Yes, Other Amy, sometimes I like to keep my readers aware of what's going on in their world. If you've got something to say about my posts why don't you leave comments? Huh? Huh? Or are you just not brave enough?

Anyway, tonight's post will not be about the news of the world. Tonight's topic is Donald Knuth, or "I Look Into a Crystal Ball and See my Future, and This is It". Knuth, despite looking like the villain from one or all of the Indiana Jones movies, is actually a famous CS guy, and one of the most eccentric people I've ever heard about. Apparently when you've worked with computers all your life, you grow old as a very, very interestingly odd person who, amongst other things...

...has not used e-mail since January 1, 1990...
...reads snail mail exactly once every 3 months and faxes once every 6 months...
...pays $2.56 if you find an error in one of his books because "256 is a hexadecimal dollar"...
...had an organ with 812 pipes built in his house so that he never has to leave...
...recently turned "1000000" (that's 64 in binary numbers) and to celebrate had lectures by other famous CS people such as Bob Tarjan...

and this is just the beginning. Take a good long look at me now, everyone, because in 100000 years (32 for all you decimal folks) that will be me, a kooky old man who would rather do research for 12 hours per day than have to leave my house. I'd better play lots of basketball now to make up for it...