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I'm going to live forever!

2010-09-14T12:53:00.007-04:00

Well, maybe not. But, being the prediction making fool that I am, at least 15 years ago I said that with enhancements yet to be discovered (then) I'd make it to age 120, and maybe longer. At least one friend of mine predicted then that he would live forever.

Seems that some scientists are starting to think this way too. How about this quote "For many scientists who know about such things, the question isn’t whether the first person to live forever has been born, but how old they are."

Supposedly those of us that make it another 20-30 years can expect to make it to 125. And, in those 20-30 years we will probably discover things that will make it possible to go even longer - presumably indefinitely. The kicker for many (like smokers - you know who I'm talking to!!) will be to make it the next 20-30 years.

The enzyme discussed in the linked article isn't considered the final solution, and is considered to be a weak attempt - but notably it is the very first product that attempts to slow down or reverse ageing (not expected to be successful in the latter). Note that this is a measure of how long a cell can divide without dying - possibly not what you are thinking of when you think of reversing ageing. :-)

Also posed in the article - current population predictions don't take into account current population not dying. As Stephen Hawking has said, our species will need to get off this planet if we are to continue. If we aren't dying then the only way to stop the population explosion will be to stop having babies - I can't see that as a viable option either. We will need somewhere else to put people!

Ageing article

2009-10-24T00:19:00.003-04:00

I've always appreciated the quotes and stories about how hard work perseveres over blind luck. While I don't discount that occasionally real luck comes along at just the right time - I suspect that more often we create our own luck. That perfect job doesn't just come along; you don't just happen to get a great mark on a test; the perfect partner doesn't just happen to be where you went out. Rather, I think you found the perfect job because you were working hard to find it (submitting resumes, searching job ads, networking with the right people); you got a great mark because you did the homework, went to class, and studied; you found your perfect partner because (like the job) you hung out with people you liked - perhaps s/he was doing the same at the same time.

Well now there is a study that shows you can improve your luck. It examined "lucky people" and their attitudes and behaviours, and compared them to those of "unlucky people." The researchers were able to show that lucky people were better at seeing opportunity (and then taking advantage of it. It wasn't that they got more opportunities, just that they were better at recognizing when they did happen. The linked article (here) used one experiment where the subjects were given a task (count the photographs in a newspaper). There was a half page ad with 2 inch type on the second page that said "Stop counting. There are 43 ..." Although the lucky people tended to see this and stop counting, the unlucky people had such a narrow focus (looking for images) that they tended to miss the ad and kept counting.

The studies examined a number of other factors, but one central fact was that tense people have a harder time noticing things - even (maybe especially) when they are specifically looking for those things. Those who are less apt to focus on only one thing will notice more.

The study's author was able to create a "luck school" and teach unlucky people how to be more lucky. They emphasized four principles and tried to teach three techniques to improve them. 80% became "luckier."

Four principles

[Lucky people] are skilled at creating and noticing chance opportunities, make lucky decisions by listening to their intuition, create self-fulfilling prophesies via positive expectations, and adopt a resilient attitude that transforms bad luck into good.

Three techniques

Unlucky people often fail to follow their intuition when making a choice, whereas lucky people tend to respect hunches.

Unlucky people tend to be creatures of routine ... In contrast, many lucky people try to introduce variety into their lives. [see my earlier blog entry on practising change]

Lucky people tend to see the positive side of their ill fortune. They imagine how things could have been worse.

So - if you are unlucky - you can with a little effort become luckier. Try it, what can you lose?

Lastly, some quotes about work and luck:

"Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The harder I work, the luckier I get. - Sam Goldwyn

When I work fourteen hours a day, seven days a week, I get lucky. - Dr Armand Hammer

It's hard to detect good luck - it looks so much like something you've earned. - Frank A. Clark

I'm a great believer in luck and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it. - Thomas Jefferson

The only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work. ~Harry Golden

Luck? I don't know anything about luck. I've never banked on it, and I'm afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: Hard work -- and realizing what is opportunity and what isn't. - Lucille Ball

Dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must pay for success. I think you can accomplish anything if you're willing to pay the price. - Vince Lombardi

Learn to be lucky. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/3304496/Be-lucky---its-an-easy-skill-to-learn.html

Support Our Troops

2009-08-31T22:51:00.004-04:00

"Support our troops" is a phrase that is really beginning to bug me. Not because I don't think the troops deserve support - they certainly do. The phrase bugs me because it is used to justify telling us what to think and it only seems to appear during certain events.

I'll tackle the second issue first. Not all of the fatalities in Afghanistan are combat related. Some have died from the same kinds of things that were killing service members before we ever packed up and headed somewhere with lots of sand. Things like vehicle roll-overs. Before you start to think that I am suggesting these soldiers don't deserve our respect I want to make it clear: THESE SOLDIERS DESERVE OUR RESPECT - the same respect given to their comrades that die from combat. The thing is, the ones that die in-service here in Canada ALSO deserve our respect, no matter the end cause. In these situations the soldier was carrying out his/her duty to our country. The cause of death is not important. What is important is that they died doing their job - one which by it's very nature is a service to the country. But, here is where it gets really hairy - service members were dying on duty long before we ever heard of Al Queda or Taliban or even Saddam Hussein. They will still be dying in service after we have forgotten those names too. So, please respect all of those members that give the ultimate sacrifice in service - no matter the cause, location or time.

Now the issue that really, REALLY, twists my "short and curlies" into a knot: supporting your troops means realizing that a soldiers duties are not always pleasant, and yet understanding that someone needs to do them and that someone needs to feel appreciated in her/his job the way we all do. However, it does not mean that you have to agree with the reasons the soldier has been asked to do those things, nor does it mean that disagreeing with your country's political direction (etc.) disrespects the soldier (some soldiers need to sit up and take notice here as well). Many people though would have you believe that voicing opposition to a current political view that involves sending troops to foreign locations means you don't support those troops.

There are also people that believe they cannot support the troops if they do not believe in the politics. I am here to say that these are mutually exclusive. You can absolutely abhor the reason a soldier is sent on a mission - and yet still support the soldier for doing the job given to him/her. Take your opinion where it should be heard - to the soldier's ultimate masters - the politicians. If you change their minds then they will change the soldier's mission (and s/he will then tackle the new mission). Soldiers are required to obey orders - whether they agree with them or not. The rest of us have a duty to ensure they are given the correct orders.

One last note: occassionaly soldiers go beyond the morally (and legally) acceptable. It has happened in the past (most recently Canadians will remember what happened in Somalia) and will undoubtedly happen in the future. Blind support of the troops is nearly as bad as not supporting them when they are just carrying out their (lawful) orders. Thankfully these situations are not the norm. It is incumbent on the rest of our society to watch for these situations, and occassionally to censure those who go too far.

Cool optical illusion

2009-07-28T08:23:00.003-04:00

How many colours do you see? There is orange, magenta, and green. NO BLUE! It is hard to believe but the blue stripe and the green strip are actually the same colour! (And sometimes I see two different magenta/purple/pink colours too - one of which is actually the orange.)

(On my LCD screen it looks pretty freaky if I scroll it quickly.)

Full details available here.

Opposing points of view

2009-07-16T13:17:00.004-04:00

A couple of geeks (one that actually codes) with very different points of view:

Chris Pirillo

"When you believe you can compensate for a lack of skill by doubling your efforts, there's no end to what you can't do."

Jeff Atwood

talent is far less important than enthusiasm (Jeff's blog post on the subject)

So which is correct?
I suspect some of both. I've certainly seen the enthusiasm approach succeed in all kinds of areas - many of which have nothing to do with computers (the RMC recruit obstacle course comes to mind). On the other hand, I've also seen enthusiasm run into roadblocks that only new skills can overcome. Notice I did not say improved skills? That's because I've seen enthusiasm produce improvements. I've seen tasks (now I'm thinking of in the classroom) tackled where the participants definitely did not have the level of skills needed when they started. Enthusiasm gives them the courage to jump in and improve the skills they have - to the point where they succeed. They do not lose these skills after and can continue to use them for new challenges as they arrive. They do need some base level though (I don't think Jeff was really advocating that no skill can be overcome

In fact I think that is part of teaching - engendering the enthusiasm so that the students can learn on their own ...

Story of Stuff

2009-07-06T11:58:00.005-04:00

This video (click picture for video) is a little over the top (for example implying that every use of flame retardants is evil) - but includes some real important points too. The big point is that we (it's American, but I'm including all of the "western world") consume too much instead of simply using items longer. Currently we cannot survive economically without growth. Many items are manufactured to fail (planned obsolescence) while many others are designed for us to simply "think" that something needs replacing (perceived obsolescence). Fact (I didn't check up on it): 99% of materials trashed within 6 months!

It's long been my opinion that the Western World's premise for economy cannot continue. Here in Canada we like to trumpet some of our social programs (IMO deservedly). However, most of those programs (like social security/old age pensions) cannot continue to be funded at current rates without continuous population growth. In fact, the Canadian birth rate isn't high enough to ensure this so we require immigration to support this. I am in no way against immigration, but I am saddened that this would be a reason for it. Many other things in our society also require the continuous growth. Watch the business news (occasionally - it's too boring to watch every day :-) and you will see stories of companies that are perceived to be worth less, simply because they failed "grow." They may have made excellent profits while offering useful products but since they only sold the same number as last year (last quarter, last month, last whatever) they aren't considered any good anymore. This is a clear example of how we force products into obsolescence. Obviously these companies MUST create a throw away product, just so investors want to own them.

The requirement for growth is much more widespread than many realize. My own employer is currently in a deficit position. The solution to that deficit is growth. With more customers, profit margins will increase and we can balance our budget. While I am aiming criticism here, it isn't at my employer per se. It doesn't have much choice in the current funding climate. It too is being forced into this situation by the overall strategies of government and economy.

How do we change this. Sadly I feel like most attempts are typical "tilting at windmills" examples of futility. Certainly supporting sustainable development is part of this. Simple things like recycling and re-use are very important but currently it is cheaper to throw away and get new stuff. Somehow it needs to become more expensive to replace with new. That statement smacks of government intervention which is something I dislike. An example that seems to work is the deposit on beer bottles (Ontario has a 95%-99% rate of return on beer bottles). I don't think that is extendable to every product we use though (what would the deposit on a car or house be?). My sadness comes from the thought that we will need some sort of crash (resource crash) to turn things around. Have you ever read "The Sheep Look Up"? A very scary book. Recently we have seen a large increase in interest in renewable energies and efficient vehicles. How come? In a large part because oil got expensive. Not because of some altruistic reasoning by the population. :-(

(Link to The Sheep Look Up search)

Physics Game

2009-06-23T00:13:00.001-04:00

I like physics. I like games. 'Nuff said.

Online Physics Games

What is Unite for?

2009-06-16T09:49:00.006-04:00

You've either already heard about Unite, or you will soon. This is a new product from Opera - the company that makes a supposedly really good browser, that I've never bothered to try. "Aye, there's the rub." A lot of people are used to seeing Opera in that context - just another web browser that they don't feel compelled to even try. That might be the first nail in the coffin for their new product Unite.

So what is Unite? Well basically it is a point and click web server for home use. Without going into technical details it allows you to easily put your own website on the Internet, without putting your content under someone else's control. It has drag and drop widgets for file sharing, a media site (think Internet radio with your music), photo-sharing (like flickr), a chat server, a message wall, and some others. If people like/use it I would expect many other widgets to come soon - the glaringly obvious one being video sharing (like YouTUBE).

Perhaps the biggest difference though is that since the content is on your own computer you do not have to agree to the terms of service of another site, nor give up your ownership of your files (that caused a huge backlash on FaceBook) and you can remove data when you want to. You also have control over who sees (or doesn't see) your content (if you care about this then do it carefully though).

Caveat: this is your own computer doing the serving, over your own Internet connection. If your connection isn't fast enough (upload speed, not download speed) then people won't be able to get your content fast enough. You may have limits on your total upload amounts, on top of speed issues.

So what could/will people use Unite for?

replacing social networking software. Instead of hosting your status and your pictures (and other stuff) on FaceBook or MySpace or [insert huge list of social networking sites] host it where it already is - on your own computer. If you put up links to other people using Unite that are your friends you now have the "networking" part. P2P (peer-to-peer) social networking!
replacing sharing services like flickr and YouTUBE - impose your own limits, no "pro" account required. No need to spend time uploading pictures/videos - it is already where you want to share it from
having a personal radio station that only plays music you like (own)
keeping in touch with people (like the social networking sites already listed)

Will people use it? I have no idea. It has a lot of potential, but like I said at the beginning many people are going to think of anything with the word Opera as just another web browser (or maybe a fat lady singing Wagner). The fact that you have to install Opera on the computer that is running Unite probably works against it. Note: people accessing the site can use any web browser.

Can people use it? On the technical side that will depend on their ISP (most will allow some use). On the useability side it doesn't look like most people will have much trouble getting it to work, although setting access/security might be a little more effort for some people.

What's missing? There should be a video sharing widget, and a friends widget. I'm also suprised there is no blog widget.

What do you think it might get used for? What do you think is missing? Have you actually tried it yet?

Another UI update

2009-06-11T11:36:00.002-04:00

How about just using your cell phone to write notes in the air. Demo does not show this being used to interact with a computer - but why not. Especially if the phone and the computer are both Bluetooth.

Webpage for above video: http://synrg.ee.duke.edu/media.htm

Customized blogger template

2009-06-11T11:08:00.004-04:00

I've always disliked the width of the templates that Blogger (blogspot) provides. I knew I could fix it, but I also knew it would take a while to find all the sizes that needed changing, as well as to resize the images used. Before I tackled the job I decided to do a quick search and of course someone had already done it. Here is a courtesy link to the site: The Blogger Guide.

UI update

2009-06-04T10:45:00.003-04:00

Just a quick update to an older post concerning UI in the future. At that time I said Nintendo (Wii) and Apple "get it" and to expect similar UIs to emerge. I also said that I expect deviceless UIs, meaning physical gestures, touch control, etc., to get big (I know there is actually a device involved, but not an obvious to the user one).

Here are three new devices/systems:
Wii like motion controllers from

Microsoft, and
Sony

and a TV that has no remote - it reads your hand gestures.

Last, a device like a huge iPod touch (but it isn't focused on music/video) - the CrunchPad.

FireFox Overtakes IE

2009-05-27T11:09:00.010-04:00

How come I didn't hear about this until today? (Click on the graph above to see it clearer.) Perhaps it just went past my radar when I wasn't watching. As a (semi) oldtimer I remember the huge news it was when IE overtook Netscape (see - I told you I was old). Originally Netscape owned the browser market, and not just by a small margin, but by huge margins. Then MS, who up till then seemed to have missed the fact that the Internet was going to be important, released IE. The original Windows 95 did not include the browser, but later OEM versions did. Since then it has always been bundled with Windows, although some court cases that MS lost required them to change how integrated it was. In it's heyday it apparently held 95% of the market share, mostly because until more recently, the collapse of Netscape left no viable contenders (as with several other products AOL managed to kill off a successful product by mismanaging it - IMHO).

A few years ago FireFox appeared on the scene (ironically rising from the ashes of the Netscape code). Besides FireFox, Apple has been promoting its browser Safari (and of course that is the default browser in Mac OS). A few other browsers appear as viable alternatives, especially Opera and Google's Chrome. Despite this however IE has held dominant. FireFox for example was released (final not beta) in 2004 - and five years is a long time on the Interwebs. However IE has been slowly losing ground. At one point though it seemed as the competitors were poaching from each other and not affecting IE.

Now, in 2009 we see that IE has finally been toppled from the king of the pile. Although me not hearing about this before now (May) really surprises me. FireFox is definitely my favourite browser, but I truly support multiple browsers in that I want them all to be successful enough to survive. I do not like monopolies of any sort. It may be hard to see in this chart because of the scale, it is interesting to see that the three "other" competitors listed above all have positive trends (this is more obvious if a logarithmic scale is used - see the closeup below). Despite the fact that I have no love for MS I hope that we can see a levelling off where multiple browsers trade the king of the hill position but essentially remain equal. This might actually lead the developers to make them all render pages the same (a holy grail for web developers).

For the record - my bet is that Chrome will be the next to the top (although it could take a couple of years).
Links:

I heard about this through Twitter via @kmesiab
Chart data from W3Schools.

Logarithmic scale applied to make the trending more obvious for the "other" browsers.

Let your mind coast

2009-05-20T09:09:00.003-04:00

You can still get somewhere coasting.

I've long been an advocate for letting the subconscious do some of the heavy lifting when trying to solve problems. Many times my mind has solved problems for me - when I wasn't thinking about the problem. In extreme cases I have even woken from sleep knowing the solution to a problem (in the most bizarre example I dreamed I was a piece of data that had to navigate an algorithm). In any case - my advice has been to work on a problem until you seem to have hit a dead-end or impassable obstacle. At that point you should do something else - preferably something else that does not require heavy thinking (but at least make sure it is something else).

Recent research shows that this idea works. This new study (see links below) specifically examined when your brain is involved in a fairly repetitive or automatic function. In the study participants were given a fairly easy, repetitive task that the researchers knew led to mind wandering. The participants brains were scanned and the researchers discovered that the part of their brain that works on problem solving was quite active while they were involved in the given task. This is interpreted as meaning that while they were involved in the given easy task, they put their brain in neutral. And, the brain noticing that it had some free time decided that it would work on some of the harder problems it had been storing up (no indication of what exactly these problems were, but we always have something going in our lives on that needs to be fixed or organized).

Here is a link to a GizMag description of the study, and even better, a link to an interview given by one of the researchers (Dr. Kalina Christoff) on CBC's Quirks and Quarks science show (radio show, so audio only).

Change - Get used to it

2009-04-22T11:20:00.008-04:00

"The only constant is change ..."(Isaac Asimov). Or so the saying goes. It's a fact that people often (usually ?) resist change. I suspect that all people resist change some of the time, but certainly how much, and what, people resist depends on the person. The problem is that it isn't useful to resist all change, and also not productive. Even tougher, the resistance is often a reflex - not something thought over. I know that I have caught myself doing this, and it is glaringly obvious in one of my sons.

I want to suggest that people should train themselves to live with change. By purposely making changes that we have control over - just because we can - we may gain an edge dealing with change that we have no control over. I guarantee that you will experience change you have no control over.

"Take a walk on the wild side." (Lou Reed)

Separate change from risk. Although change and risk are intertwined, they are not the same thing. Risks should be analyzed separately from the change that produces it (be careful also to realize that not changing can also create risk). What I am advocating is making change for change's sake, but only for low risk changes. High risk changes need to be analyzed a lot more closely. Here is a personal example. Last June I decided I would shave my head, and then let my hair grow for a full year. Having a shaved head was a change, as is now having long hair. The risk is minimal. Neither situation was likely to cause me problems (or advantages for that matter). I just wanted to try it. Although this post isn't about changing your hairstyle, you probably know people that haven't changed their hairstyle in decades because they are afraid to.

So my challenge to everyone is to practice change. Find something in your life that has very little risk and make a change. It's ok if you find you don't like the change - change back. You won't know though unless you try. Although the possible changes you might make are limitless here are a few ideas to get you thinking (you should leave other ideas in the comments section).

Do you usually go to the same restaurant (or the same kind of restaurant) when you go out for dinner. Then try something new - really new, like an ethnic food you've never tried. If you want to lower the risk go with someone that has been before.
Instead of going to a movie, try the theatre (or if you usually go to the theatre, try the movies)
Try a new sport (I'm not talking about as a spectator). Many organizations will allow you to try before making any committments
Take a course in something interesting (but not necessarily useful to you). Photography, food, human sexuality, foreign language, religion, creative writing, whatever
Listen to some type of music you've never really listened to before (listen long enough to give it a real chance). This is one area where I used to resist change. I would never have admitted to enjoying "rap crap" 10 years ago. Now I'll give anything a listen - that doesn't mean I'll like it
Visit somewhere new (of course finances can interfere here)
Try some different (not necessarily new - just new to you) fashions. I'm not suggesting throwing out an entire wardrobe and replacing it
If you don't read - try reading. If you read, try reading something different than you usually would

Hopefully in the end this sort of practice will help you to accept other changes. Perhaps it will be easier to truthfully analyze changes for benefits/problems instead of simply rejecting them because they are a change.

(I'll post a couple of pictures of me with shaved head and long hair later.)
Before
Bald

And still to come - hairy.

Climate change is real

2009-04-08T13:31:00.004-04:00

Just a really short post on climate change. It is happening. That doesn't mean where you live will be warmer, or colder, or drier, or wetter. It simply means that the overall global climate is changing. The second point is that humans are contributing. Would there be climate change anyway - of course there would (ever hear of an ice age?). Would it be the same or happen at the same rate? No.

I can't believe the number of people still digging up "facts" from really obscure scientists or who think they are experts because they read Michael Crichton's "State of Fear" (for the record - he didn't believe) and trying to show that humans aren't affecting it, or that it isn't happening. Yeah - and the world is flat!

Here are two articles - the arctic ice cover may disappear quicker than expected (notice that it isn't in doubt that it will disappear) and some stats on just how many ignorant (in this field) people there are out there. I like the quote "... no longer sure whether to be more concerned about global warming or global ignorance."

Finger Revision

2009-04-08T10:56:00.008-04:00

A few people in the real world have commented on my new "big bandage" on my finger. I finally got an appointment with a surgeon to see my finger. Up to that point my family doctor had been telling me that we were just trying to let it heal while we waited for this appointment and that the surgeon would decide what needed to be done.

Well she decided that it needed to be "revised." Definitions: revision - changed edition, or new version. The revision was basically to fashion me an entirely new end for my finger. This involved removing what I figure is the rest of the fingertip bone (still just a small part of my finger) back to the first knuckle. Then the hollowed out finger (see the Dr Seuss drawing on this page) was folded and snipped and sewed to make a new end. I don't have any pictures yet but I will take some at the first dressing change (next Tuesday because of the holiday) and I think it will be obvious how much better the finger looks (the new pictures will be posted with the old - see the link in the original post). I will not have a fingernail. In fact, if any part of the nail should grow in I am supposed to go back for another revision. I haven't had a chance to compare yet, but I think it is now shorter than the index or ring fingers.

For me this basically means my finger is back to being freshly amputated - so it hurts just as much as the first time. Actually, for some reason it bothered me more this time than it did the first. The pain level has gone down quite a bit already though - perhaps due to the pain-killers - but since I have already started skipping pills I think just naturally.

Paid The Big Bucks

2009-04-04T22:39:00.005-04:00

$$ People are upset about the huge bonuses that have been handed out to CEOs, presidents, and other high level employees of companies. Some of those companies aren't exactly doing well, and some of those bonuses have been paid with "bail-out" money. Many people's anger is misplaced. They shouldn't be upset that the bonus was paid - that's a matter of contract law. Perhaps the bonus was tied to the employees annual evaluation, or some other measurement such as customer satisfaction surveys. If a certain goal is met then they will be paid a certain amount. These people were hired under a contract that included those bonuses - therefore they should get paid those bonuses, even if the company is now failing (many employees at these failing companies were still individually performing well).

However, people should still be upset. They should be upset that the contract was signed in the first place (not that it was paid). The problem is that these types of bonuses should also be tied to the company's performance. At the very least to the performance of a certain well defined area of the company. So it might read that a person's bonus depends on how well they score on her/his annual review AND on the financial performance of the company. This is especially important for the high level management and executives.

At this level the employee should be taking personal responsibility for the organization's performance as well as the performance of all subordinates. If the organization isn't doing well it is the executive's fault. Using the auto manufacturing sector as an example it is clear that not all companies are suffering equally. And yet the CEO of one particular organization (the one that used to be #1) insists that the problems are not their own organization's. Instead he blames entirely different sectors (banking for one) for his corporation's problems. Then he has the temerity to say his company just needs some money to get through this period. It doesn't need to "fix anything" just survive another year or so and all the problems will go away. He clearly is not accepting any of these problems as his own - no wonder Obama told him to resign if he wants his company to get anymore money (he is now known as the ex-ceo of GM).

The excuse by these companies for the salaries and bonuses offered is often "we have to pay the big bucks to attract the best talent." I say that's a crock. It is similar to high level sports where the difference between the best is measured in hundredths of a percent. Just like high level sport, having the absolutely best person does not guarantee that the team will do well. Having a well organized and motivated team that are individually "pretty good" will always beat a poorly organized, under-motivated, team that happens to have a superstar.

Most of us aren't paid "the big bucks" but if offered them we would probably take them. Don't blame these people for accepting the money that they were promised when they signed their contract. Blame the organizations that are stupid enough to have such contracts.

Ouch

2009-03-22T22:12:00.007-04:00

Longer version of what happened to my fingers, with link to gory photos (don't worry, the pictures are at a different address and require a second click).

My niece, my son, and I went for a 4-wheeler ride. My son and I on one bike, my niece on the other. All went well until my son and I got stuck in the snow on the way home. Sine the bike my niece was on wasn't stuck (yet) and since it had a winch I decided to try and use it to pull the other bike out. I got off and walked back. I grabbed hold of the hook with my left hand and reached to disengage the winch drive with my right hand so the cable would run freely and I could pull the hook out and attach it to the other bike. In the mean time my son ran over and hit the "IN" switch on the winch. The winch quickly pulled the hook and my hand inside the casing. Luckily I was quick to yell to have him stop. Since I couldn't see my hand I don't know if it wound my hand under a cable, or if it squished my hand against the casing, but the end of my middle finger was cut badly enough that the piece had to amputated, and the end of the index finger had the bone crushed. Then I had my son reverse the winch so it would spit out my hand.

It was not bleeding that badly, even though it obviously needed medical attention, so we spent a few minutes trying to get the bike unstuck. But without the use of my hand, all we managed to do was get the second bike stuck as well. Not being able to lift or pull, quickly led me to realize it was a lost cause, so we walked to the closest house - about 0.5km. This house belongs to my wife's cousin Tracy, and luckily she was home. She called my wife to come get us and let me borrow her camera to take the gory photos linked at the bottom (she wasn't too keen on taking them herself). Thanks Tracy. Her husband Ron later went and got the bikes unstuck for me - thanks Ron.

Although the finger with the end missing looks the worst I have been told that potentially the other could be more of a problem. It is possible that the tendon has been detached. If that turns out to be the case then it will need surgery to re-attach it. For now I'm told we will be letting it heal some before any other "modifications" are made. For the shortened finger the doctor thinks I will even regrow the fingernail, and it's only a little shorter than it was (it's still longer than the index finger).

I purposely didn't put the gross out pictures here so that only those who really wish to see them, will see them. A few of these are pretty graphic, and not recommended for anyone with a weak stomach. On the other hand, if this kind of thing does not bother you, go ahead and click through.

Pictures here.

From MangledFingers

Peace. :-)

Edit: just a short note that although my son was bothered a lot by what happened, he seems to be getting over it. We both had a lesson to learn here. Nothing would have happened if I had not grabbed the hook (there is even a cloth strap to use that is safer) and a) he shouldn't have touched the switch at all; b) he could have paid attention to which direction is out, and which is in; c) he could have checked to see if all was clear before operating the switch. We can all be more careful in most things we do.

Here's the new pup

2009-03-17T15:30:00.004-04:00

Jevin named him Spike. I would have picked a different name - but that's ok. Kathy at "All Hearts" calls his breed NSD (Northern Street Dog). Whatever - he's cute. My guess is maybe a little german shepherd with some husky and collie? House training proceeds.

Hamster power

2009-03-11T14:19:00.005-04:00

Who hasn't joked about the hamster (or squirrel) on the wheel powering our computer (or car, or something). In this MSNBC article they built tiny little jackets containing nano-wires that generate electricity every time the hamster moves. But don't expect to be powering anything realistic with a hamster. Top power was about the equivalent of 1/20 of an AA battery (so it would take 80 hamsters to power my camera). Scientists hope to come up with a way to mass produce nano-wires to allow them to build a human sized jacket that could run an iPod within 3 years.

(picture from MSNBC article linked above)

Super fast hard drive(s)

2009-03-11T13:57:00.007-04:00

SSD drives have no spinning parts and so they are not limited by how fast a platter is spinning. Instead it is the bus speed (how fast you can push information through the wires) that limits throughput. RAID is a technology that combines multiple disks (the I stands for inexpensive, but truly that depends) to act like one disk. Depending on the type of RAID this can also improve performance because information can be read from or written to multiple drives simultaneously (in parallel).

So what if you took the fastest drives possible (SSD) and linked them using RAID in the fastest way possible?

Transfer speed: 2GB/sec. Consider a DVD R contains only a little more than twice that, so about 2.5 sec to read the equivalent of a DVD R.

Load all the Office apps in 0.5 seconds! That's a lot faster than I can load one of them.

Open everything in the start menu - 53 apps: 18 seconds.

Video here.

Found through Geekologie.

Of Morse code and smart phones

2009-03-10T14:46:00.006-04:00

Last year I took part in a round-table at a conference for post-secondary educators. The three round-table speakers were discussing their experiences with college programs that required students to have a laptop. Participation from the audience was highly encouraged and solicited. The round-table participants themselves all supported laptops in the classroom, but to different extents and in different ways. I was surprised at the number of audience members that were either against laptops, or against laptops except for specific purposes/lessons. For me a laptop is an expensive pen and paper + SO MUCH MORE. Like pen and paper you can use a laptop in a very specific manner (create a presentation for example) but also in very generic ways that can't be defined ahead of time. Add wireless connections and now you have the entire school library at your fingertips and far larger resources from outside your school.

Common comments were often along the line of "... but do they have to have it on all the time ..." and "... but it is such a distraction!" I expanded the scope to include other devices (smartphones, etc.) and you should have seen the resistance. A much more recent conversation helped me understand where some of these people are coming from, when I heard the comment "... but he isn't serious ..." about a blog posting looking for advice from netizens. Some people don't realize that the Internet and the uses put to it are how the current generations live. It is comparable to electricity to the previous couple of generations. Just as my parents (likely) couldn't have imagined life without electricity, many from the current generation consider instant communication and (re)search capabilities as givens. Asking them to disconnect during class probably feels like asking someone 20 years ago (when I was in school) to put away their pen and pencil, and get out their slate and chalk. A recent study puts this in perspective, but is probably not understood by those older generations. When asked, a huge majority of German 20-somethings said they would rather give up their car or their spouse than their connection to the web. 97% couldn't imagine giving up their mobile phone.

I challenge educators to find ways that their classrooms can adopt these sort of tools. This will be hard and uncomfortable for many educators as it means encouraging the students to interact outside of the classroom - and may make the educator feel ignored. However, without finding a way to include these devices in the classroom I say the students will use them anyway, but for other purposes - ones not necessarily congruent with the lesson.

And all of us from the previous generations need to start understanding and communicating with the current (young adult) and next generations in a manner they understand. Otherwise it feels to them the same way it might feel to us if someone tried to communicate with us using morse code.

Short List For Possible Pet

2009-03-04T13:35:00.006-05:00

A short list of dogs/puppies I am currently considering. We (my son and I) may choose one on Friday. Quick note - I'm not interested in "buying" a dog, but I'm willing to pay an adoption fee. There are so many pets that need a home that I will only consider Pet Rescues, Humane Societies, etc. The information with each picture is directly from the organization itself.

Go ahead make your views known. In the end we'll go with our hearts anyway.

Jim

North Bay Humane Society

Name	Sophie
Identification #	4461
Breed	Lab Mix
Sex	Female
Age	12 Weeks
Arrival	February 26, 2009

Name	Missy
Identification #	4425
Breed	Shep Mix
Sex	Female/Spayed
Age	1 Year
Arrival	January 19, 2009

All Hearts Pet Rescue (in Powassan)

This puppy is energetic and lovable. She is aproximatly 10 weeks of age.

they are poodle and Collie/Bernese Mountain dog mix. Will be VERY LARGE

see above for information on this puppy....

UI in the Future

2009-02-24T16:16:00.004-05:00

Face it. Computer interfaces have not essentially changed in years. When did the first mouse/keyboard come out? I remember the Apple II and Lisa from the early 80's (although I know it was actually invented by Xerox Park). I'm sure the info is there in Wikipedia, but I meant it as a rhetorical question. The point is that for the most part we still operate computers the same way we did decades ago.

First step. Many people do not realize that using the mouse with the keyboard is slower than using the keyboard alone - when you know the keystrokes. That is why there is a keyboard. Try to imagine instead of typing, using the mouse on an on-screen keypad (for most of us this is not an attractive option). Many kids games are this way because kids haven't learned the keyboard yet. Despite this many people never learn the shortcuts that could really speed up of their work (try pressing Ctrl-S to save in many applications instead of using the mouse to click File->Save). Point - people don't use the fastest method possible because there is effort required to learn it.

The next step. Because people don't know the keystrokes, and because they are more willing to use the mouse the next step was mouse gestures. Quick, how many of you have installed an add-on or utility to allow you to cause actions by "stroking" with your mouse. (Here is an example addon for FireFox.) Not many I bet. Why not? Because it takes effort to learn. Point - people don't use the fastest method possible because there is effort required to learn it.

Intuitive interfaces. So why does the mouse with the graphical user interface (GUI) work? I say it is all about not learning. There is a minimal learning curve to figuring out how to move a mouse, and how to click on objects. That is enough for many people. Indeed if you have ever had the pleasure/pain of teaching a neophyte you will know the real challenge starts with "right click" (Apple users insert ctrl-click, unless you have the new mighty mouse) or "drag" or "scroll" (although this last doesn't seem to be too bad with a scroll wheel). Why does a steering wheel, a light switch, a pair of scissors, work? Because it is hard to use them incorrectly and easy to figure out how to use them without spending much time learning (perhaps scissors are the worst of those examples).

What Nintendo gets right. You knew this was coming (with kudos to Apple as well). They take what we already do and try to mimic it in their interfaces - so the DS has a touch screen that I did NOT have to show my son how to use. I had to show his younger brother how to use the graphical keyboard part, but he was still learning his alphabet... The Wii allows you to point (almost like pointing your finger). You can put the remote in a plastic steering wheel and it is suddenly as easy to use as a (wait for it ... wait) a steering wheel! The iPhone and iTouch are the obvious Apple examples of what can be done right. Did you know you can use a Wii remote with your computer - as long as your computer has a blue tooth connection (Google it)?

In the future. The takeaways so far are - the interface cannot require serious learning and it should reflect things people already do. Partly this will work with current tools - if you haven't tried Google Earth yet, try it. Navigation is pretty simple and it goes beyond simple point and click. People naturally zoom, pan, and even set it scrolling automatically (give the Earth a spin!). More promising work is seen with "surface computing" which is like a really advanced touch screen. Instead of just mimicing a mouse new actions are being developed. The successful new actions will be the ones that are similar to the things people already do. However I think the iPoint 3D interface direction is even more promising. Cameras are used to track your body movements which are interpreted by the computer. Think Wii - without needing a remote! The developers could still screw up though if they are unable to make it work with intuitive body movements (pointing is perhaps the most obvious). Surface computing, body movements, no matter what we come up with as our interface, if people need to work hard at it they won't bother.

Starting to Tweet

2009-02-18T10:38:00.005-05:00

Ok - so for the longest time I've tried to avoid joining anything new. Didn't want to have to keep track of one more stream of information. Didn't want to have another login/password, etc. Anyway, a session at a conference last year helped me decide that I should at least try to make myself available for my students and others in as many ways as possible - so they can choose how they interact with me. I'm also working (supposedly) on an M.Sc. thesis that lives in the realm of social networking (technically it is research into the UI, not the networking itself).

So I joined FaceBook, started a blog, and joined Twitter. I was already on ICQ (haven't used it in a long time - does anyone anymore?) MSN Messenger, Google Chat and of course I have about five e-mail addresses I actually pay attention to.

I still wanted to minimize the number of things I have open, paying attention to. I went looking for a Twitter client that would do more than just Tweet. One place I checked out was Gizmo's TechSupportAlert I eventually decided to try Digsby. It tracks everything I listed above (well I didn't try ICQ) and even integrates your Tweets into FaceBook status. I gave it a couple of days, but have now turned it off. Instead I'm just staying my browser (FF). I keep various tabs open for e-mail, and have installed TwitterFox (liking it so far). Unfortunately I still have a separate client for MSN. I've tried a few (Digsby above and Trillian) but for now I'm sticking with the one MS makes.

Mobile Phones & People

2009-02-12T10:28:00.008-05:00

I'm sure it doesn't take a math degree to see where this chart is going. I combined numbers from a Gizmag article on 4 billion current mobile phones, with population data from a Wikipedia article. Obviously the growth rate for mobile phones is going to change. That isn't to say that no more phones will be sold, but that the number sold each year will likely level out somewhat.

What teens are doing online

2009-02-11T13:53:00.005-05:00

The title of the article is "Teens spend average of 87 hours a year looking at porn online" but it could just have easily read "Teens spend average of 165 hours a year working at homework online" - but how much attention would that attract?

(Geekologie writer says "I thought it would be more..." :-)

It is obviously an article written by adults that have forgotten what it is like to be a teenager. I don't claim to be a guru on the subject but I couldn't help rolling my eyes when I read "... for some reason they find it easier to go online to conduct their research than asking mum and dad for advice [on sexual and other matters]" Oh please! Twas ever thus.

There's a bunch more number such as how much time they might spend chatting (nine hours a week, 468 a year), how much time looking up diets, listening to music, etc.

I think the important take away is that a significant portion of their lives are spent online. Sometimes at things that are worrisome (the article mentions interactions with strangers and online dangers), sometimes at things they want to hide from their parents (but again - how many kids hid Playboy between their mattresses/under the bed, etc. 20 years ago) but this is also one of kids' main sources of information. This point should not be ignored by parents, teachers, or marketing. Unfortunately a lot of parents aren't equipped to guide their children through this and some go so far as to limit/ban access rather than try to assist in trying times.

Article at DailyMail Online.

e-books ready for mainstream?

2009-02-09T10:13:00.004-05:00

Mike Elgan is convinced that e-books are poised to take over traditional publishing. Personally I don't think the writing is quite on the wall yet (no pun intended). Latest developments may show that we are moving towards this though. I especially like the comments that young people (I'm not one of them anymore) actually read more than previous generations - just not from paper.

This second article from the Silicon Valley Insider does a little cloud math to show that the NY Times could buy every loyal subscriber an e-book reader (the Amazon Kindle) for less than it takes to publish their dead-tree version. However they don't claim that the Times should do this, they just want to show the economics.

Replace the alternator in your car - improve mpg

2009-02-09T10:05:00.006-05:00

Internal combustion engines are notoriously inefficient. Most of the waste goes into creating heat. Now VW intends to use that waste heat to create electricity using thermocouples. These are not new - you may even have seen a fan using this technology sitting on someone's wood stove before. However they are rather inefficient themselves and so haven't been used much for larger applications. The VW claims are 600W from normal driving. The neat thing - this is from waste heat so it does not affect engine performance. On the other hand a traditional alternator steals energy from the motion of the engine - so it takes fuel to turn the alternator. The energy used to power the thermocouple, heat, is already being produced and just being released into the atmosphere (by the radiator). VW claims 5% improvement.

Story on GizMag. (Image from GizMag.)

Follow up: or you could generate electricity from the up/down motion of your vehicle as you go over bumps. Shocks that generate electricity.

Teleportation over three feet

2009-02-09T09:54:00.004-05:00

Ok - it's nothing like Star Trek. In fact it isn't even intended to send actual objects. This teleportation is intended to increase communication speeds. Basically scientists are able to set information in one atom, and the same information instantaneously appears on another previously "entangled" atom. So what you might say. The point is "instantaneous." No light speed delay (due to quantum mechanics).

Light speed, schmight speed you say. Consider that my Internet connection has a noticeable light speed lag/delay becuase it is satellite based - approximately 1/4 second in each direction. This means that it takes a 1/4 second for my message to hit the satellite, another quarter second to return to earth. Then the answer has to travel back to the satellite, and then back down to me. Total lag is just under 1 second. Electrical connections across wires are actually even slower than light speed. Connections over fiber optics have a light speed delay, but the distances are much smaller than electrical or satellite.

Link to fairly technical details on FoxNews.

About this blog

2009-02-09T09:47:00.005-05:00

About the blog name - it's not about geek porn, it's a reference to a common typo in Java programming. Try searching on it in Google: (over 5 million hits last time I tried it - but that might be different if you turn on "safe search"!)

Although postings will be varied on topic and frequency, expect a geeky tone to them.