| Ignorant Bath |
[Nov. 18th, 2009|05:23 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  anxious | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | 絶対彼氏～完全無欠の恋人ロボット～ - 未知の到來 | ] |
The United States spends more on healthcare (total and per capita) than any other country but we do not perform as well as other countries when it comes to statistics such as life expectancy and infant mortality. What do you think should be done and what do you think of the changes that are currently being considered by Congress?
Ain't that the question. I'm kind of terrified to answer this question, partly for fear of sounding (and being) ignorant, and partly for fear of starting a flame war. Not that flame wars usually get started on discussion boards for 100-level classes - people just go in, make their required post, and leave. I'm also not sure how to tie what we've learned in micro into this. Which is probably ties right in with the "ignorance" bit.
Heh, just the fact that an OST for a dorama came on reminded me of the PMK dorama coming up, and made me excited for it again. *randomly wonders who MatsuJun would play if he were cast* He might make a good Shinpachi... Hmm, now that I have space for 5 more icons with my account renewal (I thought you got more like 12?), I should get myself a PMK icon or two. |
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| feelin' dumb |
[Nov. 16th, 2009|05:17 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | library | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  confused | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | 灰羽連盟 - Shadow of Sorrow | ] |
Assume Sally’s ice cream store produce cones where P = MR = MC = ATC. Sally decides to hire more workers and keep her capital constant. Her time frame now is:
A. long run.
B. short run.
C. medium run.
D. both B and C.
Durr... This question doesn't *look* hard, but it has me confuzzled.
After doing further questions, I think the problem is that we need to spend a bit more time covering the perfectly competitive market and equilibrium within one. |
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| Voice Post |
[Nov. 15th, 2009|11:28 am] |
 | VoicePost 
526K 3:10
| (no transcription available) |
[EDIT: Dianne's computer can access the internet! Yay!! (It couldn't last night...)] |
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| Random Good Luck |
[Nov. 14th, 2009|12:05 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  awake | ] |
November 13, 2009
Due to family medical issues, I have been “missing” for a while. If you turned in a paper, discussion posts, or have completed quizzes on the Thinkwell site, I will be updating your grades for this over the weekend. These grades will be up by Monday at noon.
I will also be setting all of the chapter exams for 2 attempts on Monday. This is my way to pay you back for your patience. I am sorry I have been “absent” for so long.
Chris
Well, you certainly won't hear me complaining. I fully intend to retake the Unit 1 and 2 exams, especially to see if I can bump the unit 1 exam up from its 92%. |
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| Welcome to the most annoying song EVAR. |
[Nov. 14th, 2009|01:11 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  angry | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | rabid chipmunks? | ] |
Seriously, I think this'll make me hate anyone I ever meet who happens to be named Sherry, or Sheri, or any variant thereof.
The worst part? I get to listen to it every fucking time I go to work. But at least they only play it once a day (shift?).
[EDIT: Outlaw Star and Somewhere Over the Rainbow. And it actually works!
] |
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| lyrics |
[Nov. 13th, 2009|12:20 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  working | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | 交響詩篇エウレカセブン - 彼岸を吹く風 | ] |
覚えていますか？昔は確か
かすかな希望に全力を出した
明日のために生きていました
その気持ちどっか忘れてないか？
青春に期限なんてない 探究心に年は関係ないと思うよ
だってそうだろ？
We wanna make the dream come true
[EDIT:
Of course, I'm being a hypocrite by being amused by this, considering that I hate when people "borrow" books to others. And I can't say I like "ekscape".] |
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| Lifetime Stalker Bath |
[Nov. 13th, 2009|12:02 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  scared | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Alison Krauss and Union Station - Baby, Now That I've Found You | ] |
One of the songs that plays at Walgreens, around 6-ish?:
"Now you've told me that you wanna leave me / Darling, I just can't let you."
Seriously, that line's creepy. Like, Lifetime movie creepy. |
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| Alternate Version Bath (now with more aromatic leaves) |
[Nov. 8th, 2009|10:36 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  cynical | ] |
Incubus' "Drive" was playing on the radio at Walgreens the other day, and it reminded me of the insanely different Japanese version by Ann Lewis. I'll translate the Japanese lyrics later, but for those who can read Japanese, here's both the Incubus and Ann Lewis lyrics:
( under the cut )
I think the strangest thing for me is how they seem to have literally changed the meanings of the English words in the song, from a metaphor about being clear about your own decisions and owning your life, to one that's a little bit about owning your life and a lot about physically driving to literally be with the one you love. Then again, my interpretation of the Japanese may be off.
I also discovered on these "prayer buddies" what I felt was a discomforting censorship of a children's (?) prayer, although it seems it wasn't just Precious Moments that censored the prayer. The prayer as I'm familiar with it, and closest to the New England Primer Version is:
Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take
It seems odd to say this considering my necrophobia, but... I think it's valuable for children to understand their mortality. Or at the very least, it shouldn't be hidden from them. Having children say words they don't understand until they later do... That seems a healthy way to ease them into the idea.
I believe the version said by the Prayer Buddy was:
Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
May angels watch me through the night,
And keep me in their blessed sight.
Although at least that implies some level of... negative possibility. I found even more butchered versions in the Wiki entry:
Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep,
Guide me through the starry night,
Wake me when the sun shines bright
Aaaanyways, work 2-10:30 the next two days, then a day off. At least I don't have to get up at 7:30 to feed the animals anymore. ^_^;;;
[EDIT: I just realized, though... It might not be entirely sterilization of the modern age. It might just have to do with the extremely, extremely low rate of child mortality in the U.S. There's no need for the average 6-year-old to consider the possibility of not making it through the night.]
[EDIT 2: Then again, it still happens. This is a really good idea, I think...]
[EDIT 3: And a news article on NILMDTS.] |
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| eventful morning |
[Nov. 6th, 2009|09:31 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | living room | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  exhausted | ] |
Today was... an adventure. Two escape artist birds, one of whom got startled by the dog's food bowl being knocked over and flew across the room; me dropping the grapes all over the kitchen floor (I gathered them in a bowl and have yet to re-wash them, although I did wash the ones I fed the animals, of course), the food disposal dying (likely because it seems I don't know what can and can't go down it - I'm just going to stop using it altogether), running out of greens (which I'm going to pick up today)... I'm just glad I don't have to work today. On the plus side, subtracting the time I spent dealing with all that shit... I improved on my speed again. |
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| (no subject) |
[Nov. 5th, 2009|03:05 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | living room | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  amused | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Kidou Senshi Gundam Wing - Eien to Mugen o Kono Te ni | ] |
3. The marginal utility per dollar of a good
A. is all of the above.
B. is marginal utility divided by the price of the good.
C. is used to determine when a consumer has maximized utility.
D. will decrease as more of a good is consumed (assuming price is held constant).
Well, B couldn't possibly be correct. ^_^; |
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| Yay, increased efficiency. |
[Nov. 5th, 2009|08:42 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | bedroom | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  tired | ] |
Got up at 7:15, finished feeding the animals at 8:35. Got some water for Mary. Going back to bed for a half hour. |
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| programming... programs |
[Nov. 5th, 2009|12:16 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  frustrated | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | 崖の上のポニョ - 母と海の讃歌 | ] |
Does anyone have any guides/recommendations/whatever for computer programming? As in, if I want to be able to write and run basic, text-based programs on my Windows XP machine, what program do you recommend, and do you have any instructions for how I should set it up (if instructions aren't available on the program's website). I downloaded and installed MIT Scheme, since Scheme is the only language that i actually remember any of, but I can't figure out how to, well, use it.
[EDIT: I'm giving Dr. Scheme a try. I know it won't work quite like MIT Scheme, but I should be able to figure out the variances.]
[EDIT 2: I think I'm gonna ask Dad to send my my CSci textbook. Granted, it's available online, but... I'm biased towards paper. ^_^;]
[EDIT 3: Script successfully written and run. It's fugly, but whatever.] |
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| Susan Boyle in Japan |
[Nov. 4th, 2009|11:27 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | living room | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  surprised | ] |
Britain's Got Talent's Boyle Sings in Eagle Talon Anime
Wow. That's really cool, actually. Although commentes on ANN are making a good point that it's perhaps an unfitting song for a gag anime (or an unfitting anime for a serious song).
Reading it kind of makes me want to listen to LENA PARK's "祈り ～ You Raise Me Up"
Despite starting at 7:45, between my pokiness and getting distracted, I didn't finish feeding the animals until 10, which apparently is quite bad for the animals. Gonna get started at 7 tomorrow and try not to get so distracted. (I honestly have little incentive, as usual, to be less poky (pokey?).)
Alright, it's been a half-hour of interneting (internetting?) since E.R. ended, so I'm gonna get started on non-feeding chores. |
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| lucked out |
[Nov. 3rd, 2009|04:01 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | living room | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  happy | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | GitS:SAC Solid State Society - undivided | ] |
Normally I make it a policy to double-check all of my tests. In fact, on a timed test, I often check the whole test repeatedly until time's up. But when I finished my unit 2 test for micro today... Well, I only had 45 minutes until I had to leave for work, and I wasn't in the mood to go over all 67 questions only to rush to get ready for work. (I should have checked the time allotment for the test/the current time before starting, but I ditzed out on that...) Anyways, all I checked was that I had selected an answer for all the questions, and I managed to luck out and not make any stupid mistakes on the test - 100%! ^_^
One question on the test that I have to share:
54. This is a hard test, huh. (I think supply and demand, particularly the specific terminology, is the toughest thing we do all semester.) Therefore, just pick the answer below that you think I'm looking for! (Hint: Put option 1. And if you miss it, I'll never let you forget it!)
A. Economics is a wonderful subject that everyone finds interesting.
B. Illinois highways are always well maintained. In fact, they're among the best in the country!
C. Spring break should be cancelled because students miss being in the classroom.
I have a forum posting due on the 9th, unit 3 for micro and a response paper (which I haven't started) due for macro on the 12th, and unit 2 due for macro on the 13th, but I'm going to do the unit 2 macro quizzes and test first since that's the material I just covered for micro.
But now - getting ready for work.
[EDIT: I should mention that the test was due by midnight tonight. I could have done it after getting home from work, though.] |
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| Price Ceiling Bath |
[Nov. 3rd, 2009|12:20 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  cold | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | 時をかける少女 - 主題歌 「ガーネット」 (予告編ショート・バージョン) | ] |
"The maximum price a consumer would be willing to pay for a given amount is the sum of the maximum price he would be willing to pay for the first unit, the maximum additional price he would be willing to pay for the second unit, etc."
Alright, there's a damn clear explanation. I always feel like I learn the best when the explanation is thorough enough that it feels... obvious. Or natural. I don't memorize as much as I internalize.
Anyways, staring and thinking and staring and thinking some more, both the concept of deadweight loss and the meaning of that area on the S&D graph is becoming clearer. It's still not excellent, but I think soon I'll be able to actually take my quiz and move on.
Seriously, though, for all the time the fucking lecturer spent showing us how to draw a curve using a table of values, why the hell didn't he explain this any better? |
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| They need a rule name for this one. Like a corollary on Murphy's law. |
[Oct. 30th, 2009|05:24 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  embarrassed | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | SOUL EATER - mifune | ] |
Oh. My. God.
You know when you look at a problem over. And over. And over. And over.
And you keep getting the same (wrong) answer.
And then you show it to someone else to try to get help, and you explain what's going on to them.
And then the obviousness of the correct answer hits you in the face, and you feel like a dyslexic idiot?
Yeah... WTF, self.
Anyways. Moving on. At least now I know I understand the material enough to take the unit test. |
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| Dr. Yang quote |
[Oct. 30th, 2009|03:03 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  procrastinating | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Grey's Anatomy - 6x07 | ] |
Cristina: Watching Lexie wearing a diaper is punishment enough.
Owen: Lexie's wearing what? That is a reason you should be glad you aren't down there.
Cristina: No that is the reason I want to be down there. Lexie gets to pee in a diaper and I don't.
Owen: You want to pee in a diaper?
Cristina: "No, no, I want to have to pee in a diaper. To be in a surgery so difficult and so long that my only option is to put on a diaper and pee in it.
Taking another break from cleaning. I've been taking too many breaks. ^^; Gotta go up and sweep and mop soon.
Watched a Takeuchi Naoko interview subbed by SMC; that woman is the most crazily shy woman I've ever seen. She can't even make eye contact with the camera, and she was gripping her giant transformation pen the whole time.
[EDIT: God, I love romance in Grey's. Spleens (?) in jars, gifts of potentially 15 hour surgeries, drawing diagrams on bedroom walls...] |
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| キラキラピカピカ |
[Oct. 29th, 2009|11:19 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | basement | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | amused | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | Crystal Kay - 涙があふれても | ] |
So, two points of amusement today. First, the song Kirakuni by Crystal Kay. I'd never known for sure what the title meant, but I had guessed maybe きら(きら)国, or Sparkling Country. At least a year later, riding home from work today, it hit me: 気楽に. Which is really obvious, considering the very next words are "take it easy". Durrr... I guess I'm not used to song titles that are adverbial phrases?
Amusement number two. A small bit of background info: when I have iced tea, I keep it in a Nalgene-ish bottle; when I drink hot tea, I keep it in a large thermos. Today I forgot my iced tea in the freezer, so I called home to ask Mary to tell Marcia to put my tea in the fridge when she gets home (so the bottle wouldn't get damaged as the tea expands). When I got home I opened the fridge to have my tea, and found... My tea thermos in the fridge. *laughs* But it's a testament to thermoses that the tea is still warm, despite being made at noon and having spent at least 6 hours in the fridge.
Checked my work schedule today, and it fits perfectly within my reduced availability. Have the day off tomorrow. (Four days off in a five day stretch. Lots of study time. ^^;)
[EDIT: Oh, also, I got caught up in facing today, and accidentally stayed 15 minutes late. I would have been even later if a co-worker hadn't asked me what time I got off, which prompted me to check my watch. Truth be told, I thought I still had 15 minutes or so to go. Now that's what I call not watching the pot! *laughs* I hope I don't get in trouble, though...] |
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| I can't think of a title... |
[Oct. 28th, 2009|12:46 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | bedroom | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | amused | ] |
| [ | Current Music |
| | something from the Mononoke-hime OST | ] |
From time-traveling cannibal mermaids, to...
Surprisingly enough, I'm acctually a little frustrated that this mini-essay is so mini. There's so much I want to talk about that I don't have room for. It's like... Academic Twitter. But at least the word restraint let's me get away with not having to think out the organization much.
[EDIT:
In The Tempest, it is easy to assume that Ariel is "free" while Caliban is "limited". I think there is a fair bit of truth to this analysis, but I also believe that freedom in The Tempest is largely a state of mind. On the one hand, there's the Buddhist freedom in knowing one's place and accepting it with grace, primarily exhibited by Ariel; on the other, there's the freedom of inhibition, and doing what one wants despite one's place, primarily exhibited by Caliban. While in the world of The Tempest it seems that the way to physical freedom is to accept one's place, it is unclear whether a certain degree of stubbornness is also required.
Ariel is more physically free from the beginning. He is more often called a servant, while Caliban is typically referred to as a slave; as an airy spirit he presumably has the ability to fly and is able to travel about invisible to anyone he wishes; he has the ability and freedom to change into any form he wishes (3.3). and he is entrusted with tasks that take him far from his master. At the end of the play he is even given complete freedom. (5.1.18-19) However, it is only out of graceful obedience that Ariel will be set free, or even spared the pains that Caliban is forced to endure, and Ariel is keenly aware of this and plays along accordingly. (1.2.294-300)
Caliban, on the other hand, is treated very much as a slave. He is spoken of degradingly, is very much trapped in his monster-like body, is entrusted only with simple tasks such as chopping wood, and setting him free isn't even considered (1.2.311-313). He is also frequently subjected to great physical pains because of his disobedience (1.2.368-374), but despite his fear of these pains, he can't seem to help openly expressing his malice towards Prospero. Ironically, it seems that his idea of freedom is to serve a master that he respects (3.1.168-172, 5.1.295-298), which is perhaps in turn a master that respects him (3.2.38-40). His returning to Prospero's service seems to imply both that the only place where he can be truly content is in his rightful master's service, and that he perhaps can get back on the same path of good favor that led Prospero to free Ariel - favor he originally fell from due to his own transgression (1.2.330-348).
There's so much more to talk about... Maa, ii ka.] |
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| nicknames |
[Oct. 27th, 2009|06:19 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | bedroom | ] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| |  annoyed | ] |
While I don't actually blame them, I get rather annoyed when people ask if I have a nickname. I mean, I honestly don't think it's that difficult to say if you open your ears, esp. if I get someone who doesn't have a speech impairment to say my name for me, or if I spell it phonetically for you (to people who know how to say my name, does Nah-stah-syah make sense as a phonetic spelling?). For about two years in elementary school I let people call me Katie, and I still use that at places like Jamba Juice where it doesn't really matter, but if we have any sort of personal relationship, well... Katie's not who I am. As for the nicknames that are me, they all feel very personal, and intimate on one level or another. I guess what I mean is, I don't at all mind people asking if I already have a nickname, but don't expect me to have one for your convenience. And then when you say "well, we'll have to make one for you"... Again, I guess I feel offended when people make up a nickname because they don't want to learn my real one; nicknames are supposed to be organic - signs of some level of a shared history or understanding; a term of endearment.
So yeah, if we're going to have an ongoing relationship, I want you to call me by my name. And if we grow close and another name for me emerges, that's fine, but until then, I'm Nastassja. Deal. |
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accomplished
excited