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Science Forums - Blogs http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/ Science forums with active discussion of current issues in science and technology. We welcome everyone. en Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:00:10 GMT vBulletin 60 http://hypography.com/forums/images/styles/new_facebook/images/misc/rss.jpg Science Forums - Blogs http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/ <![CDATA[The Joy of Finding Out Why It's Gone]]> http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/pyrotex/245-joy-finding-out-why-its-gone.html Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:51:21 GMT Yeah, you don't know what you got 'till it's gone. But the mystery lingers. Why is it gone? The mystery tasks me, like a great white whale somewhere over the horizon.

I am speaking, of course, of the disastrous visit to Office Depot, as elucidated in my previous blog. I am speaking of the root cause of the fact that all my documents (actually, "most", not all) were erased from my hard drives.

The answer was staring me in the face from the day I got my computer home and painstakingly unsnarled all the cables and got everything plugged back together. There, lying innocently on the desktop among all the carnage of eviscerated folders, was this little file with the icon of a simple cogged gear. It's name was AXEL.DAV. I had no idea what it was. It seemed to me that it might be some important component of some larger application. Not understanding its purpose, I was afraid to touch it.

After a few days, I created a folder called "Wierd Stuff" and put AXEL.DAV into it. Nothing bad happened. As the days went by, my fear that it might have some critical function waned. Last weekend, I confidently erased it. Nothing bad happened.

Last night, I had to go "dumpster diving" for some reason. That's what I call it when I have to manually inspect the contents of folders and subfolders that I am unfamiliar with. There I was, blindly searching way down deep inside "Programs and Settings", and I noticed a file... AXEL.DAV.

That's funny. What's that doing down here? I went up one level in the folder-tree. And there it was again... AXEL.DAV. In three minutes I found another dozen clones of that little cogged gear.

A chill ran up the back of my neck. I hate it when that happens. Because it usually means that 1) I'm about to discover something really bad, and/or 2) I'm about to realize that I have been really stupid.

It suddenly occured to me that I should Google that file name. Yeah, that's obvious to you! Shut up. So, I googled AXEL.DAV.

Did you know there was a virus called AXEL.DAV? Hunh? Didja? Didja? Really? Shut up.

There were a jillion hits on AXEL.DAV. The first three told me all about this little booger, how it searches out certain documents, notably Word and Excel files, and erases them, leaving behind its calling card, the 4K file, AXEL.DAV. A fourth website told me how to get rid of the nasty booger, and that took all of four minutes.

It is nice to know. It's nice to know why this mysterious thing happened to me. It's nice to have figured it out by myself. Shades of Sherlock! It's also a bit embarrasing that it took three freakin' WEEKS to figure it out.

When did my PC get infected? Obviously, right there in Office Depot, after the "PC Checkup" verified that my computer was clean of all bug-uglies, and during the attempt of that young employee to download and execute a new mouse driver. So, he didn't do it on purpose. There was no malicious intent. He just did something stupid. I can forgive that.

I just got off the phone with the manager at Office Depot. He really, really, no kidding, REALLY appreciated finding out how my machine got wiped. It was a mystery to them, too. Now, a mystery solved.

----------------- ]]> Pyrotex http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/pyrotex/245-joy-finding-out-why-its-gone.html <![CDATA["This is a very simple, unobtrusive way to promote ethical behavior."]]> http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/244-very-simple-unobtrusive-way-promote-ethical-behavior.html Sun, 25 Oct 2009 10:16:18 GMT This refers to this news article: Cleanliness IS next to godliness: new research shows clean... This refers to this news article:

Cleanliness IS next to godliness: new research shows clean smells unconsciously promote moral behavior

Quote:

People are unconsciously fairer and more generous when they are in clean-smelling environments, according to a soon-to-be published study led by a Brigham Young University professor.

The research found a dramatic improvement in ethical behavior with just a few spritzes of citrus-scented Windex.

Really? Anyone else buy this malarky?

Promote (favorable) subjective ethical behavior through "scenting"?

Sure, a clean environment is beneficial, but "Windex improving ethics" good? ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/244-very-simple-unobtrusive-way-promote-ethical-behavior.html Disney and Math? http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/242-disney-math.html Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:35:03 GMT This put a smile on my face, so I though I might share. :) ---Quote (Originally by... This put a smile on my face, so I though I might share. :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by http://www.boston.com/business/ticker/2009/10/raytheon_unveil_2.html

Raytheon Co., the Waltham defense contractor, said it is helping to unveil a ride at Epcot, part of Walt Disney World in Florida, that requires thrill seekers to make use of their mathematical skills.

Called the "Sum of all Thrills," the ride lets guests custom-design an experience by using math skills, a touch-screen table, and a robotic simulator, and the ride is part of a larger Raytheon effort to encourage students to develop an interest in math and science...

Sum of all Thrills lets guests of all ages create their own experience by first choosing a ride theme, including a roller coaster, bobsled, or jet plane. Using multi-touch object recognition tables with instructions available in six languages, guests use math and engineering based tools, such as rulers and speed dials, to design and customize their ride by adding corkscrews, inversions, or steep hills. Guests learn and apply mathematical and engineering principles to determine how much energy is needed for a jet to take off or for a roller coaster or bobsled to make it up its first climb.

Any inspiration for young scientists gets the thumbs up from me. :thumbs_up

I wanna play! :hyper: ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/242-disney-math.html I Dream of Genes http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/241-i-dream-genes.html Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:26:39 GMT Not really, though a heliacal rollercoaster of the mind doesn't sound too bad! :)

But I do dream...

I loathe it actually. It seems I'm always in some f'ed up plot that involves craziness and strife. What genes control this?!

Insomnia is bad enough, but bad dreams are somewhat worse. Note, I didn't say nightmare. I haven't had one of those since I was a toddler. But, some of my dreams seem so profound and "out there" that I would think that most people would consider them nightmares.

The other night, I had a dream where I woke up (in my dream) to find out that aliens were stealing human consciousness for some reason. There was a space station where all the human bodies were kept. It was like a prison, in space.

Anybody else have *crazy* dreams where it takes a minute for reality to creep back in upon wakening? ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/241-i-dream-genes.html Where is the closest analog of Solar system? http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/krupin/240-where-closest-analog-solar-system.html Mon, 19 Oct 2009 08:32:03 GMT Trying to unravel the riddle of the origin of the solar system planetary scientists are looking for... Trying to unravel the riddle of the origin of the solar system planetary scientists are looking for similar systems that are are being for thousands of light years away. Meanwhile, they ignore at least three analogues inside our own planetary system. This satellite systems of giant planets - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus. Which of these systems is the most similar to the total solar system and why?

At first glance, these systems do not have any special fundamental differences from one another. Is that the Galilean moons of Jupiter denser than moons of Saturn or Uranus (Jupiter's moon Io is denser than our moon!). So the protomoons’ disk of Jupiter had a lot of stone and metal. Density of close satellites - Io and Europe is far exceeds the density of satellites - Ganymede and Callisto. And this fact also reminds the solar system - the division of the planets in two groups of giant planets and terrestrial planets. So the system of Jupiter, is the closest to the solar system?

However, if making such a logical conclusion, we make a big mistake. In fact, the closest analogue, of course, is the system of Saturn. And it is for following reason.

Among other satellites in the Saturn’s system the Titan is distinctly allocated, as well as in the solar system the planet Jupiter is. Let’s take their orbital radii as the units of distance. Compare moons of Saturn, lying inside the orbit of Titan, with the terrestrial planets , (lying inside the orbit of Jupiter). Call attention to a pair of moons Dione-Tethys and Enceladus-Mimas. We associate the pair Enceladus-Mimas with the pair of planets Earth-Venus. And what can be associated with a pair Dione-Tethys? ]]> Krupin http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/krupin/240-where-closest-analog-solar-system.html <![CDATA[You Don't Know What You Got 'Till It's Gone]]> http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/pyrotex/236-you-dont-know-what-you-got-till-its-gone.html Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:14:04 GMT I have a five year-old HP computer. It runs XP and it runs very well, thank you. Woops. I... I have a five year-old HP computer. It runs XP and it runs very well, thank you.

Woops. I had a computer. Past tense.

Though it ran long and well, and only crapped out while playing Alpha Centauri, my favorite game, I felt that it had slowed down over the years. No telling what was in there, gumming up the works -- viruses, worms, clams, spyware, spudware, cookies, gummybears and other mean and nasty stuff.

A brand new Office Depot had just opened up on NASA Road 1, and I noticed they had a banner out front, saying "FREE PC CHECKUP!". That sounded like exactly what I needed. I called for the details, and sure enough, the checkup itself was at no cost, and was intended to find and clean up all those mean and nasty things. Upgrades, reconfigs, and improved security cost extra, of course. Most importantly, no data would be injured during the making of this checkup.

I delivered my beloved PC into the hands of the computer shepherd on a balmy Saturday afternoon.

I called Sunday afternoon and was told my PC was clean as a whistle! No bug-uglies had infested my OS and my data was uncontaminated.

When I arrived to pick it up, I asked for a new mouse, as my one at home was operating erratically and no amount of cleaning seemed to help. Asking for a new mouse is not a big request. Just a mouse. Only, wait... my PC used a round plug for the mouse cable. All modern mouses (?) use USB plugs.

Okay, said the 20-something, clean-cut, college student employee at Office Depot. I'll just download a new mouse driver. This will only take a minute.

After 45 minutes, I went up to him and asked what the matter was. He said that he was having trouble rebooting my PC. There was just a detectable trace of whimper in his voice. Another 15 minutes went by, with him pounding the keyboard, staring at the screen, and showing increasing signs of panic.

I said, Doc, your time's up. Unplug my machine and help me out to the van with it. I'm taking it home.

The next evening, I plugged it all together (still using the old erratic mouse) and turned it on. Got several error messages telling me that certain application modules were missing. I closed those dialog boxes and fired up Alpha Centauri. It worked just fine.

The next evening, decided to work on an essay I had started some months ago. It wasn't there. I opened up the "My Documents" folder.

It was empty. There weren't even any dustbunnies or cobwebs. It was totally, absolutely empty.

I did a search for words that I used frequently in my document titles, and within their contents. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. I did a search in the backup drive for the string "the". Any "the" at all. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.

I opened up a Word blank document. Word wouldn't open without the serial number printed on the original installation disk lable. Ditto Excel. Ditto Canvas. Ditto every paid-for application. All that was left was Notespad (freeware) and the coupla dozen text files saved in the same folder as the application.

And then I became angry.
Very angry.
White knuckled angry.
Throwing food across the room angry.
Volcanic eruption angry.
F-5 tornado angry.
Marzipanal angry.
Illudium Pu-36 Explosive Space Modulator angry.

Those sumbitches at Office Depot had wiped my hard drives.

On the phone, the technician turned me over to the store manager, we talked, and he turned me over to the technical manager, we talked, and the following weekend, I took my PC back into the store. The final analysis, performed remotely from their headquarters laboratory, was that no trace of any document in "My Documents" could be found. Not only were they erased from the OS table of contents, they had been physically zero-overwritten on the hard drives. Nothing could be salvaged.

I asked them how this could have happened. They apologized and said they didn't have a clue.

I told my wife. Gwen got angry, only she went straight to Illudium Pu-36 Explosive Space Modulator angry without all that futzing about. She wanted to know how much had been lost. The pictures of her family. The pictures of our house. The pictures of our honeymoon.

I have backups of nearly everything, I said -- except maybe the house. I couldn't remember when I had done the last backup. Last Spring? Last year?

But where are the backups? We've moved the computer and all the bookshelves and all the files and boxes at least twice since last Spring while we painted rooms. They're probably in the garage. Probably. There's just two or three dozen sealed plastic storage bins out there. Stacked four deep. Probably.

They are probably in the garage. I am most definitely in the dog house.

I just got off the phone with Office Depot. They are offering me the full Microsoft Office Professional 2007 as "payment" for their error. That's something. But it won't replace whatever family pictures we took after the last backup. And the essays.

I accepted their offer. I'll pick up my PC tonight, with the new Office installed and checked.

Oh! And it will have a new mouse. A modern laser mouse with USB cable.

And a goddam $2 USB to PS2 cable adaptor that fits into my PC's old-fashioned mouse socket. ]]> Pyrotex http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/pyrotex/236-you-dont-know-what-you-got-till-its-gone.html How do you make a car powered only by a fishing weight abd gravity that is made fro http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/rparma/235-how-do-you-make-car-powered-only-fishing-weight-abd-gravity-made-fro.html Sun, 27 Sep 2009 14:43:27 GMT How do you make a car powered only by a fishing weight and gravity made from things around a house... How do you make a car powered only by a fishing weight and gravity made from things around a house and is only 30cm x 30 cm.......i can make the car but am having trouble making the car move by the weight ]]> rparma http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/rparma/235-how-do-you-make-car-powered-only-fishing-weight-abd-gravity-made-fro.html Virulent comments on Wiccan Churches http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/232-virulent-comments-wiccan-churches.html Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:57:11 GMT I must say this. It is the gospel according to Boerseun et al in the test forum. (actually, Sanctus... I must say this. It is the gospel according to Boerseun et al in the test forum. (actually, Sanctus might be the culprit)

http://hypography.com/forums/test-fo...tml#post278009

Those Wiccan churches need to end. They are...um...bad and stuff. (not very virulent, I know)

I should take up midwifery. I think Janus is on to something. :hihi:
But I'm staying away from that pyromaniac Orwell like I'm staying away from Boerseun's film debut. :hihi:

Join the fun! ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/232-virulent-comments-wiccan-churches.html Ghostwriting Journal Articles http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/231-ghostwriting-journal-articles.html Tue, 18 Aug 2009 04:49:24 GMT I was appaled at the recent news involving the pharmaceutical company, Wyeth, paying people to... I was appaled at the recent news involving the pharmaceutical company, Wyeth, paying people to ghostwrite favorable articles on the drugs they sell.

Quote:

Originally Posted by http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/05/health/research/05ghost.html?_r=2

Newly unveiled court documents show that ghostwriters paid by a pharmaceutical company played a major role in producing 26 scientific papers backing the use of hormone replacement therapy in women, suggesting that the level of hidden industry influence on medical literature is broader than previously known.
...
The court documents provide a detailed paper trail showing how Wyeth contracted with a medical communications company to outline articles, draft them and then solicit top physicians to sign their names, even though many of the doctors contributed little or no writing. The documents suggest the practice went well beyond the case of Wyeth and hormone therapy, involving numerous drugs from other pharmaceutical companies.

I'm curious how these articles made it past the peer-review process and why these doctors signed off on them. How far does the money-trail go?

It's a disgrace for science. Wyeth sees $ and the science goes by the wayside. It's a sad depiction of human folly.

But, to end on a light note, at least they are in court. :) ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/231-ghostwriting-journal-articles.html Resveratrol, the authority fallacy, and marketing http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/230-resveratrol-authority-fallacy-marketing.html Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:52:58 GMT It was a bit disturbing to read the article about Dr. Sinclair's name being marketed as an authority promoting Resveratrol (an acclaimed anti-aging chemical derived from wine).

Resveratrol: The Hard Sell on Anti-Aging - BusinessWeek

This is a classic example of a technique of influence. Use the logical fallacy of authority (in this case, a scientist from Harvard University) to make an ad campaign that sells. This is made more worrisome by the fact that Dr. Sinclair never endorsed this drug.

The article goes on to explain that all major news networks (and Oprah) have been claimed as supporting this new "anti-aging miracle". Barbara Walters goes so far as to say that it is a battle trying to clear the names these deceptive marketers use.

My only hope is that, upon reading this you are more educated to the deceptive techniques advertisers use in the guise of science. The same goes for acai berries. :naughty: ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/230-resveratrol-authority-fallacy-marketing.html new smilies!! http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/turtle/229-new-smilies.html Mon, 10 Aug 2009 00:38:14 GMT gotta try 'em!!

:shuriken: :ninja: :helpsmilie: :excl: :yinyang: :detective: :wub: :whistle: :surrender: :smartass: :yes: :shifty: :nuke: :hammer2: :clap: :chinese: :chef: :innocent: :yawn: :rockon2::oopsie: :dots: :notyourmother:

:ban: ]]> Turtle http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/turtle/229-new-smilies.html The self-teleporting carrier bag, and other annoyances http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/donk/228-self-teleporting-carrier-bag-other-annoyances.html Wed, 29 Jul 2009 21:56:08 GMT Stress is a major problem nowadays. I deliberately keep my life as calm and stress-free as... Stress is a major problem nowadays. I deliberately keep my life as calm and stress-free as possible. On the other hand, man is a problem-solving animal and a life without problems brings on its own form of stress. My solution to the dilemma is to set myself tasks both small and large, something where the possibility of failure exists – for without failure, there can be no success.

The crazy paving on our driveway had become increasingly crazy over the past few years with some sections heaving upwards, others sinking downwards. The gaps between have been seeded by some tall and persistent weeds and one or two small trees. A fortnight away during a wet summer turns it into an instant forest, so that I need a machete to reach my own front door. The landlord agreed to take action. He hired a trio of large Irishmen with an even larger mechanical digger to take the whole thing up and put down a nice gravelled driveway. They arrived on Tuesday last week and had the whole job done by Friday.

It is indeed a very nice gravelled driveway. Unfortunately, the large mechanical digger uprooted the telephone cable and cut us off from the world. :( I rang the telephone company from work on Saturday and explained the situation. They assured me of an engineer on Tuesday.

Another annoyance are the ever-growing mounds of books in the house. I brought around 700 with me; my beloved a hundred or so. In the three years we've been here, we have acquired a lot more. The smallest bedroom (a.k.a. study) is shelved, and we have bookcases in living room and dining room, yet the piles multiply. More shelves needed! There's a good-sized alcove in the living room next to the chimney breast, so I ordered timber and battens. Not wishing to annoy the neighbours, I couldn't do the work in the evenings. Saturday I was working in the morning and busy doing other stuff in the afternoon.

On Sunday afternoon, therefore, I measured up (to be precise, down), checked with spirit level and drilled my first hole. While drilling the second I hit a tough bit. Even on maximum power with hammer action I couldn't get through. I've had that before – the bricks used on this house were not high-quality, and have chunks of flint all through them. I put a large spike into the hole and whacked it with the hammer. Very efficiently knocking a hole in the gas pipe hidden in the plaster :eek:

After a short period of panic the gas was turned off and the hole sealed with a fairly airtight wood filler. Experiment determined that we could have the gas on for an hour before we started to smell it leaking through the plasterwork. We could cook, wash, wash up and so on, so I decided not to call out an emergency gasman straight away. The landlord might decide to do away with the pipe altogether – the central heating means that we don’t need gas in the fireplace. I called him on Monday, and he agreed. I explained that we were ok for the moment, and he arranged to have a gas engineer call on Thursday. So hopefully tomorrow we’ll have the gas back on, and I can get back to putting up the shelves this weekend. :)

Now we get to the next of this week’s annoyances. I’m not a morning person. I lurch out of bed at around 8am and follow a preordained routine. The routine is there because my brain cells kick in slowly, one by one, leaving me unable to articulate beyond a groan or whimper much before 9am. Part of the routine is to pick up various items (mobile phone, cash, bank card, keys, sandwiches and so on) and stow them either about my person or in my bag. On Saturday I hadn’t bothered with my shoulder bag since I was only going to be there for a few hours – I used a carrier bag instead. So there I was on Monday morning, short of time and feeling even worse than usual. I put the sandwiches etc. into Saturday’s carrier, trusting that everything else I needed would be in there, and headed off to work.

It’s a fifteen-minute walk. I don’t stop; I don’t talk to anyone other than a “good morning”. I arrive at work, sit down at the computer and sling the bag under the desk. Lunchtime came, and I looked for my sandwiches. No bag. Looked around the small workplace. No bag. Decided that somehow, and against all routine, I’d walked to work without noticing I was carrying nothing.

When I got home that evening I searched for the bag. It wasn’t there. Decided that it had to be at work and that I hadn’t searched hard enough.

Tuesday, I searched thoroughly at work. Definitely not there. I even checked the big bin at the back, in case it had somehow been thrown out as rubbish. Not likely – there are only two of us working there – but I was running out of ideas. Home again, and an even more thorough search. Under the beds. Behind chairs and sofa. Inside boxes. Nothing.

I did not stop on the way to work on Monday. It would have been so far out of routine that I'd have remembered, even in my pitiful morning state. The bag had to be either at home or at work, yet it was in neither place.

The telephone engineer arrived later than promised, but had us reconnected by 6pm. At 6.30 the telephone rang. “You’re a very hard man to reach,” said a voice. “Did you leave a carrier bag by the bus stop in Warwick Marketplace?” :eek_big: :eek2: :eek2:

“I’ve lost a carrier bag, yes. But I haven’t been to Warwick for ages.”

He asked what would be in it. I described the items, and he agreed that it was my bag. Fairly definite anyway – it had my phonebill in it, which I’d taken to work on Saturday to call out an engineer. Lucky really – it gave him a phone number to ring, not realising that it would just ring unanswered until we were reconnected. He brought the bag round, and explained that his wife had found it on Monday afternoon.

So how did it get there? I occasionally have customers sitting with me while I work bits of magic on the computer for them, but not on Monday morning. A couple of people walked past, but I’m pretty sure they didn’t stop. And why would they pick up my bag anyway? It wasn’t theft – the money, bank card and voice recorder were still there. Some sort of practical joke? That would only work if they’d let me know where it was. Instead it was picked up by a total stranger. More likely it would have been picked up by someone who would take the cash and throw the rest into the nearest bin.

I’ve thought long and hard, and decided that I’m going to have to stay puzzled on this one. I’ll add it to my list of inexplicable phenomena. The only solutions I can come up with are that the bag self-teleported, or God has decided to play a nasty and devious game with my head. ]]> Donk http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/donk/228-self-teleporting-carrier-bag-other-annoyances.html Scary Story! http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/227-scary-story.html Sat, 25 Jul 2009 06:41:45 GMT While huddling around a bonfire in a Georgia summer night, some friends were discussing ways of... While huddling around a bonfire in a Georgia summer night, some friends were discussing ways of entertaining themselves. One friend suggested "Scary Stories". And we ran with it...

The first story was about a man with a golden arm. I can't tell you much more than that because I kinda zoned out half way through the 20 words per minute storrytelling.

Nonetheless, the story came to its conclusion and everyone waited to see the epic failure of an ending (whatever it might be) and it was shockingly unsurprising.

BOO! (or Gotcha!)

It's supposed to make you jump up and scream at the very moment you are on the edge of your seat. It's a common trick used in horror films where...aw, sorry, I forgot my audience. ;)

So anyways, this tragedy somehow begets another tragedy. People have not had enough. (can you sense my mood at this point) :evil:

"Who's next?"

Nobody says a word.

Chirp-Chirp (they were going crazy...the crickets)

And then...

"Hey, freeztar, why don't you tell us a scary story?!" (with a bit of joking sarcasm in the voice)

Ok, I replied, but it's not what you are going to expect.

There is a quasar (omitting time spent explaining this) called Wolf-Rayet (WR 104) that is aimed at us (omitting time spent explaining this) which could possibly annhilate our planet in one fatal instant (freeztar's wife: Oh god, here he goes again). Radiation would cause *everything* to explode in flames and we would be "microwaved", to put it lightly. ;)
My unenthusiastically stunned audience was unmoved. One friend remarked that it was lamer than the first scary story. I tried to explain that mine was scarier because it had truth behind it. Scary is always scarier when it could happen to you.

Well...That was the end of Scary Stories around the fire, for that day. :hihi:

And here I sit blogging, pondering WR-104...:daydreaming: ]]> freeztar http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/freeztar/227-scary-story.html Camassia quamash http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/turtle/226-camassia-quamash.html Sun, 12 Jul 2009 06:45:47 GMT never before last walkabout had i specifically sought the camas seed, and so one revelation for me... never before last walkabout had i specifically sought the camas seed, and so one revelation for me rooting around that field was that the camas pods & seeds make a most unusual and remarkable sound when disturbed. i may have heard it before in the field but never knew the cause, and would not have associated the sound with camas even this time save it was camas seed i sought & it was camas seed i found. the sound is bright, high pitched, almost like a quick & short whistle or a little scream. i took no video camera so no recording, but i may yet have another chance before all is knocked down. once these 3-cavity pods open, the seeds just set loose in them until they get tipped & out they spill...with a little scream. :turtle:

]]> Turtle http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/turtle/226-camassia-quamash.html A Note on Summer Jobs... http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/mercedes-benzene/225-note-summer-jobs.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:03:52 GMT It's official. I'm working PGxHealth doing lab support starting July 20th, and I'm very excited.

I start my job at Brookside Gardens next Monday July 13th (also my birthday!). This *should* just be a weekend job, and it'll need to be since I'm working my other job during the week.

I also just got back from my trip to Williamsburg, VA. I really think everyone should go there if they're interested in American History. This was my 4th time going to Colonial Williamsburg, and I'm still having fun. ]]> Mercedes Benzene http://hypography.com/forums/blogs/mercedes-benzene/225-note-summer-jobs.html