I am a Wikipedian. Wikipedia eats up half of my free time.
I thought I'd take a moment to display some of my interests in the form of Wikipedia's featured articles.
Exploding Whale - Probably one of my favorite featured articles, and the classic example of just how specialized Wikipedia can become. The article documents a few rare cases of when large beached whales that are too large to move have been detonated, as well as a few cases where the internal pressure of the rotting whale carcass actually caused it to explode.
0.999... - An in-depth look into an interesting mathamatical proof most of us take for granted. Not only does it give the most basic proof of this mathamatical therom, but also delves into more complex means of proving its existance, as well as other applications and criticisms.
Arrested Development (TV series) - A fantastic article for an equally fantastic series, this article highlights not only the major concepts and ideas of this unique comedy, but goes further in-depth, tracking the writer's tropes and tendenceies, as well as their unique sense of humor.
New Radicals - One of my favorite bands of the 90's, generally considered to be a one-hit wonder, not entirely because of their momentary popularity or one good single, but more because of the lead singer and his somewhat shady history. The article gives interesting insight into their break-up and earlier history, as well as their short discography. Check them out; I'm sure you'll want them to come back just as much as I do.
Definition of planet - I am a firm believer in Pluto as a planet, and this article is a great example of what I fight against in order to restore Pluto to it's former glory. Despite the controversial content, this is a fanstastic article, truly explaining what it means to be a planet in relatively understandable terms. I may not like it, but I at least can appruciate it.
Religious debates over the Harry Potter series - I find this article to be more interesting than anything, as I've always been interested in the grievences against such a simple fantasy series such as Harry Potter. I've always seen it as more of a harmless fairytale full of Aesop-esque morals with a simple fantastical overtone that makes for an engaging story and unique plot line. This article provides a neutral and all-encompassing analysis of the debate, and is a good start for anyone interested in learning more about Harry Potter and the controversy surrounding it.
Kingdom Hearts (series) - One of my favorite video game series, Kingdom Hearts has taken two unlikely bedfellows and produced a strange child that mixes the innocent fantasy of Disney with some of the darker themes and classical RPG elements of Final Fantasy. The article gives an overview of the engaging story, history of the game, it's installments, unique music, and novel concept.
Wikipedia - I always find it interesting to see what a website says about itself, and Wikipedia is no exception. This article is always a bit of a mindfield (hence it being the only non-FA in my post), but is an interesting read nonetheless, highliting Wikipedia's diverse history and the controversies behind its general neutrality and accuracy.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Wisdom Woes
I had all four of my wisdom teeth removed last Friday. I feel compelled to chronicle my saga of pain and torture for posterity.
Friday - Day 1
Around 7:45, I go in for surgery. After a short wait, they lead me into a small room and have me lay on a table shaped ominously like a coffin. They load me up with laughing gas (nitrous oxide, something that my mind will not let me forget, repeating it constantly as I descend into the realm of borderline insanity), and once the nurses get themselves organized and the oral surgeon comes in, I'm high as a kite and tingling all over. The surgeon takes the time to locate my vein, compelling me to crack an incoherent joke about how there is probably a good deal of them, and once he inserts the IV (which I can't really feel at this point), I feel a spray up my arm and slowly lose consciousness. The last thing I hear before I'm out cold is my regulated breath and a swallow, along with the fading noise of obnoxious 80's music in the background.
Needless to say, it was quite a trip.
Next thing I know, I'm awake, with a piece of bloodied gauze sticking from my mouth. A nurse guides me to a reclining chair in a little nook adjacent to the OR, and lets me sit there for a while as my gums bleed profusely. Not long after, she guides another poor, unfortunate soul into the chair next to me, and I sit mumbling to myself, leafing through an outdated People magazine as the anesthesia wears off. After what seems like 10 minutes, I'm lead out into the waiting room again, given over to my bemused parents. Despite the fact that my lip is extremely numb and I have a large amount of cotton shoved in my cheeks, I feel generally unfazed, and get home without much problem.
By the time I do get home, however, the numbness had started to fade, and pain was slowly rearing its ugly head. My mother gives me the heavy pain pill, and for a while, I seem to be all right, despite having to change my gauze about 5 or 6 times over the next 3 or so hours.
Then, it hits.
Suddenly, I find myself to be overcome by pain. Strangely enough, it wasn't exactly painful, but something in my head was screaming "DO NOT WANT". I lay on the couch, moaning and whimpering, completely lost in a whirlwind of aching, but a few ibuprofens later, I managed to knock myself out. Beyond that, everything was pretty much a blur until I fell asleep about 8 hours later.
Saturday - Day 2
By this point, the bleeding had pretty much stopped. I had ditched the ones I had in my mouth overnight, and they were surprisingly not very bloody. And this is where my story gets pretty boring. From this point until about Monday afternoon, I did practically nothing of consequence, aside from lay around and play video games or watch Spongebob Squarepants reruns. The only thing of real significance I did was go to see Coraline, which, by the way, is a fantastic movie. Maybe I'll write a review...
Anyways, I made the switch from the heavy pain meds to the Vicodin (because everyone wants to be House), as the pain had finally downgraded to an annoying ache rather than a scalpel stuck in my gums. I also started the penicillin, but that's not really that interesting, is it?
Also, I wouldn't recommend combining vicodin with ibuprofen. It made me feel extremely spacey.
Sunday - Day 3
The pain slowly faded, but it was definitely still around. Aside from that, the whole of Sunday was practically a blur. I basically did the same thing I did on Saturday, just with my face a little less puffy. Despite this, by the end of the day, I was absolutely drained. Of course, I hadn't even bothered to think about homework... Oh well...
Monday - Day 4
By this point, I was feeling relatively normal. My face still hurt and it still pretty much bound my jaw shut, but at least I could walk around and eat somewhat normally. However, it was pretty clear that my diet had been thrown for a loop, as I managed to down 3 applesauces within a period of about 2 hours after already eating at least something hourly.
The worst part of this day, however, was realizing I had homework. Luckily, I managed to annotate my 8 sources for a research paper, read 20 pages in my World History book, and read 30 pages of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (a very good book which I already read before) before midnight. Even I astound myself sometimes.
Tuesday - Day 5
So, here I am, writing this blog post on the 5th day post-surgery. Right now, I'm a little out of it as the ibuprofen I took earlier today has long since worn off, but despite the lingering swelling, I feel at least decent.
Despite the potential for milkshakes and ice cream, I really wouldn't recommend using your wisdom teeth as a means of satisfying your sweet tooth. Half the time, you're either in too much pain or asleep from the pain medication to even want to think about the Chic-Fil-A Cookies and Cream milkshake or bowl of Black Jack Cherry ice cream in front of you. No matter how much your friends and family try to sugar coat it, it's not a fun experience. Though I would recommend anesthesia. That was quite a ride.
Friday - Day 1
Around 7:45, I go in for surgery. After a short wait, they lead me into a small room and have me lay on a table shaped ominously like a coffin. They load me up with laughing gas (nitrous oxide, something that my mind will not let me forget, repeating it constantly as I descend into the realm of borderline insanity), and once the nurses get themselves organized and the oral surgeon comes in, I'm high as a kite and tingling all over. The surgeon takes the time to locate my vein, compelling me to crack an incoherent joke about how there is probably a good deal of them, and once he inserts the IV (which I can't really feel at this point), I feel a spray up my arm and slowly lose consciousness. The last thing I hear before I'm out cold is my regulated breath and a swallow, along with the fading noise of obnoxious 80's music in the background.
Needless to say, it was quite a trip.
Next thing I know, I'm awake, with a piece of bloodied gauze sticking from my mouth. A nurse guides me to a reclining chair in a little nook adjacent to the OR, and lets me sit there for a while as my gums bleed profusely. Not long after, she guides another poor, unfortunate soul into the chair next to me, and I sit mumbling to myself, leafing through an outdated People magazine as the anesthesia wears off. After what seems like 10 minutes, I'm lead out into the waiting room again, given over to my bemused parents. Despite the fact that my lip is extremely numb and I have a large amount of cotton shoved in my cheeks, I feel generally unfazed, and get home without much problem.
By the time I do get home, however, the numbness had started to fade, and pain was slowly rearing its ugly head. My mother gives me the heavy pain pill, and for a while, I seem to be all right, despite having to change my gauze about 5 or 6 times over the next 3 or so hours.
Then, it hits.
Suddenly, I find myself to be overcome by pain. Strangely enough, it wasn't exactly painful, but something in my head was screaming "DO NOT WANT". I lay on the couch, moaning and whimpering, completely lost in a whirlwind of aching, but a few ibuprofens later, I managed to knock myself out. Beyond that, everything was pretty much a blur until I fell asleep about 8 hours later.
Saturday - Day 2
By this point, the bleeding had pretty much stopped. I had ditched the ones I had in my mouth overnight, and they were surprisingly not very bloody. And this is where my story gets pretty boring. From this point until about Monday afternoon, I did practically nothing of consequence, aside from lay around and play video games or watch Spongebob Squarepants reruns. The only thing of real significance I did was go to see Coraline, which, by the way, is a fantastic movie. Maybe I'll write a review...
Anyways, I made the switch from the heavy pain meds to the Vicodin (because everyone wants to be House), as the pain had finally downgraded to an annoying ache rather than a scalpel stuck in my gums. I also started the penicillin, but that's not really that interesting, is it?
Also, I wouldn't recommend combining vicodin with ibuprofen. It made me feel extremely spacey.
Sunday - Day 3
The pain slowly faded, but it was definitely still around. Aside from that, the whole of Sunday was practically a blur. I basically did the same thing I did on Saturday, just with my face a little less puffy. Despite this, by the end of the day, I was absolutely drained. Of course, I hadn't even bothered to think about homework... Oh well...
Monday - Day 4
By this point, I was feeling relatively normal. My face still hurt and it still pretty much bound my jaw shut, but at least I could walk around and eat somewhat normally. However, it was pretty clear that my diet had been thrown for a loop, as I managed to down 3 applesauces within a period of about 2 hours after already eating at least something hourly.
The worst part of this day, however, was realizing I had homework. Luckily, I managed to annotate my 8 sources for a research paper, read 20 pages in my World History book, and read 30 pages of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (a very good book which I already read before) before midnight. Even I astound myself sometimes.
Tuesday - Day 5
So, here I am, writing this blog post on the 5th day post-surgery. Right now, I'm a little out of it as the ibuprofen I took earlier today has long since worn off, but despite the lingering swelling, I feel at least decent.
Despite the potential for milkshakes and ice cream, I really wouldn't recommend using your wisdom teeth as a means of satisfying your sweet tooth. Half the time, you're either in too much pain or asleep from the pain medication to even want to think about the Chic-Fil-A Cookies and Cream milkshake or bowl of Black Jack Cherry ice cream in front of you. No matter how much your friends and family try to sugar coat it, it's not a fun experience. Though I would recommend anesthesia. That was quite a ride.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Web 2.0 - a primer
Within the past 10 or so years, the Internet has become an integral part of our lives. A simple connection between two processing units proposed as a means of information relay in the early 1980's has blossomed over a short period of about 30 years into that which we know today. The Internet, however, has beyond its original bounds as an IT resource, and has not only helped to transport and display information, allowing for easy access to what equates to the sum of human knowledge, but has also connected people. This idea of the connection and collaboration of multiple people of various and diverse backgrounds has manifested itself in the concept known as "Web 2.0."
Wikipedia, a posterchild of the Web 2.0 movement, defines it as "the changing trends in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aim to enhance creativity, communications, secure information sharing, collaboration and functionality of the web." Popular websites, like Facebook, Myspace, Flickr, Twitter, and even the idea of blogging itself can be linked back to this trend. These communities have grown up around the basic philosophy of better human integration through the Internet, and have become an important and integral part of our lives. In fact, those of us born in the last 20 years have known practically nothing else.
These revolutionary websites were born from humble beginnings, even if they seem to be a grand and important part of our day-to-day lives. Facebook, a simple social networking website originally created to cater to students at Harvard University, has turned into a worldwide phenomenon, growing substantially since its introduction into the mainstream in September of 2005. Myspace, who is considered to be the pioneer of social networking (though not necessarily the first), grew out of the idea of a "friend meeting service", Friendster, and incorporated many popular features that has now made it a safe haven and proverbial greenhouse for "indie" media, particularly music, while still serving its original purpose as a social networking site.
This concept and the projects deriving from it have truly changed our perspective as a whole. We are more inclined to process information through many channels, and the amount of information available to us has increased substantially. In the future, this idea of global integration and collaboration of information is likely to expand and show itself in our society, economy, and even governments. This transition into transparency has already started.
Recently elected President Barak Obama has expressed a desire to create transparency in the government through the use of Web 2.0 concepts. During his campaign, he used Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Flickr to promote his campaign and reach out to his candidates. His supporters fashioned a website based around Google Maps to help coordinate the grassroots, door-to-door campaign. During his transition period, a website, change.gov, was set up to get input from the American people on his cabinet, administration, and transition actions. Now that he is in office, he is now making weekly addresses available over the internet to inform the American people of the current situation in the nation.
Web 2.0 shows the potential to revolutionize our way of life. It has already begun to permeate into our lives and minds, broadening our perspectives and giving us access to a treasure trove of information. The impact of these ideas is sure to be felt for years to come, and become a basis for how we work, play and govern ourselves in the future.
Read More:
The White House Blog - http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/
Web 2.0 from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0
What is Web 2.0? – O’Reilly Media - http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html
Wikipedia, a posterchild of the Web 2.0 movement, defines it as "the changing trends in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aim to enhance creativity, communications, secure information sharing, collaboration and functionality of the web." Popular websites, like Facebook, Myspace, Flickr, Twitter, and even the idea of blogging itself can be linked back to this trend. These communities have grown up around the basic philosophy of better human integration through the Internet, and have become an important and integral part of our lives. In fact, those of us born in the last 20 years have known practically nothing else.
These revolutionary websites were born from humble beginnings, even if they seem to be a grand and important part of our day-to-day lives. Facebook, a simple social networking website originally created to cater to students at Harvard University, has turned into a worldwide phenomenon, growing substantially since its introduction into the mainstream in September of 2005. Myspace, who is considered to be the pioneer of social networking (though not necessarily the first), grew out of the idea of a "friend meeting service", Friendster, and incorporated many popular features that has now made it a safe haven and proverbial greenhouse for "indie" media, particularly music, while still serving its original purpose as a social networking site.
This concept and the projects deriving from it have truly changed our perspective as a whole. We are more inclined to process information through many channels, and the amount of information available to us has increased substantially. In the future, this idea of global integration and collaboration of information is likely to expand and show itself in our society, economy, and even governments. This transition into transparency has already started.
Recently elected President Barak Obama has expressed a desire to create transparency in the government through the use of Web 2.0 concepts. During his campaign, he used Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Flickr to promote his campaign and reach out to his candidates. His supporters fashioned a website based around Google Maps to help coordinate the grassroots, door-to-door campaign. During his transition period, a website, change.gov, was set up to get input from the American people on his cabinet, administration, and transition actions. Now that he is in office, he is now making weekly addresses available over the internet to inform the American people of the current situation in the nation.
Web 2.0 shows the potential to revolutionize our way of life. It has already begun to permeate into our lives and minds, broadening our perspectives and giving us access to a treasure trove of information. The impact of these ideas is sure to be felt for years to come, and become a basis for how we work, play and govern ourselves in the future.
Read More:
The White House Blog - http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/
Web 2.0 from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0
What is Web 2.0? – O’Reilly Media - http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html
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