IBM researchers put a 50MHz ring oscillator circuit on a single carbon nanotube molecule. Moore’s Law still applies!

I was cruising some of the other pro-homeschooling blogs and found The Common Room: Outrage of another sort. She pointed out the problem this piece of a poli sci lecture:

“Bottom line: We can reasonably conclude that infant mortality would appear to be a more pressing policy priority in a poor country like Cuba than it is in the United States. You should be outraged, especially given the disparity in the wealth of the two countries.”

Did it ever accur that leaving some things out of the goverment policy wonk’s hands might be the reason for success? It is stuff like this and geography teachers who say that Bush is like Hitler, that convince me I can homeschool. BTW what does that have to do with geography?

I have figured out why all the anger and back biting is in the blogosphere. It appears to be the only way to get comment traffic. It appears that if you post positive, non-inflammitory and informative items no one has anything to say. Come on people and prove me wrong. If you like see something that is interesting, say so and why! I find this not only on my site but others also. Let us revolutionize the blogosphere.

to build a Lego aircraft carrier. This must be seen to be appreciated.

I always tell people that if I didn’t love software development so much, I’d be a physicist researching new materials. There are new, cool things being developed all the time: paints that generate electricity, flexible LEDs that outperform Neon lights, solids that are more than 99% air.

If you ever read an article about a new material, always be on the lookout for words that start with “super”. That may not sound as exciting at “ultra” or “mega”, but in physics, “super” is where the crazy things happen. A supercondutive loop of wire can hold an electric current forever. A superfluid, placed in a closed loop, can flow endlessly without friction. And then there’s superhydrophobia, superdiamagnetism, supersolids, …

The Homeschooling Carnival is up over at Phat Mommy. Check it out!

Ok, so while I am ironing and trying to convince the older 2 nerdlings to take a nap, I am also finishing a pretty good movie. Now that I have 3 kids I watch movies in pieces. So, on to the movie…I just finished watching Monster-in-Law with Jennifer Lopez. I was expecting a fluffy light hearted movie and that is what I got. I have to say that it was better than I expected. The story line was mostly concerning the Jane Fonda character and the J-Lo character. I was pleased to see that Michael Vartan’s character wasn’t the idiot male character that is prevelant in these chick flicks. It was really clean, which was somewhat shocking given the subject. I would recommend this as a date movie. Now, NerdDad did opt out of this movie but I wanted to watch something while he was at work. So that is just my 2 cents, what did the rest of you think of the movie?

So the NerdBug was talking to NerdDad while he was changing the baby. So NerdBug is going through and asking his many questions(you know how 4 year olds are). “I am better than Nerdling at walking, right?” (NerdDad, “right”) “I am better than Nerdling at talking, right?” (NerdDad, “right”) “I am better than Nerdling at eating, right?” (NerdDad, “right”) “I am better than Nerdling, right?” At this NerdDad agrees and then does a bit of the spit take. They go through the whole process. NerdBug says how he is better than the baby in all these things so he must be better than the baby. NerdDad tried to explain how those things are not the true value of the person. As NerdDad is laughing and explaining this to me, it hits me. Now if you see the NerdBug, he is the spitting image of his father as a boy but has been cursed with my personality(let us just say it is much cuter on a child than it is on me). But, we have found NerdDad in the personality! His ego! Now as many of you know, NerdDad is brilliant but also is self assured in this fact, something that the NerdBug has apparently inheretted. Please do not think that NerdDad has a huge ego but he is very comfortable in his brilliance. It is going to be interesting to see how that manifests itself as the NerdBug grows in intellect. Stay tuned for future reports;).

A new season of Futurama is in production, according to Billy West, the voice of Fry. When it was cancelled a few years ago, I was literally angry with rage. But now it’s like Double Soup Tuesday at the orpanarium all over again.

Fry: I’m never gonna get used to the 31st century. Caffineated bacon? Baconated grapefruit? ADMIRAL Crunch?

---

[Bender and Fry in Benders apartment]
Bender: [while sleeping] Kill all humans, kill all humans, must kill all hu…
Fry: [shakes him] Bender wake up.
Bender: I was having the most wonderful dream. I think you were in it.
Fry: Listen, Bender, uh… where’s your bathroom?
Bender: Bath-what?
Fry: Bathroom.
Bender: What room?
Fry: Bathroom.
Bender: What what?
Fry: Aaah, never mind.
[Bender shuts himself down to sleep, Fry lies on the floor]
Bender: [while sleeping] Hey, sexy mama… Wanna kill all humans?

What do stray animals, the homeless, and battered women have in common? As a society, we agree that members of these groups could use some protection from the elements, at least for a time. The world is a tough place and so we set aside small portions of it so that the vulnerable can find refuge.

My children (and yours too, I imagine) fall into this broad category also. They’re simply not ready for the cold, cruel world we know is out there. They are vulnerable, and will be for some time.

If you searched for animal homeless “battered women” on Google, you wouldn’t be suprised to see the same term popping up over and over.

Shelter.

Shelters protect, and they help prepare people for the time when they won’t need a shelter anymore. (Obviously, animal shelters excepted) .

And yet to some, sheltering your children is akin to crippling them. (As an aside, I first used the F-word on the advice of the Associate Pastor’s son. We were about seven years old.)

So to answer the question, “Don’t you think homeschooling your children means your sheltering them from the real world?” Yes, I’m counting on it!

But they to will grow up as we did. (Although I can’t say without reservation that I’m a “grown up”.) And when the time is right for them to go off and seek their fortune, they’ll be ready to leave the shelter.