| A news article and a website! |
[Aug. 7th, 2008|03:01 pm] |
I stumbled across this article on cnn.com today. I haven't seen it shared before, but it's not exactly new, so hopefully it's not super old news to you all.
"Armchair Astronomer Discovers Unique Cosmic Ghost"
The part that I found really cool was the talk about Galaxy Zoo. It was set up by an astrophysicist from Yale University because he realized that it would take forever for the astronomers of the world to categorize every object recorded by telescopes. So, instead, they invite anyone who wants to to come to the site, go through a quick tutorial and quiz, then start categorizing. Apparently it has been a HUGE success - 50 million objects categorized in the last year by over 150,000 volunteers.
Anyway, they have collected all the data and will be presenting it sometime this year, then they plan on setting up Galaxy Zoo 2 and Galaxy Zoo 3, which will be even more in depth. I registered and I can promise you, it is super addicting! Seriously, check it out. :-D
(Note: I have a biology major, so I qualify as one of those "amateur astronomers") |
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| pricechopper fried chicken > bigy fried chicken |
[Aug. 7th, 2008|02:08 pm] |
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yeah, the pieces are larger and the batter is flakier and stuff. |
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| bad google no cookie |
[Aug. 7th, 2008|10:45 am] |
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Why does google require me to login to google groups to read the comments in the Finance section? |
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| This is just not my day |
[Aug. 7th, 2008|01:58 pm] |
1) Came in this morning, checked the counter (thingum that counts the disintegrations of the radioligand we use) because I'd put in 159 tubes last night. Annoying, but no big deal--I was revisiting some old experiments today, so I didn't need the results. I'm pretty sure this one is entirely my fault, even though I just KNOW that I sent them through before I left.
2) Other student who uses the same counter came in and tossed out her counted tubes, which is standard. She tossed out the last row of my tubes as well. Which included a test for a good binding window. This one is mostly my fault, as I didn't label that last row, but still--I kept her racks in the same order when I did a little shuffling so I could resend the samples through the counter, so you'd think that that rack being AHEAD of hers would mean something...I'm not blaming her (as I said, it is mostly my fault), and the experiment is easily repeated. It's just...*sigh* |
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| Wow, I need to play more. |
[Aug. 7th, 2008|02:07 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Ayer, MA | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  caff-a-naaaaaated | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | whirr of electronics in the house | ] |
Back from quest at UCONN.
That was really good! :D Tag team, yay! Plus, being a regionalist can be useful, and being a Double Seer, even more useful at times!
Oi, so tired... but smiling wide from the quest.
Illinar? Portals in southern Rhiassa? Flesh Golems? Gypsies? O rly???
And now I leave you with this to look at: Epic Fail: Games that'll probably suck.
And on that note, sleep.
- Peace. |
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| There's a reason she'll be richer than all of us one of these days!' |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|10:29 pm] |
"Cpt Maki (10:27:41 PM): ........ wouldn't that be a fun game? I mean, there's plenty of games where you kill somebody for a GOOD reason. But in this one, you have to plot and lay traps and evade the police as you get revenge on your cheating husband
Cpt Maki (10:28:16 PM): we'll market it at desperate housewives.
Cpt Maki (10:28:27 PM): and then if one of them DOES kill her husband, they can blame video games." |
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| Law librarian monkey get up, get coffee... |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|08:15 pm] |
Pretty much the most unexpected thing to have to use in a library: a flashight. And not even a basic flashlight; one of those 'crash survivor rescure' lantern things! But hey, the eighth floor has an average of one lightbulb to three rows of shelves, you do what you gotta.
(...when Alicia told me I would probably need a flashlight down there, I was *really* tempted to ask her whether I'd need a shotgun too. On the other hand, given that the guy whose desk the flashlight is on is a former MP, and every once in a while, gets all worked up about how he once provided security for Alexander Haig himself, so don't you be getting on his case, I would not at all be surprised if he also keeps an M-16 somewhere around, too...)
---
All the while, sometimes, I love my job. Another law librarian calls in, "weird question, but, would you by any chance have the Kansas State Laws for 1889."
Well, why yes, yes we do. Now what exactly are you looking for? And here you go, have fun, and don't forget who you gonna call *when* you need the Kansas State Laws for 1889 all over again...
---
On the flip side of that, *never* have I felt more happy to be living in a time when most things are digitized than when having to print approximately nine hundred pages off microfiche. I mean, yeah, granted, so by the two-hundredth time or so that you press the 'copy' button, you do enter a pretty cool kind of daze...but that still doesn't stop you from thinking that, you know, if this was all just a file, I could now be...*doing something else OTHER than pressing the 'copy' button for the two-hundredth time*...
===
I will (soon) have this, and you won't!
(...on the other hand, most of you are also not in library school...) |
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| New Tires, Alignment |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|07:00 pm] |
Vikra got new tires and an alignment today. The tires are Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec in 215/45ZR17. These are "Extreme Performance Summer" tires that have outtested my previous RE-01Rs (which I had in 235/40ZR17). I went for a tire width closer to the stock 205 as the wheels are only 17x7, and the 235 width was too much for them. The change in tire and size saved me $80 per tire, so $320. The Dunlops in 235/40R17 are $66 cheaper per tire, or $264 for all four. So far, I've only had the roughly 10 mile drive home on the tires, which is in no way enough to make any judgements.
The car got an alignment, as well. Settings:
Before: Left Right Total
Caster: 6.59° 6.69°
Camber: -1.10° -1.30°
Toe: -0.05° -0.15° -0.20°
Camber: -1.30° -1.70°
Toe: 0.00° 0.05° 0.05° After:
Caster: 6.21° 6.58°
Camber: -1.21° -1.27°
Toe: -0.06° -0.09° -0.15°
Camber: -1.78° -1.77°
Toe: -0.01° 0.00° -0.01° Yes, my journal is now the, "All cars, all the time" journal. |
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[Aug. 6th, 2008|07:25 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  chipper | ] |
Hey folks, quick question: what was the song used in the Death Note AMV? It was all instrumental and I wanted to download it but don't remember what it was called. Thanks! |
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| Posted using TxtLJ |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|03:40 pm] |
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There's a lady sitting next to me at my physical therapy office. I ask you, why must she drink her water so loudly? Lol it's really gross to listen too. |
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| Yay! Newbie!! |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|03:23 pm] |
Hi! I just stumbled upon this community while searching "chemistry" as an interest... hehe... *bored* ^_^
Here's my info!
Survey
1. If currently working in a chemistry-related profession, what is it?
I'm currently working on my B.S. in chemistry, and will be entering my final semester this fall! I'm also participating in a summer program at NASA Langley Research Center, doing computational chemistry research dealing with noncovalent interactions between single wall carbon nanotubes and aromatic matrix polymers.
2. Current or last chemistry-related class(es) taken?
I just finished taking Intermediate Organic Chemistry, and finished taking both semesters of Physical Chemistry lecture and lab (and survived it!!) This fall, I'll be taking a Chemistry seminar course, Advanced Inorganic Chem lecture and lab, and Instrumental Analysis lecture and lab. And then, I'll be able to graduate!
3. Favorite element(s)?
Tungsten - Because it has an interesting symbol, W, and because without it, we wouldn't have light bulb filaments!!
Mercury - Because it also has an interesting symbol (Hg), it's a very cool-looking semimetal/metalloid at room temp, and it's constantly being cleaned up by the TAs in the lab because very clumsy students keep breaking the thermometers!!
4. Favorite compound(s)?
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) - Because of all the aromatic rings!
Carbon Nanotubes and Fullerenes - Because the shapes are cool!
Artificial Sweetners (aspartame and sucralose) - Without these, I probably would have ended up with diabetes from eating too many things with natural sugar!
Tryptophan - Out of all the amino acids we had to memorize in Biochemistry, tryptophan was one of the most interesting... (two rings!!) |
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| Todo List... |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|02:29 pm] |
I decided to move my todo list to my own server.
I'm a bit lazy, and I hate server-side scripting. So, I opted to implement a SOAP server backed by a SQLite database. The client application is written entirely in Javascript.
Essentially, the client application “boots” using a simple Javascript “kernel” that contains only the core functionality required to implement SOAP calls and login functionality. The kernel presents the user with a login screen. User credentials are required to load any further client-side code.
Logins are handled using a form of Message Digest authentication, which I find to be more than adequate for my purpose. The only weak point in this process is that PRNG in Javascript is a bit slow. Currently, I am attempting to bypass the need for a PRNG on the client side, which unfortunately means that an eavesdropper may have more useful information than they really should. As a stopgap, I upgraded the hash to SHA256, and set up the client-side nonce in such a way as it is not easily guessable by a third-party since it incorporates secret data as part of its generation.
Once Login occurs, the client can retrieve the view from the server, which includes additional Javascript code for display. Likewise, model data can be retrieved, which includes relevant Javascript code for accessing and setting data. Essentially, the application itself boots from the SOAP server.
It works, but the concept is a rough draft. The idea is to build a reuseable architecture for writing web applications. I have another web application to complete by the end of December, namely, a mail application. What works here will be reused in the mail application.
My goal is to wrapper everything together using a host language, be it Lisp or C++. The server would generate the WSDL and requisite Javascript code automatically. Most likely, the server will be written in C++, as this appears to have the most third-party reuse capability. Client-side code would be written using a subset of C++, that will either use template metaprogramming or a cross-compiler to turn into an intermediate form that can be used for generating Javascript. The idea is to provide functionality in a single host language that will be propagated to the target languages or platforms automatically. Likewise, this gives the greatest flexibility for being able to automatically degrade client-side functionality for supporting a wide range of clients, from full-featured web browsers to portable or embedded clients. |
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| Out the other side! |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|11:57 am] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  quiet | ] |
After gaming night last evening, I am on the mend, just incredibly sore from all the walking and such. Still have a bit of a sniffle, but its all good so long as I keep it medicated away.
Completed a appointment with my PCP to be rewarded with: more appointments to separate doctors. D'oh! My next one is August 15th, then ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) that_guy_cheech and I will ride up to Belchertown when he leaves work for the KoEF meeting.
After the appointment, I mostly walked (caught a bus at some point) to the Worcester Public Library for returns and pick-ups, then rode/walked to Quinsigamond Community to work with financial aid on seeing what options are available to me. After QCC, I was dead-tired and still had a bit of bus-riding and walking in front of me. I seriously desired some fish, but Bagel Time was closed. Ah well, next time.
I was picked up by lady_darkwolf as she did errands around Worcester. We chatted about family, hobbies, Realms, and her car. I also got to meet jaybonci's downstairs roommate (I think it's his, anyway), and pick up some neat garland for a potential costume for the Black & White. She worked on darthdragon's belt for a bit as anaiys then showed up, and soon everyone was about and eating pizza and slaying ruffians and a dragon. We leveled, too, and so people are going to change up this one time.
The days before it were filled yet quiet. I saw my dad's extended family (La Torre, Cripe, and basically the family he married into), my brother who's being shipped out again (he says) in October, and I went to visit my mother a few towns over with her partner and his daughter.
And that was just Connecticut, heh. When we saw Roller Derby on Saturday in NH, oakfellow updated his cell phone and decided to update mine as well. I now have a purple phone (yup, purple) that plays a Scottish flute when people call me. It also takes pictures (I have one of Beth, Eren, and Mike Amend in my phone now). amgem saw the phone and warned me about it flaking, but I think it'll be okay.
Paid up in bills towards roommates, paid off another small hospital bill, and now I'm on oakfellow's lap-top catching up on things.
How is your rainy day going? Do you think fall is around the corner?
- Peace. |
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[Aug. 6th, 2008|11:51 am] |
I left the ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) newyorkers community because it's filled with a bunch of self-righteous blowhards.
http://community.livejournal.com/newyorkers/4302900.html
I thought the post was rather interesting and kind of cool but the comments are just ridiculous. I've been a member for over four years and it's like every fall we get a whole new slew of people who move there to ~follow their dreams~ and just ruin it for the rest of us.
OH OH and people who are like "DUR HOW DO YOU KNOW IF HE WAS A VAGRANT OR NOT? I DRINK BEER ON THE SUBWAY TOO AND IM EMPLOYED." Umm...if you've lived in the city for, oooh I don't know, more than a week, you can tell the difference between a homeless person drinking a beer at 8am on a train and a dude drinking a beer. REALLY not that hard.
Anyway, I left and I can't comment anymore in there which is fine by me.
EDIT
I can't stop laughing at this |
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| Come Visit Us At Otakon! |
[Aug. 6th, 2008|10:49 am] |
If you're coming to Otakon this weekend, be sure to visit the Katsucon booths in the Dealers Room. We'll have lots of fun stuff going on, including AMV showings, video gaming, and tons of other things.
Oh, and get there early because we'll be announcing not one, not two, but THREE new events for Katsucon 15 that we think you're going to love. (Alas, no hints until Friday! Gomen nasai, Goshujin-sama.) |
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amused