Email to my mother:
A frog has kidnapped my voice, and now I sound like the son you never had.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Voluntary Confinement
Here I am, yet again, in the library on a Saturday. Armed with snacks and coffee and water and advil and glasses and a sweatshirt, with convenient access to vending machines and a restroom, easy internet and power source for my computer. Determined to force my brain to focus on a dull technical subject, determined to break the barriers my brain has put up around itself to protect itself from that beast Knowledge.
Monday, September 2, 2013
Learning to read... again
When did I forget how to read, stay focused on, and enjoy a book? Checked one out from the library yesterday, started reading it today. Done with 6 pages out of 509. Maybe the pressure of tracking my progress 'publicly' will help me make progress.
Update (Oct 26): Nope, no luck. Did finish reading another shorter book, but that was during the course of denial and escape from other major problems.
Update (Oct 26): Nope, no luck. Did finish reading another shorter book, but that was during the course of denial and escape from other major problems.
Monday, May 27, 2013
The importance of being a potato
Am finding myself learning a bit about the Earth's gravity model these days. One fun simulation on the web: http://www.hydrometronics.com/images/turn7-large.gif
I'm pretty sure there's a potato out there that EXACTLY represents the shape and/or gravity of the Earth.
A claim no human being can make.
I'm pretty sure there's a potato out there that EXACTLY represents the shape and/or gravity of the Earth.
A claim no human being can make.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Bits and bytes
Michael Feinstein, new conductor for the Pasadena Pops Orchestra, wowed JPL today with his Frank Sinatra like performance, funny one-liners, and interesting song selections.
What struck me about him was his very strong performance - constant engagement with the audience - he smiled and he smiled and hardly looked at the keys on the piano he was playing. Some musicians focus on their instrument or forget the people for a while, but Feinstein had eyes only for the audience.
Towards the end, he said that one of his goals was to bring back the communal experience that music nowadays had started to move away from...Interesting. Sounds noble anyway.
On the way home, a radiolab podcast talked about how Beethoven's symphonies actually are supposed to play a lot faster based on the metronome markings he made in his notes.
And at lunch today, I gleefully related a story to others about how the iron content of spinach had been misreported for decades due to a decimal error in transcription. What a great story - except I found out later that it wasn't true. Apparently, there is a book out there called 'The Half Life of Facts'. Maybe it's time to read it.
In going with the spirit of entrepreneurship, I think there should be a way to sort truth from reality.
Climbing up 126 steps daily to get to my office is working out well I think. As long as no other humans hear me sound like a heaving elephant everytime I emerge from the stairwell.
What struck me about him was his very strong performance - constant engagement with the audience - he smiled and he smiled and hardly looked at the keys on the piano he was playing. Some musicians focus on their instrument or forget the people for a while, but Feinstein had eyes only for the audience.
Towards the end, he said that one of his goals was to bring back the communal experience that music nowadays had started to move away from...Interesting. Sounds noble anyway.
On the way home, a radiolab podcast talked about how Beethoven's symphonies actually are supposed to play a lot faster based on the metronome markings he made in his notes.
And at lunch today, I gleefully related a story to others about how the iron content of spinach had been misreported for decades due to a decimal error in transcription. What a great story - except I found out later that it wasn't true. Apparently, there is a book out there called 'The Half Life of Facts'. Maybe it's time to read it.
In going with the spirit of entrepreneurship, I think there should be a way to sort truth from reality.
Climbing up 126 steps daily to get to my office is working out well I think. As long as no other humans hear me sound like a heaving elephant everytime I emerge from the stairwell.
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