Happy Birthday Einstein….no not the dog from back to the future, the real Einstein

Einstein, born in 1879, was born in Germany and was the son of an Electrical Engineer.  Most of his childhood was spent in Germany and Italy, but he eventually would move to Switzerland.  His move to Switzerland was prompted by his desire to study mathematics and physics at the Federal Polytechnic Academy located in Zurich.

Many of you know that he worked as a Patent Clerk, which was true, but many of you might not know that this was also in Switzerland, Bern to be exact.  He would also become a Swiss citizen and receive a PHD from the University of Zurich, all of this was before he was 30, 26 I believe. That very same year, 1905, turned out to be a great year for old Albert.

In 1905, Einstein would publish five papers that would affect and some say change the physics world.

“On a Heuristic Viewpoint Concerning the Production and Transformation of Light,” was the first paper published that year.  Basically this paper said that light was made up of photons, and that light, and these photons had particle like properties, yet worked as a wave also.  He also observed that some solids, when struck by light, would emit electrically charged particles.  While he didn’t get much recognition when published, he would eventually win the Noble Peace Prize in physics in 1921 for this paper.

The second and third paper would go together and help prove the existence of atoms.  While common knowledge know, Scientists back in the early 20th century were still disputing their existence, Einsteins papers settled it.  The second paper changed the way atoms and molecules were counted.  It also changed the way that the size of them were calculated.  The theory in the third paper would eventually become known as Brownian Motion.  In short Brownian motion is a mathematical way to explain the erratic and constant movement of particles in fluids.  These two papers would eventually be used to put to rest the arguments that atoms didn’t exist

The fourth paper is one of his most well known, its the special theory of relativity paper that most of us have heard of.  This paper along with the fifth are probably the two most well known to the general public.  The fourth paper, special theory of relativity, states that in special relativity, time and space are not absolute, but relative to the motion of the observer.  Which means that two people traveling at high speeds might not always experience the same events and in fact  wouldn’t even observe the same measurements in their space.  In this theory Einstein argued that the only constant to the two people would be the speed of light.  The speed of light is also the limiting factor in any mass, stating that nothing can travel faster.  The fifth paper expands on this and offers the most well known mathematics equation in history, E=MC².

Sadly it took years for Einstein to be recognized for most of his work.  He was always welcome in physics circuits and continued to write papers for years.  Einstein would marry, father a child, divorce, then marry again, to his cousin….  He would also become known as one of the greatest minds of all time.  His theories would help crack the atom, both for good (atomic power) and bad (atomic weapons)  He became the poster child for science, a virtual rock star, to this day he still appears on shirts, posters and even in video games.  Microsoft used his likeness in old versions of office (you had to chose it over that stupid paper clip.)  There’s way more about Einstein then I listed here worth looking into.  You could always wikipedia or google him, you can also check 0ut the official site http://einstein.biz/.  I also recommend this book Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson http://www.amazon.com/Einstein-Life-Universe-Walter-Isaacson/dp/0743264746/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1331742336&sr=8-4 It’s a great read and gives a lot of insight into his personal life.

“Time to party like its 1899!”

Well I hope you learned something and thanks for reading!

John

What did we learn this week? week 6

Well here we are another week of 2012 in the books, so what did we learn?

Apparently you can sue yourself…..kinda.

In an ongoing saga for the great Stan Lee, he is now being sued by himself….kinda.  He is actually being sued by a company he started…..then left…..which actually bears his name.  I wonder in the courtroom if there will be Stan Lee then an evil Stan Lee? That would be wicked….the full confusing story can be found here http://www.movieline.com/2012/03/07/stan-lee-vs-stan-lee-the-epic-legal-follies-of-a-comics-mastermind/ for those of you interested.

 

What the?! I thought I had the new iPad?!

Well, not me, I never would be able to afford one, but for millions of Apple users and fans the iPad 3 was released this week to….well…I’m not really sure.  There are some improvements over the iPad 2, but not to the extent most had hoped.  Most of my Apple friends say they’ll wait for the 4^th one.  I mean it’s nice and the new display is awesome, although calling it a retina display is a bit confusing, I thought it had to do with retinal scanning for security.  I’m sure it’s going to sell, I mean for 10 years Apple could’ve sold a ketchup popsicle to a woman wearing white gloves in the desert, but the latest iPad just doesn’t seem to be a huge jump.  While the new feature set is nice, better rear camera, better and faster graphics, better display etc, I think the biggest feature is that it caused a price drop for the iPad 2’s.  Which means more people will probably be giving them a look.  For the full specs take a look here http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/the-new-ipad-3-everything-you-should-know/

 

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a Bat!

Batman Year One Deluxe edition is being released on March 14^th.  For those that don’t know, year one is critically acclaimed and is one of the most important in the Batman saga.  It’s obviously about the crime fighters first year, one thing that makes this issue special is that it’s written by Frank Miller, with artwork by David Mazzucchelli.  So if you’re a Batman fan, this is a must have.  For more info check out http://firewireblog.com/2012/03/08/batman-year-one-deluxe-edition-new-printing-due-on-march-14th/

 

They do exist! Well maybe.

So, in Peru a mummy was found, nothing new there, except that it has an elongated skull.  Yup, this things skull is almost the size of its small body and as usual everyone is baffled.  Did I mention the larger than normal eyes also?

An anthropologist believes it to be a child of under 2 with an enormous head which possibly a human sacrifice.  Let’s be real for a minute, chances are it’s just a deformed human, but I’m sure that crazy greek dude, Giorgio A. Tsoukalos from Ancients Aliens (I love that show) will be talking about it soon enough!

Check out the full article at http://reinep.wordpress.com/2012/03/07/mummy-with-giant-head-discovered-in-peru/

 

I just bought the game! What do you mean there’s already DLC that I have to pay for!?

So the hotly anticipated ending to the Mass Effect trilogy, Mass Effect 3, was released this week…..along with the first DLC (downloadable content)  Some people see this as just another way to get more money from the already popular game by offering the DLC at launch.  We as gamers are always surprised to see a patch needs to be installed for a game that just came out, but to have DLC on launch day just makes it seem like we bought an incomplete game, jeese, give us a month to think that our 60 bucks bought a full game before you release the DLC! Anyway that’s just my thought on it.  As long as it’s not important to the finale I guess no one’s twisting your arm to buy it.

“What do you mean there’s already DLC?”

 

Glad you’re back from the injury, now if you would look at this pink piece of paper…….

It was announced this week that after 14 years the Indianapolis Colts decided to release Peyton Manning.  I guess the main concern was the amount of surgeries he had, but in 2011 they signed him to a 5 year deal, worth 90 million dollars.  I guess the prospect of another injury was too great for a team that went 2-14 last year.  With Peyton gone and their Superbowl winning coach, I guess it’s time for rebuilding.  I’m sure Manning isn’t retiring anytime soon and plenty of mediocre clubs would pay millions more for him.  For more about it check out http://anomicofficedrone.com/2012/03/07/peyton-and-the-colts-part-ways/ and http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d82777827/article/peyton-manning-colts-part-ways-in-most-appropriate-fashion

“Seriously, I always thought you’d get cut before me!”

 

From the “What the hell?!” department…..

Conservative Christian Pat Robertson wants Marijuana legalized.  Yeah I know of all people right?  His arguments actually make sense on this one though.  He talks about the cost of the war on drugs and even thinks the US has gone too far when it comes to drugs.  Pointing out how many juveniles are being locked up for years over a joint, unless you’re rich of course (he points that out)  He also says that he believes it should be treated like Alcohol.  He even points out that since 2006 47,515 lives have been claimed in Central and South America (granted not all are related to Marijuana)  Any way, if you’d like to read more, and I’m sure some of you would like too, here’s the full story http://20poorandfabulous.com/2012/03/08/pat-robertson-wants-marijuana-legalized/

“Is it 4:20 yet?”

 

What’s it take to be an internet star?

Well apparently not doing an informative beer show on Youtube, blogging about beer or this blog either.  Apparently you need to be a rebel leader for 20 years in Africa kidnapping and terrorizing villages oh and keeping them as slaves, normal and for sex.  In an effort to catch him a video about Joesph Kony was released on Youtube.  The 30 minute video shows his atrocities and had 32 million views by Thursday.  For more on Kony check out http://www.freep.com/article/20120309/NEWS07/203090359/Hunt-for-jungle-militia-leader-Kony-goes-viral-aiming-to-get-him-arrested?odyssey=nav%7Chead   or Wikipedia him.  If you want to check out the video of this scumbag for yourself, take a look here http://youtu.be/Y4MnpzG5Sqc

“Joseph Kony, putting the infant back in infantry since 1986”

 

Take him down Red 1!

12 years ago a little game called Counter-Strike was released, well, to be fair it was a Half-Life mod.  It quickly became one of the most played PC online tactical shooters ever, in fact many still play the original today.  Then a few years later Counter-strike Source was released, bringing a new level to the genre of tactical shooters.  Not only were the graphics better, but using the Source engine made the physics way better as well.  Even though the Call of Duty and Battlefield series have kind of taken the lime light, both Counter-Strikes are still played today.  Now, 12 years after the original, Valve and Hidden Path Entertainment are releasing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.  One of the coolest features? Cross platform play across all supported systems! Yup, whether you have a Mac, Windows machine, Xbox 360 or PS3, you’ll be able to blast your friends full of holes.  I for one can’t wait.  For more info and a trailer check out http://store.steampowered.com/app/1800/

“Here Kony, Kony, Kony.”

 

It really is bigger on the inside.

So apparently the babies room, formely my computer room/office/catch all is a T.A.R.D.I.S (Time and Relative Dimension In Space for you non Doctor Who fans) because it seemed to bigger on the inside.  For the last for weeks I have been sorting through 15 to 20 year old crap and throwing out countless garbage can loads.  I then moved the rest into a much bigger space in the basement….which apparently couldn’t hold everything, so I went through again and finally the basement is about 90 percent done.  How an 11×11 room wouldn’t fit in a 40×20 space is beyond me.  How I accumulated that much junk is also beyond me, I guess old John is less tolerant of crap and throw more away then young John did.

“Yup, there is 25 years of crap in here, including a Sony sports cassette walkman and a socket 3 486 motherboard! Old Skool bitches!”

So yeah, that’s it for this week, it’s actually kind of a lot isn’t it?  So I hope you learned something and enjoyed it.  Thanks for reading!

John

Why you little shi…….h tzu

So as I was writing the printer ink cartridge blog I kept hearing noises upstairs.  My computer is directly below the bedroom, the wife went to sleep hours ago because she has to work tomorrow, for some inexplicable reason (not that I’m complaining) I have Presidents Day off.  So I kept hearing noises like someone getting up and walking around, which worried me a bit because the wife and I are expecting a little girl (thank you!) in about 3 months, so I worry about her not feeling well or not being able to sleep.  So after a few minutes I run, quietly, up the stairs to the bedroom, I find nothing out of the ordinary.  Then I look down and see that our Shih tzu and Sheltie seemed to have been having a disagreement about who gets the dog bed.  so they were walking around each other! No barking, biting or growling, just pissing me off.  Our Rat Terrier on the other hand seems to be content curled up at the foot of the bed.  For some bizarre reason the Shih tzu will start out sleeping at the foot of the bed with us and the Rat terrier, and the Sheltie will be on the floor.  For some odd reason she won’t be on the dog pillow, well sometimes she will be, but not often.  Apparently tonight they both wanted it.  So usually after 20 minutes or so, the Shih tzu will jump off the bed (heavy footed for a little guy) and lay on the pillow or the floor.  Usually after a few hours, say 2 or 3am, the little shi…will start pawing at me to wake me up to put him back on the bed! Yup, won’t paw at the wife, only me…..oh, did I mention he can jump on the bed himself?!  So, apparently the noise I heard is what his nightly ritual sounds like from the basement, yup, I just took time to blog about nothing….well what the hell, it worked for Seinfeld!

Thanks for reading!

John