Category: Blog

Like most high school students, I read Shakespeare in class.  To be bluntly honest, I tolerated it.  Naturally, I understood that it was a necessary part of my education and in many respects, he became the standard.  However, his writing neither especially impressed me nor compelled me to read it outside of my required reading.  Though I understand that to many of you, this is heresy.

I also read Orwell’s 1984 in high school, ironically right around 1984.  It was required reading.  This book both fascinated and deeply distressed me; it was delicious.  First, while there were obviously many elements of this society that were deeply distressing, today I’ll focus on just one.  The predisposition to amend history, most memorably with the simple statement, “Oceania is, and always has been, at war with Eastasia.”  This is untrue; Oceania switched loyalties during the novel.  However, the book describes a society that simply refuses to acknowledge its history.  If the government makes a strong enough assertion, that’s what ‘truth’ will be.

Continue reading “American Exceptionalism versus accurate history” →

On an otherwise ordinary afternoon in the mid 1990’s, I walk into a small office near work.  I have never been here before, though I’ve driven past many times.  We will meet for about 30 minutes.  First, they escort me into a small room with a table surrounded by a handful of chairs.  I sit on one side and a professionally dressed woman sits on the other.  Next, she places a thick document on the table, more accurately measured in inches than pages.  Finally, we start the process of signing these documents, as she points to specific places and instructs to sign, initial, or date.  Meanwhile, she assures me that I’ll have an opportunity to read through everything, but we didn’t schedule nearly enough time.

During that meeting, a voice silently screamed in my head, “You should not sign anything you that have not read or fully understand.”  This voice didn’t stop me from signing page after page, legally committing myself to a contract.  For all I knew, I might’ve legally committed to donating a kidney.  The only thought that alleviated my anxiety was simply, “Millions of people have gone through this before.  This is very normal; you’ll be fine.”

Continue reading “The ‘Great Equalizer’ is not equally accessible” →

Years ago, I watch movie called Gattaca.  I have enjoyed films with both Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, so I watched with great anticipation.  Most good films that are set in the future with a hypothetical premise will provoke thoughts about its ethics.  I may try to describe the film, but the trailer does a great job.  Additionally, you should watch the film; it is exceptional.

While I may write a post about the premise of the film, today I’ll simply reflect on a scene between two characters:  Vincent, played by Hawke, and his brother, Anton.  Vincent, genetically flawed, routinely outswims his brother, genetically flawless, across a body of water at night.  It is a trend that frustrates Anton, who cannot comprehend how this is possible.

Anton: How are you doing this, Vincent?  How have you done any of this?
Vincent:  You want to know how I did?  This is how I did it, Anton.  I never saved anything for the swim back.

Continue reading “X is not Twitter” →

I’ve had the privilege to have mentored a handful of engineers in my career.  I grew fond and protective of them.  They are all extended family.  Naturally, they were all different.  Some needed insight into how to debug a particular problem.  Others asked about the history of a particular component and why it behaved the way it did.  I rank designing components with them among the most fun and rewarding activities.

Engineers consistently learn best by ‘doing’.  As I mentored them, I instructed them to feel free bang their heads against the wall for a while; solving that puzzle will both best commit it to memory and boost their self-confidence.  However, we also set healthy boundaries for how long they may struggle with that puzzle.  I advised them to come get me if they had not made any progress for a while.  We set our rule of thumb to two hours.

Continue reading “To those we’ve lost…” →

As a child, I once came upon a documentary on the development of the Bell X-1, the first supersonic plane.  Honestly, I don’t remember much from it.  I don’t even remember what the plane looked like.  The underlying and pervasive theme centered around breaking the sound barrier, most of the observed behavior about flight are transformed as your plane approaches the sound barrier.  They needed to build the plane to function differently than other planes of the era.

However, the speed of sound (767 mph) is a natural barrier.  Sonic booms don’t arbitrarily occur; it’s not as if we sweet talk the atmosphere to behave that way for show.  Engineers and pilots navigated and overcame the challenges to building and operating the Bell X-1.  As an engineer, I acknowledge it as a great human achievement, but I also understand that it overcame a natural barrier, not an artificial one.

Continue reading “The mythical four-minute mile” →

On a particularly light-hearted moment, I entered a conversation about organ donation.  Are people generally for or against organ donation?  One response was, “Take everything, I don’t need it.”  This was an incredibly sensible and practical response; it wasn’t mine.  I confessed that the idea of walking around in the afterlife without a couple of key parts, like my eyes and my heart, gives me the creeps.  That’s right, I, who have not practiced Catholicism since boyhood, who aspires to epitomize logic and reason… gets the creeps about not having eyes or a heart in the afterlife.

The response to my confession was a surprisingly good out, “Once you make it to heaven, you’ll be whole again.”  That’s great; it means that in some ways, I don’t need to worry about how my body parts are parceled out.  I suppose that in the other case, lacking my eyes or heart would be the least of my worries.

Continue reading “Assholes in heaven” →

My older sister and I have an ongoing, but distressingly regular, discussion.  When we talk, she often refers to me as “Frankie”; this is not okay.  Our dialogue goes something like this:

Me:  My name is Frank.  Please stop calling me “Frankie”.
Her: I called you that when you were little.
Me:  I know, but I never said that was okay.
Her: I don’t mean anything bad by it.
Me: I understand, but it’s not my name.
Her: It’s a term of endearment.
Me: It’s not if it doesn’t endear me.

To be completely fair, Frank is neither my birth nor legal name; it’s simply the name I choose to go by.  I understand that she calls me that without malice and mostly because she forgets, but the fact remains.  I should be called what I asked to be called.

It reminds me of dialogue from Pretty Woman:

Vivian:  Can I call you Eddie?
Edward:  Not if you expect me to answer.

Continue reading “Montague or Capulet” →

A good friend once asked, “Why do you do it?”  Specifically, why do I jot down these ideas and post them online?  I make no money from presenting unconventional ways to reason through these situations.  Honestly, I don’t know the size of my readership, nor do I really care in many ways.  I write these wacky ideas down because they’re therapeutic, and they help me navigate through these complex situations.

I value my ability to jot down these ideas and express them without fear of censorship (or in some cases, incarceration).  Here in the United States, First Amendment grants you this freedom to express ideas.  However, with that freedom comes the question, “Can my freedom to express my ideas, impinge on your rights?”  For instance, does a bully’s freedom to express themselves (by calling me names as a child) outweigh my rights to live my life free of conflict?

Continue reading “The New Twitter, beyond Thunderdome” →

My fascination with computers started as a teenager.  My Algebra teacher, Ms. Barba, also taught computer programming.  Initially, she guilted me for being so lackadaisical as a freshman, but eventually also encouraged me as I improved and eventually excelled.  As a senior, I intentionally took the Computer Math class because I knew she’d be teaching it.  Subsequently, she got me into two summer programs, one in my high school, the other at the University of Miami.  I do not hesitate to say that I would not be here had it not been for her, and I’m eternally grateful.

She automatically enrolled us into the ACSL (American Computer Science League) competitions.  I remembered the letters; it wasn’t until today when I realized that they stood for.  I’m delighted to learn that it continues today.  In some ways, those competitions piqued my curiosity around computer programming and drove my passion for the field.

Continue reading “The Founding Fathers and the Exclusive NOR” →