A Squeaker November 29, 2007
Posted by Lee in Scrabulous.add a comment
My first game with HWM was incredibly close. I didn’t know that hockey fans knew this many words. He was leading right up to the end, and must have been left with a slate full of tiles because there’s no way I could really win by 20 points. My last play of 9 points (“Gyp”) was complete luck.
Instant Translation November 27, 2007
Posted by Lee in French, Publishing.1 comment so far
As you can imagine from a person who does hand translations, I’ve got some strong opinions regarding automatic machine translations. These opinions extend not only to linguistic-based methods like BabelFish, but also to online dictionaries. Some dictionaries are very good (Google and Collins Robert, for example), while others have little quality control.
Today, though, I was excited to see a new service come online: Lingro. Granted, it is using various open sources for its wordbase, but the gem it is its speed and convenience.
For example, click here to see one of my recent French stories page as viewed through Lingro.
Every word on the page is actually a link. Click on a word to see the translation. In many cases, you can hear the word pronounced! (The correct translations, in this case, are personne = “no one” and parmi= “among”.)
The site allows you to enter any site you want for this word-by-word translation, and you can help the project (just underway) by suggesting new translations or linking current ones.
There’s a bookmarklet to drag onto your toolbar, and a really fast search-as-you-type dictionary.
Finally, as a French language learner, I appreciate their word list function, a repository of the words I clicked on. Nice.
Undercover restorers fix Paris landmark’s clock November 26, 2007
Posted by Lee in French.add a comment
The Panthéon is an incredibly interesting building. It has been several things, including a church and a scientific laboratory. I’ve visited several times and have even done some research on the history of the building.
In 1851, Léon Foucault was the first person to definitively demonstrate that the earth rotates on its axis. To do so, he suspended a large pendulum from the tallest structure he could find — the dome of the Panthéon — and let it trace out a pattern on the floor. Since the pendulum was technically swinging independently from the axis of the earth, the pattern on the floor changed direction with every swing.
The swing of a pendulum is related to its length, hence the need for a giant one.
Curiously, although you can still see the apparatus at the Panthéon, you have to go to the Musée des Arts et Métiers to get a demonstration.
(Via The guardian .)
Ross Wins! November 25, 2007
Posted by Lee in Scrabulous.1 comment so far
It’s now 1-1 between Ross and me.
My First Wikipedia Article November 24, 2007
Posted by Lee in Publishing.Tags: Clix, Wikipedia
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I’ve been editing, translating, and proofreading on Wikipedia-en for a while, but until now I’ve never had a reason to start an article from scratch.
However, a recent post from Linda’s trivia gave me the chance. One of the labels I used in the quiz was from the original malt liquor: Clix, made by the Grand Valley Brewing Company in Ionia, Michigan. Nothing was to be found on the ‘pedia, so I quickly learned about creating articles, references stubs, etc.
I keep massaging the post to make it conform, but you can see the current status here.
Google Maps allows users to redefine markers November 23, 2007
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Google Maps allows users to redefine markers
I’ve been wondering when we’d be allowed to do this. I constantly find small errors, including the address for my home in Cary, that I want to fix. I’ve also done my share of damage from the other end: established a marker that’s a block off, or across the street from, where I intended it.
Google will only allow a move of 200 yards without its approval, and users will not be allowed to move markers for essential services – such as police stations, hospitals, or schools – as well as any business that is registered with the company’s Local Business Center.
(Via Washington Post.)
Hubert B. Titcomb (1901- 1998) November 22, 2007
Posted by Lee in Uncategorized.1 comment so far
Today was Thaksgiving, so I made my normal trip home.
One person that was not at the thanskgiving table was my maternal grandfather, who died in 1998. Quite the character, he’s the only person I’ve ever met that literally ran away to join the circus. At 17, he joined the Circuit Chautauqua as a tent driver, later progressing to a dancer who specialized in the Russian Cossak.
For my entire life, he and my grandmother lived in Oriental, NC, in a two-bedroom ranch with a large central room that he designed himself. In his small den, where he used a black-and-white TV well into the 1980s, hung a picture of the silent film star William S. Hart. He drew this pointillistic picture himself in the 1920s, and by the time I inherited it, it had turned quite sepia and brittle. I’ve scanned, saved, and gray-scaled it to WikiCommons, where it’s now released into the public domain. You can see his signature along the sleeve.
After removing it from its frame, I discovered that in fact this was merely a page from his drawing book. On the back of the Hart drawing, I discovered this picture of (I suppose) a baseball player. It hadn’t seen the light of day in decades. I often wonder if this, too, was someone.
Both pictures are in my SAS office, which you can see just behind my head for the photo from another post:
Beer Quiz November 21, 2007
Posted by Lee in Trivia.3 comments
Inspired by round 3 at Linda’s last night, here are several beer logos/labels, with some (or all) of the English text removed. I thought the quiz was easy, so I’ve beef it up by adding some lesser-known beers.
Trivia from Linda’s November 21, 2007
Posted by Lee in Trivia.add a comment
According to AssociatedContent.com, name the top ten Mafia movies of all time (critic-rated, not box office).
Hint, sort of: One of these movies is the original, not the 1983 Brian De Palma remake.
I killed Mom November 19, 2007
Posted by Lee in Scrabulous.add a comment
…in a Scrabulous game. Since I’m about to lose to Ross, I have to celebrate small victories.
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