What this country needs is a good five dollar plasma weapon. 14981% 14982What this world needs is a good five-dollar plasma weapon. 14983% 14984What use is magic if it can't save a unicorn? 14985 -- Peter S. Beagle, "The Last Unicorn" 14986% 14987What we need in this country, instead of Daylight Savings Time, which 14988nobody really understands anyway, is a new concept called Weekday 14989Morning Time, whereby at 7 a.m. every weekday we go into a space- 14990launch-style "hold" for two to three hours, during which it just 14991remains 7 a.m. This way we could all wake up via a civilized gradual 14992process of stretching and belching and scratching, and it would still 14993be only 7 a.m. when we were ready to actually emerge from bed. 14994 -- Dave Barry, "$#$%#^%!^%&@%@!" 14995% 14996What you don't know can hurt you, only you won't know it. 14997% 14998What's another word for Thesaurus? 14999 -- Steven Wright 15000% 15001 "What's that thing?" 15002 "Well, it's a highly technical, sensitive instrument we use in 15003computer repair. Being a layman, you probably can't grasp exactly what 15004it does. We call it a two-by-four." 15005 -- Jeff MacNelley, "Shoe" 15006% 15007What's the use of a good quotation if you can't change it? 15008 -- Dr. Who 15009% 15010Whatever became of eternal truth? 15011% 15012Whatever became of Strange de Jim? Well, he found a substitute for 15013cocaine: "You cover Q-tips with sandpaper and ram them up your nostrils 15014as far as they will go. Then you sniff talcum powder while shredding 15015hundred dollar bills." 15016 -- Herb Caen 15017% 15018Whatever is not nailed down is mine. What I can pry loose is not 15019nailed down. 15020 -- Collis P. Huntingdon 15021% 15022Whatever the missing mass of the universe is, I hope it's not cockroaches! 15023 -- Mom 15024% 15025When a Banker jumps out of a window, jump after him -- that's where the 15026money is. 15027 -- Robespierre 15028% 15029When a fellow says, "It ain't the money but the principle of the 15030thing," it's the money. 15031 -- Kim Hubbard 15032% 15033When a fly lands on the ceiling, does it do a half roll or a half 15034loop? 15035% 15036When a place gets crowded enough to require ID's, social collapse is 15037not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space 15038travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere. 15039 -- Robert Heinlein, "Time Enough For Love" 15040% 15041When a shepherd goes to kill a wolf, and takes his dog along to see the 15042sport, he should take care to avoid mistakes. The dog has certain 15043relationships to the wolf the shepherd may have forgotten. 15044 -- Robert Pirsig, "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" 15045% 15046When all other means of communication fail, try words. 15047% 15048When are you BUTTHEADS gonna learn that you can't oppose Gestapo 15049tactics *with* Gestapo tactics? 15050 -- Reuben Flagg 15051% 15052When asked by an anthropologist what the Indians called America before 15053the white men came, an Indian said simply "Ours." 15054 -- Vine Deloria, Jr. 15055% 15056When does summertime come to Minnesota, you ask? Well, last year, I 15057think it was a Tuesday. 15058% 15059When God endowed human beings with brains, He did not intend to 15060guarantee them. 15061% 15062When I get real bored, I like to drive downtown and get a great 15063parking spot, then sit in my car and count how many people ask me if 15064I'm leaving. 15065 -- Steven Wright 15066% 15067When I heated my home with oil, I used an average of 800 gallons a 15068year. I have found that I can keep comfortably warm for an entire 15069winter with slightly over half that quantity of beer. 15070 -- Dave Barry, "Postpetroleum Guzzler" 15071% 15072When I said "we", officer, I was referring to myself, the four young 15073ladies, and, of course, the goat. 15074% 15075When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become President. Now 15076I'm beginning to believe it. 15077 -- Clarence Darrow 15078% 15079When I was a kid I said to my father one afternoon, "Daddy, will you 15080take me to the zoo?" He answered, "If the zoo wants you let them come 15081and get you." 15082 -- Jerry Lewis 15083% 15084When I was crossing the border into Canada, they asked if I had any 15085firearms with me. I said, `Well, what do you need?' 15086 -- Steven Wright 15087% 15088When I was in school, I cheated on my metaphysics exam: I looked into 15089the soul of the boy sitting next to me. 15090 -- Woody Allen 15091% 15092When I was seven years old, I was once reprimanded by my mother for an 15093act of collective brutality in which I had been involved at school. A 15094group of seven-year-olds had been teasing and tormenting a 15095six-year-old. "It is always so," my mother said. "You do things 15096together which not one of you would think of doing alone." ... 15097Wherever one looks in the world of human organization, collective 15098responsibility brings a lowering of moral standards. The military 15099establishment is an extreme case, an organization which seems to have 15100been expressly designed to make it possible for people to do things 15101together which nobody in his right mind would do alone. 15102 -- Freeman Dyson, "Weapons and Hope" 15103% 15104When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened 15105or not; but my faculties are decaying now and soon I shall be so I 15106cannot remember any but the things that never happened. It is sad to 15107go to pieces like this but we all have to do it. 15108 -- Mark Twain 15109% 15110When in doubt, do what the President does -- guess. 15111% 15112When in doubt, tell the truth. 15113 -- Mark Twain 15114% 15115When in doubt, use brute force. 15116 -- Ken Thompson 15117% 15118When in panic, fear and doubt, 15119Drink in barrels, eat, and shout. 15120% 15121When love is gone, there's always justice. 15122And when justice is gone, there's always force. 15123And when force is gone, there's always Mom. 15124Hi, Mom! 15125 -- Laurie Anderson 15126% 15127When Marriage is Outlawed, 15128Only Outlaws will have Inlaws. 15129% 15130When more and more people are thrown out of work, unemployment 15131results. 15132 -- Calvin Coolidge 15133% 15134When one woman was asked how long she had been going to symphony 15135concerts, she paused to calculate and replied, "Forty-seven years -- 15136and I find I mind it less and less." 15137 -- Louise Andrews Kent 15138% 15139When properly administered, vacations do not diminish productivity: 15140for every week you're away and get nothing done, there's another when 15141your boss is away and you get twice as much done. 15142 -- Daniel B. Luten 15143% 15144When someone says "I want a programming language in which I need only 15145say what I wish done," give him a lollipop. 15146% 15147When the going gets tough, the tough get empirical. 15148 -- Jon Carroll 15149% 15150When the government bureau's remedies don't match your problem, you 15151modify the problem, not the remedy. 15152% 15153When the Ngdanga tribe of West Africa hold their moon love ceremonies, 15154the men of the tribe bang their heads on sacred trees until they get a 15155nose bleed, which usually cures them of ____that. 15156 -- Mike Harding, "The Armchair Anarchist's Almanac" 15157% 15158When the speaker and he to whom he is speaks do not understand, that is 15159metaphysics. 15160 -- Voltaire 15161% 15162When the Universe was not so out of whack as it is today, and all the 15163stars were lined up in their proper places, you could easily count them 15164from left to right, or top to bottom, and the larger and bluer ones 15165were set apart, and the smaller yellowing types pushed off to the 15166corners as bodies of a lower grade ... 15167 -- Stanislaw Lem, "Cyberiad" 15168% 15169When the weight of the paperwork equals the weight of the plane, the 15170plane will fly. 15171 -- Donald Douglas 15172% 15173When two people are under the influence of the most violent, most 15174insane, most delusive, and most transient of passions, they are 15175required to swear that they will remain in that excited, abnormal, and 15176exhausting condition continuously until death do them part. 15177 -- George Bernard Shaw 15178% 15179When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is 15180not hereditary. 15181 -- Thomas Paine 15182% 15183When we understand knowledge-based systems, it will be as before -- 15184except our fingertips will have been singed. 15185 -- Epigrams in Programming, ACM SIGPLAN Sept. 1982 15186% 15187When you are about to do an objective and scientific piece of 15188investigation of a topic, it is well to have the answer firmly in hand, 15189so that you can proceed forthrightly, without being deflected or 15190swayed, directly to the goal. 15191 -- Amrom Katz 15192% 15193When you are in it up to your ears, keep your mouth shut. 15194% 15195When you don't know what you are doing, do it neatly. 15196% 15197When you have an efficient government, you have a dictatorship. 15198 -- Harry S. Truman 15199% 15200 When you have shot and killed a man you have in some measure 15201clarified your attitude toward him. You have given a definite answer 15202to a definite problem. For better or worse you have acted decisively. 15203 In a way, the next move is up to him. 15204 -- R. A. Lafferty 15205% 15206When you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite." 15207 -- Winston Churchill, On formal declarations of war 15208% 15209When you know absolutely nothing about the topic, make your forecast by 15210asking a carefully selected probability sample of 300 others who don't 15211know the answer either. 15212 -- Edgar R. Fiedler 15213% 15214When you make your mark in the world, watch out for guys with erasers. 15215 -- The Wall Street Journal 15216% 15217When you try to make an impression, the chances are that is the 15218impression you will make. 15219% 15220When you're away, I'm restless, lonely, 15221Wretched, bored, dejected; only 15222Here's the rub, my darling dear 15223I feel the same when you are near. 15224 -- Samuel Hoffenstein, "When You're Away" 15225% 15226When you're not looking at it, this fortune is written in FORTRAN. 15227% 15228Whenever anyone says, "theoretically", they really mean, "not really". 15229 -- Dave Parnas 15230% 15231Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to 15232see it tried on him personally. 15233 -- A. Lincoln 15234% 15235Whenever people agree with me I always feel I must be wrong. 15236 -- Oscar Wilde 15237% 15238Whenever the literary German dives into a sentence, that is the last 15239you are going to see of him until he emerges on the other side of his 15240Atlantic with his verb in his mouth. 15241 -- Mark Twain 15242 "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" 15243% 15244Whenever you find that you are on the side of the majority, it is time 15245to reform. 15246 -- Mark Twain 15247% 15248WHERE CAN THE MATTER BE 15249 15250 Oh, dear, where can the matter be 15251 When it's converted to energy? 15252 There is a slight loss of parity. 15253 Johnny's so long at the fair. 15254% 15255Where humor is concerned there are no standards -- no one can say what 15256is good or bad, although you can be sure that everyone will. 15257 -- John Kenneth Galbraith 15258% 15259Where there's a will, there's an Inheritance Tax. 15260% 15261Whether you can hear it or not 15262The Universe is laughing behind your back 15263 -- National Lampoon, "Deteriorata" 15264% 15265Which is worse: ignorance or apathy? Who knows? Who cares? 15266% 15267While anyone can admit to themselves they were wrong, the true test is 15268admission to someone else. 15269% 15270While Europe's eye is fix'd on mighty things, 15271The fate of empires and the fall of kings; 15272While quacks of State must each produce his plan, 15273And even children lisp the Rights of Man; 15274Amid this mighty fuss just let me mention, 15275The Rights of Woman merit some attention. 15276 -- Robert Burns, Address on "The Rights of Woman", 15277 November 26, 1792 15278% 15279While having never invented a sin, I'm trying to perfect several. 15280% 15281While it may be true that a watched pot never boils, the one you don't 15282keep an eye on can make an awful mess of your stove. 15283 -- Edward Stevenson 15284% 15285While money can't buy happiness, it certainly lets you choose your own 15286form of misery. 15287% 15288While money doesn't buy love, it puts you in a great bargaining position. 15289% 15290While most peoples' opinions change, the conviction of their 15291correctness never does. 15292% 15293While you don't greatly need the outside world, it's still very 15294reassuring to know that it's still there. 15295% 15296While your friend holds you affectionately by both your hands you are 15297safe, for you can watch both of his. 15298 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 15299% 15300Whistler's Law: 15301 You never know who is right, but you always know who is in 15302charge. 15303% 15304Who cares if it doesn't do anything? It was made with our new 15305Triple-Iso-Bifurcated-Krypton-Gate-MOS process ... 15306% 15307Who made the world I cannot tell; 15308'Tis made, and here am I in hell. 15309My hand, though now my knuckles bleed, 15310I never soiled with such a deed. 15311 -- A. E. Housman 15312% 15313Who messed with my anti-paranoia shot? 15314% 15315Who needs friends when you can sit alone in your room and drink? 15316% 15317Who's on first? 15318% 15319"Whom are you?" said he, for he had been to night school. 15320 -- George Ade 15321% 15322Whom computers would destroy, they must first drive mad. 15323% 15324Whom the gods wish to destroy they first call promising. 15325% 15326Why are we importing all these highbrow plays like `Amadeus'? I could 15327have told you Mozart was a jerk for nothing. 15328 -- Ian Shoales 15329% 15330Why be a man when you can be a success? 15331 -- Bertolt Brecht 15332% 15333Why bother building any more nuclear warheads until we use the ones we 15334have? 15335% 15336Why can't you be a non-conformist like everyone else? 15337% 15338Why did the Lord give us so much quickness of movement unless it was to 15339avoid responsibility with? 15340% 15341Why did the Roman Empire collapse? 15342What is the Latin for office automation? 15343% 15344Why do we have two eyes? To watch 3-D movies with. 15345% 15346Why does man kill? He kills for food. And not only food: frequently 15347there must be a beverage. 15348 -- Woody Allen, "Without Feathers" 15349% 15350Why does New Jersey have more toxic waste dumps and California have 15351more lawyers? 15352 15353New Jersey had first choice. 15354% 15355Why don't elephants eat penguins ? 15356 15357Because they can't get the wrappers off ... 15358% 15359Why I Can't Go Out With You: 15360 15361I'd LOVE to, but ... 15362 -- I have to floss my cat. 15363 -- I've dedicated my life to linguini. 15364 -- I need to spend more time with my blender. 15365 -- it wouldn't be fair to the other Beautiful People. 15366 -- it's my night to pet the dog/ferret/goldfish. 15367 -- I'm going downtown to try on some gloves. 15368 -- I have to check the freshness dates on my dairy products. 15369 -- I'm going down to the bakery to watch the buns rise. 15370 -- I have an appointment with a cuticle specialist. 15371 -- I have some really hard words to look up. 15372 -- I've got a Friends of the Lowly Rutabaga meeting. 15373 -- I promised to help a friend fold road maps. 15374% 15375Why is it that we rejoice at a birth and grieve at a funeral? It is 15376because we are not the person involved 15377 -- Mark Twain 15378% 15379Why is the alphabet in that order? Is it because of that song? 15380% 15381Why isn't there a special name for the tops of your feet? 15382 -- Lily Tomlin 15383% 15384Why must you tell me all your secrets when it's hard enough to love 15385you knowing nothing? 15386 -- Lloyd Cole and the Commotions 15387% 15388Why not have an old-fashioned Christmas for your family this year? 15389Just picture the scene in your living room on Christmas morning as your 15390children open their old-fashioned presents. 15391 15392Your 11-year-old son: "What the heck is this?" 15393 15394You: "A spinning top! You spin it around, and then eventually it 15395 falls down. What fun! Ha, ha!" 15396 15397Son: "Is this a joke? Jason Thompson's parents got him a computer 15398 with two disk drives and 128 kilobytes of random-access memory, 15399 and I get this cretin TOP?" 15400 15401Your 8-year-old daughter: "You think that's bad? Look at this." 15402 15403You: "It's figgy pudding! What a treat!" 15404 15405Daughter: "It looks like goat barf." 15406 -- Dave Barry, "Simple, Homespun Gifts" 15407% 15408Why was I born with such contemporaries? 15409 -- Oscar Wilde 15410% 15411Why You Can't Run When There's Trouble in the Office: 15412 No matter where you stand, no matter how far or fast you flee, 15413when it hits the fan, as much as possible will be propelled in your 15414direction, and almost none will be returned to the source. 15415 -- John L. Shelton 15416% 15417Wiker's Law: 15418 Government expands to absorb revenue and then some. 15419% 15420 William Safire's Rules for Writers: 15421 15422Remember to never split an infinitive. The passive voice should never 15423be used. Do not put statements in the negative form. Verbs have to 15424agree with their subjects. Proofread carefully to see if you words 15425out. If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal 15426of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing. A writer must 15427not shift your point of view. And don't start a sentence with a 15428conjunction. (Remember, too, a preposition is a terrible word to end a 15429sentence with.) Don't overuse exclamation marks!! Place pronouns as 15430close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more 15431words, to their antecedents. Writing carefully, dangling participles 15432must be avoided. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a 15433linking verb is. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing 15434metaphors. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky. Everyone should 15435be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their 15436writing. Always pick on the correct idiom. The adverb always follows 15437the verb. Last but not least, avoid cliches like the plague; seek 15438viable alternatives. 15439% 15440Williams and Holland's Law: 15441 If enough data is collected, anything may be proven by 15442statistical methods. 15443% 15444Winter is the season in which people try to keep the house as warm as 15445it was in the summer, when they complained about the heat. 15446% 15447Wit, n.: 15448 The salt with which the American Humorist spoils his cookery 15449... by leaving it out. 15450 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 15451% 15452With a gentleman I try to be a gentleman and a half, and with a fraud I 15453try to be a fraud and a half. 15454 -- Otto von Bismarck 15455% 15456With a rubber duck, one's never alone. 15457 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 15458% 15459With all the fancy scientists in the world, why can't they just once 15460build a nuclear balm? 15461% 15462With every passing hour our solar system comes forty-three thousand 15463miles closer to globular cluster M13 in the constellation Hercules, and 15464still there are some misfits who continue to insist that there is no 15465such thing as progress. 15466 -- Ransom K. Ferm 15467% 15468With trembling hands he unfurled the ancient cracked parchment, 15469this was the place, it had to be. Uncertainly he began to mumble the 15470chant "rdbms, sql, third normal formal form, java, table, scalable". 15471Something moved... From outside they heard a scream and a thud. 15472The sales department had awoken. 15473% 15474Without ice cream life and fame are meaningless. 15475% 15476Wombat's Laws of Computer Selection: 15477 (1) If it doesn't run Unix, forget it. 15478 (2) Any computer design over 10 years old is obsolete. 15479 (3) Anything made by IBM is junk. (See number 2) 15480 (4) The minimum acceptable CPU power for a single user is a 15481 VAX/780 with a floating point accelerator. 15482 (5) Any computer with a mouse is worthless. 15483 -- Rich Kulawiec 15484% 15485Wood is highly ecological, since trees are a renewable resource. If 15486you cut down a tree, another will grow in its place. And if you cut 15487down the new tree, still another will grow. And if you cut down that 15488tree, yet another will grow, only this one will be a mutation with 15489long, poisonous tentacles and revenge in its heart, and it will sit 15490there in the forest, cackling and making elaborate plans for when you 15491come back. 15492 15493Wood heat is not new. It dates back to a day millions of years ago, 15494when a group of cavemen were sitting around, watching dinosaurs rot. 15495Suddenly, lightning struck a nearby log and set it on fire. One of the 15496cavemen stared at the fire for a few minutes, then said: "Hey! Wood 15497heat!" The other cavemen, who did not understand English, immediately 15498beat him to death with stones. But the key discovery had been made, 15499and from that day forward, the cavemen had all the heat they needed, 15500although their insurance rates went way up. 15501 -- Dave Barry, "Postpetroleum Guzzler" 15502% 15503Work Rule: Leave of Absence (for an Operation): 15504 We are no longer allowing this practice. We wish to discourage 15505any thoughts that you may not need all of whatever you have, and you 15506should not consider having anything removed. We hired you as you are, 15507and to have anything removed would certainly make you less than we 15508bargained for. 15509% 15510Workers of the world, arise! You have nothing to lose but your chairs. 15511% 15512World War Three can be averted by adherence to a strictly enforced 15513dress code! 15514% 15515Worst Month of 1981 for Downhill Skiing: 15516 August. The lines are the shortest, though. 15517 -- Steve Rubenstein 15518% 15519Worst Month of the Year: 15520 February. February has only 28 days in it, which means that if 15521you rent an apartment, you are paying for three full days you don't 15522get. Try to avoid Februarys whenever possible. 15523 -- Steve Rubenstein 15524% 15525Worst Response To A Crisis, 1985: 15526 From a readers' Q and A column in TV GUIDE: "If we get involved 15527in a nuclear war, would the electromagnetic pulses from exploding bombs 15528damage my videotapes?" 15529% 15530Worst Vegetable of the Year: 15531 The brussels sprout. This is also the worst vegetable of next 15532year. 15533 -- Steve Rubenstein 15534% 15535"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?" 15536 15537"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat. 15538 -- Lewis Carroll 15539% 15540Wouldn't the sentence 'I want to put a hyphen between the words Fish 15541and And and And and Chips in my Fish-And-Chips sign' have been clearer 15542if quotation marks had been placed before Fish, and between Fish and 15543and, and and and And, and And and and, and and and And, and And and 15544and, and and and Chips, as well as after Chips? 15545% 15546Write-Protect Tab, n.: 15547 A small sticker created to cover the unsightly notch carelessly 15548left by disk manufacturers. The use of the tab creates an error 15549message once in a while, but its aesthetic value far outweighs the 15550momentary inconvenience. 15551 -- Robb Russon 15552% 15553Writing about music is like dancing about architecture. 15554 -- Frank Zappa 15555% 15556"Wrong," said Renner. 15557 15558"The tactful way," Rod said quietly, "the polite way to disagree with 15559the Senator would be to say, `That turns out not to be the case.'" 15560% 15561X-rated movies are all alike -- the only thing they leave to the 15562imagination is the plot. 15563% 15564Xerox does it again and again and again and ... 15565% 15566Xerox never comes up with anything original. 15567% 15568XIIdigitation, n.: 15569 The practice of trying to determine the year a movie was made 15570by deciphering the Roman numerals at the end of the credits. 15571 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 15572% 15573"Yacc" owes much to a most stimulating collection of users, who have 15574goaded me beyond my inclination, and frequently beyond my ability in 15575their endless search for "one more feature". Their irritating 15576unwillingness to learn how to do things my way has usually led to my 15577doing things their way; most of the time, they have been right. 15578 -- Stephen C. Johnson, "Yacc guide acknowledgements" 15579% 15580Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of APL, I shall 15581fear no evil, for I can string six primitive monadic and dyadic 15582operators together. 15583 -- Steve Higgins 15584% 15585Yeah, but you're taking the universe out of context. 15586% 15587Year, n.: 15588 A period of three hundred and sixty-five disappointments. 15589 -- Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary" 15590% 15591Yes, but every time I try to see things your way, I get a headache. 15592% 15593Yes, but which self do you want to be? 15594% 15595Yesterday I was a dog. Today I'm a dog. 15596Tomorrow I'll probably still be a dog. 15597Sigh! There's so little hope for advancement. 15598 -- Snoopy 15599% 15600Yesterday upon the stair 15601I met a man who wasn't there. 15602He wasn't there again today -- 15603I think he's from the CIA. 15604% 15605Yield to Temptation ... it may not pass your way again. 15606 -- Lazarus Long, "Time Enough for Love" 15607% 15608Yinkel, n.: 15609 A person who combs his hair over his bald spot, hoping no one 15610will notice. 15611 -- Rich Hall, "Sniglets" 15612% 15613You are a very redundant person, that's what kind of person you are. 15614% 15615You are here: 15616 *** 15617 *** 15618 ********* 15619 ******* 15620 ***** 15621 *** 15622 * 15623 15624 But you're not all there. 15625% 15626"You are old, Father William," the young man said, 15627 "All your papers these days look the same; 15628Those William's would be better unread -- 15629 Do these facts never fill you with shame?" 15630 15631"In my youth," Father William replied to his son, 15632 "I wrote wonderful papers galore; 15633But the great reputation I found that I'd won, 15634 Made it pointless to think any more." 15635% 15636"You are old, father William," the young man said, 15637 "And your hair has become very white; 15638And yet you incessantly stand on your head -- 15639 Do you think, at your age, it is right?" 15640 15641"In my youth," father William replied to his son, 15642 "I feared it might injure the brain; 15643But, now that I'm perfectly sure I have none, 15644 Why, I do it again and again." 15645 -- Lewis Carroll 15646% 15647"You are old," said the youth, "and I'm told by my peers 15648 That your lectures bore people to death. 15649Yet you talk at one hundred conventions per year -- 15650 Don't you think that you should save your breath?" 15651 15652"I have answered three questions and that is enough," 15653 Said his father, "Don't give yourself airs! 15654Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff? 15655 Be off, or I'll kick you downstairs!" 15656% 15657"You are old," said the youth, "and your jaws are too weak 15658 For anything tougher than suet; 15659Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak -- 15660 Pray, how did you manage to do it?" 15661 15662"In my youth," said his father, "I took to the law, 15663 And argued each case with my wife; 15664And the muscular strength which it gave to my jaw, 15665 Has lasted the rest of my life." 15666 -- Lewis Carroll 15667% 15668"You are old," said the youth, "and your programs don't run, 15669 And there isn't one language you like; 15670Yet of useful suggestions for help you have none -- 15671 Have you thought about taking a hike?" 15672 15673"Since I never write programs," his father replied, 15674 "Every language looks equally bad; 15675Yet the people keep paying to read all my books 15676 And don't realize that they've been had." 15677% 15678"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before, 15679 And have grown most uncommonly fat; 15680Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door -- 15681 Pray what is the reason of that?" 15682 15683"In my youth," said the sage, as he shook his grey locks, 15684 "I kept all my limbs very supple 15685By the use of this ointment -- one shilling the box -- 15686 Allow me to sell you a couple?" 15687 -- Lewis Carroll 15688% 15689"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before, 15690 And make errors few people could bear; 15691You complain about everyone's English but yours -- 15692 Do you really think this is quite fair?" 15693 15694"I make lots of mistakes," Father William declared, 15695 "But my stature these days is so great 15696That no critic can hurt me -- I've got them all scared, 15697 And to stop me it's now far too late." 15698% 15699"You are old," said the youth, "one would hardly suppose 15700 That your eye was as steady as ever; 15701Yet you balanced an eel on the end of your nose -- 15702 What made you so awfully clever?" 15703 15704"I have answered three questions, and that is enough," 15705 Said his father. "Don't give yourself airs! 15706Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff? 15707 Be off, or I'll kick you down stairs!" 15708 -- Lewis Carroll 15709% 15710You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely. 15711% 15712You are the only person to ever get this message. 15713% 15714You are wise, witty, and wonderful, but you spend too much time reading 15715this sort of trash. 15716% 15717You buttered your bread, now lie in it! 15718% 15719You can always tell the Christmas season is here when you start getting 15720incredibly dense, tinfoil-and-ribbon- wrapped lumps in the mail. 15721Fruitcakes make ideal gifts because the Postal Service has been unable 15722to find a way to damage them. They last forever, largely because 15723nobody ever eats them. In fact, many smart people save the fruitcakes 15724they receive and send them back to the original givers the next year; 15725some fruitcakes have been passed back and forth for hundreds of years. 15726 15727The easiest way to make a fruitcake is to buy a darkish cake, then 15728pound some old, hard fruit into it with a mallet. Be sure to wear 15729safety glasses. 15730 -- Dave Barry, "Simple, Homespun Gifts" 15731% 15732You can bring any calculator you like to the midterm, as long as it 15733doesn't dim the lights when you turn it on. 15734 -- Hepler, Systems Design 182 15735% 15736You can create your own opportunities this week. 15737Blackmail a senior executive. 15738% 15739You can do this in a number of ways. IBM chose to do all of them. 15740Why do you find that funny? 15741 -- D. Taylor, Computer Science 350, University of Washington 15742% 15743You can get more of what you want with a kind word and a gun than you 15744can with just a kind word. 15745 -- Bumper Sticker 15746% 15747You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, 15748for instance. 15749 -- Franklin P. Jones 15750% 15751You can make it illegal, but you can't make it unpopular. 15752% 15753You can measure a programmer's perspective by noting his attitude on 15754the continuing viability of FORTRAN. 15755 -- Alan Perlis 15756% 15757You can only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. 15758% 15759You can take all the impact that science considerations have on funding 15760decisions at NASA, put them in the navel of a flea, and have room left 15761over for a caraway seed and Tony Calio's heart. 15762 -- F. Allen 15763% 15764You can tell how far we have to go, when FORTRAN is the language of 15765supercomputers. 15766 -- Steven Feiner 15767% 15768You can tune a piano, but you can't tuna fish. 15769% 15770You can write a small letter to Grandma in the filename. 15771 -- Forbes Burkowski, Computer Science 454 15772% 15773You can't carve your way to success without cutting remarks. 15774% 15775You can't have everything. Where would you put it? 15776 -- Steven Wright 15777% 15778You can't hold a man down without staying down with him. 15779 -- Booker T. Washington 15780% 15781You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair. 15782% 15783You can't make a program without broken egos. 15784% 15785You can't start worrying about what's going to happen. You get spastic 15786enough worrying about what's happening now. 15787 -- Lauren Bacall 15788% 15789You can't survive by sucking the juice from a wet mitten. 15790 -- Charles Schulz, "Things I've Had to Learn Over and 15791 Over and Over" 15792% 15793You can't teach people to be lazy - either they have it, or they don't. 15794 -- Dagwood Bumstead 15795% 15796You cannot achieve the impossible without attempting the absurd. 15797% 15798You cannot kill time without injuring eternity. 15799% 15800You cannot propel yourself forward by patting yourself on the back. 15801% 15802You could get a new lease on life -- if only you didn't need the first 15803and last month in advance. 15804% 15805You couldn't even prove the White House staff sane beyond a reasonable 15806doubt. 15807 -- Ed Meese, on the Hinckley verdict 15808% 15809You do not have mail. 15810% 15811You don't have to think too hard when you talk to teachers. 15812 -- J. D. Salinger 15813% 15814You don't sew with a fork, so I see no reason to eat with knitting 15815needles. 15816 -- Miss Piggy, on eating Chinese Food 15817% 15818You first have to decide whether to use the short or the long form. 15819The short form is what the Internal Revenue Service calls "simplified", 15820which means it is designed for people who need the help of a Sears 15821tax-preparation expert to distinguish between their first and last 15822names. Here's the complete text: 15823 15824 "(1) How much did you make? (AMOUNT) 15825 "(2) How much did we here at the government take out? (AMOUNT) 15826 "(3) Hey! Sounds like we took too much! So we're going to 15827 send an official government check for (ONE-FIFTEENTH OF 15828 THE AMOUNT WE TOOK) directly to the (YOUR LAST NAME) 15829 household at (YOUR ADDRESS), for you to spend in any way 15830 you please! Which just goes to show you, (YOUR FIRST 15831 NAME), that it pays to file the short form!" 15832 15833The IRS wants you to use this form because it gets to keep most of your 15834money. So unless you have pond silt for brains, you want the long 15835form. 15836 -- Dave Barry, "Sweating Out Taxes" 15837% 15838You have a tendency to feel you are superior to most computers. 15839% 15840You have acquired a scroll entitled 'irk gleknow mizk'(n).--More-- 15841 15842This is an IBM Manual scroll.--More-- 15843 15844You are permanently confused. 15845 -- Dave Decot 15846% 15847You have an unusual magnetic personality. Don't walk too close to 15848metal objects which are not fastened down. 15849% 15850You have junk mail. 15851% 15852You have the body of a 19 year old. Please return it before it gets 15853wrinkled. 15854% 15855You have the capacity to learn from mistakes. You'll learn a lot today. 15856% 15857You know it's going to be a bad day when you want to put on the clothes 15858you wore home from the party and there aren't any. 15859% 15860You know the great thing about TV? If something important happens 15861anywhere at all in the world, no matter what time of the day or night, 15862you can always change the channel. 15863 -- Jim Ignatowski 15864% 15865You know you have a small apartment when Rice Krispies echo. 15866 -- S. Rickly Christian 15867% 15868You know you're a little fat if you have stretch marks on your car. 15869 -- Cyrus, Chicago Reader 1/22/82 15870% 15871You know you've been spending too much time on the computer when your 15872friend misdates a check, and you suggest adding a "++" to fix it. 15873% 15874You know you've landed gear-up when it takes full power to taxi. 15875% 15876 "You know, it's at times like this when I'm trapped in a Vogon 15877airlock with a man from Betelgeuse and about to die of asphyxiation in 15878deep space that I really wish I'd listened to what my mother told me 15879when I was young!" 15880 "Why, what did she tell you?" 15881 "I don't know, I didn't listen!" 15882 -- Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" 15883% 15884You look like a million dollars. All green and wrinkled. 15885% 15886You may be recognized soon. Hide. 15887% 15888You may be sure that when a man begins to call himself a "realist," he 15889is preparing to do something he is secretly ashamed of doing. 15890 -- Sydney Harris 15891% 15892You may easily play a joke on a man who likes to argue -- agree with 15893him. 15894 -- Ed Howe 15895% 15896You may have heard that a dean is to faculty as a hydrant is to a dog. 15897 -- Alfred Kahn 15898% 15899You men out there probably think you already know how to dress for 15900success. You know, for example, that you should not wear leisure suits 15901or white plastic belts and shoes, unless you are going to a costume 15902party disguised as a pig farmer vacationing at Disney World. 15903 -- Dave Barry, "How to Dress for Real Success" 15904% 15905You might have mail. 15906% 15907You might have had mail. 15908% 15909You must realize that the computer has it in for you. The irrefutable 15910proof of this is that the computer always does what you tell it to do. 15911% 15912You need no longer worry about the future. This time tomorrow you'll 15913be dead. 15914% 15915You need only reflect that one of the best ways to get yourself a 15916reputation as a dangerous citizen these days is to go about repeating 15917the very phrases which our founding fathers used in the struggle for 15918independence. 15919 -- Charles A. Beard 15920% 15921You never know how many friends you have until you rent a house on the 15922beach. 15923% 15924You or I must yield up his life to Ahrimanes. I would rather it were 15925you. I should have no hesitation in sacrificing my own life to spare 15926yours, but we take stock next week, and it would not be fair on the 15927company. 15928 -- J. Wellington Wells 15929% 15930You possess a mind not merely twisted, but actually sprained. 15931% 15932You probably wouldn't worry about what people think of you if you could 15933know how seldom they do. 15934 -- Olin Miller 15935% 15936You should emulate your heros, but don't carry it too far. Especially 15937if they are dead. 15938% 15939You should never bet against anything in science at odds of more than 15940about 10^12 to 1. 15941 -- Ernest Rutherford 15942% 15943You should never wear your best trousers when you go out to fight for 15944freedom and liberty. 15945 -- Henrik Ibsen 15946% 15947You should not use your fireplace, because scientists now believe that, 15948contrary to popular opinion, fireplaces actually remove heat from 15949houses. Really, that's what scientists believe. In fact many 15950scientists actually use their fireplaces to cool their houses in the 15951summer. If you visit a scientist's house on a sultry August day, 15952you'll find a cheerful fire roaring on the hearth and the scientist 15953sitting nearby, remarking on how cool he is and drinking heavily. 15954 -- Dave Barry, "Postpetroleum Guzzler" 15955% 15956You should tip the waiter $10, minus $2 if he tells you his name, 15957another $2 if he claims it will be His Pleasure to serve you and 15958another $2 for each "special" he describes involving confusing terms 15959such as "shallots," and $4 if the menu contains the word "fixin's." In 15960many restaurants, this means the waiter will actually owe you money. 15961If you are traveling with a child aged six months to three years, you 15962should leave an additional amount equal to twice the bill to compensate 15963for the fact that they will have to take the banquette out and burn it 15964because the cracks are wedged solid with gobbets made of partially 15965chewed former restaurant rolls saturated with baby spit. 15966 15967In New York, tip the taxicab driver $40 if he does not mention his 15968hemorrhoids. 15969 -- Dave Barry, "The Stuff of Etiquette" 15970% 15971You should, without hesitation, pound your typewriter into a 15972plowshare, your paper into fertilizer, and enter agriculture. 15973 -- Business Professor, University of Georgia 15974% 15975You think Oedipus had a problem -- Adam was Eve's mother. 15976% 15977 YOU TOO CAN MAKE BIG MONEY IN THE EXCITING FIELD OF 15978 PAPER SHUFFLING! 15979 15980Mr. TAA of Muddle, Mass. says: "Before I took this course I used to be 15981a lowly bit twiddler. Now with what I learned at MIT Tech I feel 15982really important and can obfuscate and confuse with the best." 15983 15984Mr. MARC had this to say: "Ten short days ago all I could look forward 15985to was a dead-end job as a engineer. Now I have a promising future and 15986make really big Zorkmids." 15987 15988MIT Tech can't promise these fantastic results to everyone, but when 15989you earn your MDL degree from MIT Tech your future will be brighter. 15990 15991 SEND FOR OUR FREE BROCHURE TODAY! 15992% 15993You too can wear a nose mitten. 15994% 15995You will be a winner today. Pick a fight with a four-year-old. 15996% 15997You will be attacked by a beast who has the body of a wolf, the tail of 15998a lion, and the face of Donald Duck. 15999% 16000You will be surprised by a loud noise. 16001% 16002You will be Told about it Tomorrow. Go Home and Prepare Thyself. 16003% 16004You will feel hungry again in another hour. 16005% 16006You will lose your present job and have to become a door to door 16007mayonnaise salesman. 16008% 16009 You will remember, Watson, how the dreadful business of the 16010Abernetty family was first brought to my notice by the depth which the 16011parsley had sunk into the butter upon a hot day. 16012 -- Sherlock Holmes 16013% 16014You will think of something funnier than this to add to the fortunes. 16015% 16016You worry too much about your job. Stop it. You're not paid enough to 16017worry. 16018% 16019You'd better beat it. You can leave in a taxi. If you can't get a 16020taxi, you can leave in a huff. If that's too soon, you can leave in a 16021minute and a huff. 16022 -- Groucho Marx 16023% 16024You'll never be the man your mother was! 16025% 16026You're at the end of the road again. 16027% 16028You're being followed. Cut out the hanky-panky for a few days. 16029% 16030You're never too old to become younger. 16031 -- Mae West 16032% 16033You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on. 16034 -- Dean Martin 16035% 16036You're not my type. For that matter, you're not even my species!!! 16037% 16038You've been leading a dog's life. Stay off the furniture. 16039% 16040You've got to have a gimmick if your band sucks. 16041 -- Gary Giddens 16042% 16043"You've got to think about tomorrow!" 16044 16045"TOMORROW! I haven't even prepared for *_________yesterday* yet!" 16046% 16047Your analyst has you mixed up with another patient. Don't believe a 16048thing he tells you. 16049% 16050Your conscience never stops you from doing anything. It just stops you 16051from enjoying it. 16052% 16053Your fault: core dumped 16054% 16055 Your home electrical system is basically a bunch of wires that 16056bring electricity into your home and take if back out before it has a 16057chance to kill you. This is called a "circuit". The most common home 16058electrical problem is when the circuit is broken by a "circuit 16059breaker"; this causes the electricity to back up in one of the wires 16060until it bursts out of an outlet in the form of sparks, which can 16061damage your carpet. The best way to avoid broken circuits is to change 16062your fuses regularly. 16063 Another common problem is that the lights flicker. This 16064sometimes means that your electrical system is inadequate, but more 16065often it means that your home is possessed by demons, in which case 16066you'll need to get a caulking gun and some caulking. If you're not 16067sure whether your house is possessed, see "The Amityville Horror", a 16068fine documentary film based on an actual book. Or call in a licensed 16069electrician, who is trained to spot the signs of demonic possession, 16070such as blood coming down the stairs, enormous cats on the dinette 16071table, etc. 16072 -- Dave Barry, "The Taming of the Screw" 16073% 16074Your life would be very empty if you had nothing to regret. 16075% 16076Your lucky color has faded. 16077% 16078Your lucky number has been disconnected. 16079% 16080Your lucky number is 3552664958674928. Watch for it everywhere. 16081% 16082Your true value depends entirely on what you are compared with. 16083% 16084Yow! Am I having fun yet? 16085 -- Zippy the Pinhead 16086% 16087YOW!! Everybody out of the GENETIC POOL! 16088% 16089Zero Defects, n.: 16090 The result of shutting down a production line. 16091% 16092Zounds! I was never so bethumped with words 16093since I first called my brother's father dad. 16094 -- William Shakespeare, "King John" 16095% 16096Zymurgy's Law of Volunteer Labor: 16097 People are always available for work in the past tense. 16098% 16099 THE LAST BUG 16100 16101"But you're out of your mind," It still wasn't perfect, 16102They said with a shrug. As year followed year, 16103"The customer's happy; And strangers would comment, 16104What's one little bug?" "Is that guy still here?" 16105 16106But he was determined. He died at the console, 16107The others went home. Of hunger and thirst. 16108He spread out the program, Next day he was buried, 16109Deserted, alone. Face down, nine-edge first. 16110 16111The cleaning men came, And the last bug in sight, 16112The whole room was cluttered An ant passing by, 16113With memory-dumps, punch cards. Saluted his tombstone, 16114"I'm close," he muttered. And whispered, "Nice try." 16115 16116The mumbling got louder, 16117Simple deduction, 16118"I've got it, it's right, 16119Just change one instruction." 16120% 16121Speaking of the philosophy involved in moving humanity into space: 16122 16123Furniture will be a largely obsolete concept. Take for example the dresser my 16124mom bought for me when I was a kid. I still have it, and by the standards of 16125its era, it's an admirable household fixture. It is a massive construction of 16126maple wood, expertly joined with cunningly fit pieces, fitted and glued with 16127the strength of iron. It is set with massive brass fixtures, and looks today 16128-- discounting the dust -- as new as the day it was purchased, a quarter 16129century ago. So far, so good; a fine piece of furniture, you might say. But 16130let's look at it objectively, as a machine, as an object with a purpose. Here 16131sit a hundred pounds of hardwood with a compressive strength of 1500 psi, 16132jointed by an expert craftsman into a rigid box that would easily support a 16133bull elephant. And what is the sole purpose of this massive crate, this 16134monument to a dead tree? -- it holds my socks. 16135 16136Not only is it blind engineering overkill of epic proportions, it is also an 16137environmental disaster. The home to generations of squirrels, a sentinel post 16138for falcons, an autumnal banner of golden glory, a living creature, was chopped 16139down to enshrine some underwear. This, my friends, is no way to run a planet. 16140 -- Marshall T. Savage, from The Millennial Project: 16141 Colonizing the Galaxy -- In Eight Easy Steps 16142% 16143Nearly every software professional has heard the term spaghetti code as a 16144pejorative description for complicated, difficult to understand, and impossible 16145to maintain, software. However, many people may not know the other two 16146elements of the complete Pasta Theory of Software. 16147 16148Lasagna code is used to describe software that has a simple, understandable, 16149and layered structure. Lasagna code, although structured, is unfortunately 16150monolithic and not easy to modify. An attempt to change one layer conceptually 16151simple, is often very difficult in actual practice. 16152 16153The ideal software structure is one having components that are small and 16154loosely coupled; this ideal structure is called ravioli code. In ravioli 16155code, each of the components, or objects, is a package containing some meat 16156or other nourishment for the system; any component can be modified or replaced 16157without significantly affecting other components. 16158 16159We need to go beyond the condemnation of spaghetti code to the active 16160encouragement of ravioli code. 16161 -- Raymond J. Rubey, in a letter to the editor of Crosstalk 16162 magazine 16163% 1616463,000 bugs in the code, 63,000 bugs, 16165ya get 1 whacked with a service pack, 16166now there's 63,005 bugs in the code!! 16167% 16168"It's not very common in Crowthorne" 16169