Purple Spandex, Neutrinos and other topics

Workout notes
Yoga class followed by a 4 mile run. The run: 1.2 easy, 2.16 miles in 20:37 (two faster .5 mile segments: 4:20, 4:06, and one .25 mile segment), then a walk jog back. I though about doing 4 x .5 mile, but I didn’t want to push myself today as I have a challenging weekend coming up.

Neutrinos
You may have heard about the “faster than light” neutrinos. Well, the physics community appears to be skeptical, to say the least. This doesn’t remind me of the “cold fusion” fiasco but, well, we’ll see. I am skeptical too, though I don’t have the scientific credentials to make a judgment based on scientific merits. My basis: well established results are rarely overturned…and I mean RARELY.

Football
Pity I have some grading to do this weekend; otherwise I’d be tempted to watch the Rams play the Saints. Given that the Saints beat the Colts 62-7 and the Rams lost to the Cowboys 34-7, well, I’d have a morbid curiosity to see if the Saints could hit 60 again. Who knows…

Illinois Football
Well, now that Illinois has belly flopped, the fans are starting to blow them off:

“My teachers were still nice to me,” Scheelhaase said Monday after practice on the Memorial Stadium turf. “I still had a seat in class. People were sitting around me and talking to me. I didn’t feel any differently. In my mind, everyone knows we can bounce back. If they don’t, then they’ll see.”

Illinois (6-2 overall, 2-2 in the Big Ten Conference) plays at No. 21 Penn State (7-1, 4-0) Saturday (2:30 p.m., ABC), but the Illini heard few questions from the media about JoePa, Linebacker U. or play-action passing.

They were asked more about confidence in the locker room and among the Illini’s worried fan base. After playing Penn State, the Illini face tough home games against Michigan and Wisconsin.

“I’m not paying any attention” to the mood on the street, coach Ron Zook said. “I’ve got my own issues. I can’t worry about that stuff now. It’s hard to insulate (the players). They’re out there. It is what it is. What can I do about it?”[...]

“It was new to have people on the bandwagon,” Scheelhaase said. “It was cool. It was nice. Maybe it was too nice. You never know.

“We’re not too worried about what other people are saying. We’re used to having kind of an empty bandwagon. It’s a little lighter to pull. It’s not that bad.”

As an Illinois fan, this is music to my ears, because the team plays better when it appears that their fans have deserted them; they do better with a “it is us against the world” attitude. They don’t handle support very well.

So if you are an Illinois football player, quit reading NOW.

I expect the team to rally and to play very well against Penn State; in fact I am predicting an upset.

Purple Spandex:

Well, this is in honor of someone at my yoga class (one of my favorite MILFs)

No, this isn’t her; this model is about 25 years younger but probably can’t run as fast.

Herman Cain’s Pro Smoking Political Ad

40 seconds into it:

Hey, at least President Obama is embarrassed about his inability to quit smoking….

(note: Herman Cain once fought smoking bans as a lobbyist for the restaurant industry)

Herman Cain: if you like cigarette smoke….

Quad Cities Half Marathon 2011 Photos

Details of my race are here. Short version: I power walked a 2:22, which is my fastest time since 2003. It is true that in 2002 I walked the full marathon in 4:44 so I have slowed some over the last 9 years or so.

I can’t say “racewalked” as my right knee was bent while in the support phase (where the leg is in contact with the ground) and for a racewalk to be legal, the knee can’t be bent in that phase. It is ok (and desirable) to bend the knee when moving the leg forward.

All of my photos are here.

My right knee (the one with the 2010 operation) is leading here.

I am close to 10K here and trying my best to stay ahead of as many runners as I can.

My left knee is fine, though I am making other form errors here (bent forward from the waist, arm swing across my body, etc.)

You can see my right leg in the support phase; the knee is bent. That would have drawn a “red card” from a race walking judge at a judged walk. But there was no racewalking division at this race.

Crossing the finish line.

Yes, I enjoyed myself. I am at about mile 5 here. (8 km).

This Poster Makes a Point

A sign of the times

Workout: swim after lifting; 500 of fist/free, 500 of free/back, 500 of drill/free (fins), 600 of 100 pull, 100 free, then 100 of front kick, free (fins)

Lifting: same old, but this time I got 10 x 155 on the bench (first time this year) and 4 x 170 (not that hard).
It is getting easier.

msnbc video: Why a flat tax fails

msnbc video: Why a flat tax fails, posted with vodpod

Water, Tears and Perspective

Workout notes
I stayed up late watching the Texas Tech-Oklahoma game (two hour weather delay) and given what is coming this weekend, I was going to go easily anyway.

So I walked 5+ miles in 1:16 (just taking it easy) and NOTHING hurt. NOTHING.

Water
Where did earth’s water come from? There is some evidence that the water originated in “clouds” in space, which became comets. In fact, check out this recent observation:

For the first time, astronomers have detected around a burgeoning solar system a sprawling cloud of water vapor that’s cold enough to form comets, which could eventually deliver oceans to dry planets.[...]
University of Michigan astronomy professor Ted Bergin is a co-author of a paper on the findings published in the Oct. 21 edition of Science.

The researchers used the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far-Infrared (HIFI) on the orbiting Hershel Space Observatory to detect the chemical signature of water.

“This tells us that the key materials that life needs are present in a system before planets are born,” said Bergin, a HIFI co-investigator. “We expected this to be the case, but now we know it is because have directly detected it. We can see it.”

Scientists had previously found warm water vapor in planet-forming disks close to the central star. But until now, evidence for vast quantities of water extending into the cooler, far reaches of disks where comets and giant planets take shape had not emerged. The more water available in disks for icy comets to form, the greater the chances that large amounts will eventually reach new planets through impacts. [...]

Other recent findings from HIFI support the theory that comets delivered a significant portion of Earth’s oceans. Researchers found that the ice on a comet called Hartley 2 has the same chemical composition as our oceans.

Perspective: International Affairs
It is sometimes useful to view things through the eyes of those who think very differently than we do. Of course, Iran would rank as one of the countries that I’d want nothing to do with. There, you can get executed for homosexuality, renouncing Islam, being an atheist, etc. And yes, their President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, routinely says stupid and noxious things.

But one must keep in mind that Iran has a different executive branch than the United States does; their foreign policy is under the purview of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei who isn’t elected.

And in Iran, Ahdadinejad is considered to be the moderate! Fareed Zakaria reports (via Facebook)

The talk of the people I met in Tehran with was of the rift between President Ahmadinejad and the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. Now what is hard for most Westerners to understand is that in this debate in Iran, Ahmadinejad is the moderate one. He has been trying to clip the wings of the clergy; he has advocated loosening up some of the restrictions on women; he speaks of Iran’s pres-Islamic past. And many here believe that he wants to be the Iranian president who normalizes relations with the United States. But with all that is going on now – between the Saudi plot and the nuclear deadlock – that appears a distant prospect.

My point: world affairs are complicated, and I want my President to have a nuanced enough mind to understand the nuances. This is why Rick Perry and Michelle Bachmann won’t do.

Tears I challenge you to read this and keep from crying:

Jacqueline Siegel paces the floor of her unfinished 7,200-square-foot ballroom. The former beauty queen, with platinum-blond hair, blue eye shadow and a white minidress, clacks along the plywood construction boards in her high heels trailed by a small entourage of helpers and staff.

“This is the grand hall,” she says, opening her arms to a space the size of a concert hall and surrounded by balconies. “It will fit 500 people comfortably, probably more. The problem with our place now is that when we have parties with, like, 400 people, it gets too crowded.”

The Siegels’ dream home, called “Versailles,” after its French inspiration, is still a work in progress. Its steel-and-wood frame rises from the tropical suburbs of Orlando, Fla., like a skeleton from the Jurassic age of real estate. Ms. Siegel shows off the future bowling alley, indoor relaxing pools, five kitchens, 23 bathrooms, 13 bedrooms, two elevators, two movie theaters (one for kids and one for adults, each modeled after a French opera theater), 20-car garage and wine cellar built for 20,000 bottles.

At 90,000 square feet, the Siegels’ Versailles is believed to be the largest private home in America. (The Vanderbilt family’s Biltmore house in North Carolina is bigger at 135,000 square feet, but it’s now a hotel and tourist attraction). The Siegels’ home is so big that they bought 10 Segways to get around—one for each of their eight children.

After touring the house, Ms. Siegel walks out to the deck, with its Olympic-size pool, future rock grotto, three hot tubs and 80-foot waterfall overlooking Lake Butler. Her eyes well up with tears.

[emphasis added]

Why is she crying?:

Yet today, Versailles sits half-finished and up for sale. The privately owned Westgate Resorts was battered by the 2008 credit crunch and real-estate crash. It had about $1 billion in debt—much of it co-signed by the Siegels.

The banks that had loans on Versailles gave the Siegels an ultimatum: Either pay off the loans or sell the house. So it’s now on the market for $75 million, or $100 million if the buyer wants it finished.

[...]

The kids will have a hard adjustment to make:

Recently, the family boarded a commercial flight for a vacation, making for some confusion. One of the kids looked around the crowded cabin and asked, “Mom, what are all these strangers doing on our plane?”

Just a small story about the terrible struggles of the richest 1 percent–the people who refuse to pay slightly more in taxes so that millions of people will have jobs, seniors will get healthcare, roads will get built.

But all is not lost; Fox News might help persuade working stiffs to elect Mitt Romney to protect these poor rich people who are suffering so horribly.

Wild College Football weekend….

I admit that I spent almost all day yesterday watching college football; that is unusual for me.
I’ve blogged about the Illinois-Purdue game.

Now I’ll talk about the other games:

Next I watched Air Force vs. Boise State (article plus the one photo)

Boise State started the scoring with a drive, but Air Force matched it to tie the game 7-7.
Both teams moved the ball well. But Air Force took a risk toward the end of the first half with BSU leading 13-7. Air Force went for a fake punt deep in its own territory (30 or so) and ended up fumbling; Boise recovered and was therefore set up in the red zone. They cashed in and went up 20-7, though Air Force recovered quickly (and completed a long pass) to cut the lead to 20-10 in the half.

In the third the teams traded scores (27-13). Eventually BSU went up 34-20 when Air Force scored in the final 2 minutes to cut the lead to 34-26; however the extra point was blocked which lead to a bizarre return attempt featuring several laterals; eventually the return was stopped after what seemed like 30+ seconds.

Air Force missed an onside kick and BSU drove it close to score an “insurance” field goal to make it 37-26 with 45 seconds to go. That was the final score.

The stats were close: 423-408 BSU in total yards, with AF gaining 264 yards on the ground. But that first half fumble hurt the Falcons dearly.

(note: photos from now on from Yahoo)
Next was USC vs. Notre Dame.
Yes, this was a night game, and yes, ND wore epic shiny gold helmets (special paint)

But that is all that shone for Notre Dame this evening. USC dominated the first two possessions and scored touchdowns on both while ND went “3 and out” each time. The first quarter ended 14-0 Trojans. In the second quarter, ND’s defense played a bit better, but on one drive ND prolonged a stopped USC drive with an unsportsmanlike conduct call after 3′rd down; that lead to a field goal and a 17-0 USC lead. But ND returned the kickoff for a touchdown to cut the lead to 17-7, where it ended at the half.

The second half saw ND drive for a field goal to cut it 17-10, and then drive it again. ND’s starting quarterback hurt his knee and had to come out of the game; still ND got the ball to the USC 1 yard line for a 3′rd and goal. Then….

The quarterback fumbled the snap from center (was under the center; not in the shot-gun.). The ball went between his legs and he accidentally kicked it backwards; USC picked the ball up at the 20 and ran it 80 yards for a touchdown! So now it is 24-10, USC.

Still, ND rallied and cut it to 24-17. But turnovers plagued the Irish again. A fumbled lateral (that the receiver saw as a forward pass) was recovered by USC on the ND 18 and that lead to another USC touchdown, and USC’s defense came up with a “good play” interception to thwart ND’s attempt to come back.

So while the Irish killed themselves with 3 turnovers (2 of them unforced) which accounted for a 21 point turn-around, USC pushed ND around at the line of scrimmage; the Trojan line opened huge holes for USC running backs and held their blocks long enough for USC backs to make cut back runs.

USC dominated the statistics racking up 443 total yards (including 219 on the ground) to 267 for ND; what kept USC from 40+ points was a missed field goal (kicker was injured) and some sportsmanship; USC had the ball inside the ND 3 yard line at the end of the game; USC ran the ball up the middle a couple of times and then let the clock run out instead of trying for a final touchdown.

Wisconsin vs. Michigan State
I picked this up with Michigan State leading 31-17 in the 4′th quarter.

Wisconsin came back startling easy to tie the game at 31. Michigan State got the ball with under a minute to go; the Badgers started to use time outs as they thought that they’d get the ball back. Michigan State then hit a pass and got just past midfield but with 10 seconds left, they had time for quick pass to set up a long field goal attempt. That didn’t work and only 4 seconds remained. And then:

The referees said “no touchdown” but the play went to review…and the call was overturned! 37-31, MSU!
What an ending!

Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech
There was a weather delay hence this game was only at halftime. But Tech had a 24-7 lead at the half!

Tech stopped Oklahoma on the first possession of the half and then scored again to go up 31-7!
Oklahoma clawed its way back; there wasn’t much defense in this one. Total yards it was 572 to 536 for Texas Tech. TT kept gambling; they passed up a chip shot field goal at the OU 6 when the score was 31-14 and didn’t make it. Tech later failed on a fake punt from midfield.

OU came back but TT kept moving the ball; eventually it was 41-24 with 8:35 to go in the game. But OU got back into it on a long pass to cut it to 41-31 and then got the ball back. But with 2:52 to go, OU missed a chip shot field goal (ball bounced off of the upright). Eventually OU got the ball back and punched it in to close to 41-38 with about 1:20 to go; but OU was out of time outs and couldn’t get the onside kick. So TT ran out the clock.

A game I didn’t see: Navy vs. East Carolina

This one saw East Carolina pile up 504 yards of offense and 38 points; their quarterback was an astonishing 40 of 45 passing. Navy still had a shot though and barely missed on a touchdown pass with a few second left; the receiver momentarily “caught” the ball (diving), broke the plane but lost the ball as he hit the ground in the end zone; one has to keep the ball when they land if the receiver dove for the ball. Still Navy was down 38-35 and had time for one more play.

Then the 42 yard field goal attempt….bounced off of the upright.

This sets up an interesting game next week: Notre Dame vs. Navy. Which team will not have a heartbreak?

Some Nerd Humor

Pinheads & Patriots – The Colbert Report – 2011-20-10 – Video Clip | Comedy Central

Bill O’Reilly supports America’s troops by sending them what they need most on the battlefield: his book.

Pinheads & Patriots – The Colbert Report – 2011…, posted with vodpod