There’s little doubt that the ideals of Earth Day are rapidly gaining everyday significance as the holiday marked its 28th incarnation this month. But all of us still have a lot of work ahead. Do your part with our off-the-grid energy dad's seven green tips, or explore any of the planet-saving advice at left and below.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
What will they think of next?
Microsoft Surface: Behind-the-Scenes First Look (with Video)
The software giant will announce at the D5 conference today that it’s built a new touchscreen computer—a coffee table that will change the world. Go inside its top-secret development with PopularMechanics.com, then forget the keyboard and mouse: The next generation of computer interfaces will be hands-on.
Microsoft Surface - Behind the Scenes with VIDEO - Touchscreen, Multi Touch Coffee Table - Ballmer - Jeff Han - PlayTable - Popular Mechanics
The software giant will announce at the D5 conference today that it’s built a new touchscreen computer—a coffee table that will change the world. Go inside its top-secret development with PopularMechanics.com, then forget the keyboard and mouse: The next generation of computer interfaces will be hands-on.
Microsoft Surface - Behind the Scenes with VIDEO - Touchscreen, Multi Touch Coffee Table - Ballmer - Jeff Han - PlayTable - Popular Mechanics
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Obama calls for universal health care | Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune has an excellent article on the presidential candidate and what his proposal for health care is - as well as links to keep track of the rest of the pack.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Free access to MIT?
Welcome to MIT's OpenCourseWare:
a free and open educational resource (OER) for educators, students, and self-learners around the world.
MIT OCW:
- Is a publication of MIT course materials
- Does not require any registration
- Is not a degree-granting or certificate-granting activity
- Does not provide access to MIT faculty
Learn more about MIT OCW...
time.com interesting quotes
and here I thought that I was the only person interested in buying an entire village...
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
In the News
I also have Google Desktop, and I try to keep an eye out for things that might interest me or affect me (like HP getting that 5.6 bln USD deal with NASA). Here are two things that I saw "in the news"...
VoIP on way to UK Sony PSP
Some of the UK's esitamted 8 million Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) handhelds will soon support wireless Internet connection voice and video calls.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1642
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6683231.stm
Michigan man busted for stealing Wi-Fi signal;
could have received five years
http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1640
VoIP on way to UK Sony PSP
Some of the UK's esitamted 8 million Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) handhelds will soon support wireless Internet connection voice and video calls.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1642
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6683231.stm
Michigan man busted for stealing Wi-Fi signal;
could have received five years
http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1640
Friday, May 18, 2007
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Tech news blog - Gonzales proposes new crime: 'Attempted' copyright infringement | CNET News.com
This is absolutely unbelievable... while I understand that there needs to be some efforts to restrict copyright infringement and software piracy, there are so many loopholes in this damn thing that the cops are going to be able to do almost anything with your computer, including seize it and keep it, without any proof. All they have to do is say that you 'intended' to do something...
what happened to innocent until proven guilty?
Tech news blog - Gonzales proposes new crime: 'Attempted' copyright infringement | CNET News.com
Can anyone say "Big Brother"?
The IPPA would, for instance:
* Criminalize "attempting" to infringe copyright. Federal law currently punishes not-for-profit copyright infringement with between 1 and 10 years in prison, but there has to be actual infringement that takes place. The IPPA would eliminate that requirement. (The Justice Department's summary of the legislation says: "It is a general tenet of the criminal law that those who attempt to commit a crime but do not complete it are as morally culpable as those who succeed in doing so.")
* Permit more wiretaps for piracy investigations. Wiretaps would be authorized for investigations of Americans who are "attempting" to infringe copyrights.
* Allow computers to be seized more readily. Specifically, property such as a PC "intended to be used in any manner" to commit a copyright crime would be subject to forfeiture, including civil asset forfeiture. Civil asset forfeiture has become popular among police agencies in drug cases as a way to gain additional revenue, and it is problematic and controversial.
what happened to innocent until proven guilty?
Tech news blog - Gonzales proposes new crime: 'Attempted' copyright infringement | CNET News.com
Can anyone say "Big Brother"?
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Homework again
For my last college class I had a Leadership project which revolved around running a team for the MS Society and their annual MS Walk. Unfortunately, things didn't turn out quite the way I expected. To make a long story short, I want to post a question that I received in my class and my response:
From Meghan
Knowing that only 35 cents of every dollar goes to research will you continue to put your efforts towards this program or are you looking for other ways to raise monies for MS? Meghan
From Joseph
Meghan,
So you understand my reasoning I want to give you a little snippet of something I wrote recently.
"This disease, and other neurological diseases in the same general category, represent a major failing for the current medical system. Primarily, there is little understanding of what causes these issues in the first place, though continued research seems to imply that there are environmental causes (especially our continued exposure to high levels of electricity, chemicals, etc) for some of these ailments. On the opposite side, there is little that can be done to alleviate the symptoms, or to cure this outright. As more and more people are affected by Multiple Sclerosis, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and other chronic neurological conditions, this is a terrible failing for the medical community and it is rapidly becoming a huge impact on our society in general."
I would have NEVER thought that there would be eight people in my close family that had a condition like this. More than just a random fact or a news story, these types of conditions have radically altered my life - and the doctors don't even understand them!!
So yes - an emphatic yes - I will be looking for another way to combat these types of conditions. My sister and I were talking about setting up one of those Vacation Fund savings accounts and giving the entire family the account number. Have a garage sale, put in fifty. Get a tax return, add a couple hundred. If the whole family did a little bit the whole year round, versus just a month or two in Spring, I think that we would end up with a noteworthy donation.
Then, once a year, we would have a Be The Miracle party (like Bruce Almighty) and sometime during the party I would sit down and make a donation of what was in the account to someplace like the Montel Williams MS Foundation.
(The difference between the MS Society and the Montel setup is that Montel has used his network of contacts and advertisers to gather big name corporations into the fight. It appears that all of his administrative costs are covered by their donations and help, so when an individual donates 100% of it is applied to the medical research. You can learn more at http://www.montelms.org/)
-Joseph
From Meghan
Knowing that only 35 cents of every dollar goes to research will you continue to put your efforts towards this program or are you looking for other ways to raise monies for MS? Meghan
From Joseph
Meghan,
So you understand my reasoning I want to give you a little snippet of something I wrote recently.
"This disease, and other neurological diseases in the same general category, represent a major failing for the current medical system. Primarily, there is little understanding of what causes these issues in the first place, though continued research seems to imply that there are environmental causes (especially our continued exposure to high levels of electricity, chemicals, etc) for some of these ailments. On the opposite side, there is little that can be done to alleviate the symptoms, or to cure this outright. As more and more people are affected by Multiple Sclerosis, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and other chronic neurological conditions, this is a terrible failing for the medical community and it is rapidly becoming a huge impact on our society in general."
I would have NEVER thought that there would be eight people in my close family that had a condition like this. More than just a random fact or a news story, these types of conditions have radically altered my life - and the doctors don't even understand them!!
So yes - an emphatic yes - I will be looking for another way to combat these types of conditions. My sister and I were talking about setting up one of those Vacation Fund savings accounts and giving the entire family the account number. Have a garage sale, put in fifty. Get a tax return, add a couple hundred. If the whole family did a little bit the whole year round, versus just a month or two in Spring, I think that we would end up with a noteworthy donation.
Then, once a year, we would have a Be The Miracle party (like Bruce Almighty) and sometime during the party I would sit down and make a donation of what was in the account to someplace like the Montel Williams MS Foundation.
(The difference between the MS Society and the Montel setup is that Montel has used his network of contacts and advertisers to gather big name corporations into the fight. It appears that all of his administrative costs are covered by their donations and help, so when an individual donates 100% of it is applied to the medical research. You can learn more at http://www.montelms.org/)
-Joseph
ABC News: $67 Million Suit: Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers
ABC News: $67 Million Suit: Lawyer Sues Dry Cleaners for Lost Trousers
Who is this freak and why hasn't somebody put a stop to this?? This sort of crap is exactly why nobody trusts the government - because they let bullshit happen even as they try to regulate how much air we breathe.
"People in America are now scared of each other," legal expert Philip Howard told ABC News' Law & Justice Unit. "That's why teachers won't put an arm around a crying child, and doctors order unnecessary tests, and ministers won't meet with parishioners. It's a distrust of justice and it's changing our culture."
Who is this freak and why hasn't somebody put a stop to this?? This sort of crap is exactly why nobody trusts the government - because they let bullshit happen even as they try to regulate how much air we breathe.
"People in America are now scared of each other," legal expert Philip Howard told ABC News' Law & Justice Unit. "That's why teachers won't put an arm around a crying child, and doctors order unnecessary tests, and ministers won't meet with parishioners. It's a distrust of justice and it's changing our culture."
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Some days you need a good laugh
This is an old story. But, I never tire of reading it. I doubt it is true. But, like I said, I enjoy reading it.
A United States Marine who had completed missions in Iraq and Afghanistan was attending some college courses between assignments.
One of the courses had a professor who was a vowed atheist and a member of the ACLU. One day the professor shocked the class when he came in. He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, "God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you exactly 15 minutes."
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, "Here I am God. I'm still waiting."
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him; knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently. The other students were shocked and stunned and sat there looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to, noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, "What the hell is the matter with you? Why did you do that?"
The Marine calmly replied, "God was too busy today protecting America's soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid shit and act like an asshole. So, He sent me."
Semper Fi
A United States Marine who had completed missions in Iraq and Afghanistan was attending some college courses between assignments.
One of the courses had a professor who was a vowed atheist and a member of the ACLU. One day the professor shocked the class when he came in. He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, "God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you exactly 15 minutes."
The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop. Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, "Here I am God. I'm still waiting."
It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him; knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently. The other students were shocked and stunned and sat there looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to, noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, "What the hell is the matter with you? Why did you do that?"
The Marine calmly replied, "God was too busy today protecting America's soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid shit and act like an asshole. So, He sent me."
Semper Fi
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