I’m a part of a lot of different communities.

I’m a part of a lot of different communities. 

I’m a sports fan, a group that essentially condones violence and war games. It’s a rigid collection of superstitious and ritual based individuals. 

I’m a gamer, a group that also condones violence and war games. It’s violent, aggressive, competitive and often misogynistic. 

I’m a fangirl, a group that condones violence and obsession. It’s biting, conniving and at times more cut throat than gamers. 

I’m a goon, a group of disgusting, inappropriate  and crass human beings. There is no such thing as too soon and, by god, if you do something ridiculous one of them will post a picture of your front door.

I’m a nerd, a group that doesn’t collectively know how to express emotion. They keep themselves aloof from the world unless there’s someone they can correct.

I point out the worst in these communities because, no matter what, every single group has shown me the beauty that is humanity. There have been charity drives, volunteer hours, taking care of their own and the rest of the world.

I guess I need to make a point that most of us are inherently good people. Yeah, all of us have our faults. I’m not a perfect person and I know I never will be – I’m a deeply flawed individual. The important thing is that I give a damn; I care about people who need to be cared about. As negative as these communities are viewed, each and every one of them is full of people who want to think beyond their own broken shells. 

People are awesome. 

Don’t let the assholes make you forget that.

I think it’s awesome in every way that NASA is revisiting a successful program like the F1 with modern analysis….

I think it’s awesome in every way that NASA is revisiting a successful program like the F1 with modern analysis.  It’s super-awesome that they took a picture in front of one wearing appropriate ’60s regalia.

http://arstechnica.com/science/2013/01/saturn-v-moon-rocket-engine-firing-again-after-40-years-sort-of/

Hey G+

Hey G+,

For as long and as actively as I’ve been using and promoting you, and especially given your obsession with “Real Names”, it’s supremely fucked up that you still insist on calling me 110814948174584766402. #focusontheuser  

Vineet

The paper http://arxiv.org/abs/1212.1649 has some interesting things to say about the physics of Sudoku. What? The…

The paper http://arxiv.org/abs/1212.1649 has some interesting things to say about the physics of Sudoku.  What?  The physics of Sudoku?  Isn’t that the puzzle with the 9 by 9 grid of numbers?  Yes, but if you look at it in the right way, by introducing deliberate mistakes into the puzzle, you can interpret all this as a physical system with a Hamiltonian, exhibiting three phases: condensed, paramagnetic, and glass.  

The condensed state is the one that solves the puzzle, but the authors are quick to point out that this is not the purpose of the study!  The term glass refers to a brittle state that can be transformed into a molten, rubbery state, and the term paramagnetic usually refers to a material that is attracted by an external magnetic field, but does not retain any magnetization in the absence of the field.  

The Sudoku model is remarkable because there are relatively few simple models for frustrated or glassy systems which exhibit both “ordering” and “glass” transitions.  The unique solution of a Sudoku puzzle makes it a remarkably strong glass former.

These results initially sound surreal, but they have been published in the journal Physical Review E: http://pre.aps.org/abstract/PRE/v86/i3/e031109

#physics #statisticalmechanics #scienceeveryday