Shiny Things

The Great Flydini

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:33:34 GMT

My good pal Scotto shared this with me yesterday. Steve Martin is awesome.

Busting Might Make Me Feel Good

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:09:28 GMT

I'm not holding my breath, because this could be a tremendous disappointment, but I was still pretty excited to see these previews for the upcoming Ghostbusters game for the Wii.

Never Heard _That_ on a Ukelele Before...

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:08:06 GMT

via Chadu

GraphJam

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:22:38 GMT

I have a new RSS feed: GraphJam. I am amused. Here's an example of why.

MySpace Suicide Conviction Overturned

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:09:43 GMT

I'm probably going to regret posting this, because it's an emotionally-charged issue. But that's why I feel the need to say something about it.

Reading this CNN article about the overturning of the conviction in the MySpace suicide case, it seems to me that people are getting caught up in the trappings of the case instead of the fundamental aspects. What if it had been a real teenage boy who flirted with and then cruelly dumped Megan Meier, instead of a 49 year-old mother acting as one? What would have been his liability in her suicide? I almost hate to say it, but I suspect he would have had no legal liability at all: the hypothetical boy didn't force Meier to kill herself, and as far as I know it's not illegal to make someone so miserable that they choose to end their own life. If there's a law related to enticing someone else to commit a crime, then that might apply, but that's about it.

So what crime is Lori Drew really guilty of? Impersonating a teenage boy? That's not illegal. It's not illegal whether you do it in person, or talk over the phone, or act it out on TV, or send written correspondence. Why should it be illegal over the internet? So, horrible though her actions were, I have to be glad the conviction was overruled, because it was a bad precedent. Punishment should fit a crime's intent and consequences, not the tools used to perform it. Otherwise you risk viewing everyone who uses the tools as criminals.

It's Genetic!

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:46:02 GMT

Lately, when I make some joke that's not very funny (a rare event, I assure you), my daughter will roll her eyes and say something to the effect of, "Dad, that's lame," to which I reply, "It's genetic!" It's happened enough that yesterday, this is what my Father's Day card said:

Outside: "Dad, you're one of a kind!" (Shows penguin in Hawaiian shirt.)

Inside: "So if I'm a little unusual myself, remember that I got it from you!"

Handwritten beneath: "It's genetic!"

Yesterday we visited my parents for Father's Day. My sister gave Dad a squirrel feeder: you attach an ear of corn to one end, and it hangs down from a spring on a chain, so the squirrel bobs around while eating the corn. It sounds pretty amusing, but I've never actually seen one in action. I actually had one a few years ago but the squirrels never seemed to pay attention to it. Apparently they'd rather check out our attic. But I digress.

When we were talking about where to hang the contraption, Dad wrapped the chain around his neck like a silly necktie and grinned. At this point I turned to so my daughter and said, "See, I told you it was genetic."

John Hodgman at Radio & TV Correspondents' Dinner

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:22:36 GMT

As Robin Laws said: "Members of the tribe, this is for you." Long (by internet standards) but highly entertaining. Almost inspirational, even.

Goldfinches

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 23:00:35 GMT

It's pretty nice sitting out here in the screen room, watching the goldfinches, as I try to remember to enjoy my life for what it is instead of being frustrated about what it's not. And as I look at the gold and black of the goldfinches, I have to wonder, aren't those the colors that nature generally uses to say "do not touch"? It's almost like they should have stingers or something.

Time for dinner. Yum.

Inbox 0!

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 01:44:02 GMT

Woohoo! I hate having stuff sitting in my inbox. It feels good to get it cleaned out again. No mean feat given the draconian internet restrictions at my new worksite. They block Gmail! Grrr.

Now that those open loops are off my mind, maybe I can make some headway on my Protospiel project. Not much time left. But that's for tomorrow. Time now for about half an hour of Bioshock.

It's an Honor Just to be Nominated

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 14:46:00 GMT

reubeneater just informed me yesterday that the WFYI segment on our Reuben Tuesday outings has been nominated for a local emmy award!

Self Evaluation Tip

Fri, 29 May 2009 17:41:27 GMT

Something I've learned about self-evaluations for employee performance appraisals: write your self evaluation in first person, but convert it to third person before submitting it. Writing in first person is more natural and helps you get the information down on paper (or electrons). If you're like me, this is the hardest part of the process, and anything that makes it easier is worthwhile. Converting to third person afterward makes you re-evaluate what you wrote in a manner more consistent with how your supervisors will read it, which helps you adjust what you say and how you say it. Turning in your self-evaluation in third person also means your supervisor can cut and paste your own words directly into his report to his own supervisors: less work for him means a better attitude toward you.

Bonus tip: Send your supervisors brief weekly status reports, even if they don't request them. Aside from the communication benefits, the reports also serve as a log to help you remember what you should include in your self-evaluation.

Retinal Scan Advisory

Thu, 28 May 2009 14:08:34 GMT

After watching Angels & Demons (and Demolition Man), I've decided that if I ever work somewhere that uses retinal scanning for security, I will at all times wear a badge that says the following:

"Despite what you see in movies, retinal scans only work on living eyes."

What are the Odds?

Tue, 26 May 2009 14:41:53 GMT

I've really been enjoying The Lone Gunman blog. I found this post to an article about probability--and our ~~emotional~~ irrational reactions to it--particularly interesting.

Stuff I've Been Thinking About

Sun, 24 May 2009 20:17:09 GMT

While watching the pilot to Glee: If a show just makes me laugh, but I get nothing else from it, that's not good enough, and I'm not interested. But if a show never makes me laugh, it's not good enough, and I'm not interested.

While sharing the mowing of our lawn with my son: You can tell if the work has been divided fairly, because everyone will think they're doing more than their share.

While listening to Project play Moon Over the Ruined Castle: We all want to play the melody, but we can't all play the melody all the time.

Fun at 30 Below

Sat, 23 May 2009 13:04:58 GMT

If you're ever caught in 30-below temperatures, you might as well try this.

The Fatal Grandeur of the Golden Gate Bridge

Fri, 22 May 2009 17:45:19 GMT

A moving account in the New Yorker of people who have jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge.

Quote from a survivor: “I instantly realized that everything in my life that I’d thought was unfixable was totally fixable—except for having just jumped.”

Note left by a jumper who did not survive: "I’m going to walk to the bridge. If one person smiles at me on the way, I will not jump."

Requirements Analysis in Daily Life

Fri, 22 May 2009 15:36:57 GMT

Last night, Morgan was dead set on going to Chick-fil-A for dinner. She was so insistent that she'd convinced her visiting auxiliary backup grandmother to take her, while Brandon and I stayed home and had tacos. I was opposed because we had lots of leftover taco fixings, and I wasn't going to buy more food and let what we had go to waste. So I said we could go to Chick-fil-A another time.

Morgan looked miserable. At this point I remembered something that's handy to remember when gathering requirements: if someone wants something that seems unreasonable, ask why they want it. So I asked. Morgan mumbled something I couldn't understand. I asked again. She said, in a very small voice, carefully designed to weaken the strongest paternal resistance, "I want a milkshake."

So we had tacos for dinner, and auxiliary backup grandmother bought us all milkshakes for dessert. Win.

Questions: What's On That Wheel?

Thu, 21 May 2009 12:21:16 GMT

I saw a garbage truck yesterday that had these teardrop-shaped devices on its wheels. What are they?

They're loose wheel nut indicators. If one of the teardrops isn't in alignment, it means that its corresponding lug nut needs tightening. It's a way to ensure at a glance that all the lug nuts are tight so the wheel doesn't come off. Clever. (Wikipedia)

Big Buck Bunny

Wed, 13 May 2009 22:16:47 GMT

Big Buck Bunny is an animated short with a distinctly Pixar-esque feel. It's good for a couple of laughs, but it's also noteworthy because the animation was all created using the free and open source Blender 3D animation software.

Star Trek - Casting Surprises

Sat, 09 May 2009 19:03:49 GMT

Karen and I just got back from seeing the new Star Trek movie. I was keeping my expectations very, very low, but they've done a pretty good job of (literally) rejuvenating the franchise. It's definitely action-packed: I think it would induce seizures in epileptics. But I was particularly surprised by a couple of the cameos.

1. One of the crew members of the USS Kelvin was Randy Pausch. You may remember him from his Last Lecture. I didn't actually recognize him, I only saw his name when I was watching the credits for...

2. Paul McGillion, better known as Dr. Carson Beckett from Stargate: Atlantis. I remember seeing behind-the-scenes interviews with him, talking about talking to his parents on the phone. His dad said, "So, you got a part on the Star Trek! That's very exciting!" and McGillion said "No, Dad, I'm on Stargate. It's a different show." Apparently it took a lot of convincing to get them straightened out. So I about laughed out loud when I recognized him in the Star Trek movie, because he's probably confused them again.

Argh!

Thu, 07 May 2009 23:40:43 GMT

I'm kind of fed up with Evite. I've been using it for years to invite people to our gameathons, but it's clunky and hard to use and never gets any better. As a matter of fact, I think in some ways it's gotten worse. So I decided I'd try Socializr. First step, import addresses from Evite. Great. Looks like it's importing them just fine... what the hell?! It just sent an invitation to Join Socializr to EVERY SINGLE ADDRESS I IMPORTED. Brilliant. Just brilliant. Not what I wanted AT ALL.

So for all of you that I inadvertently just spammed, my apologies. And I don't think I'll be using Socializr either, because now I'm VERY ANGRY with them. Too bad I just invited 70 people to join. Rrrrgh.

Goslings

Wed, 06 May 2009 13:52:56 GMT

A family of Canadian geese is grazing outside the window. I find the geese obnoxious, and far too numerous. And yet, the goslings still manage to be very cute.

Parrot Dance!

Sat, 02 May 2009 13:39:19 GMT

By watching YouTube videos, researchers have discovered that, like humans, some parrots (and elephants) actually dance to music.

Harnessing Spammers to Solve AI Problems

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:05:14 GMT

This New Scientist article talks about how highly motivated spammers are to come up with automated solutions for CAPTCHA mechanisms. As a result, they are inadvertently improving OCR technology. The author speculates that perhaps we should identify other problems we want solved, and use them as spam prevention measures until they are overcome as well. (via the Lone Gunman)

Raising them Right

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 09:52:34 GMT

Brandon told me on Saturday, "You know, until I took my dice bag to school one day, I thought Crown Royal was a company that made dice."