Will and Beyond

DC Metro vs NYC Subway

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:47:13 EST

This isn't so much as a list of pros and cons of the two systems, more like lots of complaining about the DC Metro.^[1]

24 hour vs. Not: There isn't even much of a debate here, obviously having a 24 hour system is better than not. The DC system closes around midnight on weekdays and 3am on weekends. I'm not a huge late-night partier, but this has definitely inconvenienced me more than once. Maybe because they clean the whole system at night, since the DC system is cleaner than New York's. I'll take a 24 hour, dirty system anyday.

Single price vs. Cost by distance: In NYC it costs you $2 per ride no matter how far you go. In DC, the farther you go, the more you pay. NYC has talked about implementing such a system, but one of the biggest arguments against it is that it puts even more financial strain on people with less incomes (who can't afford to live in Manhattan). That same logic doesn't apply as much to DC since there seems to be wider spread of income both in DC itself and the surrounding areas (so far as I can tell). Regardless it's still a pain in the ass when I ride to the end of a line and see how much more I'm being charged.

Flat rate vs. Peak hours pricing: The other day I took the DC metro home from Franconia-Springfield at night (end of the line) and it cost me around $2. To get there (around 6pm) cost me more than $4. Absurdity. That's a kick in the ass to people who want to save money (and therefore less CO₂ emission) by using public transportation.

Another result of the latter two complaints: no monthly unlimited ride cards. Once again, kick in the ass to daily commuters. This doesn't affect me as much since I bike to school everyday, and wouldn't buy a monthly card anyway.

To be fair, the DC metro has three advantages:

1) A clean system. I would trade this for a 24 hour system, but it's nice.
2) Schedules. Supposedly NYC has this too, especially visible on the L, but it's nice to know exactly how long you'll be waiting once you get to the station.
3) Better cards. DC has nice cards which are magnetic and you can just tap. NYC has that too, but I never used it because it was only with Citibank, and incompatible with monthly cards. It's nice because I don't have to take a card out of my wallet, and can even just bump my ass against the reader.

Overall, the DC metro system isn't bad, but I miss the conveniences of the NYC subway.

[1]: This is completely unrelated to the recent, tragic red line accident, just coincidental timing.

[Photo: Flickr]
[Photo: Flickr]

Grown used to DC
Still miss parts of NYC
Always fun to rant

Godspeed.

Chichen Itza

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 09:08:04 EST

A few weeks ago when I was in Mexico, Dianna and I visited Chichen Itza, a site with lots of Mayan ruins. It was all very big and awesome looking; this particular site has the biggest Mayan pyramid: El Castillo.

The view was excellent, and it was really fun to see all of that stuff, but I was really excited to climb up. Unfortunately, as of less than a year ago, they no longer allow people to climb them; everything is roped off. I heard that they used to have ambulances on site because many people would fall and injure themselves, some even died (mostly old people).

I was tempted to climb up anyway. That way I would have been able to say that I climbed them and that I got to visit a Mexican jail. Oh well.

The rest of the site was interesting as well; there were lots of columns. These columns used to hold up ceilings as I understand, but somehow those collapsed and the columns stayed. Maybe they were restored?

I was always under the impression that step-pyramids were ziggurauts. From reading online, it seems that the ones here are pyramids. Is anybody able to clear this up for me? Anyway, if you ever have the chance, I highly recommend going.

Pyramids are fun
But it would have been better
If I got to climb

Godspeed.

Dooblet

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:13:06 EST

The best replacement for biology is chemistry.
The best replacement for chemistry is physics.^[1]
The best replacement for physics is engineering.

I first learned about Dooblet from an article by David Bradley, the science writer behind ScienceBase. Based on Google results, it provides alternatives. I can't think of many ways this can be useful, but it's fun.

Not all of the results make as much sense as the ones above, for instance:
The best replacement for fun is chow mein.^[2]

Using it find something to make for dinner would be one use, if it worked:
The best replacement for lasagna is lasagna.
Maybe they're just saying that you can't do better for dinner than lasagna.

Despite Dooblet's shortcomings, it redeems itself with:
Sorry, but there is nothing yet known as a replacement for naked.

Can you come up with any fun ones?

Edit: Almost forgot the classic:
The best replacement for religion is science.

[1]: Blatant lies.
[2]: Yes, I realize they're talking about fun, the Chinese noodles, but it still sounds weird.

Hmm, I wonder what's
Best replacement for haiku
Ode? Inferior.

Godspeed.

Coffee Rambling

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 19:59:09 EST

It's been a while since I've posted, partially because I was in Mexico for a week, (didn't get swine flu!) and partially laziness. Couldn't really think up an idea for a post here, so why not ramble on (not be confused with ranting) about one of my true loves, coffee.

If you're not already familiar with Lifehacker, it's a great site, and they have a lot of DIY stuff, including some stuff on coffee. As I've read the site, I've developed a list of coffee to-do's: DIY Espresso, adding herbal tea to coffee, cold-brewed ice coffee, and roasting my own beans. In fact, this is now my summer to-do list. Expect individual posts as each of these are completed. Feel free to chastise me for being flaky and unforgetful if I don't.

As of recently, I've begun drinking my coffee black, and have started to order straight espresso. I still have milk and sugar every once in a while (mostly when it's bad coffee), but I've begun to appreciate the deeper flavor of it. I started mostly cause it was harder to remember to restock milk, and I've never been a fan of those powdered non-dairy creamers. I don't think I'll ever go back.

I would love to make my own espresso some day, and it would be really fun to try and make some sort of espresso maker setup out of lab equipment. One day I really need to sit down and figure out the schematics for one, but for now I'll just stick to making coffee in the lab, using a regular coffee maker. A french press when I'm just making it for myself, and don't feel lazy; because making coffee with a french press is worth the effort.

Apparently an Aeropress is pretty similar to a french press, and takes less effort, so I should check one of those out. They get pretty rave reviews. (I guess this is another summer goal.)

That's pretty much all I feel like covering, before I bid you farewell, I'll leave you with a few more miscellaneous coffee links: a fun coffee cup from ThinkGeek, an amusing story from Not Always Right, and I highly recommend you check out Joel's posts on coffee over at Infiniflux.

Photo: [Flickr]
Photo: [Flickr]

Delicious coffee
Best when you just drink it black
So many to-dos

Godspeed.

Off to Mexico

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 05:17:11 EST

I'm off to Cancun now. Back in a week. Will visit some piggy farms to ensure that I bring back a fun souvenir.

[Photo: Flickr]

Warm, sunny beaches
A week without any lab
Mmm, Mexican food

Godspeed.

Frog Legs

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:48:05 EST

As I did last year, I went to Coney Island for Dustin's birthday, aka Coney Island Fun Day. (And yes, of course foursquare was played.) As usual we went to Nathan's. Instead of getting overpriced hot dogs or mediocre fries (the garlic ones were good, but those are gone now), I decided to try frog legs.

The great thing about getting seafood at Nathan's is that they have a separate, much shorter line for people getting it. Also, as long as you get seafood, you can still get hot dogs, or anything else.

This is the original Nathan's, where they hold the hot dog eating contest every July 4th, and during the summer, the line is always atrociously long.

Getting back to frog's legs, I whole-heartedly approve. They tasted like 70% fish, 30% chicken. I'd like to try them somewhere better than Nathan's; I imagine they would be even more scrumptious. As you can see in Dustin's hand, one looked a little weird, 2 got fried together or something.

Also, I tried a candy apple for the first time. More goodness.

(Don't forget to check the FlickrScrollr below.)

Mmm, amphibian
Fried, breaded, ready to eat
Coney Island fun!

Godspeed.

Humidity Sucks

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Sat, 23 May 2009 07:23:20 EST

I hate humidity with a fiery passion. As much as I already hate summer heat, humidity just magnifies it. West coast summers are fantastic; it can get hot, but none of the mugginess.

I've seriously considered moving into the lab for the summer, just to get rid of that period without A/C between my apartment and lab. Now that we have a couch in there, I could just sleep on that. I'd save on rent and make up for our shitty summer paychecks.

Someday I'll have a summer place in like Iceland.

[Photo: Flickr]

Ugh, gross and sticky
Humidity is too high
God I hate summer

Godspeed.

Oxygen Video

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Mon, 18 May 2009 06:43:20 EST

Kind of reminds me of the Chemical Party, but much prettier.

[Via: Chemistry Blog]

Oh, poor Oxygen
He just can't make any friends
Oh so reactive

Godspeed.

TwitScoop

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Sun, 17 May 2009 21:54:22 EST

I wonder if anything newsworthy happened recently... TwitScoop is one of the panels you can install on TweetDeck and is nice for seeing breaking news.

Twitter twitter tweet
California earthquakes
Lots of aftershocks

Godspeed.

Lab Couch

will@willandbeyond.com (will) — Thu, 14 May 2009 19:39:48 EST

Luckily, our department wanted to get rid of the old couch and get a new one. With some rearranging, we were able to fit it in our lab.

Now our lab is complete. Today I christened it with a 10 minute nap. Mmm...

So comfortable
It's asbestos-filled pleather
And next to my desk

Godspeed.