Flyers Advance to Conference Finals

Sorry. I’ve been away for a while and haven’t had much of an opportunity to update the blog lately. Here are some topics I am working on:

• Review of Watchmen
• What it’s like to attend a Tampa Bay Rays game
• The new Simpsons ride at Universal Studios
• Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom

I’ll also try to add small items and links to odd/interesting stuff I come across online that you may have missed in an effort to keep this updated a little more frequently.

In the meantime, back to the title of the post. Can you believe it? The Flyers, who were horrible last year are this much closer to the Stanley Cup. Amazing. Can’t wait for the Flyers-Penguin/Rangers series to start this week.

Q&A with Google’s Udi Manber

Popular Mechanics this past week posted an interesting interview with Udi Manber, Google’s Vice President of Engineering. He offers some interesting insight into what goes on behind the scenes at Google to make sure search is up to speed.

Highlights include:

• “Our goal is very simple: We want to return to the user the answer that they need.”
• “…at the bottom of many pages, you’ll see query refinements. These are suggestions from us about what your next query should be.”
• “Last year we made over 450 improvements to the algorithm.”
• “At Google we do not manually change results.”
• “…one feature we launched recently is something called CLIR. It stands for Cross Language Information Retrieval.”
• “When we decide to launch something, we have a weekly meeting where all those things come together and we look at all the evaluations and we make decisions—revenues and any effects on ads do not come into those meetings.”

Insight into the Digg Algo, Take 2

Thanks for all the feedback received on my last post regarding the tiniest piece of info provided in the Diggnation podcast a little over a week ago. Being a frequent user of Digg, I have seen the limitations on expecting what will go popular and it’s clear that there is a 24 hour window of opportunity. I figured that out rather quickly after using it for only a few days. However, others have seen stories go popular a few days later than the initial day; 7 days later in at least one case – although cases like this are extremely rare. I wouldn’t expect Kevin Rose to reveal significant details regarding the algorithm and didn’t think the comment he made was even all that revealing. (tried to make that clear in the first sentence of the post) But, it did open up some interesting dialogue around understanding how long is too long, or too late, to expect a listing to reach popular status.

What is the latest anyone has seen something made popular?

Kevin Rose Offers Insight into Digg Algorithm

During this past week’s Diggnation podcast, Kevin Rose offered up some insight into the Digg algorithm which may or may not be the most eye-opening of revelations. It’s something that I figured out pretty quickly and that is that there is an element of time associated with how likely a submitted story is to be promoted to the homepage. Personally, I think there is a 24 hour window of opportunity as I’ve seen stories make it to the “Hot” list (at the right of this page, for example) and not be promoted to the homepage, yet be removed from this list after a full 24 hours.

What I haven’t been able to confirm is whether or not something older than 24 hours could possibly be promoted with an adequate number of diggs despite its age. Kevin’s comment: “It’s too old. The algo won’t promote it.” (skip ahead to 22:30 to hear it) sort of confirms that any submission beyond an age specified by the algorithm won’t be made popular. The story in question (related to SEO by strange coincidence), SEO Design Rap, only had 122 Diggs as of 4/4/08, when the podcast was taped. As of the time of this blog post, it has 261 diggs, most likely a result of promotion via the podcast. This number of diggs should have been enough to promote it to the homepage, but as per Kevin’s comment, age of the submission hasn’t allowed it to be promoted. It was originally submitted to Digg back on 3/20/08.

Although it’s hard to say what the time limitations are within the algorithm, I’m sticking with the 24 hour limit. This basically does confirm that it’s nearly impossible to get something promoted that’s at least a day old, no matter how many diggs it collects.

Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination

So, if you know me, you know how slightly obsessive I am of most things Star Wars. I grew up watching the movies, played with the toys, collected the merchandise and was blown away when George Lucas finally decided to fill in the blanks with episodes 1-3. I was able to see all three movies opening day – episodes 2 and 3 at midnight the night they opened. Now my collection of Star Wars action figures and other stuff sits in the basement waiting for me to put it all up on ebay. There’s just no room for this stuff anymore…

So, I was excited when a new exhibit had made its way to the Franklin Institute - Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination. The idea is to show off some original props and models from the Star Wars movies and tie the fiction to the fact of modern technology. For example, one of Anakin Skywalker’s prosthetic arms was displayed next to a case which contained modern, real-world prosthetic limbs. You get the picture.

Of course, I was more interested in seeing the props and models from the movies. However, I’m sad to say that I was slightly underwhelmed. Most of the props, at least from the original trilogy, I had already seen at a much more impressive exhibit at the Smithsonian back in 1998. That exhibit, Star Wars: The Magic of Myth just seemed to have more on display. Then again, it could simply have been that this was the first I had seen these items and the sheer excitement of seeing them for the first time is etched in my memory. It also explained how the mythology of Star Wars, its characters, settings and story are all rooted in classic mythology. It was also a nice trip that my girlfriend at the time (now lovely wife Rebecca) set up for us in the early days of our relationship. (Insert “awwwww” here.) 

What I really didn’t like about the way in which this new exhibit was laid out was that there was no logical way to progress through it. Unlike previous exhibits at the Institute which led visitors on a clear path from one display to the next, this was in a single room laid out all over the place. If you weren’t careful, you could miss a few things. And not every item had a story associated with it, merely a description. For example, one of Natalie Portman’s costumes from Episode 1 was in its own case, but there was nothing especially interesting about it. Not what it was made of, how long it took to make, why it looked the way it did, etc. However, the Wampa (the giant snow monster that tries to eat Luke in The Empire Strikes Back)

sat in a case with an explanation that the suit was built for a normal-sized man to wear while the set on which the scene was filmed was scaled down to make it look bigger. Now that’s interesting.

Despite my disappointment, there were some really cool things:

Luke’s Land Speeder

Some Wookiee Costumes, including Chewbacca

R2-D2 and C3PO, including the original version with exposed wires

A complete set of lightsabers

Full scale models of the Millennium Falcon and an X-wing

There wasn’t a whole lot on display from the newer films as most of the filming process was entirely digital. Therefore very few real-world models of anything from those movies even exists.

Nonetheless, I’m still a huge geeky fan…

Flickr Adds Video Submission

In an attempt to compete with Google’s YouTube, Yahoo’s Flickr has added video submission to its capabilities. It does have its limits. Is 90 seconds enough time for people to find its videos useful? And it’s only available for paying members of the site. Only time will tell how successful this is. The Flickr Blog has more info for your reading pleasure.

Movie Review – Waitress

I try to keep the Netflix list balanced between stuff I would watch and movies I think Rebecca wants to see. I usually strike out pretty badly with guessing at what girly movies are actually pretty good. And boy, did I blow it this week. Waitress arrived in the mail this week and I was pretty proud of myself for having added it to the list.

 

Rebecca watched it. Rebecca hated it.

I even watched the last 20 mins or so and couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on. But it didn’t really matter. Keri Russell uses this awkward Southern accent and has just the weirdest dialogue. It’s like she’s trying too hard. She makes pies. She’s pregnant. She’s married to a guy she hates. That’s what I got out of it. It may not be fair for me to judge since I didn’t watch the whole thing, but it looked pretty bad. It got good reviews, so maybe Rebecca and I just don’t know “good” when we see it. Then again, if we don’t like it, we don’t like it.

Our recommendation – don’t bother watching this movie. Stay home, make a pie yourself, talk with a Southern accent and watch something better. Like Ishtar.

 

Book Review! – I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell

I really should read more than I do right now. Time is usually the issue. Working on the new house and simply taking care of it have eaten into most of the time I do have, but I have been able to squeeze in a few books as of late. I think the last book I read was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows over the summer. This is not that book review. In fact, the book I just finished is about as far away from Harry Potter as Satan is to even waiting in line to see St. Peter.

Tucker Max’s I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell is the first book in a long time, and one of only a few, to make me laugh out loud – sometimes uncontrollably. The other book? The Hithchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I was 14.

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell isn’t a single story. It’s essentially a collection of stories in no particular chronological order that the author wrote down after many long nights of drinking and shenanigans with his college buddies. If you’re a male between the ages of 21 and 40, you will laugh your ass off. Not only are Tucker’s stories so ridiculous (we’re borderline James Frey unbelievable here), it sent me back to many adventures I’ve had myself over the years. My tales, however, are boring compared to this guy.

What I loved the most about the book were the references to pop culture that only a male my age would probably even understand. These include comparisons to GI Joe action figures, Simpsons characters and even Sci-Fi films. In one adventure, Tucker and his band of merry men visit the Texas State Fair and convince a lonely, overweight teenager to test his strength by grabbing a carnival attraction that sends electricity through the body until the participant can no longer take the pain. One friend offers encouragement by shouting “There is no spoon!” (OK, maybe I’m the only dork who laughed – it’s from The Matrix). The kid collapses in pain and the group of guys laughs hysterically at this kid who is foaming at the mouth and convulsing on the ground.

Some things this guy did were exactly what I did with friends in college. If we had a bad week, the object of a long night of partying was to try and offend as many people as possible. One more than one occasion, myself and at least one other guy, usually two – they know who they are if they’re reading this – would park by the keg and pick apart everybody in the house. I think some of my more creative moments in life took place during these sessions. Tucker Max takes this to the extreme and says things I would never even dream of suggesting to some people.

Of course the funniest moments are when he is at his most vulnerable and even admits when he’s the butt of the joke. He successfully gets himself banned from a nationwide chain of hotels – all of them – for making a massive mess in the lobby while trying to locate the men’s room. Without getting too graphic, let’s just say #2 everywhere. Everywhere. I laughed out loud. And I’m not even 14 anymore. Some things are always this funny when you’re a guy.

Overall, a good read and it’s pretty easy to get through. But I wouldn’t suggest it if you have a weak stomach, never went away for spring break or are a woman. If you are a female and you hate men, this book won’t help. You may never speak to another man again. If you’re a guy who has had his fair share of all-night drinking adventures, this book’s for you. But you have to be able to read.

Next book review: Watchmen. Yeah, it’s a comic book. Gimme a break, ok. I’m working my way up to Shakespeare.

Old Veteran’s Gravestones Used for Landscaping

Maybe you’ve read my earlier post on Beverly National Cemetery. Now it turns out that every few years as the headstones start to deteriorate, they are replaced by new ones. Proper procedure call for the old headstones to be ground up and recycled. However, last week, a homeowner in Burlington Twp got his hands on several dozen old stones and stacked them up in the form of a wall around his property. The stones have since been recovered and are being recycled according to protocol. How the homeowner obtained the stones isn’s clear. But now it turns out that old stones were apparently geven away to local residents for whatever they wanted them for – steps, landscaping, to build a patio.

No one really knows how this happened. Did a worker not follow the disposal procedure? Was the procedure never strictly enforced? Did a procedure not really exist until now? My only question is – wouldn’t you feel a little guilty or disrespectful by using an old headstone with someone’s name on it as a step into your back door a little weird?

Mixology – Happy Hour Drink Recipes from 1974

When we went to Florida to move Grandmom back to Jersey a few weeks back, we brought back a few things from the house that we thought would be useful. Mostly tools from Granddad’s shop, some bungie cords, stuff like that. We also brought back this awesome catalog we found in the liquor cabinet. It was from a liquor store in Cherry Hill, NJ that isn’t even there anymore. Inside the catalog was a separate booklet written by Southern Comfort detailing drink recipes for those groovy happy hours that were so popular back in 1974. Not only does it provide drink recipes for 45 different cocktails, but it explains Astrology and offers tips on how to weave it into conversation during a party. I guess “hey baby, what’s your sign” was too low brow even back then:

This guide summarizes the most widely accepted aspects of each sign – with associated birth gems, lucky days, colors, etc. Keep it handy, to spark Happy Hour conversation.

Without any further delay, I present Happy Hour Mixology – 45 Drink Recipes – Plus a Primer of Happy Hour Astrology

Wow. I’m intrigued already. Check out this dude’s hair! And the strangely hypnotic and Stepford Wivey smile-that’s-not-really-a-smile-because-I’m-doing-this-crappy-photo-shoot smile. What was Southern Comfort putting in those bottles in the early 70’s?

Whoa! Come on, man. Really? A pink leisure suit? No wonder neither of these women is looking your way. They’re way more interested in the guy on the floor with the vest and floral print shirt. And what’s with all the colors and geometric patterns? I’m getting vertigo looking at the woman’s sweater on the right, the wallpaper behind her and the lines on the couch. And did no one know how to sit on furniture properly? One guy’s on the floor, two people are on the arms of couches and the woman with the crazy sweater is sitting backwards, not facing the other people.

“Hey there, Sagitarrius. One more sip of this Manhattan and you’ll be drifting further off into a world of red and pink ecstasy. Trust me, baby. Trust me.”

She totally looks like she’s trying to smile despite the fact this guy smells horrible or maybe just farted.

Is that a robe with buttons? And that plaid jacket totally has elbow pads. Why is everything red? They couldn’t use it in M&M’s so people started wearing it. I’m digging the half vase on the wall overflowing with plastic evergreens.

Did kindergarteners design clothes in 1974? Well, at least we’re seeing some blue now, but there is still plenty of red. I’m really conflicted by this photo. Either the patchwork plaid pants or the electric blue suit are the worst thing I have ever seen in my life. The only thing missing is a fondue pot. Put some moustaches on these guys and it would look like a scene from Anchorman.

More red! And plaid! The guy on the right is getting his groove on. The turtleneck with the suit is so groovy. Not to mention the pose he’s working. The hand in the pocket with the jacket pulled back. The glasses add a distinguished final touch. But what’s with all these guys and their fruity drinks? It’s bad enough they wore such horrible clothes, couldn’t they add some testosterone to the room by downing some Budweiser?

Solid!