Wednesday Overnight Open Thread - March 4, 2026 [Doof]

Howdy Hordelings! Welcome to the Wednesday ONT. Many thanks to Dino for handling ONT duties last night. That's right - those of you tuning in tonight hoping for midweek shenanigans a la T Rex, sorry to disappoint you. You are stuck with the Doofster. But you're already here, so you might as well stick around and let us know what's on your mind tonight!

Speaking of T Rex

Seems as though my friend Dino hasn't been fully forthcoming with his fleetness of foot.

Scientists Just Discovered That T-Rex Actually Pranced on Its Tiptoes. But This Made Them Even Deadlier Than We Thought

Pop culture has conditioned us to imagine a terrifying encounter with Tyrannosaurus rex first starts with the rhythmic, earth-shattering boom of heavy, flat-footed stomps. But if you were actually standing in a Cretaceous forest, you might not feel those tremors at all.

Evolutionary biologists and biomechanics experts are giving the apex predator a serious makeover. It turns out the T. rex was remarkably dainty on its feet. Instead of slamming its heels into the dirt, the ten-ton carnivore may have walked and sprinted on its tiptoes.

***

Fossilized footprints actually corroborate the math. When the researchers examined tracks left by tyrannosaurs, including a massive three-foot-long track from New Mexico, they found the deepest impressions were located under the toes.

This suggests the dinosaur pressed its weight into the front of its foot. Walking on tiptoes allowed the T. rex to maintain a crouched posture, taking numerous fast steps to stay stable. This distal-first strike turned the animal’s legs into massive shock absorbers, managing the immense stress of its body weight over uneven terrain.

Check out the whole thing. Long and informative article.

***

Not related, yet somehow related. This is now my default thought of how our own T Rex actually ambles around.

More science-y stuff.

OK, this one is really what I'd call pseudo-science. It's a video disguised as an article (first clue to its questionable believability). The person in the video is (supposedly) discussing why we can't launch earthly garbage into the sun. I watched the video. You should too. Tell me if you hear anything other than generalizations about it being too costly and our space technology not being intended for such matters.

The main takeaway I got out of the video was that we shouldn't be thinking of innovative approaches because we need to be lectured about not producing so much trash to begin with. See if you agree.

We can’t launch our trash into the sun. But why?

Maybe think about a solution down here on Earth first.

If you’ve spent any time on the Earth in the last 50 years or so, you might have noticed a lot of trash laying around…with less and less space to, you know, put it. Meanwhile, we’re sending all sorts of satellites and rockets beyond our atmosphere every day.

That’s why you asked us: Why can’t we launch our junk into space, too? Or better yet: STRAIGHT INTO THE SUN!

For the moment, let’s set aside the big problems with creating too much trash in the first place, and focus on the blocker: We simply can’t afford to shoot our junk into that flamin’ hot Cheeto in the sky.

Plus, shouldn’t we worry about finding a solution down here on our planet? Yes.

On our latest video episode of Ask Us Anything, we explain why we can’t launch our garbage into the sun or onto the moon.

Commercial Aviation Segment

I came across some air travel articles recently - so why not make an ONT segment?!

Customer Uproar Forces Southwest To Rethink Assigned Seating Policy

Southwest Airlines’ decision to abandon its iconic open-seating system has sparked a wave of customer backlash, prompting the carrier to reassess parts of its newly introduced assigned-seating policy in early 2026. The Dallas-based airline’s move, which was rolled out on January 27, 2026, was intended to modernize the booking and boarding experience, but loyal flyers have loudly objected to unintended consequences that have emerged in the first weeks of operation. As complaints mounted across social media and travel forums, Southwest responded with refinements aimed at addressing pain points and restoring trust among its most frequent passengers, as reported by the Dallas News.

At the heart of the controversy is bin space and boarding flow. Southwest’s overhead bin issues arise from a mismatch between its newly assigned seating system and the aircraft’s original design, which was built for a different approach. Under open seating, passengers could pick a row with available bin space, which would naturally spread carry-ons across the cabin. Assigned seating removes that choice. Now, some passengers with seats toward the rear often board earlier and sometimes stow bags in forward bins to avoid carrying them down the aisle.

Check out the whole thing to read about what the airline plans to do. Spoiler: they are not returning to the old A/B/C boarding groups.

-----

Flight Attendants and Pilots Use These 4 Phrases on Board to Signal Emergencies—Here's What to Listen For

“Terms like ‘Code 300’ or ‘Angel’ are typically used by commercial airlines to discreetly signal a medical emergency onboard, often when a passenger is incapacitated, unresponsive, or in serious distress,” Jason Martinelli, the director of operations at Cirrus Aviation Services, told Travel + Leisure. However, he noted airlines “often have their own internal codes and operating procedure” for these types of scenarios.

***

Other code words could include "code yellow," which usually indicates a minor medical incident, "pan-pan," which indicates a serious, but non life-threatening emergency, and "mermaid," meant for passengers who purposely sprawl out across empty seats in order to get the row to themselves, according to luxury vacation rental company Wander.

I'm often fascinated by insider jargon like this. Just this week, while on a demolition type job site, I heard some of the crew start saying "eighty eight" to each other when a particular gentleman showed up. That is their code for when someone from the safety department shows up. Hmm -- Now I need to pay attention to what they say when I show up.

Any of you have examples of stuff like this? Code words or signals you use to alert others of a particular person or thing?

Any of you ever see one of these in real life? I never have.

-----

Of course it's a redhead!

DJ Doof - This Date in Music History
from thisdayinmusic.com

1974 - ABBA released “Waterloo,” the title track and first single from their second album. When it won the Eurovision Song Contest, it made the Swedish group a household name, topping the charts in nine countries across the world, including the UK where it was also the quartet’s first gold single.

Born on this date in 1948 - Shakin' Stevens, (Michael Barratt), Welsh singer. In the UK Stevens has charted 33 Top 40 hit singles including four chart-topping hits; 'This Ole House', 'Green Door', 'Oh Julie', and 'Merry Christmas Everyone'.

Also born on this date in 1948 - Chris Squire, bassist and founding member of Yes. He was the only member to appear on each of their 21 studio albums, released from 1969 to 2014. Squire died on 27th June 2015 from acute erythroid leukemia.

Tonight's ONT brought to you by young ladies you don't want to mess with

Tonight's ONT produced with painstaking precision by Doof Enterprises, LLC. Maybe. Probably not.

Your feedback may or may not be very important to Doof Enterprises. Follow Mr. Doof on X @doof2112 or do the email thing – doof2112 at proton dot me.

posted by Open Blogger at 10:00 PM

| Access Comments