iRobot has released a new product called Create which is a modified version of the Roomba and is intended to act as a platform for building custom robots.
In their forum I have seen examples of one that can paint images as it rolls and one that picks up small debris using a robotic arm mounted on the top.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Friday, January 26, 2007
Another Optics Advance
Finally the purpose of eyelashes and squinting explained.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070124175420.htm
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070124175420.htm
Saturday, January 20, 2007
What The Future Holds
This is just unreal; storing information on photons!
http://www.physorg.com/news88439430.html
http://www.physorg.com/news88439430.html
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Arthur Ailing
Poor little Arthur has a hurt leg. He's going to be Okay though; in 4 to 6 weeks. He has a cast as his leg suffered a fracture high on the tibia.
His leg took the brunt of an argument he got into with a tree that encroached on our sled-run.
It was not his fault at all. He was an innocent bysledder.
Heidi and I are taking full responsibility and it's made us sick to think we could have allowed this injury to our precious little boo-head.
However, Arthur is really getting into the spirit of invalidity; watching movies all day, calling for guava juice and having it promptly delivered. He's a real trooper; staying in a remarkably cheery mood despite the circumstances.
This has been a stern warning to us all to seriously and meticulously consider safety first before engaging in potentially risky activities.
His leg took the brunt of an argument he got into with a tree that encroached on our sled-run.
It was not his fault at all. He was an innocent bysledder.
Heidi and I are taking full responsibility and it's made us sick to think we could have allowed this injury to our precious little boo-head.
However, Arthur is really getting into the spirit of invalidity; watching movies all day, calling for guava juice and having it promptly delivered. He's a real trooper; staying in a remarkably cheery mood despite the circumstances.
This has been a stern warning to us all to seriously and meticulously consider safety first before engaging in potentially risky activities.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Rush Hour
As you can see, traffic was at a standstill during rush-hour today, on account of the snow.
More snow pictures here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/zimfam/SnowDay
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Ice On The Whiskers
Heidi and I went for a walk this morning while it was still 16 degrees out. Ice formed on my whiskers at the corner of my mouth. That was a first for me.
We didn't get as much snow as the Seattle area; sounds like it's been nicely coated up there. We couldn't have made a snowman on our little bit of precipitation. But I've really been enjoying the insanely sparkly ice-crystals that form when it is this cold. And the frost-heaves have been stupendously long and impressive.
Cool to note is that wherever the clover sprouted (which I planted in the fall) the frost heaves are completely absent; even if the clover is thin and sparse. Then, immediately adjacent, the dirt has erupted 2-3 inches with myriad miniature ice-columns.
Also neat is how much heat we can capture on these clear days, even when it stays in the thirties outside. With my office door closed, it went from 63 in the morning to 74 around noon, when I opened my door do cool off.
This is my 300th post!
We didn't get as much snow as the Seattle area; sounds like it's been nicely coated up there. We couldn't have made a snowman on our little bit of precipitation. But I've really been enjoying the insanely sparkly ice-crystals that form when it is this cold. And the frost-heaves have been stupendously long and impressive.
Cool to note is that wherever the clover sprouted (which I planted in the fall) the frost heaves are completely absent; even if the clover is thin and sparse. Then, immediately adjacent, the dirt has erupted 2-3 inches with myriad miniature ice-columns.
Also neat is how much heat we can capture on these clear days, even when it stays in the thirties outside. With my office door closed, it went from 63 in the morning to 74 around noon, when I opened my door do cool off.
This is my 300th post!
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Humiliation, Repentence and Learning
I'm about to confess something, though you shouldn't get excited because this is really quite obscure, and only mildly relevant to anything.
By the time I took Poetry 101 at the University of Washington, I had (I thought) a lot of experience in literature and poetry from other classes and reading I'd done on my own. I struggled a bit, psychologically, with taking a 101 class in a subject I was already fairly acquainted with. Sometimes I found the material too basic, the pace too slow, while at other times I admired the skill of the professor (Joyce Moody) in discussing the subject.
The description of my infamous behavior follows.
We were discussing some songs of Leonard Cohen, who has long been a subject of my interest and, at the time of that class I had already, repeatedly, consumed the majority of his recorded work and quite a bit of his books. Of more direct importance to this story, I had read a biography of the man. So when Prof. Moody posed this question to the class,
(as featured in the song Suzanne) you can imagine that I was practically bursting to share my "extensive" knowledge. However, preferring to hear other opinions, and having nothing more interesting to say than "Suzanne was his wife", I held my peace.
Unfortunately, the initial answer that was given was, in my view, both then and now, absurd. This was not the fault of the gentleman who provided it. After all, this was a 101 class, the point was to learn, not to already have the answers.
Of course, in my zeal to set the record straight, forgetting my philosophy of listening first, I shot my hand in the air so that I could shoot down this wild speculation with fact.
"Suzanne is the name of Leonard Cohen's former wife." I said, triumphantly.
That remark essentially silenced further discussion of Leonard and Suzanne, which is too bad, because I would have loved to dwell on both of them for a considerable amount of time.
Even at the time I felt a nagging shame for my behavior, but for the life of me I couldn't pinpoint the source of it.
Recent events have finally helped to suggest where and how I was wrong.
First of all, just because Leonard was married to a Suzanne, doesn't mean that "his wife" is the answer to the question "What or Who is Suzanne?", which was the important thing. So, I feel beefheaded for smugly thinking I had provided "the" answer to a question that was obviously soliciting a symbolic or metaphorical answer.
Secondly, I regret that I felt the need (and acted on it) to "correct" my classmate. Everyone would have benefitted from the mediation of Prof. Moody, but my injection of "fact" into the discussion completely deflated the discussion and so whatever she was driving at became lost.
Finally, embarassingly, I was wrong; literally. My assertion was; if he was married to a woman named Suzanne, how could the poem "Suzanne" be about anyone else? I was wrong, wrong, wrong. The evidence was circumstantial.
The fact is, according to the recent Lian Lunson documentary "I'm Your Man", that the Suzanne in the song was the wife of a friend of Leonard's. Which brings us back to the original question: "What or who is Suzanne?" Only after finally learning the answer to 'who' have I realized that 'what' is the far more interesting question.
That is my humiliating story for the day. Hopefully this will provide some measure of therapy for myself and add a little light to the world.
By the time I took Poetry 101 at the University of Washington, I had (I thought) a lot of experience in literature and poetry from other classes and reading I'd done on my own. I struggled a bit, psychologically, with taking a 101 class in a subject I was already fairly acquainted with. Sometimes I found the material too basic, the pace too slow, while at other times I admired the skill of the professor (Joyce Moody) in discussing the subject.
The description of my infamous behavior follows.
We were discussing some songs of Leonard Cohen, who has long been a subject of my interest and, at the time of that class I had already, repeatedly, consumed the majority of his recorded work and quite a bit of his books. Of more direct importance to this story, I had read a biography of the man. So when Prof. Moody posed this question to the class,
"What, or who is Suzanne?"
(as featured in the song Suzanne) you can imagine that I was practically bursting to share my "extensive" knowledge. However, preferring to hear other opinions, and having nothing more interesting to say than "Suzanne was his wife", I held my peace.
Unfortunately, the initial answer that was given was, in my view, both then and now, absurd. This was not the fault of the gentleman who provided it. After all, this was a 101 class, the point was to learn, not to already have the answers.
Of course, in my zeal to set the record straight, forgetting my philosophy of listening first, I shot my hand in the air so that I could shoot down this wild speculation with fact.
"Suzanne is the name of Leonard Cohen's former wife." I said, triumphantly.
That remark essentially silenced further discussion of Leonard and Suzanne, which is too bad, because I would have loved to dwell on both of them for a considerable amount of time.
Even at the time I felt a nagging shame for my behavior, but for the life of me I couldn't pinpoint the source of it.
Recent events have finally helped to suggest where and how I was wrong.
First of all, just because Leonard was married to a Suzanne, doesn't mean that "his wife" is the answer to the question "What or Who is Suzanne?", which was the important thing. So, I feel beefheaded for smugly thinking I had provided "the" answer to a question that was obviously soliciting a symbolic or metaphorical answer.
Secondly, I regret that I felt the need (and acted on it) to "correct" my classmate. Everyone would have benefitted from the mediation of Prof. Moody, but my injection of "fact" into the discussion completely deflated the discussion and so whatever she was driving at became lost.
Finally, embarassingly, I was wrong; literally. My assertion was; if he was married to a woman named Suzanne, how could the poem "Suzanne" be about anyone else? I was wrong, wrong, wrong. The evidence was circumstantial.
The fact is, according to the recent Lian Lunson documentary "I'm Your Man", that the Suzanne in the song was the wife of a friend of Leonard's. Which brings us back to the original question: "What or who is Suzanne?" Only after finally learning the answer to 'who' have I realized that 'what' is the far more interesting question.
That is my humiliating story for the day. Hopefully this will provide some measure of therapy for myself and add a little light to the world.
Friday, January 05, 2007
Jamey's Reading Award
Jamey won a certificate for reading 10 books already this year in his Kindergarten. Although his abilities are not news to us, we are nonetheless exceedingly proud of him and glad to see him recognized at his school.
I Spy Someone Who Has a Can
Jamey and his kindergarten class, performing during the Green Mt. school Christmas program. It was held last night due to inclement weather on the originally-scheduled night.Update: Every member of the class held something that rhymes with 'an'. The chorus chanted something like this:
...I spy someone who has a fan
I spy someone who has a can
I spy someone who has a pan
Let's play I Spy together...
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