This Week a Tipping Point.

Greetings friends and loved ones. I am writing because, every now and then, I get a sense that a certain point in time has come and gone, as opposed to the usual "I cannot believe it is already...." This week I suddenly feel like we are rounding the bend on Winter. Spring break is just weeks away and the Chicago Cubs pitchers and catchers are reporting in just days.

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/index.jsp?c_id=chc

This also means that I am graduating from college soon, without much of an idea of what comes after that. Any ideas?

I am writing also because this semester is proving very interesting. On many levels. I am taking Quantum Mechanics, Differential Equations, Scientific Computing and Tools, Physics Literature and Swedish Seminar. All of these classes are requiring a large amount of work, mostly in the form of reading. In fact, after I finish this entry I will probably resume with this book.

While last time I meandered about Linux, this time I will go on about Quantum for a little. It is taking me a little longer to get into this class than the computer class, but today I read an entire chapter out of this book and it is starting to really blow my mind. The philosophical implications are shocking.

Before the 19th century, scietists began thinking that humankind had the world roughly figured out, but we soon realized that it was not true at all. Quantum blows out of the water the way that we have been taught to think of the world. I wish I could go into it more, but I'm still getting it all straight myself. Between this and the book that I was reading about Chaos Theory, I am starting to realize how shockingly complex the world is. I think it has called me to humility.

I love to think that I have this world figured out, or at least my part of the world. I already know from reading the news that the world is not an easy place to understand and that I will not ever understand how and why certain things happen and people do different things. It has been interesting this semester to be getting more into looking at the physical world as well, and not just the world that human beings have made, but the world that God has created. Quantum Mechanics, fractals and Chaos have kept me in my place.

Currently Reading Understanding Quantum Physics: A User's Manual, Vol. 1 By Michael A. Morrison see related

Winter is back....And I am still indecisive

Winter finally decided to return to the Chicago area today. Thoughts are returning to indoor activities. I cannot make up my mind.

I could go to the Steppenwolf and see After the Quake, a play adapted from a book of short stories by one of my favorite authors, Haruki Murakami.

Or I could go to the Old Town School of Folk Music and see an amazing jazz trio The Bad Plus. They are only playing once and the play is only playing until the 19th. What to do, what to do?

Oh that these are the things with which I occupy my mind. No, it's not the only thing, trust me. I am shocked and amazed at what is happening with this cartoon controversy (embassies burned!? Seriously?). I really do not know what to make of it, except that this is a telling example of just how different Western and Islamic cultures are. Anyone who thought they were closer than ever before, what with hopes for a domino effect of democracy and capitalism in Iraq and the Middle East, can forget about that idea.

My mind has also been occupied with computers lately. I am currently enrolled in a class in which we are learning how to use Linux and Python. I am still getting my shell scripts straight with my bashrcs and xinits. Ah, don't ask, this stuff is crazy, I agree with you.

I am a geek. Looking for a job. Not about to get married.

Peace and Love.

Currently Reading Linux in a Nutshell (Linux in a Nutshell) By Ellen Siever, Aaron Weber, Stephen Figgins, Robert Love, Arnold Robbins see related