Awesome title for a blog

Things they should teach in Highschool

2011-09-17T02:55:00.002+09:00

What are some things you think they should teach in highschool that they didn't teach you? What about things they taught that were useless/not necessary?

They should add these classes to the curriculum:

Statistics. I really think this is more important than calculus for most people and useful for everyone in daily life (especially when reading/watching the news).
Law/Taxes. They should teach a class that shows people how to do their taxes and teaches them about where the money goes, tax rates, different kind of taxes, interest, etc. One of the assignments should be registering to vote (if taught senior year). Students should learn their civil rights and how to avoid giving them up in certain situations. We should learn about our current representatives and what they stand for. I couldn't name (hardly) anyone in congress in Highschool and I had no idea what the Governor was for or against.
Home Economics. I don't care if it sounds old-fashioned. I wish I had learned to do what I saw Japanese kids do in home ec. Heck, just name the class 'chef apprentice' or something to make the kids interested. I would have loved to learn how to cook. But basic cleaning skills are also something every college student needs.

I found these classes useless or just unnecessary for a Highschooler:

Calculus. I say this despite the fact that my profession is one of the few that actually uses it. It just isn't as important as statistics. I took 2 years of calculus in Highschool and when I got to University, I started at the beginning with everyone else.
Spanish/French. Those were my only two choices and I sat in those classes for 4 years of Highschool and learned very little. The way they teach languages is totally backwards. Begin at an earlier age with exposure to many languages. Encourage or even require semesters abroad. Have an exchange program at the school to let the students mingle with people from around the world. By the time students reach Highschool, it is very late to begin their first foreign language. I'm not saying they should cut foreign languages, just change how they are taught entirely.

It's hard to stop and not rant on about the horrible ways they teach in american schools, but I'll leave it here today. What do you all think? Snarky comments about Rio Americano will be insta-liked.

Answer to Problem

2011-07-29T04:35:00.004+09:00

Solving the problem in my previous post allows me to do Gouraud Shading.

Here is the before picture. I calculate the color of each polygon face using the face normals (the line perpendicular to the face of the polygon).

With Gouraud Shading, I use the normals at each vertex, not the face. The normal for a vertex is the average of the normals of all the faces that use that vertex. With this normal I calculate the shading value for each vertex and create a gradient in each triangle.

I'll post the answer to the problem in the future if someone wants me to.

Problem of the week

2011-07-28T21:01:00.002+09:00

Here's the problem:

You have a triangle with points A, B and C (known). Each point has a shading value s: As, Bs, and Cs that are also known.

You want to shade the triangle with a single linear gradient so that each point has the right shading value.

So what is the starting and ending point of the gradient?

Some hints:

If As = Bs = Cs, the triangle is all the same color, so any points will do.
If Bs = Cs but not As, then the gradient should go from As to the closest point on the line BC to A.

World Cup Predictions Part 1

2010-06-26T14:56:00.002+09:00

Here is my prediction. What do you think?

Answer to Squares Question

2010-04-13T19:25:00.009+09:00

Given a grid that is NxN, how many squares can you make by connecting the dots?

The answer I got is this:

The reason is pretty neat. For an example, let's use a 5x5 grid.

Here is the sum:

1 * (5 - 1) 2 + 2 * (5 - 2) 2 + 3 * (5 - 3) 2 + 4 * (5 - 4) 2

Which equals:

1 * 16 + 2 * 9 + 3 * 4 + 4 * 1

Let's start with the first term: 1 * 16. When you have a 2x2 matrix, you can make 1 square. And in a 5x5 matrix, you can make 16 of those squares.

Next is 2 * 9. In a 3x3 matrix you can make 2 squares (as below) and there are 9 places you can do this in a 5x5 matrix.

This continues for 3 * 4 as there are 4 places you can make the 3 squares below.

And finally, you can make 4 squares out of the largest block just one time in a 5x5 square.

I thought this was really interesting and elegant. So the next thing I did was figure out the answer for any matrix of NxM. It is actually pretty simple. The answer for the NxN matrix was the sum of x(N-x)^2 because N-x was the area.. so with an NxM matrix the sum is like this:

Squares

2010-04-08T00:17:00.003+09:00

The first (and only) program I ever made in Visual Basic was a game called Squares. I was in high school at the time, and didn't even know C, so I just wanted to make something simple and interactive.

In Squares, you have an 8 by 8 grid like a chess board. Players take turns putting their pieces on the board. When their pieces make a square, they get points equal to the area of the square. The game is tricky because squares can be rotated at any angle and are often hard to see. It's quite fun.. I made a simple hotseat version in canvas a while ago to test out canvas (Rendering shadows is slow!). Let me know if any of you are interested and I can show you the game.. if there is enough interest I could make it multiplayer online.

On a 2x2 board, there would only be one possible square. On a 3x3 board, you can make 6 squares.

So the question is, how many can you make on an 8x8 board? How about an NxN board? Or better yet.. an NxM board?? Anyone? :) It actually works out to be a nice clean answer.

The Ultimate Final Lesson

2010-03-20T10:41:00.009+09:00

I just had my last lesson at my 2 schools and since I was leaving, I had some extra time, and I really like the schools, I decided to go all out.

The second to last lesson I did a quiz game with questions in 4 categories 'easy', 'medium', difficult', and 'challenge' all color coded white, yellow, blue, and red, respectively.

On a previous lesson before that one, I taught shapes and had each student make their own flag on an A4 piece of paper using shapes and colors.

I then (with some help) copied their flags onto small label stickers and using dollar store poker chips, toothpicks and those things you put under chair legs, I made flags for each student.

Here's a blank flag:

Then I made the game board.

My goal was to make a mountain climbing game where the students draw a card, answer a question and then roll the dice moving up the mountain. Then if they draw an earthquake card, everyone on certain spaces (small areas next to ramps) on the board fall down one level.

I made 4 different sets of cards based on the quiz game (easy, medium, difficult, challenge) and again, color coded them. I used the colors on the game board to indicate which card they had to take. There are multiple paths to the goal (the gold sticker on top) and each path is exactly balanced based on difficulty.

To spice it up I added a rule that says if 2 players land on the same place you can fall from, they have to do rock paper scissors and the loser falls down.

Here's the plan:

The rules are explained on the blackboard:

Finally, after using the game boards, I can take them apart and they stack and fit into my bag to carry to the next school.

It was a lot of work, but very rewarding. I'll leave one board at each school for each class that played and there's one left over for me.

Culture Shock

2009-12-26T11:39:00.002+09:00

Just minutes in LAX and I'm already reverse culture shocked.

1. The walls in the toilet stalls don't go all the way to the ground and there is writing on the walls.

2. I ordered a medium drink thinking it wouldn't be enough and it was HUGE.

3. A Pizza costs the same as a sandwich. Japanese pizzas are really expensive.

On another note.. LAX sucks. I'm going to try avoiding it from now on. When I got out of my flight there was absolutely no sign or employee to ask about where to go for my connection. It just led me to the street.

Need Sleep and Food!

Merry Christmas from the Denver airport. :(

Flashback Post

2009-12-09T23:45:00.002+09:00

This is a repost of a really old blog entry from when I lived in Saitama over 3 years ago. Oh how things change (see first sentence)

Friday, November 03, 2006

I've been spending a lot of time studying Japanese recently.

Sundays, I go to a community center where many foreigners gather and some Japanese volunteers teach Japanese. My friend and I are the only native English speakers there. Most of the others are Chinese or Philippino. Last Sunday we had a Japanese BBQ instead of class and we sang some songs and made food all afternoon. I spent most of the time playing with 2 adorable kids. One is 4 years old and 1 is in first grade (probably around 6). The 4 year old spoke to me in Chinese as if I understood everything and the 1st grader spoke to me in Japanese. Kids that age are so cute!

Tuesdays my friend and I go to this elderly lady's house and she and her friend give us one on one lessons for an hour and a half. After that we all drink tea and chat for a little while. This is where I learn the most out of all my lessons, because she prepares conversations for me that we read aloud and she uses expressions and idioms I otherwise wouldn't be able to pick up very easily.

Thursdays a couple other foreigners and I go to another community center where some more volunteers teach. This lesson is much smaller but pretty fun. After this we usually grab a beer and chill (I'm usually exhausted by Thursday and completely worn out on Friday). I finally got my first monthly pay check. It was about the size of the paycheck I was getting in the US after taxes.... every 2 weeks. But this paycheck is gonna furnish my apartment so I can get my home theater system back up and running.

Before telling this next story let me explain the Japanese alphabets a little.

First there is hiragana. Hiragana has a letter for each sound you can make in Japanese. There are 5 vowels (a i e o u) pronounced as in Spanish and there are about 9 consonants. Making roughly 46 letters. Hiragana is used for all the Japanese grammatical aspects such as verb endings, particles, and more. Here is Hiragana in Hiragana: ひらがな

Next there is katakana. For every hiragana, there is a katakana equivalent. Some of them look simliar, like ka (hiragana か, katakana カ) but some are completely different like su (hiragana す, katakana ス). Notice how katakana is much more angular and hiragana is smooth and pretty. Katakana is used for foreign words and names. For example, orange -> orenji -> オレンジ. Here is katakana in katakana: カタカナ.

Last but not least is Kanji. Kanji means Chinese character and as you may have guessed, comes from China. There are thousands of characters used for names and all kinds of words and verb stems. Kanji are sometimes very simple, such as one (ichi) 一, or person (hito), 人, but they can get really complicated, such as the character for love 愛. Here is Kanji in Kanji: 漢字.

Here is an example sentence: 今日はマイケルの誕生日です。 This sentence means 'Today is Michael's birthday.' 今日, pronounced kyou, means today. The kanji separately mean Now or This (今) and Day or Sun (日). Then comes the hiragana topic marker は, pronounced wa. This marks 'Today' as the topic. Then comes the foreign name Michael (actually said maikeru マイケル). Then comes the hiragana particle の, pronounced no, meaning possession (like the 's in English). After that comes 誕生日, pronounced tanjoubi, meaning birthday (notice the day kanji again, but with a different pronunciation). Lastly is です, the verb meaning is. This is pronounced desu technically, but usually it sounds more like des.

Okay lesson over. So this Thursday I taught 1st and 2nd graders the numbers 1-20.. after 2nd period, about 20 students mobbed me in the hallway asking for my signature. They all had their little booklets and pencils and they lined up nicely for me to sign each one. One girl asked me to write my name in hiragana (the Japanese alphabet) but I said no, I should write it in Katakana. The concept of katakana's use for foreign names was yet unknown to her, though, so she thought that meant I only knew katakana (being a first grader she had just learned katakana recently herself). So about 10 minutes later after I had finished the signatures, she came back with a little folded piece of paper, handed it to me and ran off.

This is the note she gave me. She wrote the whole thing in katakana (the other teachers thought that was hilarious). It says at the top, 'to Michael sensei <3' and at the bottom left it has her name and 1-2 (grade one class two). The face is a picture of me. The note on the right says 'Michael sensei, thank you for the signature. I am very happy. Bye bye.' Hahaha so cute! I'm not sure who the flying thing is but other people drew it on notes to me too. The note by it says 'shinamon' which might be cinnamon, but who knows. Anyway, thats life here, and that's all for now.

Web Comics

2009-12-06T18:04:00.005+09:00

Whenever I go online the first things I check are my email and my web comic rss feed. Here are some comics I subscribe to. Let me know if there are any other good ones I missed.

Google RSS Reader lets you make a bundle of feeds and share it on a blog, so I did that for my webcomics.. they're on the right side of my blog under the other widgets. Click here to see a preview of each of them.

Recent Discoveries:

Apokalips

Cyanide and Happiness (Not for the feint of heart)

Twilight Spoofs

2009-11-23T10:18:00.003+09:00

My favorite so far:

College Humor:
Twilight: Three Wolf Moon

And again (warning: bad language)
Twilight: Deleted Sex Scenes

This one wasn't as good, but here ya go.

Scale

2009-11-22T17:24:00.002+09:00

If you took a piece of thin paper, say 0.35mm thick, and folded it in half, it's now about 1mm thick. So without using a calculator, how thick do you think it might be if you fold it 40 times? 10 meters? A mile? Just try to imagine it without doing the math.

A) 1 meter
B) 10 meters
C) 1 Kilometer
D) Distance from Earth to Moon
E) 1 Light Year

What do you think? No cheating!

Hairpins

2009-11-10T15:04:00.004+09:00

If I had any super power, it would be the ability to travel back in time, to be invisible, and to observe hairpins.

For any two animals* A and B, there were once two sisters A' and B', one whose descendants led to animal A and the other whose descendants led to animal B. In fact, the sister A' is also the direct ancestor of ALL other species more closely related to A than B. (And B' is also the direct ancestor of ALL other species more closely related to B than A).

Dawkins calls the mother of these two sisters a hairpin (source). If you go back in time looking at ancestors of animal A you would eventually get to A' and then the hairpin. Then you can go forward in time on a different path (B') to eventually lead you to animal B. While this is a basic concept of evolution, this is something lost on a lot of people. The hairpin is the common ancestor of the two animals. It is not the same as a modern living creature. We are not descendants of chimpanzees and there are no crocoducks.

There are as many hairpins as there are species alive today minus one. Think of a tree where the tips of the branches (leaves) are modern living species, each point in the tree that splits (internal node) is a hairpin.

*The sisters idea breaks down when you get to closely related examples: such as me and my aunt, but the hairpin idea still holds.

Pollution in China

2009-10-25T13:16:00.003+09:00

Amazing, terrifying, saddening pictures of polluted areas. English. Chinese.

Scientific America video on lead poisoning from metal producing plants.

Line of Sight

2009-10-22T19:32:00.008+09:00

While working on my game, I decided that I will at some point want to have line of sight for a unit. This is how I did it.

The game is on a hexagonal grid, so to make it easier, I decided that a circle around the outside of a hex is the size of whatever blocks vision. All I had to do was check each hex to see if it blocks vision, then for each of those hexes, mark all the ones behind them as invisible. What I was left with was a problem like this:

The unit is at A, the hex at B blocks vision, and everything further away than B that is between the yellow and red lines is invisible. So all I had to do was find the equations for the two lines. They turn out to be really elegant. After many pages of math where I made mistakes and relearned algebra, I found the two equations and plugged them into my map editor for testing. Anyone want to give it a try? I'll post the answer in the comments.

Here are the results!

A Small, Simple Map with a blocking hex and a unit:

Showing the LOS:

Yay it works. Here's a bigger example. This is supposed to be a cave interior, so the black is wall, the red is lava and the rest is just ground. The selected unit is in the middle.

Without LOS:

With LOS:

Atheist vs Agnosticism

2009-10-10T20:03:00.002+09:00

This is kind of in response to my brother's post here.

First of all, atheism and agnosticism are not mutually exclusive. Atheism to me, and a lot of people who's views I agree with, is the rejection of theism. It is a lack of belief, not a belief in non-existence. An atheist does not necessarily assert that there is no god. Clearly, no one knows whether there is or not. Nor do we know whether the universe is all a computer simulation. We don't know whether magic exists, of if the Force is real and if flows through all of us and binds us. You could call me agnostic toward the Force, but this would send the wrong message. I do not believe in the Force, magic nor a god.

There has been much debate about the word atheism and whether it is the right word to use for the growing number of non-believers. Prominent atheists have suggested other words, some more condescending than others. Sam Harris doesn't like the use of the word because of its baggage. But it is important to recognize the bigger picture. The world (and especially the US) has a huge number of evangelical religious lunatics who believe Barack Obama is the antichrist or that they will receive 72 virgins in the afterlife. There are polls showing that atheists are the most hated and distrusted minority. IDiots and creationists (I know, I'm repeating myself) are constantly trying to stop the teaching of evolution and/or inject their own religious beliefs into the public school systems. It is for all these reasons and more that a large number of high profile atheists are starting to join forces and speak out. Groups like the Atheist Alliance, for example, are trying to create a positive voice for atheism (see here).

Finally, just to reiterate, you can either be a theist and believe in a god, or an atheist and not believe in a god. While it is true that a person who asserts the non-existence of god is also an atheist, that is not what we are all doing, and standing on the sidelines as a wishy-washy agnostic is not helping the greater cause for, among other things, womens rights and science.

Sinfest FTW: Homophobia

2009-10-04T15:42:00.004+09:00

Some Cool Eusocial Insects

2009-10-04T10:38:00.002+09:00

Leaf Cutter Ants feed the leaves to a fungus and eat the excretions. They also produce anti-biotics to fight pests.

Termites also feed a fungus and produce some awesome architecture that regulates temperature like an air conditioner.

Rachel Maddow on Currupt Gov't Contractors

2009-09-26T21:52:00.001+09:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Building a Windmill

2009-09-24T00:05:00.001+09:00

Watch this.

And then watch this.

A Brief Analogy

2009-09-18T20:39:00.003+09:00

I guess to put it really briefly, what I was saying in my previous post is that I think you could make an analogy as follows:

Genes are to Life as Memes are to Consciousness.

Obviously there are some problems with this analogy, but I think it's interesting as a thought experiment.

Consciousness and Life

2009-09-13T17:28:00.002+09:00

A few days ago I had a lengthy discussion about consciousness. The result has been a mild obsession recently with the topic. I would much appreciate any comments anyone has on the subject.

To understand my view of consciousness, you first should know what Biological Naturalism is, as this is the closest view to mine that I've found. I used to think I was a materialist, but materialists deny the existence of a non reducible property of consciousness. Meanwhile, there is dualism. I haven't been a dualist since I was a kid. Dualism is hard to justify when one does not believe in the supernatural.

Biological Naturalism states that consciousness is a biological property, like digestion or photosynthesis. But unlike those properties, it is ontologically irreducible.

Solidity can be ontologically reduced to molecular behavior and consciousness cannot be reduced to neuronal behavior. To put the point more precisely, in the case of solidity the fact that we can give a complete causal explanation of solidity in terms of micro physical processes leads us to say that solidity is nothing but a certain sort of microphysical phenomenon. Causal reduction leads to ontological reduction. But in the case of consciousness we are unwilling to make the ontological reduction. Consciousness is entirely caused by neuronal behavior, but all the same we are unwilling to say that consciousness is nothing but neuronal behavior. (Searle 2004, Biological Naturalism)

So to understand where I begin to differ with Searle, consider the question "What else is an ontologically irreducible biological* property?"

... pause for effect ...

If you answered "life" then maybe you already know where I'm going with this (If you're totally lost I recommend reading some of Searle's work). Bells rang in my head when I made this connection, and I'm sure I haven't been the first. Not only do life and consciousness share this rare quality of being ontologically irreducible, and being physical properties (as opposed to epiphenomenal phenomena, like a rainbow or a sunset), but they alone also share something else that is very important: replicators.

Life is a medium of physical replicators (in the case of life on earth, genes). Replicators, in the sense I use the word, undergo copying, selection and variation. Consciousness is, and I think should be defined as, a medium for memetic replicators. A meme, in my definition, is anything that is imitated. Memes, like genes, undergo selection, variation and copying.

This theory puts a lot of the puzzle pieces into place and answers the following questions. When did consciousness first emerge? Are animals conscious? Can computers become conscious?

The first two can be answered together. As soon as animals develop the higher brain functions necessary for imitation, they contain a rudimentary form of consciousness. When a bird hears a song from it's same species it may imitate the song, copying the meme. It may miss hear, or simply make a mistake, introducing variation, and through selection, only some songs will persist over time. This rudimentary consciousness is like looking on the ancient earth at replicators first evolving. It took billions of years for life to develop into a state with so few mutations as we have today. At the start, mutations were most likely frequent and extreme, as they are with many memes. But as some genes developed to produce proteins that repair DNA, some memes produce ways of maintaining themselves as well (language, writing, and eventually electronic storage, for example).

Currently computers and machines are used to copy memes, but the variation and selection is still almost exclusively done in the brain. You could think of these memes stored in a computer as an equivalent to viruses. Viruses are not widely considered alive, despite having genes and undergoing selection. Similarly, media can contain memes, but the variation and selection is not yet done by computers. I disagree with Susan Blackmore's prediction of "temes" as a new replicator, because I do not believe memes need be in a biological brain. What she calls temes I call memes that exist entirely in computers.

When computers start to not only copy, but select and vary memes, whether intelligently or not, they will on a certain level become conscious. This scares a lot of people, and perhaps it should. Memes existing entirely in computers would have protection from mutations in the way that they do not have in the human brain. It is like we are witnessing the transition of simple replicators to single celled organisms, in that the level of self sustainability will dramatically increase. Why should we be scared? Because we don't see any self sustaining replicators outside of cells anymore. The success of the cell eliminated all the competition.

A couple links

2009-09-08T18:34:00.003+09:00

This [subnormality] is great. I always wondered why so many of my friends and even some family members like professional sports so much. Playing is one thing.. or rooting for friends, but I've never gotten into prof sports. I even tried to get into them so I could have something to talk about with "the guys".

Also.. I think I've been living in Japan too long because it took me a while to figure out why this [failblog] was supposed to be funny.

Summer Update and My Game

2009-08-16T23:00:00.006+09:00

I haven't updated my blog in a while, so I thought I'd say something about what I've been doing lately. So far this summer I went to Karuizawa and Izu. Tomorrow I leave for Kiyosato for a week to teach English at a camp for kids. I did it last year and it was pretty fun. Tomorrow is also the 3 year anniversary of my first day in Japan! It's hard to believe.

The past month or 2 I've been working a lot on making a web-based turn-based strategy game. The original goal was to make a mock-up game to test the rules for a possible board game, but now I've taken it in a new direction. The ultimate goal now is to adapt it for Facebook and play with family and friends.

The idea of the game is simple: Each player has robots. The robots are given orders and carry them out simultaneously. The catch is that you have to tell the robot what to do in advance, therefore trying to predict what your opponents will do. I want to do things like capture the flag later, but at the moment the object is to just take out all the opponents.

All the art work is done by me. For those who are curious, I'm coding it entirely in Ruby on Rails and Javascript. I'm using the YUI library for a lot of things including animation and ajax. Check out these screen shots from my latest version. I'm hoping to get a version online soon, but I'll be busy the rest of the month so it might have to wait until September.

Electric Cars

2009-04-14T18:04:00.001+09:00

Open-mindedness

2009-04-05T22:38:00.002+09:00

This pretty much says it all folks.

An important point: Believing something does not exist is not the same thing as saying it does not exist. This is a common misconception of atheism.

What would you do?

2009-03-28T11:46:00.003+09:00

On a hidden camera show a gay couple crashes a bar to see how homophobic people are.

It went much better than I expected. It was actually pretty encouraging, but I wonder what the results would be in other cities or even other countries.

Teaching Practices

2009-02-07T10:09:00.003+09:00

According to Bill Gates, many schools in America don't allow the principal to come watch classes without prior notice, and no more than once or twice a year. I always wondered about this, because I don't really remember how things were when I was a kid in terms of people watching the classes. The system here in Japan is drastically different:

1. The Principal visits every teacher without notice once a month. He does a review of their lesson and teaching style and gives them input afterwords.

2. There are a few days every quarter that are like an open house. Unlike the after school open house in the US, these are during school hours and last for 3 days (all these numbers vary by the area, but this is the general idea). The parents come and go as they please and can sit in on the classes.

3. There are study lessons throughout the year. One teacher will prepare a special lesson (sometimes it will be team teaching), and they present the lesson with all the other teachers watching. They all stand in the back wearing suits holding clipboards, and someone usually has a camera. Often times there will be a high level official there from the board of education, and after the lesson, which is usually after lunch on a half day, there is a long meeting to discuss the class. These lessons are sometimes for the teacher to show techniques to the other teachers, or for the other teachers to critique the main teacher. There are themes, like team teaching, or science projects. I've done quite a few of these where the theme is usually team teaching. I'm supposed to be an assistant teacher, and this is usually the only time that's true.

4. In some schools, including both of mine, there is one day a year during which the entire school is open to the public. Parents come, teachers from neighboring schools come (for 5th and 6th period, so all their kids have gone home), and anyone off the street can come in and watch the lessons or look at things the students have made in the hallways. I've never had a lesson during one of these, but I've been to a couple and it's quite an experience.

The level of accountability and the lack of reward for good teaching in the US is depressing. It's amazing that good teachers exist at all, frankly.

I don't have this gene

2009-02-02T07:02:00.001+09:00

But I think some of my siblings do.

Most experts now agree that crossed wires in the brain are probably responsible for the photic sneeze reflex.

A sneeze is usually triggered by an irritation in the nose, which is sensed by the trigeminal nerve, a cranial nerve responsible for facial sensation and motor control. This nerve is in close proximity to the optic nerve, which senses, for example, a sudden flood of light entering the retina. As the optic nerve fires to signal the brain to constrict the pupils, the theory goes, some of the electrical signal is sensed by the trigeminal nerve and mistaken by the brain as an irritant in the nose. Hence, a sneeze.

Link

A Couple Videos

2009-01-27T19:46:00.003+09:00

This guy is my hero.

This is amazing. It's as if it's out of a movie (Terminator?)

Oh, and it turns out that's a tree farm for IKEA.

Some stuff

2009-01-24T10:12:00.001+09:00

Michio Kaku Explains the Multiverse Theory

Quantum Teleportation Between Distant Matter Qubits: First Between Atoms 1 Meter Apart

Our world may be a giant hologram

The Science of Spore

2009-01-21T06:56:00.002+09:00

I have read a lot of science blogs complaining about how unscientific Spore is. As soon as I saw the creature creator I knew this would be the case... but it's true that the game is ridiculously unscientific from an evolutionary standpoint. This wouldn't be a big deal if they didn't go out of their way to market as and educational tool.. but they do. I have just two simple suggestions they could have used to make it much better.

Tech Tree! While it is fun for the creature creator to be able to do anything with all the parts, in the game, you should be limited to a tech tree where you choose paths to go down. This would also prove much more evolution like. You can't use the huge three prong claws until you have the small claws first.

Small changes. The evolve step should perhaps limit you more in terms of drastic changes. As the game is now, you can literally change the entire creature at any time. This change would make it more challenging to get what you want and more rewarding when you do.

All in all, I'm glad I never bought the game. The few hours of tinkering with it were enough. Nice graphics and creator mechanics, but that was about it.

Prop 8 the Musical

2008-12-08T23:28:00.001+09:00

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Educational Background

2008-10-26T12:26:00.000+09:00

Barack Obama:
Columbia University - B.A.
Political Science with a Specialization in
International Relations.
Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Joseph Biden:
University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science.
Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

vs.

John McCain:
United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899

Sarah Palin:
Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester
North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study
University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism
Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester
University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Best Man Fail

2008-10-21T06:19:00.001+09:00

Ode to Sean Hannity

2008-10-09T21:59:00.001+09:00

Ode to Sean Hannity
by John Cleese

Aping urbanity
Oozing with vanity
Plump as a manatee
Faking humanity
Journalistic calamity
Intellectual inanity
Fox Noise insanity
You're a profanity
Hannity

Sports Festival Part 2

2008-10-05T17:30:00.003+09:00

I just got back from the sports festival at one of my schools last year. This was my favorite school of all time. Both the students and teachers were great and I've never felt so welcome at a school. I got a little emotional near the end of the event as I said goodbye to everyone once again.

So what's so amazing about these sports festivals? Japanese schools put a lot of emphasis on responsibilities of the children; especially the 5th and 6th graders, or kou-gaku-nen 高学年 (1-2: 低学年 lower grade level, 3-4: 中学年 middle grade level, 5-6: 高学年 upperclassmen). The 高学年 pretty much run the show. To give you an idea, I'll try to explain everything that is going on all at once.

During the course of the day, spread out between other events, each grade level has races. There are 4 teams: white, blue, yellow, and red, but white and blue are both white and yellow and red are both red regarding the over-all two team system.

The students running are lined up in the middle of the track.
The four ready to go are in position.
The announcer at the microphone is one of the students.
The people holding the goal tape are students.
There are four students at the finish line with 1,2,3 and 4 jerseys. It's their job to take the appropriate person after the race to the right line.
The score board is managed by students
There are two cheerleading teams or more within the track trying to get the audience to make some noise.
The next group of students for the next event are waiting just outside the track.
When an event is over, the cleanup and prep for the next thing is all done by students.

Basically, the teachers are just supervising, leading the classes to line up when they go on next, and shooting the cap gun to start the race.

This kind of responsibility is not just limited to the sports festival. Students clean their classrooms after lunch, which they serve themselves. The 高学年 clean the whole school based on groups that rotate and have different responsibilities. There are groups with other responsibilities that meet every few weeks after school to do things like sort library books, plan morning assembly activities, etc.

The clubs are run by teachers in elementary school, but in middle school its almost all self run. Imagine a soccer club with no adults. Imagine them doing drills and not goofing off. Pretty unbelievable, but that's the power of the sempai-kouhai system (upper-lower classmen). Middle school is 3 years, and the 3rd graders have the power (and size) to keep the younger kids in line. Respect is key.

Sports Festival Part 1

2008-09-29T17:15:00.003+09:00

Saturday I went to both my schools sports festivals. These schools are in the middle of Tokyo surrounded by big buildings, and one in particular has a very small track area to cram all the kids and parents.

Chiyoda is the cream of the crop, though, in terms of public schools in Japan. Parents with the means will try to get their kids in these schools because of the predetermined path from k-12 and into universities. It isn't that unlike the US, except that the US is so much bigger that there are a large number of different paths, and few paths lead past high school. Usually after high school you're kind of on your own depending on how you did. Imagine how that might be different if the US was only the size of California. The best public high schools would be well known by the universities and all the parents would try to get their children in as early as possible.

Elementary schools in Japan are far superior to those I have seen in the US. Even the poor ones in Saitama were better than the one I went to, but the ones in Chiyoda are (pure speculation) better than our private schools in the states. I say that for a few reasons, but this time I'm only going to talk about the sports festival that happens in every school once a year.

This event is from about 8:30am-3 or 4pm with lunch in between. All the parents and anyone off the street who feels like coming show up, and there are a series of events, some competitive and some not. In most schools the children are divided into two teams: red and white. Cheer leading is a big thing, but cast away all your preconceived notions of 'cheer leading' from the US, because it is nothing like that. The famous song the red and white team sing together is awesome too. It has two parts that overlap beautifully (click here for mp3.. ). First Red sings, then white, then together. (Red = aka, White = shiro). Translation by me.

Edit: Note that the sun is considered Red in Japan, not yellow.

（１番　あか組）
ぼくらは　かがやく We will shine
たいようのように like the sun
もえあがるきぼう with burning aspirations
ちからいっぱいがんばろう full of strength we do our best

あかあかあかゴーゴーゴー Red red red Go go go!
あかあかあかゴーゴーゴー Red red red Go go go!
もえろよもえろ Let's burn! Let's burn! (Let's get fired up?)
あかぐみ Red Team!

（２番　しろ組）
ぼくらはしろいいなずまだ We are white lightning
つきすすむ　ひかりのや a plunging white light
かみなりのおととどろかせ the roaring sound of thunder
げんきいっぱいがんばろう full of energy we do our best

ゴーゴーゴーしろしろしろ Go go go! White white white!
ゴーゴーゴーしろしろしろ Go go go! White white white!
ちきゅうをまわるいなずまだ We are lightning that cracks the earth!
しろぐみ White team!

Great song. The mp3 doesn't do the it justice compared to see hundred of kids sing it at once.

Anyway more later.

Palin Blows it on CBS

2008-09-25T19:37:00.001+09:00

Wow...

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/24/eveningnews/main4476173.shtml

She evades questions and is full of crap. Nothing but soundbites. My favorite quote:

Couric: I'm just going to ask you one more time - not to belabor the point. Specific examples in his 26 years of pushing for more regulation.

Palin: I'll try to find you some and I'll bring them to you.

Obama on the Crisis

2008-09-25T06:11:00.000+09:00

Atheist Cartoons

2008-09-15T10:25:00.002+09:00

More here.

Lies

2008-09-10T06:28:00.002+09:00

I am so pissed that this is not front page news on every news channel. How can she get away with so many lies in her FIRST speech as the VP pick? Most people will never hear about this crap because I bet FOX news won't even mention it, but CNN isn't much better with their casual way of laughing it off. "Oh yeah, we should probably fact check the other stuff she said.. la de da, oh well that's all the time we have.."

We are gonna lose this thing. Why? Because despite having great candidates the right will always have one advantage in America. They can say ANYTHING they want with no accountability. I will be happy when I see a Sarah Palin or McCain article in a major news source with the word "LIES" in the title. I should have to settle for nothing less.

Movie Voice Guy Passes On

2008-09-02T17:45:00.002+09:00

Don LaFontaine, the guy who does almost every movie trailer and a lot more, died at age 68. He has done over 5000 voice overs and has single-voicedly created the meme of the epic movie trailer announcer. He and James Earl Jones are two of my favorite voices.

Kurashikaru

2008-08-30T18:43:00.003+09:00

Recently I plugged in my old HD with about 15 solid days worth of music.. and I'm already tired of it all. I easily tire of music. I went a long time (over a year) without really listening to any at all and I didn't really crave any.

I wish there were public access pianos. If I were moving into an apartment complex I would much rather it had a nice piano than a nice pool. Quite a few complexes in Davis had pianos in the study room. They also had pools. Apartments here have nothing for the community. I've never even seen an apartment with laundry machines, but I'm sure they exist (and to be fair, a lot of people have their own).

I think classical music education is done all wrong. Why is it that students are taught how to play other peoples music for the majority of their education, and only those who really pursue it for a career ever get into composition? I wish classical educators would jazz things up, so to speak, and get students to CREATE rather than interpret. Rather than look at a piece of music and play it how you think the composer wanted it, take it and from the start assume it isn't complete. Assume it needs work, and you can make it better. Change the music. Ad lib. Theme and variation.

Imagine if all painters did for the first 10 years of their education was to copy masters' works. They would surely learn the techniques necessary to create masterful art, and they'd probably learn a lot of art history. But how many would bore of the practice and give up on art all together? Why do we teach music this way?

Whenever I go back home I hear Peter playing song after song that I've never heard before. Always reading. I hope next time he tries breaking away from the page more. Sight read once and then play from memory with your own thoughts filling in the gaps.

World School

2008-08-27T09:45:00.000+09:00

(copied from my mixi blog)

一週間のワールドスクールが終わった！すごく楽しかった！

AET達とJET達がやさしくて子供達も元気よく本当によかった。AETというのはAssistant English Teacher（me)そしてJETはJapanese English Teacher。JET達は大学生だから年下だし経験あまりなかったけど本当に信じられないぐらい頑張った。最後の気持ちは家族みたいな感じだった。

終わるのはやっぱりはやかったなー。

来週からまた学校行かなきゃ．．．前の学校みたいに誰かと一緒に教えたい。これから一人で頑張る。

Michelle Obama at the DNC

2008-08-26T15:33:00.001+09:00

Worth the time. Check it out.

Voting Machines

2008-08-26T10:41:00.002+09:00

I know this isn't new, but it is awesome.

A historic blog post

2008-08-13T16:09:00.003+09:00

It really bothers me the way both John Stewart and Stephen Colbert say "an historic." Even if by some bizarre chance it turned out to be technically correct, it doesn't sound right and is harder to say than "a historic." If they weren't pronouncing the 'h' it would be one thing, but they are, and so they're wrong.

Unfortunately according to google, use of "an historic" is fairly prevalent with "a historic" at 7,780,000 hits and "an historic" at less than half that, but still a significant 3,440,000.

It's simple people! If it's a vowel sound, use 'an', if not, don't.

A little alphabet game?

2008-08-06T10:47:00.001+09:00

Brian Williams Interviews Ahmadinejad

2008-08-01T19:36:00.003+09:00

It's a little long and I'd prefer to read subtitles than have him dubbed.. but still interesting.

Try to catch at least the final question near the end.

Daily Show and Congress' Don't ask don't tell hearing

2008-07-29T21:42:00.002+09:00

Amazing.

As for the part about skin on skin.. wouldn't that be solved by asking and telling? I imagine in that situation they don't go coed either.

If this doesn't make you smile...

2008-07-23T08:34:00.002+09:00

something may be wrong with you. This man is a genius.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

This is the second of his dancing videos. If you've never seen the first, go here.

The War on Terror and Torture

2008-07-09T22:16:00.003+09:00

Can anyone please explain to me why John McCain has changed his view on torture? How could he call the supreme court decision to give detainees suspected of terrorism the rights of habeas corpus one of the worst decisions in the history of the country?! Anyway... watch this video. The man (Phillippe Sands, director of the Center on International Courts and Tribunals) is quite sensible. I hope someone is listening.

3 Games to Buy

2008-06-29T10:16:00.004+09:00

So I'm not nearly the gamer I once was, but I still appreciate a good game. There are three games I will definitely buy in the next 5 years as they come out. In chronological order:

Spore

Spore is by the Sim City people but is more like Sim Life. It's a few games in one, apparently, starting with a single cell pack-man style game. Eventually you get to the creature creation, which is the most interesting part for me. In Spore, you can create just about any creature your heart desires within certain game balancing limitations. The game engine helps you paint it, design it, and it figures out how it walks, attacks, dances, etc. This is like legos on steroids.

One of the ambitions of Spore is to pack multiple genres into one game. I find it hard to believe they will all be fun to play for long, but I'm sure some will. I'm most looking forward to the tribal RTS style stage.

The creature creator is out now for 10 bucks. Mines coming in the mail, so I'll post some creatures when I make them. The game comes out in like 70 days.

Starcraft 2

This one is obvious to anyone who knows about me and knows about games. I love real time strategy, and Starcraft 1 was the king of all RTS games. SC2 is coming out around November.

Trailer (not gameplay):

Diablo 3

Diablo, like Starcraft, is made by Blizzard. They always release their games on PC and Mac at the same time, and their games are always super popular. Diablo 3 was announced yesterday and the gameplay video looks downright amazing. It's a dungeon crawling click-fest that is sure to be extremely addictive. The other Diablo games largely owed their addictiveness to their massive re-playability. The dungeons are randomly generated and each of the classes has a lot of variety in style choices.

For the really high quality videos go to the diablo 3 website.

Trailer:

Game Play:

Shared RSS Feed

2008-06-25T20:16:00.002+09:00

If you use an RSS reader you can subscribe to my shared feed. I mark interesting stories occasionally as they pop up that you may not see. If anyone else has one, let me know.

http://www.google.com/reader/shared/04740958784295543330

If you don't have an RSS reader but want one, I recommend google reader. It is nice and easy to use. http://www.google.com/reader/

Brain Cells

2008-06-25T19:57:00.002+09:00

Things that increase brain cells

Chocolate
Tea
Blueberries
Alcohol (moderate)
Stress Management
Cannabinoids (marihuana)

Things that decrease brain cells

Saturated Fat
Sugar
Nicotine
Opiates
Cocaine
Alcohol (excessive)
Chronic Stress

source

Genes, Memes, and Temes

2008-06-24T22:04:00.003+09:00

This is a great TED talk about the 3rd replicators that are almost upon us. It will really make you think.

Science fiction has spent a lot of time on the idea of robots taking over after becoming artificially intelligent. Terminator, the Matrix, etc. But they always make the robots out to be another race who competes with humans. The reality is that they in no way need us once they can replicate themselves. They won't need to be malevolent, greedy or evil. They just need to be able to reproduce. And if they do so at our expense, or at the expense of the planet and its resources, we are screwed. The fragility of it never really occurred to me.

Shakespeare

2008-06-19T21:27:00.002+09:00

Shakespeare invented over 1700 words by either changing existing words or making them up. Here are a few you may not have known about:

Bump (Romeo and Juliet)
Hint (Othello)
Rant (Hamlet)

more info here.

He also created a lot of phrases and idioms we use to this day.

From Bernard Levin's The Story of English:

If you cannot understand my argument, and declare "It's Greek to me", you are quoting Shakespeare; if you claim to be more sinned against than sinning, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you recall your salad days, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you act more in sorrow than in anger, if your wish is father to the thought, if your lost property has vanished into thin air, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you have ever refused to budge an inch or suffered from green-eyed jealousy, if you have played fast and loose, if you have been tongue-tied, a tower of strength, hoodwinked or in a pickle, if you have knitted your brows, made a virtue of necessity, insisted on fair play, slept not one wink, stood on ceremony, danced attendance (on your lord and master), laughed yourself into stitches, had short shrift, cold comfort or too much of a good thing, if you have seen better days or lived in a fool's paradise - why, be that as it may, the more fool you, for it is a foregone conclusion that you are (as good luck would have it) quoting Shakespeare; if you think it is early days and clear out bag and baggage, if you think it is high time and that that is the long and short of it, if you believe that the game is up and that truth will out even if it involves your own flesh and blood, if you lie low till the crack of doom because you suspect foul play, if you have your teeth set on edge (at one fell swoop) without rhyme or reason, then - to give the devil his due - if the truth were known (for surely you have a tongue in your head) you are quoting Shakespeare; even if you bid me good riddance and send me packing, if you wish I were dead as a door-nail, if you think I am an eyesore, a laughing stock, the devil incarnate, a stony-hearted villain, bloody-minded or a blinking idiot, then - by Jove! O Lord! Tut, tut! for goodness' sake! what the dickens! but me no buts - it is all one to me, for you are quoting Shakespeare. (Bernard Levin. From The Story of English. Robert McCrum, William Cran and Robert MacNeil. Viking: 1986).

Random Stuff

2008-06-17T19:18:00.004+09:00

Racism vs Xenophobia.

I'm sure there are racists in every country throughout the world. I don't think racism depends on age, but rather the way one is brought up and educated. Xenophobia, on the other hand, is directly related to conservatism. It is for that reason that I think it goes up significantly with age, and is much more prevalent in homogenous societies like Japan. I would say I experience almost no racism, or at least none directly targeted at me, but I see xenophobia all the time. One interesting affect of xenophobia here is that foreign born Japanese people experience it too.

There is a anime based on a manga that runs in the train I ride on my commute. If it were to run in the USA it would be considered extremely offensive and probably would never be published. It's called 'My Darling the Foreigner.' In it are absurd oversimplifications, generalizations, and plain and simple xenophobic lies. What bothers me most is that with just one change, the author could simultaneously make it inoffensive and retain all the meaning and humor. Instead of 'My Darling the Foreigner' make it 'My Darling, Tony' Everyone would know Tony is a foreign name. Then instead of saying 'Foreigners blah blah blah' say 'Tony blah blah blah' which, to her credit, she sometimes does. It's a real shame that the show is so offensive, because some of it has potential to be cute or even funny. Today there was an episode about how Saori learned that 'the' changes pronunciation depending on the next word (the apple vs the banana, for example). She triumphantly tells Tony her findings only for him to shrug and say 'oh, really? I never noticed that before' and hilarity ensues. I like this episode because it's about them, and it's educational. It doesn't have any needless generalizations about foreigners because it's personal.

Conservatives Depress Me

I feel like I understand where conservatives are coming from, but it is so clear to me that they are wrong about some fundamental issues. How often do you hear people say they want the government to build the roads, protect the borders, deliver the mail, and get out of the way? What percentage of those people are rich? I understand that they probably think everyone can become rich, opportunities are everywhere, and so on. But even if that were the case (which it isn't) I still find it to be a bleak, selfish outlook on life. Why do people insist that taxes are bad? Why don't we hear more politicians working on ways to eliminate wasted or poorly allocated tax money, instead of simply cutting taxes and spending the same amount? I see taxes like this:

Imagine you live in a small dorm with 100 people. Everyone has to pay for internet who wants to use it. You could each pay X$ for it, or you could all split the money and set up some kind of wireless system. Arguments against this system are obvious: What about Johnny who doesn't use internet? Why should he pay?! Well, like many things we pay taxes for, like roads, it is often impossible to tell who uses it and who doesn't. But the price should be cut by so much that it doesn't really matter. And the more things the government can provide en masse for low prices, the lower every individuals daily cost of living. Sure you keep 50$ less of your paycheck, but your cost of living just went down 100$! Sweet! Well... in theory.

Opportunistic Vegetarian

I've decided to call myself an opportunistic vegetarian. I don't buy meat to cook or take home (and I'm cooking 1-2 meals a day now), and if there is a decent vegetarian option when eating out I'll order it. School lunches often have meat, but not eating it would be more trouble than it would be worth. I am also going to avoid leather and other animal hide products. I think a lot of people don't realize the scale of damage to the environment by cattle and other animals. It really is staggering. Here is a very good TED talk on the issue.

Obama on America as a Christian Nation

2008-06-10T21:06:00.002+09:00

Amazing to hear this from a politician.

McCain on America as a Christian Nation

2008-06-08T13:56:00.000+09:00

Daily Colbert

2008-05-30T21:32:00.002+09:00

The Colbert Report is amazing. It has gotten so good since the writer strike ended I've watched it online religiously. The Daily Show kind of has some issues with John thinking he's funnier than he really is, but it's still worth watching. Today's was very good.

Colbert

Daily

The other day I was playing outside and a first grade girl came up to me. I hadn't taught first grade so they didn't really know me yet, but they had seen me around. She asked me if I had any sisters (in English) which was pretty unusual. I answered and asked her if she had any.. she said she had one if fourth grade. Then I let her jump up, as so many kids love to do, with me holding her hands so she jumps really high. She jumped a few times and said "I love you!" haha. It was cute.

Today I tried Japanese deodorant again. Bad idea. I was avoiding human contact all day out of embarrassment until I could get home and shower! >_<

Update

2008-05-27T22:21:00.002+09:00

I'm surprised there were no comments on the last post. Anyway. I just moved to Kichijoji. This town is awesome! I live in a nice house in a quiet neighborhood with a few people. I am only 20-30 min from my schools on a single train (I was an hour and 3 trains away before).

So this morning I was walking to school and I caught up to some of my students. We were talking and walking and I was on their left looking over. Then it hit me. A pole, that is. Yeah, it hurt.

The other day I was on the train on my way home. I had forgotten if the train goes all the way to my station or not so I turned to the girl next to me and asked her, "Where does this train stop?" She turns to me and says, "I'm sorry, I don't speak Japanese." And in a split second I think my brain exploded and reconstructed itself. I didn't even realize I had said it in Japanese so I didn't know how to respond. Another second of recovery and I asked it successfully in English. Phew!

Guns Germs and Steel is awesome for the first half and boring and slow for the rest. I'm confused about his target audience. More on that later.

Fun Facts:

More Ikea catalogs are printed every year than bibles.

Sex is the safest tranquilizer in the world. It is ten times more effective than Valium.

It is cheaper in India to have sex with a prostitute than to buy a condom.

In Kentucky, 50 percent of the people who get married for the first time are teenagers.

The only acceptable sexual position in Washington, DC, is the missionary-style position. Any other sexual positions is considered illegal.

Texas is the only state that permits residents to cast absentee ballots from space.

The day after President George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, Canada's main immigration website had 115,000 visitors. Before Bush's re-election, this site averaged about 20,000 visitors each day.

The fertility rate in states that voted for George W. Bush is 12 percent higher than states that favored John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election.

George Washington spent about 7 percent of his annual salary on liquor.

In Hong Kong, a betrayed wife is legally allowed to kill her adulterous husband, but may only do so with her bare hands.

Quebec City, Canada, has about as much street crime as Disney World.

There are at least two reported instances of British college students auctioning off their virginity on eBay.

Residents of an Austrian village called Fucking voted against changing the name in 2004, but did replace their road signs with theft-resistant versions welded to steel and secured in concrete to stem their frequent theft. (The name is pronounced to rhyme with "looking.")

Brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide their body odor-hence, the custom of today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Source

'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

2008-05-22T18:22:00.000+09:00

Reposted from:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/11/iraq.humanrights

Two weeks ago, The Observer revealed how 17-year-old student Rand Abdel-Qader was beaten to death by her father after becoming infatuated with a British soldier in Basra. In this remarkable interview, Abdel-Qader Ali explains why he is unrepentant - and how police backed his actions. Afif Sarhan in Basra and Caroline Davies report

Afif Sarhan in Basra and Caroline Davies
The Observer, Sunday May 11 2008

For Abdel-Qader Ali there is only one regret: that he did not kill his daughter at birth. 'If I had realised then what she would become, I would have killed her the instant her mother delivered her,' he said with no trace of remorse.

Two weeks after The Observer revealed the shocking story of Rand Abdel-Qader, 17, murdered because of her infatuation with a British solider in Basra, southern Iraq, her father is defiant. Sitting in the front garden of his well-kept home in the city's Al-Fursi district, he remains a free man, despite having stamped on, suffocated and then stabbed his student daughter to death.

Abdel-Qader, 46, a government employee, was initially arrested but released after two hours. Astonishingly, he said, police congratulated him on what he had done. 'They are men and know what honour is,' he said.

Rand, who was studying English at Basra University, was deemed to have brought shame on her family after becoming infatuated with a British soldier, 22, known only as Paul.

She died a virgin, according to her closest friend Zeinab. Indeed, her 'relationship' with Paul, which began when she worked as a volunteer helping displaced families and he was distributing water, appears to have consisted of snatched conversations over less than four months. But the young, impressionable Rand fell in love with him, confiding her feelings and daydreams to Zeinab, 19.

It was her first youthful infatuation and it would be her last. She died on 16 March after her father discovered she had been seen in public talking to Paul, considered to be the enemy, the invader and a Christian. Though her horrified mother, Leila Hussein, called Rand's two brothers, Hassan, 23, and Haydar, 21, to restrain Abdel-Qader as he choked her with his foot on her throat, they joined in. Her shrouded corpse was then tossed into a makeshift grave without ceremony as her uncles spat on it in disgust.

'Death was the least she deserved,' said Abdel-Qader. 'I don't regret it. I had the support of all my friends who are fathers, like me, and know what she did was unacceptable to any Muslim that honours his religion,' he said.

Sitting on a chair by his front door and surrounded by the gerberas and white daisies he had planted in the family garden, Abel-Qader attempted to justify his actions.

'I don't have a daughter now, and I prefer to say that I never had one. That girl humiliated me in front of my family and friends. Speaking with a foreign solider, she lost what is the most precious thing for any woman. 'People from western countries might be shocked, but our girls are not like their daughters that can sleep with any man they want and sometimes even get pregnant without marrying. Our girls should respect their religion, their family and their bodies.

'I have only two boys from now on. That girl was a mistake in my life. I know God is blessing me for what I did,' he said, his voice swelling with pride. 'My sons are by my side, and they were men enough to help me finish the life of someone who just brought shame to ours.'

Abdel-Qader, a Shia, says he was released from the police station 'because everyone knows that honour killings sometimes are impossible not to commit'. Chillingly, he said: 'The officers were by my side during all the time I was there, congratulating me on what I had done.' It's a statement that, if true, provides an insight into how vast the gulf remains between cultures in Iraq and between the Basra police the British army that trains them.

Sources have indicated that Abdel-Qader, who works in the health department, has been asked to leave because of the bad publicity, yet he will continue to draw a salary.

And it has been alleged by one senior unnamed official in the Basra governorate that he has received financial support by a local politician to enable him to 'disappear' to Jordan for a few weeks, 'until the story has been forgotten' - the usual practice in the 30-plus cases of 'honour' killings that have been registered since January alone.

Such treatment seems common in Basra, where militias have partial control, especially in the districts on the outskirts where Abdel-Qader lives.

While government security forces and British troops have control over the centre, around the fringes militants can still be seen everywhere on the streets or at the checkpoints they have erected. And they have imposed strict laws of behaviour for all the local people, including what clothing should be worn and what religious practices should be observed. There are reports of men having their hands cut off for looting and women being killed for prostitution.

Homosexuality is punishable by death, a sentence Abdel-Qader approves of with a passion. 'I have alerted my two sons. They will have the same end [as Rand] if they become contaminated with any gay relationship. These crimes deserve death - death in the name of God,' he said.

He said his daughter's 'bad genes were passed on from her mother'. Rand's mother, 41, remains in hiding after divorcing her husband in the immediate aftermath of the killing, living in fear of retribution from his family. She also still bears the scars of the severe beating he inflicted on her, breaking her arm in the process, when she told him she was going. 'They cannot accept me leaving him. When I first left I went to a cousin's home, but every day they were delivering notes to my door saying I was a prostitute and deserved the same death as Rand,' she said.

'She was killed by animals. Every night when go to bed I remember the face of Rand calling for help while her father and brothers ended her life,' she said, tears streaming down her face.

She was nervous, clearly terrified of being found, and her eyes constantly turned towards the window as she spoke. 'Rand told me about the soldier, but she swore it was just a friendship.

'She said she spoke with him because she was the only English speaker. I raised her in a religious manner and she never went out alone until she joined the university and then later when she was doing aid work.

'Even now, I cannot believe my ex-husband was able to kill our daughter. He wasn't a bad person. During our 24 years of marriage, he was never aggressive. But on that day, he was a different person.'

The mother is now trying to raise enough money to escape abroad. 'I miss my two boys,' she said. 'But they have sent a message saying that I am wrong for defending Rand and that I should go back home and live like a blessed Muslim woman,' said Leila, who is now volunteering with a local organisation campaigning for better protection for women in Basra.

One of those running the organisation, who did not want to be identified, said that Rand's case was similar to so many reported in Basra, with the only difference being she was in love with a foreigner, rather than an Iraqi.

'There isn't too much to say. Rand is dead. It is a tragedy and will be a tragedy for many other families in Iraq in the days to come.

'According to information we have been given, some from Rand's colleague, we have doubts that her love was reciprocated. We have the impression that Rand was in love, but the English soldier wasn't. But, for a girl to be paid nice compliments about her beauty and her intelligence, it was enough for her to think she was in love.

'She isn't here any more for her mother to ask any of the questions she would like to. Rand's case had repercussions because she fell in love with a foreigner. But what about the other girls murdered through "honour" killings because they fell in love with some of a different sect, or lost their virginity, or were forced to become prostitutes?'

Rand's mother used to call her 'Rose'. 'That was my nickname for her because when she was born she was so beautiful,' she said.

'Now, my lovely Rose is in her grave. But, God will make her father pay, either in this world ... or in the world after.'

Obama Skywalker

2008-05-03T10:55:00.000+09:00

Garfield Minus Garfield

2008-04-19T18:44:00.004+09:00

This comic is great. Here's the description and a recent sample:

Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life? Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness in a quiet American suburb.

Life

2008-04-15T21:02:00.002+09:00

Things I want to do on a regular basis to have a happy and healthy life:

Racquetball, Soccer, and/or Ultimate Frisbee

Trumpet and/or Piano

Reading

Writing (fiction and/or non-fiction)

Programing

Cooking

Listening to new music

At this point I only read regularly. I'm reading Guns, Germs, and Steel at the moment. I'm hoping if I move into a better apt I can start cooking. As for writing and programing, I face only a mental block that is caused by a combination of fatigue and a kind of loneliness I get from living alone. It's not just that I am living alone in my apartment, but I'm about an hour away from my closest friends and my job. Hopefully once I move next month everything will start to get better.

Playing and listening to music are really hard to keep up for me. I feel the urge to play only at awkward times when it isn't possible, and I have no piano at home. I can't afford to buy new music and I'm too lazy to download any. I've always wanted a huge jazz collection to go through, but I always put off buying any.

I was playing racquetball and soccer semi regularly a few months ago, but both were about an hour away. Again, hopefully when I move I can find something closer. I am looking into sharing a 4 bedroom house with other people. I am checking it out Wednesday and if it looks ok I'll move in late next month.

My new schools are pretty nice, but I really miss my old schools. It will get better with time, I think. It's hard to imagine a better school than the main one I used to teach at. I remember thinking that if I had children of my own I'd want them there. I've had schools I liked, but this was different. One day they had a happyokai (ha-ppyo-kai) where teachers came from all around to watch the entire school in action. The meeting afterwards was full of nothing but praise and commendation. Teachers in the same area confessed that they wished their own schools were this good.. and they only saw it for an hour. I have so many stories and no one to tell. I think this is why when I find myself talking to other teachers I talk way too much and I probably sound like I'm bragging. I just can't help it. It's like when people talk about their kids to other people who have never met them, except I have thousands of kids.

KBFTW

2008-04-04T23:19:00.001+09:00

Sushi Bar Assistant: [Japanese] What'd ya want?
The Bride: [English] I beg your pardon?
Hattori Hanzo: [English] Oh..."drink" [makes drinking motion with hand]
The Bride: [English] Oh, yes, a bottle of warm sake please.
Hattori Hanzo: [English] Warm sake? VERY GOOD.
Hattori Hanzo: [Japanese] One warm sake.
Sushi Bar Assistant: [Japanese] Sake? In the middle of the day?
Hattori Hanzo: [Japanese] Day, night, afternoon, who gives a damn? Get the sake.
Sushi Bar Assistant: [Japanese] How come I always have to get the
sake? You listen well... for thirty years, you make the fish, I get
the sake. If this were the military, I'd be General by now.
Hattori Hanzo: [Japanese] Oh, so you'd be General, huh? If you were
General, I'd be Emperor, and you'd STILL get the sake. So shut up and
get the sake.

Prediction

2008-03-09T18:48:00.002+09:00

I always have ideas for products I would like to have. Usually they are far too difficult for me to create on my own and I find myself just dreaming. I am not particularly creative, but I think I have a nack for taking ideas and combining them in ways that haven't been done yet (or haven't been told to me yet, as the case may be). It's for this reason that I love to learn about new technologies. I think I became a programmer for this reason, too; not because I love programming, but because I want access to the tools to make the things I want. It is also because of this that I am not a good professional programmer. I see programming as a useful tool, but nothing more. I don't go out learning languages and researching what's new unless it is something I think is really ground breaking. I'm really glad I realized I am not meant to be a professional programmer before I wasted too long doing it.

Anyway.. lately I've been noticing a few tendencies in mapping and image technology. I predict that within just a few years, we'll be able to tell our phone where we want to go and see real time seamless interactive walk-throughs. I think this could be done almost immediately if it weren't for the fact that the two technologies that are needed are owned by bitter rivals. Imagine combining Google's street view with Microsoft's photosynth (TED demo). Then take a bunch of pictures and boom, you can navigate through anywhere in real time. Construction changed things? No pictures where you are? No problem, just be a good Samaritan and take some updated pictures! Phones like the iphone know where you are and can add that information to the picture easily, then upload it to flickr or something. The pictures automatically update the servers image of the area. Someday!

Feel Old?

2008-03-08T19:45:00.001+09:00

What do Forest Gump, Speed and the X-Files have in common?

They were all made during the year my graduating 6th grade class were born. I feel old.

Political Compass

2008-03-01T17:29:00.003+09:00

I first took the political compass test in high school. I scored near the center but slightly to the lower left. My score has dragged further out in that same direction since then. Here's my position:

Economic Left/Right: -3.25
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -6.56

I think my biggest problem with the test is that it's hard for me to tell if I should answer what I think should happen in the real world or in an ideal world. Usually it's the same answer, but not always. I think it's important to take the results of tests like this with a grain of salt for that very reason. The way people react in real world situations and the way they think things should be are not always the same. Some might argue that you should vote for someone who has the same beliefs as you or lines up with you on the political compass, but others might say you should vote for who you think can more realistically win and help bring the countries overall compass toward your own.

I would be interested in knowing what scores other people get. Feel free to post in the comments!

Real Life Zombies?

2008-02-19T00:13:00.002+09:00

No, just some religious nut jobs. Check out the "I-55 revival explosion of power" video. Warning: Children were harmed during the production of these videos.

http://www.stevefoss.com/videos.html

Just a friendly reminder of what crazy is.

US Politics Have No Left Wing

2008-02-03T23:41:00.001+09:00

This is a post from a Swede who has noticed the horror of US politics. No surprises really, but it's always nice to be reminded what we look like from the outside.

US Politics Have No Left Wing

Category: NOIBN
Posted on: February 3, 2008 5:26 AM, by Martin R

This is the first time that I'm aware of the US primary elections. I've never been very interested in the news, having at best a hazy idea even of Swedish politics. Blogging is entirely responsible for my heightened awareness of US political matters over the past two to three years. I've taken to reading US blogs and hanging out in web forums dominated by Americans. And what I've learned scares me.

US politics often look absurd from a European perspective, since the entire bipartisan system maps onto the conservative half of European politics. A case in point is that the US "Left" is called "the liberals", while the Liberal Party in Sweden is part of the Right wing. How could it be otherwise? Liberalism is about free-market capitalism, small government, low taxes, all Right-wing ideals. Yes, both US parties advocate low taxes. Normal taxes are 30% to a Swede. And that's rock bottom, before adding the effect of progressive taxation. That's how we can afford universal health care. Hint, hint.

So, believe me, US politics don't have a Left. Looking at the presidential candidates, I am frankly appalled. None of them would be a viable politician in Sweden. They all support the death penalty, none advocates strict gun control and all make frequent mention of their religious beliefs in public. These are extremist stances. Not even the tiny Christian Democrat party mentions God publicly in Sweden, for fear of alienating the pragmatic rationalist majority.

From a European perspective, US politics are an ongoing battle between the extreme Right and the middle Right. The Republican presidential candidates are really, really scary people in my view. Still, all of us in the world at large who live under the shadow of US political hegemony are holding our breaths, hoping that Clinton or Obama will make it into office. They're pretty bad, but the alternative would be unspeakably dreadful.

Suggestions

2008-01-23T23:57:00.000+09:00

A quick add to my list of books I want to read:
The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster

Anyone have other suggestions?

What Carl Sagan books are best to start with (fiction or non-fiction)?

What about Kafka?

Don't be shy people.

New Years Resolution

2008-01-21T22:41:00.000+09:00

I've never felt like I read enough. This year I'm gonna try what I heard about on some forum somewhere called the 50 book challenge. I'll try to read 50 books this year, which is about 1 a week with a little bit of breathing room. I'm gonna try to make half of them (or more) non-fiction. So here is my list so far. I really liked The Selfish Gene. It really changed my understanding of evolution and life in general. If you pick it up, and you should, read the notes in the back as they come up because the 30th anniversary has lots of updates in it. I also love the Dark Materials trilogy so far. It's unfortunate and it makes me very angry that religious conservatives have organized a boycott against the movie that was so successful that they aren't going to make the 2nd and 3rd movies. You don't see atheists boycotting Narnia, do you? It must be easy to feel threatened by a rival piece of fiction when you can't tell the difference between fantasy and reality. Anyway, on to the list.

Finished:
Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene (30th anniversary edition)
Philip Pullman, The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials Book 1)

Almost done:
Philip Pullman, The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials Book 2)

Next:
Philip Pullman, The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials Book 3)

Ones I own and haven't read yet:
Sam Harris, End of Faith
Daniel Dennett, Breaking the Spell
Steven Hawking, A Brief History of Time

Excited about, but waiting for paperback:
Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Infidel
Neil Shubin, The Inner Fish
Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, Coming to Life

Others I want:
Jeff Hawkins, On Intelligence
Richard Dawkins, The Extended Phenotype
Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watch Maker
Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species

Any Recommendations? I'm interested in evolution and the brain. What other Steven Hawking book should I read? How was the Elegant Universe?

The Oppression of Women Under Islam

2008-01-05T02:13:00.000+09:00

I am a firm believer that the liberation of women is the first and most vital step towards the elimination of poverty around the world. I am not alone, but apparently There must be violence against women. If that article doesn't make you angry or sad then maybe this will. Recently Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Theo Van Gogh made a short film about the oppression of women under Islam. In case you haven't heard of her, Ayaan is quite possibly the most hunted woman on the planet. She was brought up Muslim and has become one of the most outspoken critics of it since she declared herself free and asked the Netherlands for protection. Shortly after the film was made, Theo Van Gogh was murdered with his throat slit and a 5-page note knifed into his chest. The note was addressed to Ayaan.

These are issues that affect the whole world and I think it's about time people started paying attention. "...tolerance of intolerance is cowardice."

Obama Takes Iowa!

2008-01-05T00:26:00.000+09:00

YAY!

The Problem with Faith

2007-12-29T01:18:00.000+09:00

Why do I get so upset when people believe in something like ID? Faith is important in many peoples' lives, so why can't we just live and let live? This is a question that was recently asked by a friend of mine who is generally smarter than I am. It's been bothering me for a while now, so I feel I have to get out an answer.

Let me try to explain the problem I have with faith. Faith is belief without proof. Religions teach people from an early age that faith is a virtue and doubting is a sin. This is one of my biggest issues with religion. Faith is NOT a virtue. Blind belief should not be something that people respect. I understand that faith in some things makes sense, but faith in and of itself is not a good thing. Respecting faith because it's faith is akin to tolerating intolerance.

Faith is what empowers suicide bombers. Faith is what keeps stem cell research from its potential. Faith is what encourages people with AIDS to not use contraception. And in any of those three previous statements I could have used a different word: Ignorance.

If there were a god and He were truly wise and just, I find it impossible to believe he would not reward intelligent skepticism more than blind faith. On the subject of ID, this same friend said that many rational people believe in ID to some extent. If there really are plenty of rational people who believe in ID, then there really are only two explanations. The first is that they don't really know what ID is. I explained previously that it is creationism re-branded. I was not exaggerating. If they know that and still believe it then they might as well believe the world is flat because I don't know how to talk someone out of that much crazy. The second explanation is that they believe in a creator of some sort that had a hand in designing us. A belief in god is not something I'm going to attack in this post, but denial of evolution is just ignorant. I see the options as a few categories.

1. The person believes in creationism. The earth is only a few thousand years old, etc.
2. The person believes that there is a god or designer who designed all that exists. The person denies evolution for the most part or totally.
3. The person believes there is a god or designer who may have had a hand in evolution. The person does not deny evolution, but thinks god helps it along with some greater purpose (humans ... or perhaps bananas).
4. The person believes evolution has happened without the need of any divine intervention.

I believe anyone in the 1 and 2 category is severely deluded. The rational people my friend spoke of must be those of group 3. I think that those in this category suffer from a earth-is-the-center-of-the-universe complex and a lack of education in genetics and evolution, but certainly these people are rational and just a few books and perhaps a bonk on the head will land them in category 4. Basically, if you deny evolution in favor of a biblical explanation, you are not rational.

Peace.

An Interview with Dawkins

2007-12-27T14:41:00.000+09:00

This is a pretty good interview that covers some important points. The questioner is kind of a douche who clearly hasn't read anything by Dawkins, but he's polite enough to let the man talk. Enjoy!
Part 1:

Part 2:

Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T13:32:00.000+09:00

And for your viewing pleasure... Cosmos

Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7

Peace out.

You've got to be kidding me

2007-12-24T02:14:00.000+09:00

This is one of the most disturbing things I've ever seen in politics. Words fail me.

A Concise Annihilation of Intelligent Design

2007-12-18T22:10:00.000+09:00

Let me explain to those who aren't quite solid on this topic. It's very simple. Evolution is science and Intelligent Design is not. I think it is really important for everyone to understand this, because there are a lot of very powerful and rich people making a lot of noise in the name of ID and Creationism right now. In fact, an ID propaganda film starring Ben Stein is coming out early next year. Click here for a rather scathing pre-screening review. Anyway, on with the annihilation.

1. Intelligent Design is Creationism. You know: Adam and Eve, Noah's Ark, man and dinosaur living together. That's all there is to it. It isn't some new theory spawned by scientists with some top secret evidence proving wrong evolution. It is Creationism re-branded. The Dover trial, in December 2005, included some remarkable revelations about the book intended for use in the teaching of ID. Upon investigation of the previous versions of the manuscripts for this book, the prosecution discovered that the earliest versions, until 1987, looked a lot like creationist books. So they wrote a script counting the number of times the words "creation" "creationist" etc appeared vs the number of times words like "designer" or "intelligent design" appeared. The results were a remarkable 1:1 trade off in 1987 switching from all creationist to all ID. Why 1987? Because that is exactly when the Edwards vs Aguillard trial resulted in making it illegal to teach Creationism in schools. For a much better retelling of the story of this trial and how badly the Dover school board lost, click here.

2. Evolution is not random. The most common arguments against evolution by ID proponents go along these lines: "xyz is so complicated, it couldn't have evolved by random chance." And that's true! Evolution is not random! It is the process of natural selection. Whether that is through sexual selection, a slight advantage over a predator, a slight advantage over prey, better resistance to disease, or just genetic drift caused by any number of things, it is not random. Now lets take an example of a made up creature, the burbox. If a burbox has a child who is slightly more attractive than other burboxes, lets say through a brighter purple horn, it may get the chance to mate more than the competition. Over time (many generations) it's possible that almost all burboxes will have developed a brighter purple horn. Now many may say, "but that is random! What are the chances that a burbox would evolve the more attractive purple horn!?" But this is the wrong question! Think of it this way. If you have 100 random letters, the chances that a given letter is 'A' is 1 in 26. Okay, so what are the chances that in that sequence, you'll spell the word 'CAT'. Pretty low, right? Actually extremely low. What about the word "ELEPHANT"? Impossibly low. But again, this is the wrong question. Instead we should be asking, what are the chances that in those 100 letters, a word will be spelled? While the particular observed mutation has a low probability, a mutation actually has quite a high probability. If this is interesting to you, read some Richard Dawkins.

3. Stop saying things are irreducibly complex! This is the central argument of ID and it is related to the previous one claiming things are too complicated to happen randomly. This argument says that certain things that have evolved, like the human eyeball, are so complex that they could not have evolved. There are a few major problems with this. First of all, if you think this is true, you probably haven't done any research, and you probably have no imagination. Just because it seems impossible to you, does not mean it is impossible. The eye, in particular, has a well documented evolutionary path. And science doesn't pretend to have all the answers. Things are constantly being discovered and theories reworked. The most unbelievable thing about this argument is not just that they think these things are too complex to have evolved, but that they then jump to the conclusion that they must have been designed by someone! Now if that doesn't strike you as a logical fallacy, just ask yourself, "who designed the designer?" If you say, "no one, he is God!" then well, I think you just proved me right that ID is not science. This argument can be summed up like this (ill use the Eye example. Notice the logical fallacy even if their assumption was true.):

Given:
X is true [the eye exists]
(bad) Assumption:
Y does not imply X [evolution did not bring about the eye]
Conclusion
Z implies X [a designer must have done it!]

Whaa?! Where did Z come from?! I guess one of their assumptions must have been that Z is true [there is a God .. oops, i mean designer], but even with that as GIVEN, it does not logically lead to their conclusion. Can we finally move on here people? It is so ridiculous that this stuff is still a topic of conversation and people are trying to get it into the schools.

Please educate your friends and family. If you sit quietly while your friends believe this bullshit, you are part of the problem.

Embarrassed to be American

2007-12-09T12:29:00.000+09:00

Evangelical Christians in America are constantly reaching new lows. This video is so ridiculous that to any rational person it would be comedy if they didn't know its true intentions. For those who don't want to watch or aren't link-click happy like I am, it's about a letter written from a kid named Josh who is going to hell (after his death) to his Christian friend Zach. Zach didn't tell Josh about Jesus and because of that Josh is going to hell. It's meant to guilt trip Christians into telling everyone they ever meet about Jesus and to scare those who don't believe into the heaven-hell ultimatum. This kind of propaganda really makes me sick.

And a teacher in North Dakota had the audacity to show this video to her health class. It appears a Jewish student in the class has a parent or two in a law firm. Oops!

Choice comments on the video on GodTube:

AWESOME! BTW: A LOVING GOD DOSN'T WANT TO SEND ANYONE TO HELL, BUT A JUST GOD HAS NO CHOICE.

Thanks, asshole. Try the capslock button. And what exactly is JUST about punishing one man for another's lack of action?

it scared me at first to watch it.....than i relized tht i need to reach out to my lost friendz

I'm sick beyond the ability to create a PG response.

Just in case any (both?) of my readers think that this kind of unapologetic mindless evangelicalism is a rare thing, I think I must remind you that you are living in a dream. Just because the big cities on the West coast seem to be relatively lacking in the crazy department, doesn't account for the rest of the population, particularly the South.

I can't recommend enough this documentary [trailer here]. I really think everyone should watch it as soon as possible. It will shock you how things really are in America. I mean the comical creationist museum, which depicts man and dinosaur living together, had 250,000 visitors in 5 months!

Sane people, no matter their religion, should be appalled at this state of affairs and lack of rationality.

Today's cool stuff

2007-12-04T19:39:00.000+09:00

First, imagine the tenth dimension. This is a very cool flash video about dimensions 1-10, and while it isn't the accepted way that string theorists think of the dimensions, it is still quite interesting and thought provoking. Link.

Monkeys are cool. Some chimps beat a bunch of college students in a memory test. I highly recomend that you watch the two videos in this article. The second one in particular blew me away. The chimp memorizes 10 numbers way faster than I could. Link.

A duck billed dinosaur was discovered with soft tissue in tact! This is huge and could change a lot about what people know about dinosaurs. Link.

Ron Paul

2007-11-27T16:01:00.000+09:00

It turns out I might be a republican after all. I just never had seen a real one before. In a perfect world this man would win the nomination, but I'm not going to hold my breath. If you are voting in the primaries take a look at Ron Paul. He's the only one with any new ideas and apparently the only one who reads history out of all the republican candidates. Limited government, non-intervention foreign policy, lower (zero) taxes, no IRS, no department of homeland security (yay!) ect ect.

He's extremely consistent (for those anti-flip-floppers) and has always voted against the war in Iraq and raising taxes.

He's the only republican candidate who is against the war (70% of the American public are now against the war ... what are the other 30 thinking?). He's the only one who seems to realize that it is our foreign policy that has caused the hatred toward our country. The other republicans take a cheap shot at that and accuse him of saying we caused 911, but if they'd take their heads out of their asses and listen, they'd understand that we caused the hatred, and the hatred caused the attacks. It's really frustrating to watch these debates sometimes, but at least he's doing well on the internet (so was Colbert, so a lot of good that does).

As Bill Maher said, it's unusual to hear this kind of logic from someone who is actually going to be president.

Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7d_e9lrcZ8&feature=related

There are a lot of youtube videos of him. Enjoy.

EDIT: I was really tired last night when I wrote this and now I admit that I really haven't done a whole lot of research on RP. I'll look more into him and post again later. But I do stand by the fact that he is the coolest republican candidate.

The Fragility of Ecosystems

2007-11-25T18:14:00.000+09:00

This is stolen from John Hawks Anthropology Weblog.

Darwin on the food chain:

From the Origin, second edition, pp. 73-74:

I have, also, reason to believe that humble-bees are indispensable to the fertilisation of the heartsease (Viola tricolor), for other bees do not visit this flower. From experiments which I have lately tried, I have found that the visits of bees are necessary for the fertilisation of some kinds of clover; but humble-bees alone visit the red clover (Trifolium pratense), as other bees cannot reach the nectar. Hence I have very little doubt, that if the whole genus of humble-bees became extinct or very rare in England, the heartsease and red clover would become very rare, or wholly disappear. The number of humble-bees in any district depends in a great degree on the number of field-mice, which destroy their combs and nests; and Mr. H. Newman, who has long attended to the habits of humble-bees, believes that "more than two-thirds of them are thus destroyed all over England." Now the number of mice is largely dependent, as every one knows, on the number of cats; and Mr. Newman says, "Near villages and small towns I have found the nests of humble-bees more numerous than elsewhere, which I attribute to the number of cats that destroy the mice." Hence it is quite credible that the presence of a feline animal in large numbers in a district might determine, through the intervention first of mice and then of bees, the frequency of certain flowers in that district!

TED talks and why TV is the new tobacco

2007-11-22T19:18:00.000+09:00

We live in an amazing time. Just a few years ago the only access for a layperson to inspiring information from cutting edge science and technology was.. nothing. Books were out of date, and not everyone can go back to school. But now the internet is finally achieving what TV never could. Good intelligent content is not being overrun by mainstream pop culture. They can live in parallel. The niche markets of the internet are huge and growing. I read about interesting new inventions, scientific discoveries and interesting political opinions and debates every day. I credit my newly found intellectual connectivity not to blogs, although that's where most of my information comes from, but to RSS. I read hundreds of headlines a day in mere minutes and pick out about 10 articles or blog posts to read. This takes me just an hour a day and I learn so much more than what I would get from an episode [popular hour long TV show].

I think the Hollywood writers strike is a great opportunity for everyone to finally cut their TV watching habits. Do you really need to see the shows you watch? Why TV? There is so much more quality content on the web without the interrupting commercials. If you desperately need to see a show, wait for it to come out on DVD and netflix it. I have no qualms with this service, used in moderation (no more than 2 at a time!) I understand that some shows, like movies, can be intellectually and emotionally fulfilling as well as a good time killer. But I think TV is a seriously horrible thing. I think of it as I think of smoking. It is a waste of time and money. It isn't good for you, but won't really hurt in moderation. Where smoking pollutes with smoke and chemicals, TV pollutes with noise (especially commercials). Both are antisocial; sure you can do it with your friends, but is that a good argument for smoking? What about your non-smoking friends that you force to breath your smoke or listen to your sports channel?

Going to a restaurant with a TV playing (especially with sound) is as annoying for me as sitting in the smoking section. I can't concentrate on my own thoughts let alone a conversation. Sure I could try to ignore it, and I do, but at the end of the day when I'm tired from work it's hard and frustrating. And frankly I shouldn't have to.

Japanese TV is so horrible. It is complete trash. I often get youtube links from friends in America with clips from TV shows here that are amusing, but a few amusing sketches does not make up for the horrendous editing, directing, acting and mindless chatter that spews out of NHK. Dramas are the only saving grace of Japanese TV, and even those, like anime, quickly become tiresome when you see enough to establish the cliches and you realize that each new show is just a rehashing of old ideas with and characters.

American TV's strength is what makes it worse, in my opinion. In Japan the TV is easy to not watch. It is so bad that I never even consider watching it. But American TV has quite a bit of good content. The great satire of Comedy Central and FOX [the Daily Show, Colbert Report, South Park, the Simpsons, Family Guy], and the addictive dramas of today [24, House, Grey's Anatomy ...] make it hard to not watch TV. But I challenge you to do just that. The Daily Show is mostly available online now, as is the Colbert Report. Rent your favorite dramas and shows with netflix and save time and money! Stop buying into the currupt cable companies that artificially raise prices. Say no to intrusive advertising and yes to useful content generated ads that you will actually use from time to time.

If you don't know where to look for good content on the web, let me point you in a very good direction. I spend most of my time watching talks, seminars, reading design, tech and science blogs, and occasionally a few comics. Recently I came across what is what I consider the most inspiring, informative and stimulating collection of videos I've ever seen. They're called TED talks. TED is a meeting once a year of 1000 remarkable people and each one gives an 18 minute talk. I've watched about 30 and over half have been good enough to recommend to everyone. Here is a list broken up by category. Watch at least one please. They are all about 18 minutes on average. Please leave comments!

Bonobos, Chimps, and the Origin of Man.
Susan Savage-Rumbaugh: Apes that write, start fires and play Pac-Man
Jane Goodall: What separates us from the apes?
Zeresenay Alemseged: Finding the origins of humanity
I love just about anything in this catagory and all these are well worth a watch. Check out just how amazing Bonobo's and Chimps are in the first two videos. I promise you'll learn something new. Also, listen to the guy who found the oldest child ancestor of modern humans and why that is so important to our understanding of evolution.

The Human Brain.
Jeff Hawkins: Brain science is about to fundamentally change computing
Vilayanur Ramachandran: A journey to the center of your mind
I love reading about neuroscience as much as I love reading about paleoanthropology. And in case that doesn't mean anything to you, that means I love it a lot. The first one is Jeff Hawkins (famous for designing all kinds of hand held devices), who has a great new way of looking at how the brain works. The second is about new discoveries in how the brain works based on rare brain injuries and their bizarre results. I think these two videos have changed my outlook on things more than any other TED talks. Truly amazing.

Education.
Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?
This is a great video about why we should be concentrating less on math and science and more on dance and the arts in school. This really clicked for me and I really got chills at the end. I never learned how to draw or paint. I never learned how to dance or sing. I had to choose and go way out of my way to study music. Is there a reason why learning Geology in elementary school is required but no one ever taught me any pencil shading techniques? I could go on all day on this one alone.

Architecture and Design.
James Howard Kunstler: The tragedy of suburbia
This is a great and funny talk about the horrible state of American suburbia. Anyone who has been to Europe or, well most of the world outside of the US, knows that there are amazing places in almost every city or town to hang out. These places are not malls, but natural city centers created by good architectural design and city planning. I love architecture, design and the idea of city planning, so this one really hit home for me. I also love the way things are set up in Europe. Japan, unfortunately, is another story.

Greener Design in Buildings and Cities.
William McDonough: The wisdom of designing Cradle to Cradle
Once again I love the idea of city design. I always had a dream to do a real life sim city type of thing except to make everything really good for the environment and create a really great place to live for everyone. I always thought it was a far fetched idea, though, because no one can create a city from scratch without a government helping them out. Well, it turns out China is the one doing just that.

Global Warming and Green Tech.
John Doerr: Seeking salvation and profit in greentech
John Doerr gives a great and emotional talk about how many great things have been happening in regard to green tech, and why it's still not enough. One amazing example was Walmart going green. I hadn't heard about this, but it certainly has changed my impression of the "evil" giant.

Old Laws Governing a New Medium.
Larry Lessig: How creativity is being strangled by the law
This video really describes the problem with the way the government and big corporations are looking at digital content. It kind of speaks for itself. If this kind of thing interests you, it is a must see.

The Third World Myth.
Hans Rosling: Debunking third-world myths with the best stats you've ever seen
This is great. It really shows a new way to look at statistics and how things have changed drastically in countries like China recently. Also a good tech demo. For those of you who think that the "third world" still suffers from short life expectancy and extremely low income, check this out.

Energy and Biology.
Juan Enriquez: Why can't we grow new energy?
Good video about how we really haven't advanced much in energy production and we really should reevaluate what energy is and how we can make it.

Fabrication and Building things with DNA
Neil Gershenfeld: The beckoning promise of personal fabrication
Paul Rothemund: Casting spells with DNA
These talks overlap a little because the guys are working in the same group. This has huge implications. I am most fascinated by the DNA building blocks and programming because I think this is truly a huge step toward a Star Trek style replicator. I predict by 2050 we'll have 3D printers in every home and in another 50 years replicators that can make food (although I think not out of thin air).

Pandemics and hope for the future.
Larry Brilliant: TED Prize wish: Help stop the next pandemic
This video is really inspiring. I don't have a whole lot to comment on, but I really think you should watch.

Photosynth Tech demo.
Blaise Aguera y Arcas: Jaw-dropping Photosynth demo
This is amazing. I think Photosynth really has potential to change the computing world. Imagine if you could go anywhere from your computer just by harnessing the power of the millions of photos from everyone on the internet. Imagine the power here. You could potentially tour a city before going there, or see what things look like in real life instead of just the map. Integration with a mapping program would be the ultimate here, but you could take it one step furthur and allow time travel into the past. Images tagged with dates could allow you to see buildings that are no longer there or see how a landscape has changed over time.

"Self Aware" Robots.
Hod Lipson: Robots that are "self-aware"
These robots are programmed to figure out their own structure by experimentation and then they have to figure out how to move. It kind of reminds me of the game coming out Spore where you can create a creature and the game figures out based on the limbs you give it how it should move.

Marketing and Design.
Seth Godin: Sliced bread and other marketing delights
David Pogue: When it comes to tech, simplicity sells
Seth Godin really tells it well for those of you interested in starting a business or anything like that. The basic idea is that in the modern market, ordinary doesn't sell. You have to be remarkable or you'll be ignored. Playing it safe is risky. Then comes David Pogue (NY Times video blogger/comedian) who gives a funny talk basically just bashing Microsoft and Praising Apple for design choices. It wasn't too informative but I found it entertaining.

Cheap Architecture for the Third World
Cameron Sinclair: TED Prize wish: Open-source architecture to house the world
Good story of how the internet can really do amazing things. Not much to say here, just watch it for yourself.

Ways the World Could End.
Stephen Petranek: 10 ways the world could end
This is 30 minutes and fairly interesting, but you probably won't learn anything new.

Partial Virtual Reality

2007-11-10T19:45:00.000+09:00

I've always wanted to design games. I am constantly writing down ideas for games and trying to design new ones in the hope that some day I'll have to power and money to get them made. One game idea I had a long time ago in high school I haven't given much thought since then. Basically, it's just a shooter that you can play online from the computer or any console (I knew consoles would get connected sooner or later) and everyone would play together despite the different medium. But what I reaaally wanted was to have real life arenas like laser tag where people would wear VR helmets. They can see all the terrain and real people, but they can also see virtual people playing from the PC's or consoles and they can see explosions, items ect. probably with some opacity to keep it safe. I think this would really drive up the laser tag industry and I know people would pay to play.

The reason this came back to mind was Façade. There is this VR social game where you interact with virtual people in a real environment. I think this is the closest thing I've seen to my idea ever. Pretty exciting. It's definately not a shooter, but its a step in the right direction for VR. Why recreate the whole environment when adding to it would be easier and much prettier. It's like a movie I once saw (can't remember what it was) where the guy had this old house he wanted to renovate and he had painted a picture on glass so when you stand at the right angle you can see his vision. Except in VR you're always standing at the right angle!

お誕生日会 The Birthday Assembly

2007-11-08T20:33:00.000+09:00

Today I went to one of my favorite schools. This school is great because the kids are good and I do almost no work. The English adviser is really professional and does all the preparation, and I play with the kids almost all day. I always feel exhausted and happy when the day is over. The only hard part is balancing my time spent with the 1st-2nd grade crowd vs the time with the older kids.

Today was お誕生日会. Quick Kanji Lesson! Skip if you don't care!
=== Start Lesson! ===
お誕生日会　＝　おたんじょうびかい　＝　O TA N JO U BI KA I
お, or 'O' is a polite prefix. This is Hiragana, not Kanji.
誕生日, or 'たんじょうび', or 'TANJOUBI' is birthday (OU is a long O sound, not a diphthong)
会, or 'かい, or 'KAI' is meeting, assembly, gathering, etc. It's also the root of the verb 会う, or 'AU' which means to meet.
=== Lesson over! ===
Every month of the year, this school has a birthday assembly. They seem to always fall on Thursdays, which is the day I am usually at this school, so I have seen quite a few of them. All the students gather in the gym and the ones born in that particular month come to the front. They sing a catchy song with crammed in lyrics based on the month - one part crams 10 syllables into 5 eight notes （十一月に生まれた, 'those born in november'）. Then the piano goes into a soft background melody reminiscent of Mr. Rogers and one by one a student announces the names of the students rhythmically, followed by their response (HAI!) and everyone claps three times. It's all quite cute and very well organized (by the strict music teacher).

During the song, the principal takes a picture of each student. After the song, each birthday boy and girl is asked a question. The question is different each month - The one right before summer vacation asked what they are going to do and why, and today's asked what comedian/performer they like and why. One of the sixth grade boys does it like an interview. He announces the question once and gives an example of how to answer, then he gets on his knees and holds his hand out like a microphone in front of the students one by one. If they freeze up he says something like '特にないそうです' which basically means the person has nothing special to say. The whole thing is very charming and I really wish I could better share the experience. I don't think a video from my little camera would capture it well enough.

I hope I'm there when they do it in January! Teachers join in!

The state of the web

2007-11-06T22:51:00.000+09:00

We’re so far from state of the art, we can’t even see the state of the art from here.
-Douglas Crockford on the state of the web

I can remember when I was a freshman in college I though I should make a new web browser and a new standard to replace HTML with something that supports modern advanced graphics and user interaction along with server interaction (like AJAX). The standards we use that govern the stale beauty of the web are all at least 8 years old. There has not been any real innovation in browsers or web standards and the web continues to fall behind the cutting edge every day. Some may point to AJAX as innovation, but it took 5 years after being implemented for people to discover it. AJAX was discovered because web developers were up against a wall. The web lacked the ability to move further and allow innovation and people began digging deep into the code to get every last drop of functionality.

Let's be realistic. All AJAX does is allow transfers from the browser to the server and back without reloading the page. That's it! The fact that people (myself included) were excited when AJAX was discovered is a sign that we really were up against the wall. But we didn't break down the wall. We just moved it back a few inches.

Since it's discovery, the web has been populated with richer applications, but the browsers weren't designed for these heavy applications. Things are getting as big as they can, and this is about as good as it will get. We are back up against the wall, and there is no way to break it down. Computers get faster and graphics are more amazing now than ever, but the browser cannot and will not take advantage of that power without some major changes.

The Solution: A New standard
Let's say all the brightest people get together and make a new standard. It will kill the horrible mess that is HTML, CSS, and Javascript.
Problem #1: Different Browsers
A new standard would have to be implemented by all the major browsers. This is yet to happen for simple things like CSS and it is very unlikely that a huge overhaul would be accepted by all the major browser makers.
Problem #2: Current websites and developers
It's a miracle! All the major browsers decided to upgrade to the new standard! Oh wait, none of the websites take advantage of it. People still code for the same thing they have been all this time! The next major hurdle is convincing the world of developers and basically the whole world to come to the new standard. Sounds unlikely, but let's roll with it.
Problem #3: Old browsers
Another miracle: The entire business world is onboard! Unfortunately a large percentage of people on the web do not upgrade their browsers regularly. In fact, a large amount of people still use IE 5.5 and 6!! The estimation Crockford gives for these people to either upgrade their computers or die is about 5 years. FIVE YEARS!! That's like 35 dog years and a whole lot of time in the computer industry.

Another solution: Proprietary
There are great advantages to a proprietary internet.

The portal (browser) could be updated at any time to stay state-of-the-art.
There is only one source of bugs for developers to worry about, rather than all the major browsers (and old versions).

But the problem is that it might not be free, and that it will not be open. The openness of the web is a big (lonely) win. Another problem is that even if this did happen and it was well done, it does not replace the internet. Few developers would develop for both the web and this proprietary solution, and given the choice between the two, the bigger is best for business.

The New Standard Revisited:

So it's going to take 5 years for people with IE 5.5 and 6 to drop dead? So we better have something done before then! Here are the things we have to address:

Support on all major browsers. This is unavoidable and I don't think this is impossible. I think it is very difficult, but with a great standard that addresses all these problems, it might just happen.
Backwards compatibility to not leave old browsers in the dust. I don't see the problem here, honestly. Here are the four cases

Old sites on the New browser: This isn't a problem. The new updated browser will support old sites AND new sites.
Old sites on the Old browser: Not an issue.
New sites on the New browser: Not an issue.
New sites on the Old browser: This is the only real issue. One solution is to code the site twice and give the old style site to the old browser, but a better solution would be to have a create the new standard in such a way that it can be trivially (automation) translated into the current HTML / CSS / Javascript mess we rely on today.

Future compatibility. The reason all this is necessary is that the web is built on standards made by people who either didn't think ahead, or didn't think ahead far enough. The email standard is taken from a bunch of researchers who didn't care about security because they didn't have to (only a handful of people were connected at the time). The new standard needs to be created in such a way that new additions and corrections can be added without too much hassle. I don't really know how this can be done between behemoth companies and the 4 or 5 major browsers, but anything is possible.
Mobiles! The standard should keep in mind the mobile world.
Graphics and interaction. The standard should be able to take advantage of high end graphics while not limiting or crashing slower computers. Scalable graphics? High end sites?

So this is a pretty bleak outlook on the future of the web, but that's the way it is. I might come back and edit this later when I think of more (smarter) things to say. It's midnight and I'm tired! Comments are welcome.

Wash your hands (and other stuff).

2007-10-17T19:45:00.000+09:00

From Boing Boing:

How to wash your hands:

1) Turn on the water and get it to a temperature you like.
2) Lather up using soap. (Soap does not kill germs. A bar of soap is a great medium for growing germs. The surfactant action of soap helps the running water flush the germs away. That's how it works. It's purely mechanical. Antibacterial soap is a waste of time and money, and just helps breed antibiotic-resistant bugs.)
3) Rub your hands vigorously together, paying special attention to the fingernails, getting up onto the wrists, for as long as it takes you to sing one stanza of The Star Spangled Banner or two verses of Little Mattie Groves.
4) Rinse off the soap with the running water.
5) Dry your hands with a paper towel.
6) Use the expended paper towel to turn off the water.

---

Read a good quote recently..

A good novel tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author.
- GK Chesterton

Reminds me of a lot of the Ender's Game series. I can really only recommend Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow to people. Also the De Vinci Code, although I haven't finished it. I always felt this way about sci-fi and fantasy. This is why it is hard for me to read one author for very long: The author bleeds through the text and I feel like I'm reading someone else's fantasy.

I need another good book to read. Thanks Jen and Kai for the Mark Twain book! I recommend A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court to everyone.

---

I'm really looking forward to Leapord. I may not be able to afford a new Mac for a while, but that's ok. Here is a list of the 300 some features in the new OS. Of course things like Spaces and Time Machine are awesome, but I already knew about those. One of the notable small features I just discovered:

Japanese-English Dictionary

Translate English to Japanese and vice versa. This capability is now built into the Leopard Dictionary.

Japanese Language Support

In Leopard, the Dictionary application supports the Japanese language right out of the box, with an industry-leading Japanese dictionary and thesaurus provided by Shogakukan. The dictionary contains over 200,000 words with rich descriptions and examples, and the thesaurus contains 25,000 words covering 6,000 categories.

---

I've started using Google Reader for my RSS feeds. Until now I've actually been checking all my individual blogs and sites for updates, but the list just keeps getting longer and longer. If you're like me and you check a ton of sites each time you log in, you should just get an RSS reader to show you all the updates in one place. To add a subscription just put the URL of the site and it will find the RSS feed for you (if there is one). If you don't check a whole lot of sites, well, let me give you a few things from my list:

XKCD - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language. Amazing.

Penny Arcade - A webcomic for gamers. Usually too inside-jokey for me but sometimes great.

John Hawks weblog - A blog of paleoanthropology, genetics, and evolution. Always interesting and updates regularly.

Things of Interest - Some good short stories. I discovered this recently. Good stuff.

The Difference

2007-10-15T20:26:00.000+09:00

Check this out for a nice short sci-fi read. Found it through XKCD.

No means no!

2007-10-13T09:05:00.000+09:00

Translators take a lot of liberties. Not everything translates directly from one language to another. Let's take one of the first words we English speakers learn as children: "No"

All of these Japanese words can, at times, be translated as "no."

いいえ	iie	No [opposite of yes]. Sometimes "you're welcome" as in "it's nothing"
ううん	uun	The casual form of いいえ.
Example: "Do you have a pen?" "No"
だめ	dame	No [it is forbidden]. Also can mean "it's no good" to express failure.
Example: A mother to a child who tries to do something bad: "No!"
いや	iya	No! Expressing disgust or strong prejudice.
Example: A guy tries to kiss a girl who doesn't like him: "No!"
違います	chigaimasu	No [it's different]. Often used with いいえ.
違う	chigau	The casual form of 違います.
Example: Guessing the card "is it this one?" "No"
そんな事ありません	sonna koto arimasen	No [that is not so]. Expresses firm belief that it is not so. "That" is a verbal concept.
そんな事ない	sonna koto nai	The casual form of そんな事ありません.
Example: "Japanese has more words than English" "No [it doesn't]"

Other examples of words with many translations are "me" and "you." This gives many Japanese people the impression that Japanese has more words than English, but in reality, English probably has more words than any other language (not counting languages where you can put words together to make new words).

Why I wear old clothes

2007-10-02T23:15:00.000+09:00

I haven't bought any clothes since I moved to Japan. That means everything I wear I either got for Christmas, or I brought from the US over a year ago. Why? Is it because I'm too poor/cheap to buy new clothes? No! I go shopping for clothes quite often. But I always come back empty handed. I drew a diagram to explain part of the problem: selection!

A typical Japanese mall has a horrible ratio of men to womens clothing. Half the men's clothing is brand name suits and other ridiculously expensive things I can't afford, and the other half is thickly coated with Japanese 'hip' style (my favorite new addition: fake double shirts. It looks like layered shirts but its really just one! why God why?). There is usually more space devoted to furniture in a MALL than men's clothing. And to make things even better, on the rare occasions I actually do find something decent, it rarely fits. But I suppose that's my problem.

Someone call the patent office

2007-09-29T01:04:00.000+09:00

So I haven't been posting lately because I feel like I'm in the middle of my vacation summary, but I just don't feel like writing anymore about it. So I guess it's over.

Anyway. I had an idea today for a feature I would love to see in advanced cell phones.

GPS + Voice Recognition

Think of it. First, you mark places with custom labels such as home, work, the movie store, or any place. The location can be marked with multiple points and serves as a general area.

Then you can tell your phone something like this:
"Remind me when I leave work to call Jane" or "Remind me when I get home to clean the bathroom"

It would listen for the words you used to mark the locations, and key words like "when" and "leave" and it could just repeat the recording at the time the event occurs. "Remind me [when] I [leave] [work] to --> call Jane <--" When the GPS detects the phone has left "work" it buzzes and says "call Jane"

Of course you wouldn't even need GPS for some obvious things. I wish setting alarms was this easy:
"Remind me at 5pm tonight to go home!" or "Wake me up at 7 tomorrow morning"

These things are all quite possible with modern technology. For once I really hope someone steals my ideas.

Vacation Part 2: Bremen

2007-09-01T23:36:00.001+09:00

From Germany we took the train to Bremen, Germany. It is one of the few cities in Northern Germany to not be heavily damaged during the war. Below is the train station, which I thought looked cool enough for a picture.

This building is (I think) what used to be the Rathaus or government center. It is right across from the church (two towers visible in the following picture) and in the middle of the famous town square. We ate lunch across from this building and the church. It seems like everyone eats lunch outside in Germany, which I really like with the weather we had. I never see this in Japan, especially in Tokyo. I once went to a beer garden in Shinjuku, but it was on the top of a building.

The building at the end of this street is the one in the picture above, and the two towers are the church. I love wide open streets with shops that aren't cluttered by cars. This is another great European tradition I wish I saw more of in Japan and America.

This windmill was visible from a bridge . There are paintings set up larger than a person that seem like they might still be in progress. Very pretty.

Window shopping for meat and cheese. The vast array of meats, cheeses and breads made me miss Germany before even getting off the plane. I found myself looking in bakeries all around where I lived only to leave each one empty handed and disheartened. I suppose it could be the water or humidity that prevent good bread from being made if it didn't last very long. At least I hope there's a good reason, because the bread here just doesn't cut it.

More to come!

Vacation Part 1: Amsterdam

2007-08-31T14:37:00.000+09:00

I've been busy lately. It all started over a month ago when I went to Nagano to teach for 4 days. I had a great time but it was a lot of work. The man who hired me put me up in his guest room and his wife fed me three big healthy and delicious meals a day. I taught three groups: 2nd grade (with some 1st graders), 5th grade and 4 old ladies (one of them not so old). This ran about 6 hours a day in 2-2.5 hour classes. It was exhausting, but rewarding at the same time.

The day after getting back from Nagano, I flew to Amsterdam. This is the view from the hotel room:

We walked around a lot and I noticed that Amsterdam is the dirtiest city I've ever seen. There are good reasons for this, like the huge amount of tourists, but that doesn't change the fact that I would never want to live there. I guess it falls in the same catagory as London and New York for me.

We stopped to brake our fast at a nice little place with some omelets on toast and some delicious coffee.
This is just a random picture of scenery around a canal. The canal systems were all planned and built a long time ago. There are four main arcs and some parallel canals that were built like a giant windshield wiper from one side to the other. The four main arcs all lead to the bigger body of water.
We toured the Heineken museum and had quite a few beers. I'm not the biggest fan of Heine but after the first two they start getting better and better. This brewery wasn't in use very long because Amsterdam expanded quickly after it was built and it was too hard to get trucks to and from it.

Cheers.

We saw other museums like the Rijk's Museum and the Van Gogh Museum. I liked the Rijk's Musuem but I'm not a huge fan of Van Gogh. I enjoy looking at old books and music, artifacts and some styles of paintings. I like Rembrandt and the Rijk's had quite a bit. After Amsterdam we went to Bremin, Germany. I decided not to come back to Amsterdam for the last leg of my trip because it was so expensive and dirty.

Internet Voting

2007-07-28T23:24:00.000+09:00

My old computer security prof at UC Davis, Matt Bishop, was in the news. The University of California did a study on the security of California approved voting machines and it appears that the machines failed miserably. They were even hackable from the voting terminals themselves.

I'm sure that they are better than the machines used during the last presidential election, though. I did a project on voting machines for a computer ethics class about how bad the system was. Votes were tallied on node machines which were unprotected. The votes were tallied in an unencrypted text file. People in my class said they thought a big conspiracy of vote manipulation was far fetched. They missed the point that it would take just one person five minutes or less to change thousands of votes with notepad. Sorry.. too lazy to find links at the moment.

Awesome title for a blog

Things they should teach in Highschool

Answer to Problem

Problem of the week

World Cup Predictions Part 1

Answer to Squares Question

Squares

The Ultimate Final Lesson

Culture Shock

Flashback Post

Web Comics

Twilight Spoofs

Scale

Hairpins

Pollution in China

Line of Sight

Atheist vs Agnosticism

Sinfest FTW: Homophobia

Some Cool Eusocial Insects

Rachel Maddow on Currupt Gov't Contractors

Building a Windmill

A Brief Analogy

Consciousness and Life

A couple links

Summer Update and My Game

Electric Cars

Open-mindedness

What would you do?

Teaching Practices

I don't have this gene

A Couple Videos

Some stuff

The Science of Spore

Prop 8 the Musical

Educational Background

Best Man Fail

Ode to Sean Hannity

Sports Festival Part 2

Sports Festival Part 1

Palin Blows it on CBS

Obama on the Crisis

Atheist Cartoons

Lies

More Political Videos

Movie Voice Guy Passes On

Kurashikaru

World School

Michelle Obama at the DNC

Voting Machines

A historic blog post

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A little alphabet game?

Brian Williams Interviews Ahmadinejad

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If this doesn't make you smile...

The War on Terror and Torture

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Shared RSS Feed

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Shakespeare

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Obama on America as a Christian Nation

McCain on America as a Christian Nation

Daily Colbert

Update

'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Obama Skywalker

Garfield Minus Garfield

Life

KBFTW

Prediction

Feel Old?

Political Compass

Economic Left/Right: -3.25Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -6.56

Real Life Zombies?

US Politics Have No Left Wing

US Politics Have No Left Wing

Suggestions

New Years Resolution

Economic Left/Right: -3.25
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -6.56