Sign in

Mike Palmer

@icengineer.bsky.social
635 followers 438 following 2.2K posts

Engineer, atheist, photographer, hiker, traveler

PostsRepliesMedia
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
This killing machine landed on my neighbor's fence with two other hawks in close pursuit. She or he refused to give up the prize until the fight in the second photo happened, at which point fighting took priority and moved elsewhere, and the squirrel was abandoned.
A hawk with a captured squirrel. The hawk had been fighting with other hawks, and has scars on her/his breast to prove it.Two hawks fighting on a roof. The flight started over a squirrel, but by this point the squirrel has been abandoned and the hawks were just fighting with each other.
100
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
My dad wrote this for his patient's parents in 1980, and it's still generally true today. Squirrels are not common carriers of rabies.
3412
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Thanks. Where did this map come from? I found this anomaly map on the NOAA site, but it shows 9F, not 14F.
100
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
My dad was a pediatrician, and wrote this in a pamphlet that he gave to his patients in 1980. The advice is roughly the same today, as are the consequences. Roughly 1 in 1000 people have serious complications, and the vaccine is very effective.
My dad, a pediatrician,  wrote this about measles in 1980. It's mostly still true today:

MEASLES
Measles is the most serious of the common childhood diseases. It causes deafness, blindness, convulsions or brain disorders once in every 1,000 cases. About 400 deaths were caused annually in the United States before the mid-1960s when a vaccine became available. 

MEASLES VACCINE
Measles vaccine is highly effective and one injection produces long-lasting, probably lifelong, protection. It can be given to anyone, but is generally recommended for children aged 15 months or a little older. It is often given at the same time as vaccines against other diseases such as mumps or rubella (German measles). 

POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS
Some children have a fever after receiving measles vaccine, and a few develop a mild rash. These occur 7 to 12 days after the vaccination and last only a day or two. Children with fever or rash continue to act as if they were well. A doctor should be consulted about a child who develops a very high or persistent fever or who shows other obvious signs of illness. Very rarely —once in about a million doses — the vaccine has been thought to cause more serious reactions, such as inflammation of the brain. The benefit of being protected against measles with its many complications and risk of death is believed to greatly outweigh any risk from measles vaccine.
020
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Post your getaway vehicle
A motorcycle built by Kiyo, of Kiyo's Garage, with 3 1972 Honda 750 engines, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in 2025.
110
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Which bathroom to use, 1965.
A photo showing Jim Crow era restrooms, labeled Men, Women, and Colored.
1230
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Progress in my filed? We're not off to a good start.
A screen shot from an AI research platform's home page, offering to help me find the latest progress in my filed [sic].
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
I found your legs.
A photo of two giant stone things that vaguely resemble legs
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
This is from 2018. I think we should rename all the parts after Mitch McConnell, so that Republicans won't be able to find them.
A diagram of women's reproductive anatomy with everything labeled as gun parts, with the description, "I renamed all the parts of the female anatomy so Congress will leave it alone."
110
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
I think that's a political definition of enemies, which can't be what the founders had in mind. By defining treason to be an act of war against the country, or helping those who are in a war against us, they narrowed the scope so it couldn't be applied against political enemies. (The page is 1/2
The page from @profmurray's new book where she talks about Article 3 Section 3, dealing with treason
110
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
45470 is the White House mental status hotline. When you text "POTUS" to 45470, it will reply with awake, alert, sleeping, nodding off, drooling, texting, dreaming, sleepwalking, soiling his pants, taking a mental acuity test, ending a war, demanding praise, accepting praise, or simply catatonic.
Donald Trump in a briefing with his sycophantic advisors where they took turns praising him in the mood obsequious way possible, as he nodded approvingly.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
Velella velella, a strange colonial hydrozoan. Millions of them washed ashore this week around Morro Bay, California. This is the northern hemisphere version - the sail relative to the main axis is at an angle of about 30 degrees. In the southern hemisphere, the angle would be about -30 degrees.
Velella velella, in it's nearly desiccated form. The blue float portion has decayed away, leaving only the clear  part of its body and the sail behind. Velella velella, freshly washed ashore, showing the blue float portion of its body and the sail.  Annotated to identify the sail and the float, and the angle of the sail on the float.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Awww, shucks, that's not a mistake, that's just his Texas drawl. It's getting better, though: just a few years ago it had trouble mixing up words like "black" and "near."
Gabby Johnson, informing his fellow right citizens that their new sheriff has almost arrived at their town, where the town leaders will greet him warmly with a laurel, and hardy handshake.
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Can anyone explain this? I have never seen magnets in the list of dangerous items that can't be carried in checked on carry-on baggage before. They aren't in any printed lists, but there they are, in the pictures. WTF?
110
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
The whole interview seems really naive, like this claim that the reason assets (any asset, it seems) rise in value is because the dollar decreases in value. Huh? So NVidia and Boeing both performed the same last year? Maybe there's another reason stocks change value over time?
What I mean by that is there’s about half of the country who understands if you hold cash, it loses value every single year. Instead, if you convert that cash into assets, whether it is stocks, real estate, or cryptocurrency or whatever, over time they will go up because the dollar is going down.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
That's what the creator was prompting for. Here's one where I didn't ask for a dream teenager in a bikini. This is AI, not a real person who has ever existed. If you believe it is a real person, you're in the majority, but you're wrong.
An AI generated picture of a woman wearing racing leathers, standing next to a land speed racing car. Neither the woman or the car is real, or have ever existed.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
El Pedo in a Speedo.
Trump in a Speedo. Undoubtedly AI generated, because Speedo doesn't make a size XXXXXXL.
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
We have whistles, they have guns. We will win.
A whistle with a label it says this whistle melts iceThe other side of the whistle with a label that just says melt ice
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Lady Liberty has something to say about this. #nokingsOC
A photo of a woman holding a poster showing the Statue of Liberty taking off her earrings. The posters title is "girl, hold my earrings"
1273
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Since that one was pretty popular, check out this beautiful coyote! This was at a rest stop in the Mojave Desert in California
A beautiful coyote at a rest stop in California
1150
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Another sighting! Lean and hungry as always, but so beautiful.
A photo of a coyote near my house. They are beautiful!
1410
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Yeah, it sure is.
An ad featuring Ronald Reagan endorsing Chesterfield cigarettesAn ad featuring Bette Davis endorsing Lustre Creme ShampooAn add featuring Humphrey Bogart endorsing Whitman's Sampler chocolatesAn ad featuring Lucille Ball endorsing Roma Estate Burgundy wine
161
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
Meanwhile, at MAGA central, they are celebrating Alysa as though she is one of them.
A photo of Alysa Liu jumping on the olympic platform. Oddly enough, this was posted by a right wing troll site on FB that says, "Nothing on this page is real," and reposted by a MAGA on FB. If either one knew even a tiny bit about Alysa, they would be demanding that her medal be returned and that she be deported.
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
Well, darn. Why don't links expand the way they used to?
An XKCD cartoon showing someone typing on a computer, saying they can't go to bed yet, because someone is _wrong_ on the internet.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Ugh... my link didn't expand. Here is a screenshot of it.
My post from before the NYC mayoral election, which says, "Sliwa was born in NYC, almost killed in NYC, will die in NYC, and be buried in NYC. But Mamdani? He fucking LOVES NYC. That's why you don't stand a chance, Curtis."
020
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
‪ What fresh hell is this? I open an alibaba link in Edge and get a popup that says, "www.alibaba.com wants to look for and connect to any device on your local network" 1. Why would alibaba need to do this? 2. Why is Edge even asking me if this is okay? It's NEVER okay!
A popup that opens in Edge when I open an alibaba link. The popup says, "www.alibaba.com wants to look for and connect to any device on your local network"
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
I remember showing this Jonathan Bachman photo of Ieshia Evans in Baton Rouge to someone to show how messed up the police were, and his response was, "What was she rioting about?" Not, "What was she protesting?" Rioting. In a dress. With a phone. She is a nurse. This was July, 2016. Chodes.
A Jonathan Bachman photo of Ieshia Evans bring arrested by storm troopers in Baton Rouge. She has no weapons and is dressed in a simple dress, whilehe storm troopers are dressed in full riot gear.
1799
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
The Board of Peace has unveiled their inaugural Annual International Peace Prize, to be given in perpetuity to Donald J. Trump, for his contributions to the redefinition of "Peace."
A trophy of a gold toilet. The caption on the trophy is labeled, "International Peace Prize."
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
Iran has prepared a special award for our extra special president. Sanctions, blockades, and threats will end tomorrow, and construction of Trump Tower Tehran will begin in February.
A trophy featuring a golden toilet labeled "International Peace Prize." 

(AI generated.)
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
I need whistle stickers printed! Does anyone know where I can get circular stickers that day "THIS WHISTLE STOPS FASCISTS" printed? Asking for half the country.
A whistle that says, "This Whistle Stops Fascists"
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
There are many useful use cases. Yesterday I asked AI to tell me about the pattern in this photo. It identified an AM color halftone pattern and explained how the pattern is generated, and then explained how to generate similar halftone prints in Photoshop.
A small section of a photo showing AM color halftone pattern effects
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
Great Blue Heron, Newport Back Bay.
A photo of a Great Blue Heron.
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
You bet! World Dryer was protecting us from "the hazards of disease" back in the days when America was Great and we all shared paper towels with strangers in public restrooms to maximize usage of each towel.
A World Dryer label on a hand dryer that says, "To serve you better. We have installed Pollution-Free Electric Hand Dryers to protect you from the hazards of disease which can be transmitted by cloth towels or paper towel litter. This clean, quick, sanitary method dries hands more thoroughly, prevents chapping, and keeps washrooms free of towel WASTE.
010
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 23/11/2025
I was at Salt Creek Beach yesterday morning, with binoculars, hoping to see some whales. In 30 years I have never seen such a clear day. Catalina and San Clemente Islands both very clear. With binoculars we could see the towers on both islands. Amazing.
A photo from salt Creek beach in Dana Point looking toward Santa Catalina Island, California
110
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
color me Surprised.
A crayon labeled "Surprised."
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
JFC indeed. Another rare bit of honesty.
A portion of the donation page shown above which says, your contribution will benefit Crane for Congress and Trump national committee JFC. 

JFC is a well known acronym for Jesus F**king Christ, which pretty well sums up any donation to that shitshow.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
Even my catfish in New York, who is probably a poor young Chinese peasant lured to the border of Myanmar and living in a compound where he is forced to pretend to be a beautiful Chinese woman and try to get me to send him money, says she isn't leaving New York City.
A beautiful Korean model whose image was stolen by someone pretending to be the heir to the Shiseido cosmetics fortune and live in New York City. She thinks Shiseido has yearly sales of nearly $80 million, somewhat short of the $18 billion the company is actually closer to. She just bought a condo in one of the super-tall condo towers overlooking central park for $26 million, apparently unaware that the same condo was sold last year and is currently listed for rent for $60k per month.
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
All I can say is, I hope Gary Larson never loses a minute of sleep over this cartoon. My career started about the time this was first published, and I received copies from coworkers many times over the years, and always found it funny. Yours was a great cartoon, Paul. Rosenthal should be proud.
A Larson cartoon showing an explorer with an abnormally large head stepping out of the jungle into a headhunter encampment. The caption is, "Unwittingly, Palmer stepped out of the jungle and into headhunter folklore forever." It has been suggested more than once that I modeled for this cartoon, but I can only say two things: First, I have significantly less hair and a smaller nose, but "artistic license" was invoked and the cartoon was published anyway. Second, Gary Larson is a genius, and I have loved every bit of the completely undeserved attention I have received as a result of this cartoon. Thanks, Gary!
031
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Except maybe Grok? I mean, doesn't this mean it's generated by Grok?
000
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Such hard choices on the California ballot.
An imaginary California Prop 50 Ballot, that says, 

PROPOSITION 50:
MESS WITH TEXAS
(CHOOSE ONE)
1. HELL YES, MESS
2. NO, EVERYTHING IS FINE
3. NO CIVIL RIGHTS ARE OVERRATED
4. NO, JUST DEPORT ME NOW
5. NO, I'M CHARLIE MUNGER JR. I HATE DEMOCRACY.
062
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
How could anyone be so lucky to have a partner look at them like these two look at each other?
Zohran Mamdani and his wife, smiling at each other, with a look that screams, "Hey, I really, really LOVE you!"
2283
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
Yes, the stupid hurts, just not the way they think.
A Facebook post that shows Zohran Mamdani speaking, with the caption, "Irony is people freaking out about losing their food stamps, then lining up to elect a socialist. There's no pitty [sic] for self-inflicted wounds. The person who posted the photo of Mamdani wrote, "I've always said, 'NO SYMPATHY for self-inflicted pain.' STUPID SHOULD HURT! Maybe, just maybe, it might make them think."
020
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
041
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
140
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
140
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
130
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
170
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
170
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
No Kings, Dana Point, California, October 18, 2025
170
Mike Palmer @icengineer.bsky.social · 19/10/2025
Protesters at a No Kings Protest in Dana Point, California. #NoKings #Maddow
Protesters holding signs at a No Kings ProtestA protester holding signs at a No Kings Protest. The sign says, "There isn't a sign big enough to list all the reasons I'm here!!" Protesters holding signs at a No Kings Protest. One sign says, "Scotus King or Democracy?" The other sign says, "Stop Trusting Your Algorithms And Start Trusting Each Other." A protester at a No Kings protest holding a sign that says, "Democracy, Where the HELL have you BEEN? LOCA?"
030