Quidnunc http://lcurlin.posterous.com Most recent posts at Quidnunc posterous.com Fri, 19 Nov 2010 19:14:28 -0800 Untitled http://lcurlin.posterous.com/33950733 http://lcurlin.posterous.com/33950733

http://antagonie.blogspot.com/2010/11/disney-sundries-film-that-won-war.html

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:44:00 -0800 Untitled http://lcurlin.posterous.com/32908384 http://lcurlin.posterous.com/32908384

http://www.mensjournal.com/the-tigers-revenge/print/

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Sun, 07 Nov 2010 16:33:00 -0800 Untitled http://lcurlin.posterous.com/32829846 http://lcurlin.posterous.com/32829846

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9139000/9139971.stm

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Thu, 14 Oct 2010 11:47:00 -0700 Untitled http://lcurlin.posterous.com/30544035 http://lcurlin.posterous.com/30544035

So I've been really busy.  I've had to study orgo, do math problem sets, write programs, write papers, run a club, and help throw a birthday party.  Thus, I'm behind on any reading that isn't directly related to a grade (and some that is).  But, to avoid complete negligence, here's a few of the things that I plan on reading... as soon as I have some time.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=is-killing-yourself-adaptive-that-d-2010-10-11

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/10/11/think_again_global_aging?print=yes&hidecomments=yes&page=full

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/3e52897c-d0ee-11df-a426-00144feabdc0,dwp_uuid=14c54e92-b4ca-11dd-b780-0000779fd18c,print=yes.html

http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2010/11/mccain-201011?printable=true&currentPage=all

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/06/the-spoils-of-happiness/?pagemode=print

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/print/1969/12/the-gentle-art-of-poverty/8241/

http://www.believermag.com/issues/201010/?read=article_baron

http://www.slate.com/toolbar.aspx?action=print&id=2269245

Yeah... It's a long list.  But it could have been a lot longer.  You should have seen it before I edited it down for public consumption.

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Mon, 04 Oct 2010 19:06:00 -0700 Untitled http://lcurlin.posterous.com/29690993 http://lcurlin.posterous.com/29690993

http://youarenotsosmart.com/2010/09/11/the-texas-sharpshooter-fallacy/#more-689

http://www.fastcompany.com/1672867/piratebay-isp-sweden-piratepartiet-net-connection?partner=rss

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/09/30/the_japan_syndrome?page=full

http://www.esquire.com/features/favorite-teacher-0300

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/04/101004fa_fact_gladwell?printable=true

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/sep/26/baghdad-centre-of-scientific-world/print

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Sat, 02 Oct 2010 14:39:00 -0700 What I'm Reading http://lcurlin.posterous.com/what-im-reading http://lcurlin.posterous.com/what-im-reading

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/24/AR2010092404113_pf.html

http://www.slate.com/id/2268872/

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/print/2010/10/autism-8217-s-first-child/8227/

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Fri, 01 Oct 2010 19:42:00 -0700 Resources http://lcurlin.posterous.com/resources http://lcurlin.posterous.com/resources

These are two of the coolest resources out there on the web.  

One- WolframAlpha is for you math/science people out there.  Basically, if it can be calculated, WolframAlpha can do it.  It also includes a lot of data that isn't really related to math or computation at all.  Some incredibly helpful features include: listing alternative forms of equations/expressions, a variety of socioeconomic and geographic data, anagram solving, and showing steps to solve an equation.  Since its beginning, WolframAlpha has undergone a lot of development, especially in the addition of information on non-computational subjects. There are examples available to demonstrate syntax when necessary.

Two- EasyBib is aimed at students of the humanities and social sciences.  Basically, any one who writes papers can use it.  Given a minimum amount of information, such as ISBN, EasyBib will develop a bibliography entry in the format of your choice.  EasyBib is particularly useful with tricky sources, like a map found online, a congressional publication, or a mailing list.  It's also great if you have the ISBN number for a book, but can't find a particular piece of data to fit in the MLA formula.  I would still recommend knowing your sources well enough to cite them yourself, but EasyBib is fast, and is open at midnight the night before your paper is due, whereas the good old library might not be.

Disclaimer:  I personally believe in being honest about your work, but I also think that these tools can be useful for honest purposes.  WolframAlpha in particular could be abused, but I would rather believe that every student in the world is just checking their answers, or better yet, is using it on optional problems to increase their understanding of the material.  Idealistic, maybe.  But maybe the world should be that way.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Thu, 30 Sep 2010 19:02:00 -0700 Midterms http://lcurlin.posterous.com/midterms http://lcurlin.posterous.com/midterms

I just finished my first orgo midterm of the year.  Have you ever had the sensation of walking out of an exam feeling relatively good, only to have all your hopes and dreams crushed by someone else who insists on talking about the exam?  Yeah.  I can tell this year is gonna be great.  I have a math exam on Monday, and I've spent all my time studying chemistry, so here's some more randomness for your life.

http://www.raptitude.com/2010/03/40-belief-shaking-remarks-from-a-ruthless-nonconformist/

http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Food/Recipes/9-Things-You-Didn-t-Know-About-Starbucks.html

http://www.fastcompany.com/1692055/why-the-apple-logo-is-like-a-crucifix-or-star-of-david-for-mac-lovers

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/van-goghs-paintings-get

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Fri, 24 Sep 2010 14:38:00 -0700 Random (School Continues) http://lcurlin.posterous.com/random-school-continues http://lcurlin.posterous.com/random-school-continues

http://wheelof.com/whitney/whitneyCarol.swf

http://www.newcriterion.com/articleprint.cfm/Morals---the-servile-mind-5318

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/09/kill-whitey-its-the-right-thing-to-do/

http://xkcd.com/792/

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Americas-True-History-of-Religious-Tolerance.html?c=y&page=1

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Sat, 18 Sep 2010 07:46:00 -0700 Movie Theaters http://lcurlin.posterous.com/movie-theaters http://lcurlin.posterous.com/movie-theaters

I realllly like small, independent movie theaters.  I love them.  

When I came to Brown last year, it was a big transition, not just academically and socially.  The buildings on campus weren't particularly disarming; they looked like university buildings.  Most universities' architecture shares a feel, even though it's a category that spans many styles.  There's usually some older buildings, some newer, but all imbued with a sense of import.  Learning happens here.  Minds are molded.  An excess of gravitas has settled on any building located on the Main Green.  

However, the feel of a campus is distinctly different from the feel of a residential neighborhood.  The abundance of cute little shops and restaurants managed to shock me though.  In a mid-size blue-collar town in the Midwest, the vast majority of shopping is done in Wal-Mart, Target, or a grocery store (Krogers).  The difference in architecture in general also through me off my game.  To me, the ordinary houses here didn't look like homes, they looked like the quaint essence of New England architecture.

Now, part of the reason I chose Brown was because I didn't want to live somewhere just like 'home'.  I was sick of it.  But it's still nice to have some sign of familiarity when adjusting.

One of the few things that spoke of 'home' to me was a tiny little movie theater on Thayer St. that I passed on my way to the library.  In my home town, there's a slightly larger little movie theater of the same name that I frequented.  The theaters are probably about the same age, with similar vintage neon signs.  They both have beautiful interiors and specialize in indie movies.  

The first time I stepped into the campus Avon, memories of home Avon enveloped me.  Seeing The Rocky Horror Picture Show for the first time, at a midnight showing, in costume, with a full shadow cast. (an annual tradition)  Waiting in line for hours to get into the midnight opening of Dark Knight.  (In recent years, home Avon has expanded from one screen to two, and has included some more mainstream fair)  Watching Big Fat Greek Wedding with my mom after it was held over, and over, and over, and over. (home Avon was playing it when it first came out, before it went big)  Trying to see the ghost that supposedly lives in the home Avon balcony.

Now I'm working on making some memories in the campus Avon, and its going pretty well so far.  Memories don't have to be from the best movies out there.  Sometimes a hilarious experience at a Korean vampire drama is better than seeing a blockbuster again.

I love little movie theaters, especially when they're personal.

(I also love the awful websites both Avons have)

 

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:07:00 -0700 Excerpt http://lcurlin.posterous.com/excerpt http://lcurlin.posterous.com/excerpt

This excerpt was in the New York Times recently.  I love all the science-y references.  It reminds me of the affinity I feel for the element yttrium, an affinity built on nothing more than a 6th grade research project.  I chose yttrium because I didn't know what it was, and neither did anyone else.  I didn't even know how to pronounce it (y-t-t, what?  Who put those letters together?) which made it all the more appealing.  I was just that sort of kid.  And now I'm just that sort of college student.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Mon, 13 Sep 2010 17:14:00 -0700 Fun Stuff http://lcurlin.posterous.com/fun-stuff http://lcurlin.posterous.com/fun-stuff

http://www.fixr.com/infographics/rubik-cube-solved-in-20-movements-or-less.html

http://piccsy.com/2010/08/life-hacks/

http://www.vivapixel.com/photo/6917

Yeah, I'm back in school, which means I'm busy.  I have reading to do, problem sets to finish, and labs coming up.  So I'll try to pass along cool stuff when I see it, but passing classes is a little bit more important to me.  Go figure.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:51:00 -0700 Shoutout! http://lcurlin.posterous.com/shoutout http://lcurlin.posterous.com/shoutout

Yeah Brown!  I feel like the description for Brown (and all the other schools) was bordering on obnoxious (alright, we get it, knowledge is cool), but I still approve.  After all, Brown is the best!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/07/intellectual-colleges_n_707087.html

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Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:35:00 -0700 Science! http://lcurlin.posterous.com/science http://lcurlin.posterous.com/science

Ok, I'm lazy.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100901111632.htm

http://survivingtheworld.net/Lesson743.html

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Sun, 05 Sep 2010 12:53:00 -0700 Appreciation http://lcurlin.posterous.com/appreciation http://lcurlin.posterous.com/appreciation

I'd just like to list a few things I really appreciate (sarcastically) from professors.

1) When your website/the class website is incorrect on the syllabus.

2) When you don't speak English.  (Seriously, there's a reason I'm not taking linear algebra while studying abroad)

3) When you say the homework will be on the website... but its not.

4) When there aren't enough syllabi to go around, but you still don't cover what is on it (like what over-priced books I should be buying)

5) When you get the textbook wrong, so I and every other student in the class has to try to return the book and get the correct one before any homework is given.

6) Trying to download chemistry software that is "very very very very very very very very (etc) useful", if only for the first three weeks of class.

7) Classes that have a TBA location and a TBA time.

8) Having to fight for a seat on the first day... or the second... or the third.

9) Finding a class that sounds AWESOME, and then finding out its only for Freshmen.

Thanks again guys.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Wed, 01 Sep 2010 18:52:00 -0700 Hurricanes http://lcurlin.posterous.com/hurricanes http://lcurlin.posterous.com/hurricanes

I'm from Illinois, right, which is land locked.  Tornadoes are no big deal, but by the time any hurricane gets to us, its barely a tropical depression.  More like a tropical melancholy.  So my schema for hurricane is something like a tornado in the rain or a gigantic monstrous thing destined to be called "the big one" for years to come.  Neither concept is being particularly useful for preparations for Earl's arrival. My cluelessness is only compounded by the fact that they're not exactly common in Rhode Island either.  

I didn't even know Earl was heading our way til this morning when my mother texted me and my grandma e-mailed me.  They were worried and my response was more like, what are you talking about.  It doesn't help that I don't get a newspaper here and I don't watch much tv.  I've since learned ALL about Earl and Rhode Island hurricanes in general thanks to the web, but I had to know to look for the information.  It's a disarming feeling, the thought that something so physically huge could be so thoroughly ignored in a campus bubble.  Granted, we're still in the middle of freshmen orientation and today was the first day of classes so everything's still a little crazy, but still.

My informational concerns aside, I'm a bit nervous about some logistics.  I live on the first floor of a dorm on the lower end of college hill.  Worse, this first floor is actually about 10-15 feet lower than ground level due to some funky architecture.  It's not a basement, but almost.  Also, some of my friends have already experienced their windows (same building, same floor) leaking during some rain about a week ago.  Thus, I think I have reason to fear flooding.  Additionally, I'm still sick, making any extensive preparations miserable.

The storm is supposed to hit Friday night, so we'll see how the little Midwesterner's first hurricane goes.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:09:00 -0700 Allergies http://lcurlin.posterous.com/allergies http://lcurlin.posterous.com/allergies

It's official.  I'm officially allergic to organic chemistry.  I've been on campus for a week, and felt fine.  But alas, tomorrow morning at 9 AM is my first day of the second semester of organic chem.  And what am I doing?  Lying in my bed pitifully with a horrible cold that started all of an hour ago.  Seriously.  I feel like crawling under a rock and dying.  Or anything but thinking about chemistry.  I am such a sad noodle right now.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:55:00 -0700 An Amusing Interview http://lcurlin.posterous.com/an-amusing-interview http://lcurlin.posterous.com/an-amusing-interview

A friend forwarded this to me, which I most thoroughly enjoyed.  I love reading interview that don't quite work out.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:33:00 -0700 Busy Busy Busy http://lcurlin.posterous.com/busy-busy-busy http://lcurlin.posterous.com/busy-busy-busy

As you may have guessed, I've been busy recently.  I just finished my internship on Friday, including a going away party on Thursday.  I leave to go back to school on Wednesday (1 day, 5 hours, 25 minutes to be exact).  My brother and sister started school last Wednesday.  And my best friend just got into town this afternoon after taking classes in Denver all summer.  

While I still have some packing left to do (as the piles of clothes in my living room can attest), I'm taking a short break to tell you what I've been reading during my other brief breaks.

An article on how being a 20 something is a new developmental stage.

A song (and its lyrics) that I heard on the radio.  I especially love the Steak and Shake reference.

And a website I just found.

Enjoy.

And may your life be simpler than mine is at the moment.

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http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5BhsjAxw8sU1 Laura Curlin lcurlin Laura Curlin
Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:41:00 -0700 Prayers are Answered http://lcurlin.posterous.com/prayers-are-answered http://lcurlin.posterous.com/prayers-are-answered

I'm not sure, but this might be the answer to my travel prayers.  Hipmunk.  Who knew?  But everyone should.  It can sort flights by level of agony!  That's what I really want to know.  That and price, which is also an option.  And you can keep different searches in different tabs.  I don't know why other travel sites haven't done that.  As far as I can tell, Hipmunk isn't perfect, but its a very neat tool.  It would be nice to have a little more control during the initial search, and it still doesn't include information on trains, but it is definitely a big step in the right direction.  My favorite part is how much information you can see at one time.  It is more visually oriented rather than textually.  Basically it looks great and works great (as far as I can tell).  I've only played around with it so far, but I look forward to using it in the future.

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