JohnFrat.us

Author: John

  • More on the old iBook G4

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    I never did come up with a cause for the failure of my wife’s iBook. We bought a new aluminum MacBook. Very, very, very nice. (Yes: Three Verys!) We had all the data from the old machine backed up (both to the server in the house and to Amazon’s S3 via Jungledisk), but in the…

  • Today’s Report – January 8th

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    New Scientist: Videos of Robots in 2008. Some videos showing progress made in the field of robotics in 2008. Technology Review: The Year in Robotics 2008. Some highlights from the world of robotics. R2D2 Translator. Aliensonic. Free alien-related sounds. How does the Internet work? Some kids explain. NY Times: Fresh Start for the New Year?…

  • Today’s Report – January 7th

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    NY Times: At the Stove, a Dash of Science, a Pinch of Folklore. Which cooking practices have scientific underpinnings and which are myths? NY Times: Butter Holds The Secret. The most common mistakes made by home bakers have to do with the care and handling of butter. NY Times: Le Tour du Chocolat. Take a…

  • Today’s Report – January 5th

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    Volokh: That Explains So Much University of Minnesota: Common Writing Mistakes. Very funny (for writing geeks, at least!). This is one of the more comprehensive lists I’ve seen like this. WaPo: More and More, Schools Got Game. Another in what seems to be an unending stream of articles about how to use video games to…

  • Today’s Report – January 2nd

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    Slate: The Perilous Tale of Despereaux. The author thinks there should be more parental guidance on G-rated films since even movies that don’t contain specifically objectionable material might have elements that certain kids (or parents) would like to avoid. This might have been helpful for our family when Ned was younger, although I wonder if…

  • Today’s Report – December 29th

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    Turns out that Google is behind that NORAD Santa Tracker site. Explains how NORAD could scale up to deliver all that data for one night of the year. NY Times: Bread of Life, Baked in Rhode Island. How one small family-run company ended up with 80% of the communion wafer market.

  • Today’s Report – December 23rd

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    Slate: Lie Down Singing. An appreciation for Rise Up Singing as a lullaby / family songbook. Slate: Bethlehem Does Broadway. “The fierce competition and high cost of children’s Christmas pageants.”

  • Today’s Report – December 22nd

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    Strange Maps: West Virginia Hot Dog Map. Apparently Slaw Dogs are some sort of West Virginia specialty. I’ve been around folks from West Virginia my whole life and this is the first I’ve ever heard of such a thing. Slate: The Man Who Told A Christmas Story. An appreciation of Jean Shepherd by Donald Fagen…

  • Today’s Report – December 18th

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    Dapperstache: The Periodic Table of Awesoments. Ned: While this table’s contents reminded me very much of you, linking to this does not mean that I endorse any of the listed items! I’ve been watching videos from the TED conference while I eat my lunch. Here are some excellent ones: Ken Robinson: Do Schools Kill Creativity?…

  • Today’s Report – December 15th

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    Gever Tully: 5 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Kids Do. Here’s Gever’s blog. Related: Free Range Kids