Briefly noted in recent articles on the impending opening of Seattle’s Science Fiction Museum was the name of the director, Donna Shirley. “That’s got to be the same Donna Shirley” I thought. Indeed it is. In her 32 years at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Shirley managed numerous projects, culminating in the Mars Pathfinder and Sojourner Rover missions which explored the red planet in 1997. In interviews about her life she tells the story of her first meeting with her college advisor who told her “Girls can’t be engineers.” She went on to earn a BS and MS in aerospace engineering. Shirley retired from NASA in 1998 and embarked on a speaking and consulting career. Now she’s nabbed what I hope is a dream job, managing a museum of the dreams that inspire those she used to work with.

A Danish fishing boat caught more than it bargained for last week when its fishing nets brought up a German submarine. The sub was too heavy for the nets, but it took a while for a rescue team to untangle the two.

They’re even cute when they’re sleeping. Check out the tiger cub webcam at the National Zoo. The three male cubs were born on May 2.

Odds and ends (but mostly odds) of jewelry news: Jasmine Watson, jewelry designer for the Lord of the Rings movies, told convention fans that she will be designing the jewelry for The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe movie. First Lady of California, Maria Shriver, has launched a line of California jewelry. Proceeds go to the California State Protocol Fund). Luxury retailer Tiffany has, for reasons that escape me, decided to open a chain of stores that focus exclusively on pearls. Called Iridesse, the stores will carry a spectrum of pearl types in “an innovative, exciting new retail format.” Lastly, a company that makes jewelry out of natural items is taking advantage of an opportunity that comes around every 17 years to sell pins made out of cicada shells. Each shell is covered in copper and is, of course, one of a kind.

Dancers and musicians suffer injuries somewhat unique to their professions, and although a specialist in sports medicine may be a good enough practitioner for certain ailments, there are now 20 clinics in the U.S. specializing in performing-arts medicine. At places such as the Clinic for Performing Arts at Seattle’s Virginia Mason Medical Center, artists can seek out physical therapists, orthopedic surgeons, and otolaryngologists who are familiar with the rigors of music and dance, and sensitive to the need for artists to continue the pursuit of their craft.

Smith College has conferred its first engineering degrees to 20 graduating seniors. It’s the first women’s college in the U.S. with an engineering program. The program has grown to 135 students, more than its anticipated 100. Onward to even more great achievements!

Official weblog for “The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy” movie…”bringing news and enlightenment to lifeforms around the galaxy.”

Last March I posted about the EightStar company’s “ideal” diamond cut. The S.F. Chronicle has now taken a closer look at the company owners and learned more about their efforts to promote the 58 facet cut, available through 63 jewelers. Others in the industry are reluctant to proclaim the EightStar cut as being the best, at the risk of devaluing all other cuts on the market. Each EightStar takes an average of 32 hours to produce, and retails at 40% more than a typical diamond, most of which are faceted in 45 minutes. The cut also sacrifices weight for brilliance. Assuming EightStar’s publicity efforts are successful, it’s up to the consumers to decide whether the “ideal” cut is worth the price. There always seems to be room for extra cachet on the high end. But hefty carats always garner the attention. Interestingly, diamonds have become so mass-market that Walmart now sells the most in the U.S. (March 2003 entry on EightStar)

Ahh the knuckleball pitcher. New Yorker staff writer Ben McGrath takes us into the lives of those who pursue that quirky baseball pitch. The knuckleball has no spin or rotation and is prone to sudden, nonsensical motion. Pitchers who excel at the knuckleball can outlive their fastball-dependent peers in their pro ball careers as the pitch doesn’t require arm stamina, just the right control. Not only the batter, but the catcher as well suffers from the erratic nature of the knuckleball; tracking it for the catch is as difficult as hitting it. Back when I was followed baseball, knuckleball meant Niekro, either Phil or Joe. Nowadays, it’s the hallmark of Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield. Hitters have flattering quotes on their attempts to hit the pitch (and probably more words for it you won’t see in print): “like eating soup with a fork”, “It giggles as it goes by”, “like trying to catch a butterfly with a pair of tweezers.” Catchers are equally eloquent: “Wait’ll it stops rolling, then go pick it up.”

West Wing viewers may have wondered where this week’s Gaza Strip scenes were shot (not at the real Gaza Strip of course). An area near the Salton Sea in southeastern California was the natural backdrop for the desert scenes, filmed in late March. The Salton Sea is the largest lake in California and efforts are underway for its restoration from the effects of agriculture and rising salinity.