Apparently, I can’t count

Oops: My Sun column this morning about math exams … contains a math error.
Your chances of acing a multiple choice exam are not necessarily better than winning Lotto 6-49. That depends on how many questions the exam has. (At 20 questions, your chances are about even.)
However, your chances for each question are better than 6-49.
Thanks to an astute reader for pointing this out.

Fascinating

Seen at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller:

Every time I visit, the kids are absolutely fascinated by this display.

Sharp arguments

My Calgary Sun column today was about a recent incident where concert-goers trying to attend a show by a Punjabi artist were told they could not attend because they were wearing kirpans.
I’ve been receiving lots of negative e-mail reaction to my commentary, in which I argue kirpans are religious symbols and are inherently harmless. My reply has been almost identical in every case, and I feel compelled to share the gist of my replies here with everyone.

Allowing people to wear kirpans is not a threat to Canadian identity or the religious freedom of the majority. No one is forcing non-Sikhs to wear a kirpan, just as Christians aren’t forcing non-Christians to carry a cross.

If someone chooses to use a kirpan (or anything else) as a weapon, it says more about the person than it does about the object, doesn’t it?

What do you think?

Really wide view

Check out this link for awesome panoramic images:
http://www.panoramaml.com/

Still snowy

Beautiful scenery along Hwy. 22, just north of Hwy. 3.

Makeover means new link

The Calgary Sun website recently got a radical makeover.
The result is a much cleaner layout for better reader navigation.
There are also new features, including RSS feeds and browsing for your mobile phone.
The change also means my columns have a new home.
Please go check it out if you have a moment.

‘Final Edition’ – the end of the Rocky Mountain News

Sent to me by a colleague. Worth watching if you haven’t seen it.

Final Edition from Matthew Roberts on Vimeo.

Equate this

An interesting-looking hold at Crux Climbing and Bouldering in Calgary:

Evil cul-de-sac

Sparkling streamliner

Another oldie, this time from the start of my railfanning days.

This image was taken on a sleepless night, looking forward on the upper level of the Park Car (domed observation car) aboard the Ocean, Via Rail’s Montreal-Halifax overnight train. We were somewhere west of Rimouski, Que., at the time. What you see here is a long exposure, with passing lights reflecting off the fluted, stainless-steel bodies of the train cars.
This photo was once featured in the Gallery section of Trains magazine.