Riding the Waves

Anyone remember this song? Well... Santa got in the Christmas Spirit (or was that into the Christmas Spirits?) and now he needs your help to play connect the dots. Yup. It's just what you think: (flash required) Ho! Ho! Ho! Yellow Snow! For more Holiday games, check out the Holiday Link Dump over at JayIsGames, written by yours truly. Yes, I've spent a bit more time playing games over the past few days than I have updating my website. (That's still coming.) When you see these adorable treasures, you'll understand how I got distracted. Here is one gift that didn't make it into the holiday…

Happy Turkey Day! Shoot your own dinner! via Southbank Thanks to my pal, Sara, who recommended this manic turkey shooter for Thanksgiving Day. I know it doesn't make sense, but then again, most holidays don't anymore.

So, I’ll be the first to admit it. This blog is dead. I’ve noticed it happening to a number of sites I used to read on a regular basis, as the authors found themselves overwhelmed and occupied with many other things--school, work, life--chaos. Yet, what I’m facing is a little different. This blog was always about chaos. And now, my trouble isn’t being overwhelmed with many things, but the exact opposite. I’ve been struck with focus. It was inevitable that my blog would follow. It has been a strange road. When I first started writing in earnest, developing my ideas and going back to school to…

Surely, you don’t need me to remind you to vote today. Everywhere we turn, there are little reminders. But what would happen if you or I didn’t vote today? Here’s an example: If you know someone who says they don’t need to vote, you can customize this video and send it to them. Finally, if you are, like me, going to drop off your ballot today (there is something pleasant about doing it the old fashioned way, on election day, at the polls, with the old-style non-computerized ballot!) bring a good book for those long lines, and enjoy! See you after we’ve elected someone!

I promised one more comic before getting back to more serious research, and here it is. Sluggy Freelance is usually a serialized comic, but one instance last week stood out on it’s own: "Don’t doubt my scienceness!"From Sluggy Freelance by Pete Abrams If you are curious about the story leading up to this scene (ie, why the storyline is titled "Little Bacon Bots" or why they are in an underground lab or who the dude in the helmet is or why they are debating the ultimate food) you could always go back to the beginning of the story. However, that might raise even more questions, like: why is…

You might have noticed, this blog has been as still as tomb over the past few weeks. It isn’t as if I was waiting for Halloween to write again--on the contrary, midterms were keeping me frighteningly busy! But, while I did manage to completely bomb one test, this semester has been quite insightful so far. (I finally see how this interdisciplinary approach I’ve been on will lead to a career. Yey! I’m not just wasting all my money on tuition!) So, all of this insight should, eventually, translate over to my blogging. It’ll be wicked, I promise! For now, I’m still trying to de-stress after a…

Better late than never, I guess. We shot this video a few weeks ago at our local ScienceBlogs bash. We had martinis and hors d'oeuvres, played with balloons, and had some interesting conversations on science. Some of them were deep and insightful. None of those were filmed. We leave you with the rest: Thanks to everyone who came, and to my husband Alan for his fascination with video editing.

The ScienceBlogs party here this past Sunday was a blast. We had about half a dozen people stop by, altogether. We ate and drank, talked science and politics, and did silly things for the camera. On the latter note, I now have about a half hour of footage that we shot at the party that is waiting to be edited. I estimate two minutes of it may actually be usable!* *Note...at future parties, don’t put the helium-filled balloons next to the martinis. The combination is apparently too tempting. So, I’ll have more party news later this weekend, when I’ll have time to sit down and look at that. In…

Ok, one more. You can’t leave the party without meeting Otto. He’s an infinite cat. That’s it! Thanks for coming, be it in person or virtually, and most especially, thank you for reading, commenting, and helping ScienceBlogs reach 1,000,000 comments!

Suppose you’re not really the social type at all, and would rather play around in some serene playground. Well, we have something for you, too! Take a break and chill out in Vector Park. They have all sorts of weird things to click on, like three-legged headless acrobats, an odd assortment of objects to be balanced on hangers, and a dog-or-bird-like creature that chases your spider. See the giant head, pick at its nose until bubbles come out, and more. However you choose to do it, enjoy playing around in Vector Park.

Since this party is being held in my house, I imagine someone is certain to mention the giant squid in the bathroom. If you can’t make it, it won’t be you--but you can still have that same sort of undersea experience. Here’s a game review I wrote a while ago for JayIsGames, that was never published because JohnB beat me to the punch. It may not exactly be a "party favor" per say, but it is a lovely game.... maybe even more so than my bathroom! What happens when an oil tanker crashes into a coral reef, and the EPA fails to act in time? Well, if you’re talking about Kaleidoscope Reef, the…

It’s probably very common right now... you go to a cocktail party during the election season, and you end up discussing politics. Who said what? Who agrees with who? Hopefully, after comparing responses at the Science Debate 2008, you should have a good idea of where our candidates stand, and would be prepared for any spontaneous party discussions. So, since you’re so prepared, here’s a way to do the fun political comparisons without actually attending a party. Try the Match-O-Matic, created by ABC News and USA today. It throws you a variety of quotes from the candidates on hot-button issues…

Ok, I’ll confess--school has been blowing my f*$#!^& mind this past week--but in a good way, really. I’m studying a variety of interesting subjects which are all tying together in surprising ways... which has lead me to do quite a bit of extra reading and writing. Not that I mind. I just wish I had time to wrap my head around it all, enough to make coherent blogs posts out of these ideas. I did end up making a rather intense fractal, abstract yet full of intense symbolic imagery. But I looked at it, and thought, ew, that’s a little too dark. It will, at least, take some explaining... it…

Please join us! Who: Readers, commenters, and bloggers alike... anyone who likes to hang out, have a drink, and chat about science, life, and chaos... in other words, you! What: ScienceBlogs 1,000,000 Comments Party and Chaotic Utopia’s Back-to-Blogging Cocktail Party When: September 28th, 2008 4-6pm Where: Karmen’s suburban town home/loft (located halfway between Denver and Boulder, Colorado) How: RSVP, either by email (to karmen [at sign thingy] chaotic utopia [dot thingy] com [minus spaces and brackets and nonsense]) or by the comments below. (If you RSVP via the comments, please…

I love it when other people say exactly what I’m thinking, but in better words. Take Gloria Steinem on Sarah Palin for instance: Women have become so politically powerful that even the anti-feminist right wing--the folks with a headlock on the Republican Party--are trying to appease the gender gap with a first-ever female vice president. We owe this to women--and to many men too--who have picketed, gone on hunger strikes or confronted violence at the polls so women can vote. (via the LA Times) That’s right. Good for them. ’Bout freaking time. Of course, Steinem goes on to describe many…

Oh, what a couple of weeks. Between preparing for the DNC and hosting out of town guests, my plans to return to blogging were somehow delayed. Now the excitement has passed and I’ve run out of excuses to avoid my computer. So, as I turn to this giant pile of bloggable stuff, I am wondering how on Earth I’ll ever catch up. Why not start with where I’ve already been? Of course, this is old news now, as everyone has gone on to gossip about Sarah Palin, but I can’t help it... Barak Obama’s acceptance speech at the DNC was incredible. My husband Alan and I got to attend, with pretty good seats:…

Warning: as the title suggests, this is just one long whine. It probably shouldn’t be read by anyone. For my own sake, I’m putting it out there, anyways. Proceed with caution! So much for posting something every day. When I promised that, it sounded feasible. Then again, when I called my remodel "almost done", I think I was mistaking it for "done." This seems to be a new habit of mine... setting my expectations too high. Or maybe it is an old habit, resurfacing. Whatever the case, I had planned to have my life back to (what could pass for) normal by the end of last week. Instead, I still…

It was orange. I wrote a review about it. I still can’t explain it... and I just can’t stop. But that’s what they call it: Good things should never end.

Maybe it’s because it’s nearly summer. Maybe it’s because I finally finished my finals. Maybe it’s all a result of coincidence and random web browsing. Whatever the reason, I feel like filling my blog with warm, happy colors this weekend. What better place to begin, than with a fractal? A Fractal Sunset(look below to see it "set") This is a combination of sets, each transformed to simulate ripples on a lake. One (the mountain range) is a Julia set, while the other (the sun) is the modified interior of a Mandelbrot set. Usually, when you see a Mandelbrot set or Julia set you see busy spirals…

Now, this is the way we ought to be testing our children: Questionaut: A Point-and-Click Quiz Adventure by Amanita Design and the BBC One of the most talented names in the casual gaming business, Amanita Design, creators of the delightful Samorost series, have just teamed up with the BBC to come up with this absolute gem of a game. It’s so cute, you won’t realize it is supposed to be educational... that is until you find yourself completely stumped on a math* question. The questions are aimed at 11-year-olds, but that may not keep you from scratching your head a few times. Even finding the…