DIY: learning how you learn

Slo-Mo Pro Flo, lart-physics

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A tech/salesperson the other day told me his brand was better because of training. Instantly images of sitting in training class, learning how an IP address is constructed and then sitting at my desk and trying to troubleshoot routing for a webpage in the cluster came to mind. In other words training isn't always what it's cracked up to be. On the other hand, you want the tech to know what will break the system before he/she breaks it.

Add to that the fact that everyone learns differently. I tend to break things, then learn by fixing them--not always, but often enough for it to be a pattern. So I avoid situations that are critical. There are a number of sites that talk about the three main learning styles--hearing, seeing, and doing. "How do you learn?" is a nice presentation of these styles.

Learning via the web is just plain wonderful, especially with the amount of information available via YouTube, Wikipedia, online magazines, and other sources (note: be sure to verify that the information there is reliable by cross-checking facts and opinions). But this falls into the 'seeing' category. To really learn a thing you have to do it.

For example, if you want to learn more about electricity, try this to get started:

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If the project above is too simple, try electronics using LEDs.

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And when your latest project fails, remember this.

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-- Marge

When art lost its way

Marcel Duchamp, "Fountain" (1917), Tate

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The art movement called Dada produced some works that challenge the viewer's sensibilities, but for good reason.

Dada was an informal international movement, with participants in Europe and North America. The beginnings of Dada correspond to the outbreak of World War I. For many participants, the movement was a protest against the bourgeois nationalist and colonialist interests, which many Dadaists believed were the root cause of the war, and against the cultural and intellectual conformity—in art and more broadly in society—that corresponded to the war. 

Many Dadaists believed that the 'reason' and 'logic' of bourgeois capitalist society had led people into war. They expressed their rejection of that ideology in artistic expression that appeared to reject logic and embrace chaos and irrationality. For example, George Grosz later recalled that his Dadaist art was intended as a protest "against this world of mutual destruction." 

According to Hans Richter Dada was not art: it was "anti-art." Dada represented the opposite of everything which art stood for. Where art was concerned with traditional aesthetics, Dada ignored aesthetics. If art was to appeal to sensibilities, Dada was intended to offend. (Wikipedia)

The aftermath of World War I presented

drastic political, cultural, and social change across Europe, Asia, Africa, and even in areas outside those that were directly involved. Four empires collapsed due to the war, old countries were abolished, new ones were formed, boundaries were redrawn, international organizations were established, and many new and old ideologies took a firm hold in people's minds.

Years later, Dada artists described the movement

as "a phenomenon bursting forth in the midst of the postwar economic and moral crisis, a savior, a monster, which would lay waste to everything in its path... [It was] a systematic work of destruction and demoralization... In the end it became nothing but an act of sacrilege." (Wikipedia)

Perhaps the best known artists active in the Dada movement are Marcel Duchamp and Max Ernst. Dadaism resolved into surrealism, which aimed to "resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dream and reality (André Breton)." Often works produced by Dada artists are assigned to surrealism.

More information about Europe after WWI can be found at HowStuffWorks, the history section. And, as a challenge to the usual way of looking at history, here's an article on the cycles of the slower-moving planets, titles "History and the cycles of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto." (Hint: search the page on 'WW1' and '1917'.)

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Max Ernst, "The Elephant Celebes" (1921), Wikipedia

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-- Marge

Cartoons: a new hero for America

Pleasant as Christmas was, it's over and the world moves on. At least the Middle East was/is relatively quiet.

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Rick McKee, The Week

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According to the Center for American Progress, "The Fossil-Fuel Industry Spent Big to Set the Anti-Environment Agenda of the Next Congress."
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Pat Bagley, The Week

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The Hill answers the question: What is the cromnibus? Elizabeth Warren slams Citigroup's influence on it.

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RJ Matson, The Week

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And our new hero is...

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Dana Summers, The Week

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-- Marge

Season's Greeting 2014

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Both the flux of the heavens
And the flux deep within are slow,
Compared to the layered assemblies between--
Amoebae, Cells, humans,
Swirling and mingling to rhythms their own
And shared.

I think I am fixed in place and time,
Caught in a matrix of ebb and flow
Subject to laws prescribed.
But at the edges light dances, time wobbles.
There what is certain gives way to the
Inexplicable.

Some call these uncertainties mysteries
Others say miracles.

--Marge

Note:  Background adapted from a photo by Joe Parks, titled "Milky Way over Crater Lake."

Christmas gone wrong...

Pleated Jeans, Cheezburger

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Here are some humorous stories to remind you that Christmas doesn't have to be, and often isn't, perfect.

Run out of time or incentive to shop for yet another present? Here are some re-gifting confessions and snafus, as reported by AOL users.  This one resonates for me:

Reader Haveanangel says:

"About 20 years ago, my grandfather gave my husband a gift set of English Leather. He didn't like it, never opened it. The following year, [my husband] gave it to my brother-in-law. I have three sisters and for the next few years, that gift set made it's way around the family Christmas circuit. My husband got it back and he said enough was enough. He gave it to his brother. We haven't seen that stuff since."

Some good holiday stories can be found at HamptonRoads. Here's one that isn't about Christmas, but could be:

For Thanksgiving this year [2010], Cathy Jenson of Chesapeake decided to make a chocolate cake from scratch with her children, ages 7 and 9. The arguments left flour and cocoa powder everywhere, and the first attempt at making frosting had to be discarded, but finally the batter was in the pans and the pans were in the oven.

The second frosting attempt went much better, and Jenson said, "Hey, guys, looks like it turned out good this time! What's that smell?"

The 8-inch pans - smaller than the recipe called for - had overflowed. Flames were coming off the bottom of the oven.

The kids dropped to their knees and crawled to the front door, per the instructions from firefighters visiting their classrooms over the years, while Jenson's husband doused the fire. Then she put the cake back in to finish baking.

Done and cooled, the rounds broke apart as they were removed from the pans, but Jenson's mother-in-law held them together while frosting was slathered on.

"The result was a lopsided, crumbly cake with a split on top to rival the San Andreas Fault," Jenson said. "It was delicious!"

Below is the photo that accompanies Stacey Gustafson's blog post about their artificial Christmas tree.

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Stacey Gustafson, "Christmas Tree Taunts Us," Are you kidding me? 

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-- Marge

Cartoons: Just a-huggin' and a-chalkin'

For some reason Hoagy Carmichael's song "Huggin' And Chalkin'" comes to mind when I stand back and look at this week's cartoons. Certainly watching the news has undertones of an exercise in futility. But, there is some good news, as seen in today's last cartoon about a movement called Black Lives Matter.

President Obama is being controversial again, a state that seems to be linked to his simply being. Now it's his move toward normalizing relations with Cuba.

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Steve Sack, The Week

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With what looks like a price war on oil, was it smart to buy a hybrid? My opinion is yes.

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Chip Bok, The Week

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Congress rewards Wall Street yet again.

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David Horsey, The Week

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Republican, Reschmublican--despite their griping about the budget/national debt, Congress doesn't give a fig about either.

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Glenn McCoy, The Week

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There's protesting of "Excessive Force and Police Brutality" going on in the US and UK.

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Mike Keefe, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: Making Christmas yours

Stonehenge at winter solstice, crystalinks

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Christmas is a religious and cultural celebration practiced by billions of people around the world. With the proliferation of advertising and emphasis on buying, many feel that the true meaning of Christmas has been lost. But what is the true meaning?

Christians believe that Christmas is the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, a story familiar to many of us. As you may know, during this time of year many cultures, old and newer, celebrate their own beliefs, often centered on the winter solstice (December 21-22). Christianity is not the only religion/belief system to have rich traditions centered here.

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The Nativity by Le Nain, Fine Art America

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Focusing on the winter solstice, modern German-speaking areas and other Northern European countries celebrate Yule, which was a pagan religious festival. There is also Yalda, an Iranian winter festival; Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights; and a Wiccan practice merging Christian and Paganism. Caroline Oakes, blogging at the Huffington Post, has written an interesting piece titled "Winter Solstice: Discovering New Meaning of Advent Through Ancient Pagan Practice."

Atheists, chosing to sidestep the religious trappings of Christmas and the unknowns of a God viewed as unpredictable and without reason, have initiated Human Light, a new godless tradition. Contrary to popular belief, atheism has its own tradition and tenets. According to Patrick Colucci, the vice-chair of the Human Light committee:

“Human Light illuminates a positive, secular vision of a happy, just and peaceful future for our world, a future which humanity can build by working together, drawing on the best of our capacities.”

My own reverence for the winter solstice and Christmas are fairly well explained by Mark & Angela Pritchard at Belsebuub (not loving the site's name) in "The Spiritual Meaning of the Winter Solstice."

-- Marge

Technology: Visions of holodecks

Researchers have used projected ultrasound to create floating 3D shapes that can be seen and felt in mid-air (Photo: University of Bristol), gizmag

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Haptic is the magic word today, specifically haptic technology or haptics. At root the word means:

adjective: of or relating to the sense of touch, in particular relating to the perception and manipulation of objects using the senses of touch and proprioception--the reception of stimuli produced within the organism.

Tactile is a related term and a number of groups are working on making devices that offer tactile experience.

Researchers at the University of Bristol have coined the word ultrahaptics to describe their project. This article from gizmag, New ultrasound research creates holographic objects that can be seen and felt, describes their current efforts. Here's a video that explains more.

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If you would like to track the University of Bristol's Interaction and Graphics (BIG) projects, here's the BIG home page URL.

Disney Research (Disney does research?) has a video about tactile rendering of 3D features on touch surfaces, from a project by the Pittsburgh research team. Their approach uses an electro-vibration based friction display. Here's the video published on the DisneyResearchHub channel.

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Stuff, the magazine, reports on a prototype by Fujitsu that also uses ultrasonic haptic feedback, as does BIG's project.

Meanwhile MIT's Tangible Media Group is working on surfaces that actually change dimensionally. This video was published about six months ago on the MIT Media Lab channel.

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The metaverse awaits.

-- Marge

Cartoons: Porkin', lyin', and frackin'

Well, this week we found out where the Republicans (since they control the house) are willing to put the U.S.'s money via the budget.

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Rick McKee, The Week

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We learned again that Dick Cheney lies.

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Drew Sheneman, The Week

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And this year the drive to Grandma's house will be cheaper--is that a good thing? Bloomberg.com vs. Fortune.

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Chan Lowe, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: just say no to a dysfunctional Christmas

Jen from Sales: "That guy in Engineering gave me this bracelet for Christmas... I think it's expensive!"

Lisa, also in Sales: "Give it back; it's a trap."

Jen: "What's not to love about an engineer?"

Gift-giving at the office can be tricky, but sometimes the gift is clearly attached to some intent not in the spirit of Christmas.

Christmas is hands-down my favorite holiday, but it comes with a lot of baggage, much of it added by people who want to celebrate it their own way or who are just being their clueless selves. I'm not going to get into current Christmas controversy, but do offer some viewpoints on aspects of the season that can be problematic.

Personal safety and practical self defense.

Holiday shopping.

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And perhaps most of all, family dysfunction.

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If your family is problematic (and whose isn't?), here's some help: "Rules of Engagement: Dealing With Your Family During the Holidays." And this is an interesting piece about "How Self Love and Boundaries Mix."

Finally, if you've just heard your mother/stepmother/mother-in-law (father/stepfather/father-in-law) use the same phrase for the 23rd time, remember: things could be a lot worse.

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images. The Lede.blogs.nytimes

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-- Marge

Gone fishing--in Siberia

Ice fishing, Novosibirsk, East Siberia, Russia. (Photo by Oleg Nikishin/Getty Images), Philly.com

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Well, I'm not really in Siberia and ice fishing is definitely not my cup of tea--just taking a day off. Here's something to entertain you in the meantime.

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-- Marge

Cartoons: Peace on earth vs the Minerva Initiative

Today's mix of cartoons looks at waning idealism, cold-hearted materialism, and the DoD's (Department of Defense) scary preparations for the future.

To start with--today's general view of the dream of peace on Earth.

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Walt Handelsman, The Week

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Then there's another portion of the reality--the homeless in Silicon Valley.

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Chan Lowe, The Week

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In this next cartoon I don't see taxes vs. entitlements in governmental terms but the Rich vs. the rest of us.

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Glenn McCoy, The Week

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Here's the scary part. The Pentagon is preparing for mass civil breakdown. If you don't believe it, check out this Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) page on the Minerva Initiative. Better to stand up now, while we still can? Huffington Post notes that civil unrest is not always related to cases like Ferguson.  Maybe we are headed for mass civil breakdown.

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Steve Benson, The Week

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One more look at the dream of peace on earth, before it's forgotten.

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Paul Combs, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: Gift giving--sometimes the magic is in presentation

Pom pom yarn embellishments, Babble

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Once I bought a Wacom Bamboo tablet and, when I received it, I was amazed and delighted by the way it was packaged. A simple black box opened like a book to a one-layer, parchment-like tissue, folded over just so. Inside the tissue was nested the tablet. The whole package was so elegantly done that I felt I'd received a gift from Wacom.

The gift you're giving doesn't have to be expensive, and if it isn't, the way it's wrapped and presented can make it seem so. (Learning enough about the receiver to know what to give helps.) WikiHow has a good article about how to give a gift unconditionally. Babble gives 18 Creative Ways to Give Cash & Gift Cards (Leading image link is broken, but slideshow works well).

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In case of emergency, Babble

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Some tips for wrapping your gift well can be found at these sites. The Container Store offers a PDF for download that gives Tips for Perfect Gift Wrapping. Lushome has some unique presentation ideas that look a bit like a lot of work, but they may trigger some ideas for more manageable projects.

According to an article published at Today,

The Japanese equate wrapping a gift with “wrapping the heart,” so every gift is marked by thoughtfulness and consideration, both for the object housed within the container or wrapping, and for the recipient of the gift. Bringing seemingly start [stark?] contrasts into harmony — like yin and yang — is central to the idea of any presentation. Rusticity and refinement, the transient and the eternal, the earthy and the sublime: such disparities are made evident — and rendered compatible — in choices of combinations of papers and ties that both emphasize and luxuriate differences in texture as well as, perhaps differences in color or pattern. A crinkled paper lashed with knotted cord, for example, reflects that approach.

The video below, posted by Paper Guru, shows how to wrap a gift with kimono pleats, a hand-tied bow, and a heart-shaped note card.

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-- Marge

Humor: Some Christmas heresy (and a little music)

Wiggy!, Wikimedia

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Christmas fast approaches and that means shopping. Why is that?, you may ask.  Let Cracked tell you.

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Don't bother to shop for the college students and grads with their huge student loans on your list, just send money and maybe a card. College Humor says so.

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Mr. Bean, however, does get into the spirit of Christmas.

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-- Marge

Cartoons: some sums

These about sum it up...

John Deering, The Week

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Randal Enos, The Week

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Rick McKee, The Week

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-- Marge

Thanksgiving: the Macy's Day Parade

Here's hoping you all have a Turkey Day tomorrow that satisfies. One feature of the day is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Such a venerable tradition is worth saluting in itself. Here are 3 videos about the parade and the process that delivers it.

Thanksgiving Day parade in 1935: my apologies for the insensitive references to Native Americans. Note that the second half of the video is a repeat, but muted. (Video found at mentalfloss)

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Here's how one of the balloons was designed and produced. (Video published by Skylanders)

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And Macy's Parade Studios--seems every production now is a major one. (Video published by AOL)

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-- Marge

Science: ancient soundscapes

Lanzon Gallery at Chavin, Physics Today

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This headline, "Uncanny acoustics at a Peruvian archaeological site," at AIP's Physics Today caught my attention because it's unusual to hear a scientist use the word uncanny.

According to Encyclopedia Brittanica architectural acoustics is known to have been studied and applied for 2000 years. Miriam Kolar's research as part of the Chavín de Huántar Archaeological Acoustics Project has pushed the knowledge envelope back a thousand years. Similar research has been done at Stonehenge. In fact you can purchase apps for Apple and Android in which reproduce conditions there.

Below is a video illustrating the sound dynamics of Stonehenge, posted by Rupert Till.

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Returning to the Peruvian archaeological site, Kolar describes the effects of the chamber:

Present-day pututu musicians playing in the narrow, stone-lined corridors, alcoves, and rooms of Chavín have reported sensing their instruments “pulled into tune,” almost as if an unseen presence were guiding their playing. If two musicians blow on their shell horns close together, they may sense their instruments coming into sync with each other. What could account for that seeming phantom force?

While playing a shell horn, a musician’s lips vibrate in sync with the oscillations of the air in the shell’s spiraled interior. A player can modify the instrument’s tone by increasing the frequency of his or her lip vibrations, changing the shape of the air column inside the instrument by inserting a hand in the shell’s opening, or changing the shape of the vocal tracts. Those actions are all intuitive performance techniques.

Kolar explained that the small, enclosed spaces inside Chavín’s massive stone buildings have strong naturally occurring resonance frequencies, which can couple with the resonance of the pututu and the musician’s own lips and vocal tract. The acoustic coupling guides the musician and the instrument into a matching sound with the room. Both musician and listeners sense the eerie effect.

This is an ancient pututu. Note that it's modelled after a large conch shell.

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Chavin pututus, Stanford Chavín de Huántar project

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Acoustic couplers like the one below were used in the early days of using modems to connect to a network. And resonance is a powerful effect, known to bring down bridges.

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Acoustic Coupler, Wikimedia

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--Marge

Cartoons: gray Friday

Next Thursday (Thanksgiving) may now be gray in terms of retail, but today is gray in terms of my news. I'm tuning out many of the more incendiary editorial comments.

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Chan Lowe, The Week

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Some people who live in Buffalo may be reconsidering their views on climate change.

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Milt Priggee, The Week

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The Keystone XL pipeline isn't the only one in Congress.  The U.S. Senate may have rejected the bill supporting the XL pipeline; but in the eyes of TransCanada Corp, proposed builder of the pipeline, it's not dead.

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Walt Handelsman, The Week

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Net Neutrality is on hold, it seems the FCC Chairman fears being sued.  Can you sue the government?  Possibly, if you're a big corporation, now that corporations are people.

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David Fitzsimmons, The Week

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Like I said, gray.

-- Marge