Brink, you scary.
Proof:
I don’t know what disability having one leg and a wheel qualifies as, but it looks pretty bad.
I was thirsty and wanted some water. Then I saw this and changed my mind. It looks a lot creepier without a camera’s flash lighting it up.
In a brief interlude between artistic endeavors, M.C. Escher took a year off to dabble in architecture. During this time he designed Brink Hall.
This is in one of the bathrooms. The washer was running. I wonder if the cleaning crew does their rags in those washers?
Sweet Jesus, I love calculus
We talked about Leibniz in calculus today. My hands were shaking so badly I could barely write.
I am not ashamed.
Why are all the smart and sexy ones dead?
Gotta love this time of year.
Hahahaha, oh my god.
Exactly six years ago…
…was the very first day of college for myself and at least two of my readers.
Exactly six years ago we became official college students, taking our very first classes and having our very first college-level grade-related panic attacks.
(Maybe that last part was just me)
It’s crazy what six years can do, eh? We’re all in very separate places but still in the same town.
I often think the same things of my high school friends as well. I wonder about the different paths we’ve all taken to get us to where we are now.
Life is a weird, weird thing.
Six years ago, I didn’t even want to go to college. I thought it was the next unavoidable step in life, so I just went. I wanted nothing to do with math/stats/anything quantitative and was a psychology/music/theatre triple major (hahahaha).
Now I’m teaching a freaking statistics class.
What about the rest of you guys? How much has changed for you in the last six years? What’s stayed the same?
One small step for man…
The first human being to set foot on our moon died yesterday as a result of complications following a heart surgery that was performed earlier this month.
Rest in peace, Neil Armstrong. You may have been a modest and humble man, but your actions and courage certainly impacted and inspired the entire planet.
As tribute, I present the ever awesome, ever hilarious Brian Regan and his “I walked on the moon” skit.
TWSB: Head Banging
Did you know there are nine species of hammerhead sharks? I was unaware of this.
Anyway.
I came across this cool article today discussing the strange shape of these super cool sharks. And perhaps not surprisingly, the reason for their funky heads has to do with hunting prey.
Sharks have specialized sense organs that allow them hunt efficiently through the water. One group of these organs is called the “ampullae of Lorenzini.” It allows sharks to detect the electrical fields that are created by their prey.
This group of organs is spread out across the broad head of the hammerhead shark, making them super sensitive and super helpful in detecting their main prey: stingrays that lie along the ocean floor.
Their funky head shape also gives them amazing binocular ability and the ability to see both above and below themselves at all times.
Finally, and perhaps the coolest feature of the head, when they finally do come across a stingray, they hammer slam it to the ground as they kill it.
Sharks rule.
Guys, can I spaz for a minute?
It totally hit me this afternoon.
I am teaching statistics.
Me.
I am freaking teaching statistics.
At a university.
I am responsible for the beginning statistical education of 137 college students.
The people in charge think I’m competent enough to teach my own section of statistics.
Teaching.
Teaching statistics.
Teaching statistics at a university.
Me.
Holy fslfjsgaahsdfjghlaweroaw.
So I had this dream…
I had this dream last night in which I quit school to become a cartoonist. I quickly realize that this is a mistake and draw a series of cartoons to submit to the math department to get back into school. I call the cartoon “Math Quacks” and it stars two ducks names Sine and Cosine. They swim around and eat bread and make really, really, really stupid jokes. They have evil alter-egos named (of course) Cosecant and Secant [I had them mixed up in my head, but I’m pretty sure this is how my subconscious was wanting it to be].
Near the end of the series they make a baby duck called Tangent. Who also makes really, really stupid jokes.
And I think the water they all lived in was called something like Triangle Lake.
Yeah.
This actually might have to happen.
I’m an educator!
Today I taught my first university class.
It was awesome.
I think it’ll take awhile for it to sink in that I’m actually independently responsible for a class of 130+ students. But I think it’s going to be the most fantastic time ever.
Oh, and I also had classes today!
- I’m taking SAS Programming, which will end up being super helpful because it prepares us for the SAS certification exam, which would put us way ahead in the job market because pretty much every company that does analyses uses SAS and wants people who know how to use SAS.
- And…CONCERT BAND! I haven’t played my clarinet in like three years, so the first few rehearsals will be interesting. BUT YAY MUSIC AGAIN FINALLY!
I’m done.
Claudia’s Post-Secondary Education: Round 2. Er, 3. 4 ½? Ah, who even knows anymore.
I’m baaaaaaaaaack…
SCHOOL TIME!
EXTREME EXCITEMENT!
Because of teaching (which will begin TOMORROW!) I cut my credits down substantially, which I think was a good thing even though it’s hard for me to take less than 20 credits. Or so I’m assuming. I’ve never done it before.
Anyway.
Today’s classes were:
- CALCULUS!! Freaking Leibniz party, man! I’m excited.
- Beginning Nonfiction!! I was going to take Advanced Fiction as well, but it’s right after my stats class (ha! MY stats class) and I figured that wouldn’t be ideal, especially since I’ll have 137 students and I think that at least some will have questions after class every once and awhile.
- And I’m taking the itty bitty one-credit trig class (MATH 144) because I never took trig in high school and I’d like to know what that’s all about.
So WOO!
More to come tomorrow. I’mma go run around the house a few times.
CYBER HYPHER DECIPHER
4301. Suggest a question for the 5,000 question survey:
“Is Leibniz the greatest person EVAR?”
(people can only answer “yes”)
4302. What’s your preferred form of artistic expression (writing, drawing, musicianship, etc…)?
Writing.
4303. Name one thing that’s overrated:
Sex.
Name one thing that’s underrated:
Leibniz.
4304. Are the Beatles overrated?
I don’t think so, no.
4305. Do you smoke? if so, what brand?
No smoky.
4306. Why do you choose to listen to the music you listen to?
Uh…’cause I like it?
4307. Does music these days suck?
Some of it does. But not all of it. In my personal opinion, for example, suck and not suck.
4308. Are personal ads acts of desperation?
No. They’re an act of loneliness. Nothing wrong with that.
4309. Have you ever been/are you a vegetarian?
Nope. Got my reasons for that, too.
4310. Who are the three most important musical artists in your life?
Passion Pit. Just because of Sleepyhead. The day that song is knocked from the “Claudia’s Absolute Favorite Song” pedestal will be a day I find a level of perfection unknown to man.
Coldplay. I’ve liked Coldplay for quite a few years now and in my opinion they’ve been getting better and better. “Paradise” is one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard.
Lady Gaga. Because she rules.
4311. do you find it disrespectful when contemporary musicians cover older ones?
Not if they’re not jerks about it, no.
How about when people attribute the writing of these songs to the bands that only covered them?
That can get obnoxious.
4312. Do you believe in arming civilians?
Not really.
4313. Do you find desolation and darkness sometimes beautiful?
Indeed I do.
4314. If you were drafted to fight in Afghanistan, would you willingly and proudly go?
Maybe not proudly, but I’d go.
4316. Isle or window seat?
Window.
4317. What is your favorite Simpsons character?
I always liked Mr. Burns.
4318. Have you ever been to Mexico?
Nope.
4319. Are people that wear glasses more or less attractive?
It depends on the person. Some people look really good with glasses, some don’t.
4320. What sucks more, a Mini Van or SUV?
Dude, a vehicle is vehicle. I’d take either at this point.
4321. Are the days of writing and mailing letters lost?
Pretty much.
4322. What do you think about right before you go to sleep?
Private stuff.
4323. Do I ever cross your mind – anytime?
Random song lyrics FTW.
4324. Have you ever solved a Rubix Cube?
I’ve never tried.
4325. Why is everyone so emotionally and spiritually dead????
‘Cause we’ve got texting and Facebook and Twitter and smartphones, what more do we need?
Are YOU??
I’ll answer later, I’m busy texting on my smartphone.
4326. What can you feel BURNING UP inside your head?
I THREW A LIGHTED MATCH IN THERE OH GOD
4327. What life experience do you have?
Not much. Haha, I’m boring.
4328. Have you ever hit rock bottom?
Indeed I have.
What was that like for you?
I really don’t feel like reliving it right now.
4329. Are you self destructive?
Very.
4330. Are you very extreme?
In some ways, yes.
4331. Are you completely full or do you feel empty?
I’m full of MENERGY!
4332. Can you turn the whole world inside out?
Physically? Haha, that would be amusing.
4333. Are you potentially a criminal?
Aren’t we all?
4334. Where is your PASSION??
STATISTICS!
4335. Why do we hide our souls?
We don’t have souls.
4336. How many times have you lied today?
I don’t think I have.
Did you just lie to that question?
Not deliberately.
4337. Do you always notice when you are lying?
I don’t know.
4338. Do you think that lieing is so built into our culture that we can’t help it?
“Little” lies, yes.
4339. What are fighting against?
Ignorance. Depression.
4340. Give the following things a rating. One is compltely normal, ten is completely crazy/rebelious.
tattoos: 4
no pircings or tattoos: 1
piercings: 1
pink hair: 3
openly discussing sex: 4
bob marley: 2
green hair: 3
extreme emotion: 5
a tie: 1
spiked bracelets: 2
4341. What’d you think of the grammys?
I “sort of” watched it. That was awhile ago.
4342. When you see the stars and the waves crash in how do you feel?
Full of MENERGY!
4343. What do you think about under a midnight sky?
Stuff that makes me cry. Nighttime is sad time.
4344. Who are ‘they’?
THE MASSES!
4345. Who cares what they think???
Sometimes it matters. Most of the time it doesn’t.
4346. Do you ever let them stop you?
I try not to.
4347. What would you do if there were no limits?
Reach the asymptote. HA MATH JOKE
There are no limits. Go Do it.
Oooh, I’m touching it!
4348. Will you dance with me?
Yay dancing!
4349. Will you drink yourself on the floor with me?
I’m not a drinker. I can fake it, though.
4350. Will you sleep in the streets with me?
That sounds oddly romantic.
4351. Courtney love or Madonna:
musically?
Madonna
personality wise?
Madonna
looks?
Madonna
4352. Do you have a negative attitude towards the opposite sex?
Nope.
4353. Can you imagine anything that would seriously improve the world?
POPULATION CONTROL
4354. Have you read the book Venus in Furs?
Nope.
Did it turn you on?
Wouldn’t know.
4355. Velvet Underground with or without Nico?
I’ve never heard the Velvet Underground.
4356. Is there any similarity between what eminem is doing and what manson is doing?
I…don’t think so?
4357. Who wants to be your dog?
That sounds dirty.
4358. Are you SURE you aren’t pretentious(I’ve been reading SOME surveys that sound pretentious to me)?
I hope I’m not. I don’t think I am.
4359. Can you understand and express subtle and complex ideas?
I would like to think so, yes.
4360. Is writing akin to thinking for you?
Sort of. It offers a way to organize the thinking.
4361. What do you imagine it feels like to be a member of the opposite sex?
It’s probably awesome.
4362. Bowie’s Outside, can you tell who the murderer is?
What?
4363. Are you a bad banana with a greasy black peel?
Ewww.
4364. What do you think of the Atkins diet?
I think it’s pretty dumb.
4365. ‘If it bleeds, I will fuck it.’ How does that make you feel?
Um…uncomfortable.
4366. The greatest shock rocker of all time is:
What’s a shock rocker?
4367. Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, or Red Dragon?
Silence of the Lambs.
4368. If Dr Lechter were to visit you what would you do?
Probably not sprinkle myself with salt and pepper.
4369. Who is your favorite director of movies?
I don’t really classify movies based on their director. Haha, I can actually tell you the composers of more movies than I could directors.
4370. What is Kubrick’s best film?
I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a Kubrick film.
4371. Fill in the blank as if you were speaking. I don’t want anybody else. When I think about ___ I touch myself.
Leibniz. I AM NOT ASHAMED
4372. Are you overly confident and blinded to your own fraults?
DAMN STRAIGHT!
If you were you probably wouldn’t know the extent of it.
LIES!
4373. Do you like:
King Crimson?
Emerson Lake and Palmer?
Tajmahol?
Republic?
Thursday?
I haven’t heard music from a single one of these bands/artists.
4374. Do you write your favorite bands on your clothing?
Haha, no.
4375. Are you wild and crazy?
When I want to be.
4376. Do you party like River Pheonix?
Who?
4377. What is it that you still are hiding?
I’m not telling!
4378. How attractive is a girl is a suit?
Eh. I’ve never been much of a suit person.
How attractive is a guy in a dress?
Dudes in dresses are smexy.
4379. Why is it more acceptable for a girl to dress like a guy than for a guy to dress like a girl?
Because our society is stupid.
4380. Why is being a girl seen as somehow something LESS than being a guy?
See above.
4381. What are three things you value?
Tacos.
Existential angst.
Triangles.
4382. What are three things you normally do that go against those values in some way?
I eat burritos instead.
I enjoy being a mindless plebian sometimes.
I draw circles.
4385. Name three highly specific things you look for in a potential mate?
Like, how specific is specific?
1. They wear a giant badass wig.
2. They invented calculus.
3. Their first name is Gottfried.
4386. Who is the basis for your comparison when choosing a partner?
I don’t have one.
4387. Have you ever given someone multiple orgasms or received them yourself?
Hahaha. No.
4388. The older generations thought the beatles were hip. Now they think today’s music is shocking. What could music evolve into that people might find more shocking ten years from now?
Hahaha, I think about this a lot, actually. I think things like this will cycle back around. Nicki Minaj will be all wholesome and stuff and The Everly Brothers will be smut, smut, nothing but smut!
4389. Do you have any motives for your actions other than anger and lust?
Greed! Don’t forget greed!
4390. Would you be more likely to rape someone or to kill someone?
This question disturbs me.
4391. What have you read by James Baldwin?
I don’t think I’ve read any Baldwin.
4392. Can you read Naked Lunch straight through in one sitting?
What’s Naked Lunch?
4393. Are you a snob?
I don’t think so.
4394. Fill in the blank. ___ is all there is.
Statistics!
4395. Is common sense dead?
No, but it’s on the floor convulsing.
4396. Are you unapproachable?
People think I’m a weirdo, but I don’t know if I’m unapproachable.
4397. Are you the kind of person strangers like to talk to?
I’m the kind of person the weird dude on the bus talks to, or the funky homeless guy talks to, or the sign spinner in front of the Del Taco gives a sign spinning demonstration to.
4398. Do social interactions energize or drain you (in general)?
They make me super anxious, yo.
4399. What’s the longest you have ever gone between sexual encounters?
A lifetime.
4400. Compare John Lennon and Kurt Cobain:
I know nothing about Kurt Cobain.
Woah, flashbacks
I totally forgot I’d started this blog on MySpace until the little neural pathways that had formed over the course of four and a half years caused me to automatically scroll to the “MySpace” bookmark rather than the “Wordpress” bookmark and I was automatically logged into my old account.
Everything’s still there! I look horrible with long hair.
Crazy life.
WISSJDFSLHGHDKSHR
I’m so totally in flail mode right now. Happy flail mode.
I have a grad student working for me (because there’s like 150 students in my section). That’s beyond creepy to me.
AND, while I was making the syllabus this afternoon, I realized that the grad student working for me is also the TA for the SAS programming class I’m taking. I have that class later in the day on Tuesday/Thursday after I lecture. That’s hilarious.
Edit: dude. I just realized…I GET TO TEACH THEM R.
Edit 2: my TA is the Joe Vandal twin that got jellyfish-mauled in Hawaii when we all went down there for the game.
[insert more flailing]
TWSB: Salt of the Tongue
Quick—of the four (or five, or seven) basic tastes, which one is the one confounding scientists regarding how it works?
It’s SALTY!
Surprised?
Scientists have traced the tastes of sweetness, umami, and bitter to specific receptors on the cells of the tongue, and are close to finding the receptor for sour. How we perceive saltiness, however, still remains elusive. Scientists believe the trouble stems from the fact that humans are so sensitive to sodium: we need it to function, but too much will kill us.
Because we need sodium in pretty much every important bodily function, from nerve firing to blood pressure control to cell water saturation control, molecules that are sensitive to sodium are embedded in cell membranes all over the body.
Why is this a problem? Because the process for locating the other taste receptors involved finding a likely gene for the receptor, destroying it in mice embryos, and testing whether the mice could still experience the taste. If the genes for salt reception are destroyed, the mice won’t live long enough to even be born.
To get around this, two research groups worked to develop a drug method of temporarily blocking a certain type of sodium channel in the mice’s mouths.
So what did they find out when they did this? When the treated animals were deprived of salt, they were unable to distinguish between salty and plain water. This is what they expected if the blocked sodium channel, ENaC, was required to taste salt.
But they found something surprising. Even when the ENaC was blocked, the nerve that carries salty sensations from the tongue to the brain was still showing some activity. They also found that the ENaC-less mice didn’t actively seek out salt and avoided water with very high concentrations of it. So even though they couldn’t taste the salt, the drug treated mice avoided bowls of salty water like normal mice.
This suggested to the researchers that our perception of salt involves two different mechanisms: one involving something that makes salt attractive/tasty, and another that makes high concentrations of it something to avoid. This makes sense biologically: lack of salt can kill us, as can too much salt.
So the search is currently on for the second receptor, the one that makes us reject salt. Come on, taste scientists, you can do it!
GUYS GUYS GUYS!
I just got a job as a lecturer for the U of I statistics department. I’ll be teaching the one Tuesday/Thursday section of STAT 251.
HOW FREAKING COOL IS THAT?!
This is what I’ve wanted to do for a long time now: teach statistics!
I’m beyond excited. I’m beyond nervous. It’s a class of 137 students. I have to create the syllabus/homework/exams, figure out how much material I can fit in 75-minute sections of time, practice so that my voice doesn’t waiver like a freak, and I’ve got exactly a week to do it all.
BUT STILL, HOW FREAKING COOL IS THAT?!
[deleted section of me mashing the keyboard in excitement]
Edit: aw, yeah.
Random stuff from 23andMe ’cause I’m bored.
I was messing around on 23andMe this afternoon. Here are two little graphics showing the distribution of hair color and eye color for the 23andMe community. The ones with the little green blat next to them were my choices.
This gentleman is my hero
30 degrees. How freaking cool is that?
“I enjoy learning as a means of independence,” Nicholson told the Gazette. “I have academic freedom; I can study or do whatever I want to do.”
Sslsljfdlskghasdlkfsards yesyesyesyesyes.
New life goal: get 30+ degrees.
Waiter! There’s an asdf in my qwerty!
I spent all day cleaning! I murdered approximately 3,000 ants! I wish I could live somewhere that didn’t have some sort of active infestation going on! This basement’s a biohazard! You get a survey two merged surveys because my eyes hurt and my brain’s in freak-out mode about Monday and I don’t feel like cleaning anymore and it’s 4 in the morning and I have to reset my sleeping schedule in the next 24 hours and I’m rambling so I’ll just stop this incredibly long run-on sentence NOW so you can get to the survey(s)!
*deep breath*
How long have you been blogging?
Since May 1, 2006. 2,295 days counting today.
Did you go to college?
I did indeed. And I’m going back ‘cause I’m cool like that!
Where have you traveled?
Ugh. Too many places in the last year. Outside of the U.S. = England, Sweden, Finland, and Canada. Inside the U.S. = bunch of states I don’t feel like listing.
Which celebrity do you get mistaken for?
I’ve never been mistaken for a celebrity. I was often told I had “Bettie Page hair” when I had my hair longer, though.
What are your three biggest pet peeves?
1. Discourteous walkers.
2. People who constantly draw attention to themselves in conversations. Like if Person A is telling a story about a personal success or achieved goal and Person B doesn’t even respond to their story and instead interjects their own “look at me!” statement.
3. My hair. Can a person’s hair be a pet peeve?
What is your favorite movie?
Apollo 13.
What is your drink of choice; wine, beer, or liquor. Or Water, Soda, Tea?
I’m a water person.
What is something you enjoy to do when you have me time?
Draw. Make obnoxious rainbows on paper.
What is your biggest phobia?
I don’t think I have anything that qualifies as a full-blown phobia, but dragonflies freak me the hell out.
Share with us an embarrassing moment of your past?
No.
What day would you love to relive again? Why?
July 25, 2009. Reasons = private.
If your life was turned into a movie… what actor would your best friend think should play you?
Hahaha, man, I have no idea. My friends aren’t too big into celebrities.
What are the jobs you had in high school/college/the early years?
Worked at Wendy’s, worked as a custodian at the U of I, worked as an in-home caregiver for Seubert’s, I was a TA for UBC, and was a lab tech for PCC Disabled Student Resources.
Show us a picture from high school or college.
Voila.
Picture by Maggie (I think). Marching band = best college experience ever (at least on campus, teehee).
If you could travel anywhere in the world, all expenses paid, where would you go?
Antarctica. Always, always Antarctica. Stockholm is choice #2.
Where do you see your life 6 and 1/2 years from now?
Given what’s happened in the past 15 or so months, I have no freaking idea.
If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be and why?
I’d be 19. It’s a good age because you’re not in your 20’s yet but you’re not TOO young. And it’s not 18. I don’t like the number 18.
What 5 songs are included on the soundtrack to your life? (You can pick “Middle School”, “High School”, “College”, “Post College” or any format you like.)
Pre-college: any song on Green Day’s “American Idiot” album. I listened to this album a LOT the summer before I went to college.
Early college: Keane’s “Is It Any Wonder?” It was the first song I downloaded in the dorms.
Later college: The Republic Tigers’ “Buildings and Mountains.” I listened to this song almost every morning the semester I graduated, mainly because it sounds depressing to me and I was depressed because I was certain the 4.0 wasn’t going to happen.
Grad school: Passion Pit’s “Sleepyhead” and pretty much every remix of it. I downloaded the original song the weekend my mom and I went up to UBC for recruitment. The other 10+ remixes of it were downloaded at various points during my two years in grad school.
Tucson: Fun.’s “Some Nights.” Because.
Romney picked Paul Ryan to run as his veep. Any thoughts?
I don’t know. I don’t know anything about Ryan because I’ve been news deprived for quite a bit due to the move.
Have you ever written a song?
Yes.
Have you ever been in the opposite sex’s public toilet?
Haha. Yes. Elementary school shenanigans.
Are you superstitious?
About some things, yes. But I’m better than I used to be. Haha, I used to wear the same outfit on test days because I thought it made me perform better.
What’s the most daring thing you’ve done?
Probably sky diving.
Did you have a baby blanket? Do you still sleep with it?
I did, but I haven’t used it since I was a kid.
Have you ever tried to cut your own hair? If yes, how’d it work out?
Dudes, nobody else is allowed to TOUCH my hair. I have perfected the art of the straight bang cut.
Have you ever sleepwalked?
I don’t think so.
What is your dream car?
One of those plastic back Jeeps of pure awesomeness.
What is your favorite cartoon of all time?
Cartoon as in “kid’s show” or cartoon as in “animated show”?
Kid’s show: Ed, Edd, n’ Eddy.
Animated show: freaking Metalocalypse, yo. I love that show so much. Hahaha, and it’s so completely different than Ed, Edd, n’ Eddy.
If you were in a car sinking in a lake, what would you do first?
Have a tea party.
Have you ever ridden in an ambulance?
Indeed.
How many foreign countries have you visited?
I’ve lived in Canada. I’ve visited England, Sweden, and Finland.
If you fell into quicksand, would you try to swim or try to float?
I’ve read that you should try to lean back so that you’re lying on your back.
Do you talk in your sleep?
I don’t think so.
Have you ever slipped in the bathtub?
Probably. I don’t remember any specific time, though.
If you could invite any movie star to your home for dinner, who would it be?
Tom Hanks. I like him, he’s cool.
Have you ever re-gifted?
I don’t think so.
If you could attend an Olympic Event, what would it be?
I think men’s figure skating is the most badass Olympic sport ever.
If you could participate in an Olympic Event, what would it be?
When I was a kid I wanted to be a long jumper. I was damn good at it, too.
If you won a $5,000 shopping spree to any store, which store would you pick?
Haha, probably something like Wal-Mart. Variety of stuff.
What do you think is your best feature?
My immune system? I dunno.
If you were to win an Oscar, what kind of movie would it be for?
Some sort of horribly unscientific disaster movie. ‘Cause those are the only good movies. Atomic Train II: This Time it’s Plutonium.
Which of the five senses is most important to you?
IT’S TOTALLY MY SENSE OF SMELL GUYS, YOU KNOW IT
Would you be a more successful painter or singer?
I can neither paint NOR sing, but I think I’d enjoy singing a little more, so singing.
How many years will/did you end up going to college?
This is a very complicated question for me, hahaha.
Have you ever had surgery?
Indeed. Appendectomy and wisdom teeth removal.
What do you like to collect?
Useless facts.
How many collectibles do you have?
I don’t really have any, I don’t think .
TWSB: Hey baby, let’s go off on a tangent together
This is a super-cool dictionary.
A few short interesting entries:
“It is common in mathematics now to use the Halmos symbol to indicate the end of a proof. It is named for mathematician Paul Halmos who seems to have first applied it to mathematics. Halmos has stated that he got the symbol from popular magazines where it was used to indicate the end of an article. It is also frequently called the tombstone.”
“The symbol “÷” which is used to indicate the operation of division is called an obelus… By a misunderstanding of a credit to John Pell about other material in the book, many English writers started using the symbol and calling it “Pell’s notations”. It is one of the most territorial of all math symbols, appearing in regular use in both the US and Great Britain and yet nearly non-existant in the rest of the world.”
“The latin word for the greek term ortho, was rectus which was also used to mean both straight and erect. We see the imprint of rectus in many math words and common language with both the straight and erect meanings. The rectum is so called because it is the “straight intestine”, while a rectangle is a parallelogram with an “erect angle”. In fact, the word rectangle was sometimes used for a “right angle” into the 19th century.
The latus rectum in a parabola is the side (latus) through the focus that is straight (rectus – parallel to the directrix). Latus rectum is the Latin translation of the Greek orthea pleura for erect side which was the term Apollonius used in his books on the conic sections. As languages blended in the middle ages, rectos became “recht” and eventually became our word for “right” and for the right angle.”
“A mathematician named Klein
Thought the Mobius strip was divine
He said “If you glue
The edges of two
You can make a strange bottle like mine”.”
“Q: Why did the chicken cross the Möbius strip?
A: To get to the same side.”
“The shortest path between two points on the surface of the Earth is along a great circle arc, but this path is often not possible for ships. One reason is that a great circle arc takes constant changes of compass heading. Because it is not much longer in the middle latitudes, ships often sail a path of constant compass heading, called a loxodrome.”
Also, statistician Karl Pearson is a badass.
News! Possibly. Maybe. Stay tuned.
GUYS something big may be happening next week. I got a phone call this morning and it might change the rest of the semester.
We’ll see.
I’m just too excited not to mention it, but I’m not going to say anything specific about it so’s not to jinx it.
Vroom.
Documentary time!
Filmmaker Jacob LaMendola created this short video on anosmia that got featured on the New York Times website. Please watch it. Lots of interesting perspectives from congenital and non-congenitals alike.
It’s a blog! Shocker, huh?
We’re almost done with this, guys!
4201. Has your life lacked a miracle?
I don’t believe in miracles. At least until Leibniz magically reincarnates.
4202. Would you shoot a terrorist?
Not, like, randomly. If they were in the middle of terrorizing, then yeah, maybe.
4203. Were you an unlovely child?
In my opinion, yes.
4204. In the recent Michael Jackson documentary was he treated fairly?
I have no idea, I never watched it.
4205. New York City and other places along the East Coast have recently been said to be the next terrorist targets. What do you think about this?
Haven’t they always been targets?
4206. What should the last question in this survey be?
DO YOU FOLKS LIKE COFFEE?!
4207. Are you more likely to think so deeply about things that you forget to take out the garbage OR be wrapped up in your life andforget to think deeply about things?
Depends on how busy I am.
4208. In what ways are you destructive?
I am incredibly good at breaking drinking glasses.
4209. If you’re not with the one you love can you love the one you’re with?
I think people are capable of romantically loving more than one person at a time.
4210. Why is it that when you hang upside down the blood rushes to your head but when you stand up the blood doesn’t rush to your feet?
Because our circulatory system was designed for “standing up” mode.
4211. Do you demand a better future?
It’s my future and I want it NOW!
4212. Does it make you uncomfortable to meet a person with a handicap or deformity (retarded, deaf, lacking a limb, etc.)?
Why would it make me uncomfortable?
4213. What did you think of the movie Vanilla Sky?
Didn’t see it.
4214. What is your favorite thing to dip into fondue?
Teehee. That sounds dirty.
4215. Are you more like Wayne or Garth?
Who?
4216. SNL or Mad TV?
Mad.
4217. Best three REM songs:
I only know “Losing My Religion.”
4218. Name something you do that might be considered eccentric:
HA. Hahaha. Ha.
4219. Are you hard or easy to love?
I have no idea. I think personality-wise I am, look-wise I’m not.
4220. Could you be the next american idol?
HA. Yeah right.
4221. If you were going on american idol what would you:
wear?
What I usually wear. Colorz.
sing?
I’d sing “Journey to the Past” from Disney’s Anastasia. It’s right in my vocal range.
4222. Is Simon Cowell sexy or does he suck?
Blah.
4223. What was the last thing you used a credit card for?
Uh…Walmart stuff?
4224. Do you like back or foot massages more?
Neither. I don’t like massages.
4225. If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow why oh why can’t I?
‘Cause of those damn tornadoes, yo.
4226. Why do teachers always want blue or black ink?
Easiest to read.
4227. What do you keep your change in?
A little gold purse thingy.
4228. Do you read playgirl or playboy for the articles?
Hahaha, remember when we bought that Playboy in Seattle on the band trip and then fawned over the ladies on the bus ride back? Fun times.
4229. Are you old fashioned? In what ways?
Yeah, but some of the things I’m old fashioned about aren’t currently “socially acceptable” by a lot of people, so yeah. Don’t want to talk about them.
4230. If you were going to get a mentor who would your top three choices be (out of everyone alive)?
I have no idea. All the people I’d want as mentors are dead.
4231. Would you rather visit France or Thailand?
France.
4232. You love your partner but they are a slob. They aren’t likely to change. Your thoughts:
Meh. As long as they’re not offended by my cleaning up their messes, no big deal. I actually wouldn’t mind that. It’d be a way to show love.
4233. Is anything brainwashing people?
Yes. Media and crappy entertainment and such.
4234. If you were a sex psitols song which one would you be (some choices in case you aren’t familiar with them: Holiday in the Sun, Bodies, No Feelings, Liar, Problems, Seventeen, Pretty Vacant, New York, E.M.I.)?
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Sex Pistols song.
4235. Are you more likely to drink moderately and often or drink within an inch of your life but only once in a while?
I’m more likely to not drink at all. Or take like half a day to finish a Guiness.
4236. What scares you most about war?
Uh…the dying part?
4237. You find a man with wings (an angel?) half dead in your back yard. the first thing you do is:
Wasn’t this a short story? I’d try to help heal him if possible.
4238. Why do people go to faith healers when there is so much proof that they are fake?
People do a lot of stupid things, yo.
4239. When someone you care about is really angry with you how do you feel and how do you deal with that feeling?
I get anxious. But that’s pretty much my standard response to everything.
4240. There’s a guy who sometimes get violent with his wife. He will scream ‘I LOVE you!’ While he hurts her. Do you think there could be any love there?
Possibly. Maybe the guy just is expressing love in the way he learned it. Doesn’t excuse the abuse, though.
4242. Is John Malkovitch sexy? Is Billy Corgan?
Is Michael Stipe? Is Moby? Is Sinead O’Connor?
Who are all these people?
4243. Imagine there’s a lepper and he wants to be cured but instead of going away his sores sprout sunflowers? Would that be a miracle? Would that tell you anything about anything?
Best. Question. Ever.
4244. Do you watch people?
Meh.
4245. Do you have anything that doesn’t belong to you?
Probably, but nothing that the owner doesn’t know about.
4246. what is normal?
Certainly not me. Or my awesome friends.
4247. You are given your own private island. What would you name it, and who is allowed to live there with you?
I’d name it Leibniz Land. I’d let Sean live on it after telling him I bought it off of eBay.
4249. If something is wrong in society and you don’t like it but you do nothing about it, in a way aren’t you supporting it?
No, not necessarily.
4250. Do you like Leslie Nielson?
Hell yeah.
4251. If you could make a new toothpaste flavor what would it be?
Red Bull.
4252, Have you ever called the police or the fire department?
Nope.
4255. You are on the weakest link with these contestants: a monkey, Simon Coswell, Hayden Christensen, Cher, a guy in a teenage mutant ninja turtle costume and GW Bush. Who do you vote off as the weakest link and why?
HA, I remember that show! Holy crap. I’d vote off Bush…do I really need a reason?
4256. Do you like:
mint skittles?
No.
mint ice cream?
With chocolate chips in it, yes.
junior mints?
No.
4257. Does protesting/demonstrating really have any effect?
Yes.
4259. Have you ever wanted to be with someone who was off limits?
Indeed.
4260. Have you ever wanted someone so badly that you would kiss your hand imagining it was them?
We used to do this in elementary school during church. ‘Cause, you know, we were taking the religion thing so seriously.
4261. Are there any situations when cheating on someone is okay?
No.
4262. When you feel empty inside what do you fill yourself up with?
z-scores.
4263. Would you rather be loved or desired?
Loved.
4264. When you remember something do you remember yourself to be more or less graceful/positive/smooth than you actually were?
Probably more. Don’t we all?
4265. How can you tell the days of the week apart without using a calander?
Use a watch! Hahaha. I’m funny.
4267. What 3 things about you have shaped your life the most?
My screwed up approach to school, my screwed up approach to relationships, and my awesome parents.
4268. Is your mind awake?
It’s getting there. I hope.
Is your soul?
We don’t have souls.
Were they always?
Haha. Nope.
If not, can you remember a moment or a few moments that helped you wake up?
I like to think that spring semester 2007 was my “Age of Enlightenment.” I remember rehearsing O Magnum Mysterium in the admin building and being totally overwhelmed with feeling like my mind had “opened” to the universe. It was pretty freaking amazing.
4269. Have you ever misperceived what was going on only to discover it when it was too late?
Story of my life, man.
4270. Do you understand the human heart?
The fundamentals, yes.
Oh, ha, you probably mean “heart” as in “love”, huh?
Then no.
4271. How important is your weight?
It…bothers me. That’s all I’m going to say.
How important is your partner’s weight?
As long as they’re not too unhealthy due to their weight, it doesn’t matter at all.
4272. What color is the wind?
Multicolored, according to Pocahontas.
4273. Do you believe children or adults know more?
Depends on the subject.
4274. Do you believe you are crazy?
Aren’t we all?
4275. Did you predict the ending to Joe Millionaire?
The what?
Is there something you care about less than you care about Joe Millionaire?
Huh?
4276. Snow blower or shovel?
Shovel.
4277. List everything you ate in the last 24 hours?
Spaghetti with parmesan, some M&Ms, an egg. I haven’t had dinner yet tonight.
4278. Have you ever plagiarized?
Nope.
4279. Who specifically annoys you?
No individual person.
4280. What is your favorite blanket like?
I don’t have a favorite blanket anymore. My funky airplane-covered sleeping bag got shredded in the like seven moves I’ve had over the past few years, so we left it in the dumpster in Tucson.
4281. How do you feel about teachers coming on to their students?
It’s not appropriate while they’re still in the teacher-student relationship.
Students coming on to their teachers?
Same as above.
4282. In what ways do you keep yourself entertained?
Give my data, give me R. Perpetual entertainment.
4283. Entertainers (musicians, sports players) are the highest paid people in america. Why are we so obsessed with being entertained?
Because we seem to have lost the ability to entertain ourselves.
4284. Do you want a perfect body?
That’d be cool. But whose definition of perfection?
4285. Do you want a perfect soul?
I don’t believe we have souls.
4286. Which do you want more?
By option elimination, perfect body.
4287. Do you want people to notice when you’re not around?
Bah. I’m not that special.
4288. Are you more of a creep, a wierdo or special?
I’ve been told I’m quite weird.
4289. Who wrote the bible?
Hahaha, I almost wrote “Radiohead.”
4290. Who wrote the book of love?
Fabio.
4291. Who put the bomp in the bomp ba bomp ba bomp?
Fabio.
4292. Who rocks the party that rocks the party?
Fabio’s cousin.
4293. If you could pick 5 things to study with no limits what 5 things would you pick?
Oh my. Statistics, math, philosophy, music, art.
4294. Do you study any of them on your own?
Statistics and philosophy, yes.
4295. What’s more important, learning or getting the hell out?
Learning, yo.
4296. What is your favorite highlighter color?
Orange.
4297. Give everyone some advice:
Some bugs that live in sink drains are impervious to bleach.
4298. Are you practically perfect in every way?
Last time I checked, I wasn’t Mary Poppins.
4299. Are you nasty and tricksy?
I don’t think so…
4300. Where is the precious?
The who?
Eigenblogger 