Why Is X So Y?

I usually do a Wordless Wednesday on Wednesdays, but this one needs some introduction.  It’s no secret that I’m a geek on many levels, including (but definitely not limited to) a math geek and a computer geek.  So when I heard that Google was being used to make Venn Diagrams of religious stereotypes, I was intrigued.

The basic premise is that you type “Why is X so” or “Why are X so” into Google’s search box.  Google will, helpfully, supply you with terms that others have searched on.  The resulting terms are written down and charted into a Venn Diagram.  (For the math-challenged, Venn Diagrams are big circles which encompass the terms and perhaps overlap with other circles.)  For example, if you were looking to make a political version, you might use “Democrat” and “Republican” and get this Venn Diagram.

WhyAreSoVenn

Of course, all of the terms stated above were made by Google users, not by me.  So please don’t pepper me with e-mails, comments, tweets or other forms of contact saying “How dare you call my political party Stupid!”  I’m only here to make the Venn Diagrams and perhaps point out some interesting features on them.  In this one, I’d say that the searches were likely done by members of the rival parties and that each party seems to describe the other with the same derogatory terms.

Then, I decided to move onto Moms and Dads.  However, I also thought I’d be ambitious.  Why not include Men and Women in the diagram?  Make it a four-way chart, like so:

 

WhyAreSoVenn_MenWomenMomDad 

Notice that, apparently, Moms, Dads, Men and Women are all described as “Stupid.”  Perhaps kids googling about their parents while each sex searches to understand the other?  Dads and Men are both mean, but dads are spared the “Selfish and Lazy” aspects of men.  Meanwhile, Women are “emotional, complicated and crazy” but moms are simultaneously “nosy and nice.”  (They are very sweet while they leaf through your stuff?)  Moms and Dads find common ground in being annoying.  (To each other?  Their kids?  All of the above?)

Around now, the computer geek in me took over and I decided to search for Microsoft, Google and Apple.

 

WhyAreSoVenn_MSAppleGoogle

They are all successful (of course), but Microsoft and Apple are expensive while Google is simply “Big”, “Awesome” and… “Racist”?!!!  I’m at a loss for that one.  Any ideas where that could have come from?

Of course, this led to a comparison of the four major cell phone carriers in the US.

WhyAreSoVenn_CellPhoneCarriers

This must be the simplest of the bunch.  All of the carriers are thought of as expensive.  Verizon and AT&T are both seen as slow.  Meanwhile, Sprint and T-Mobile are both Expensive and Cheap.

The results of these searches were quite interesting.  Any ideas on others to do?  Perhaps I’ll do a follow-up post.

Aloha Friday: Minimum Age For Superheroes

Being a geek, I love superheroes.  I grew up watching He-Man, Superfriends, Spider-Man, Batman: The Animated Series, Superman and more.  Super powered individuals who protected the innocent from the forces of evil resonated deeply with me and I spent plenty of time pretending I was super-powered as well.  It should come as no surprise that, when I became a parent, I wanted to introduce my children to the world of superheroes as well.

I can’t remember exactly NHL’s first encounter with superheroes, but it might have been a Spiderman kids’ book.  After that, I expanded to Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Ben 10 (both the original series, Alien Force and now Ultimate Alien).  NHL and JSL love running around pretending to turn into aliens.  I even went online with them to the Superhero Generator to let them make their own heroes.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure if the world of superheroes is having a bad effect on them.  Their playtime together seems to revolve around them “turning into” superheroes and fighting each other.  NHL will also “turn into” a superhero to ignore us/run away from us instead of listening to us.

Part of it is their normal development, I’m sure.  After all, siblings fighting isn’t abnormal.  Neither are kids who want to do their own thing without their parents telling them not to for whatever reason (dangerous, no time, homework to do, etc).  Still, I find myself wondering how much their normal development has to do with it and how much has to do with the folks in spandex and capes.

Thus, my Aloha Friday question for today is: At what age did you introduce your children to superheroes?


Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the MckLinky there if you are participating.

Aloha Friday by Kailani at An Island Life

Aloha #59

Twisting and Sliding Fun with Rubik’s Slide

Growing up, I loved Rubik’s Cubes, but I had a horrible secret: I couldn’t solve one. I could get one side all solved, but that was it. After that, I was just helplessly twisting and turning until another color was solved… and the first one was scrambled. Still, I loved spending time twisting and turning them trying to figure it out.

A while back, I won a Rubik’s TouchCube and I loved it. It was just like the Rubik’s Cube, only with touch-sensitive pads. You could have the cube self-solve too. This was cool, but it wound up not getting used often. The problem was two-fold. First, I still couldn’t solve it on my own. Secondly, I didn’t have much time to spend trying to solve it.

These problems turn into advantages with the Rubik’s Slide. Mine happened to come without a manual. While this mistake was quickly fixed, I was able to figure it out in a few minutes. You basically have six possible moves: Slide Up, Slide Down, Slide Left, Slide Right, Twist Left or Twist Right.

P1300822.JPG P1300823.JPG P1300824.JPG

Meanwhile, the “playing surface” has been simplified. No longer do you need to get 54 colors into the appropriate locations along a cube. Instead, you need to get up to 9 lit up squares (either red or blue) to match the appropriate pattern. Not only is this easier, but there are three modes of play: Easy, Medium and Hard. You can find the level that suits you best and play that one without feeling like the puzzles are way too difficult.

Rubik’s Slide has two modes of play. In Free Play, you solve puzzle after puzzle for as long as you like. In Lightning Round, you solve 10 puzzles as quickly as you can.

Here’s a video I shot of me solving a few Easy Free Play puzzles. (It looks more difficult than it is because I was videoing with one hand and twisting/sliding with the other.)

[flv]2010/08/P1300825.flv|424|240[/flv]

This is definitely a fun addition to the Rubik’s family and I would recommend it to anyone. It’s great for involved puzzle solving sessions or a quick game here or there. I’ll even be bringing mine to BlogHer just in case I get the urge to solve a puzzle or two.

Disclaimer: I recieved a complimentary Rubik’s Slide to review. No other compensation was given. The opinions expressed above are my own.

The Adventures of Disco Man and Fire Guy

JSL and NHL love superheroes. From Batman to Iron Man to Spiderman to Ben 10, they love watching and acting out the exploits of various superheroes. So they both loved it when I introduced them to Hero Machine. They each had a blast creating their own superhero identity.

First, JSL made himself into Fire Guy:

FireGuy.jpg

He was quite adament that Fire Guy be blue and have a cape. Those were non-negotiable. I’m guessing his powers include the ability to throw fire around.

Next up was NHL. He came up with Disco Man:

DiscoMan.jpg

When I asked why "Disco", NHL replied that it was because of his eyes. They looked like disco balls. (I pointed out a disco ball one time when we bowled a month ago. Good recollection!) He also declared that Disco Man had the power "to die sharks." I’m not sure how useful that power is in the day-to-day life of a super hero. If there’s an evil Shark Dude villian out there, he’d better steer clear of Disco Man.

Of course, I couldn’t let them have all the fun. I designed a superhero for myself and B. Now, we’re a superhero family!

Superhero Family.jpg

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe some evil needs to be vanquished! TechyDad, away!

GeekDad Book Giveaway Winner

The GeekDad Book Giveaway has ended.  I used Random.org to pick a winner among the 25 entries.

The winner is comment #8 made by Kevin(The DADvocate).  I’ve e-mailed him and he has 48 hours to accept his prize.  Congrats to Kevin and thanks to everyone who entered.  For everyone who didn’t win, you can purchase the book for under $10 on Amazon.com.  It is even eligible for free shipping if you spend $25 or more.

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