treehat

"Nuclear wessels"

Wed, 20 Apr 2011 10:02:35 GMT

So it seems that humpback whales might actually use the stars to navigate.

I think I have a new favourite animal. Sorry, crows, but until you hatch a corvid Galileo who uses his clever little tool-using bird brain to make a telescope out of sticks and leaves, I'm afraid you've just been pushed down a notch.

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Tue, 04 Jan 2011 06:12:57 GMT

I'm getting ready to start on the Overly Ambitious Embroidery Project, as it occurs to me that I'm terribly out of practice on stitching. Not to mention that I haven't even tackled this sort of embroidery before. So I think, for practice and as a sort of warm-up, I'm going to try to stitch up a copy of the Wow! signal. It's fairly simple, being all text and only two colours, with no diagrams, so it's probably a good place to start. It's also one of my favourite bits of astronomy history. I was originally going to do the Pioneer plaque, but that's a tad more ambitious than I'm up to at the moment. I'll probably do that one later.

The Project is going to have diagrams in it though for more complex things (Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion come to mind), so I'll still have to do those at some point. But for now, I'm just going to start of with equations.

As for why I haven't started on the Project already: I wasn't very organized last semester, and I ran into a lot of unexpected issues. But things are starting to settle now and I'm making progress on a good number of those ongoing issues.

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Sat, 01 Jan 2011 17:46:01 GMT

I'm not too good at coming up with something nice to say about the New Year, so instead I'll leave you with a quote from Neil Gaiman:

May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't forget to make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself.

I'd say that's a pretty good message.

(As for me, I'm about to start on my Overly Ambitious Embroidery Project...)

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Wed, 15 Dec 2010 18:31:54 GMT

My brain is thoroughly squeezed, and I am done with final exams. I might have more to say later.

But right now, I think I'm going to just sleep for a bit.

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Sun, 24 Oct 2010 03:17:40 GMT

I really need to stop reading Neil Gaiman when I have work to do. He's one of the few authors - if not the only one - who makes me want to do nothing but write every time I read something of his. Maybe I could get away with it if I hadn't been playing catch-up the entire semester.

But alas, Calculus.

I could probably end just about every statement with those words these days, actually.

(Proper entry to follow when I have enough time and brainpower remaining for more than pointless ramble.)

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Something I Just Realized:

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 13:49:42 GMT

I get a headache when I wash my hair in the shower. At first I thought it was random, but it's been happening consistently enough for me to make the connection.

...What the heck?!

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FYI

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 18:20:55 GMT

It seems someone is trying to access my email account - I've gotten several password reset requests from Google today.

If anyone gets some strange email from ghostway@gmail.com in the near future, please comment here and let me know. Likewise if you see one of my accounts on a site (LJ, DW, Twitter, Tumblr, AIM, Skype, etc.) behaving strangely.

Thanks.

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On Voices

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 22:55:18 GMT

I haven't been posting about school here, because I don't want to turn this into a gurgling font of headache-induced negativity again. So instead, let me talk about voices.

I recently signed up for Skype, since the cell phone reception here is worse than terrible. Likely because this apartment building is built like a bomb shelter. So, I thought I'd see what my voice sounded like these days. (To be honest, this is in part because I was considering doing a small podcast.) I recorded a bit and... holy crap it's bad. Not terrible exactly, but there's a definite nasal quality to the whole thing. However, I did notice it sounded better than the last time I tried this, probably because of the surgery on my deviated septum a couple years back. But still.

I kind of wonder what causes that nasal tone of voice, and if anything can be done about it. Is it something that can be consciously controlled, or is it purely biological? Perhaps it has to do with having to wear glasses all the time? Maybe something to pursue when I'm not so busy with studying.

Another part of me wonders if it's entirely unrelated and just somehow a factor of the microphone, since I'm using the laptop's built-in microphone.

Oh well.

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Selentic

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:23:46 GMT

Things have been hectic with getting ready for the semester. I won't say much else here, as it's stuff that I probably shouldn't be repeating anyway.

Instead, let me tell you a story.

( Read more... )

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Oops.

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:37:30 GMT

So somehow I accidentally ordered an extra copy of Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour (aka Scott Pilgrim vol. 6). Does anyone here want it?

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I think we can all agree a string theory joke is just too obvious here.

Sun, 01 Aug 2010 19:43:45 GMT

I have An Idea.

When I went to the graduation/commencement ceremony for my Associate's Degree back in June, we had to buy our robes instead of renting them. Which probably saved money for the college, given how cheap they were. This means, though, that I still have mine sitting in the closet. So, I thought, why not do something with it instead of letting it gather dust? I can't very well wear it around town, after all.

I'm going to Eastern Michigan this fall to start on a Physics degree. So I thought it would be nice to have some chronicle at the end of it of everything I've learned, something that I could look at in five years, when I should be on my way towards a Doctorate in cosmology or similair, and see what I've accomplished. And I've become quite a fan of cross-stitch and embroidery in the past couple years - it's a relatively simple craft that does not require much in the way of artistic ability. (Thank goodness.)

And so I had my Idea - embroidering the living crap out of this cheap graduation gown with everything I learn from here on out. And not just from classes - everything I accomplish, the interests I develop, the things I do, all these will go on there, alongside the theorems, formulas, ideas, and concepts I learn. I want to completely capture my transit through academia, starting now with being a Proper College Student.

(Yes, it took me this long to feel like a Proper Student. Maybe I'll tell the whole tale properly later, but long story short: headaches suck. N.B.: This is an understatement.)

I'll try to keep up with it, to do something every week. We'll see how it goes. The semester doesn't properly start until September, so that's probably when I'll start this project. I might post progress updates every so often. No - I will post progress updates, otherwise I'll probably stop doing it when I get stressed out.

Onwards!

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Job Help?

Thu, 10 Jun 2010 21:05:34 GMT

Hey everyone!

I'm currently searching for a job. Long story short, there's not a whole lot of options here in Michigan for a just-out-of-college draftsman. (Everything seems to require several years of industry experience, and the employment office isn't any help.) So I'd like to ask a favor: Do any of you know of any companies that might do CAD or other drafting work in your area? These would generally be companies that design or manufacture parts. If you do, please let me know, either by commenting here or by email at breravat@gmail.com (note: this is not my main gmail account.). And if you think someone else might know, please pass this message on to them as well. I can email my resumé and/or portfolio to anyone who wants it.

(Comments are screened, for what I think are obvious reasons.)

I'm also knowledgeable in (X)HTML and CSS, so if you know someone that needs an entry-level web designer, that would work too.

I'm willing to move just about anywhere. Basically, if you know anyone that does drafting or design, tell them that you know a guy who doesn't have a lot of work experience, but he's brilliant when it comes to visualizing how parts fit together three-dimensionally and then drafting them. That he's someone who hasn't met a software package he couldn't use and loves drafting so much he sometimes does it for fun. Oh, and he can fix their website, too.

(Hey, I figure I'm allowed to have a bit of an ego when it comes to something I've been working on for years. It's about the only thing I'll ever brag about. And besides, I've had people tell me that I am pretty awesome at CAD.)

If you could spare a little bit of time to help me out, I'd be extremely grateful.

Thank you!

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Chicago pictures

Mon, 10 May 2010 20:13:14 GMT

Oh hey, I put up my pictures from my Chicago trip over here on Flickr. Well, the ones that turned out decent, at least.

...Although I think I got a bit carried away with the tags on this one. But c'mon, SPACE TRILOBITE!

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Finally.

Mon, 10 May 2010 19:05:30 GMT

So I got back from Chicago recently. It was actually quite eye-opening!

First of all, it turns out I have an uncomfortable neurosis about walking around in a big city. No, Mike, just because all the buildings are higher than two stories and go on for more than a couple blocks and the streets are rather crowded does not mean that some hoodlum is going to jump out and stab you in the middle of the day. I'll have to work on that, somehow, along with my neurotic fear of bars.

Anyway.

The important thing I realized is that i finally know what I want to do.* I'm going to go into academia, doing research in astronomy/astrophysics/cosmology. It took me a trip to the Adler Planetarium (especially their semi-public research lab) to remind me how much I love and am fascinated by the cosmos, and finishing my Associate's degree to convince me that yes, I do have the smarts for this. I've had people telling me I'm smart and clever and such for years, but I couldn't believe them, because my migraines have always made me seem slower than the rest of the crowd. (Various teachers misinterpreting headaches for laziness or mental problems or flat-out stupidity certainly didn't help matters.) I'm going to start by taking two courses to complete my MACRAO transfer status** this summer and then going for a Bachelor's degree in Physics or possibly Math w/ Statistics Focus at Eastern Michigan, since I'm still enrolled there (and it's way too late to apply for anywhere else). Also, Eastern has its own observatory and an Astronomy minor, which isn't a bad start. (Although ideally, getting a Bachelor's degree from a college that offers an astronomy-related Master's degree would be best.)

I've ranted and complained about conditions at and decisions by my Community College before. But I really should thank them for giving me real self-confidence for the first time in my goddamn life.

I finally have a solid direction in life, one that excites me and seems attainable. Honestly? I'm so happy I could cry.

*I mean, I'm good at CAD, but I don't really enjoy it all that much. And I enjoy all the related design stuff even less.
**MACRAO = "Michigan Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers". Basically, I have to take some extra courses past the basic General Education requirements, but then I automatically pass the Gen Ed requirements at any college in Michigan I transfer to, so I can concentrate on the important stuff. And I only need to take two courses this summer to get it.

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Yay!

Tue, 04 May 2010 15:21:45 GMT

I finished my degree last night! Now for the fun of full-time job searching.

We're taking the train to Chicago tomorrow to celebrate because, well, I like trains and I've really wanted to see the Adler Planetarium. (It's always the first landmark I place in any game of Sim City.)

I don't know what else to say. Except that I'm anxious for my grades to come in.

Whee!

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