Your personality tendencies in a nutshell...
You are very dependable and almost always follow through with your commitments. You value different and aesthetic experiences more than the average person. You show some tendency toward anxiety and worry. You are typically respectful toward others and dislike confrontation. You show some tendency towards being reserved in most social situations.
YouJustGetMe.com's guest psychologist Dr. Peggy has a little more, uh, informal interpretation of your traits...
About that "Disciplined" bubble... To always be responsible and dependable gets too heavy at times and you just have to shirk it all sometimes of and do something that is wild and crazy, like going to sleep WITHOUT brushing your teeth. Come and do your worst, dental bacteria! No one is arguing that you are not reliable; it's just that you differ from your very high conscientious peers in that you also have some streaks of impulsivity and can make some spontaneous decisions, rather than lumbering through all of the alternative scenarios. Maybe you're disorganized (God forbid), or perhaps you like to leave your dirty socks all over the house (the horror), or you're a procrastinator (that's the worst one of all). Whatever is the case, you are not conscientious to the extent that you bore people with your stodgy ways.
About that "Alternative" bubble... Your scores indicate that while you are clearly a non-traditionalist, there are some aspects of your personality that are rooted in the comforts of the mundane. You may value artistic expression to the extent that walking through museums full of antiquities is your favorite thing to do. Perhaps you revel in the abstract and the unknown. Yet, you also shake your head in wonderment as to why some people choose to live their lives or decorate their bodies so non-traditionally. At times, you may also find yourself fixed in certain ideas, even though you pride yourself in being open to novelty and creative thinking. In the end, all this suggests is that you take a pinch of convention along with a scoopful of whimsy in your drink of choice.
About that "Neurotic" bubble... If you were 100% neurotic, it would mean that you always felt stressed, anxious, and as a consequence of the first two emotions, depressed. Lucky for you your scores indicate that you are only about 50-75% neurotic. This means that you have some time off for good behavior and that there are many times when you feel balanced and calm. You may feel emotions very intensely and maybe even experience physiological cues to stress (sweating, quickening blood pressure, and faster heart beats are a few things that come to mind). However, you are able to control your rising anxiety with relative speed. Some people interpret neuroticism as a bad trait to have, but look at it this way - neurotic people are never bored with their own thoughts and their emotionally labile temperaments allow them to experience a whole range of feelings in very short periods of time. It's like the weather. If you don't like the mood, wait 5 minutes.
About that "Cooperative" bubble... Your scores would suggest that you tend to be more agreeable than you are competitive. What does that mean? For starters, it means that you have a fairly strong tendency to believe in social harmony and cooperation. You are a nice person. You want people to get along and do the right thing - for each other, for the greater humanity. That's not to say that you are a total pushover, but that you believe in the niceties of life. This is probably why you are very popular with people and have many friends. The difference between you and someone who is very high in agreeableness is that you have a bit of an edge. Maybe you laugh when people fall down and hurt themselves, maybe you secretly occasionally think people suck. Whatever it is that's holding you back from winning Ms. or Mr. Congeniality, that's also what makes you more interesting.
About that "Introverted" bubble... For the most part, you are a fairly reserved person, who thinks before you speak and cogitates on all the facts before you act. You may be very successful and work hard for your goals and dreams, but prefer to celebrate your successes outside of the limelight as you do not like to bring attention to yourself. Is it difficult for you to meet people because you have to force yourself to greet the world on its terms? You may fall into one of two categories - you secretly wish that people would talk to you so that they can see what an absolutely wonderful, interesting, and charming creature you are OR you secretly (not so secretly wish) that people would just go away. It's not inaccurate to say that the life of an introvert is much like being underwater at a community pool, which is somewhat isolating but tranquil until you reach the surface of the pool and have to contend with the "noises" of everyday life. Because you have some extraverted tendencies, you may find the world at large a little more welcoming than your introvert "thoroughbred" sisters and brothers.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Saturday, July 19, 2008
pick your own
This summer, for the first time I picked fruit from trees (excepting apples, which I have done twice). This may seem a strange first experience to have at the age of 30, but keep in mind that I grew up in Florida, where citrus trees provide the only truly fresh fruit.
A friend of mine mentioned something about picking strawberries one day. A passing thought, of little significance to him, as he'd grown up knowing that ripening strawberries are an unambiguous signal of summer's onset. The only things that signaled summer in Florida were somewhat hotter temperatures, more humidity, thunder storms every afternoon, and the end of school. Fall and spring had nothing to do with leaves or flowers on the trees. When I moved to the northeast from Florida, the coming and going of seasons smacked me in the face, yet more than 10 years later am I finally appreciating one of the most wonderful aspects of the seasons - the tremendous series of fresh fruits available from early summer through late fall.
So, at my friend's suggestion, I found some farms nearby (30-45 minute drive) that let you pick your own fruit. We've picked strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries so far this summer - peaches and apples will come up in the next few weeks - from three different farms:
Land's Sake (Weston) - strawberries
Smolak Farm (North Andover) - strawberries and raspberries
Connors Farm (Danvers) - raspberries and blueberries
All the fruit was outstanding. I made strawberry jam, raspberry syrup, blueberry pancakes, and blueberry-lemon bars (and spent days just snacking on the fruit whenever I could). Each farm had it's pros and cons. In terms of price, Connors Farm was unbeatable. I will definitely go back there for more fresh fruit.
A friend of mine mentioned something about picking strawberries one day. A passing thought, of little significance to him, as he'd grown up knowing that ripening strawberries are an unambiguous signal of summer's onset. The only things that signaled summer in Florida were somewhat hotter temperatures, more humidity, thunder storms every afternoon, and the end of school. Fall and spring had nothing to do with leaves or flowers on the trees. When I moved to the northeast from Florida, the coming and going of seasons smacked me in the face, yet more than 10 years later am I finally appreciating one of the most wonderful aspects of the seasons - the tremendous series of fresh fruits available from early summer through late fall.
So, at my friend's suggestion, I found some farms nearby (30-45 minute drive) that let you pick your own fruit. We've picked strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries so far this summer - peaches and apples will come up in the next few weeks - from three different farms:
Land's Sake (Weston) - strawberries
Smolak Farm (North Andover) - strawberries and raspberries
Connors Farm (Danvers) - raspberries and blueberries
All the fruit was outstanding. I made strawberry jam, raspberry syrup, blueberry pancakes, and blueberry-lemon bars (and spent days just snacking on the fruit whenever I could). Each farm had it's pros and cons. In terms of price, Connors Farm was unbeatable. I will definitely go back there for more fresh fruit.
Monday, July 14, 2008
writing advice
Not sure if I've included these before or not, but here are words of wisdom on writing from well-known writers. :)
From Kurt Vonnegut:
1. Find a subject you care about
2. Do not ramble, though
3. Keep it simple
4. Have guts to cut
5. Sound like yourself
6. Say what you mean
7. Pity the readers
From George Orwell:
1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
(Brought to my attention/reminded from a post at 43folders.)
From Kurt Vonnegut:
1. Find a subject you care about
2. Do not ramble, though
3. Keep it simple
4. Have guts to cut
5. Sound like yourself
6. Say what you mean
7. Pity the readers
From George Orwell:
1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
(Brought to my attention/reminded from a post at 43folders.)
Eating my veggies
I am not a fruits and vegetable person. I'd like to blame my Mom, but I know that's unfair. It's really my Dad's fault :) - since he refused to eat any vegetable other than iceberg lettuce, corn, and peas while I was in my formative years. So incorporating more veggies (and fruits) into my diet is something I need to do, even though it's difficult for me. I came across this a awhile ago. It offers some useful suggestions for making sure you get those 5-7 servings a day. I found this hint particularly useful:
"Spend an hour on Sunday washing and prepping your vegetables for the upcoming week. It’s much easier to grab vegetables for lunch or to toss into your eggs or your dinner if they are already cleaned and trimmed. When you have grab-and-go veggies ready, you’re more likely to use them.
"You can buy precut carrots and other vegetables (especially from Trader Joe’s), but I find that the quality is not optimal and I’d rather do it myself. Cut a whole bunch of celery into sticks and put them in a bag or cup with a sprinkle of water. Bell peppers get the same treatment, as do peeled carrots. Trimmed radishes floating in a dish of water will last a week. Cauliflower and broccoli can be trimmed into florets and stored in a produce bag. Beets can be boiled unpeeled and refrigerated; the peel slips right off when you rub it with a paper towel. Lettuce and spinach should be rinsed thoroughly, trimmed of stems, then rolled up in a dish towel and refrigerated in a produce bag. They will last a week or more when stored this way."
"Spend an hour on Sunday washing and prepping your vegetables for the upcoming week. It’s much easier to grab vegetables for lunch or to toss into your eggs or your dinner if they are already cleaned and trimmed. When you have grab-and-go veggies ready, you’re more likely to use them.
"You can buy precut carrots and other vegetables (especially from Trader Joe’s), but I find that the quality is not optimal and I’d rather do it myself. Cut a whole bunch of celery into sticks and put them in a bag or cup with a sprinkle of water. Bell peppers get the same treatment, as do peeled carrots. Trimmed radishes floating in a dish of water will last a week. Cauliflower and broccoli can be trimmed into florets and stored in a produce bag. Beets can be boiled unpeeled and refrigerated; the peel slips right off when you rub it with a paper towel. Lettuce and spinach should be rinsed thoroughly, trimmed of stems, then rolled up in a dish towel and refrigerated in a produce bag. They will last a week or more when stored this way."
Sunday, July 13, 2008
CSAs
Meat CSA
Since we joined a monthly meat CSA with our friends Fredrica and Josh, I've been exploring more cuts of meat than I even knew existed. Here are some of the dishes I've made from the delicious meat we've been getting:
* Lamb Shank - Lamb Shank in an Oaxacan Red Mole Sauce
* Pork Shoulder - Puerto Rican Style Roasted Pork Shoulder
* Lamb Shoulder - Emeril's Stick-to-your-ribs Lamb, Potato & White Bean Stew
* Ground lamb - Tender Lamb Meatballs in a Fragrant Tomato Sauce
* Beef stew meat - Spicy Thai Beef Curry
* Beef Brisket - Barbecued Texas Beef Brisket
I've also made great dishes with these meat cuts:
* Pork Spare Ribs
* Pork tenderloin
* Country style pork spare ribs
* Pork Loin
* Whole chicken
As you can see, a meat CSA provides a wide variety of meats, some of which are difficult to find in the grocery store. In addition, the animals are grass-fed, which I think contributes to the quality of the meat, both in terms of the flavor and nutritional content.
Last month's meat load: pork spare ribs, chicken legs, lamb sausage, porterhouse steaks, t-bone steaks, and ground beef.
May's meat load: beef brisket, country-style spare ribs, pork steak (ham), pork chops, beef stew meat, ground lamb, ground beef, sweet Italian sausage.
FYI: we get our meat from Chestnut Farms.
Veggie CSA
The latest news is that we joined another CSA (Parker Farm) to get fresh veggies weekly. We joined in for a large share with our friends Mark, Melanie, and Bryan. So far, we've gotten:
* Russian red kale
* Yellow squash
* Fava beans
* Cabbage
* Yellow and orange carrots
* Parsley
* Spring onions
* Collards
* Beets
* Mizuna
* Strawberries
And it's only been two weeks! Aside from the squash and parsley, all of these are items I rarely, if ever, have cooked with before, so it's an interesting challenge. I've braised the fava beans and carrots with chicken stock and white wine (delicious), wilted/sauteed kale with shallots, garlic, and bacon (also delicious - but I feel like using bacon was a bit heavy handed), and grilled the squash. Some things unfortunately have gone to waste because I didn't use them fast enough (I'm sorry, collards), but hopefully in the weeks to come I will get better at using things quickly or storing them properly.
In the fridge this week:
* kale
* mizuna
* fava beans
* beets
* carrots
Plans for this week include:
* beet salad
* some pasta dish with the fava beans and carrots?
* braised kale with mizuna or a recipe for Calo Verde
Edit: The pasta dish ended up being fettucine with favas, escarole (store-bought), and sweet Italian sausage.
Since we joined a monthly meat CSA with our friends Fredrica and Josh, I've been exploring more cuts of meat than I even knew existed. Here are some of the dishes I've made from the delicious meat we've been getting:
* Lamb Shank - Lamb Shank in an Oaxacan Red Mole Sauce
* Pork Shoulder - Puerto Rican Style Roasted Pork Shoulder
* Lamb Shoulder - Emeril's Stick-to-your-ribs Lamb, Potato & White Bean Stew
* Ground lamb - Tender Lamb Meatballs in a Fragrant Tomato Sauce
* Beef stew meat - Spicy Thai Beef Curry
* Beef Brisket - Barbecued Texas Beef Brisket
I've also made great dishes with these meat cuts:
* Pork Spare Ribs
* Pork tenderloin
* Country style pork spare ribs
* Pork Loin
* Whole chicken
As you can see, a meat CSA provides a wide variety of meats, some of which are difficult to find in the grocery store. In addition, the animals are grass-fed, which I think contributes to the quality of the meat, both in terms of the flavor and nutritional content.
Last month's meat load: pork spare ribs, chicken legs, lamb sausage, porterhouse steaks, t-bone steaks, and ground beef.
May's meat load: beef brisket, country-style spare ribs, pork steak (ham), pork chops, beef stew meat, ground lamb, ground beef, sweet Italian sausage.
FYI: we get our meat from Chestnut Farms.
Veggie CSA
The latest news is that we joined another CSA (Parker Farm) to get fresh veggies weekly. We joined in for a large share with our friends Mark, Melanie, and Bryan. So far, we've gotten:
* Russian red kale
* Yellow squash
* Fava beans
* Cabbage
* Yellow and orange carrots
* Parsley
* Spring onions
* Collards
* Beets
* Mizuna
* Strawberries
And it's only been two weeks! Aside from the squash and parsley, all of these are items I rarely, if ever, have cooked with before, so it's an interesting challenge. I've braised the fava beans and carrots with chicken stock and white wine (delicious), wilted/sauteed kale with shallots, garlic, and bacon (also delicious - but I feel like using bacon was a bit heavy handed), and grilled the squash. Some things unfortunately have gone to waste because I didn't use them fast enough (I'm sorry, collards), but hopefully in the weeks to come I will get better at using things quickly or storing them properly.
In the fridge this week:
* kale
* mizuna
* fava beans
* beets
* carrots
Plans for this week include:
* beet salad
* some pasta dish with the fava beans and carrots?
* braised kale with mizuna or a recipe for Calo Verde
Edit: The pasta dish ended up being fettucine with favas, escarole (store-bought), and sweet Italian sausage.
wikichow
Wikichow, my recipe sharing website, will turn 1 this week. I've enjoyed putting my recipes on the site - and being able to access them from anywhere. Throughout the past year, however, the number of contributions from other users only reached 4 pages and 3 forum posts. So, I will delete the site soon. I'm going to migrate some of the information to the blog, and with everything else I will create my own recipe box somewhere online. It's disappointing that friends who witnessed my excitement over creating the site didn't even bother to try it out.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
sleep well
Every once in awhile, I can't sleep.
People sleep differently. I am the type of sleeper who can get to sleep at night whenever I want to. Anxiety, anger, nothing can keep me from falling asleep. My sleep weakness comes in the morning. I often wake up early and can't get back to sleep, despite REALLY wanting to.
Usually that means waking up sometime after 6 and tossing and turning until I actually need to be up. If anxiety is present - in the form of a presentation later in the day, for example - I'll wake up around 5.
I can probably count on one hand the number of nights I've been up unwillingly at 3 or 4 am like I am tonight, which only means I have no idea where to start to get back to sleep.
People sleep differently. I am the type of sleeper who can get to sleep at night whenever I want to. Anxiety, anger, nothing can keep me from falling asleep. My sleep weakness comes in the morning. I often wake up early and can't get back to sleep, despite REALLY wanting to.
Usually that means waking up sometime after 6 and tossing and turning until I actually need to be up. If anxiety is present - in the form of a presentation later in the day, for example - I'll wake up around 5.
I can probably count on one hand the number of nights I've been up unwillingly at 3 or 4 am like I am tonight, which only means I have no idea where to start to get back to sleep.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
bored, lazy, and unmotivated
A friend of mine laughs at me on occasion for some of my hobbies, which include:
- setting up and "maintaining" a recipe wiki for friends and family members to share recipes with one another (and most importantly with me), but which has failed to induce anyone aside from myself to make a contribution*,
- compiling a list of recipes from old issues of Fine Cooking, which I have been receiving as a generous Christmas gift from my Aunt Martha for some years now, to provide inspiration for future cooking adventures, and
- creating designs on my recently purchased spirograph.
Notice how I didn't say write a blog?
I can't entirely explain why he laughs. I suppose because he thinks these are silly activities (especially drawing with the spirograph). Because he thinks I seek idle pleasures to escape boredom. I can't disagree with him. But as a result of his laughter I had to stop and think about why I started spending time on these somewhat random endeavors.
At first, his idea that I'm simply bored sounded about right - just add a pinch of laziness and subtract an ounce of motivation. I come home from work and turn the TV on nine times out of ten. I would rather find some other way to spend time, but I find it hard to resist the ease of pushing a red button and finding instant entertainment (if not stimulation). I rationalize this by saying to myself that I'm too tired, and often that is exactly how I feel. Not so much physically exhausted, but mentally so. I just don't want to put much thought into anything. So as an alternative to TV I started doing a few things that also don't require much in the way of thought, but might be a little less of a brain-drain than the boob tube.
I don't believe for a minute that my job is so mentally taxing that I have a right to feel so drained at the end of the day. So I thought about why I end up feeling that way. I came to the conclusion that I exhaust my resources in simply pushing myself to show up everyday, to recreate on a daily basis enough enthusiasm to do what should be done, despite not wanting to do it and not being interested in it anymore. (This sounds way worse than it probably is.)
This led me to rephrase in my head exactly what my issues are at the moment. It's not that I'm bored, lazy, and lacking in motivation - all of which sound like personal failings to me. Being bored my Dad always impressed upon me was up to me; it only means that I lack the creativity to amuse myself. Laziness is self-explanatory. I think being unmotivated is a tricky one that perhaps could go either way. Ultimately, however, I believe people expect self-motivation from others, that an intelligent, educated person should have a plan, a purpose, an inner sense of direction that s/he is moving towards, and finding myself without one reflects poorly on me.
So, all these words I was using in my head to rationalize my new hobbies were putting me down and finding fault with myself. And perhaps that is the case. I certainly have many failings, as do the large majority of us, after all. But I think something else is involved here, something that I also have the power to change, but that isn't my fault: a lack of inspiration from the daily grind. I believe these simple projects I've started are part of my search for inspiration. For some grease to oil the gears in my brain, to get them moving again.
For a little while now, I've actually started to feel my brain rise up out of the stupor it's been in since finishing grad school. A bit of an exaggeration, as I think I have had some intellectual moments since starting my postdoc, but lately I feel like I've been having ideas. Novel ideas. Interesting ideas, even. I feel like my brain is working! And I think that developing a few simple projects is part of that, or may even have spurred on the idea process in other avenues of my life.
I'm alright with my friend laughing. I laugh with him, but I'm genuinely happy to have kicked a couple projects into motion, even these small, trivial ones. They are merely the first baby steps to set myself in motion, to gain momentum, to generate ideas, to learn new things. After these, there will be new steps, bigger steps. Ultimately I'll take leaps that lead me to my inspiration.
* Note: In the interest of full disclosure, my friend Lauren posted a couple recipes and another friend posted information about where to find special ingredients in the greater Boston area.
- setting up and "maintaining" a recipe wiki for friends and family members to share recipes with one another (and most importantly with me), but which has failed to induce anyone aside from myself to make a contribution*,
- compiling a list of recipes from old issues of Fine Cooking, which I have been receiving as a generous Christmas gift from my Aunt Martha for some years now, to provide inspiration for future cooking adventures, and
- creating designs on my recently purchased spirograph.
Notice how I didn't say write a blog?
I can't entirely explain why he laughs. I suppose because he thinks these are silly activities (especially drawing with the spirograph). Because he thinks I seek idle pleasures to escape boredom. I can't disagree with him. But as a result of his laughter I had to stop and think about why I started spending time on these somewhat random endeavors.
At first, his idea that I'm simply bored sounded about right - just add a pinch of laziness and subtract an ounce of motivation. I come home from work and turn the TV on nine times out of ten. I would rather find some other way to spend time, but I find it hard to resist the ease of pushing a red button and finding instant entertainment (if not stimulation). I rationalize this by saying to myself that I'm too tired, and often that is exactly how I feel. Not so much physically exhausted, but mentally so. I just don't want to put much thought into anything. So as an alternative to TV I started doing a few things that also don't require much in the way of thought, but might be a little less of a brain-drain than the boob tube.
I don't believe for a minute that my job is so mentally taxing that I have a right to feel so drained at the end of the day. So I thought about why I end up feeling that way. I came to the conclusion that I exhaust my resources in simply pushing myself to show up everyday, to recreate on a daily basis enough enthusiasm to do what should be done, despite not wanting to do it and not being interested in it anymore. (This sounds way worse than it probably is.)
This led me to rephrase in my head exactly what my issues are at the moment. It's not that I'm bored, lazy, and lacking in motivation - all of which sound like personal failings to me. Being bored my Dad always impressed upon me was up to me; it only means that I lack the creativity to amuse myself. Laziness is self-explanatory. I think being unmotivated is a tricky one that perhaps could go either way. Ultimately, however, I believe people expect self-motivation from others, that an intelligent, educated person should have a plan, a purpose, an inner sense of direction that s/he is moving towards, and finding myself without one reflects poorly on me.
So, all these words I was using in my head to rationalize my new hobbies were putting me down and finding fault with myself. And perhaps that is the case. I certainly have many failings, as do the large majority of us, after all. But I think something else is involved here, something that I also have the power to change, but that isn't my fault: a lack of inspiration from the daily grind. I believe these simple projects I've started are part of my search for inspiration. For some grease to oil the gears in my brain, to get them moving again.
For a little while now, I've actually started to feel my brain rise up out of the stupor it's been in since finishing grad school. A bit of an exaggeration, as I think I have had some intellectual moments since starting my postdoc, but lately I feel like I've been having ideas. Novel ideas. Interesting ideas, even. I feel like my brain is working! And I think that developing a few simple projects is part of that, or may even have spurred on the idea process in other avenues of my life.
I'm alright with my friend laughing. I laugh with him, but I'm genuinely happy to have kicked a couple projects into motion, even these small, trivial ones. They are merely the first baby steps to set myself in motion, to gain momentum, to generate ideas, to learn new things. After these, there will be new steps, bigger steps. Ultimately I'll take leaps that lead me to my inspiration.
* Note: In the interest of full disclosure, my friend Lauren posted a couple recipes and another friend posted information about where to find special ingredients in the greater Boston area.
Monday, May 19, 2008
a quote
From "What Now?" by Ann Prachett
"Sometimes circumstances at hand force us to be braver then we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
"Sometimes circumstances at hand force us to be braver then we actually are, and so we knock on doors and ask for assistance. Sometimes not having any idea where we're going works out better than we could possibly have imagined."
Sunday, May 4, 2008
a beautiful quote
"our friendship made all the lights in my small corner of the world shine a little brighter"
I want to be that friend.
I want to be that friend.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Facebook pet peeve
Why does facebook tell me that my friend changed "their" website? Last I checked my friend was one person, and thus he changed his website. I would be far less annoyed by reading "his/her" than "their", but I am also fairly certain that facebook has gender information for many of its users. How much code could it take to implement that information?
Friday, May 2, 2008
Style Statement
I keep coming across references to Carrie McCarthy & Danielle LaPorte and their Style Statement concept, which boils down to defining who you are in two words - such as Cultivated Wonder, Sophisticated Era, or Classic Genuine. By knowing these two words, you can approach your life with more authenticity.
I hear stuff like this, and I want to scream. Who the hell can be thoroughly described in two little words? Why would you want to pick only two words anyway, when there are so many beautiful words that you would be throwing away?
I also have to admit that, despite my knee-jerk run-like-hell reflex, I would kind of love to know what my two words are. Maybe it could help me express myself better. Or make decisions more easily. Or just provide a moniker I can identify with, that reminds me what I should appreciate more about myself. After all, it is basically a personality test, and we all know how much I love those.
EDIT: As I was thinking about this on my way to work, I realized that while most personality tests group people into a small number of categories - for instance, the Myers-Briggs has 16 personality types - a Style Statement will likely be unique to you, as it can be any combination of two words, in theory (as long as the first is an adjective, and the second a noun or adjective?).
I hear stuff like this, and I want to scream. Who the hell can be thoroughly described in two little words? Why would you want to pick only two words anyway, when there are so many beautiful words that you would be throwing away?
I also have to admit that, despite my knee-jerk run-like-hell reflex, I would kind of love to know what my two words are. Maybe it could help me express myself better. Or make decisions more easily. Or just provide a moniker I can identify with, that reminds me what I should appreciate more about myself. After all, it is basically a personality test, and we all know how much I love those.
EDIT: As I was thinking about this on my way to work, I realized that while most personality tests group people into a small number of categories - for instance, the Myers-Briggs has 16 personality types - a Style Statement will likely be unique to you, as it can be any combination of two words, in theory (as long as the first is an adjective, and the second a noun or adjective?).
Monday, April 14, 2008
read this
http://www.lablit.com/article/361
It's the second installment of a four-parter. I guess that means I should direct you to the first installment, but if you want to read that you can navigate to it from the bottom of this page. :)
It's the second installment of a four-parter. I guess that means I should direct you to the first installment, but if you want to read that you can navigate to it from the bottom of this page. :)
Saturday, April 12, 2008
before anyone beats me to the punch
Stats for my blog.
Average syllables per word: 1.99
% of words with 4+ syllables: 18.9%
Average # of words per sentence: 4.55
Ouch. At least, I know I'm a hypocrite - but I'm proud of the 4.55 words per sentence. :)
Average syllables per word: 1.99
% of words with 4+ syllables: 18.9%
Average # of words per sentence: 4.55
Ouch. At least, I know I'm a hypocrite - but I'm proud of the 4.55 words per sentence. :)
words
Scientists like to use big words. They (we) think they sound smarter if their (our) sentences are peppered with numerous 4+ syllable words, usually adjectives they (we) just invented to more accurately modify their field's jargon. For fun, I looked up some stats on the average number of syllables per word in a randomly selected journal article, a leading newspaper, and a random website (not this one, but another blog).
journal article: 1.82
newspaper: 1.75
website: 1.36
Ok, how about percentage of words containing 4+ syllables:
journal article: 12.35%
newspaper: 9.15%
website: 1.6%
I think my point is clear.
(As an aside, the journal article contains 8.62 words per sentence, compared to 3.67 words per sentence in a newspaper. The random website averaged out at 8.2 words per sentence, which I found interesting - though after a moment's thought not too surprising. A newspaper strives to convey the most information in the briefest format possible - just look at the headlines, which tend to the ridiculous because of the need to conserve precious space on the printed page. Blogs are essentially unconcerned with length - or efficient transfer of information - and rarely show signs of editing out verbosity. Curiously, however, journal articles, which should feel similar pressures as newspapers, fail to succumb to the need for brevity, unfortunately.)
We mock Bush and media pundits for using words with extra syllables thrown on at the end, without acknowledging that we do it too.
Take for instance the word dynamical (the use of which brought about my need to rant this morning). When did it become normal to throw this word around instead of the more elegant dynamic? Is 4 syllables better than 3?
Wikipedia states, "The dynamical system concept is a mathematical formalization for any fixed "rule" which describes the time dependence of a point's position in its ambient space."
Who is going to learn what "dynamical systems" are by reading this sentence? No one. It is only for the already initiated.
I also hate when people start sentences with furthermore when further does just fine.
journal article: 1.82
newspaper: 1.75
website: 1.36
Ok, how about percentage of words containing 4+ syllables:
journal article: 12.35%
newspaper: 9.15%
website: 1.6%
I think my point is clear.
(As an aside, the journal article contains 8.62 words per sentence, compared to 3.67 words per sentence in a newspaper. The random website averaged out at 8.2 words per sentence, which I found interesting - though after a moment's thought not too surprising. A newspaper strives to convey the most information in the briefest format possible - just look at the headlines, which tend to the ridiculous because of the need to conserve precious space on the printed page. Blogs are essentially unconcerned with length - or efficient transfer of information - and rarely show signs of editing out verbosity. Curiously, however, journal articles, which should feel similar pressures as newspapers, fail to succumb to the need for brevity, unfortunately.)
We mock Bush and media pundits for using words with extra syllables thrown on at the end, without acknowledging that we do it too.
Take for instance the word dynamical (the use of which brought about my need to rant this morning). When did it become normal to throw this word around instead of the more elegant dynamic? Is 4 syllables better than 3?
Wikipedia states, "The dynamical system concept is a mathematical formalization for any fixed "rule" which describes the time dependence of a point's position in its ambient space."
Who is going to learn what "dynamical systems" are by reading this sentence? No one. It is only for the already initiated.
I also hate when people start sentences with furthermore when further does just fine.
Friday, April 11, 2008
more on the plight of postdocs
In a recent issue of Science, an article appeared highlighting recent announcements of funding opportunities for tenure-track faculty (from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute) and junior graduate students (from the National Science Foundation). While this funding is great news for those just starting out on the academic road and those already established, the article points out that, "For the tens of thousands of young researchers caught in the middle--those who have finished their graduate work but find themselves trapped in other people's labs, unable to escape to establish their own--the current plans offer nothing. The new initiatives neither increase the number of tenure-track or comparable jobs for which postdocs can compete nor offer any alternate framework in which frustrated scientists could pursue careers."
When will the community wake up to these problems?
The article ends by saying, "But the fact that these efforts completely ignore postdocs--and the big-picture dysfunction in the current science-career landscape--ought to serve as a sign of a different kind: that those academic careers will be open to only a small, select minority. The rest would be well advised to seek opportunities elsewhere. And policymakers need to give serious thought to the danger that the increasingly brutal--and for the overwhelming majority, futile--competition to join the tenured, funded elite is very likely persuading our most talented young people to seek careers in fields that offer a better shot at success than science does, to the detriment of the nation's scientific enterprise."
The question remains: how will all these talented postdocs, who see no future for themselves in academia, go about finding jobs in markets they are wholly unfamiliar with?
When will the community wake up to these problems?
The article ends by saying, "But the fact that these efforts completely ignore postdocs--and the big-picture dysfunction in the current science-career landscape--ought to serve as a sign of a different kind: that those academic careers will be open to only a small, select minority. The rest would be well advised to seek opportunities elsewhere. And policymakers need to give serious thought to the danger that the increasingly brutal--and for the overwhelming majority, futile--competition to join the tenured, funded elite is very likely persuading our most talented young people to seek careers in fields that offer a better shot at success than science does, to the detriment of the nation's scientific enterprise."
The question remains: how will all these talented postdocs, who see no future for themselves in academia, go about finding jobs in markets they are wholly unfamiliar with?
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Today I think the more friends I have on facebook, the fewer friends I feel like I have in real life.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
pictures from our last party
They are spread about the internet. Here's a list of places to find them:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/giantkoi/sets/72157604178512910/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ninagray/sets/72157604408007078/
http://picasaweb.google.com/bilja505/NinaSParty?authkey=Z6_BAUxSIUY
I'll add more links as people continue posting stuff.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/giantkoi/sets/72157604178512910/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ninagray/sets/72157604408007078/
http://picasaweb.google.com/bilja505/NinaSParty?authkey=Z6_BAUxSIUY
I'll add more links as people continue posting stuff.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
a few years too late?
Another quiz result:
Which College Major Should You Be? | |
 | Your major should be part Engineering. Logic is your friend. With enough work, you can find a solution to anything... Unless it involves dating or parties. |
 | Your major should be part Art. You are sensitive, creative, and you don't follow established rules. Unfortunately, you'll have to follow some rules if you ever want that promotion at Starbucks. |
| Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com | |
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