Dogville

There's nothing that I want to say about Dogville that hasn't been said already. Subjectivity being one of the central elements of this movie, here's mine: I loved it.

On the Rewards of Learning

What began as a time-filling activity ended up coinciding well with this NY Times article. Katie and I decided early on that both to occupy the down time between camp activities and to help the kids remember topics that they just learned, we would give star stickers to those who answer questions correctly. At the end of the week, they could either exchange stars for gifts or we would give prizes to those with the most stars. It's simple, really, but we never thought much about the ramifications of such a reward system. Now that it's finally over, I guess I could reflect a little.
Different children reacted differently to receiving stars; some were overly zealous, and some didn't care or were resigned, but most of them appeared to really just want the stickers and relegated the knowledge part as a means but not the end (feel free to extend this observation to the adultsphere). The most obvious sign was the continuous raising of hands without the slightest idea of what's the answer or even what was being asked. Several kids especially liked to try to BS their way to a sticker by beginning a monologue on whatever they know regarding the topic; the content was usually incoherent and unrelated, and we quickly learned to move on to the next raised hand. If the kids were to experience the rewards of learning, they ought to also learn about the futility of bullshitting. That said, I left the fine prints of this dichotomy for them to discover later on in life.
I have yet to form a solid opinion on tangibly and artificially rewarding kids for learning and performing well. The hope should be that the child will develop an intrinsic interest in learning along the way and eventually reap the true rewards of self-edification. The libertarian in me screams loudly. To each child, his own.

Married Life

Some friends have been asking how's married life going...well, see for yo' self.


If you dont' get it, you don't get it.

I hate the World Cup

Yeah, you heard me right. The World Cup has wasted good parts of my life over the past month. What's worse, it's not even that I've watched too much of it. I've hardly watched/cared about it at all. What I have had to do is to plan intricate outings with my friends as to not inconvenience their World Cup-watching schedule and then watch them squirm at the table in fear of missing the opening minutes...a whole hour away!!! Oh, what else...to have my colleague ask me whether we should go to a pre-planned meeting on a Sunday while I was already on the road because it'd be awful to missing the final minutes of the Italy vs. France. I can watch those Ronaldo vs. Ronaldinho videos online all night, but to let it get in the way of my work when others are counting on me?
You know what? F it. It's over. Put the F in France too.

3...2...1...POP!

For the Hiller Aviation Summer Camp, I've been testing various film canister rockets today, and here's the verdict:

• Alka-Seltzer and water work much better than vinegar and baking soda (more vinegar than baking soda works well, about 8:1 in volume), and less disgusting, and you can reuse the A-S pill immediately since not the whole pill is dissolved in one shot, and water is much more ubiquitous, and your mom
• Don't even bother with the black film canisters; the white semi-transparent/opaque ones with ridged lids (below) work much better because they don't leak and allow more pressure to build up inside
• Go to any camera/photo-processing store and ask for these canisters
  
  
  Have fun.

I'm in the SF Chronicle!!!

What does it feel to see your name in the newspaper? Weird.

15 minutes

When's the last time I got interviewed by a reporter from a major newspaper? Oh....let me thi.... Never. So how could I turn it down when C.W. Nevius asked me about helping him with a piece on the physics of Superman?
"Hi this is Chuck Nevius from the Chronicle..."
"Excuse me, who is this again?" I didn't say that I only read NYTimes online, and occasionally CNN. I = stupid.
On the drive home, my mind was racing faster than the traffic on 101 S (ummm...ok). Physics of Superman, I better not say something grotesquely wrong and end up being ridiculed by my peers. Stories of publicly derided scientists trickled into the cracks in my skull. Now that I think about it, I had nothing to worry about. Not only is Chuck a great guy to talk to and that I (nervously) enjoyed every minute of our conversation, I remembered that I wasn't even that great of a physics student, so what reputation do I have to uphold?!
Some highlights of my contribution, or rather, what still remains in my mental flash memory (emphasis on flash):

• Physicists are once again playing with the anti-gravity term that Einstein erroneously put into his equations, maybe the Kryptonians worked that out already and incorporated into their biology, allowing them to fly so freely.
• If gravity was stronger on Krypton, so that Kryptonians just developed insanely strong muscles, then we should've sent the U.S. soccer team to Krypton.
  
• Clark Kent was only a 2nd class Superman since he picked up buses over his head horizontally, thus allowing for easier balance. The 1st class Superpeople picked them up vertically over their head in a less energetically stable arrangement.
• In order for his X-Ray vision to work, Superman had to radiate X-Ray on the target and then run behind them to capture the resultant image, thus if you slow the movie down frame by frame, in some frames he should not be there because he's on the other side.
  
• If Superman actually traveled at the speed of light around the Earth and then came back, not only would Lois still be dead, but the entire world would've disappeared due to time dilation.
  
• The legacy of Superman is alive and well as part of the U.S. Air Force's "Superman Drill" tradition.
  

I can't believe we kept a straight face while seriously talking about the physics of Superman. Anyway, the piece comes out on newsstands tomorrow, and Chuck wanted to read my review of the movie after I see it today. Imagine my excitement. I can hardly breathe, and I'm still on Earth.

Culmination

Six years. That's 1/4 of my life. And so it came and went, with all the laughs and tears and late night stomach aches from too much caffeine. Finally, I'm a Stanford student no more. Right now, I honestly can't say that my Stanford years have been the best years of my life or that I'll miss this campus that much, but along the way, roads were paved and razed and paved again, so I'd say the journey was more fulfilling than the destination.
June 15-18 was the culmination of so many things: 4 years of service to the Air Force's up-and-coming, 2 years of fighting Matlab, a 6-year-old fairytale. It was nice to have most of the family and some friends around, though not always soothing or convenient. I'll let the pictures tell the stories, but just remember that in front of cameras, everyone smiles.

I ain't got no Permanence

It's not my fault. I didn't choose to have a three-month gap between commissioning and actually reporting to Edwards. I didn't choose to have to look for a day job from June to September. It's not my fault. Blame it on the AF.
I'd say today was my first *real* job interview 'cause talking with the manager at A.G. Ferrari's about possibly restocking their shelves just doesn't really have the same edge, no matter how good their cheesecakes are. Being lightly grilled by engineering gurus was just...different. Like Neo, I didn't come here to tell you how this is going to end. I came here to tell you how it's going to begin.
"So, after we've briefly introduced our program to you, why don't you tell us about yourself."
"Ok, I'm a Stanford at student..."

'nuff said. I'll get ready to start shelving.

Fun with Big Propellers

You almost don't see them any more on most commercial flights, and the birds are all the more thankful. Of course, you'd be more thankful, too, if you knew that there's a non-zero chance that any blade on a spinning propeller is eligible for a sudden end-of-career separation from the shaft. And if it's not nicely contained in an engine nacelle partially designed with just this concern in mind, it would quite happily slice through the cabin and anything contained therewithin like Wallace's knife through cheese. Aren't we a tad vexed, Gromit?
El Prezo Busho and his entourage decided to stop by campus the other day, arriving and departing via Sand Hill IM Fields. Forrest and I waited two hours before the squad of Marine Ones (modified Blackhawks) and one modified H-53 (for the groupies) landed and took off from the lightly guarded corner of Stanford. I heard the protestors prevented him from getting to Hoover. Good job. If he only cared. Hint, hint. He Doesn't, and neither do I. I couldn't finish my homework because of this, but when's the next time El Prezo visits my campus? More importantly, when's the next time I'll see Marine One? Anyway, Blogger is being stupid and I can't upload some of the pictures, so why don't you check them out.
After waiting a few years (you think I'm kidding), my rendevous with the Pavehawk, the most kick ass CSAR airframe, finally came to pass Tuesday night. Check it out here. The next night, Downey and I annoyed the 129th again and got on the C-130, but no pictures. Just imagine weaving through a valley, less than 500 ft off the ground so the peaks around you are at eye level. Yeah, you understand. No, you don't really understand. Pure kick ass. No one yakked. More kick ass.
Next time you slice that cheese, just think about it. Respect the props.

Though I Can't On Wounded Knee

You laid out all the soups on the counter, so I wouldn't have to reach for them in the cupboard. You knew I'd be fine--though confined--alone on this rainy day, yet you still wanted to stay. My sausages and eggs were perfect, without a finger lifted. You looked at me and listened in a way I never could and still owe you. For these alone, I gladly take thee. In sickness and in health...in sickness and in health...but you've already fulfilled that promise.
The wedding band arrived, and we both love it. Worry not that it is so small; you've bound me with much more.

A Summary

I haven't posted for a while, though much was wanting to be said...

Last episode of Grey's Anatomy, Meredith was saved while the bomb squad was blown up when they gingerly cradled the unstable homemade rocket away from our antagonists. No mention was given to the men in uniform beyond showing the pink mist, no eulogy, no appreciation for their sacrifice. Meredith went home, and in just a few hours cathartically talked about her last kiss with Dr. McDreamy with, er, Dr. McDreamy. For those who care, this script speaks for itself. Uniformed people get no love no mo'.

I've studied harder since I've been living with Nika than any of the previous years that I can remember. I thought I'd miss the dorm life, but I don't. I thought I'd miss the dorm food, but I definitely don't. I love this, and I don't see how marriage will be any different. Until the baby arrives. Now that I have Martha Stewart Weddings from Downey's mom (Thanks!), maybe I should rethink the small wedding plan. Stop. Back up. We aren't even officially engaged. Oh right, you're wondering about parental approval. Haha, I'll be flying multi-million dollar killing machines and I need to get approval to marry whom I want? You've gotta be a fossil of humanity.

And it does look like I'll be a killer pilot after all. Eyes looked good (enough) at Brooks. No brain damage. Heart still pumps. And I even turned my head and coughed. I'm all but officially gtg.

This was most flavourless post of my blogging career.

Well...too late now...

You scored as Psychology. You should be a Psychology major! Sociology 100% Psychology 100% Mathematics 92% Linguistics 92% Biology 83% Dance 83% Theater 83% Journalism 83% Anthropology 83% Engineering 83% Philosophy 75% English 75% Art 67% Chemistry 25% What is your Perfect Major? (PLEASE RATE ME!!<3) created with QuizFarm.com

Reunion of the Muscovites

Finally...Taiwanese Food

This is only the beginning of the weirdness and deliciousness you are about to witness...

Thick Pizza = Good Pizza

Riz was appalled by the amount of mushroom and cheese.
And she doesn't go to Garvard anymore.

Then she came to her senses. Nika was delighted throughout.

I was just amazed.

Where I'll be

You definitely don't know yet, and you might not even care, but pending a passing physical exam (that left eye better man up on 23 Jan), I'll begin my trysts with the blue yonder at Edwards AFB after graduation until 20 Aug 07, and then on to Laughlin AFB for Undergraduate Pilot Training(UPT).