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Saturday, March 12, 2011

Democracy and Workers Rights: West Virginia Weekend

As the legislative battle in Wisconsin continued on Friday with the enactment of a bill which limited collective bargaining rights of most state employees, similar disputes are simmering across the country.  Along with Wisconsin, Ohio, Iowa, and Idaho, among others, seem poised to join the growing group of state governments that are prohibiting at least some public employee collective bargaining.  Also on Friday, the West Virginia House of Delegates passed a resolution supporting the public employee unions in Wisconsin.  Despite this show of support, and unlike Wisconsin, which still allows collective bargaining in limited circumstances, West Virginia law does not extend collective bargaining rights to any public employees.

WV Weekend Logo These controversies raise issues of democracy and dignity. WVU College of Law Professor Anne Marie Lofaso recently commented on a new federal proposal that would count a non-vote as a no-vote in elections regarding unionization by saying that such a process would run "counter to the spirit of democracy." Likewise, Lofaso uses notions of democracy and dignity as the basis of her theorizing about workers and unions.  In Toward a Foundational Theory of Workers’ Rights: The Autonomous Dignified Worker, 76 UMKC L. Rev. 1, available on ssrn, Lofaso critiques the conventional free-market view of workers and then advocates “a novel theory of grounding workers’ rights in two values: autonomy as promoting an individuals’ freedom to become part author of his or her working life and dignity as promoting each individual as having equal moral worth.” Id. at 3.  Indeed, “[t]he conflict between the property rights of capital and those of labor in market economics signals an incompatibility between the current capitalist conception of property rights and the human right to work.” Id. at 38.

Professor Lofaso writes:

[W]orker autonomy means employees who (1) know what issues affect their working lives and know how to resolve those issues according to their own interests; (2) have access to information relevant to making informed decisions; and (3) are free to effectively decide how to resolve those issues. Autonomous workers must, therefore, possess the power to effectuate these decisions. But workers who do not gather together may simply not have the power to control decisions affecting their working lives. Thus, worker autonomy often implies some level of industrial or worker autonomy—the need for meaningful employee participation at a variety of levels, a right to any information management would deem necessary to effect wise business decisions on behalf of property owners; state intervention to protect these worker rights to be free from coercive forces, all set in a pluralist industrial or other workplace framework.

Id. at 41-42.  The author concludes with specific recommendations for the Congress, Executive, Supreme Court, and NLRB, to protect the rights of the autonomous and dignified worker. Id. at 57-64.

Coal Miner In her most recent piece, “What We Owe Our Coal Miners,” 5 Harv. L. & Pol’y Rev. ___ (forthcoming 2011), [UPDATE: NOW available on ssrn], Lofaso focuses on the work of coal mining, work that is closely identified with West Virginia.  Indeed, the statute of a coal miner (pictured right) is on the grounds of the State Capitol Complex.  Despite the valorization of coal miners, the workers themselves are often under-protected, as illustrated by last year's loss of life at the Upper Big Branch mine, owned by Massey Coal Company, of Caperton v. Massey Coal Company fame.

Lofaso advocates mandating the union model on the mining industry by demonstrating that “collective bargaining above the regulatory floor is likely to result in safer, healthier mines, and that the safety records of such mines will be better justified when based on informed, unforced, general agreement.” Id. at 702.  Throughout the article, Professor Lofaso observes the power disparity between coal operators and their miners; examines the incentives for operators to circumvent mining regulations; identifies several market failures, such as inequality of bargaining power, irrationality in assessing risk, asymmetrical information, and monopsony; and, finally, advocates for “extending the union model to nonunion mines” in order to resolve many safety issues. Id. at 702-03.

In sum, Professor Lofaso writes:

Coal mine operators possess greater bargaining power than coal miners. The conditions resulting in this disparity of bargaining power are precisely those conditions that Congress intended to ameliorate when it passed the NLRA. A comparison between pre- and post-regulator fatality rates in coal mines strongly supports the conclusion that current regulations make coal mines safer. Those regulations raise the floor of rights on top of which unions bargain, thereby further addressing the disparity of bargaining power . . . making it more likely that unions will bargain for even better safety conditions than current regulations permit. . . . Accordingly, it makes sense for policy makers to consider bringing the union model into the nonunion coal mine.

Id. at 726. From the more “radical solution” of compelling union representation for all coal mines, id., Lofaso also advocates more modest proposals, “such as posting miners’ rights,” or “mandate[ing] bargaining over health and safety . . . regardless of whether the miners are union represented.” Id. at 724.   Ultimately, Lofaso observes that “[d]angerous jobs in industries that the public perceives to be vital to its comfort and security may be here to stay, but that does not mean that the public shouldn’t demand that policy makers focus on questions of human life and dignity in the context of these crucial multi-billion dollar industries.” Id. at 727.

The Constitutional power of the federal government to mandate unionization or even worker safety has become contenstious, as has the legitimacy of state governments relationship towards unionization.  Lofaso's work reminds readers - - - in West Virginia and elsewhere - - - that such arguments have real life consequences.

with J. Zak Ritchie

(image: The West Virginia Coal Miner,  bronze statue by sculptor Burl Jones, photograph by Ken Thomas, via)

March 12, 2011 in Current Affairs, Scholarship, Theory | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Pugliese on CIA Torture at Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities

The keynote lecture Friday evening at this year's conference of the Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities was Anatomies of Torture: CIA Black Sites and Redacted Bodies, delivered by Joseph Pugliese (pictured) of Macquarie University in Australia. Pugliese

In his examination of the so-called "black sites," secret prisons located outside U.S. jurisdiction in which a range of state-sanctioned practices of torture have transpired, Pugliese focused on the death of a young Afghan man, Gul Rahman, who died on 20 November 2002, in the CIA black site prison known as the Salt Pit, located in northern Kabul, Afghanistan.  While Rahman's body has never been recovered, Pugliese argues that Rahman is nominally buried within the Classified Response to the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Professional Responsibility Classified Report Dated July 29, 2009. This document, prepared by Counsel for Judge Jay S. Bybee, is a detailed repost to the accusation made by the Office of Professional Resposibility (OPR) that Bybee committed professional misconduct in light of Bybee’s memo (August 1, 2002) to Alberto Gonzales, Counsel to the President, which authorised some forms of torture.

Yet portions of the memos are redacted.  Pugliese displayed the memos and examined the legal process that edits and censors a document of any secret or sensitive information through the application of a black marker over designated text.  In the context of the CIA "black sites" and the Salt Pit in particular, Pugliese argues that the process of redaction must be seen as producing its own discursive black sites of silence, loss and death.

Pugliese's presentation was spell-binding and an excellent capstone to a conference in which the critical tools of humanities scholars and legal scholars were so often combined.

March 12, 2011 in Conferences, Executive Authority, Foreign Affairs, International, Scholarship, State Secrets, Theory | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Happy Birthday Justice Scalia?

SCALIALinda Greenhouse points out that Friday March 11 is Scalia's 75th birthday, but her wishes are not necessarily warm ones.

Instead, Greenhouse discusses Scalia's  "bullying" of his junior colleagues, notably the female ones.  She focuses on Scalia's dissenting opinion in Michigan v. Bryant, which the only other dissenter, Ginsburg, did not join, and which was aimed at a majority opinion written by Sotomayor.  She also recounts Scalia's scathing reaction to O'Connor, when O'Connor was new and the first woman Justice, on the subject of abortion, noting that Scalia did not ultimately prevail.

Greenhouse sums up Scalia's almost 25 years on the Court as ones in which he "has cast a long shadow but has accomplished surprisingly little."

The notable exception - - - and some would say it is a rather large one - - - is District of Columbia v. Heller, revivifying the Second Amendment.

[image of Antonin Scalia, via]

March 10, 2011 in Abortion, Courts and Judging, Criminal Procedure, Supreme Court (US) | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

CFP: Secrecy, National Security, and the Vindication of Constitutional Law

For a Conference in Milan, Italy on December 1-2, 2011, with proposals due April 24, 2011.

In virtually every nation, assertions of the need for secrecy on matters of counterterrorism policy and practice have created tensions with efforts to ensure transparency, accountability and procedural fairness. The conference is open to proposals that seek to bring comparative analysis to bear on how best to mediate these tensions, including:

  • the challenge of secrecy to democratic lawmaking on counterterrorism policy;
  • the use of “secrecy” privileges to block litigation challenging allegedly illegal government
  • programs;
  • the use of classified evidence against individuals or organizations to freeze their assets, designate them as terrorist, or justify other restraints on their liberty;
  • the use of “anonymous” witnesses who testify without revealing their identity;
  • the closure of criminal trials and other proceedings to the public;
  •  and the adoption of secret coercive programs without transparent legal justification, such as the US’s coercive interrogation practices or targeted killing program.

One of the covenors is David Cole of Georgetown; more information and submission details here.

March 10, 2011 in Comparative Constitutionalism, Conferences, Criminal Procedure, Executive Authority, Privacy, Scholarship, Travel | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

International Women's Day, Women in Combat, and Military Leadership Diversity

As the centenary of international women's day, March 8, arrives, the end of combat restrictions on women in the United States military also seems to be ending.

In Rostker v. Goldberg, 1981, the United States Supreme Court upheld the Congressional decision to exempt women from registration for the military.  The challengers argued that the gender classification of the Congressional statute violated equal protection as embodied in the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause. The Court opined that the Congressional exempt was not an "accidental by-product of traditional ways of thinking" about women, but instead was permissible because men and women were not similarly situated given the combat restrictions on women.  That these combat restrictions were legal (rather than natural) did not seem important to the six Justices in the majority.

International Women Day

 Today, according to the United States Department of Defense, a

commission established to study diversity among military leaders is recommending that the Defense Department rescind its policy that prevents women from being assigned to ground combat units below the brigade level.

In a report issued today, the Military Leadership Diversity Commission recommends that the department and the services eliminate combat exclusion policies for women, as well as other “barriers and inconsistencies, to create a level playing field for all qualified service members.”

The Military Leadership Diversity Final ReportFrom Representation to Inclusion: Diversity Leadership for the 21st-Century Military, considers a range of diversity, including racial and ethnic diversity.  The final report, at 162 pages, contains 20 broad recommendations, discussed in the shorter Executive Summary.  The exclusion of women from combat is specifically linked to career advancement.  The Press Release, dated March 8, provides an interesting connection to International Women's Day.

March 8, 2011 in Cases and Case Materials, Congressional Authority, Current Affairs, Equal Protection, Fifth Amendment, Gender, History, International, News, Race, War Powers | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

Monday, March 7, 2011

President Orders Review of Guantanamo Detainees

President Obama today issued an executive order providing for "periodic review of individuals detained at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force."

The move suggests that the White House won't achieve its goal to close down Guantanamo anytime soon.

The new periodic review process applies only to those 172 individuals currently detained at Guantanamo and subject to the interagency review process in 2009.  Under the process, detainees may present a written or oral statement to the review board, introduce relevant information including written declarations, answer any questions posed by the review board, and call witnesses who are reasonably available.  Each detainee gets a "personal representative" and a right to independent counsel (not at government expense).

The EO explicitly grounds authority for the new process in the Authorization for Use of Military Force and explicitly subjects detention at Guantanamo to the Convention Against Torture, Geneva Conventions Common Article 3, the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, "and other laws relating to the transfer, treatment, and interrogation of individuals detained in armed conflict."  It also explicitly recognizes detainees' right to habeas corpus.

The EO sets this standard for continued detention:

Continued law of war detention is warranted for a detainee subject to the periodic review . . . of this order if it is necessary to protect against a significant threat to the security of the United States.

Emphasis added.

March 7, 2011 in Executive Authority, Habeas Corpus, International, News, Separation of Powers, War Powers | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Sunday, March 6, 2011

School District Ban on T-Shirt Violates First Amendment

A three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit ruled last week in Zamecnik v. Indian Prairie School District #204 that officials at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, Illinois, violated the First Amendment when they prohibited a student from sporting a t-shirt that read "Be Happy, Not Gay."

The statement on the t-shirt was the student's anti-gay response to the Day of Silence, an annual event sponsored by a private group called the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network and intended to draw critical attention to harassment of gays and lesbians.  Some students and faculty wear t-shirts that read "Be Who You Are" on the Day of Silence.

Officials at the school claimed that the student's statement interfered with the rights of gay and lesbian students.  The Seventh Circuit ruled that that interest wasn't enough to justify suppressing speech, especially when it allowed speech supporting gays and lesbians on the Day of Silence:

Thus a school that permits advocacy of the rights of homosexual students cannot be allowed to stifle criticism of homosexuality. . . .  [P]eople in our society do not have a legal right to prevent criticism of their beliefs or even their way of life.  R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul. . . . .

"Be Happy, Not Gay" is not an instance of fighting words.  To justify prohibiting their display the school would have to present "facts which might reasonably lead school officials to forecast substantial disruption."  Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District. . . .  Such facts might include a decline in students' test scores, an upsurge in truancy, or other symptoms of a sick school--but the school had presented no such facts in response to the motion for a preliminary injunction.

Op. at 5.

The panel also looked to the school's civil educational mission as a reason for allowing the speech:

Although tolerance of homosexuality has grown, gay marriage remains highly controversial.  Today's high school students may soon find themselves, as voters, asked to vote on whether to approve gay marriage, or to vote for candidates who approve of it, or ones who disapprove.

Op. at 4.

March 6, 2011 in First Amendment, News, Recent Cases, Speech | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)


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Editor: Kevin Cole
Univ. of San Diego School of Law

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Brown on Lafler's Remedial Uncertainty

Brown darrylDarryl K. Brown (University of Virginia School of Law) has posted Lafler's Remedial Uncertainty: Why Prosecutors Can Rest Easy (Houston Law Review, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

Some prosecutors are dismayed by the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Lafler v. Cooper. This very brief (2,000 words) comment responds to a recent version of that concern. Lafler held that a defendant who declined a plea bargain offer due to his attorney's incompetent advice, and was later convicted at trial, must be reoffered the original bargain as the first step in a remedy for denial of his right to effective counsel. Some prosecutors worry that defendants will exploit Lafler to take a shot at trial while still keeping the plea bargain in reserve. In four pages, I explain why they should not worry. Lafler does not guarantee defendants a sentence based on the bargain, only a chance to present that bargain to a trial court that now knows (from the intervening trial) a great deal more about a defendant's case, and which has clear authority, after Lafler, not to vacate the post-trial conviction and sentence. Further, few defendants will find it as easy as Mr. Cooper did to prove that his lawyer provided ineffective representation. And in any case defendants will have to wait years, in prison, after a trial conviction to win a Lafler claim (usually in habeas litigation) and a chance to convince a judge to resentence on the bargain's terms.

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Thursday, February 28, 2013

Zimmer and Bisom-Rapp on The Role of Canadian and American Scholarship in U.S. Labor Law Reform Debates

BisomrappzimmerMike Zimmer (Loyola Chicago) and Susan Bisom-Rapp (Thomas Jefferson) have just posted on SSRN page proofs for their article, North American Border Wars: The Role of Canadian and American Scholarship in U.S. Labor Law Reform Debates (Hofstra Lab. & Emp. L.J., vol. 30, No. 1, 2012-13).

Susan reports that the article will also shortly appear in Italian as a book chapter, S. Bisom-Rapp & M. Zimmer, La Guerra di Confine Nordamericana: il Ruolo della Ricerca Canadese e Americana nel Dibattito sulla Riforma del Diritto del Lavoro Statunitense, in REGOLE, POLITICHE E METODO: L’EREDITÀ DI MARCO BIAGI NELLE RELAZIONI DI LAVORO DI OGGI (F. Basenghi, L.E. Golzio (a cura di), con la collaborazione di A. Russo, O. Rymkevich, I. Senatori, C. Serra, Giappichelli, Torino, 2013).  Susan and Mike presented their paper March 19, 2012 at the Tenth Annual Marco Biagi Conference at the University of Modena, Italy.

Here is the abstract:

The economies of Canada and the United States and the organization of their societies are deeply interrelated but significant differences exist. This article briefly traces the interaction between the two countries in the development of labor relations laws with a particular emphasis on the impact of scholarly work on U.S. labor law reform debates in the last two decades. Instructive for that purpose is the work of Professor Paul Weiler, a prominent figure in labor law policy discussions in both countries. A significant architect of labor law in Canada, Professor Weiler came to Harvard Law School in 1978 and brought his experience and insights with him, rapidly becoming one of the foremost labor law scholars in the United States. His influence in the 1990s, and hence the influence of Canadian ideas, on the ultimately unsuccessful labor law reform proposals of President Clinton’s Dunlop Commission is widely recognized.

Professor Weiler’s proposals were once again the basis for scholarly and policy debate during the Obama Administration. This time, however, Canadian ideas and experience prompted a scholarly border skirmish. Recently, when new legislation – the Employee Free Choice Act – was proposed to Congress to implement a number of reforms of the National Labor Relations Act based on the Canadian experience, several U.S. academics argued that the actual Canadian experience where these reforms were in place resulted in higher unemployment and slower economic growth. Canadian labor scholars, fearing the corrosive effects of such critiques on their own labor relations regime, responded with rejoinders challenging the work of the American scholars. Clearly, and notwithstanding American provincialism, Canadian-influenced labor law scholarship has played a central role in U.S. policy debates, creating a favorable intellectual environment for labor law convergence. Yet the opponents of U.S. labor law reform also deploy scholarship aimed at the Canadian experience in order reinforce the divergent paths of the two systems, as do Canadian scholars acting defensively to forestall greater convergence of the Canadian regime to the U.S. model.

Check it out! Looks very interesting.

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Douglas H. Greene, CPA
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Panhandle collision kills Hugoton man PDF Print E-mail
Tuesday, 13 April 2010 12:00

• Daily Leader staff report
A Hugoton man is dead following a collision Sunday afternoon in Cimarron County, Okla.
A report from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said George C. Truitt II, 43, of Hugoton, was pronounced dead at the scene from internal injuries after an accident which occurred at 3:15 p.m. two miles west of Boise City and one mile north of U.S. Highway 56 on a county road in Cimarron County.
Truitt’s vehicle, a 1990 Honda PC, was eastbound on the county road, when it went left of center, lost control and went into a broad slide striking the front end of a second vehicle, a 2000 Ford PU, driven by Ray F. Henshaw of Boise City.
Both Henshaw and a passenger in his vehicle, Valerie R. Kerschen of Boise City, refused treatment at the scene of the collision. However, a passenger in Truitt’s vehicle, Jordan M. Truitt, 14, of Boise City, was taken to Cimarron County Memorial Hospital in Boise City. He was later flown by Mediflight to Northwest Texas Hospital in Amarillo, where he is listed in stable condition.
Seat belts were equipped in both vehicles, but only in use in the Honda, according to the OHP. No subjects were pinned or ejected from the vehicles.

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About The High Plains Daily Leader

The High Plains Daily Leader and Southwest Daily Times are published Sunday through Friday and reaches homes throughout the Liberal, Kansas retail trade zone. The Leader & Times is the official newspaper of Seward County, USD No. 480, USD No. 483 and the cities of Liberal and Kismet.  The Leader & Times is a member of the Liberal Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas Press Association and the Associated Press.

For more, contact us.

Get the Daily Leader delivered to your home for $101.45 per year in Liberal, or $140 outside Liberal. Call 620-626-0840 for a subscription today. You can receive the print edition or an electronic edition! To subscribe today, email circulation@hpleader.com.

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UNDER CONSTRUCTION — Rebuilding process continues for Lady Redskin softball PDF Print E-mail
Wednesday, 19 April 2017 10:48

Liberal softball coach Jason Wilson huddles his team Tuesday during a game against Garden City. The Lady Redskins dropped a double header to the Lady Buffaloes, 14-2 and 19-0. L&T photo/Earl Watt

• Leader & Times

Jason Wilson has a simple goal for his Lady Redskins right now, and it is an important one — become a seven-inning team.

Liberal has gone three seasons with a Western Athletic Conference win, and in each of those previous three years, Liberal did not finish seven innings in any of those games.

In the first four WAC games of this season, the Lady Redskins have played two complete games, a sign that the Lady Redskins are making progress.

One of those complete games happened Tuesday at the National Beef Family Sports Complex against Garden City.

Kaleah Chaloupek took the circle for the Lady Redskins and tossed a shutout first inning. It was one of four scoreless inning the Lady Redskins turned in against the Lady Buffaloes.

But the Lady Redskin offense continued to struggle as well against quality pitching by the Lady Buffaloes.

Garden scored two in the second and six in the third to take an 8-0 lead.

Alize Tatum returned to the line-up after suffering a foot injury earlier in the season and hit a double fourth and a two-RBI single in the sixth to cut Garden City’s lead to 8-2.

But the Lad Buffaloes were able to add six runs in the seventh, and the Lady Redskins couldn’t push another runner across the plate in a 14-2 loss.

The Lady Redskins couldn’t maintain any momentum in Game 2 and fell behind early, giving up 12 runs in the first inning.

Garden City pounded the ball up the middle and also took advantage of Lady Redskin miscues to jump out to the big lead.

The Lady Redskins never recovered, and after the Lady Buffaloes added seven more runs in the second inning to take a 19-0 lead, Liberal couldn’t respond in the second or third, and the game ended by run rule.

“We competed in that first game for seven innings,” Wilson said. “That’s what we’ve talked about all year is being seven-inning competitors — not worrying about who we’re playing or what the other jersey says but competing for seven innings and getting better.”

Liberal struggled to reach base, and Wilson said that creates a more difficult situation.

“It’s tough when you don’t put the ball in play and let the opposing pitcher strike you out, and you don’t make any of the eight other girls make any plays,” he said. “But I thought we did a better job as the game went along, getting on top of some pitches, working the count to our advantage and getting the ball in play. They are a good team. That’s why they are at the top of the Western Athletic Conference.”

But for the first time in more than three years, Liberal made Garden City play all seven innings in the opener.

“Hopefully, the first game, you gave them an idea what they will see when they play Liberal,” Wilson said. “They won’t be able to overlook us.”

Game 2 started slopy and never improved.

“In the second game, we let it get away early,” Wilson said. “Too many errors, and it snowballed. It’s tough when you shoot yourself in the foot.”

The highlight of the day was Tatum’s double and two RBIs after missing five games with an injury.

“It’s been a tough five-game stretch without her in the line-up,” Wilson said. “She did a good job doing what she does. She put the ball in play, got the runners that were on  back to home plate, and she is a senior. She has been here for four years, she knows what she’s got to do. It’s a matter of stepping up like she did today.”

As the rebuilding continues Wilson understands that without a competitive softball program in Liberal for his players when they were young, he will have to try to make up for the lack of experience.

“The kids are doing what we want them to do,” he said. “We have a lot of young kids out there playing for us. There are going to be learning pains. When they didn’t have the 8- to 14-year-old softball, there are a lot of years we are trying to overcome in four months. They will continue to get better as the season progresses. It is April 18. State isn’t until May 25. As long as we are playing our best ball then, that’s what matters.”

About The High Plains Daily Leader

The High Plains Daily Leader and Southwest Daily Times are published Sunday through Friday and reaches homes throughout the Liberal, Kansas retail trade zone. The Leader & Times is the official newspaper of Seward County, USD No. 480, USD No. 483 and the cities of Liberal and Kismet.  The Leader & Times is a member of the Liberal Chamber of Commerce, the Kansas Press Association and the Associated Press.

For more, contact us.

Get the Daily Leader delivered to your home for $101.45 per year in Liberal, or $140 outside Liberal. Call 620-626-0840 for a subscription today. You can receive the print edition or an electronic edition! To subscribe today, email circulation@hpleader.com.

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  • Alpha items

    The following items below were present in the alpha version of League of Legends and were either...

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    Netherstride Grimoire:+100 ability power.+100% base mana regeneration.+20% cooldown reduction...

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    The Rose's Pride was an advanced item in League of Legends.

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DISCLAMER: This is a copy of my post on EU West forums. If you find this idea worthy of supporting, feel free to upvote. The original post can be viewed through this link .

Compliment system

After some games, you really feel that you and all the other players had a great time, both playing skillfully and behaving in a proper manner. A number of offers were made regarding a system which can help you to recognize great players, both your comrades and your rivals; here I bring my own vision of how could this system work.

What is the Compliment system

After each game, you are given two compliment tokens, one for your team and one for your rivals' team. You can award each token to any player of the respective teams who is NOT your friend (more on that later). After that, that player gets a minor IP bonus.

Non-friends only: this will eliminate an opportunity for abuse. You can only complement those summoners who were placed in your game at random, not the players invited by you, your friends, or found and invited via search by summoner name.

Available for ranked and normal games only. Custom games must not support this feature.

Complimenting is available since level 30: only the experienced players can compliment, but a player of any level can be complimented.

No need to return the favor: the aim of the system is to be fair in your judgment and reward only the players who really have done a good job. In order to not feel obliged to return the favor for a summoner who complimented you, the reward is given with a lag of 45 minutes, thus you do not know if you were complimented straight after the game.

• After 45 minutes, a complimented summoner receives a message like this: “summoner summonername (played a game with/against you on mapname aschampionname) complimented your play; you are awarded X IP.

A summoner can receive any number of compliments per game; however, additional compliments will yield diminishing returns: 1st to 3d compliments will yield reducing amounts of IP, all the following will give nothing, but will still be informed of.

Complimenting enemies gives them more IP: as a display of good sportsmanship, complimenting your enemy for a masterful play must yield somewhat bigger reward to them.

Complimenting a winning team yields less IP: it’s easy to say good words to a glorious winner of a match, but good competition should be recognized and praised anywhere; if you compliment a player from losing team (rival or comrade), that player will receive a bigger reward.

Why it can be a better tool than reporting

Reporting provides no direct threat to ill-behaving players: the downside of the reporting system is that there is no direct and visible connection between a crime and a punishment: a player can still misbehave, hoping that he will not be reported, or will be pardoned; the consequences of his or her actions are not downright visible. This system allows for a better response time, telling a player in a more explicit way that he behaves in a good manner.

Complimenting is based on positive emotions: when a summmoner misbehaves, he or she expects people to respond negatively, and occasionally enjoys it; meanwhile, a good, competitive player, a willing learner, or just a polite fellow gets no reward. This system allows not only to be praised for your good sportsmanship, but to praise others who you think have done well, which is sometimes even more enjoyable.

Fully automatic and simple: by itself, complimenting is more simple tool, and allows for both swift appraisal and rewarding.


text:
Leah Farmer

Personal perspectives on faith, literature, and life.

Wednesday, February 4th, 2015

Day Off

Slept late. No alarm clock. So grateful for a full nights sleep that ended exactly when it was supposed to.

90 minutes of bliss today. She spent so much time on my arms and legs and I was so in heaven. Amazing!

So Many People

Loved all the calls, texts, and Facebook messages today wishing me a Happy Birthday. It is good to be loved and valued by so many lovely friends. So grateful!

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text:
Arts Networking @ Little Nans

Thu, 11/05/2017 - 17:30 - 18:30

For those working in the arts and creative industries who live/work in London borough of Lewisham

- Free Nibbles - Meet others in the local arts community - Free tickets to the Jazz night -

This is an opportunity to meet with others in your local area who work in the arts.

Whether you work in a theatre, are a freelance artist, a graphic designer or work in arts education - come along and meet others who work locally. All welcome.

Reserve your free place here

This is a free event and follows a Grants for the Arts Surgery and Talk nearby at The Civic Suite

With thanks to Little Nan's who are providing an area, free nibbles and free tickets to the following Jazz night to attendees.

Little Nan's is a new cocktail bar in the heart of Catford. Offering you cocktails, coffees, beers wines, spirits, cakes and high teas. There's live music, vintage sales and catford babes morning club to find out more. Address: Little Nan's Broadway Theatre Saloon, Broadway Theatre, Catford Road. SE6 4RU

This event is brought to you by Lewisham Council Cultural and Community Development Service and Lewisham Education Arts Network.
Contact email:
Contact tel:
020 8694 6622


text:
This blog is about my family's journey to living a simpler life. A greener, more self sufficient and debt free life. We want to get back to our roots and the things that are most important to us. We have a tiny rural homestead with a vegetable garden, a few flower beds, a small apple orchard and a chicken coop. We can't wait to see what's in store for us on this great adventure!

1 comment:

  1. I follow your blog and I blog over at www.thatfitnesschic.blogspot.com
    I am starting a Link Party Next Wednesday called Weight-loss Wednesday!
    I wanted to let you know, because your blog is perfect for the Link Up.
    Through the link up, I am hoping to build a supportive online weight-loss & healthy blogging community!
    I hope to see you Link up on Wednesday!
    That Fitness Chic


text:
Sunday, August 25, 2013

Wanna to come to Mexico with me in March?

March 2-8, 2014  I will be at the picturesque Hacienda Mosaico, located in Puerto Vallarta,  teaching 5 days of jewelry techniques and projects. The focus will be on using our beloved vintage pieces and treasures and turning them into unique wearable pieces of art. This is the perfect way to get ready for spring and shake off those winter blues!

pictures of projects we will be working on:

You can find more details about the workshop here. Also, take a minute and look at some photos from the Hacienda. The place is asolutely gorgeous. All meals are cooked on the premises. Fee is includes, room, meals and teaching fee.

slide show!


text:
October 07, 2004
Aibo ERS-7M2

sony aibo ers-7m2

Because all the relevant web pages are in Japanese I can't find out what's new about the very newest version of the Sony Aibo, the ERS-7M2, other than that some of its brain is controlled by Evolution software.

Update: Oops, actually Engadget has some info.

Posted by jjwiseman at October 07, 2004 11:39 AM
Post a comment

Email Address:

Unless you answer this question, your comment will be classified as spam and will not be posted.
(I'll give you a hint: the answer is “lisp”.)

Remember info?


text:
May 30, 2006

The Guitar Player's Girlfriend

the set of the guitar player's girlfriend
Photo by Lori

Last week Lori, Carrie and I were extras in a friend's short film. We played indie rockers watching a band in a bar. Standing in a hazy club with a bunch of hipsters, beer in hand and nodding to some guitar-based rock and/or roll is not exactly a foreign concept, but doing it as simulation was an odd way to recall that I haven't actually done it for real in a while and that I miss it.

This was the first time I've participated first-hand in the stereotypical Los Angeles industry as opposed to just observing. Maybe I should take advantage of the free time I have these days and have some fun as an extra. Next stop on the background actor train, a Hollywood blockbuster [via robotwisdom]:

Before Take 7 Petersen comes on. “One more,” he says. “Now with full acting. Let's make this the one!” It works. As the first AD calls “Action,” it's like the entire background cast has been hit with a Taser. The place goes berserk, fear and chaos cranked to 11. And I'm swept up in it.

Too bad I didn't think of this while they were shooting Miami Vice.

Posted by jjwiseman at 12:23 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 26, 2006

Border Patrol UAV Crash

Fox News screenshot of crashed U.S. Border Patrol Predator UAV

I missed this until now, but a U.S. Border Patrol's Predator UAV crashed in Arizona last month. The crash didn't make civilian pilots too happy.

“This crash highlights the safety concerns we've voiced all along,” said Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice president of government affairs. “The FAA should not permit UAV operations until they are certified to the same level of safety as manned aircraft.”

“Thankfully, in this accident no one in the air or on the ground was hurt,“ Cebula added. ”But just think that if a pilot had been flying legally under the TFR and the UAV hit the aircraft from behind and above -- the pilot would have had no chance to see and avoid the uncontrolled UAV.”

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association wasn't too happy about the UAVs before they crashed, either, since the FAA had imposed flight restrictions on a 350 mile section of Arizona and New Mexico because of the Predators' operations. And in general the AOPA worries about the danger UAVs pose to other aircraft.

As it turns out, the preliminary NTSB report on the accident seems to indicate that the crash was due to pilot error:

The pilot reported that during the flight the console at PPO-1 "locked up", prompting him to switch control of the UAV to PPO-2. Checklist procedures state that prior to switching operational control between the two consoles, the pilot must match the control positions on the new console to those on the console, which had been controlling the UAV. The pilot stated in an interview that he failed to do this. The result was that the stop/feather control in PPO-2 was in the fuel cutoff position when the switch over from PPO-1 to PPO-2 occurred. As a result, the fuel was cut off to the UAV when control was transferred to PPO-2.

The pilot stated that after the switch to the other console, he noticed the UAV was not maintaining altitude but did not know why. As a result he decided to shut down the GCS so that the UAV would enter its lost link procedure, which called for the UAV to climb to 15,000 feet above mean sea level and to fly a predetermined course until contact could be established. With no engine power, the UAV continued to descend below line-of-site communications and further attempts to re-establish contact with the UAV were not successful

The U.S. Border Patrol isn't the only group flying UAVs in the area. A vigilante group called the American Border Patrol, in conjunction with the Minutemen, has been flying their own homebuilt UAV—apparently a souped up model airplane. They even have video of their vehicle in action.

And then there is the anti-vigilante group UAV flown near the border by Chris Csikszentmihalyi. Quite the crowded airspace down there these days.

Posted by jjwiseman at 10:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Montezuma Heat Death

I decided to spend a little time optimizing Montezuma indexing for speed, with the hope that I could get it to index the Planet Lisp archives within a reasonable amount of time.

Indexing 1000 pastes took about 100 seconds, as I mentioned the other day. Avoiding 6 million garbage-generating calls to subseq saved 10 seconds. Cutting down on the number of calls to string< and string> saved 4 seconds. Each was a significant speedup, but nothing dramatic.

After doing some of this benchmarking, the laptop I was using overheated and shut down. Since this time there were no cats lying on top and therefore no obvious scapegoats, I thought maybe the vents had just gotten clogged and so I blasted the hell out of it with canned air.

The comprehensive air blast cleaning cut 45 seconds off the benchmark time. It was like getting a processor upgrade.

Posted by jjwiseman at 02:36 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

May 25, 2006

The McClouds' 50 State Tour

sounds... tiring

To celebrate Scott's new book, Making Comics, the McClouds are going to drive through all 50 states.

In addition to the public appearances, the whole family will be blogging our experiences on the road and interviewing comics artists around the country about their work. We plan to have a lot of fun (when we're not going crazy or trying to kill each other) and we hope you'll be part of it all when we come to your state.

Posted by jjwiseman at 11:48 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 24, 2006

Desperate Petunia

desperate petunia

desperate petunia

desperate petunia

Yesterday I had one cat-induced thermal shutdown of that machine, plus one ctrl-paw-delete.

Posted by jjwiseman at 11:29 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

May 23, 2006

Montezuma Charges Along

taking blubber samples for DNA analysis using hollow-tipped arrows
Photo by Peter Menzel

Montezuma is coming along pretty well. Indexing is complete and seems mostly bug free, and Gary King and I are finishing off the support for searches. We've got simple term queries, phrase queries, wildcard queries, range queries and boolean queries pretty much working.

For testing, I grabbed 1000 pastes from the paste service at Each paste consists of a number (the unique paste ID), the user who made the paste, the date, the IRC channel, the title of the paste, the contents of the paste, and any annotations that may have been added later (I ignored the annotations).

I built a list in memory containing 1000 paste structs with the information listed above. Given that, the following code will allow you to create a Montezuma index on disk:

(defun index-pastes (pastes)
  (let ((index (make-instance 'index
			      :path (merge-pathnames
				     (make-pathname :directory '(:relative "pasteindex"))
			      :default-field "contents")))
  (dolist (paste pastes)
    (index-paste index paste))
  (optimize index)

(defun index-paste (index paste)
  (let ((doc (make-instance 'document)))
    (let ((number   (make-field "id"   (format nil "~S" (paste-number paste))
				:index :untokenized :stored T))
	  (user     (make-field "user"     (paste-user paste)
				:index :untokenized :stored T))
	  (date     (make-field "date"     (date-string (paste-date paste))
				:index :untokenized :stored T))
	  (channel  (make-field "channel"  (paste-channel paste)
				:index :untokenized :stored T))
	  (title    (make-field "title"    (paste-title paste)
				:index :tokenized :stored T))
	  (contents (make-field "contents" (paste-contents paste)
				:stored NIL :index :tokenized)))
      (add-field doc number)
      (add-field doc user)
      (add-field doc date)
      (add-field doc channel)
      (add-field doc title)
      (add-field doc contents)
      (add-document-to-index *paste-index* doc))))

(defun date-string (universal-time)
  (multiple-value-bind (second minute hour date month year)
      (decode-universal-time universal-time)
    (format nil "~D-~2,'0D-~2,'0D ~2,'0D:~2,'0D:~2,'0D"
	    year month date hour minute second)))

Currently, indexing the 1000 pastes (about 2 MB of data) takes about 100 seconds on a 2.4 GHz P4. Once you've done that, you'll want to be able to perform queries against the index.

The search-pastes function below makes it convenient to perform simple queries. You can pass it the field to query along with a query string or list of strings, which will be turned into a query object. A list of strings will become a boolean query where every term must appear. Wildcards (“*”, “?”) can be used in any query terms.

If you pass a pre-built query object as the second argument it will be used unchanged, and the field argument will be ignored.

(defun search-pastes (field query &optional options)
  (etypecase query
     ;; Make a boolean query where each clause is a wildcard query
     ;; that MUST occur.
     (let ((words query))
       (setf query (make-instance 'boolean-query))
       (dolist (word words)
	 (add-query query
		    (make-instance 'wildcard-query
				   :term (make-term field word))
     ;; Make a single-term wildcard query.
     (let ((word query))
       (setf query (make-instance 'wildcard-query
				  :term (make-term field word)))))
     ;; Don't need to do anything, use it as-is.
  ;; Perform the search
  (let ((num-results 0))
    (search-each *paste-index* query
		 #'(lambda (doc score)
		     (when (= num-results 0)
		       (format T "~&~5A ~19A ~5A ~15A" "Score" "Date" "#" "User")
		       (format T "~&-------------------------------------------"))
		     (incf num-results)
		     (print-result doc score))
    (format T "~&~%~S results displayed." num-results)))

(defun print-result (doc score)
  (let ((paste (get-document *paste-index* doc)))
    (format T "~&~5,2F ~A ~A ~15A~&~vt~A"
	    (field-data (document-field paste "date"))
	    (field-data (document-field paste "id"))
	    (field-data (document-field paste "user"))
	    (field-data (document-field paste "title")))))

Here's a simple first example, which finds pastes I pasted:

MONTEZUMA> (search-pastes "user" "lemonodor")
Score Date                #     User
 6.30 2006-05-08 18:53:03 19817 lemonodor
          opaque sbcl warning
 6.30 2006-05-05 16:07:11 19726 lemonodor
          primitive montezuma example
 6.30 2006-04-25 21:07:59 19371 lemonodor
          flet declarations
 6.30 2006-04-14 12:04:38 18990 lemonodor

4 results displayed.

Now we'll search for pastes with titles containing any word with “sbcl” as a substring, which demonstrates wildcard queries:

MONTEZUMA> (search-pastes "title" "*sbcl*")
Score Date                #     User
 2.88 2006-04-15 18:19:31 19045 malsyned__
          My sbclrc
 1.44 2006-04-22 15:37:08 19253 Shine
          incrementally building sbcl.exe still doesn't work "the party is over"
 1.31 2006-04-21 21:42:52 19239 Shine
          sbcl backtrace
 1.31 2006-04-20 21:47:40 19212 technomancy
          sbcl error
 1.05 2006-05-08 18:53:03 19817 lemonodor
          opaque sbcl warning
 1.05 2006-05-04 23:28:53 19701 interferon
          SBCL disassembly example
 1.05 2006-05-04 23:28:35 19700 interferon
          SBCL disassembly example
 1.05 2006-04-30 17:27:51 19551 dabaR
          Error with SBCL
 1.05 2006-04-27 12:00:59 19428 death
          sbcl 0.9.11 (room) bugged
 1.05 2006-04-27 03:34:17 19419 arbscht
          sbcl sarge24 deb failure

10 results displayed.

There are more than 10 pastes that match the above query, but by default only the top 10 results are returned. Let's find all of them:

MONTEZUMA> (search-pastes "title" "*sbcl*" '(:num-docs 1000))
Score Date                #     User
 2.88 2006-04-15 18:19:31 19045 malsyned__
          My sbclrc
 1.44 2006-04-22 15:37:08 19253 Shine
          incrementally building sbcl.exe still doesn't work "the party is over"

 0.65 2006-04-10 07:24:06 18808 antifuchs
          gna. nested errors with sbcl and slime
 0.52 2006-04-17 10:12:04 19083 tcr
          compiling latest SWANK with flags (speed 0) (safety 3) (debug 3) w/ SBCL 0.9.11

22 results displayed.

This query matches pastes containing both “sbcl” and “bug*” from May 2006 on (an example of a range query):

MONTEZUMA> (let ((q (make-instance 'boolean-query)))
	     (add-query q (make-instance 'term-query
					 :term (make-term "contents" "sbcl"))
	     (add-query q (make-instance 'wildcard-query
					 :term (make-term "contents" "bug*"))
	     (add-query q (make-instance 'range-query
					 :field "date"
					 :lower-term "2006-05"
					 :upper-term nil
					 :include-lower-p T
					 :include-upper-p NIL)
	     (search-pastes nil q))
Score Date                #     User
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build
 0.49 2006-05-09 13:36:33 19832 tritchey
          this is from a clean build

6 results displayed.

Oops. Looks like there's a bug that's giving us duplicate results. Sorry!

Now look for pastes containing “sbcl” made by someone whose user name does not begin with a “t”:

MONTEZUMA> (let ((q (make-instance 'boolean-query)))
	     (add-query q (make-instance 'term-query
					 :term (make-term "contents" "sbcl"))
	     (add-query q (make-instance 'wildcard-query
					 :term (make-term "user" "t*"))
	     (search-pastes nil q))
Score Date                #     User
 0.87 2006-04-27 03:34:17 19419 arbscht
          sbcl sarge24 deb failure
 0.80 2006-04-23 14:38:32 19290 antifuchs
          mp and fix
 0.75 2006-04-28 11:46:44 19469 Xof
          see also
 0.57 2006-04-22 15:37:08 19253 Shine
          incrementally building sbcl.exe still doesn't work "the party is over"
 0.53 2006-04-26 19:43:19 19408 pfdietz
 0.53 2006-04-21 18:25:36 19238 waddletron2k
          my .emacs
 0.53 2006-04-14 16:30:07 18997 jsnell
          code for lemonodor
 0.52 2006-04-19 17:41:25 19160 slyrus
          tinaa docs aver any-keyp error
 0.46 2006-04-28 09:02:10 19462 nyef
          I can't tell if this is progress or not.
 0.46 2006-04-19 15:30:26 19158 Shine
          problem with SBCL on Windows, compiled with Cygwin

10 results displayed.

For the last example, we'll create a phrase query corresponding to “svn co”:

MONTEZUMA> (defparameter *q*
	     (make-instance 'phrase-query))
MONTEZUMA> (add-term-to-query *q* (make-term "contents" "svn"))
#<PHRASE-QUERY field:"contents" terms: "svn":0 >
MONTEZUMA> (add-term-to-query *q* (make-term "contents" "co"))
#<PHRASE-QUERY field:"contents" terms: "svn":0 "co":1 >
MONTEZUMA> (search-pastes nil *q*)
; Evaluation aborted
#<PHRASE-QUERY field:"contents" terms: "svn":0 "co":1 >
MONTEZUMA> (search-pastes nil *q*)
There is no applicable method for the generic function
when called with arguments
   [Condition of type SIMPLE-ERROR]

Well, it seems that despite passing some unit tests, phrase queries are falling down on this larger index. Time to fire up emacs and fix that.

Posted by jjwiseman at 07:30 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

May 18, 2006

I Still Have a Special Place In My Heart for the 500-in-1 Electronics Kit

portrait of los angeles by joe o'neill
Double O Joe also did the painting on this Grand Challenge robot.

As part of the process of figuring out what the hell it is he wants to do, Todd cataloged the things he's done in his life that nobody asked him to do:

  • Making a portable "fish caller" circuit, sticking it in a ziploc bag, and trying to catch fish (5th grade)
  • Repairing old CB radios and entertaining truckers (5th-6th grade)
  • Coding a simple BASIC computer game for the Commodore VIC-20 (6th grade?)
  • Creating tiny wearable weird blinking lights with newfangled LEDs and hearing aid batteries (6th grade)
  • Coding a LOGO program that would draw out the mission logo of a then-recent space shuttle mission (7th grade)
  • Coding a web browser for the Newton PDA (1994)
  • Trying to port java to Newton (1995)
  • Trying to replicate sonoluminescence experiments (1996)
  • Designing and trying to build a propane-powered popcorn popper for Burning Man (1997)
  • Coding and building robots at SRL (1998)

What was it with the 70s and the fish caller circuits?

I love the clear line from the experiments done as a kid to the experiments done as an adult. And of course I look at Todd's list and think about what mine would look like, and after a year of freelancing the question of what to do next has started to crop up.

I was wondering the other day if the past year of non-full time, contract work might have saved me from a severe case of burnout. I already was burned out, really. But I know a few other programmers who a year ago were about as dissatisfied and bored as I was, who stayed in the jobs they had and now are in a position of considering a career path having nothing to do with software, or have personal projects they wish they could work on but find they don't have the energy or motivation after a grinding day of coding on something they don't care about. This is not an uncommon problem, of course.

But I think the past year has been restorative in a way that I'm just starting to appreciate. And I'm starting to think I would like to work at a startup again. I think the experience of the freedom of freelancing from home will make me a lot pickier in the future, though.

Posted by jjwiseman at 10:07 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

LispNYC Needs Mentors

del mar station in pasadena

LispNYC needs mentors for this year's Google Summer of Code projects.

Looking at the list of suggested projects, I see that “port the Apache Lucene library to lisp” is one. Is it too late to get my $4,500 and a t-shirt?

Posted by jjwiseman at 09:36 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

May 11, 2006

El Circo Loco

el circo loco

I don't normally get too attached to neighborhood characters. I don't care about the five dollar guy at all. There's a slightly pleasing familiarity in seeing the walking man, but no significant emotional attachment—all he does is walk and read.

The guy everyone called El Circo Loco (whose real name Antoniz Ruiz) was somewhat different. Every time I saw him he was marching and dancing and twirling, in costume. He never just walked, I never saw him sitting, it was non-stop dancing. I supposed he was crazy, but he seemed happy, and it didn't seem completely impossible that he was just some guy who decided one day that life was short and he loved to dance, so that was all he was going to do from now on. You couldn't help but feel a fondness for him (despite the late night whistling that sometimes was annoying).

Two weeks ago El Circo Loco was found dead on the sidewalk a block from my apartment. It was saddening and shocking. He seemed unstoppable.

What really broke my heart was when people in the neighborhood held a memorial in his honor in a small park he often hung out in. I was at Startup School so I couldn't go, but a few days later I walked over and saw a lot of leftover glitter. They even rededicated the fountain to him (it had previously been dedicated to the inventor of the bedpan, which the fountain resembles; ah, hipsters).

Bye, Antonio! I didn't realize how much I'd miss you!

Posted by jjwiseman at 01:40 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

May 03, 2006

Third DARPA Grand Challenge Announced

On Monday DARPA announced the next Grand Challenge. In this, the third challenge, the desert rats will have to survive in the big city: “Grand Challenge 2005 proved that autonomous ground vehicles can travel significant distances and reach their destination, just as you or I would drive from one city to the next. After the success of this event, we believe the robotics community is ready to tackle vehicle operation inside city limits.”

Some more details on what challenges the robots will or will not face are in the solicitation notice:

At the capstone event, performers will demonstrate a vehicle that exhibits the following behaviors: safe vehicle-following; operation with oncoming traffic; queueing at traffic signals; merging with moving traffic; left-turn across traffic; right-of-way and precedence observance at intersections; proper use of directional signals, brake lights, and reverse lights; passing of moving vehicles; and all the other behaviors implicit in the problem statement. Vehicles will also demonstrate navigation with limited waypoints and safe operation in complex areas such as parking lots. Recognition of traffic signals, street signs or pavement markings is considered outside the scope of the program, as this information will be furnished by DARPA. High-speed highway driving is also outside the scope of the program.

For this challenge DARPA is running two tracks: Track A seems to be the more rigorous track, with team progress tracked against detailed milestones. The bureaucracy appears to approach standard defense contractor levels, but the potential payout is $1,000,000. Track B seems to be about equivalent to the previous challenges in that teams have to supply a video of their vehicle in action and show it off during a site visit by DARPA officials to get in the race. Track B's max award is $100,000. More details are in the Proposer Information Pamphlet.

Both tracks will come together for the qualifying event on October 21, 2007, and will compete together on November 3, 2007:

third grand challenge schedule

If you want to compete, note that the participants conference is only about two weeks away!

I guess I'll look into modifying my DARPA GC forum scraper to generate RSS feeds of the new forum.

Posted by jjwiseman at 01:24 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

May 01, 2006

These notes from Y Combinator's Startup School were taken by about twenty people, simultaneously, using SubEthaEdit. I had never used SubEthaEdit in a group and it was an interesting process.

subethaedit screenshot from startup school

Each color represents a different contributor. You can see other people typing in realtime, and you can see it when they select text, and you can see where they're moving their cursor.

In the above screenshot, you can see examples where one person has created a template ("# ANNOUNCEMENTS", "# SPEAKER NOTES") and other people are filling it in. People are alternating in entering outline elements, and you can see that sometimes one person will enter a bullet and someone else will fill in some details. You can also see that there may only be a few people making significant contributions at any given time—I think a lot of people just wanted to watch the notes in case they missed something the presenter said.

subethaedit screenshot from startup school

This screenshot shows some fine grained collaboration: There are people finishing each others sentences, fixing others' typos, and one guy caught the names and company affiliations of the speakers that everyone else missed and made sure all the answers were properly credited.

A couple times I saw some neat stuff happen. For example, during Joshua Schacter's talk, someone had missed the beginning of a new section and was putting notes under the old heading. I selected the line he was working on, he saw that and stopped typing, i cut and pasted into the correct heading, and he resumed typing (I had been wondering why SubEthaEdit showed other people's text selections, and this perhaps illustrated the issue).

What worked well:

  • One or two people with previous SubEthaEdit experience laid out a decent document template to follow, with an area for real-time chat, per-speaker sections and a list of contributors.
  • People did a pretty good job of filling in pieces that other people missed.
  • SubEthaEdit's Bonjour support made it trivial to find the document once you got on the wifi network.
  • Markdown let us create a document that looks OK in both raw text and HTML (I posted a Markdown reference and cheat sheet using OS X's “Web Sharing” which was available via a link-local hostname that didn't require a DNS server or anything on our ad hoc network).

What didn't work as well:

  • As far as I know SubEthaEdit is only available for OS X, so no Mac means no note sharing.
  • Author information isn't persistent—if you save the file and reload it, you lose the color coded record of who wrote what. This happened across lunch, for example.
  • In the list above I mentioned “the document” and “the wifi network”, but in reality we had three different wifi networks, two of which were named “SubEthaEdit” and “Subetha Group”, and each network had people running SubEthaEdit and working on different documents. It took a while to mostly converge on a sorta canonical document, and I'm not sure that there was a complete convergence.
  • There was no head editor, and the final notes are something that Frankenstein might be scared of. I don't think any of us actually knew Markdown, and my attempts to learn quickly and work the document over into Markdown format as we went were only partially successful.

We did post the notes frequently during the day to a web page, and doing that required an effort that was either Herculean or Sisyphusian. Dan Moniz brought a wifi access point with an EVDO card for internet access (Stanford's wifi network is closed, so we had no internet that way), but it was kind of flaky and we didn't want everyone to be affected by the unreliability. So I stayed on the SubEthaEdit ad hoc network and helped edit the notes, periodically saving to my Public folder. Dan would then use Bluetooth File Exchange to grab the notes from my machine and post them to the web through his wifi AP with EVDO backhaul. Periodically I would use my cell phone as a GPRS modem via Bluetooth to grab something I needed online. I was about to say that this was probably not the geekiest thing happening at the conference, but upon reflection I think it is in fact a strong contender for the top slot.

Posted by jjwiseman at 06:38 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Startup School

she's not actually a PG fan

This weekend was Y Combinator's Startup School. My friend Dave, also an ex-Evo'er, and I drove up from LA to attend.

Maybe the most interesting thing about Startup School was that I was directly faced with the fact that these guys started companies. Nothing magical, they just did it. And most will fail, but that's how you learn, and it's important not to be afraid of failure.

Other than that, some of the speakers were interesting (I wouldn't have guessed it, but the lawyer was great) and some were not (is a presentation about how awesome Google is supposed to convince me to not start my own company?). Paul Graham has a new essay based on his talk from this Saturday, “The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn”.

There are notes online, but they might only be interesting if you were there and missed something in your own note taking.

You can find lots of pictures online of Startup School. I have some photos of the surrounding events, but if you've seen one conference with entrepreneurial nerds backed by powerpoint you've seen them all (though you might find some of Trevor Blackwell's robots interesting).

The blog posts are trickling in, along with the articles. (Jesus,) there are even (fucking) podcasts.

Between the Y Combinator reception, Startup School and the Lisp brunch organized by Dan Moniz I met a lot of interesting people and lemonodor stalkers. Actually it's great to meet lemonodor fans—thanks, guys. And I got to see a few friends (Gavin, est, dnm, Joshua) I don't get to see often. But holy shit am I tired now, and glad to be home.

Posted by jjwiseman at 12:42 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack


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Maak dit gastenboek reclamevrij - al voor EUR2,50
11:15 24-09-2013
Leo and Janke

I happened to look on your site after a few months of being away, and I saw the heartbreaking news about Massy!! I can't believe it. I always thought she would be around forever!!! I feel like a piece of me is gone, and I can only imagine how you must be feeling having spent so many years with her. Even though Massy wasn't with me physically, she was always in my heart, and not a day went past when I didn;t think of her. I am always so thankful every day that I found her a home with you. I know she must have spent her life happy and knowing she was very much loved.. I didnt think I would find her a home where she was loved as much as I loved her.. but I did! Thank you for looking after her so well.. and also Lucky.. I hope Lucky is OK.. He must be feeling such a loss too.. Please give him a huge hug from me. Lucky is also always in my heart. It must be like him losing his mother! I send you lots of love and good wishes.. I can't thank you enough.. Love , Sally xxxxx
10:23 11-08-2013
Zoals al eerder gezegd weer een mooie site. Ik hoop dat alles goed is met jullie. Groetjes esther


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Monday, 24 January 2011

The Battle of Bushy Run was fought on August 5-6, 1763, in western Pennsylvania, between a British column under the command of Colonel Henry Bouquet and a combined force of Delaware, Shawnee, Mingo, and Huron warriors. This action occurred during Pontiac's Rebellion. Though the British suffered serious losses, they routed the tribemen and successfully relieved the garrison of Fort Pitt.italian timpo style warriors

 The battleIn July 1763, a British relief column of 500 British soldiers, including the 42nd Highlanders, 60th Royal Americans, and 77th Highlanders, left Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to relieve Fort Pitt, then under siege. Indian scouts observed Bouquet's army marching west along Forbes Road and reported this to the Indians surrounding Fort Pitt. sierratoysoldier
On August 5, at about 1PM, a group of the force investing Fort Pitt ambushed the British column one mile east of Bushy Run Station, at Edge Hill. The British managed to hold their ground until after sunset, when the natives withdrew. Bouquet ordered a redoubt constructed on Edge Hill, and the British placed their wounded and livestock in the center of the perimeter.

Concrete flour bags at the Bushy Run Battlefield monument on Edge Hill.According to one account, the allied tribes attacked in the morning, but were themselves ambushed by the sentries relieved from their evening duty. With the surprise attack of the sentries, from a flank, and a frontal assault by the main British column, the outnumbered Indians fled in a disorganized retreat.

A second account holds that the warriors attacked in the morning and "redoubled their efforts to break the British line." As the tribesmen became bolder, Bouquet realized the combat was nearing a crisis. Determined to lure his attackers close enough to maim them, the British leader deliberately weakened one section of his line. Spotting the gap in the enemy defenses, the native warriors rushed forward. Instead, the British soldiers fired a volley in their faces and "made terrible havock" with the bayonet. The surviving warriors fled and were unable to rally.

Having dispersed its attackers, Bouquet's column headed to Bushy Run, a mile along the Forbes road, where there was badly needed water. The battle has since been attributed to the Bushy Run location, despite the main fighting taking place in Edge Hill. Bouquet then marched to the relief of Fort Pitt.

The battle cost the lives of 50 British soldiers, including 29 of the 42nd Highlanders, seven of the 1/60th Royal Americans dead, six of the 77th Highlanders, and eight Civilians and volunteers dead The confederacy of the Delaware, Shawnee, Mingo, and Huron also suffered an unknown number of casualties, including two prominent Delaware chiefs; estimates from contemporaries place the total of Indian losses at 60. The warrior Killbuck later told Sir William Johnson that only 110 warriors were engaged. Bouquet estimated the natives brought an equal number to the action as his own force. One contemporary report claimed that 20 Indians were killed and many more wounded. The result of the battle invoked "widespread relief on the frontier", since the native warriors had been defeated on their own ground.

The site of the battle is now Bushy Run Battlefield Park.

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Monday, April 30, 2012

The Toxic Sandbox, by Libby McDonald

Clear and informative (if terrifying) look at toxins that affect children and how to avoid them. Well done, without being too fear-mongering. Made me take a closer look at where my baby's toys are coming from and what they are made of.

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Tuesday, 8 April 2008

Raid Loot Rules

I can't think of anything more likely to cause guild drama than the loot rules the guild implements. Strict systems of DKP can lead to DKP hording, meaning that people who could potentially be gearing themselves up and helping the raid more choose to have a potential upgrade sharded because they're after a 'better upgrade'. Lax systems which don't use DKP can lead to coveted items going to someone who is just lucky, rather than to someone who is recognised as deserving it.

Which system is better? I think it depends on the instance and on the group of people you have at your side. If you're in a friendly, helpful, unselfish guild that is raiding ten-man content then rolling could well be your best bet as the group you are in will likely be able to see past their own wants to the guild needs and let the person who needs the loot most have it.

If you're in a large guild of drama llamas raiding 25 man content then you probably need a solid DKP system to stop people bleating about the unfair allocation of loot to new people, or whatever they're about to bleat about. With a strictly defined system of loot allocation there is little room for people being unaware of who a given piece is going to, should it happen to drop.

Is there a middle point though? Can you have a DKP system without DKP hording? Can you have a roll based system where people are rewarded for the effort they put into progression runs? It's almost impossible to design a system that will work for every single guild, because the drama llamas in one guild might be mighty beasts, able to make drama out of something others see as perfectly fair and reasonable.

In Coup de Grace we have a very loose set of raid loot rules. Primary specs can roll for an item, but if you win an item you're expected to set aside your right to roll on the next item. You don't have to, you can roll, but if you are rolling against someone deemed to be in greater need of the item then your roll may be ignored. If no primary specs want the item then the off-specs get to roll. If no off-specs want it then it gets sharded and the shards put in the guild bank. It has served us well so far, some runs yeild loot like water for one class which is the way things go some times. Other runs only serve to boost the prowess of our off-spec abilities. But most people are happy to pass over their priority if it means gearing someone else up who needs it.

We've been considering implementing a DKP system for our progression into Gruul, but it's hard to know how this will change the dynamic of the guild. Will people suddenly start to feel entitled to items, even if they can't really make use of them? Will our newbies start to get shafted, only ever getting the detritus no one else wants? It's really difficult to know what is for the best.

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28 August 2012

Beer Brand Spoofs 'Edward Scissorhands' To Create 'Edward Beerbottlehands'

[Click here to view the video in this article]

To advertise Argentinian beer brand Andes’ new wide-mouth beer bottle, ad agency Del Campo Saatchi & Saatchi spoofed the movie Edward Scissorhands and silent movies.

In the somewhat-humorous, silent short ad, a man who has his fingers stuck in beer bottles hires a helper.

As the ad approaches the end, ‘Edward Beerbottlehands’ no longer needs someone to care for him, as Andes introduced its wide-mouth bottles and his fingers can no longer get stuck in them—breaking the heart of his helper that has (probably) fallen in love with him.

Check out the ad below:

[via YouTube]


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Your spouse, your kids, your parents or yourself, it doesn't matter who you do it for, you just have to do it. Making changes to your lifestyle and body to give yourself the body and health you desire will be simple after you read this article and put its knowledge to use.In order to truly commit to a fitness program, you need to change your attitu… Read More

The importance of fitness cannot be underestimated. Everyone has the responsibility to take the best care of their body that they can. It may be difficult to begin a fitness program, but with the right information and tools anyone can increase their fitness level. Use the information in this article to improve your fitness level.In order to get the… Read More

Whether you just want to lose a few pounds or you want to get in shape for a marathon, fitness is vital. Most people do not know where to begin when starting a fitness routine. This article will give you some easy and effective tips to get you going.A really good way to help you get fit is to start drinking green tea. Green tea can be a great, natu… Read More

It seems like everyone is trying to exercise and get in shape, but it can be hard to know where to start. Instead of diving right in and risking injury, arm yourself with a good base of knowledge first. Follow the tips in this article, and you'll be able to get the most out of your fitness routine.Get a pet. Pets keep you more active. While almost … Read More

Naturally, you want to make good choices when it comes to nutrition. However, it is not always easy to know what to believe and what to reject. This article gathers together several nutrition tips that are reliable and effective. Read on to see what they are, and then try them out for yourself.Add more salads to your diet every day. These are packe… Read More


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 Special Collections & University Archives | Stanford Libraries
Members of the Stanford community must show a current Stanford ID. Non-Stanford users must show a current photo ID. All users must register upon their first visit every academic year. All of our materials are located off site. Patrons must request materials 2 full business days before planned date of use. In some cases, paging may take up to a week. Phone reference is by appointment only.

Green Library 557 Escondido Mall Stanford, CA 94305-6064

We are located on the second floor of Green Library, Bing Wing.

Transit and Parking

Marguerite lines X,Y,C lines to Hoover Tower. Green Library is behind Hoover Tower.

Accessible to customers with limited mobility.

The Special Collections and University Archives Department of Stanford University Libraries is committed to acquiring, preserving, and providing access to primary source materials that support the research needs of the Stanford community and beyond. There are three distinct divisions in our department: Manuscripts, Rare Books and University Archives. We welcome all students, scholars and members of the general public to the Field Reading Room. Learn more about using and accessing our collections.


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Trust-Choice Incompatibility and the Role of Automatic Activation

ASU Author/Contributor (non-ASU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Jacob N. Conrad (Creator)
Appalachian State University (ASU )
Web Site: http://www.library.appstate.edu/
Todd McElroy

Abstract: This study examines the influence of conscious and unconscious processes on trust and choice within an attribute framing task. Trust-choice incompatibility exists when a decision maker shows preference for one option, but trusts another option. For instance, a decision maker might prefer Butcher A, who advertises ground beef as 75% lean yet trust Butcher B, who advertises ground beef as 25% fat. McElroy and Conrad (2009) suggest that unconscious processing plays an important role in choice. A vigilance task was used to investigate unconscious processing and trust-choice incompatibility. Participants were primed with words to induce trust or doubt and then given the ground beef attribute framing task along with 7-point scales to indicate which butcher they prefer and trust.

Additional Information

Conrad, J.N. (2011). Trust-Choice Incompatibility and the Role of Automatic Activation. Unpublished master’s thesis. Appalachian State University, Boone, NC.
Language: English
Date: 2011
Trust, Choice, Framing, Priming, Automatic

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Legal prints you make on your home or office printer — or that we make and deliver to you.

Post all or part of this article on a web site, intranet, or blog.

Republish in a print publication, PowerPoint presentation or other media, including DVD.

Please honor copyright! Piracy hurts creators, devalues their works, and puts you and your employer at risk. Learn More


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Legal prints you make on your home or office printer — or that we make and deliver to you.

Send email free to up to 5 recipients (for internal or personal use) — or get permission to distribute to more recipients for professional or commercial use.

Post all or part of this article on a web site, intranet, or blog.

Obtain republication rights for various media, including syndication rights if available.

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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Third Winner from the Foodie Blogroll

During the month of April, the Foodie Blogroll gave away free licorice courtesy of Licorice International. The third week Meg, author of the "My Cooking Addiction" blog, won free Red and Black Scotties. Her verdict: "super tasty" and "insanely cute."
Read her blog post here.

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Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Songs for the Lord, by Author Linda Bonney Olin

As a reader I was looking for an uplifting book to heal a broken spirit. Times were dark and health low, so when I came upon this book, with it amazing abilities to listen to music of instrumental tunes playing and read the lyrics at the same time, I was delightful surprised. This reader have not listened to Christian songs in a while, as I went away from the church due to excuses or life responsibilities taking priority over being in touch with the Almighty and self.

I listened to the music and read the poignant lyrics, written by the author and I felt as if I was once again a little girl worshipping at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City or a favorite local church. In awe with the wondrous sensations of being one with the Almighty. As the instrumental sounds seeped deep into thy vessel and the vibrations came, it became a healing balm and an enriching experience.

The chorus of the instruments playing and the reading of the lyrics reach deep within this reader and I was lost to the wonder of hope, faith and divine love, once again. Gain faith in humanity with tears of joy pouring forth from my eyes and soul.

Even if you are not Christian, this is beautiful instrumental gift, as if the angels are singing, listen carefully you might hear them.

I highly recommend this book for all ages and all faiths. There one or more instrumental melodies or a songs that will reach into the reader's/listener's deepest recesses of a weary mind and the soothing sounds of the instrumental chords as well as the inspiring words may recharge you to believe in the impossible is the possible.

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Google Music for Jelly Bean unofficially releases for Ice Cream Sandwich users, Twitter for iOS 4.3 leak mentions enhanced notifications, Apple's iOS 6 Maps app rumored to hit Macs in the near future, and AT&T's U-verse iOS app updates with more features and on-demand content.

  • Jelly Bean Music Player 4.3.605 Ice Cream sandwich users can now install the Jelly Bean version of Google's Music player. There are very few differences between the Jelly Bean and the ICS players, but the new widget has been improved with album art support and a refreshed UI. [XDA Developers]
  • Major Twitter for iPhone Update Incoming: More Interactive, Enhanced Notifications Due to an iTunes App Store bug, we got a sneak peek at Twitter's release notes for the upcoming 4.3 version of their iOS app. New features include enhanced notifications, as well as boosts in searching functionality and performance. [9to5Mac]
  • Apple Maps for Macs? iOS Code Hints at That An interesting section of code in the iOS 6 Maps application hints at the possibility of Apple's Maps app making its way to Macs sometime in the future, possibly with the release of Mountain Lion. [Technically Personal]
  • AT&T U-verse for iPhone and iPad: A new update to the AT&T U-verse iOS app now allows AT&T television subscribers to link their U-verse TV box with their iOS devices in order to pull in information for sporting events like scores, highlights and schedules. iOS users also get an expanded lineup of on-demand content from HBO, Cinemax, Starz, Encore, Movieplex, and more. [iTunes]


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Cleaning your cast iron with soap and water? Squeezing every last bit of ground beef into that pan? Even if you know your way around the kitchen, there are a few mistakes nearly all of us make in the kitchen. Let's take a look at some common kitchen errors that may plague your cooking, and why they're bad for your food.

You're Cleaning Cast Iron Pans with Soap and Water

The Problem: You've just finished dinner, and the cast iron pans you used to cook with are full of oil and stuck-on food. It's time to clean them, and you know cast iron pans require special treatment, but ain't nobody got time for that. You give them a quick scrub with a sponge and soapy water, rinse with hot water, and a dry them with a paper towel. You might think that a light scrub can't possibly hurt too much, but the moment that hot soapy water touched your pan, it started to destroy the "seasoning" on the pan, or the layer of fat and oil that's been cooked onto the iron itself over regular use. Photo by Ross Catrow.

It's that season that makes cooking with cast iron so great. Not only does it protect the iron of the pan from rust, it also provides a cooking surface that's non-stick, naturally oiling, and keeps your food from interacting with the oil of the pan. Some people even say the season imparts flavor. Here's the problem: since the season is all polymerized oil, hitting it with dish soap, and then scrubbing at it with a sponge and rinsing it with hot water causes those oils to break down and float away—taking that protective coating and washing it very literally down the drain. It may be easy, but it's destructive.

The Solution: Instead of using soap and water, try Alton Brown's method (seen in the video to the right). When you're finished cooking, pour a little oil into the pan (if there isn't any left from cooking), dump in a handful of kosher salt, and then just scrub the salt around the pan with an old rag or some wadded up paper towels. The salt will get dirty, and the pan will get clean. Dump out the salt, wipe the pan clean, and put it away. We've discussed this method before too, and it works brilliantly. This is the real beauty of cast iron: You don't actually have to wash it.

If your pan has started to lose its season, it's not too late: try re-seasoning your pan with flax seed oil (read here for more on why this method works), and toss it in the oven while you're baking to season and save time. Check our recent CrowdHacker guide for more tips.

You Thaw Meat at Room Temperature

The Problem: You need to figure out dinner tonight, but you forgot to pull something out of the freezer to thaw slowly in the fridge. You only have a few hours to thaw the steaks or chops you'll wind up cooking tonight, so you take them out of the fridge and put them right into the sink. Maybe you just leave them on the countertop—that'll thaw them out quickly, right? Perhaps, but you're risking your safety and the safety of your dinner guests in the process. Photo by Taryn.

Remember, the "danger zone" for bacterial growth in food is between 40°F and 140°F (5°C and 60°C), and sitting right in the middle of that is "room temperature," around 68°-70°F (20°-22°C). A couple of hours at room temperature will certainly make sure that the meat is thawed, but it's a field day for bacterial growth as well, especially as the deeper parts of your cut begin to come up to temp while the outsides have been room temperature for hours.

"But surely," you're asking, "It'll all come up to temp when I cook it, right?" Maybe, assuming you're sure to cook your meat until the core is minimum safe temperature for what you're making, but it's an incredible risk, and it doesn't take much E.Coli or Salmonella to make you really regret the way you thawed those porkchops or chicken thighs.

The Solution: Use a cold water bath to thaw your meats. It's fast, safe, and by far the easiest. It requires a little more attention than some other safe methods of quick-thawing, but it works the best. Just take your meat and put it in a sealed bag (if it's not already in one) and submerge it in a bowl of cold water. You'll need to change the water out every half-hour or so (so the water doesn't come to room temp and bacteria start growing) but I've found after a half-hour or so, the meat is thawed and ready to cook. Photo by Waifer X.

If you don't like that method, there are other ways to thaw meat quickly that are easy and safe. Both StillTasty and The USDA recommend one of three methods: In cold water like we described, in the fridge until the meat is properly thawed (since your fridge keeps food below the danger zone), and in the microwave (because some parts of the meat may be warmer than others or cook in the microwave when you do this, the USDA says you should cook the meat immediately after microwaving.) We've also mentioned a hot water method if you're in a hurry, but note: it only works with thin cuts of meat.

You're Overcrowding Your Pan, Baking Dish, Cookie Sheet, Etc.

The Problem: If you've ever baked cookies only to have them all stuck to one another, or sauteed meat or veggies in a pan only to have them take forever to cook through, the problem may be that you're overcrowding your pan. Perfect example: you're cooking up a batch of ground beef or turkey in the pan, and while everything seems great at first, over time the meat starts to get kind of gray and bubbly, releasing a ton of moisture that takes forever to cook away. Your meat isn't getting the delicious brown you'd hoped for. Sound familiar? You should have cooked it in batches. Photo by ilovebutter.

The same problem occurs in baking. If you've ever put meat in the oven only to take it out while it's swimming in its own bubbling juices, or baked french fries or veggies without making sure they're spread out evenly, you know what I'm talking about. Thankfully, it's an easy problem to fix.

The Solution: Separate your cooking into batches. It's simple, but that's all it takes. Resist the urge to try and get everything done in one go. Overcrowding your pan actually slows down the cooking process. If you're satueeing veggies, all of the moisture released as they cook stays in the pan and steams them, which gives you a mushy, wet mess, instead of the crisp, firm texture you're looking for.

With meat, large, cold cuts rob the pan of heat every time you put one in, so overcrowding the pan actually lowers the temperature of the whole cooking surface. This increases the overall cooking time, and in the worst case brings the temperature of the pan down below the threshold required for the Maillard reaction to take place (approx 300°F/150°C). Even worse, the pan may linger above the boiling point of water (212°F/100°C), which means you're essentially steaming your meat, and that's no good. Give your food plenty of room to move around in the pan, and let them cook in a single layer.

You're Cooking at the Wrong Temperature

The Problem: Speaking of cooking temperatures, even the most seasoned home cook can catch themselves cooking either entirely too hot or too cold. Usually this applies to on-stove cooking, so sauteing, frying, and stir-frying are the big problems. Here are the symptoms:

  • When you're cooking too hot: You tossed those chicken breasts into a pan, and while the outside is cooked well, the inside is next to raw. Your scrambled eggs are brown and firm on the outside but still runny and liquidy on the inside. You can't seem to cook anything without setting off the smoke alarm? Sound familiar? Listen, every beginning cook has trouble controlling heat, but you don't need to fry everything to a crisp. The problem here is self-evident: Food isn't evenly cooked (which can lead to undercooked and dangerous-to-eat insides) at best, or completely burned and overdone at worst. Photo by normanack.
  • When you're cooking too cold: The opposite problem doesn't happen as often, but it's still an issue. Cooking with the heat down too low may get your dish done, but avoiding higher heat will keep liquids from simmering, herbs from wilting, flavors from developing, and aromas from opening up fully. It'll keep that delicious sear and browning action we just discussed from taking place on steaks and chops, and of course, you also run the risk of underdone food. Veggies and other foods where texture is important run the risk of being a bland mush that's been cooked down too far, too long.

The Solution: Get to know your stove or oven, and stop cooking everything on high heat. Here are a few quick ways:

  • Try all of your burners and watch them heat up. If you have an electric range, see how long each one takes to heat up. If you use gas, tweak the control knob to see the level of fine control you have over the flame intensity. With luck, you'll have great control over the level of heat your stove puts out. Sadly, not all stovetops really know the difference between "medium" and "medium high," and testing the burners is the only way to find out. Photo by Steven Depolo.
  • Use more than one burner. If your stovetop doesn't give you the control you need, don't just use a different burner—a smaller burner turned down may be the equivalent of "medium" of your large one. You'd be surprised how few home cooks really learn the difference between "medium high" and "high," or how many kitchens I've visited where the large front-corner burner is the only one anyone ever uses.
  • Make a heat map of your oven. Most commercial ovens have hot and cold spots. They can be hard to identify, but once you make a heat map with a cookie sheet and a few slices of bread, you'll see your oven's hot and cold spots.

You're Cooking with the Wrong Oils

The Problem: You probably already know that heating oil until it smokes is a very bad thing, and keeping multiple oils around for different purposes is a good idea. Still, frying everything with extra virgin olive oil is a surefire way to set off the smoke alarm every time you sautee, and baking with an extremely flavorful oil like sesame or coconut will certainly introduce flavors to your dish that you may not expect. Even though we talked about smoke points and which oils work best for which cooking methods, going just by smoke point (or by someone's diet book) isn't the best way to pick an oil. Photo by Arthur Caranta.

The Solution: Choose your oils not just for their smoke points, but for whether or not their flavor works with the type of food that you like to cook. If you like asian flavors, sesame oil is a great staple to keep around. If you prefer your oil also add its own savory, fatty flavor, consider cooking with more butter, lard, or ghee (clarified butter). Coconut oil is great for a number of reasons, but it can impart a nutty, rich flavor to lighter dishes you may not want.

Also, consider neutral oils that let the flavor of your dish shine through without adding their own. Safflower oil, for example, is completely neutral, and has a high smoke point. Grapeseed oil has a very light flavor that you may not even notice in your dishes, and is also well suited to high-temperature cooking. Don't just assume that you can do everything with olive oil or "vegetable oil," which is usually either a mix of oils or (more often) store-shelf code for "soybean oil."

These five are just the tip of the iceberg. There are plenty of other common cooking mistakes many of us make all the time, and sometimes even knowing better doesn't stop us. The key is to remember why they're dangerous, cost us money, or make our food taste terrible: That's the key to putting an end to them for good.

Title photo made using Corey Seeman, Boring Soap, Consumatron, Biswarup Ganguly, and Juan de Vojníkov.


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Android: Today, Google+ got a pretty big update, bringing about a brand new UI for the mobile app, as well as some improvements to photo management and, of course, Auto Awesome features.

The new UI makes Google+ even more consistent with Google's current collection of Android apps. You can also now create Auto Awesome movies or GIFs on demand, instead of waiting for the app to offer them. There's also expanded support for large photo libraries. So, if you have thousands of pictures stored with Google, you can now manage them on your phone. You can read more about the changes or, if you're impatient, download the APK from Android Police below.

Google+ App Gets A Big Update To v4.4 With A New UI, Auto Awesome Stories, Improved Support For Large Photo Libraries, And More [APK Download] | Android Police