Archive | April, 2012
April 8, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Cowardice and Motorcycles

I am a worrier, a pessimist, and a worst-case scenario kind of person. As a result, I live in a nearly constant state of fear about what might happen, and I make discussions accordingly. Anxiety and self-doubt keep me from doing a number of things I’d really like to do, but I’m worried about what might happen. I’m worried about failure. About what other people think.

It’s that last one that really bugs me. I like to think that I’m strongly independent. That I can survive solely on my quick wit and boyish good looks, but really, I’m constantly thinking about what someone else thinks or perceives about me, and that’s where a good deal of the fear comes from. Not that I think I can’t do it, but it’s almost like there’s some invisible expert on <insert topic here> standing over my shoulder, measuring me up. It’s ridiculously paralyzing.

Well, I’ve decided to take a stand against my own cowardice, and while that does not mean I’m going to throw caution to the wind, I am going to make a more concerted effort to do things that scare me. I started this journey yesterday.

I bought that, a Piaggio MP3 500. It’s a scooter, not a motorcycle exactly, but close enough, and they’re tons of fun to ride. I’ve been wanting one for years, but I’ve always been too scared to actually do it. What if I crash? What if people make fun of me? What if . . . For years I’ve been playing that game, but it’s over now.

So, I’ll be getting my motorcycle license soon, and then it’ll just be me and the road. Me and the road and a million people driving multi-ton death machines trying to run me over. I mean. Me and the road. Definitely just me and the road. I’m a responsible individual, and I know I don’t need to worry about myself going out and trying to do anything stupid, or driving too fast, or whatever. I am also aware that there are irresponsible people out there on the road, and I must pay attention to them.

The fear lies not in me, but in what people are going to think as I’m learning to ride better. Will I accidentally corner too wide, and look dumb? Will I have to slow down a little too much before a turn? Will I be a little over-cautious and look silly driving a little under the speed limit?

It sounds stupid when you write it down, but that’s what’s really been stopping me FOR YEARS. Is how silly I’ll look, even though I don’t really imagine there’ll be any problems. It’s just irrational, but it’s similar to how I approach almost everything I do.

So this is step one of a long and difficult journey out of fear and reticence to try anything new. Who’s with me?

April 6, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Invention

I don’t know about you, but I have a socket set out in my toolbox that’s missing about 2/3s of the sockets, and the wrench itself only about half works, and the sockets I have left are the super huge ones and super tiny ones for which there are no bolts made by man. As a result, it’s more or less useless to me, but you don’t want to throw it away because OMG WHAT IF I NEED TO TIGHTEN A TINY BOLT!

In any event, there’s a fix for that solidly planted in the future. But at least we’re a little closer today. The geniuses over at MIT have made some pretty significant strides in creating what I like to callSmart Sand, but they call it “self-sculpting” sand.

The idea is pretty simple: tiny individual grains can be given a command to switch their magnets on or off to combine together to make –on demand– nearly anything. A hammer, a perfectly sized wrench, socket, screwdriver. A jack, a lug wrench, a – well, you get the idea.

Combine this with the glasses technology from my last post, and you’ve got a virtual bottomless toolbox anywhere you need it. The glasses can transmit information to the toolbox about the task at hand, automatically measuring bolts and screws, so you can reach in and pull out the right tool every time, easier than “Accio Screwdriver.”

Imagine having one in your car. You never have to worry about whether you’ve got a jack, or the tools to change your tires. Have them for astronauts so they can always have the tool or the part they need without the need for large and heavy sets of tools.

This is just another step forward, and while the researchers at MIT are a long ways from having small enough component pieces to actually form many useful objects, the fact remains that they’ve made great strides, and it’s just a matter of time before the technology gets small enough to make their dream a reality.

I’ve always been one to look forward to the future, often to a fault, but it’s exciting what’s out there. What we can do. What we have already done to reach such feats of technical and scientific skill and prowess. Often people look to nature to find the beautiful and the wondrous, and I don’t mean to say that we are wrong, but it is not arrogant, it is not prideful to also look at the works of man and stand in awe of our ingenuity, our creativity, and our penchant for solving problems. The natural world has its many marvels, and I revel in those as well, but from time to time, I feel we ought to pat ourselves on the back. We’ve come a long way in an exceedingly short amount of time, whether you want to count time on an evolutionary or creationist scale.

Over the course of a few thousand years, we’ve gone from caves, to farms, to written tablets, to bronze, to iron, and so on to today, the silicon age. It’s mighty satisfying to know we beat continent-wide epidemic, 2 world-wars, the thread of nuclear annihilation, and we’re still going strong inventing, dreaming, and making those dreams reality. Helps me feel good on days when I feel like I’m just spinning my wheels anyhow. How about you?

April 5, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Google Glass

So, if you don’t know what Google Glass is, check out this NYT article.

If you’re too lazy for that, maybe watch this video:

Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I fully realize the video is a dramatization, and a window into what this technology will one day become (hopefully). That said, I am as giddy as a Panam district citizen at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I’m a technology nut anyway, but augmented reality is probably the most exciting terrestrial development I can think of. It’s the closest I’ll probably ever get to real cybernetics and neural enhancements. An always-present, non-invasive means of instant research and information about whatever you happen to be doing. HUD based turn-by-turn directions, instant stats on $trivia, enhanced “mental notes” with pictures attached. And these are just the trivial things.

Consider medical reference books for similar light-weight non-intrusive tech for surgeons, complete with patient data and history, quick first-person pictures for reference, the ability to teleconference with another surgeon on a particularly delicate or crucial surgery. This tech could be used in similar law-enforcement situations. It could be used be cooks, by salespeople, by attorneys. The possibilities are endless, and this is just the beginning.

Maybe I’m just a sucker, but I’ll be purchasing these despite their inevitable limitations. I want to see where it starts, where it’s going. I mean, who wouldn’t want to watch the world change?

What upcoming tech gets you excited? What can’t you wait for?

April 4, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Customer Service

I’m not one to shill. In fact, I have never been paid to show off any piece of media, software, company, etc. That’s not to say I haven’t ever sold anything — I have, but not here. This is my space, and you will never see ads here. Because they’re annoying, and they make you infertile. There I said it. I know everyone always skirts around the issue, but it’s true. Real life scientists have proven it.

That said, when I feel like a company has done something right, and has continued to do things right for the last 7 years I have been a customer, I feel like I ought to let you know. In this case, I’m talking about my hosting company, Dreamhost. They’re not only a very fun, entertaining company to work with (You should see the newsletters they send out. Hilarious every time.), they provide a pretty top-quality service. Granted, they have not been entirely without their issues in the last 7 years I’ve been a customer with them, but the amount of time I have had to deal with problems is negligible at best. They’re pretty great.

Every now and then, when I’m mucking about behind the scenes, I have been known to mess things up, and I have to go to their support staff for help. They have always responded promptly, with well-worded, precise, and real help. I have never gotten a form letter back, it’s always been a real person giving me real advise on how to get back up and running in a timely manner.

Recently, as I’m sure you’re aware, a number of wordpress blogs all over the internet were infected due to a security flaw found in a great many of them. Mine was one such blog, and while I was, yet again, letting mine waste away, I failed to notice. When I did happen to notice, I took the site down, dreading the workload ahead of me to clean it off, and get things back up and running. In fact, I had this exchange with Rachelskirts about my displeasure with the ordeal:

Sure enough, I got a friendly email from Elizabeth L in Dreamhost support, with a wonderfully complete email full of possible vulnerabilities, a list of files they were able to clean and a list of files they removed for me, etc. I was given a full set of instructions and tips on how to avoid such problems again in the future. It took me a little over half an hour to follow the instructions and get everything locked down.

So, that brings us to the part where I tell you to go sign up for them and surreptitiously use a referral link that will net me some money. Well, I could do that. Or, I could just tell you that I believe you should be using Dreamhost so strongly that I’ll give my entire referral bonus (a generous $97) entirely to you, so you can get a yeaar’s worth of hosting for about $22. Go sign up with a new account, and use the promo code “GO97.” If you don’t get the option to, just email support and let them know you’d like to use the GO97 promo code, and you’ll get $97 off your first year.

So, Thanks Dreamhost! I’m glad to have my site back.