Shades of Grey - Greymatter

It's like the opening to a B scifi movie . . . "It's been waiting in the dark for millions of years. Now it's free. And hungry." Very cool story, though.

Posted at 12:11:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Safety Rhyme

I've seen some recent advertisements for the national "Click It or Ticket" campaign. I'm firmly in the "seatbelts should be a no-brainer" camp; whether I'm in the "the government should be able to make you wear them" camp depends on the day, and I'm not feeling passionate enough about it at the moment to decide. The advertisements themselves, however, have started to make me cringe. I think it's a proofreader thing. Technically "Click It" is a verb phrase and "Ticket" is a noun, so the phrase, while catchy, isn't parallel. It should be "Click It or Get a Ticket" or "A Click or a Ticket," but those aren't nearly as lyrical. Ah, the angst of the English majors.

Posted at 1:24:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Tuesday, May 30

For the Dogs

I heard a news story on NPR a few days ago about a British inventor who developed a relatively simple device for encouraging teenagers not to congregate in front of stores. It emits a pulse at a high-pitched 17kHz that grates on the ear. Here's the trick: the human ear changes as we age, and our ability to hear high pitches declines at a predictable rate. Most teenagers can hear 17kHz. Most adults cannot. In a companion story, NPR talked about creative kids who, after hearing of the inventor's device, have set their cell phones to ring at 17kHz, allowing them to receive text messages in class because the teacher can't hear the phones. Usually.

I'd never heard of our hearing changing as a natural effect of aging (obviously noise damage is common among most older adults), so I started poking around and finally found a site that had sample tones of a variety of ranges. Anyone who knows me well knows that I'm always the first to complain about loud, high-pitched noises (I used to be able to track the janitor's cart on my floor because it had a squeaky wheel), so it's probably not a surprise that I can hear the 17kHz tone (but not 18kHz), and listening to the sample only four or five times was enough to give me an aspirin-level headache. Lisa could hear the 16kHz tone but not the 17kHz one. If you want to try, here they are. But don't blame your headaches on me.

I'm suddenly reminded of a story my dad used to tell about how when I was a baby they'd have to move me to the room farthest away from my dad's shop whenever he'd use a circular saw or I'd wail like a banshee. Is anyone surprised that I wear the heavy firearm-style hearing protectors when I mow my lawn?

Posted at 10:19:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Happy Birthday, Again!

Happy birthday, this time around to Jamie. :)

Labels: birthdays

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Sunday, May 28

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to the twins! Ms. Alec and Ms. Kyle turned one today. A party was held, strawberry shortcake was served and presents were opened. Pictures here (it's the last 20 or so; I'm particularly proud of this one).

Labels: birthdays, twins

Posted at 10:21:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Thursday, May 25

Wish List Update

I'm doing some preliminary landscape planning. I need three of these 10" copper gazing balls. They're only $65 apiece. Feel free to chip in, or just order them directly have them shipped to me. Thanks.

Posted at 11:54:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Tuesday, May 23

The Little Scientist in Me

Little attempt has been made to disguise my love of science. From my early experiments in grade school making hydrogen out of zinc canning lids and battery acid to my entire freshman undergrad year of chemistry and physics classes, science has always fascinated me. And regular readers of my blog know about the posts on quantum mechanics and four-dimensional visualization . . .

Despite all this, I'm a bystander. I'm well-versed in many science topics, but it's all academic. I can explain gene therapy or the Second Law of Thermodynamics, but I haven't done any hands-on experimentation or verification, which in a way is a shame. On the other hand, I laughed this week when I realized that at one point I was subconsciously analyzing and formulating in much the way early scientists did. I brought my solar engine to my office and put it in my window a few weeks ago. I've had this one for a couple of years, and my dad had one when I was a kid, so I was familiar with the concept of the solar engine and how it worked, at least according to the pamphlet that came with it in the box (which I read and "absorbed" when I was like 9). Essentially, the rotor in the near-vacuum bulb rotates because sunlight bounces off the white panels while being absorbed by the black panels, and thus the rotor gets a "push" from light. Piece of cake.

Until I stopped, puzzled, one day this week as I watched it from my desk. It was spinning *the wrong way.* It was spinning as though the light was pushing on the black side and being absorbed by the white side. I actually stopped it and let it start over, with the same result. Then, confused, I cheated and looked it up online (where I discovered the explanation in the box is wrong, and has been known to be wrong since 1876 - bad science-illiterate companies! No cookies for you!). There was no way I was going to come up with the concept of "thermal transpiration" (the real explanation) on my own, so I don't feel so bad about looking it up; I'm just amused that the curiosity and problem-solving mentality that I used to toss around with reckless abandon in my childhood still surfaces from time to time.

Labels: quantum mechanics, science

Posted at 10:56:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Monday, May 22

Survey Says

I read an article yesterday about how the trend toward losing the landline phone is skewing polling results, since the crowd most attracted to going cell-phone-only tends to be, more than the general populace, younger and less conservative. Since those people (including me) aren't reachable for phone polling, it creates problems in coming up with accurate polls.

Gah, I'm always causing problems.

Posted at 11:44:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Sunday, May 21

Walking on Sunshine

The twins and I had a fun afternoon on Saturday (Lisa took advantage of the free babysitting to wash windows . . .). The rest of the pictures have been added to the end of this set (I'm particularly fond of this one).

Labels: twins

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Friday, May 19

Accolades

My parents are great.

Posted at 11:13:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Wanted Ads

I saw these real advertisements from somewhere in Europe yesterday. Brilliant marketing.

Posted at 1:31:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Thursday, May 18

Happy Birthday!

[Editor's note: I just realized this didn't post on Monday night. Very odd. It should have been up on Tuesday. Sorry, mom.]

Happy birthday to my mother. :) I'd say she's like 38, but considering I'm going to be 30 this year that would just be kind of weird. So you can guess. ;)

Labels: birthdays

Posted at 9:48:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Wednesday, May 17

Random Pictures

Despite infrequent updates, rest assured that I am performing my "adopted uncle" duties quite satisfactorily, including instruction in the ways of global domination. Lane had a rather disastrous campaign in Eastern Europe after losing most of the Americas to me, but she regrouped in Australia and retook Africa in a counteroffensive. Unfortunately, a 9 p.m. bedtime interrupted the conflict, so we took a picture of the board to continue later . . .

I saw this from the parking garage at work today. I was amused.

Posted at 1:26:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Tuesday, May 16

Learning Through Osmosis

Haley has spent enough time in a wrestling family that she's found a new sport to help her earn a college scholarship . . .

Posted at 11:29:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Monday, May 15

Job Applications

I heard a AAA job advertisement on the radio today that started with "Have you ever wanted to help someone with a flat tire on a lonely and desolate road?" and my first thought was "Wow, serial killers can fill out job applications now."

"So, Bob, I see here you were doing chainsaw murders in the Pacific Northwest from 1990-1992, then there's a gap in your record until the babysitter stalkings in the midwest in 2004 . . ."
"Um, yeah, I was doing time."
"Oh. Well, we're really looking for someone who won't get caught. No offense. You can reapply in six months if we haven't filled the position."

Posted at 4:48:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Sunday, May 14

Three-Ring Circus

Step right up, ladies and gentlemen, to the Old Market on a Saturday night, where the greatest show on Earth is in progress! On this corner, we have the young man juggling on a unicycle (granted, he needs a bit of practice, but he's there, nonetheless), on this corner we have the Lord Byron-esque cellist, on this corner we have the cowboy guitarist and his attached harmonica, and on this corner we have the Amish protest group preaching hellfire to abortion supporters! Don't leave your seats yet, because here comes the bagpipe-and-drum marching band! Look at those kilts flap! And who could forget the high school prom kids in their finery?

Man, it was a whacky half hour.

Posted at 11:46:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all mothers, although given this is my blog I think you'll understand if I single out my own mother. :) Hope it was a good day, mom.

Posted at 2:52:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Saturday, May 13

Wouldn't You Like To Be a Pepper Too?

Friends, acquaintances and long-time lurkers will be familiar with my carbonated beverage preference, sometimes even going so far as to be surprised if I refrain from ordering the clear champion of all soda ("soda," mind you, not "pop"). As of late, Dr Pepper has been dabbling with new flavors (supposedly as part of a campaign to reintroduce the nostalgia of soda fountain mixes, but since most of their drinking audience isn't old enough to *remember* soda fountains, I find that description somewhat wanting). The first arrival of what is expected to be a sizable brood was Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper, which was like a younger, slightly less talented version of the Dr himself. The latest entry, Berries & Cream Dr Pepper . . . sucks. In fact, I can only think of two things that go with berries and cream, and those are waffles and naked people of the gender of your preference.

I did, however, find this amusing site of all of the Dr Pepper imitations. Wow, that's a big list.

Posted at 1:18:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Friday, May 12

On-the-Job Training

The post-election wrap-up carried by the World-Herald included a short article about one instance of poor judgment on the part of an Inspector that I imagine will come up at the next Inspector training session I attend. In this instance, a voter pointed out that she'd received a misprinted ballot after she'd turned it in, and the Inspector opened the ballot box, retrieved her ballot and gave her a new, correct one. Big no-no. The ballot box is locked for a reason. But . . .

I have sympathy for the Inspector. I'm guessing he/she is a relatively new Inspector (I was part of a fairly large "class" of new Inspectors a few years ago) with only a few elections of experience. If that's the case, then what you have is a volunteer with a few hours of training, a few days of experience over the course of a couple of years, a crew of inexperienced (and possibly grumpy) draftees looking for instructions (and watching the Inspector closely), an obviously incorrect ballot and an unhappy voter pressing the point. It's not hard to see how a desire to make a voter happy, especially in a situation not covered by the training class (as almost all of the problems I've had personally have been), could lead to a poor choice. The downside is I'd bet money the Inspector won't volunteer again. It really is a thankless job.

Posted at 1:25:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Thursday, May 11

Secret Identities

I was immersing myself in the amusing, if mindless, inanity of "American Wedding" last night when found myself compelled to rewind the DVD and take a screenshot (yay for watching DVDs on computers). Who knew that Cris was leading a secret life as an actor?

Posted at 11:07:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Wednesday, May 10

DCCL

Happy 750th post to me. Everyone owes me presents.

Posted at 10:26:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Step Right Up, Cast Your Vote

If we can find your ballot, anyway.

I knew things were off on the wrong foot when the District Inspector was waiting for me at the door to my polling place to tell me that I'd gotten some of the wrong ballots (which, it turned out 6 hours later, I didn't) and I spent the first 20 minutes when I was supposed to be supervising my poll workers sitting at a table with the District Inspector going through the paperwork. Then I discovered (something they conveniently glossed over in the training class, probably to keep from scaring us) that I had *16* different possible ballots (every polling place got 10, and I had 6 more because of a split in my precinct that necessitated changes to 6 of them). Everyone who voted got 2, and we had to figure out which 2 out of the possible 16 they got. Then we had the normal bevy of poll workers grumpy about being drafted and taking it out on me (even though I had nothing to do with their selection) and the unhappy voters who were in the wrong precinct. But the 14 hours went fairly quickly and I'm done until November. :)

Posted at 11:02:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Tuesday, May 9

Democracy in Action

I'm off to manage a flock of grumpy draftees and a gaggle of hopefully not-too-confused voters. Everyone go vote. :)

Posted at 6:07:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Monday, May 8

Congratulations!

Jamie finally got around to telling me that she's getting married (she had some lame excuse about voicemail problems or some such, but it didn't spare her from verbal chastisement). August 18 will probably arrive sooner than she expects. Everyone tell her (and her fiance, whom I haven't met) congratulations. :)

Posted at 12:41:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Sunday, May 7

Out and About

I put up the rest of the photos from the Lauritzen Gardens (it's the same link, now with 75% more filling!). Lane and I also had supper in the Old Market, walked around the park (and went down the slide) and watched an Animal Planet show on anteaters in the Amazon. Much fun was had. We also broke my iron while having a swordfight in my basement, but it was old and needed to be replaced anyway.

I bought a "Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper Creme Cake" at Wal-Mart on Saturday night, just because I'd never seen a cake that supposedly tastes like Dr Pepper. And it doesn't. I dunno if the 7UP ones taste more authentic or not.

My house has push buttons instead of light switches, and I've gotten in the habit of just slapping in the general vicinity of the button to turn a light on or off. Sometimes it depresses far enough to change the status of the light but not enough to "stick," and eventually (usually within a couple of seconds) the light goes on or off again. Last night, I slapped the light off and got into bed. Two *minutes* later the light turned itself back on. That's always a comforting feeling for someone who lives alone . . .

Posted at 11:24:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Popular Support

This isn't a real sign (or rather, it is, with some Photoshop modification), but the idea for it popped into my head the first time I saw one.

Of course, I could be wrong and Osborne could lose the primary. I'll be very surprised, but it could happen, I suppose.

Posted at 10:18:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Saturday, May 6

Garden of Delights

Lane and I toured the Lauritzen Gardens today, which included the "Living Garden" demonstration. I put a few of the pictures up tonight (I'll put up the rest tomorrow).

Posted at 11:45:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Wednesday, May 3

No More Taco Bell

The Public Pulse today carries a submission from a writer incensed by the recent immigration-related protests and boycotts. The writer suggests a "counter-boycott" by Americans annoyed with the proceedings, with such specifics as avoiding Mexico as a vacation destination and discontinuing dining at Mexican restaurants.

The writer has a somewhat vague understanding of how a boycott (a word derived from the name of an Irish landlord who was a recipient of such an action) works. The immigrant boycotts are focused on putting pressure on the federal government (indirectly through the economically affected voters who elect the government). Whether or not that's an effective tactic I can't say, but it actually has a target. American boycotts of vacations in Mexico have no effect on illegal immigrants or Mexican-Americans, who are not in the group affected by such a boycott (and in fact such a tactic hurts only the Mexican citizens who do *not* come to the U.S.). And Mexican restaurants . . . I doubt there are many Mexican restaurants owned by illegal immigrants (the paperwork would be crazy), and those owned by Mexican-Americans are, by default, owned by Americans. We might as well boycott American-owned Chinese restaurants to protest China's human rights violations. I wouldn't be surprised if a substantial percentage of "Mexican" restaurants aren't owned by Mexican-Americans anyway (the chains certainly aren't). To use the boycott machinery in this instance, the writer would need to come up with something to boycott that either directly impacts illegal immigrants (a difficult task, since the boycott isn't good at targeting large groups of individuals) or influences the same Congressional decisionmakers the other boycott is targeting.

Posted at 6:33:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

House Updates (Yes, Really)

I actually updated my house blog. It must be spring . . .

Posted at 12:33:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Tuesday, May 2

Future Leaders of America

I had my Election Inspector training over the weekend. It was pretty much like the training classes I've had every year for the last several years (with the exception of training on the "AutoMark," a new device for the handicapped that reads a ballot out loud through headphones and marks it based on the voter's button choices - each precinct is getting one, which is great). The demographic hovered, again, in the early sixties, for reasons far from arcane. I was surprised (in a pleasant way), though, to see I was not the youngest attendee (I guess I can quit using that line now). There was another guy in his mid- to late twenties sitting a few rows back. Yay for interest from the younger generations! Unfortunately, his enthusiasm wasn't quite matched by his comprehension. His non-facetious usage of the phrases "Awesome" and "Right on" drew chuckles from the crowd, but his repetition of the same questions left the woman teaching the class visibly frustrated on the stage (she finally said "See me after the class"). Still, it was good to see the interest. I'm sure he'll pick it up eventually. I'm concerned for the future of the voting process as the current roster of volunteers finishes retiring; Douglas County already drafts half of its poll workers, and the Inspectors really need to want to do it to be good at it.

I also noticed that the woman teaching the class looked a little panicked and pleaded the Fifth when asked about the county's plans for computerized voting. I was under the assumption we were moving to it for *this* election, so I'm guessing something went wrong.

In other news, fresh strawberries are fabulous. That is all.

Posted at 3:18:00 AM. | | Permalink to this post.

Monday, May 1

All Good Things Must End

My angel photo finally dropped out of the pool today, after around 30 or 35 cullings. That's not a bad run. :)

The leaf photo I took on Sunday has made it through eight rounds in the Macro Top 20. I doubt it will make it to 20, but eight isn't bad.

Posted at 5:43:00 PM. | | Permalink to this post.

Wednesday, May 31

In the Dark

Safety Rhyme

Tuesday, May 30

For the Dogs

Happy Birthday, Again!

Sunday, May 28

Happy Birthday!

Thursday, May 25

Wish List Update

Tuesday, May 23

The Little Scientist in Me

Monday, May 22

Survey Says

Sunday, May 21

Walking on Sunshine

Friday, May 19

Accolades

Wanted Ads

Thursday, May 18

Happy Birthday!

Wednesday, May 17

Random Pictures

Tuesday, May 16

Learning Through Osmosis

Monday, May 15

Job Applications

Sunday, May 14

Three-Ring Circus

Happy Mother's Day!

Saturday, May 13

Wouldn't You Like To Be a Pepper Too?

Friday, May 12

On-the-Job Training

Thursday, May 11

Secret Identities

Wednesday, May 10

DCCL

Step Right Up, Cast Your Vote

Tuesday, May 9

Democracy in Action

Monday, May 8

Congratulations!

Sunday, May 7

Out and About

Popular Support

Saturday, May 6

Garden of Delights

Wednesday, May 3

No More Taco Bell

House Updates (Yes, Really)

Tuesday, May 2

Future Leaders of America

Monday, May 1

All Good Things Must End