Category Archives: Technology

Medieval Help Desk Skit

Pitch perfect portrayal of the user support conundrum!

Mega Moth vs B2 Bomber

Found this 5 inch moth resting near the door of our local post office the other day. I was struck by how much it resembled a B2 bomber. Do you agree?

Norman Borlaug Dies at Age 95

Just a brief post to mark the passing of a true American hero, Norman Borlaug. Here are several links of interest…
New York Times Obituary
1997 Profile in The Atlantic
“Why Famines Still Exist” Video Interview from wsj.com
My 2008 Posting

The Neuroscience of Seeking Behavior

I found this recent article in Slate fascinating. It draws on the research legacy of James Olds, who did some of the seminal experiments with electro-stimulation of the brain. He referred to certain reward centers for basic drives such as hunger and sex. These became known collectively as the “pleasure centers” of the brain.
Fine so [...]

Stereo Bluetooth Comes to the iPhone

Apple has finally adopted the bluetooth standard for stereo (called A2DP) in both its laptops and the iPhone. (This was a long time coming!)
I’ve been using this Plantroncs 855 headset for about a month. I’m generally pleased with it. The sound quality is reasonably good for music and great for voice, audio books, podcasts, etc.
The only [...]

Catch-22 of the Digital Age

I like to listen to audiobooks on my iPod. I have a subscription to Audible.com and buy one or two books a month. In the beginning things were fine, but about two years ago iTunes stopped remembering my Audible password. I get around this by double-clicking on any Audible file and put in my password [...]

Better Passwords?

The best passwords are completely random—strong but almost impossible to remember. This report from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) suggests a better solution—long pass phrases.
Entropy is a measure of password strength. The more entropy a password has, the harder it is to crack. Many systems enforce dictionary and composition rules (numbers, mixed [...]

Norman Borlaug and the Green Revolution

What science gives, stupidity and geopolitics may take away. Norman Borlaug is the (largely unknown) hero of the last half of the twentieth century. He is credited with saving the lives of millions by developing high-yield crops and other agricultural innovations. He is one of only five who have won the Nobel Peace Prize, the [...]

Edward Tufte Short Course

Just back from attending this short course by the master of “intelligent design” himself Edward Tufte. It was well worth the time and effort! I’d recommend it to anyone who prepares or presents information with a computer (ie, just about everyone!). His insights are numerous and often challenge conventional wisdom. His bottom line is to [...]

Folding Bicycles

While I was in Philadephia over the summer I was amazed by the number of folding bicycles. About half of all the bikes I saw were folders. Of course they make eminent sense for urban dewellers. I’ve always been interested in “packable” bicycles, and have a thirty year old three-speed folder gathering dust in my [...]