This semester's gonna suck

Between April and October, I have 6 weddings and 1 qualifying exam.

• I will be a bridesmaid in 3 weddings
• 3 weddings require a plane trip
• One of the weddings is my own

Meanwhile, I have a full-time job, 2 graduate-level engineering classes, and PhD research. Plus my fiance and I just bought a condo and we're moving in before February 1st.

I may not sleep until next Thanksgiving...

Name change

I'm getting married soon, and I had decided a while back that in the event I ever got married, I would take my husbands name socially but keep my own name professionally. (And my fiance is ok with this.)

I was talking to a friend of mine, who said he vehemently disagreed with this decision. He felt that in marriage, "the two shall become one" and the couple should have the same surname as a symbol of this. I take his point.

At the same time, I'm working hard for a PhD. When I graduate, I want to be Dr. MyLastName, not Dr. HisLastName. I'm doing the work; I want to use my name.

So I was thinking back, and I think the whole thing started when I read the Foundation Series by Asimov. At one point, one of the characters is talking about his wife, and he says that legally she's Mrs. HisLastName, but he feels like that designation implies that he "owns" her. And he thinks of her as such an individual, and respects her so much as a person, that he always refers to her by her unmarried name. When I read that, I thought it was the sweetest thing I'd ever read. A man who loves his wife so much that he's completely unintimidated by her intellect; who respects her so much that he can't imagine her being anything but an individual.

Weighted Vote

As I was watching the election results coming in last night, I got to thinking about the whole voting process. A democracy is based on the principle that the wisdom of the crowds will prevail - but that's making the assumption that people actually know what they're talking about when it comes to politics. And, as we've shown in previous elections, that's not always the best assumption.

So, what if we had a "weighted" vote? I know that this would be impossible to implement (talk about your logistics nightmares!) but what if?

Say, for example, you know pretty much nothing about the candidates, and you plan on voting based on a name or who "looks" more Presidential or who you'd want to have a beer with.* Your vote counts as one vote (same as now).

If, instead, you can articulate the positions of the different candidates and show a competent understanding of the issues, your vote counts as, say, 5 votes.

On the other hand, if you're voting based on what you've heard from rumors and smear campaigns, your vote counts as -2 votes. Whoever you vote for loses 2 votes.

(And yes, I realize people could say they're voting based on rumors and then vote for the other guy to make him lose votes. Again, I know this whole weighted vote thing would be impossible to implement from a practical standpoint; I'm just speaking hypothetically.)

Would this promote more civic involvement? Encourage more people to spend time learning about the issues and candidates' stances? Result in fewer smear campaigns? Or am I just punch-drunk from reloading cnn.com every 20 seconds last night?

*I know, I know, it should be "or the candidate with whom you'd like to share a beer." But that just sounds awkward.

DO NOT WANT!

Seriously guys, seriously?

This is just such a bad idea. Sherlock Holmes is awesome. And yes, he's strong. But he doesn't go around beating people up. The most "action-y" scene in any of the canonical stories was a boat chase down the Thames. Which, granted, was awesome and suspenseful. But Sherlock Holmes is not James Bond with a plaid cape!

Grrr.

Update:
Noooooo!!!!!!!!!! This is exactly what I was afraid of!!!

"As for McAdams, she'll play Irene Adler, Holmes' love interest who only appeared in Doyle's 1891 short story "A Scandal in Bohemia," but is expected to return in any sequels for this potential new franchise."

FYI: Sherlock Holmes NEVER fell in love. NEVER. It didn't happen. Not once. Watson makes a point of saying so as he introduces "A Scandal in Bohemia." He starts the whole thing off my saying explicitly that Holmes was never ever in love with Irene Adler.

And I quote:
"TO SHERLOCK HOLMES she is always the woman. I have seldom heard him mention her under any other name. In his eyes she eclipses and predominates the whole of her sex.

It was not that he felt any emotion akin to love for Irene Adler. All emotions, and that one particularly, were abhorrent to his cold, precise but admirably balanced mind. He was, I take it, the most perfect reasoning and observing machine that the world has seen, but as a lover he would have placed himself in a false position.

He never spoke of the softer passions, save with a gibe and a sneer. They were admirable things for the observer--excellent for drawing the veil from men's motives and actions. But for the trained reasoner to admit such intrusions into his own delicate and finely adjusted temperament was to introduce a distracting factor which might throw a doubt upon all his mental results. Grit in a sensitive instrument, or a crack in one of his own high-power lenses, would not be more disturbing than a strong emotion in a nature such as his. And yet there was but one woman to him, and that woman was the late Irene Adler, of dubious and questionable memory."

In fact, that's why "The Three Garridebs" is so shocking...because for the one and only time in over 1000 pages, Holmes shows sincere emotion. It happens ONCE. And said emotion is concern for his friend of several years (Watson) NOT romantic love.

Stupid Hollywood.

The Economy

I had no idea what the heck was going on with the economy, mortgages, investment banks, etc. I'm an engineer, and money things just sort of went beyond me.

...until I read this. (Thanks to Sean at Cosmic Variance for linking to it.) So I thought I would also link to it for others' convenience. :-)

"One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee."

(the quote's from Dilbert)

And here it is, an analysis of why coffee is actually good for you!

I was actually trying to find a good quote from Captain Janeway (Star Trek Voyager) for this blog post, but wikiquote let me down. None of her good coffee quotes came up in search, and I can't remember any verbatim. Something like, "the best organic substrate suspended in a liquid" and "I beat the Borg with this stuff."

Company Policy

To get new hardware, large company:

Search through company website to find the online request for service application. Request the hardware be bought.
Include: Name, office number, cubicle number, department, name of computer, type of hardware needed (general), specific hardware needed, reason for request, name of project manager, name of functional manager.
Wait two months for approval of hardware to shunt back and forth through departments and red tape.

Search through company website to find the online request for service application (again). Request the official IT person come install the hardware.
Include: Name, office number, cubicle number, department, name of computer, type of hardware to be installed (general), specific hardware to be installed, reason for request, name of project manager, name of functional manager.
Wait one week for IT person to be free.
Discover that the company-sanctioned version of the hardware you need doesn't fit in your computer.

Search through company website to find the online request for service application (third time). Request a new computer, that will hold the new hardware.
Include: Name, office number, cubicle number, department, name of computer, type of hardware needed (general), specific hardware needed, reason for request, name of project manager, name of functional manager.
Screw up some piece of information. Become informed that they can't give you what you requested, and they think there's something fishy about your request in the first place. Spend several hours on the phone calling from one department to another until you find the one person who understands what you need and dictates to you how to fill out the RFS form correctly. If you're lucky, this guy will take pity on you and tell you to just call him when you need the hardware installed and he'll come by and do it.

Wait one week for new computer. Call the nice guy you finally found. Cross fingers until whole operation is complete.

Go tell boss happy news that you can finally do that piece of the project you've been unable to do. Find out that said project has lost funding.

To get new hardware, small company:

Boss: "Go on ebay and see if you can find what you need. We'll reimburse you once you've got it."

Spend half an hour on ebay, find what you need, confirm it has all the parts with seller, place bid.