February 09, 2008
Why I love California
60F,blue skies, 3500 acres of wild parklands a 5 minute walk from my
house
January 31, 2008
Funny Video, Good Video
Now that we've bought into the Apple Thing (with a Macbook Pro - sweet little box if I do say so myself), I found this parody of the Mac Air video funny:
On the other hand, I love the song, and I double plus love it now that I've found the original song, with video:
January 22, 2008
December 11, 2007
More Laguna Video
This time from inside my car...
Laguna Seca PCA/Trackmasters 12/7 Session 2 from mookhead on Vimeo.
December 10, 2007
Going for a spin at Laguna Seca
This is from a "driver education event" last Friday at Laguna Seca... if you fast forward to about 12 minutes, you'll see me pass Partha... if you keep watching till about 16 minutes, you'll see me spin out in spectacular fashion :)
This was the 3rd session of the day, and as you can see from my driving line, I was completely defocused... I blew nearly every corner of the last lap before the spinout.
Lessons:
1) Focus, dammit
2) Don't get mad at cars that doing let you pass
3) Once you do pass, focus, dammit
The Queso Incident from Itacud Imaging on Vimeo.
December 03, 2007
November 23, 2007
November 22, 2007
October 21, 2007
October 18, 2007
On the Nature of Programming
Mark Guzdial's Amazon Blog: What makes programming so hard? Permalink
One of most persistent questions in computing education is the reason for the 20% Rule. In every introduction to programming course, 20% of the students just get it effortlessly -- you could lock them in a dimly lit closet with a reference manual, and they'd still figure out how to program. 20% of the class never seems to get it. Why is that?You don't really want me to answer that, do you?
October 12, 2007
September 10, 2007
Abnormal mental rigidity found to have biological roots!
Homo politicus: brain function of liberals, conservatives differs
Conservatives tend to crave order and structure in their lives, and are more consistent in the way they make decisions. Liberals, by contrast, show a higher tolerance for ambiguity and complexity, and adapt more easily to unexpected circumstances.
It all makes sense now.
What gets me is that I read that passage and am proud to have a "higher tolerance for ambiguity" (that's actually been mentioned a number of times in my corporate performance reviews :). I would hate to be considered someone who 'craved order and structure'. Yet, I'm pretty certain many people out there (about 51%, apparently) would see it exactly the opposite way (ie. tolerace to ambiguity == wishywashy nambypambyness, while rigidity == strength).
What is stronger in a hurricane, the Might Oak, or the humble yet flexible blade of grass?
August 02, 2007
Men carrying sugarcane on heads up gangplank to load on truck
From time to time, the internet burps up something amazing. Over the last few months, I've watched t13man upload some of the most captivating pics I've ever seen of Puerto Rico. Apparently taken in the late 40s and early 50s by more than one person, these photos capture midcentury puertorican life like nothing else I've ever seen.
Browsing through them, I'm struck by how radically things can change in 50 short years. On the one hand, I'm nostalgic (if one can feel nostalgia for something one has never experienced) for some of the idyllic scenes, such as the unspoiled beaches. On the other, I'm struck by the poverty some of the images depict. Driving around PR today, you'd never imagine what was there a few short decades earlier.
