Stick this in your Equation and Solve it (Connor Davidson's Blog)

Funny Google AdWords Advert about Buying Cuvettes

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:04:00 +0000

There are very few adverts which so much as take a nod to any competition. This advert for cuvettes (a fancy containers used by chemists) makes a great exception.

Hans Rosling and Elizabeth Pisani Will Make you Re-Evaluate AIDS and HIV

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 14:17:00 +0000

I've noticed that people have slipped into a certain mindset regarding HIV and AIDS and are unwilling to budge. I hope these talks will make you think and perhaps re-evaluate your stance on this very important issue.

The True Meaning of DIY and Why That Smells

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 18:35:00 +0000

I'm currently sitting outside under a lovely gazebo which I helped put up. This was of course an easy project since it came with instructions which, as we all know, takes the fun out of it.

However, after the damn thing falling on my head, blowing over (resulting in "brickade") and generally doing its utmost to fall apart- not to mention that it started raining - I decided that DIY means Don't Involve Yourself.

But, then again, the finished product looks wonderful and despite all the annoyances that wouldn't have happened had I sat at my desk: I enjoyed it.

Therefore Don't Involve Yourself smells (I like saying that things smell - especially when its use is nonsensical) - you lose out on a bit of fun and the final product. Though, of course, I can't honestly be bothered to take that damn trappable down for someone and no I'm not doing that little job. Yes, I'll probably enjoy doing it but I still grumble about it.

I assure you that this makes a much sense to you as it does to me. Damn Illogical Yapping.

"Blog This" Extension for Chrome

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 20:53:00 +0000

You've probably noticed that for a while this blog was pretty inactive (i.e. dead) however I've decided to change the way I blog.

Recently I stumbled upon a Google Chrome extension that was called "Blog This" which now appears on my browser bar. This is a must for bloggers as it simplifies the blogging process. Find something to blog click the button and you're ready to post. The Google Blogger Boffins have done it again (the long awaited Stats tab being the other recent instance).

Furthermore, if you press the button on a specific page the application automatically places a link to that page. If you highlight text on that page to quote it automatically quotes it for you. This, I am sure, will prove very useful.

Two Great Talks About Choice: "The Art of Choosing" by Sheena Iyengar and the Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 16:14:00 +0000

Prior to watching these two videos I thought that choice was a simple everyday thing that required little thought and worked purely due to our analytical abilities. Well, so much for that furry little idea.

A Great Joke about Australian Football paraphrased from Down Under by Bill Bryson

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Mon, 24 May 2010 14:13:00 +0000

Currently I'm reading another one of "Bill's Adventures" - as the title implies, this time he is in Australia. While reading, I came across a good joke that epitomizes extreme sports obsession which I am fond of and would like to share.

Keeping with the nature of re-telling a joke, it will be true in meaning but different in wording. So here we go:

A man is at the grand finale of the tournament and the venue starts to fill up. Just before the game starts, the man notices that the seat next to him is empty. He is totally amazed to see it empty - the whole game was sold out weeks and weeks ago. He is so baffled he has to ask. So he asks the man next to the empty seat: "How come that seat empty?"

"It was my wife's - she never missed a game in her life" said the other man.

"Why is she not here today?" said the first man being rather nosy.

"She died."

"Oh I'm very sorry to hear that. But couldn't you have given it to a friend or relative? These seats cost a bomb."

"No. They're at the funeral."

One of the best Talks I've Ever Watched by Legendary Skeptic James Randi

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:38:00 +0000

I watched this TED Talk a while back and hugely enjoyed the way James Randi destroys everything psychic in the most humorous way possible.

Professor Layton and the Curious Village For the Nintendo DS - Is It A Puzzlingly Good Game?

noreply@blogger.com (Cameron Home) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:50:00 +0000

This blog post is written by Guest Writer Cameron Home

Let's be blunt. Yes. But let's go into more detail.

Professor Layton and the Curious Village is the first of 3 (soon to be 4) Professor Layton games. The Professor Layton series is about an archaeologist, Hershel Layton, and his assistant Luke Triton, as they solve mysteries.

The plot of the first game is that a woman needs to find her husband's treasure, so she gets Professor Layton to search for it. Sadly, the villagers are of little help, as they are puzzlingly confusing people, who only speak in riddles, or to be exact, puzzles.

And that's this game's niche. It's a puzzle game with a storyline. And an epic one at that. There are other mysteries apart from this item, but if I said what they were, then I'd spoil the story.

Let's break this review into a few categories, for easier reading.

Characters:The cast of characters in this game is brilliant. Each one is different, and each one is someone you'll either love, or love to hate. There is one that I think is one of the coolest characters ever, but he is one of the most spoilerific character ever.Professor Layton himself? He's interesting, but not brilliant.

Characters: 10/10

Story:Oh. Man. The story is so good. Twists are everywhere, and while some bits are predictable, some bits aren't. That's what makes the game good. While there are twists, there aren't so many that it gets annoying.

Story: 10/10

Voice Acting:That's right, this game has voice acting in it. I'd say that it's ace, but some of it isn't. In both the American and European versions, I think that Luke's accent doesn't sound like a proper British accent. But that might just be me. Apart from him, the voices are quite good.

Voice Acting: 7/10

Gameplay:Can be considered as the main aspect of any game. To be honest, there isn't tons of it outside of puzzles, but there still is quite a bit. Sadly, it's only moving from one place to another, with minigames which are okay, but not brilliant.

On the other hand, most of the puzzles are genius, and involve a lot of thinking. Sure, some are easy, but so many aren't that the quality of the game increases.

Gameplay: 8.5/10

Graphics and Music:

Finally, the graphics and music, which are the other two main aspects of games.

The graphics are ugly in a way, but are also quite good. On the other hand, the animated cutscenes just blew my socks off. The anime style is just amazing. If it weren't for those, graphics would get a lower score than it does.

Graphics: 4/5

The music is brilliant too, but the puzzle theme gets on your nerves after a while. IT'S TOO ADDICTING! But apart from that, I love the sound-track.

Music: 4/5

In conclusion, I recommend this game to all people who love to use their minds.

Overall: 43.5/50

Set Squares and Trousers - a Quick Thought to Ponder Today

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:46:00 +0000

I am a person who likes to ponder. I admit that at times I over-think about most things and indeed it is totally unnecessary in the grand scheme of things but, again, I quite like it. It’s fun (I know it’s a fragment and no I won’t revise).

So here are two thoughts for you to join me in pondering:
· Why is a set square a triangle?
· Why if you ask for a pair of shirts and a pair of trousers do you get two shirts and one “pair” of trousers?

Rock on Grandpa Jones

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 18:08:00 +0000

I hope you have heard of good old country music hall of fame member; the late Grandpa Jones. If not keep reading and you will.

Alright, let’s start at the beginning… the long distant beginning that people forget Grandpa ever had. He was born on the 20th of October 1913, in Kentucky USA. He started playing in 1932 but really got going in the latter part of his career when he started to appear on the Hee Haw show and at the Grand Old Opry.

I only recently found out the had an autobiography “Everybody's Grandpa: Fifty Years Behind The Mike” which I now really want to read. But being a book worm it will have to join the queue beyond the Restaurant at the end of the universe – which I want to read sometime too.

The thing I like most about Grandpa is the infectious passion he displays through his random jumping and crazy facial expressions. Aside from his stage antics, he is an absolutely incredible banjo player and possesses a phenomenal baritone voice.

On another note, I am particularly fond of his pronunciation of piano – I’m not being sarcastic. He pronounces it “pe-aner” I have watched the video back about 100 times and I still can’t get over it.
His most famous songs were:
· A Night Train to Memphis
· Are you from Dixie?
· Old Dan Tucker
· The Banjo am the instrument for me

Alas, he is no more. He died in 1998 but left behind him a legacy of great performances and some fantastic music. Though it is easy to look at Grandpa as a joke it should be noted that he was and will always be a fantastic musician. Not everyone gets into the country music hall of fame.

I know it’s a Fricken fragment – Why Does Microsoft Word not get it?

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:15:00 +0000

This is going to be a very short post and admittedly, it is going to be more a rant than anything else. It follows on from the last post as when I was typing it out I kept getting that green line kept popping up with every short sentence.

The problem I have is that I’m not in the wrong. It is grammatically correct but they (word) seems to disagree.

For example, if I you use minor sentences it is underlined as if it was a mistake. This is obviously not the case. This is because if you want to write a good piece of writing you have to employ literary techniques to make it more than just a list of dry facts. One of the techniques I like to use is short sentences. These short sentences can be used to emphasise a point and work very well when contrasting a series of long and descriptive sentences.

This I ask you: why does MS Word not like it? And, actually, why should I care?

Well, when I see that book at the bottom of the screen that has the cross up when I am in-fact correct gets on my nerves. So, dear Mr Word, I like to use short sentences for effect so could you please let me?

I know I’m being extremely pedantic about it and in the grand scheme of things it does not actually matter. Word is the best word processing software I have ever seen so I guess I should shut up now.

Sick Minds be Afraid be very afraid – here comes the Assumption Song

noreply@blogger.com (Connor Davidson) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:21:00 +0000

Once upon a weekend, I was searching Youtube as I was feeling generally unmotivated to do anything; so what do I do when in this situation? I would play the A-Team theme of course.

Except for this one time that I decided not to. Oh, no this time I used the search box as opposed to going through my playlist. So I was confronted by the suggestions drop down menu and up popped the Assumption Song. I clicked and watched it once. Refreshed to play it twice. By the third time I still wasn’t bored so watched it for a fourth time.

I just can’t get over the genius of the whole video. The way they use rhyme, character and setting to stimulate you to find euphemisms or innuendo is pure genius.

It seems in society (me sadly included) that you have to constantly watch what you say as it may contain some sexual connotations that were totally unintentional. For example, if I were to say to you: “sorry for coming [over] late, I was stuck in a tight traffic jam” what would you think? I’ll leave that one with you.

I will also leave this with you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TywmpMQYojs you’ve got to check it out. It’s hilarious.