Homely Scientist

My daughter A told me last week, while I was at the conference, that she had a homework assignment to do this weekend and wanted us to do it together.  No matter what it was, I was going to say yes.  Single dads don’t get that option often.  Regardless, then she said it was to build a simple machine.  W00t!  Science fun!
When I picked the kids up on Friday morning I found out the details.  She had to design and build a device that used two simple machines and would go at least 2 meters (6.5 feet).  Bonus points were …read more

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Since I slipped off the wagon for about 24 hours, I guess my clock has been reset hasn’t it?  So we’re on day two.  No, I’m not going to patch or anything, just straight.  I know, maybe I’m nuts, but I don’t think nicotine addiction is as much of the problem as the habit of smoking.
Sure there is certainly an addiction component to all this, I just miss the action of smoking I guess.
I’m not sure if it’s easier right now or harder.  But I think my will might have gotten a boost.
 
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I love flying toy planes.  Heck my 12th Grade physics science project was all about that.  This was the post I mentioned in my last last post:
Let’s face it: GeekDad projects are sometimes more fun for the older kids than for the younger ones. So when it comes to flying planes at the park, we’re always looking for something that everyone can do.
We’ve found that with the Hobbico line of free-fly electric planes. They’re amazing. Ranging from $12-$15, they’re beautifully-made with built-up foam bodies and electric motors, rechargeable batteries and chargers. They range from a toy-like 14″ wingspan to a …read more

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 I’ve been following Geekdad for a while now.  There is a post he wrote a bit ago that I still want to comment on, but for the moment, let’s look at this heat conduction experiment.
The premise is simple, what materials conduct heat (through water) best.  While this is an awesome experiment for the kids, the best part was that on the first try the set up didn’t work.  The modeling clay used to keep the objects to test conduction got wet and so the objects fell into the water.
Undaunted, they tried again and had a successful experiment.
Lesson here…some times finding the …read more

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Let’s just say I’ve been having a rough time of late.  For once it isn’t too many irons in the fire, but the other stuff in life.
My kids were with me from Thursday until Monday afternoon.  The stress was really intense.  With all the other stuff going on, I just caved.  I bought a pack of smokes on Monday afternoon.
I had a sense of relief and personal disgust.  The smell brought me back to when I first started smoking.  I didn’t smoke a lot at first, then I took off like gang busters.  By last night the pack was gone.
And …read more

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Yeah today is a rough day.  I swear if I see someone smoking I’m going to buy a smoke from them.  Just one.  Just one won’t hurt right?
Yeah I know, rationalizing.  I’ll just keep gritting my teeth.
 
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 Steve Jurvetson is the Geek Dad over at Wired and he’s onto something here:
When an appliance dies, I remove the power cord, and I help guide the disassembly.  For consumer electronics, a small assortment of screwdrivers will do the trick, as well as a set of small Torx wrenches for Apple products and cell phones.  Remember to look under the stickers for hidden screws. Old laptops are especially fun, and don’t forget to check out all the LCD light distribution layers (but be careful with the small fluorescent bulb) Source: Geekdad – Wired News Photo from Flickr
Haven’t you always wanted …read more

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Yep, I’ve broken a personal barrier, the two week barrier.  The first couple weeks are interesting for me, sometimes I’ve been able to quit for a couple weeks no problem, others big problem.  This was a big problem two weeks for me.  Lots of stress.  Lots.  Jim tells me that once I hit a month I’ll be in the home stretch.
Well I hope I can make it.  My biggest problem is keeping up the “I want to be smoke free” feeling.  Believe me it’s rough.  The “just one is okay” thoughts hit me all the time.  Thursday I picked up …read more

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Just in case you were wondering, no I’m not smoking.  No I’m not using the patch.  I got some advice to pound cranberry juice to help my body adjust.  Ran out of cran this morning, but since cran juice is one of my favs I’ll be getting more soon.
Now, the next question is whether the quitting is getting easier.  No.  Flatly no.  It’s getting harder.  I have a lot more stress in my life at the moment and that is NOT helping.
Will I slip?  Will I cave?  I don’t know.  I’ve been able to resist the temptation in the store …read more

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Ah science fair projects.  Oddly enough I never participated in any, my school didn’t have them.  But we did have the yearly science project for class.  Let’s see for chem I tested various water proofing agents on leather.  Bio was a bacteria experiment.  Physics, I played with wing design on gliders.  I never considered making a fusion reactor.  Well a 17 year old in Michigan thought about it, and did it:
Now I don’t know what’s most surprising, the fact that it was a 17 year old that made a device that can fuse two hydrogen atoms together, or the fact …read more

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