Flashback: The comet that flamed out
There was hype for Halley's comet in 1985, but it turned out to be a 'pathetic blur'
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Look waaay up
It's been 37 years since Halley's comet came around, and it'll be 39 more before the celestial visitor returns. Last week, CBC reporter Nicole Mortillaro told readers about another comet: C/2022 E3 (ZTF), which will be "placed well in the sky for Canadian stargazers" within the next couple of weeks.
However visible it gets, it could hardly be more disappointing than the"pathetic blur" that Halley's comet was, according to the CBC's David MacQuarrie in 1985.
He said there was a silver lining for scientists, though. "By prying away at Halley's, some of the mysteries of the universe may be revealed," he added.
NOW and then
Time was when city-dwellers could consult the local alt-weekly to find out about current music, film and theatre. In 1980s Toronto, the go-to was NOW magazine.
More recently, NOW was sold in 2019 to a new owner who filed for bankruptcy last year. CBC Radio's Q explored that move in September, and NOW relaunched with a new publisher last week. Former contributors say they're still owed money.
In 1986, the CBC program Monitor depicted NOW in its "architecturally designed" offices with a staff of 30. "This '80s collective still retains the spirit of the old days," said reporter Christina Pochmursky. "The difference is, they're being paid."
Another origin story
CBC reports that the TV shows coming to screens in 2023 include an adaptation of a book about the early days of the tech company that made the BlackBerry.
That company was Research in Motion, and back in 2000 it was profiled in the CBC News piece seen above. Reporter Saša Petricic noted that Canadian talent was satisfying the U.S. market's "almost insatiable" demand for quick communications.
"That drive has always been there," said Research in Motion's Mike Lazaridis. "It's just being noticed because the world has gone global due to a virtual mechanism called the internet."
Totally bogus
A new generation of university students could cheat and evade detection thanks to new tools that use artificial intelligence, reports CBC News.
- CBC NEWS: Experts and educators say viral AI tool ChatGPT brings challenges
- CBC RADIO l Bot or not? This Canadian developed an app that weeds out AI-generated homework
"Bogus papers" from students were a problem in 1996, too, but the culprit back was the plain old internet.
Signs of the times
Could distillers, breweries and wine-makers soon be compelled to add health warnings to alcohol bottles like those seen on cigarette packages? As CBC learned last week, tobacco giants fought labels in the '90s.
But cigarette machines were already a lost cause.
Cable story
Netflix is planning to crack down on password-sharing soon, the Reuters news agency said last week. But cheating to get premium TV services isn't new. In 1986, it was done by buying illicit cable boxes to descramble the signal from networks to avoid paying for pay-TV.
Bargain Harold
Offside: The Harold Ballard Story, now screening on CBC Gem, is an in-depth profile of the notoriously cheap owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Thumbs up for the vintage hockey visuals, but the doc left out Ballard's petty fight with the Toronto Transit Commission.
