Blogger Tips, and Blegs

This post made me feel like this when I read it

Since I have more time on my hands thanI usually do, I have been spending more and more time tinkering with my blog. I learned a few things in the process, and I thought I would share some of these things, and at the same time pose some questions to you about some missing Blogger features.

The most important thing that I learned was how to backup my blog. Being a pretty sentimental person, I like to keep everything from the past, such as previous posts. It turns out there are several ways to back up a blog, but my favourite tool was a program called “HTTrack Website Copier.” All you do is enter your URL and a few other things, and then just press a button and the program works away. The program saves the blog (links, pics and all), and enables you to surf the blog in full, offline. The program is awesome, and it can be used on all kinds of websites you wish to have for offline use. You can download the tool here http://www.httrack.com/

The other thing that I learned, is a little tool that lets readers of a blog subscribe to your it with their e-mail address. The automatic service sends the latest post by e-mail to the subscribers, which could be more convenient for some readers. The service is offered by Feedblitz @ http://www.feedblitz.com/

There were two things that I didn’t manage to find online, or just didn’t find a decent solution for.

The first is a way to categorize posts, much like users of Wordpress do. There are sneaky ways, but they require the blogger to keep updating pages and so forth. I’m looking for a straight forward method with little maintenance.

The second thing is a way to utilize Expandable Post Summaries, without using the code that Blogger.com provides. I will post why the code supplied by Blogger is dumb, in a future post.

I hope you found the tips useful, and if you have good solutions for the two problems above, please help.

P.S

A Bleg is a colloquial term for a blog entry consisting of a request to the readers, such as for information or contributions. The name is derived from the words "" and "Beg". Via SSC

Technorati Tags: Blog, Blogging, Blog Tips, Blogger, Blog Backup, Backup, Website, Tips

Bodyworlds 2... A Breathtaking Experience!

Yesterday, on Christmas eve day, I decided to take advantage of the relatively empty highways and visit the Ontario Science Centre (OSC), in the lovely city of Toronto.

I posted earlier about an exhibition taking place at the OSC called Bodyworlds 2. The exhibition is a display of actually human bodies, which have been preserved from decomposing, using a process called Plastination. This process has enabled physicians and the general public alike to take a deep look into human bodies, complete with every organ. The man behind the process and this new phenomenon is Dr. Gunther von Hagens.

As you enter the exhibition, you’re eased into seeing complete human bodies by looking through glass boxes revealing several different organs and a complete human leg. The glass boxes contained anything from hearts to lungs to brains. After the series of glass boxes you enter a huge atrium where all the bodies are displayed. The first body you see is that of a man with a rare medical condition. This particular person had six and fingers and toes on each of his hands and feet. He was displayed in a “relaxed position” with his hands behind his head, with his head looking at the ceiling. After him comes a series of bodies performing all kinds of activities, from thinking and skiing to skateboarding and playing soccer. Each of the bodies is “dissected” in a way that would show some significant part of the body. For instance, the thinker had the back of his head and back fully open, so the observer could see the workings of the central nervous system.

Among my favourite displays were the following:

A man was literally cut longitudinally into about 8 slices, which were separated by roughly 2 feet each. It was quite interesting to see the insides of the human bodies and how closely stacked everything is.

Among the most fascinating displays was a pregnant woman with the baby still in the womb. I was amazed at seeing human reproduction like never before. The best images that we have of babies in a womb, come from ultrasound scans, which can’t even compare to what was displayed.

A complete set of arteries in a human body was also among the displays. It was incredible seeing the complex network of arteries of carrying blood to every last millimetre of the body.

It was also interesting seeing 3 pairs of lungs. One was a normal set, another was that of a smoker, and the third was that of a mine worker. The smoker’s lung was grey and disgusting. The miner’s lung was even more disturbing, it was completely black mainly from the inhalation of coal particles.

Lastly, I was amazed by a particular display featuring an adult man with his skeleton “walking“ behind his muscular system. This idea is similar to an incredible display from Bodyworlds 1 with an adult male literally holding the skin of his body up as if it were some piece of clothing.

At the exit of the exhibition there were 3 notebook, where visitors are encouraged to comment on what they have just seen. It was interesting to read comments made by some really fascinated visitors.

Overall, I think the exhibition was great. If Toronto was closer I would probably visit the exhibition again. If Bodyworlds 1 ever comes nearby I will surely check that out as well. I recommend the readers to visit this great exhibition if they ever get the chance. Sadly, no cameras/pictures were allowed in the exhibition, so I couldn’t share with you some of the displays, but hopefully some of the pictures in this post will give you an idea of what I tried to describe.

Technorati Tags: Bodyworlds, Human Body, Biology, Science, Exhibition, Organs, Display, Human Anatomy

Merry Christmas!

yeah that's right, Merry Christmas, none of that Happy Holidays nonsense.
I hope you got the gifts you asked for and/or receipts so you can return those gifts that sucked.

Which would you pick?

If you had a choice between an iPod nano


or a new cell

which would you pick?
I can't make up my mind between the two.

Coincidence? I think not

Humans have an inner desire to believe in the supernatural. We tend to take our observations of small, peculiar events and quickly come to the conclusion that something supernatural is at play.

We have all heard stories, and perhaps all experienced events which seemed odd, and which involved a great deal of coincidence. For instance many people have experienced picking up the phone to call someone, while at the same time they are receiving a call from the same person. It happened to me before, and it is pretty freaky when, before the phone rang, I picked up to hear the person I was trying to call on other end. Others tell stories of times when they missed a plane, and something catastrophic happened to the plane. Some have a dream of a sick relative, and when they call to check up on them, they find that their dream was exact in every way. So are these stories true? I think so. But, I do not believe there’s a supernatural force behind all this but rather two main factors

1. Frequency

2. Selectivity

If we take the “dream example” and apply the so-called factors above, we get the following: We have dreams every night, so we are bound to dream something that relates to something actually happening in real life. Out of the hundreds of times we have dreams, and hundreds of times that we tell people our dreams, we take the one that matched and focus on that instance. That is, we select the instance that has worked and forget all the ones that didn’t.

Taking another example will reveal how much power numbers have over our common sense. Let’s say you want to find a pair of people with the same birthday. How many people would you need to get a 50/50 chance of finding a pair with the same birthday? Common sense says 183 would be more than enough, since there are 365 days in a year, and 183 is roughly one half of 365. But the answer is actually 23, and I’ve seen the number put to the test. A few years ago my math teacher tested this calculation in a class of 20 students, and we found a match!

Even more interesting is the “small world” phenomena that we all experienced. You are in a public place somewhere and you end up meeting someone, who knows someone you know! That is, a friend of a friend.

The following explains why so many of us experience the “small world” phenomena..

“Sociologists have found that individuals typically have around 150 people whom they regard as "close". Therefore each of us typically has an entourage of around 23,000 "friends of a friend". Say we have about five acquaintances for each close friend, the number swells to 600,000.”

I hope that by now, things are becoming easier to see. Many of what we call coincidences are actually random numbers at play. Coupled with our tendency to remember certain events and ignore others, it’s easy to see why such phenomena are experienced by everybody around us.

Before I finish this post, I wanted to leave you with this story, and leave you the argument open to you… phenomenon or numbers at work?

“When Sue Hamilton was working alone in her office in July 1992 when the fax machine broke down. Unable to fix it, she decided to call her colleague Jason Pegler, who had set off home a little earlier. Finding his home number pinned up on a notice board, she called him and began to explain the problem. But Jason quickly stopped her: "I'm not at home", he explained. "I just happened to be walking past this phone box when it rang, and I answered it!" .
The number Sue found on the notice board was not Jason's home number at all. It was his employee number - which was the same as the number of the phone box he was walking past when she called”

Sources: Laws of Freak Mathematics

Technorati Tags: chance, small world, math, statistics, birthday, phenomena, supernatural

Job Story - The first interview

From time to time I will post about a previous work experience that I had. The experiences will be funny, sad, and anywhere in between. The jobs that I had ranged from the stereotypically horrible, to the stereotypically good. While the stereotypically horrible jobs lived up to their reputation, I’m afraid the stereotypically ones proved otherwise. The stories that I tell are true and have happened to me, or have been witnessed by me.

I think it’s only natural to start with my first interview experience, which happened to lead to my first job.

I had been looking for a job for quite sometime, I was in grade 11, and I had the urge to own every gadget known to man. The only way I could get my dream stereo system (costing well over $1000) was to get my self a job. A friend of mine’s sister was a manager at McDonald’s, and she offered me an interview.

I was taking a nap when the manager called to set up an interview time. I talked to her got some details on the location and we set up a time.

The evening of the interview, I looked through my closet looking for an appropriate shirt for the interview. My mom drove me to the restaurant, and when I entered, I proudly told one of the employees that I was there for an interview. The manager took a while to come out, and I thought to my self, “did she forget? Shouldn’t she be waiting for me in her office?” and then I calmed my self by thinking “Maybe she’s tidying up the office, before I get called in.”

The manager came out, and I was shocked to see the resemblance between her and her sister. She then said, “right this way..” pointing to the restaurant floor. I was confused. I thought maybe she wants to show me around my future workplace. But does she really think I have never been to McDonald’s before? After all, they all look the same. So I followed her to a nearby table, where she sat grabbed a pen and told me to take a seat. It was then that I realized that this was where my interview was to take place. I remember thinking to myself, what kind of place is this? Do they not have an office?

The interview started and I was surprised by the hard questions that were asked. Looking back on it, and after having tons of REAL interviews with respectable companies, the questions that I was asked that night were relatively tough. Let’s face it, flipping burgers, and taking Big Mac orders neither requires superior English skills, nor leadership abilities.

I was asked many questions including “what does customer satisfaction mean to you?”, “why did you choose McDonald’s?” The one question that really stumped me was a “situational question.” It’s one of those questions where they put you on the spot, to see how you would behave. Here’s the question, and my answer..

Manager: “While you’re cleaning the tables, you hear two teenagers complaining about their fries being cold. What do you do?”

Thought through Omar’s mind à Teenagers = Trouble therefore defend the honour of the company

Omar: “Since they’re teenagers and because I know how teenagers think, I would take their complaint as a way to get free food, which would cost the restaurant money. So I would probably continue cleaning the tables. .”

Manager, disappointed: “Actually we have a 100% satisfaction policy. Food doesn’t cost much, and customer satisfaction is everything. So you should go get them fries and say that you’re sorry.”

Omar to himself “you blew it you moron!... what? Say sorry?”

The interview continues, and I keep receiving bad vibes from the manager. I go home disappointed, only to learn 2 weeks later that I got the job.

Once I got the job stories became more interesting, to say the least. Future job stories will be filled with angry customers, angry managers, angry parents, urinating children, angry Omar, and once in a blue moon a satisfied customer.

Ahhhhh.. finally finished 2B

I'm writing this roughly 6 hours after finishing my final exam. The past two weeks were pretty stressful. My time was split between studying, attending help sessions, going through numerous problems, and of course trying to predict exam questions.

Overall, I think I did well, although marks might prove otherwise. Either way I'm glad to have 2 years over, and officially start my third year.

Right now I don’t know what to do. Have you ever had so many plan, and didn’t know where to start? Well that’s what I feel like now. I wanna go to the theatre, read a book, get a new gym membership, go Christmas shopping and and and… One thing I know for sure is that tonight will be one crazy “after exams bash,” pictures will be posted depending on content :P

mY mSn NaMe iS sO toTalLY kOOl!!

She makes a good point!

Lately I couldn’t help but notice the cheesiness of the some people’s “MSN names.” MSN names went from being an identifier of who a person is, to a contest of who can come up with the most “clever” BURRRRN kinda name.

This trend is most evident in girls ranging in age from … well let’s see… 12 to about 18. This is not to say that teen males don't engage in this horrendous activity. I have proof on my MSN list.

Anyhow, these names come complete with smilies, alternating caps, and weird symbols that look like letters. After all why would Emily use her name for MSN when she can put €ΜïζҸ, and totally get “MSN street cred”

Hopefully by now you’re anxious to see some of those MSN names…

Here they are (I didn’t know you can search for these on Google!)

)GuYs ArE LiKe StArS, tHeRe ArE mIlLiOnS oF tHeM, bUt OnLy OnE CaN mAkE YoUr dREaMs cOmE TrUe()

i kNoW yOu tHiNk yOu bRoKe mY hEaRt, bUt i kNeW yOuR gAmE fRoM tHe sTaRt..i SaW yOuR gAmE aNd pLaYeD iT tOo..sTuPiD pLaYa..tHe jOkEs oN yOu

GuYs r pLaYeRs AnD ThAts A FaCt...DoN't FaLl -N- LoVe, JuSt pLaY 'eM bAcK

iM nOt ShY, i JuSt DoNt LiKe YoU

ReLaTiOnShiPs ArE LiKe GlAsS... It MiGhT bE BeTtEr To Be BrOkEn Up ThEn To GeT hUrT TrYiNg To PuT iT bAcK ToGeThEr.

-xXx- ()it's better T0 Regret The ThinGs ¥0u do... Than The ThinG you doN't d0() -xXx-

¨·.·I May not Get 2 see U as often As I Would Like,I May not Get 2 Hold U all through The night,But deep inside my heart,I Kno That This Is True,No Matter What I do,I Will alwayz Luv u·.·´¨

oWhen a guy asks u to suck it...smile turn around and say,"I heard its dangerous to put small things in my mouth"o

1Ce aPoN A TiMe SoMeThInG HaPpEnEd To mE It WaS ThE SwEeTeSt tHiNg tHaT CoUlD Be,iT WaS A fAnTaSy A DrEaM CoMe tRuE, iT wAs tHe DaY i MeT YoU

NeVeR GiVe uP iF u sTiLL WaNNa TrYNeVeR WiPe aWaY uR tEaRs iF u sTiLL WaNNa CrYNeVeR SaY YeS iF u rEaLLy MeAn NoNeVeR SaY tHaT u DoNt LoVe HiM iF u cAnT LeT HiM Go

(k)(l)DonT CaLl Me A GoDdEss DoNt DonT CaLl Me A QuEeN JuSt CaLl mE ThE CuTeSt LiTtLe PrIncEsS YoUvE EvA SeEn(L)(K)

Practice makes perfect, but nobody's perfect, so why practice

I SmIlE BeCaUsE I hAvE No IdEa WhAt Is GoInG oN

I Wasnt Kissing Him, I Was Telling His Lips A Secret

If I ToLd YoU tHaT yOu HaD a NiCe BoDy... WoULd YoU HoLd It AgAiNsT mE ??

im an angel honest those horns are just there 2 hold my halo up

(a)(a)GoOd gUrL...BaD InTeNtIoNs(6)(6)

(A)I'm a angel yes it's true but you never know what this lil angel can do(6);)

Technorati Tags: MSN Names, MSN, Chat, Screen names

The Kyoto Protocol, and the Lack of Consciousness

"There is such a thing as a global conscience," Martin said Wednesday at the UN Conference on Climate Change.

"Now is the time to listen to it. Now's the time to join with others in our global community. Now is the time for resolve, for commitment and leadership and, above all, now is the time for action. Because only by coming together can we make real and lasting progress."

The above statement was made today by the Canadian prime minister. The country he is referring to is the US, and comment is made regarding their lack of participation in the Kyoto protocol.

The Kyoto Protocol “is an international treaty on climate change…Countries which ratify this protocol commit to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases, or engage in emissions trading if they maintain or increase emissions of these gases.”

While the majority of industrial nations signed, the US senate thought “the United States should not be a signatory to any protocol that did not include binding targets and timetables for developing as well as industrialized nations, or would result in serious harm to the economy of the United States.”

Why is the US involvement really important? Well, because they are the number one producer of Green House Gases (GHG). These gases are responsible for global warming, which threatens to destroy many coastal cities across the world, including major US cities like New York.

The main opposition to the Kyoto Protocol comes from the United States and Australia. The reason for their opposition is mainly economic. Both countries claim that implementing the protocol would set back their countries’ economies. They claim that the overall economic surplus created by the reduction of greenhouse gases, does not outweigh the deficit created by changes required by the protocol.

This is a prime example of the short-sightedness of politicians and their economists. In my opinion, the governments who are refusing to join in, are not analysing the long term effect of global warming. By long term I mean 100 or more years. While these politicians think that the world revolves around money, they do not realize that the world has to stay intact in the first place for their transaction to take place.

I am not an expert in climatology, but I think the record setting hurricane season that just passed, stands as proof of major climate changes that are happening and will continue to happen in the future. For every action, there’s an equal and opposite reaction, is a law of nature. By dumping excessive amounts of CO₂ into the atmosphere, we can only expect nature to act and balance the equation.

So what was the response to the Prime Miniter’s comments?

According to CTV news “The Bush administration, reports suggest, was furious at the suggestion -- considering it an infuriating, if cheap, electioneering ploy focused solely on Canada's Jan. 23 vote.”

I say call it whatever you want, as a Canadian I fully support Canada’s commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, and I’m doing my part to meet the challenge.

Technorati Tags: Kyoto, Kyoto Protocol, Canada, Paul Marin, George, Bush, Environment, Global Warming, GHG, Climate Change, Climate

Cool Image Creators

I was taking a break from studying, and I took a stroll around in the blogosphere. While on SubzeroBlue, I noticed a link to a website called "I want to." Long story short I found some cool image "tools", that I figuered some of you guys would put to good use.
Check out some samples

and since Dina likes Harry Potter so much...

Brilliant!

Here's another joke...

An Egyptian and an American are seated next to each other on a
flight from New York.

The American asks if he would like to play a fun-game.

The Egyptian, tired, just wants to take a nap, so he politely declines and rolls
over to the window to catch a few winks.

The American persists and explains that the game is easy and a lot
of fun.

He says, "I ask you a question, and if you don't know the answer,
you pay me $5, and vice versa."

Again, the Egyptian declines and tries to get some sleep. The
American, now worked up, says, "Okay, if you don't know the answer, you pay me
$5,and if I don't know the answer, I'll pay you$500."

This gets the Egyptian's attention and, figuring there will be no
end to this torment, agrees to the game.

The American asks the first question, "What's the distance from the
earth to the moon?"

The Egyptian doesn't say a word, reaches into his wallet, pulls out
a $5
bill, and hands it to the American.

"Okay," says the American, "your turn."

So the Egyptian asks, "What goes up a hill with three legs and comes
down with four?"

The American thinks about it. No answer. Puzzled, he takes out his
laptop computer and searches all his references. No answer! He taps
into the air-phone with his modem and searches the Internet and the
Library of Congress. No answer. Frustrated, he sends e-mails to all
his friends and coworkers. All to no avail! Finally, a long time later,
he wakes the Egyptian and hands him $500.

The Egyptian thanks him and turns back to get his sleep.

The American, more than a little miffed, stirs the Egyptian and
asks, "Well, what's the answer?"

Without a word, the Egyptian reaches into his wallet, hands the
American
$5, and goes back to sleep!

Walmart

According to a new survey, 60% of Americans think Walmart is bad for the country... The other 40% work there.

Source: SNL

Technorati Tags: joke, humour

The Limit to Procrastination

Year after year I find myself procrastinating more and more. Sometimes I put off an assignment from fear of finding it hard, other times there’s just something good on TV.

At times like these I wish I had better motivation during the term, especially since I have over 3 assignments due VERY soon, and exams start on Thursday. So now I’m struggling to find time to study and finish off assignments.

Next year, I will adopt new studying habits, and more effective time management, and next term time I’ll actually stick to my plan.

For now, I should start studying……… after watching Saturday Night Live.