Amalgamation

Ok, I keep meaning to write, and jotting myself little notes about what blogs to write, but there's been no time, so here is a short blurb on each of the things I wish I had more time to write about...

FAA Commercial Transportation Conference - I went last week, Feb. 5-6, and it was interesting. I learned about what commercial space activities are going on - companies building rockets, hotels in space, etc. Very cool.

Matt Carvey - In an awesome semi-surprise visit, Matt Carvey spent last weekend with Jeff and I in Washington, DC. It was fun to hang out and catch up - we had a very nerdy weekend, which brings me to my next point...

Math Counts, Star Trek, and Pizza - That pretty much sums up Saturday, Feb. 7th. Jeff, Carvey and I volunteered to help run a mathcounts competition - where middle schoolers come to school early on Saturday to take math tests (voluntarily!). Actually, Jeff and I both did it when we were younger, too. After that we headed back to our apartment where we had a pizza and Star Trek party for the rest of the evening. Can't get too much of Captain Picard.

Outliers - We had our book club meeting for February, and talked about the book 'Outliers' by Malcolm Gladwell (who also wrote 'Blink' and 'The Tipping Point'). It was a really interesting book, and spurred tons of conversation, on everything from flying planes to the education system. I could write tons more on this topic if I had time, but basically, I just recommend you read it.

KenKen - Is awesome. It's a new game the New York Times is now carrying. It's similar to Soduku but with a bit more algebra and logic involved. Super addicting.

Ethics of Humanitarian Invention - When is it legitimate to go to war, or militarily intervene, in a country due to humanitarian issues (rather than in self-defense)? That was the question for my most recent Monday ethics class. We looked at Kosovo, Afganistan, Myanmar, and other examples - all very interesting. We also talked about the legitamacy and ethical implications of the military taking part in development projects as part of anti-insurgency.

Ok... that's my abbreviated two-week summary.