October 2008 Archives

 

 

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is coming up with a way to allow third parties to create and own new top level domains such as .com and .org for $185,000.  The proposal would also open up these top level domains to use non-English characters such as Chinese.

In my IST 220 Networking and Telecommunications class, we are learning about ICANN and how the Internet actually works.  I think that it would be pretty cool to create a new top level domain.  Maybe I can move my blog to http://www.wasistdas.awesome! 

I came across an article in the LA Times today which reported that more colleges are offering video game design as a major.  I found one quote in the article particularly interesting:

"It's a very hot academic growth area," said Colleen McCreary, who runs EA's university relations program. "I'm very worried about the number of community colleges and for-profit institutions, as well as four-year programs, that are using game design as a lure for students who are not going to be prepared for the real entry-level positions that the game industry wants."

I do think that some colleges do use the video game major as a way to entice people to go to their college.  Back at home when I had a moment to veg out and watch some television, I frequently saw commercials for colleges that would provide you with the tools to be become the next greatest web designer.  However, Colleen McCreary is right.  There is a lot of pressure associated with designing video games that cost $100 million to develop.  With this pressure comes a lot of long nights spent hammering the keyboard.

However, I do think that the video game major is an interesting concept that should be implemented in the IST framework.  After all, IST covers three areas: Information, Technology, and People.  Video games cover all of these areas.  Already, a class called MGMT 497A: The Business of Video Games is offered at Penn State, but I think IST could benefit from some video game classes.  Too often, IST professors complain that students don't know computer science.  What better way to learn computer science then to have fun while learning?

My favorite television show of all time is Batman: The Animated Series.  I loved watching the show when I was 9 and probably enjoy it even more now.  Other incarnations of Batman have been tried before such as Batman Beyond and The Batman, but these shows are just cheap facsimiles.  However, a new Batman show called Batman: The Brave and the Bold will be the next Batman animated effort.  The show's first episode will air on the Cartoon Network on Friday, November 14th at 7:30 pm.  The trailer for the show shown at Comic-Con can be viewed below:

I am not sure what to think of it, but I know that I will end up watching it eventually.  The plot follows in style with the comic book series entitled The Brave and the Bold and Batman's own team of superheroes called The Outsiders when Batman teams up with some superheroes and kicks some baddie butt. 

Batman tends to hang with the lesser known superheroes if he has a choice, and in this show, he seems to be fighting along side the likes of Plastic Man, Blue Beetle, the Green Arrow, and Aquaman.  It looks a little campy, but that could only mean that the show has potential to be pretty in tents.  (bad pun, but in the spirit of the 1960s Batman show).   

Yesterday was the birthday of Bob Kane, the co-creator of Batman along with Bill Finger.  The two created the Caped Crusader in one weekend in an effort to create a character that could match the success of Superman for Detective Comics.  Batman has done that and more.  Here is an interview with Bob Kane himself:

  

In my ART 003 class, I had to create a series of GIF and SWF images using the Adobe CS3 Suite of products.  I ended up primarily using Illustrator CS3 to create my images.  You can see my fourth assignment by clicking here.  Naturally, I chose to create a series of Batman images.  In my next assignment, I have to create three animations.  So, get ready for an epic battle!

In my Batman related Internet googlings, I stumbled upon an entertainment article in the Los Angeles Times.  In the article, a YouTube clip is provided of the 1960s Batman show where the Penguin is debating the Batman for the position of mayor of Gotham City.  See if you can see the political parallels.  I wonder if The Daily Show will pick up on this....
 

If you thought algebra was tough, you might want to steer clear of the gauntlet thrown down by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.  The agency has indentified 23 math problems that if solved could led to significant breakthroughs.  An example of a problem is The Dynamics of Networks where the objective is to develop the high-dimensional mathematics needed to accurately model and predict behavior in large-scale distributed networks that evolve over time occurring in communication, biology and the social sciences.  If you think you can solve the currently impossible or unknown, you need to submit your research plan to DARPA by September 29, 2009.

Solving a math problem to me is a process of discovery.  When I get a correct answer, a light bulb goes off, and I have a Eureka moment.  However, I would need one massive Eureka moment to solve some of these math problems. 

I have recently discovered that Bill Nye the Science Guy has his own show called Stuff Happens on the Planet Green Discovery Channel.  Because I don't have Planet Green or even watch that much TV, I have found some clips from the website.  The show seems to be broken into 5 minute segments about a problem facing the environment and how you can help solve it.  I really like it, and it is very reminiscent of Bill Nye The Science Guy TV Show.  Follow this link to learn about the cow flatulence myth.

I remember the highlight of my days when I was nine years old was coming home and watching my favorite show: Bill Nye The Science Guy.  Bill Nye, along with Ms. Frizzle and the Magic School Bus, presented the world of science in a compelling and interesting way and was one of the primary reasons why I wanted to be a scientist when I grew up.  So, when I heard that he was visiting campus and in all places of campus, he would be talking in my favorite building, Rec Hall, I was already there.

Bill Nye came to speak about maintaining sustainability and the "green" movement.  He entered Rec Hall in the typical Bill Nye fashion on a Segway in a tuxedo, and he was wearing a helmet.  He started off his lecture with a little joke.  A kid once asked him if Bill Nye was his actual name.  The Science Guy said that his name was actually William Nye.  The kid then wanted to know why the Science Guy had changed his name.  Nye then talked about Mars and told a complicated but interesting story about sundials.  His father was a POW during World War II in a Japanese prisoner camp and would keep track of time using make shift sundials.  When Nye's father was released, he became very interested in sun dials and even published a book on sundials.  Bill Nye the Science Guy later incorporated his father's passion of sundials into once of the devices used on the Mars Rover to determine the color of the Martian sky. 

Nye then dived into the sustainability talk, which I found pretty interesting.  I have always heard about the impending doom of global warming, but it really hasn't ever been explained to me.  Just like when I was nine, Bill Nye explained the situation in a way that I could understand it.  The aspect of Nye's talk that I enjoyed the most was his focus on solutions and his positive attitude.  Too often, it seems as though the green movement is more about guilt trips than solutions.

My favorite quote from Bill Nye was in his conclusion when he was told a story about how his third grade teacher told him that there are more stars in the sky than grains of sand on all the beaches in the world.  The young Science Guy thought that this teacher was crazy until he went to the Delaware Beach and noticed how much sand there was.  He left feeling very insignificant at the time and said, "I'm a speck, on a speck, orbiting a speck in the middle of specklessness.  I stink!"  The point was that no one is going to help the human race in this issue.  It is our responsiblity to "leave the world a better place than you left it.  Sometimes you have to pick up someone else's trash."

Overall, I thought Bill Nye's presentation was awesome.  Nye's ability to make science come alive and understandable is very unique.  After all, there were college students in the audience who had "Science Rules!" painted on their chests.  During my career, I hope that I can make a fraction of the difference Nye has made in the lives of millions of children.

According to a recent article in the New York Times, a new computer program developed by Tommer Levyand and three others at Tel Aviv University can make the digital you more attractive.  By using mathematical formulas, the software is able to take the original picture and make changes only to the original geometry of face using 234 measurements.  The results of the software were tested by 68 women and men from Israel and Germany who judged the photographs of white men and women to determine if the original or the computer generated picture was prettier.  In the article, Levyand said "the goal was not to argue that the altered faces are more beautiful than the originals. Instead, he said, it was to tackle the challenge of altering a face according to agreed-upon standards of attractiveness, while producing a result that left the face completely recognizable, rather than the product of cosmetic surgery or digital retouching."

This software programs will certainly stir up some debate.  What is beauty?  Beauty plays a powerful role in our society, but how can we measure attractiveness?  My answer: "It's you I like."

I stumbled upon a website that I found to be pretty interesting: http://lorax.opp.psu.edu/website/treep/viewer.htm.  Basically, this website provides all kinds of information about the trees located on Penn State University's University Park Campus.  You can find out all kinds information such as scientific name of the tree, the diameter of the tree, the height of the tree, and the year in which the tree was planted.  This website must have taken a tremendous amount of work just collecting all of the data and creating the database accordingly.  Their work does pay off though as I found it to be a pretty cool website.  Check it out!

As a huge Batman fan, I was really excited for the Lego Batman Video Game to come out on Playstation 2.  I even ran to Wal-Mart on September 23rd to pick it up.  Unfortunately, I haven't had enough time to actually play the game until last weekend due to the busy life of the college student.  After having a chance to play the game, I am really happy with the game.

The game follows the classic Batman worst case scenario where all the inmates of Arkham Asylum escape.  It is up to Batman and Robin to capture all the members of the Rogues Gallery before Gotham City literally falls to pieces.  The interesting take in this videogame is that while you can play as the Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder, you can also play as the villains in separate levels.  As either the good guys or bad guys, you can then troll around the streets of Gotham and pretty much demolish the city reaping the sweet rewards of stud pieces that can be used later to buy hidden characters or special abilities.  The suits that Batman and Robin get to complete certain tasks within levels are pretty neat and resemble the action figure aspect of Batman.  Why is there a lightning strike version of Batman?  I don't know, but it is pretty cool!

Overall, I really liked this game, and I think it is one of the best if not the best Batman video game ever.  While this Batman game is a little silly, the upcoming Batman game looks a little darker..... 

According to the District of Columbia's Board of Elections, static electricity is to blame for 1,500 extra votes being tabulated in a September primary.  The results of the election are stored on a computer chip, and the board believes that static electricity caused the foul up.

Talk about a November shock!  With hanging chads in 2000 and the Ohio debacle in 2004, static shock just may be the election controversy this country needs in 2008.  Clearly, even if static shock is to blame, using computers or any method to count votes needs to be dead tight secure.  Disenfranchising voters unintentionally through mishaps is a mockery of the democratic ideal.  Voting is the most fundamental part of this nation and needs to be protected.  Otherwise, stuff like this happens:

Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early

Nintendo has announced the next generation Nintendo DS known as Nintendo DSi.  The Nintendo DSi will feature a camera, an audio player, memory card, bigger screen, and is thinner than the original.  Nintendo DS is huge in Japan with 1 in 6 citizens owning the portable system.  Nintendo's goal in releasing the DSi is to broaden the audience of the system even more.  The DSi can serve as the first camera for children, a means of networking for older people, and just a gaming toy in general.

I find Nintendo's strategy with its portable gaming systems interesting and reflective of the times.  It used to be in the good old days, if you wanted your Gameboy to take pictures, you had to use Gameboy Camera. 

More and more handheld devices are offering more functionality.  For example, you would be pretty hard pressed to find a cell phone without a camera these days.  As technology advances, it seems as though the need for multiple devices to accomplish multiple tasks diminishes, which begs the question what's next?  The Nintendo cell phone?