July 11th, 2010 -->
Goodwill Hunting
A few days ago I received an email from a guy I didn’t know named Bob:
I think this was done by your mother. Might want to pick it up. Very good work and it caught my eye. Bob
He included a link to a Goodwill auction, where I immediately recognized one of my mother’s early drawings, at least 30 years old judging by the style. It was being auctioned out of Portland, Oregon – odd given that my mother (Roberta Malkin) has lived and worked her entire life in Chicago.
Continue Reading »
July 1st, 2010 -->
The Laser Eruv
An image from the laser eruv, produced by shooting a red laser out a window and into a surveillance camera mounted across the street.
An eruv is a symbolic boundary – a wire – that is suspended around orthodox Jewish communities throughout the world. It is typically strung between utility poles above the city streets, a somewhat fragile arrangement prone to storm damage and requiring laborious upkeep.
The laser eruv, in contrast, creates a boundary out of continuous beams of light. Obstructions like the branch of a tree will interrupt the flow of light without damaging the apparatus. As such, it represents the most significant advancement in eruv technology since the telephone pole.
Continue Reading »
