LED lights

I read an article today from NewScientist about new super-efficient LED lights. The short article is HERE. I won't reiterate what you can read for your self.

I love the idea of LED lighting. Now let me tell you what is currently (pun intended) wrong with them.
I bought a string of colored and white LED Christmas lights. My idea was to use them as ambient room lighting with the goals of lighting the room and saving money on electricity costs.

In the evening we returned from the store with the lights and I set up the white string across the valance in one of our rooms and plugged them in to check out how it looked. Immediately I noticed that the light is much too 'COOL' in color. A major set back. I then ran the colored set thinking that the colors would off-set the 'cool' tone. The colored set did indeed set off the 'cool' tone but it still doesn't provide the nice soft warm light of an incandescent bulb. Even the light from the CFLs is much warmer. The colored set alone is a bit too dim.
I continued to sit in the room for a while then I noticed it. Out of the corner of my eye, the 'shimmer'. I describe it as a 'micro-strobe effect'.
Have you ever waved your hand in front of a television set and noticed that you can see your fingers in a strobe type effect? Its the same thing, except that all the light in the room causes this problem. Not only when you are looking directly at the lights but the indirect light in the room as well.
I also noticed something else. This effect seems to only occur with lights that are plugged into the wall, or for you more technical types, using AC current. LED's using batteries, DC current seem to not develop this effect. If you don't understand why this occurs, read the wikipedia links posted the reason should become clear.
Clearly my observational research needs more work but my conclusions at this point are that if LEDs are to truly succeed, and I think they should, these two issues need to be solved. If not, regardless of the benefits, of which there are many, LED usage will not expand like it should.

Art Thursday

I just got a new crop of drawings from Steve at SteveDeanArt.com. Here is one I figure lots of people can relate too:

SURGERY

As always everything is for sale, or if you need some custom work just let me or Steve know and we'll get back to you.

OAPKAPK

Friday was interesting.

In college I was in a fraternity. At the time it was a new organization so there was a lot of chance for input and to leave deep marks. We did somewhere around 40 hours of community service each school year brought in new people every year and had a great time build memories and long term friends. Hell its even where I met Wife.
I joined 15 years ago. On Friday the newest group of 5 guys were initiated. They would have been 4 when I joined :S Now it's their turn. Our initiation does not involve paddles to the ass or jerking off donkeys. It's actually a formal ceremony that is the same at all chapters.
Rewind to December, the current active brothers starting adding/contacting the alumni via Facebook. Then the group email bullshitting, bantering, provoking and old stories started flowing. People starting adding. "Ill be there." "Im in" "Cant wait" "Remember when Thor F'd that fat chick." So,yeah, it started to get nasty...
Before you know it. 60 alumni are confirmed. HOW COULD I NOT GO?! I was in the first pledge class and had contributed quite a bit to that place. If anything I got to revisit my old house and see what has changed. Friday after work the 60 of us alums took over a small local bar for dinner and a pre-party before heading over to the house to visit the actives and new guys.
well not much has changed. It was like stepping into a fucking time machine The only real difference is that the place is more wired for the net. We just didn't have that in the mid 90's. Wifi didnt even exist, shit most web connections were still dial up. (gawd I sound old). Doors and windows are still broken. The floor is still covered in beer. All the couches still look like they came from the Gaza Strip and girls (some good some not so good) will still dance on top of what ever you place out there. Good Times.

In the end It was awesome to see my old friends. See old pictures that would ruin political careers. And see that the current actives are doing the same shit and making the same bonds I did and that the common tie that binds us as a group transcends time.

Have you been there?
Where you there?
Leave a comment.

Sea Smoke

Last week the air temperatures were way below zero (deg. F). On my way into work I noticed that the ocean had a really thick layer of sea smoke. Sea smoke is not fog. It occurs when the ocean temp.'s a warmer than the air temp and evaporation occurs.

So, I took a detour into work up to the East End of the Portland peninsula to take a few pics. I was a bit surprised to see a few other people there doing the same thing. Anyway I got this decent photo of a fishing boat coming back into Portland harbor, making its way though the thick sea smoke. The boat was at least a mile away, and my camera is a cheapy, so the quality isn't the best. But it's better than nothing.

Interview Expierment: Questions 3,4&5

Holly Hall got her self wrapped up in an interview experiment from BE Earl (i think, i don't research these things) and asked if anyone else would like to be interview. I took the bait, and now I have five posts to write. Which is good, I was kind of in a writing/posting slump.

All right lets just wrap this up.

Q1 HERE
Q2 HERE

Q3: How did you propose to Wife?

It was New Years Eve 2000. We were in downtown Portland and ready to go home. I didn't keep the ring with me because I didn't want to lose it. We got home and as the ball dropped, so did my question.

Q4: Who is the artist featured on your site, Steve Dean? And why do you like his art?

Steve is technically my step-dad. In reality he is a great friend I have know for way over 20 years. Steve taught me how to draw and play music (bass, guitar drums) and introduced me to all the other instruments that go with it. I love his stuff because it almost always comes from interactions in the real world. and the style is great in its simplicity. Who needs thousands of dollars of paint?; when the same thing can be done in pen pencil, a little white out and a highlighter. I also like it, because it is creative and imaginative. We've got a couple of local shows in the past years but so far have only sold one item. But at this point that's not really the goal. Spreading the word is. One of my current favorites is: HERE.

Q5: What is something you do every day that is the best part of your day?

Best part of my day? Monday through Friday is getting home. simple. Saturday and Sunday, being home. Some of the best days I never even leave my 2 acre lot.

Would YOU like to be interviewed by me?

**********************************************************************************
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Interview Expirement: Question Two

Holly Hall got her self wrapped up in an interview experiment from BE Earl (i think, i don't research these things) and asked if anyone else would like to be interview. I took the bait, and now I have five posts to write. Which is good, I was kind of in a writing/posting slump.

...continuing on from the previous post.

***
How many push ups can you do? You seem kind of tough.
***

These days I only do push ups using those handle things. It keeps the wrist alignment straight. If I try and just go hands to floor my wrists will probably end up killing me for a couple of weeks because of ganglion cysts. Plus using those things makes the chest work harder.

When I do push-ups I will do three sets of ten. If in one go I can usually do 25 straight count.

Would YOU like to be interviewed by me?

**********************************************************************************
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Interview Expirement: Question One

Holly Hall got her self wrapped up in an interview experiment from BE Earl (i think, i don't research these things) and asked if anyone else would like to be interview. I took the bait, and now I have five posts to write. Which is good, I was kind of in a writing/posting slump.

*****
Question One: HH asks 'How many states have you lived in?'
****

I have lived in Massachusetts. I was born there and we moved out when I was 14. Thank god.
We moved to Maine, where I currently live. I love it here. The variety of weather keeps you on your toes and it seems your always getting ready for the next winter, like a squirrel. We've got beautiful coasts, mountains, oceans, lakes and rivers, deep *deep* woodlands and high speed internet. Hell, we even got indoor plumbing.
I have also live in New York, upstate, but that was during grad school so it was only for 2 school seasons.

Teaching Geology

My first formal exposure to geology in the 8th grade. There was more earth science in 9th grade, thou the quality of what I received the year before was profoundly better. In college I continued my interest in geology and then declared it as my major. Somehow I got the silly idea to go on and get a masters degree. Today I am lucky enough that I actually have a job in my field.

All along thou the method in which geology was taught seemed out of order to some degree. First you learn minerals and rocks. Then it goes on and on from there. One day it got me thinking : how would I teach geology?

My approach would to first teach environments. Tectonics. Plate interaction. Warm salty seas. Deep cold sea. Volcanic areas. etc. In each case staring with the largest scale working towards the microscopic. Starting with what we can see. Starting with the historic and moving into present day. Then, what to expect at these places. I think it would be a simpler way for younger students to understand what is under their feet. Then, for instance, when you pick up a limestone you start thinking of the environment in which it formed and other rocks or fossils or bed grading or whatever, that may also be associated with it. And why learn anything about schist when studying rocks in Hawaii?
It's just a thought. It's what I do.

Reading geology, snowshoeing and drinking wine

It was a fine weekend, indeed. I finished reading one of the greatest geology articles I have ever read. It summarized with some detail the history of the Rheic Ocean. I spent a couple of hours reading it because I wanted to really understand and follow it. But I now can I say I have some grasp on the subject. Wikipedia and the Science News Blog both had good information about the Rheic.

**update** I knew that once I got home I could find a link. HERE is the full article from GSA Today.

Saturday I opened an excellent bottle of cabernet sauvignon El Huique 2001 reserve from Chile. After I pulled the cork I notice that small 'wine diamonds' had formed on the inside. Wine diamonds are the crystal form of potassium bitartrate and from what I understand they help with the pH and help to stabilize fermentation. It was good.

Sunday the dogs and I went snowshoeing for an hour at our favorite place, Jamies Pond. There was no one else there and I did some jogging during the light 3 mile hike to get in some training in for my Trek Across Maine cycling trip.

Finally I would like to say Thank You to those that have donated some money towards my fundraising goals. I owe a couple of posts to Holly Hall and Tony for that. The ride is in June so there is plenty of time for others to help out. My donation page is HERE.