Wednesday, April 27, 2005

bad media

from Alternet:

Jessica Clark, Tracy Van Slyke, In These Times
Why is the news so bad? What can progressives do to fix it?
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/21872/

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

more on tapestries

Well, if my interest in tapestries hadn't already been piqued, it is now. I keep considering taking a college course on making tapestries.

from scitech daily:

When mathematicians and medieval tapestries unite, the result is a startling blend of pure art, science and technology
Read more in New Yorker magazine

Friday, April 22, 2005

Japan from Saturn

'nuther one from Arts & Letters Daily . . .

If Americans come from Mars and Europeans come from Venus, what is the home planet of the Japanese? Saturn?... more»

who are writers?

from Arts & Letters Daily . . .

Many authors toil to get out a few sentences in an hour. Other damnable types can pen 3000 words in a sitting. What kind of people are they?... more»

human area network

from IEEE computing:

JAPANESE FIRM CREATES FIRST PRACTICAL "HUMAN AREA NETWORK"

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) has developed the first viable Human Area Network (HAN), which uses weak electric fields on the surface of the human body as a medium to enable up to 2 megabytes per second data transfer between devices. Fluctuations in the skin's electrical fields affect an electro-optic crystal in the receiver, changes to which are detected by laser light and converted to a conventional electrical signal. NTT believes its system, RedTacton, is different from similar technologies because it only has to be within 20 centimeters of the skin, rather than in direct contact, and can transmit through clothing or shoes.

According to Tom Zimmerman, creator of a similar technology for IBM, the HAN is an improvement over current wireless technologies such as Bluetooth because users can narrowly limit signal recipients rather than broadcasting to all devices within a given range. Read more

Sunday, April 17, 2005

43things

I just discovered 43things. It's fun - sort of friendster-like, but more interest-driven. This is my entry.

Thursday, April 14, 2005

dog psychology

From arts & letters daily . . .

Pet theories: dogs act smart because they read people. Or because they fool people into thinking they can read them... more» ... online colloquy

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

spring cleaning

I grew up hearing the term spring cleaning. We never did it at our house, but it seemed like a good idea. Well, I just ran across some spring cleaning articles and began perusing. Though, it is more fun (fun?) for me to watch/read someone else talking about it than for me to actually be doing it . . .

Monday, April 11, 2005

Cryptography

Wikipedia's topic of today is Cryptography. I really should have a good understanding of it, since the product we're making at work involves it. Alas, I do not. Maybe I'll read up . . .

Wednesday, April 06, 2005

physics

I've thought for 25 years that I couldda done better in my high school physics class if I'd stopped flirting with the boy who sat at my lab table (I did win a date, so I guess the flirting paid off ;-) ).

Well, I've found an introductory book on Wikipedia. I forwarded it to my 10-yr-old son, who has always been interested in motion, but also started reading it myself. Maybe I'm headed for a rennaisance:
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/FHSST_Physics:Introduction

freedom of the web

from Arts & Letters Daily . . .

Technology? The web is more than that: it’s now an ideology of “freedom” – and theft. It may take Justice Scalia to sort it out... more»

I found the following excerpt from the above article very intriguing:
"most downloaders would likely concede that in a royalty-free world the incentives for the next Dylan diminish. Even writers gotta eat. But this means one has to buy into the validity of eeeek, "profit." I would push this even further; it requires a moral or at least philosophical commitment to the legitimacy of profit. Absent that, there's no hope."

Friday, April 01, 2005

Trying too hard?

from The Inner Journey newsletter today:

"Thinking about interior peace destroys interior peace. The patient who constantly feels his pulse is not getting any better."
-- Hubert van Zeller

Are you trying too hard to be good, to be perfect, to be spiritual?

‘Trying too hard’ is an expression of fear. If you can replace the fear with faith that everything always serves our highest good, your confidence and peace of mind will serve your aspirations.

"So many people work so hard, to achieve, attain, accumulate and cherish their fortunes. How many of us blissfully fill our days and nights being the Divine expression we are? This is the meaning of life. It is to be. As a result, all of your creations are a natural outflow from the Divine within your being. This is the joy of life."
-- Barbara Rose

blog trouble

from Arts & Letters Daily . . .

"Since anyone can write a Weblog, why is the blogosphere so heavy with white guys? Steven Levy worries... more» ... So does Heather Mac Donald."

I'm supposing Steven Levy is considered "left" now by the "right". Of course this disregards his honorable status as technology historian. Ms. MacDonald's article is in response to Steven Levy's, and suggests that his speaking out is pandering to folks trying to get away with stuff (the quota issue).

I'm tired of left vs right. It's not true. It's stereotyping.