Malarkey is a colorful and punchy term for nonsense or foolishness. It can also be used to describe insincere or exaggerated talk. It is a word that carries a specific weight when you use it to dismiss claims or excuses as hogwash. While it has become a staple of American political discourse, it remains an informal, playful and expressive way to call out empty rhetoric. [1] [2] The origin of the word is famously murky, which is fitting for a term that means nonsense. Evidence points to its emergence in North America during the early 1920s. The first known use is often attributed to the Irish-American cartoonist Thomas Aloysius (Tad) Dorgan, who began using the term in his cartoons in Mid-1920s. By the end of that decade, the word had begun to appear more widely in print. [3] Despite various theories, the etymology remains officially unknown. Some linguists and researchers have suggested potential links to the Greek word malakia, which can mean softness or, in a figurative sense, effeminacy or weakness. Others have pointed to the Irish surname Mullarkey (and its various spellings), though there is no verified connection between any individual of that name and the word’s development. There is even a niche theory suggesting it might be related to the London expression Madame Misharty, a personification of wild sales talk. Still another possibility is some use of the Gaelic root word "meall-", which means being deceptive or lying. [3] Because the word began as slang in the United States, it is not traditionally found in older printed dictionaries from the 19th century. However, it is now widely recognized in major modern dictionaries as a standard, though informal, English noun. [3] According to Google ngram, common use of malarkey appears in the 1920s and then took off in the 1930s. |
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Thursday, June 25, 2026
Fun and Important Words - Malarkey
Thursday, June 11, 2026
Calculator for Right Angles and Hypotenuse
Right triangle calculator — enter any two side or angle values to compute all triangle properties
Right triangle calculator
Enter any two known values (sides or acute angles) to solve all properties.
- A list of many types of Angles from Geometry: So many varieties! [Do you know of angle types that didn't make the list?.]
- Collatz Conjecture Visualizer: Explore one of math's great unsolved problems interactively. [Explore the Collatz paths]
- Earth's Looming Expiration Date: Why Earth faces an early deadline as the Sun's energy output increases. [Idea on how to preserve our planet]
- Number Rounding Tool: Multiple methods of rounding supported. [Type your number and round it up or down!]
Tuesday, June 02, 2026
Trail Walking with a Say's Phoebe
A bird that appears to be a Say's Phoebe was jumping from fence post to fence post ahead of me and Joie while we walked, until it finally flew onto a nearby bush, on a Mid-Spring morning. It kind of seemed like they wanted us to follow, but maybe they were just keeping an eye out for any bugs we might stir up as we walked along the trail, a behavior for which Flycatchers are known.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DZBUlwADrIJ/
Sunday, May 31, 2026
Auckland Exploration on Te Ika-a-Māui
After over a full day's delay, we finally landed on North Island of New Zealand in Auckland a bit late in the day on December 8. After settling in, Allie and I took a running start on December 9 for our exploration of the city. Sky Tower is within walking distance of our hotel, so we headed over. Sky Tower is tall enough to view everything in Auckland from high-up. Many of the places we will be exploring are clearly visible.
Wednesday, May 27, 2026
Unfortunate Extra Day in Queenstown
After we checked-in to the hotel, we took the water taxi to Queenstown CBD for a late lunch at a great seafood restaurant, and some ice cream at a popular shop. We then roamed a bit around the touristy area before returning via water taxi to the hotel for the evening.
Lost Day - December 8, 2026
We didn’t plan for anything in Queenstown on this day, due to it being a lost day. We had breakfast at the hotel cafe, but otherwise relaxed in the hotel room until checkout time. We finally went to the airport in the afternoon to wait for our early evening flight.
This flight was not cancelled.
We ultimately landed in Auckland in the evening. After taking our hired towncar to the hotel and checking-in, we settled a bit then went to the hotel cafe for dinner. Due to our delayed arrival, we had to rearrange plans for our first day in Auckland.
Monday, May 25, 2026
Queenstown New Zealand Exploration
Allie and I arrived in Queenstown on December 3, 2026 in the afternoon (local time). We left California our previous day of December 1, 2026 (local time). We lost a day to travel and another day to the International Date Line. We also lost a portion of one day to a long stay in Auckland Airport on our way to Queenstown. The following are my journal entries from the first few days.
Tuesday, December 3: A Lakeside Welcome at Wakatipu Grill
We stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Kawarau Village near Queenstown. After settling in, we walked over to Wakatipu Grill at Hilton Queenstown Resort and Spa. Restaurant staff sat us in a glass-enclosed patio with good views of the lake as the sun set. The dishes were very good. I had the Pork Porchette, and Allie had a steak dish she liked a lot. We also tried a drink called a Matcha Mojito, which ended up tasting more like a Long Island Ice Tea than anything that should bear the name “mojito” or “matcha.”
Wednesday, December 4: Water Taxis, Gondolas, and Queenstown CBD
The weather was nice and sunny with light cloud cover and a little bit of a morning chill. We started the itinerary by taking a water taxi from the Hilton over to the Queenstown CBD, which let us see the area from the lake and take in the gorgeous scenery. From the CBD, we walked over to the Skyline Gondolas. On the ride up to Skyline Queenstown, we saw and heard a goat on the side of the mountain. I had an 11:45 reservation at the Stratosfare Restaurant for their buffet lunch. The food was high quality with a lot of great options, and our table offered awesome views of the town and lake from a high vantage point.
Afterward, we hit the souvenir shop before heading back down. We had another appointment at Kiwi Park Queenstown where we explored this special kind of zoo. Highlight is that we were able to catch glimpses of actual kiwi birds! That was awesome. We also saw many other beautiful and native animals, including a bird and reptile show. There was also a happy and buzzy bee colony.
We left the park and roamed around the CBD for some more shopping. The town is very much a touristy place, and there didn’t seem to be a ton of local personality beyond the architecture and the beautiful deep valley lake backdrop. After a long day, we took the water taxi back to the hotel to relax and rest for the evening.
Thursday, December 5: Hiking Frankton and Finding the Local Spots
Allie and I went on an exploratory hike into the Frankton area and ended up at Pantry by Frank’s. We ordered a couple of bagel sandwiches, but what’s called a “bagel” here is more of a white bread with a pastry crust than an actual dense bagel. Allie’s Pesto Chicken sandwich was served cold for whatever reason, while my Chicken Club was warm. Allie had a hot breakfast tea, and I had a hot Chai tea. Exploring the area further, we discovered an Asian market, a grocery store, a very nice laundromat, and a few other shops. The grocery store had a permanent resident cat who guards the entrance as it naps throughout the day. On the way back to the hotel, we took a heavily vegetated trail along the river. The bugs annoyed Allie, but luckily none bit her.
Being so far South on the Globe in the summer means there is still direct sunlight on the city at 9pm. Later that night, I caught a view of the full moon with its light reflecting perfectly across the lake.
On December 6, we took a day-long tour of various Lord of the Rings filming locations on the South Island. Unfortunately, we had a series of cancelled flights on December 7, so we ended up staying an extra day in Queenstown, not making it to Auckland until December 8.
Sunday, May 24, 2026
Discoveries across the Galaxy
While exploring the Galaxy recently, I made several incredible discoveries. This first image was taken in a newly discovered system of a white dwarf (DC) as the primary star with closest planet being an Earth-Like World (ELW) and the second planet being Water World (WW). Both planets are under 60ls from their star. This is a very rare configuration, even taking into account all white dwarf types in the Elite Dangerous galaxy.
In another Neutron Star System, I discovered a rare luminescent lifeform.
On the same trip, I also discovered even rarer Crystalline Shards.
Related Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/DVxR0Y2Dt_j/?img_index=1
Saturday, May 23, 2026
Escape Velocity Calculator
It can be surprising as to how much this number varies. Earth's escape velocity is about 11.2 km/s. Jupiter's is over 59 km/s. The Sun's surface escape velocity is around 617 km/s. And for a neutron star, it can be a significant fraction of the speed of light. Use the calculator below to explore escape velocities for planets, stars, galaxies, and any custom body you wish.
Escape Velocity Calculator
- Collatz Conjecture Visualizer: Explore one of math's great unsolved problems interactively. [Explore the Collatz paths]
- Futhorc Runic Bi-Directional Converter: Turn your message into First Millennium runes and back! [Try out this rune conversion tool on your own messages.]
- Earth's Looming Expiration Date: Why Earth faces an early deadline as the Sun's energy output increases. [Idea on how to preserve our planet]
- Number Rounding Tool: Multiple methods of rounding supported. [Type your number and round it up or down!]
Friday, May 22, 2026
Movies I watched in the theater in 2017
I am not sure where I saw most theatrically released movies in 2017. This list is put together from memory. One fact I remember is that the only reason I saw Star Wars: The Last Jedi was because The Disaster Artist was sold out when I arrived at the theater. I think this may have been the point where I stopped doing walk-ups and started to regularly buy my seats ahead of time.
Movies I saw in the theater in 2017:
- Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
- Happy Death Day
- Justice League
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
- Alien: Covenant
Tuesday, May 19, 2026
Many Paths of the Collatz Conjecture
The sequences themselves are practically unpredictable. For example, the number 27 takes 111 steps while rocketing up to 9,232 before finally collapsing to 1. Nearby numbers can reach 1 in just a handful of steps, while others take hundreds of chaotic steps before converging. Use the interactive math tool below to explore and compare up to 5 numbers at once.
Collatz Conjecture Visualizer
Pick any positive integer. If it's even, divide by 2. If it's odd, multiply by 3 and add 1. Repeat. No matter what number you start with, the sequence always seems to reach 1, but nobody has ever proved why. Enter up to 5 numbers to compare their paths.
Enter Numbers to Compare
For information on other tools and topics:
Futhorc Runic Bi-Directional Converter: Turn your message in to First Millennium runes and back! [Try out this rune conversion tool on your own messages.]
Earth's Looming Expiration Date: Why Earth faces an early deadline as Sun's energy output increases. [Idea on how to preserve our planet]
Number Rounding Tool: This the rounding tool that you didn't know you need! Multiple methods of rounding are supported. [Type Your Number and Round it up or down!]
Monday, May 18, 2026
Movies I watched at the theater in 2018
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2018 was likely the year I really started using my AMC membership. At some point that year I joined the AMC Stubs program and later upgraded to AMC A-List. Before then, I had never used an elevated membership to go to the movies. I think I had the equivalent of the free Insider level since 2016 or 2017, but I was not using it regularly during those years. Since 2018, I have watched most of my movies at AMC, though not all. For example, I saw Mandy at an independent theater.
Here's the list of movies I was in 2018:
- Aquaman
- Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
- Once Upon A Deadpool
- Bumblebee (early access screening)
- Hunter Killer
Saturday, May 16, 2026
Movies I watched at the theater in 2021
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- Venom: Let There Be Carnage
- Black Widow
- Eternals
- No Time to Die
Friday, May 15, 2026
Movies I watched in the theater in 2019
Here is the list of what I watched at the movie theater in 2019:
- Green Book
- Aquaman
- Glass
- Serenity (not the one you might think)
- Alita: Battle Angel
- Godzilla: King of the Monsters
- The Intruder
- Dark Phoenix (special fan event opening night IMAX)
- Anna
- Annabella Comes Home
Thursday, May 14, 2026
Movies I watched at the theater in 2020
Tuesday, May 12, 2026
Movies I've seen in 2025 and "why"
Has there been a return to form for movie theaters to pre-pandemic levels? No. However, I found myself going to the cinema more in 2025 than in 2024. The nature of movie-going has fundamentally changed with the dominance of streaming. Patrons now see fewer films in theaters, opting to wait for many of them to arrive at home. This is especially true for movies not designed as a spectacle or an event, creating a fresh challenge for the industry. Still, theaters have faced similar hurdles before, such as when televisions became commonplace in the home.
Eventually, theatrical films improved after over a decade of adjustment throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Even before then, patrons had stopped attending theaters for short serial shows. Additionally, the concept of made-for-TV movies eventually emerged, allowing lower-quality films to be released directly to television without a theatrical run.
Later, both theaters and television were challenged by the introduction of VHS and movie rentals. This led to the straight-to-video concept for lower-budget films, which raised the quality expectations for theatrical releases even higher.
Today, streaming poses yet another challenge. Many high-quality movies do not necessarily require a theater because they do not rely on spectacle to be enjoyed. Even when a large screen might enhance the experience, a story may be perceived as small scale, making it easier to wait for a streaming release.
Despite all of that, I still enjoy seeing various types and scales of movies at the theater. Some films are so massive they demand a theatrical viewing, such as the Avatar franchise. Others are enhanced by the cinema experience even if they have a straightforward story, like Last Breath.
Finally posting my 2025 list
I have been putting off this post for five months for a simple reason: I saw too many movies in 2025 to make this article enjoyable to create while including a poster for every film, such as last year's article. I believe movie posters add value and enhance the post, but including all of them is an immense amount of work. To that end, I am scaling down this year's post to a simple hyperlinked list.
Here is the list of what I watched at the movie theater in 2025:
- Ballerina
- 28 Years Later
- F1 The Movie
- Superman (special Amazon Prime Early Screening)
- Jurassic World Rebirth
- The Naked Gun
- Alien Earth (special FX preview of first episode)
- Nobody 2
- Weapons
- Eden
Thursday, April 02, 2026
Reaching the known Universe and Project Hail Mary
Saturday, February 14, 2026
Allie and I at Denver Botanic Gardens - Winter 2026
Thursday, February 12, 2026
Will the Gaming Industry Change Use of FPS and TPS?
The Inertia of Familiar Language
The traditional definitions of first- and third-person games rely on camera placement rather than on player agency. That shortcut has distorted how we talk about perspective for decades.
So why has this never been corrected? The short answer is likely inertia.
Once a term becomes familiar, widely taught, and commercially useful, it stops being descriptive and starts being infrastructural. Changing it becomes expensive, not just financially, but culturally.
The FPS Effect
The modern taxonomy of game perspective crystallized in the 1990s with the rise of the first-person shooter (FPS).
“FPS” was an unusually successful label:
It described what players saw
It differentiated a new genre
It was easy to market
It spread quickly through magazines, retail shelves, and early web discourse
Once first person became synonymous with “camera at eye level,” everything else was forced into contrast. The term third person did not emerge from narrative theory. It emerged as whatever FPS was not.
This asymmetry locked the vocabulary in place before anyone had reason to question it.
Camera Language Is Easier Than Agency Language
It is far easier to say:
The camera is behind the character
than to say:
The player issues commands to a represented self
Marketing departments, tutorial writers, and reviewers naturally gravitated toward the simpler explanation. Over time, that simplification hardened into definition.
Once perspective was taught as a visual property, revisiting it as a player–system relationship required more effort than most discourse was willing to invest.
How Designers Commonly Talk About Perspective
In public-facing discourse, perspective is usually described in terms of camera placement. In design-facing discussions, however, the vocabulary often shifts.
Designers frequently frame perspective through concepts such as:
Player embodiment
Identification with an avatar
Degrees of abstraction
Command versus inhabitation
Latency between decision and action
These ideas appear regularly in design talks, postmortems, and critical writing, even when the traditional labels of first- or third-person remain in place. The emphasis is less on where the camera sits and more on how the player relates to what they control.
This does not mean designers uniformly reject camera-based terminology. Rather, it suggests a practical distinction: the internal language of design often exceeds the precision of the public labels used to describe games.
In other words, the mislabeling persists not because designers lack conceptual tools, but because those tools are rarely surfaced in player-facing taxonomy.
Why the Industry Is Unlikely to Fix the Labels
Even if the argument is sound, several forces resist change:
1. Legacy Vocabulary
Decades of books, articles, reviews, and tutorials use the existing terms. Revising them would create friction with historical material.
2. Search and Discovery
“Third-person action game” is a deeply indexed phrase. Replacing it would damage discoverability without offering immediate commercial upside.
3. Audience Expectations
Players already believe they know what these terms mean. Correcting them risks sounding pedantic or confusing, even when accurate.
4. Mixed Perspectives
Many modern games blur categories intentionally. Studios may prefer flexible ambiguity to precise taxonomy.
Taken together, these pressures make formal correction unlikely.
Why This Still Matters
If the industry is not going to change its labels, why insist on the distinction at all?
Because language shapes analysis.
Mislabeling perspective:
Obscures why certain games feel immersive despite external cameras
Confuses discussions of agency and control
Flattens meaningful differences between avatar play and command play
Makes serious criticism sound mystical rather than structural
A player-centric model gives critics, designers, and players a sharper vocabulary—even if public-facing labels remain unchanged.
The Value of a Parallel Vocabulary
This series is not a call to rename genres overnight. It is a proposal for a parallel framework that can coexist with existing terminology while offering greater precision.
Just as film studies distinguish between camera angle and narrative voice, game analysis benefits from separating:
What does the camera do
What is the player
Keeping these concepts distinct allows deeper discussion without breaking compatibility with established language.
A Useful Mental Reframe
Rather than asking:
Is this game first person or third person?
Ask:
Who is acting?
Who is being addressed?
Where does the player exist in relation to the system?
These questions remain valid regardless of genre, technology, or trend.
Keeping It Going
The industry is unlikely to abandon camera-based labels. They are too entrenched, too useful, and too familiar. But clarity does not require replacement. It requires recognition.
We can say that a game has first-person perspective with third-person camera angle. Or, a game is second-person perspective with the ability to show either game-piece camera angle or top-down third person camera angle. Such descriptions are more meaningful.
Once we understand that most so-called third-person games are structurally second-person, a great deal of confusion dissolves. Design intent becomes clearer. Player experience becomes easier to articulate.