2006-12-29
oat muffin recipe
2006-12-24
merry christmas from the drycleaner
2006-12-21
2006-12-16
a sick twisted story
“Bottle service is prestigious,” said Quinn Bradley, 25, another customer at Y Bar. “I am not a vodka connoisseur, but a higher price usually means it’s better, right?” Marketers have spent millions trying to convince consumers of just that.Also, Patrón tequila was created by one of the co-execs of john paul mitchell hair goop. What a mess! (NYT)
2006-12-13
2006-12-10
Negativity Friendships
As a price for their tolerance, however, they may expect you to reexamine certain issues – e.g., your implicit countenancing of same-sex-marriage amendments, your silence in the face of outrageous discrimination against gay parents, your collusion with some of the most virulent homophobes in America's history, etc.
2006-12-07
2006-12-06
damn.
2006-12-02
food this week
- sweet potato crusted wild caught alaskan salmon with curry spinach, OR
- broiled salmon with mexican-caribbean rub, avocado, and tequila cream sauce
- thai prik king (fragrant no coconut milk) curry with green beans and chicken
- lentil soup with polish sausage, blackbear pumpernickel
- fajitas with avocado, chicken, and refried black beans
- pad kee mao (tofu and broccoli, chili basil sauce)
2006-11-25
the first of several
2006-11-21
Scott's parents
2006-11-20
best response is… max ε?
It may sound like chaos, but it's only the lesson drawn from one of the insights of traffic psychology: Drivers will force the accelerator down ruthlessly only in situations where everything has been fully regulated. Where the situation is unclear, they're forced to drive more carefully and cautiously.
2006-11-11
food for this week
- afghan chicken biryani [pdf]
- crêpes with mushrooms and parsnips (inspired by this lovely NYT piece)
- curry fried rice (nasi goreng)
- seared tuna with garam masala
- ma po tofu
2006-11-09
too good in too many ways
Critical Mass, according to its participants, is not a group but a recurring event. “An organized coincidence,” one regular rider told me. “No, a disorganized coincidence—a ‘happening,’ a temporary reorganization of public space.” … Others passed out buttons that read, “Please Don’t Arrest Me—This is my permit.” On closer examination, they were recycled pins made by the antiwar group United for Peace and Justice, with customized paper labels glued over “No Blood for Oil.”
I introduced myself to the masked man and asked his name. “NYMAAN,” he said, pointing to his cape, which was adorned with the words “New York Metro Anarchist Alliance.” He added, “I am an idea, not a person.” (His outfit advertised a Web site that features the heading “Notes from the global intifada.”)
The hierarchy of urban piety is ever delicate. Still another Villager, a biking enthusiast, railed against the unctuousness of the anti-bike pedestrians. “I’m tired of joggers using the bike path, getting in the way,” he said. “They tell us to get off our bikes and jog because it’s more environmentally sensitive. To them bikes are manufactured things. The metals that go into them are mined. And there’s the plastic, too . . . made from oil.”
2006-11-07
yay for winter bike!
2006-11-01
“Hacking Democracy” (Salon.com)
It’s a nice thought, one you want to believe: If only Americans could be made to understand the true, gut-sinking atrociousness of just about everything involved in U.S. elections – from the gerrymandered districts to the undemocratic distribution of electoral power to the enormous influence wielded by partisan officials to the underfunded, overwhelmed local offices to, finally, the insanely dangerous technology we use to run the whole thing – well, then, maybe folks would actually do something about the problem.
2006-10-31
myth commercial detection
Applies a series of score for the scene based on looking at all three factors in relation to one another, especially taking timing and patterns into account. Based on the final score of a scene, it's either (essentially) dropped into the show bucket or the commercial bucket. It's not a black/white type thing. Because of the scoring, there are a whole range of grays in the middle. You end up with scenes that looks "more" like commercials or "more" like show content, and they are then flagged as such.in other words, it's a Bayesian update! I'll look into this more…
2006-10-21
i love the market
- stir fried tatsoi with teriyaki
- sautéed beet greens with roasted beets, salad
- prik khing with tasty long beans, sticky rice
- risotto with zucchini (on chicken stock day)
2006-10-19
me too!
The week of the E. coli outbreak, washed spinach was on sale at my local farmers’ market, and at the Blue Heron Farms stand, where I usually buy my greens, the spinach appeared to be moving briskly. I tasted a leaf and wondered why I didn’t think twice about it. I guess it’s because I’ve just always trusted these guys; I buy from them every week. The spinach was probably cut and washed that morning or the night before — it hasn’t been sitting around in a bag on a truck for a week. And if there ever is any sort of problem, I know exactly who is responsible. Whatever the risk, and I’m sure there is some, it seems manageable.
2006-10-18
2006-10-14
2006-10-13
keyboard consistency fix
2006-10-04
movie to see
GMBO: giggling my butt off
2006-10-03
if only we could make expensive, synthetic fish oil…
2006-09-27
med.stat
Developed by epidemiologists in 1988, the NNT was heralded as a new and objective tool to help patients make informed decisions. It avoids the confusing distinction between "relative" and "absolute" reduction of risk. The NNT is intuitive: To a savvy, healthy person with high cholesterol that didn't decrease with diet and exercise, a doctor could say, "A statin might help you, or it might not. Out of every 50 people who take them, one avoids getting a heart attack. On the other hand, that means 49 out of 50 people don't get much benefit."
2006-09-26
that's amusing
David Bridge, pictured, stunned locals in the sleepy market town of Axbridge by donning a long flowing dress, high heels and jewelled tiara to appear as the carnival queen.
2006-09-25
Misguided
“For me, there’s anger and paranoia and fear for others — for the safety of food we get that’s supposed to be monitored,” Ms. Krause, 47, said. “I don’t know what to trust. Should we grow it all ourselves?”
No, and you probably shouldn’t feel guilty about being part of the mainstream American foodchain (or even the élite wholefoods version thereof). But there is something you could have done – know your farmers, preferring local to faraway and in-season to convenient. That represents a massive shift in the way most people buy produce.
I’ve been annoyed since this spinach story broke at how the news continues to cover the problem as if it is at all relevant that it happened to have come from spinach this time, as if we can run from mass-produced spinach to mass-produced bagged romaine and all will be well.
2006-09-23
myStata?
As web-based and other electronic data collection methods become more widely used in research, the opportunities to use statistical software in conjunction with conventional database systems are increasing. Among such systems, MySQL is particularly well suited for research purposes. For example, MySQL's ENUM and SET column types are ideal for storing data collected via the multiple choice questions typically used in social surveys. At the same time, Stata is uniquely suited for working in conjunction with a database; for example, its implementation of characteristics makes it possible to preserve (in a usable form) important information about how the database and front-end application are constructed (e.g., column types and other attributes). In this presentation, we shall describe a Python script we have developed for translating data from MySQL to Stata, and will indicate briefly how we are using it in the development of tools for the collection and management of research data.
Foodlist
- chicken paprikás, challah
- zucchini spinach mushroom lasagna (local of course, not bagged spinach!)
- masaman curry with tofu, potato, and sweet potato
- salad and Black Bear pumpernickel
- red beans and rice with Prairie Grass Farm lamb andouille
- Cuban black beans and rice
2006-09-21
Big fucking surprise! HA
BOSTON (Reuters) — Graduate business students in the United States and Canada are more likely to cheat on their work than their counterparts in other academic fields, the author of a research paper said on Wednesday.
2006-09-20
too much of a good thing
2006-09-19
Learn or Die!
Combs Encourages Kids to Stay in School
''This is a really important time for you all right now,'' Combs said. ''This is the time that is going to dictate your future.''
The 36-year-old founder of Bad Boy Records looked the part in sunglasses and flashy jewelry. He called some students on stage and talked to them one on one about their goals. His advice: work hard and stay in school.
''Take responsibility for your future. No excuses!'' Combs said.
2006-09-16
upcoming tasty food
- beans & tomatoes, ciabatta, salad
- pesto, fresh pasta, salad
- pad prik khing (Thai “dry curry”) beef & green beans
- okra-onion (Indian) curry
- cuban black beans and rice
- eggplant and tofu with chili black bean sauce
2006-09-14
Center for Information Technology Policy—Voting Study
Why Johnny can't code | Salon Technology
Quietly and without fanfare, or even any comment or notice by software pundits, we have drifted into a situation where almost none of the millions of personal computers in America offers a line-programming language simple enough for kids to pick up fast.
And yet, they are tantalized! Ben has long complained that his math textbooks all featured little type-it-in-yourself programs at the end of each chapter -- alongside the problem sets -- offering the student a chance to try out some simple algorithm on a computer. Usually, it's an equation or iterative process illustrating the principle that the chapter discussed. These "TRY IT IN BASIC" exercises often take just a dozen or so lines of text. The aim is both to illustrate the chapter's topic (e.g. statistics) and to offer a little taste of programming.
What about “try it in R”? It was invented as a free and accessible teaching language for people to not have to buy S+, and it would be perfect for elementary math texts IMO. It can be used interactively, and offers a lot of room for growth (unlike basic).
What to Expect When You%u2019re Expecting Dinner - New York Times
2006-09-11
2006-09-10
macosxhints.com - OS X tips and tricks!
macosxhints.com - OS X tips and tricks!
macosxhints.com - OS X tips and tricks!
2006-09-03
Explaining the huge rise in teen oral sex. By Tim Harford - Slate Magazine
2006-08-29
haaa
“Possibility” indeed.
The Emmy Awards reviewed. By Troy Patterson - Slate Magazine
The winners of our Snakes on a Plane contest. By Dana Stevens - Slate Magazine
PC World - AOL 9.0 Accused of Behaving Like Badware
2006-08-25
Why we love the Pillsbury Bake-Off. By Sara Dickerman - Slate Magazine
Laptop Slides Into Bed in Love Triangle - New York Times
I try to live like a senior citizen. By Emily Yoffe - Slate Magazine
2006-08-18
more coolness in quicksilver
You can add google cal events from quicksilver – and it gets better. If your first search matches an address book contact and then hit a text-entry switch (. or '), the contact’s full name is entered for you!
Like others, I find that quicksilver is so well designed and so absolutely essential to my using a mac that I forget that it isn’t part of the OS. It is a thousand times more useful than any dashboard widget ever could be, and its visual feedback is as stunning as exposé.
It is also the fastest and easiest flickr uploader.
This building is so ghetto
We apoligize for the inconvenience of the approvements of your new residence.
fuck caps lock!
2006-08-16
it's all done
2006-08-03
Voting
- From slashdot, depressing news about crooked Diebold machines
- From NYT, depressing news about legal rights
- The Open Voting Consortium (not depressing)
htaccess and mod_rewrite notes
2006-07-31
2006-07-30
this could be cool
six words...
“First post. First joke. And in six words you sum up every stereotype of the Geek.”
2006-07-28
an excellent morning ride
2006-07-24
net neutrality
I’ve forever rolled my eyes at the dismal state of wireless in the US compared to everywhere else. Certainly some degree of standards setting and huge government involvement and investment are why Scandinavia and Japan are so far ahead of us; this article addresses the other problem of proprietary network control.
Why are cell phone payment systems and email systems nearly nonexistent? Why haven't charities raised money or awareness of their causes through this system?
It's simple. Because the cell phone carriers control what services are allowed to use their networks. There is no net neutrality on the cell phone network.
a follow-up
As for this ad campaign, it is utter genius. With this one 10-second spot, the makers of HeadOn have torn down all the pretenses that have gummed up the advertising industry for years. Production values? Persuasion? Emotion? Humor (of the intentional kind)? These are stalwarts of the old, outmoded advertising paradigm. The new, head-on (or HeadOn) approach holds that advertising is about blunt force.
Mac Spoof: Performance
Civil wars are defined as armed conflicts between the government of a sovereign state and domestic political groups mounting effective resistance in relatively continuous fighting that causes high numbers of deaths. This broad definition does not always distinguish civil wars from other forms of political violence, so we often use somewhat arbitrary criteria, like different thresholds of annual deaths, to sort out cases. Depending on the criteria used, there have been about 100 to 150 civil wars since 1945. Iraq is clearly one of them.
hungarian food, yum!
2006-07-20
DRM
what an idiot
This sounds like a great idea until you try to deconstruct the sheet. You need a road map. One element cascades from here, another from there. One wrong change and all hell breaks loose. If your Internet connection happens to lose a bit of CSS data, you get a mess on your screen.
Sigh, Dvorak the dumbass strikes again. No, fool, “cascading” is a perfectly well established concept – inheritance – given a different name in the web context. I have no problem at all borrowing from standard stylesheets and overwriting attributes, especially when the firefox web developer plugin can show me all the style blocks applied to any given element and where they came from, no matter how many stylesheets have been called.
2006-07-19
I’d feel prepared...
I know which side I'm on
Scott and I recently saw Pirates and I was most taken aback by the quality of the trailers we had to endure. Normally, at least one or two of the trailers before the movies I tend to watch. Of the 6 or 7 meant to appeal to a mainstream audience (including, I think, My Super Ex-Girlfriend and Accepted) very few failed to elicit from me a, “how did that shit get made, and why?”
2006-07-18
the Times catches up
2006-07-17
hmmm
As we draw ever closer to the Worldwide Developers Conference, speculation is heating up as to what we'll see hardware-wise once Steve Jobs has finished unveiling the wonders of Leopard. Reading the entrails of the sacrificial dogcow is a bit easier these days, now that Apple uses Intel CPUs and Intel lays out its processor roadmap months—if not years—in advance.
2006-07-15
2006-07-14
dealing with dumb formats
10:39:35 AM Ryan Black: i have 1900 files
10:39:43 AM Ryan Black: i want a frequency count of "QUESTION" in each of them
10:39:46 AM Ryan Black: saved into something nice
10:39:55 AM Ryan Black: 1900 Word files, that is.
Word doc files are awful. It could probably be vbscripted, but having Word actually open and handle 1900 files doesn't sound like the best idea. Any sane person's inclincation would be to have a shellscript do it. In addition, he wants some trailing text (a job for grep). The key is catdoc, which is exactly what it sounds like – it cats a word doc! Its brother xls2csv is also a throughly good idea.
2006-07-07
Scott is silly.
RSPerl saves the day!
Yes, this is a Perl module. But it is also anRpackage. This is because it is a bi-directional interface, it allowsRto call Perl and that very Perl code to call back toR. It allows us to passRfunctions to Perl and use them as callable objects. (Passing Perl subroutines or methods toRis a little less elegant, but doable.)
Rdoesn't handle yuckily or irregularly formed stuff as well as perl, but I’m less adept at manipulating matrices (one of the strengths of
R) in perl (grabbing some rows, hacking off columns, smacking the rest of the columns onto the end of a working dataset).
australia vote data
consider the following data format, then shoot yourself:
blocks of rows 1…33 × cols 1…12.
Rows are candidates i, columns votecounts v.
Some number g of groups of rows are required per group of counts c. For each c=1…c, rows repeat g times.
Some rows contain summary information; linefeeds between groups b and g vary. Actual candidates are identifiable by having lastnames in caps. The length of c may be determined by an item indicating the total number of counts required. No indication of g is given except the recurrence of a same-named candidate.
The naming scheme of the files containing these is the same for 93,96,98, changes in 2001, and again in 2004. The file formats appear to be the same but once my parser works on a few, I'm sure it will choke a few dozen times. Here is an example file from 1993.
The goal is to parse this into a i×v+x matrix, where x is the stuff we’re actually interested in: who won, in what order, on what count, what party; party magnitude; thresholds/quotas – and eventually the nature of women’s representation in Single Transferable Vote systems. Australia is the largest of these, but Ireland, Malta, and Fiji also use STV in at least one house. The worst file is 2004 New South Wales.
superpomo design
Design I like tends to be late modern (more than high / midcentury modern), occasionally with a twist of tongue-in-cheek postmodernism. It is easy to take it over the top. I'll work on a picture of this bundle of incandescent bulbs hanging in Lightology (not in the online store.) but this table annoys me in the same way I suppose the smugness of Ani Difranco does, or we mac users might to hapless windows users.
2006-07-06
half lust / half shopping list
2006-07-05
When you're surrounded by a mish-mash of hand-me-down freebies that are there more for basic function than because you actually gave any thought to whether you liked them, it's hard to imagine how that bland white box of mismatched furnishings is ever going to look a real home. First things first, once you've made the commitment to start decorating that is: take a good, hard look at what you've already got.
well, he's right but not...
But these days, aren't nerds like John Hodgman the new cool kids? And isn't smug superiority (no matter how affable and casually dressed) a bit off-putting as a brand strategy?No, it is not. It is what the mac brand strategy is all about. Moreover, it's what any “brand strategy” is about: making people buy something because they will be part of the club of owners of thing τ. Clothes, cars, computers, that's what advertising is for. The strategy is honest about what you will undoubtedly become as a mac user: annoyed if you ever do have to use a windows machine, superior to your windowsy friends (“erm, I'm not sure how you'd make a pdf out of that. On a mac you just save it as one.” )
world cup and game theory
Game theory, applied to the problem of penalties, says that if the striker and the keeper are behaving optimally, neither will have a predictable strategy. The striker might favor his stronger side, of course, but that does not mean that there will be a pattern to the bias.The striker might shoot to the right two times out of three, but we cannot then conclude that it will have to be to the left next time.
2006-07-04
it ought to work for a subset of the population...
The spot: An obese man is tending a barbecue grill. He's cooking some Ball Park Franks. He says he likes his hot dogs "girthy." He keeps repeating that word—claiming he likes "the way it rolls off my tongue"—as he holds the frank up to his mouth; issues a guttural moan; and wraps his lips around the big, swinging dog. In all, he says "girthy" a full seven times.
snottsdale!
Because image is not something taken lightly here, the cringe factor was high when MTV's “My Super Sweet 16,” featured a Scottsdale teenager.
The episode, which aired in April, showed Marc and K.K. Dubowy spending more than $50,000 on daughter Marissa Leigh's birthday party.
Marissa's party had bouncers and a $3,200 cake. She got two cars for presents (one being a "weekend" car), had three outfit changes throughout the event (one was a $5,000 dress) and had her pet poodles dyed pink to match the party's theme color. Marissa and her friends were so universally detested by viewers that a new Scottsdale moniker stuck: "Snottsdale."
2006-07-03
2006-06-29
Studying evolution has changed the way I look at nature. For knowing that all of us — oak trees and venus fly traps, starlings and brush turkeys, humans and sea urchins, not to mention bacteria harvesting light from the glowing vents at the bottom of the sea — are the products of the same ancient forces is something that brings me enormous pleasure, awe and a sense of peace. As I have learned more about other organisms, I have come to regard them (and us!) with increasing amazement and delight.
Most of all, though, I find the study of evolution to be a profoundly optimistic way of looking at the world — for the message is: despite the apparent complexity, we can understand. It’s a view of life that unshackles the mind. When we come to a difficult problem — something, say, that appears so complicated it is hard to imagine the steps through which it could have evolved — the solution isn’t to throw up one’s hands and invoke deus ex machina. It’s to imagine, to dream, to wonder: how? And then, to start to work it out.
Of all the popular programming languages now in use, Perl is perhaps the best suited for writing utilities — for several reasons, such as its text-processing capabilities, ease of addressing system resources, and minimal language overhead for input, output, list processing.