Jun 25 2008

braincast

Addicted to image searching?!?!?

Filed under Uncategorized

One of my favorite sites, Geeksugar, has given me another way to get addicted to searching for images. Choose a color from the pallet and the Multicolr Search Lab finds pictures with the color shared on Flickr. Of course it gets way more addicting and interesting as you pick more colors from the pallet.

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

Jun 22 2008

braincast

Another reason Firefox rules!

Filed under Uncategorized


Okay…we don’t really need another reason for FireFox to be the best browser out there, although Flock is becoming a close second for me, but now we have another reason with a new Add on, FireNes. The add on provides a link to over 2500 Classic  Nintendo games. From the left navigation bar one can quickly jump to java-based emulator sites of Classic NES games. Ahhh…the good old days of wasting time playing thses 8 bit wonders is no long in the old days…and new day of wasting time has arrived.

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

Jun 04 2008

braincast

Eye-Fi

Filed under Technology

Okay…the Eye-Fi is something I used to impress my SOON TO BE Principal. It’s such a great concept and could make taking pictures an easier experince. Only draw back I see is that you need to use a digital camera that uses a SD card…I am a XD fan, so I will need to buy a few more camera. I think it would be worth it. To learn check out this link http://tinyurl.com/2g6f2w. Can’t get any easier.

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

Jun 02 2008

braincast

Digging for Ice on Mars

Filed under Science

It is amazes me that we are doing so much to explore Mars. Recently the Mars Phoenix Lander touched down on Mars on May 26th and the Twitter Followers were the first to know. “With liquid water comes the possibility of life. On the Phoenix, a robotic arm with a scoop will dig into the ice layer. Instruments on the spacecraft included a small oven that will heat the scooped-up dirt and ice to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. Analyzing the vapors will provide information on the minerals, and that will, in turn, provide clues about whether the ice ever melted and whether this region was habitable. The mission is to last three months” (from NYTIMES article).

The lander is ready to begin digging for ICE, the main objective for the lander. Above is a picture from the landing that seems to have exposed ice below the soil.

To find out more about the Phoenix Mission, The University of Arizona (with the help of NASA) has a great website (and very teacher/kid friendly…lots of images, videos) http://fawkes3.lpl.arizona.edu/index.php

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

May 21 2008

braincast

Starbucks…who’s the victim?!!?

Filed under Personal, Uncategorized

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a Starbucks cup in my hand for the most of the day. I am currently in Cincinnati and the first site I visit is a Starbucks. Of course, I think this is guided by fate…in the middle of OHIO (somewhere around Columbus) I take a random exit to take a break from driving and get gas…and there it was…a Starbucks in the middle of farm county Ohio.

Did I start out as a coffee junkie? Nope! My parents grew up during the first instant & automatic drip coffee pot era. It was not uncommon that their parents drank coffee all day, because it was so easy to make. I did not grow up with coffee drinking parents, so I never looked for it.

I didn’t start drinking Coffee until my 5th year of teaching…prior to this I survived on heavy doses of Mountain Dew. I had a close friend that escaped from school each day to grab a Starbucks during our planning time. I of course went…but didn’t like coffee, so I got Hot Chocolate. Who would have ever thought as Hot Chocolate as a transition to coffee??? Well it began with Mochas…to triple ventes…to quad ventes…more caffeine the better.

Why did I decided to blog about Starbucks and coffee, as I drink one? I was reminded of a friend who twittered the other day about how he loved a good cup of coffee. Well I began to wonder if I really liked coffee or victim of consumerism. This also reminds me of a conversation I had with a high school-er about how he described Starbucks as “being the Microsoft of coffee”…Wow he hit a nerve, I am a APPLE Guy.

I defended Starbucks and argued that Starbucks did not come into towns like a WAL-Mart and force smaller companies to close…Starbucks created the market for coffee (made it okay to spend $5 for a cup of joe) and if anything the company has promoted the growth of coffee shops around the country. Case in point…New Wilmington, PA…the small college town that I went to college in…a town surrounded by PA Amish. Not much business is done in the small downtown…Except a Coffee House that thrives even if College is not in session.

Could this happen without the Microsoft of Coffee?

I am not the only one who addicted to Starbucks…check out this website with very familiar Starbucks images. [http://www.sirensongdc.com/news/]

strip_144.jpg

What Planet are you from?

One response so far

May 07 2008

braincast

Wow…When I visit the Library of Congress

Filed under Comics

Okay, I am an educator and yes I have been to the Library of Congress. I am ashamed to say, but I was not impressed until now. Spiderman (Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s Spiderman) is now on display at the LOC. I am trying to get copies of this wonderful primary source material, but until then I can see a few samples on the LOC Blog.
amazingspider62.jpg

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

May 07 2008

braincast

SEOmoz’s Web 2.0 Awards

Filed under Web 2.0

In the overwhelming world of Web 2.0, it is nice to have a few highlighted.

picture-1.png

Check out the SEOmoz’s Awards for Web 2.0 of 2007.

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

May 06 2008

braincast

Take THAT…BIG, BAD Record Industry

Filed under music

I have always been a huge fan of Trent Reznor…back in the my high school days I felt like I had a HEAD LIKE A HOLE. I am an even bigger fan now that he is giving his fans a free download of his latest album. A quote from Trent “Thank you for your continued and loyal support over the years — this one’s on me.”

Download Slip here. 

news_17179.jpg

What planet are you from?

One response so far

May 04 2008

braincast

Ahh…Remember when…tribute to toys that made our childrenhoods cool!

Filed under Personal

Although this post could be in the Geek section…the art shared on this blog for the LA Gallery 1988 is just to cool. The newest exhibit is TOYS consists of toys inspired art.  Personally…I would have been lost without my Big Wheel.

jimharker2.jpg

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

Apr 30 2008

braincast

APPLE Worship

Filed under Personal

I was doing several image searches on FlickrStorm. I came accross a lot of GEEKs sharing photos of their MACs and other APPLE toys. So I thought, “I can do that”. In this picture I was a father for about 4 hours and one of the first pictures of my daughter is posed in front of my G4 PowerBook. Hey, you know her first word was apple!

dscf0291.jpg

What planet are you from?

No responses yet

Older Posts »