a) Nick, I think you're being a little hasty with the whole Heroes thing. It has gradually been improving in the back half of the season. Here's a few tips that I use to help enhance my Heroes experience. Ignore any scenes with Hiro or Ando in them. I'll tell you where that storyline is going. Hiro has no powers, but is going to learn that he can be a hero without them (deep, I know). Just as he learns this lesson, Ando, who we have been led to believe will kill Hiro int he future with his red-colored power, will instead use said power to jumpstart Hiro's ability and give him his time manipulating skills back (see Ando using his powers on Daphne and instead of killing her, supercharging her super speed). Hiro will also probably say "yata" again before the season is over. So now I've saved you some time, and you never have to watch any of the Hiro segments again. On the other hand, you should always pay close attention to the Sylar portions of the program as they are always the most interesting and usually involve killing/maiming of some sort. Everyone else is usually at least mildly tolerable, Matt and HRG being at the top of that list, Nicki/Tracy and Claire being at the bottom (though I admit those last two can be very trying, console yourself with their attractiveness). I would also reserve judgement on Dollhouse. The first episode was very mediocre, and while the second one was better, I can't honestly say Eliza Dushku is a very good actress. I will however give the rest of the season a try cause Agent Paul was Helo in Battlestar Galactica and I love him. I'm also now intrigued by Alpha.
b) I'm back on the Chuck boat, and I'm a little bit in love. I'm both sad and disappointed in myself for not watching this season from the beginning. Chuck is beyond adorkable, and I love all those crazy shenanigans they get into at the Buy More.
c) I also love Lost (big surprise) and if anyone wants to join Nick, Robin, and I in g-chatting during the show on Wednesdays please feel free. And by anyone, I obviously only mean Joe. Sorry Alan, but that's what you get for living in the Pacific Time zone, and Dan, we don't want you and your "other" friends anyway. I thought you knew that wasn't allowed.
d) And finally, don't feel bad about yourself Nick, I'm going to try to see Watchmen on opening night as well. I will obvi not be dressing up, but I think I'm going to try to bully some friends into going with me. It's time like these that I miss my nerdy Wash U friends...
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Dead to me...
Heroes is officially dead to me. I am done with it. It serves no further purpose in my existence. It had been relegated to "watch me while you put away your laundry" status...but it has now fallen past that. Poor choice NBC...poor choice. I feel like I'm going to replace it with Dolllhouse--for I love me some Eliza Dushku.
As a word of warning, if anyone ever decides to train for a marathon, you will notice that your joints do not approve whatsoever. I walk around like an old man at school (which is good, because I didn't have enough old man traits going on already) and when I wake up my knees pop as loud as the back of a movie theater concession stand.
Speaking of movies (and BTW, Dan, I'm sorry I didn't e-mail you back sooner. I'm a bad person). I really want to get drunk and go see Watchmen at midnight. Jessie has already said she's not going with me, so I see no reason not to go opening night with all of the fat guys wearing comic book guy t-shirts who scoff at the inaccuracies of the film. It comes out the day before my spring break starts. I'm excited. If anyone wants to join me (in spirit/electronically/wants to drive your ass to the STL in early March [woo!] I highly encourage it).
That's about it. Going to Mardi Gras on Saturday...will try not to die.
As a word of warning, if anyone ever decides to train for a marathon, you will notice that your joints do not approve whatsoever. I walk around like an old man at school (which is good, because I didn't have enough old man traits going on already) and when I wake up my knees pop as loud as the back of a movie theater concession stand.
Speaking of movies (and BTW, Dan, I'm sorry I didn't e-mail you back sooner. I'm a bad person). I really want to get drunk and go see Watchmen at midnight. Jessie has already said she's not going with me, so I see no reason not to go opening night with all of the fat guys wearing comic book guy t-shirts who scoff at the inaccuracies of the film. It comes out the day before my spring break starts. I'm excited. If anyone wants to join me (in spirit/electronically/wants to drive your ass to the STL in early March [woo!] I highly encourage it).
That's about it. Going to Mardi Gras on Saturday...will try not to die.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Lost Musings
Note: I haven’t seen this weeks Lost so these are all based off of previous episodes.
Ok to start, stating the obvious:
Asian ghost whisperer = Asian scientist from Dharma movies baby
Angry army girl from past = Faraday’s mom
Now I feel like we found out just recently how red head woman was connected to the island as a youngster but now I can’t remember what the deal was. Will some one remind me?
I think its funny that Locke is the ‘Man of Faith’ and that the writers basically use him as ‘the sucker’. Seriously, how many times has someone come along, become his friend and then screwed him over. Now the Others say “come be our leader” and then after a week at most, “save the island Locke even if you have to die”. Granted he feels this is the real thing this time and this is what he was meant to do but he has felt that way every time. So Lost moral “Man of Faith” = Sucker.
So the island issue is hard to resolve. It has moved because it disappeared but it’s not moving with them because the island they go to is the old one. So more than one thing is happening here. Maybe there is some kind of Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle at play. Island’s position in space becomes variable but its position in time is well defined: people’s position in time becomes variable but their position in space is well defined.
Now, as one of the two resident scientists I feel the need to say sciency things (Robin you can correct me if I’m wrong):
Chekhov's Gun:
Hydrogen bombs are made of a multistage system. The first stage involves a fissile material in a sub-critical geometry. The fissile material is surrounded by a conventional explosive. The first stage is separated from the second stage by an inter-stage. The second stage is made up of a fusile material (special kind of hydrogen) surrounded by more fissile material. The explosives implode the first stage, it becomes supercritical, a fission reaction takes place, the inter-stage directs the resulting x-rays and neutrons into the second stage where, if everything is just right, a fusion reaction occurs. There’s not really the same risk as you have in reactors of the bomb going critical because of the way the fissile material is arranged (in fact early H-bombs had a problem with not becoming a fusion reaction when detonated). The bi products of approaching super-criticality are not really electrical charge and magnetism as much as other things (x-rays and neutrons). So the whole hatch = controlling unstable H-bomb doesn’t really make sense to me. However, if you want to argue that the hatch exploding was the bomb exploding you could explain the fact that the island was not obliterated by the likely possibility that the fissile material went critical but that the fusion reaction failed to start. Harder to explain would be the lack of radiation burns on everyone.
Jin’s Alive?
High power explosives like the copious amounts found on the boat kill people in three ways: 1) radiation burns you to cinders before the shock wave even hits you, 2) shrapnel tears you to pieces and the deadliest and least realized 3) shock wave breaks every bone in your body into tiny pieces and rips the flesh off your body. So how did Jin live? Science!!!! I guess. Even if he was in the water, the resulting shock wave would have flattened his chest. Liquid is relatively incompressible, gas is compressible, water shock wave hits Jin, the air in his lungs compress to 1/100 of its original size, all of Jin’s ribs are broken and his lungs have holes in them. I am very excited to get to learn about Rousseau’s team though so I won’t cause a scene.
Basically, I am really excited about Lost again.
Nick that is totally random about the pneumothorax notes. I miss shee sha too.
Ok to start, stating the obvious:
Asian ghost whisperer = Asian scientist from Dharma movies baby
Angry army girl from past = Faraday’s mom
Now I feel like we found out just recently how red head woman was connected to the island as a youngster but now I can’t remember what the deal was. Will some one remind me?
I think its funny that Locke is the ‘Man of Faith’ and that the writers basically use him as ‘the sucker’. Seriously, how many times has someone come along, become his friend and then screwed him over. Now the Others say “come be our leader” and then after a week at most, “save the island Locke even if you have to die”. Granted he feels this is the real thing this time and this is what he was meant to do but he has felt that way every time. So Lost moral “Man of Faith” = Sucker.
So the island issue is hard to resolve. It has moved because it disappeared but it’s not moving with them because the island they go to is the old one. So more than one thing is happening here. Maybe there is some kind of Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle at play. Island’s position in space becomes variable but its position in time is well defined: people’s position in time becomes variable but their position in space is well defined.
Now, as one of the two resident scientists I feel the need to say sciency things (Robin you can correct me if I’m wrong):
Chekhov's Gun:
Hydrogen bombs are made of a multistage system. The first stage involves a fissile material in a sub-critical geometry. The fissile material is surrounded by a conventional explosive. The first stage is separated from the second stage by an inter-stage. The second stage is made up of a fusile material (special kind of hydrogen) surrounded by more fissile material. The explosives implode the first stage, it becomes supercritical, a fission reaction takes place, the inter-stage directs the resulting x-rays and neutrons into the second stage where, if everything is just right, a fusion reaction occurs. There’s not really the same risk as you have in reactors of the bomb going critical because of the way the fissile material is arranged (in fact early H-bombs had a problem with not becoming a fusion reaction when detonated). The bi products of approaching super-criticality are not really electrical charge and magnetism as much as other things (x-rays and neutrons). So the whole hatch = controlling unstable H-bomb doesn’t really make sense to me. However, if you want to argue that the hatch exploding was the bomb exploding you could explain the fact that the island was not obliterated by the likely possibility that the fissile material went critical but that the fusion reaction failed to start. Harder to explain would be the lack of radiation burns on everyone.
Jin’s Alive?
High power explosives like the copious amounts found on the boat kill people in three ways: 1) radiation burns you to cinders before the shock wave even hits you, 2) shrapnel tears you to pieces and the deadliest and least realized 3) shock wave breaks every bone in your body into tiny pieces and rips the flesh off your body. So how did Jin live? Science!!!! I guess. Even if he was in the water, the resulting shock wave would have flattened his chest. Liquid is relatively incompressible, gas is compressible, water shock wave hits Jin, the air in his lungs compress to 1/100 of its original size, all of Jin’s ribs are broken and his lungs have holes in them. I am very excited to get to learn about Rousseau’s team though so I won’t cause a scene.
Basically, I am really excited about Lost again.
Nick that is totally random about the pneumothorax notes. I miss shee sha too.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Spontaneous Pneumothorax
The newest House opens with a lady having a Spontaneous Pneumothorax! Yay for my life.
Memories...
The other day I was running on the North Side of Delmar (Joe...I saw Andrea earlier in the run...she waved and I made an awkward wave/thumbs-up/rockstar horns at her while she was walking with a bunch of PFs.) and I ran passed the rip-off of a hookah bar there and somebody let out a big cloud of shisha right as I was going by.
Now, ordinarily I get a little perturbed when non-particulate matter strikes me as I exercise (cough...MetroBus...cough) but I totally had an olfactory memory that made me realize something.
I miss Sultan.
As such, I've decided to articulate my five favorite Hookah Memories. (Again...if this bothers any members of the audience who may have had Spontaneous Pneumothoracies in the past...my apologies.)
5. Obligatory Fraternity Hookah Reference: Alan and I freshman year following fratboy bowling when I first realized I could blow smoke rings (which, BTW, I did with a cigarette the day my finals got over and managed to impress several of my half-exhausted classmates).
4. This night...and all of the fun that revolved from it. Basically any circumstance involving Buddah--because what's better than a hookah with a 5 gallon water chamber?
3. The random night last year when Alan, I, Andrea, Joe and Rena (remember her? Anyone?) sat around completely spontaneously and enjoyed the wonder that was white peach. Mmmm...white peach.
2. Any one of the dozens of nights that we smoked and drank and watched movies and generally acted like idiots. Yay college. (Particularly- The night we watched Carlito's way. I don't know why...that just worked for me.)
1. The night that we watched Never Cry Wolf with the lights off and, I think, smoked for two hours straight. I firmly remember not being able to walk when I stood up to pee.
Now, ordinarily I get a little perturbed when non-particulate matter strikes me as I exercise (cough...MetroBus...cough) but I totally had an olfactory memory that made me realize something.
I miss Sultan.
As such, I've decided to articulate my five favorite Hookah Memories. (Again...if this bothers any members of the audience who may have had Spontaneous Pneumothoracies in the past...my apologies.)
5. Obligatory Fraternity Hookah Reference: Alan and I freshman year following fratboy bowling when I first realized I could blow smoke rings (which, BTW, I did with a cigarette the day my finals got over and managed to impress several of my half-exhausted classmates).
4. This night...and all of the fun that revolved from it. Basically any circumstance involving Buddah--because what's better than a hookah with a 5 gallon water chamber?
3. The random night last year when Alan, I, Andrea, Joe and Rena (remember her? Anyone?) sat around completely spontaneously and enjoyed the wonder that was white peach. Mmmm...white peach.
2. Any one of the dozens of nights that we smoked and drank and watched movies and generally acted like idiots. Yay college. (Particularly- The night we watched Carlito's way. I don't know why...that just worked for me.)
1. The night that we watched Never Cry Wolf with the lights off and, I think, smoked for two hours straight. I firmly remember not being able to walk when I stood up to pee.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Public Service Anouncement
Time travel causes rapid vasodilation! Signs and symptoms may included: nosebleed, syncope, loss of consciousness. Do not time travel if you are pregnant, hypotensive, on medication for high blood pressure or ED medication, as this can cause a rapid drop in blood pressure.
PS Who else cheered when they saw Jin was still alive? I guess a DUI isn't a death sentence for the interesting characters.
Alan, your job market might be shrinking. . .
Nick and I noticed that, according to Lost, there is only one lawyer in all of LA. I'm just worried that you may have trouble finding a job.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
A plane crash that changed their lives forever...
And suddenly the cast of Heroes was stranded on an island somewhere in the ocean...and it was like Lost except...they...all...have...POWERS!!!
Oh dear, oh dear...(I just hope they don't use flashbacks as a narrative device)
Oh dear, oh dear...(I just hope they don't use flashbacks as a narrative device)
Monday, February 2, 2009
4 8 15 16 23 42
Have you guys seen any of this stuff about what the numbers mean (http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Numbers)? Apparently, there was an online deal created by the producers called the Lost Experience that says they are constants in an equation meant to predict the end of humanity, and the goal of the DHARMA initiative was to change these numerical values and therefore prevent the extinction of the human race. This all fits in nicely with where the current season is going, but where was I when this happened? Anyway, my new favorite thing to do at work is browse Lostpedia for other important pieces of information that I have missed. It's a pretty good way to spend my day.
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