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By Bernie Reim
The month of January is named for the Roman god Janus, who faces both forward and backward at the same time. Janus is the god of beginnings and transitions. As we welcome in the New Year and the first full month of winter, let us reflect on what the past year has taught us and look forward to all the new things that 2025 will teach us if we can remain open-minded enough. The days are already getting longer since the winter solstice, but this is a very slow process at first. We are only gaining about one minute per day until the middle of this month. The sun is setting a little later than at the solstice, but the sun is also still rising later each morning until the ninth. For us at this latitude of the Portland area that will be 7 :14 am. This happens because the earth is tilted at 23.5 degrees to the ecliptic plane and we orbit the sun in an elliptical shape and not a perfect circle. Despite the long and cold nights, this will be a great month to enjoy and learn more about several interesting celestial events. Four of the five brightest planets will be nicely aligned along the ecliptic and visible in the evening sky. Only Mercury is too close to the sun now and it will make a morning appearance until the middle of the month. Mars will reach opposition on the 16th when it will be at its best in 26 months. Venus and Saturn will have a close conjunction in the evening sky on the 17th, the moon will have two nice conjunctions with Venus this month. We will be closest to the sun on Saturday morning the 4th at 91.4 million miles instead of our average of 93 million miles, which is called one astronomical unit. The moon will not interfere with the Quadrantid Meteor shower this month which has a very short peak on Friday morning, January 3. Then the best highlight of all this month will be the full moon occulting or covering up Mars on the evening of Monday the 13th which will be visible for everyone in the contiguous United States, much of southern and eastern Canada, Mexico, and West Africa.
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The day has come when it's starting to be important for me to draw distinctions between my life with and without my Wi-fi apparatus.
I use it so much it's become an almost necessary appendage of my brain. I almost always use it for important purposes, though some purposes are definitely more valuable than others. Doing FaceTime with my children and my grandsons is undoubtably the ultimate good use. Of course there is a double edge sword: for me the elder one, my face reveals to the younger ones all the indications of aging. My younger grandson once asked, "But Nana, why do you have so very many wrinkles?" I told him they are my badges from living and that everyone who lives long will be lucky enough to have them. And so I share my face online, but after we share our faces, my smart device allows me to show my surroundings. My device can do anything! That is anything that has to do with any kind of knowledge, 2D and 3D maps, numbers, programming, and it takes and shows images and images and images. Images of the opulent and ones of babies dying from hunger. It shows images of the animal world, of nature and cities anywhere in the world and photos of outer space. It cannot offer solutions to human problems though, at least not yet. It can't see, touch, feel, smell or hear like humans. It can't jump, laugh, wish or hope. It doesn't yet appear to have one of the things that really makes humankind shine: imagination! And it cannot feel shame, trust, delight, violence, grief, love or hate. It's not at all human. It's a machine with vast storehouses of knowledge, entertainment and information. And yet! I hold it close, reading and writing letters to friends, texting those who prefer short notes; I listen to my favorite music on it, all kinds of solo instruments and full orchestras. I hear classical, jazz, blues, and hillbilly, too. I read articles from several magazines such as the "Atlantic Monthly" and the "American Scholar." I listen to TED talks. And then there is the most addictive of all: political news. These days that's a killer; I'm left waiting, waiting, waiting for news to unravel my dread. I have instant connection to a dozen newspapers and I flip through them. When I tire I go to "Nature" or the "National Geographic" and watch my favorite: wild animals in their kingdoms. They seem so wise, so lacking in the sophisticated complications that render humans too inept. My life would not be complete without my wi-fi. There's no going back. But, I have an all human segment of life. I have friends to talk with, to touch, to share feelings, to do things together that require physical movement. We exchange ideas and appreciation. It is extremely important for me to have contact everyday with people in the flesh in order to be content. Update: I have been thinking recently of writing an article on WiFi and I. I'd forgotten I'd written about it several years ago, in 2017. Helen Rivas Rose 2024 By Jurgen Ahlers Available in Spanish (Read below) San Miguel de Allende (SMA) prides itself on being a World Heritage Site. It could also become an “eco-city,” joining a global network of cities that have taken bold steps to transition from depleting resources into thriving sustainable townships. The World Bank defines eco-cities as “cities that enhance the wellbeing of citizens and society through integrated urban planning and management that harness the benefits of ecological systems and protect and nurture these assets for future generations.” Becoming an eco-city would require a strong environmental plan and the will of the people, who need to voice their growing concerns to safeguard a healthier, more promising San Miguel by addressing the growing climate crisis and its effect on our city.
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