Visual Evidence of Evolution in Technological Specimens

The first of these phones is from circa 1995 AD.  The latest version shown here is from 2008 AD.  Ironically, these pictures were taken via my latest phone (2010 AD), which now contains a 7 megapixel camera, at roughly 1/3 the width of the big black box shown on the far left.

If I had (originally bought) the fossilized remains of the specimens, I would also be able to show the similar extinction pattern of a variety of other species:

• Ipod
• Radio
• Camcorder
• GPS
• Alarmclock
• Phone
• Ukulele tuner
• Gameboy
• Flashlight
• Compass

The only thing that I now have is the Droid X...

Safety & Sanity - Sacrifices at the Alter of Capitalism

Inflammatory headings notwithstanding...

More and more, I am of the belief that capitalism, though a system that has contributed immensely to the welfare of human beings (on average), is deeply flawed.  And the blemishes are unsightly enough, that society should think twice, thrice or however many times necessary, before we trust and hope that untethered free markets will be able to deliver us from the more unsavory aspects of human society that have plagued us since... forever (ie poverty, inequality, injustice, starvation, war, etc etc)...

Let me give you a perfect example of how twisted capitalism can be.  In our stock market, there are instruments (securities) that are created in order to facilitate the buying & selling of shares of our country's various economic enterprises (read, companies).  In addition, there are other economic instruments created to bring liquidity to various markets, for example the commodities market.  The key is this...

Whenever there is a need for a product, the market will create it... if we want more stock, prices will go up, companies will sell stock and prices will reach equilibrium... if we want more bonds, prices will go up, companies will sell bonds and prices will reach equilibrium... if we wanted more interest-rate-swaps... coffee-futures... etc etc

However, there is a major flaw in that statement.  The market does not create based on need.  The market creates based upon WANT.

Let me give you an example.  I will not name the specific security, but recently I found a prospectus for a newly created product, which now trades on the stock market.  Let me offer you some carefully selected excerpts from the prospectus of this product (a prospectus should tell you the characteristics and risks of a financial product... kinda like a nutrition label on food products)...

In almost any potential scenario the Closing Indicative Value (as defined below) of (product) is likely to be close to zero after 20 years...

The long term expected value of (produt) is zero.  If you hold your (product) as a long term investment, it is likely that you will lose all or a substantial portion of your investment.

I didn't make that up.  This product was created.  It is structured in such a way, that the 'long term expected value' is ZERO.  And people buy it.  If this instrument was sold in grocery stores, it would have a surgeon general's warning.  This is an instrument that nobody should need.  It kills people('s wealth).  But, it was created because there was a demand for such a product.  People wanted another instrument to make bets with, even if it's a terrible one.  Thank you capitalism.

(To be fair, it's not capitalism that's messed up... it's the participants.  Then again, to be fair, the same could be said for communism or any other -ism)

When I am young, I know not genius... (Tribute to Shakespeare)

Back in high school, English was my least favorite subject.  Woe to Shakespeare and Hemingway!  Give me the sweet empirical satisfaction of the Pythagoras and Newton!  Looking back now, I sometimes regret that my college education in engineering had not been more well-rounded (2 English classes, one of which consisted predominately of movie watching)...

Awhile back, I purchased a book containing the complete works of Shakespeare.  It was on sale at a good price... good enough to strike up a fancy for new indulgences in old classics.

I've just finished reading a couple of plays, and I must confess the error of my ways.  Shakespeare is a brilliant writer.  His mastery of the written tongue is unmatched by any son of woman now alive.  His prose and poetry is a delight to the sense and the soul.  Though, admittedly, it's quite a rocky read for who didn't major in English such as myself (I probably guess the meaning of half his stuff, then just completely ignore the rest).

His penmanship is surpassed by his story-telling.  It is one thing to rhyme like the Riddler, but Shakespeare weaves forth tales which capture the imagination of any reader (if one can suffer through his verbosity).  More so than when younger, I can better appreciate the genius of his narratives, considering that many of the dramatic devices which today's readers (and TV watchers) take for granted were probably intellectual descendants of Shakespeare.

However, what far separates Shakespeare from most other prodigious writers is his mastery of the human psyche.  His narratives can be appreciated as much now as when first written because his understanding of human nature lends them a timeless element few can replicate (and with such impeccable consistency!)  The Bible (and perhaps select other religious/philosophical works) aside, Shakespeare's writings probably strike the reader, more so than any other's, as a terrifyingly accurate portrayal of  human desire, folly, and misbehavior.

For all the engineers out there, I think it is worth our while to seek out Mr. Shakespeare as our English tutor... (if for no other virtuous reason than at least to impress the ladies with some poetry that'll make'em melt... sometimes you just need some date-night conversation topics other than aerospace engineering, workforce optimization, digital signal processing, fluids, etc)...

Nite Lite 4 Monitors (aka Tech for Yuppies)

http://www.stereopsis.com/flux/ 

During the day, computer screens look good—they're designed to look like the sun. But, at 9PM, 10PM, or 3AM, you probably shouldn't be looking at the sun.

F.lux fixes this: it makes the color of your computer's display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day.

It's even possible that you're staying up too late because of your computer. You could use f.lux because it makes you sleep better, or you could just use it just because it makes your computer look better.

(I have tried it.  After 10 seconds, I can vouch for it...)