Grobstein

Annoying Macbook Pro issue: left USB power

Dave Gottlieb — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:52:31 +0000

Contrary to spec, the left USB port on the (early-gen?) Macbook Pro notebooks is unpowered, or under-powered. Many devices will only work in the right port (I have an external HDD which emits a “low power” beepcode in the left port). If plugged into the left port, portable devices may claim they are charging but actually deplete the battery. Annoying, durf durf.

Obama

Dave Gottlieb — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:38:21 +0000

Obama had the following line in a primary speech: “We are the ones we have been waiting for.” I realized that this translates very neatly into Internet cliche: “All our base are belong to us.”

Dogs on God

Dave Gottlieb — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 18:33:27 +0000

Prints here. Many of the best New Yorker Cartoons are about dogs.

Read recently: Portnoy’s Complaint, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, Singularity Sky, Iron Sunrise

Dave Gottlieb — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 01:00:44 +0000

Maybe I’ve forgotten something . . . not sure. Was busy with end of term stuff for a while. Book links: here, here, here, here.

I’m down on many of the best(-recognized?) contemporary SF authors: I often feel like Stross, Doctorow, and Scalzi are all way overrated (especially the last; my god!). But the two Stross novels I just read were a lot of fun; the sheer cosmological big-think involved was impressive and engrossing; his usual faults mattered less. (I think it’s significant that these are both early works. A pessimistic reading is that Stross used all his best ideas up, and doesn’t want to return to them.)

Some traditional Jewish holiday music (Mefi cross-post)

Dave Gottlieb — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:44:55 +0000

Almost no traditional Christmas carols were written by Jews (though there have been rumors). But sometimes it seems like almost all the best 20th century Christmas songs were. Many people are dimly aware of this, but few know its full extent. I have compiled a list, with representative performances.

Wikipedia’s list of the top 25 most-performed holiday songs is loaded with Jewish Christmas songs. The list of Jewish-written songs in the top 25 follows (I may be missing some); links to YT performances:

1. The Christmas Song (”Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”) - Mel Torme, Robert Wells
5. White Christmas - Irving Berlin
6. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! - Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne
7. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Johnny Marks (also responsible for many second-tier Christmas songs)
9. I’ll Be Home For Christmas - Walter Kent, Kim Gannon, Buck Ram (at least two are Jewish)
11. Sleigh Ride - Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish (one Jew)
13. Silver Bells - Jay Livingston, Ray Evans
14. Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree - Johnny Marks
18. A Holly Jolly Christmas - Johnny Marks
22. (There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays - Bob Allen, Al Stillman (at least one Jew)
24. Santa Baby - Joan Ellen Javits, Philip Springer, Tony Springer (at least one Jew)

And here is a similar list (with slightly different rules for inclusion) that I had the misfortune of discovering after I did all the research for my own. It has brief discussions of the Jewishness of the various writers.
(full thread here)

Marsellus Wallace etc., picture needed

Dave Gottlieb — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 22:53:15 +0000

Cheezburger, motherfucker — can I has it?

40 Motivational Speeches in 2 Minutes

Dave Gottlieb — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 04:21:10 +0000

Agency costs argument against school choice (i.e. vouchers, etc.)

Dave Gottlieb — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:51:37 +0000

Is there an argument against school choice proposals that focuses on the imperfections in the agency relationship between parents and children? (I.e., parents are agents for their children, but their interests don’t always align well, which means that sometimes the state must intervene in the relationship. I think this forms the best argument for compulsory education, as well.)

UPDATE: I mean, 1) is there such an argument (ans: yes) and 2) has it been published or raised in public debate?

Read: Absurdistan

Dave Gottlieb — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 07:05:49 +0000

I finished Absurdistan. I’d been excited to read it since I read the beginning two summers ago (. . .) but I didn’t get around to it till now. I’m disappointed. I enjoyed it — it’s dazzling, in fact — but I ultimately felt like most of the plot was a mistake. The events that take place in the titular ’stan obviously mean something, but they just seem like a profound waste of verbal ammunition. Very funny, and for the most part very well drawn, it’s a shame the larger arc of the plot seems so silly.

Creepy hair salon names

Dave Gottlieb — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 16:00:10 +0000

Subtle Snips.
Hair Party.