drorzel | December 30, 2010
slacktivist: Excruciating
"The work of a senator doesn't have to be so painful. If you find yourself complaining because you're being forced to defend indefensible positions by voting on them, it might be that the problem doesn't lie with those forcing you to cast a vote and take a stand. It seems more likely that the problem lies with where you have chosen to stand and why you have chosen to stand there."
(tags: politics society blogs slacktivist us class-war race gender culture)
Anna Griffin: Let's all adopt the attitude: No whining on the yacht | OregonLive.com
"In the name of full…
drorzel | December 29, 2010Most of what would ordinarily be blogging time this morning got used up writing a response to a question at the
Physics Stack Exchange. But having put all that effort in over there, I might as well put it to use here, too...
The question comes from a person who did a poster on terminology at the recently concluded American Geophysical Union meeting, offering the following definition of "data":
Values collected as part of a scientific investigation; may be qualified as 'science data'. This includes uncalibrated values (raw data), derived values (calibrated data), and other transformations of…
drorzel | December 28, 2010I'm slowly sifting through the Christmas pictures, many of which were rendered blurry by SteelyKid's constant motion, but there are some good shots in there:
This one shows her playing with the wooden train set she got from Grandma and Grandpa (the same gauge as the Thomas branded ones they have set up at Barnes & Noble stores, though without the price-doubling connection to a tv show, which is fine by us). She spent a bunch of time running the train around and over and under the bridge, which was really cute, as you can tell.
(This was taken before I got the fancy flash unit, if you're…
drorzel | December 28, 2010It's the last week of the (calendar) year, which means it's a good time to recap the previous twelve months worth of scientific news. Typically, publications like Physics World will publish a list of top ten physics stories of 2010, but we're all Web 2.0 these days, so it seems more appropriate to put this to a poll:
What is the top physics story of 2010?survey software
I've used the Physics World list as a starting point, because you have to start somewhere. I added a few options to cover the possibility that they left something out, and, of course, you know where the comments are.
This…
drorzel | December 28, 2010
Do dogs need sweaters when it's cold? Plus: Is road salt edible? - By Brian Palmer - Slate Magazine
"A major blizzard dropped 20 inches of snow on New York City on Sunday night as it made its way up the East Coast. Monday-morning dog-walkers had their animals decked out in sweaters and booties to protect them from the snow and ice. Are warm doggie outfits really necessary?
They can be. Some dogs are bred to handle cold weather. Labrador retrievers and Newfoundlands, for example, naturally grow out their locks in winter for added insulation. They're so good at keeping warm that they don't…
drorzel | December 27, 2010We caught only a glancing blow from the latest Snowpocalypse event, with maybe six inches of light, powdery snow. It's difficult to estimate depth, because it's so light and powdery, and very, very windy.
To give you an idea of the local conditions, here's a picture of the thistle-seed feeder hanging outside our front window:
What you see there is a couple of inches worth of snow that blew through the fine screen on the outside of the feeder, and piled up inside. The wind continues to howl 'round the outside of Chateau Steelypips, so while the roads are plenty clear enough for travel, I don'…
drorzel | December 27, 2010I spent a lot of time on my feet over the weekend, probably more than I should've given my ankle. Thus, I plan to spend most of today lying on the couch with my foot up and on ice. I've got a bunch of things to work on that I can do from this position, but extensive blogging is not one of them. Thus, an audience-participation thread:
If you celebrated some solstice-linked holiday in the last month or so, what was the highlight of it for you?
This could be a gift you received, a gift you gave, or just some moment that was particularly nice. If you've got something you'd like to share, leave…
drorzel | December 26, 2010My big Christmas present this year was an external flash unit for my camera. Which means that, among the 354 (!!) pictures I took while at my parents' were a bunch playing with different flash settings. Why? These two pictures should give you the idea:
The first is taken with the flash angled straight ahead, and the second with the flash angled upward so it bounced off the ceiling first. I definitely think the second looks better-- there isn't the same glare off SteelyKid's forehead, and the background is illuminated more uniformly.
Both of these show SteelyKid watching "Rudolph the Red-…
drorzel | December 24, 2010Our final science-themed Christmas ornament is this Santa and friend:
What does walking a dog have to do with science? If you have to ask that, you're reading the wrong blog. Dog-walking is essential to science-- that's where we get some of our best ideas!
In a broader sense, this one can be said to represent the importance of maintaining some balance between science and the rest of your life. No matter how important the problem you are working on may be, your dog still needs walking, your kids need to be read to, and your family needs you to spend time with them. Especially at the holidays…
drorzel | December 23, 2010I foolishly neglected to get an Appa picture this morning, but I wouldn't want to deprive you of your cute toddler fix for the week. And, of course, it's important to get at least one picture of SteelyKid playing with her spiffy new kitchen out:
We gave this to her last night, and it was a huge hit. It's got a stove burner that lights up and makes noise when you put a pot or pan on it, an oven, a sink, a fridge, and a cordless phone. And a bunch of fake food.
We had hoped to reveal this to her at the same time as the refinished basement (where it will be living permanently), but alas, the…
drorzel | December 23, 2010Next up in our series of science-themed Christmas ornaments are these two dinosaurs:
Why? Because dinosaurs are awesome. Seriously, do you really need to ask?
drorzel | December 23, 2010
The Greatest Letter Ever Printed On NFL Team Letterhead
"In 1974, a Clevelander wrote the Browns complaining of the menace posed by the then-fad of throwing paper airplanes, and implicitly threatened litigation. The Browns' response is just about the most awesome thing ever committed to paper."
(tags: sports football law history stupid)
The Christmas sermon -- Crooked Timber
"Lukas, it seemed, had served mixed drinks with the best of them at the Paris Ritz, the Waldorf-Astoria and everywhere else on that circuit. But he'd jacked it in and taken up a defunct lease in the City, to follow a…
drorzel | December 22, 2010Next up in our series of science-themed Christmas ornaments is this squirrel:
A reminder that you can't trust those furry little bastards...
What do squirrels have to do with science? As Emmy (and any other dog) will tell you, squirrels are representatives of all that is evil and twisted. And, unfortunately, science is just as plagued by evil hucksters as any other human endeavor. There are evil squirrels all over the place, telling you that quantum measurement lets you think your way to immortality, or nonsensical phony quantum states are the key to infinite free energy, or any of a…
drorzel | December 22, 2010As is often noted, most modern recordings of Christmas songs range from utterly bland to excruciatingly awful. There are some that sorta-kinda work, though, and a bare few that are brilliant:
In the interest of promoting, you know, music that doesn't suck, it's perhaps worth taking a look at what makes the good songs work.
The key element is really an accurate assessment of the strengths of the artist in question. For example, the Pogues crafted an enduring classic by going with what worked for them in every other song they did: drunkenness, sordid relationships, and soaring music. It's a…
drorzel | December 22, 2010
Hyperbole and a Half: The Year Kenny Loggins Ruined Christmas
"I walked through my front door with purpose and gathered my family members in the living room to tell them about my vision. I was going to rewrite the birth of Jesus Christ and I was going to make it POP.
My mom, always wanting to nurture my creative side, agreed on behalf of everyone that we should go forward with the production. I would be playing the part of Mary and my dad would be Joseph. My aunt and my grandma would play the wise men. My mom would be filming. The dogs were slated to play the animals in the manger, but they…
drorzel | December 21, 2010Continuing our series of science-themed Christmas tree ornaments, we have this cute pair of reading bears:
"But wait," you say, "reading isn't a science!" Ah, but while reading itself may not be a science, science is nothing without the scientific literature. The really essential step in the process of science is the communication of scientific results to others. That's what allows future scientists to "stand on the shoulders of giants," to borrow a phrase from Newton, using past results as the basis for future experiments. Reading the results of others is absolutely essential to science.…
drorzel | December 21, 2010As mentioned previously, I sprained my ankle last Thursday. Just to be safe, I went to the doctor on Friday, to make sure it wasn't anything worse. He poked it a little, sent me to get an x-ray, and gave me a prescription for crutches. The x-ray took a while, and the crutch prescription could apparently only be filled at a surgical supply store half an hour away, so I didn't bother. Saturday, it felt dramatically better, and Sunday it felt better by enough that I was able to take SteelyKid food shopping as usual, after strapping on one of the ankle braces I use playing basketball (having…
drorzel | December 21, 2010
Tron | Film | Better Late Than Never? | The A.V. Club
"What's odd about all this is that the more I see these movies, the more I become convinced they could have been used in happy little object lessons about how God wants only to save us. That includes Tron, a mostly mediocre-to-awful film with some fascinating ideas about the nature of divinity and the relationship between God and humanity rattling around in its empty little skull. At the time, I wasn't allowed to see it, because it placed computers at the same level as humans. Now that I've actually seen the film, it's hard to see how it…
drorzel | December 20, 2010We didn't do a Christmas tree last year, because we figured SteelyKid wasn't yet old enough to be safe around it. We put one up this year, though, and she's been very grown-up and careful around it, so all is well.
The return of the Chateau Steelypips Christmas tree means I can also revive a sort-of tradition here, namely the posting of pictures of ornaments with explanations of how they're really about SCIENCE! (say that last word a la thomas Dolby for the full effect). We'll start with an easy one:
This is a shiny green ball with a big ring around it. As this clearly isn't one of the…
drorzel | December 20, 2010
Let It Dough! - NYTimes.com
A different take on Christmas cookies.
(tags: art pictures holiday nytimes)
Crash Test: 2009 Malibu vs. 1959 Bel Air | Wired Science | Wired.com
"Not sure why they (whoever they are) did this test, but it is pretty cool. This is a crash test between an old and new car. Check it out.
I sure would rather be in that 2009 Malibu than the 1959 Bel Air. Wouldn't you? How about some video analysis?"
(tags: science physics blogs dot-physics video transportation)