Be Kind To Your Eardrums

The research has been conducted. Ok, so I didn`t blast music into my ears until they started ringing, that would just be silly. Instead, I found a researcher who has done the work for me.

Noise that exceeds 85 decibels has the potential to cause hearing damage over a prolonged period. Conversation noise level usually ranges from 55-60 decibels (unless you are my Italian best friend). Too-loud noise can be difficult to determine for two reasons.

1. Loud noise is more tolerable in the form of music

2. People have the tendency of gradually turning music louder and louder, which allows the ear to adjust to this excessively loud noise.

If this has been enough to scare you, or you`re just in the market for some eardrum saving headphones, check out these suckers.

http://www.hardwaresphere.com/2008/10/19/icans-ipod-headphones-cares-on-your-eardrums/

If you are interested, read the whole article:

http://media.www.dailyhelmsman.com/media/storage/paper875/news/2006/01/19/News/Ipod-Fashion.Statement.At.Eardrums.Expense-1756806.shtml

Curling "Rocks"

Get it? No? The heavy thing you attempt to slide across the ice (without bodily harm) is called the "Rock". Now you think its funny eh?

This past week has been a fabulous little treat of daily adventures. The final excursion consisted of a full day of curling. 3 games, 6 ends per game, winner buys drinks (winner? I can deal with losing.) I curled in high school so I had my A game in gear. I was quite unaware of the pain that would hit the next day. I woak up thinking something along the lines of: Are there really muscles that high on my rib cage? It hurts to breath! How did my knee get that color?

Regardless, a smile was frozen on my face the entire day, likely due to early stages of hypothermia or the constant flow of 10:00 am ceasers.

List of some Simple Pleasures (for class)

Some of my simple little pleasures... feel free to add your own

1. Good water pressure

2. Waking up to your best girlfriends after a late night... and suffering/laughing together

3. Catching the bus on time

4. A great playlist—even better, someone that knows you well enough to make you a great playlist.

5. When technology just works

6. Warm beanbags—previously mentioned

7. Old pictures of good friends
   

8. Hot chocolate after night class
   

9. An (un)professional massage

10. A brand new pair of socks

11. The best old-man robe out there (I know you hate it, and I don't care)
    

12. Getting mail (extra points for airmail)
    

13. Really bad sing alongs

14. Tragically hip concerts
    

15. Clean Sheets

16. The trip home (No matter where I'm coming from)
    

17. Waking up at 5 and knowing you have at least 3 more hours to sleep

18. Tea misto.. with extra vanilla and foam (mmmm)

19. Finding money in last years jacket

Super Size Me

Tonight was movie night with the Ivey kids! Basically my roommate, boyfriend and their classmates. The intention was to drag a bunch of unsuspecting boys unknowingly into “He’s Just Not That Into You”. We decided to roll up to the theater in our over-capacitated car (apparently their Ivey brains stop working after hours) only to discover a line that extended from the ticket desks all the way into the mall. Sold out movie…we were defeated. The runner up was Gran Torino. So we buy our tickets, and cut into the concession line. I have never been a pop drinker, but I love my fountain diet coke. I ask for a large, so I can share, of course. My eyes widen as the concession man places the most mammoth, super-sized diet coke I have ever seen in my life. What in gods name am I going to do with 2 liters of diet coke—I could not possibly hold it with one hand. The concession man explains to me, after observing my horror, that it cost only 50 cents more than the regular sized drink AND was refillable. 50 cents? REFILLABLE? Heck, I would pay you 50 cents to make it smaller, and 50 more to see someone finish it and not explode. (Pete, that was not a challenge) I felt like I was in a super-size-me documentary. Regardless of the concession monstrosity, the movie was…surprisingly hilarious for an overly racist, shoot-em-up style, Clint Eastwood movie. The acting, other than Clint’s, was questionable, but still worth seeing. Some found it depressing, but most, quite humorous. It was sure a far cry from the chick flick we had intended on seeing, but a great time, no less.

Disney wants to keep your kids healthy

Did you even expect to see Mickey Mouse's ear-to-ear grin on an your morning banana? Based on everything we have been taught in MIT, Disney is a living breathing, money hungry demon that hopes only to take over the world. I, for this reason, cannot condone the purchasing of of fruit and veg grown by a mouse. Disney has introduced a new brand called "Disney Garden" that uses fresh produce from over 15 growers and packaged with delightful Disney characters plastered all over them.

“Already available are peaches with Daisy Duck and Goofy stickers, and table grapes packaged in Mickey and Minnie Mouse boxes. Organic apples with Winnie the Pooh -- the mascot for Disney Garden organic selections -- are due out sometime in September.” (CNN)

It's a savvy move from this industry empire who, for the last decade, have provided toys for McDonalds munching children to enjoy. As Alanis would say, Isn't it ironic?

Welcome to the Blogosphere

In Response to The State of the Live Web, April 2007

Technorati is an incredible Internet resource, founded by David Sifry, for searching blogs. Its search engine competes with the elite, including Google and Yahoo. As of June 2008, Technorati indexes 112.8 million blogs and over 250 million pieces of tagged social media. The name Technorati is a portmanteau, pointing to the technological version of literati, or intellectuals. (Thank you Wikipedia) The site won the SXSW 2006 awards for Best Technical Achievement and also Best of Show. It was also nominated for a 2006 Webby award for Best Practices, but lost to Flickr and Google Maps.

There is such an incredible and undeniable fascination with blogs these days. Anyone with an opinion and access to a computer is able to express and explore their uncensored personality's.. They are able to divulge anything from their daily routine to their favorite designers, or political views. This blessing of web 2.0 has left us with limitless connections to information. Blogs provide an open field of knowledge and it is through this social construct of tagging that we help people find specific ideas and points of view.

Anyone is able to use blogs as an outlet for daily venting, and more frequently during a crisis. For example the article explained that during the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah a volume of about 17 posts per second. In October 2006, Technorati was tracking about 1.3 million postings per day, about 15 posts per second.