Hitler responds to the iPad
I’m Back!
My computer is now restored to it's original greatness (thanks to the help of Mr. Pat Cunningham) and it is in fact much faster than it has been in the last...year maybe? Anyway, installed a new hard drive today, restored my old files and Im back on track. Perhaps I will blog some more in the coming week. I am going on a field trip to the Newport Aquarium, and it has been a long time since I've live blogged something, so keep your eyes peeled!
Fried Computer
No, this is not a cooking article for a delicious robot treat (though that is a good idea...), this is an article about how my computer has gone from functioning to not over the weekend.
Sunday something happened and I had to hard restart my computer (it was going hella slow) and it would not restart. Not knowing what to do, I called pat and we spent a while working with the computer (and by we I mean mainly he). We ended the night reformatting my drive and restoring from a January 4th backup.
Monday I got it working enough to get some homework done. But by the evening it had froze up again. I reformatted one more time, this time zeroing out all the data. It froze up almost immediately upon startup.
Now, in the present, Pat has ordered me a new internal hard drive to see if that does the trick. If not, then I guess I'll reformat and start from a clean install of OS X (after pulling off selected files that I want and possibly going through and making sure I have all my passwords.
what does this mean for you readers? Sadly, I expect low article rates to continue (in conjunciton with thesis and grad school application work) for the foreseeable future. However, I hope my compatriots will continue to strive to entertain you all!
How To: Procrastinate When You Should Be Working On Your Thesis
I should be working on my thesis. Specifically, my Thesis Prospectus. However, instead I am taking this time to educate you all on a few tips that will help you to procrastinate when a time comes that you all have a huge important paper that requires a lot of time, planning and effort.
1. Fill your evening with events
I have told people that I will attend events they are putting on. Planet Earth is playing at 7? I'll be there! Complex Government? I'll be there! because of this a significant portion of my night is booked with important engagements. This allows me to not feel guilty about wasting the little time between those events
2. Pick up a new hobby
I've never known how to use photoshop or illustrator, but I've been working on my skillz instead of writing a thesis. With this noble goal in mind, I can feel good about spending my time advancing my knowledge of a variety of topics. I am still awful with these programs, but that just means more time can be devoted to things.
3. Have friends who want to play video games with you
This one is harder unless you have friends willing. I am lucky enough to have just such friends. I am a firm believer that socialization is an important part of developing a well rounded person, so these video games with friends produce excellent opportunities.
4. Make a Blog
What better way to waste time then to write about wasting time? I say none. I'm here for that purpose and it seems to be working pretty well. I've now spent at least 20 minutes of potential thesis time on this post and that is quite an accomplishment I must say.
Why Does Discovery Ruin Good Shows
Sigourney Weaver wasn't an awful narrator for Planet Earth. I, unlike some(who protested the show), watched every episode on the Discovery Channel. Then I got the BBC version as a gift and if I ever heard the Discovery version after that I needed to turn it off. David Attenborough is so much better at it.
At this time, Attenborough is pretty much the spokesman of macro biology. He is quite qualified to narrate a special on biology. In fact, BBC knows this and uses him to narrate their shows. He writes the narration then speaks it. Sure he humanizes animals more than necessary, but he has a good voice for narration and presents information in a way that people understand.
Discovery, for some reason, doesn't get this. Instead, they try to feed the American desire for celebrities and give us Sigourney weaver, and now Oprah.
Yes, you read that right, the sequel to Planet Earth, Life, is being narrated on Discovery Channel by Oprah Whinfrey. No disrespect to Oprah, but what is the chance that she truly understands the words she is reading from that script? Why does Discovery think that we need a different narrator for this show exploring the diversity of life?
I got really excited about this new "sequel" to Planet Earth, but then I saw the words "narrated by Oprah" and decided that I need to buy the BBC version before I watch it. David Attenborough wrote the narration for the show, and I want to hear him say his words.
You can already Preorder the BBC version on DVD. Why wait for a sub-par version to come from Discovery Channel, when you can buy the original version now. That's what I'm going to do, I'm not going to wait and watch the show just to hear an overused celebrity narrate it. Instead I'm going to watch it with someone who has been making nature films for 30 years.
Kid Kills Raccoon, Trying to “Catch ‘em All”
On Saturday an 11 year old boy, A. Kachum, killed a raccoon with a red and white painted rock, later he claimed that he was trying to expand his collection and "Catch 'em all."
Kachum had taken his dog on a walk through some thick, tall grass until a raccoon was scared out of hiding. Kachum was reported to have yelled at his dog to "use tail whip" The dog only barked loudly at the raccoon for an extended period of time.
After a couple of minutes of commotion caused by the dog barking and the raccoon hissing back, Kachum was reported to have pulled a large rock painted half red and half white from a bag and throw it as the raccoon. The rock collided with the raccoons head and killed the raccoon instantly. Kachum seemed to wait for something to happen and when nothing did he tried to walk away. The number of bystanders that had accumulated, drawn by the loud commotion called the cops and told the boy to stay put.
Kachum's parents were called out to take him home, and declined to comment.
PETA released a statement stating that They are boycotting 11 year old boys because they cause such violent harm to animals. In the same press release they announced a plan to remove predators from the planet to protect the happier animals of the world. The press release was soaked in fake blood.
The lead personal trainer at a local gym that Kachum visited regularly, Pewter Gym, stated that Kachum had been coming in and building arm strength by playing games with his dog and an odd variety of other pets including a parrot and a duck. Pewter Gym has a pet policy that allows all pets, to encourage a healthy body and mind, so no one thought that it was odd. "I often come in with my rat to play raquetball. I always win, but we have a good time afterwards anyway," stated another regular patron, "It seemed odd to meditate with a pet duck and try to ride a pet parrot, but we all thought it was cute."
The only warning sign seemed to be that Kachum would often ask the other patrons if they wanted to battle their pets. When they respectufully declined he got frustrated and would often go and walk around in a nearby field to relieve his frustration.
The only person who didn't act surprised and even supported Kachum's actions was Kachum's uncle, nearby University professor Sam Oke. Oke had given Kachum's dog, which first was one of his lab animals, to Kachum when he turned 10. "He was old enough to handle the responsibility of keeping an animal and I wanted to make sure he was safe out in the world," said Oke.