Ian Robinson's Soapbox

Pimping God to sell your book

Ian Robinson — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 18:46:16 +0000

You may have noticed that Stephen Hawking has a new book out. He has been poking the beehive by declaring that science does not need to make reference to God to explain the Universe.

I have no problem with this. It’s a simple fact. The more we discover about the Universe the less there is room for the Abrahamic God as depicted in the 3 major religions that came out of the Near East. In fact it’s been decades since the claims to said deity have been falsified.

What I do have a small problem with is the way that scientists revert to the God device when addressing certain cosmological concepts. Examples like ‘The God Particle’ for the Higgs Boson, and Hawking’s last line in his eponymous book ‘A Brief History Of Time’. It’s annoying. More importantly it’s a poor use of language. It gives the impression that scientists such as Hawking and Higgs buy into the deity fallacy. Which they patently don’t.

I wish that science communicators would refrain from using this term when explaining current theories and hypotheses. Even if they do want publicity in he week their book hits the shelves and eStores!

Like the new Amazon Kindle

Ian Robinson — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:19:16 +0000

Had a play with Ian Moran’s new Amazon Kindle this morning. Very nice indeed. It has the same screen as my Sony PRS-505 eInk reader. The new Kindle is much better to look at than the previous model. If I was buying an eInk device in the UK I’d get the new Kindle. The Sony PRS-300 has a better form factor I think, but the Kindle Store and the easy access to content trumps it in the UK. In North America the Sony Store might make me choose the Sony over the Kindle.

Amazon Associates link above.

Not doing a Math degree

Ian Robinson — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 14:20:46 +0000

Have decided not to do a mathematics degree via the OU as I mulled about in a previous post. I’m going to do self study for a few years using the books in the picture. Click on the picture for a larger view. I already have these books. So in addition it’s free entertainment and fits into my larger plan to pay off everything I owe and get to a debt free state as soon as possible (including paying of my mortgage).

Thinking of doing an OU physics & maths degree

Ian Robinson — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 10:52:13 +0000

Debating the idea of taking 6 years to do a part time physics and maths degree via The Open University. Just to give me a framework to teach myself maths. I really have a bee in my bonnet about learning maths. It’s like my own Mount Everest. The modules leading to the degree would be:

MU123 – Discovering mathematics
MST121 – Using mathematics
MS221 – Exploring mathematics
MST209 – Mathematical models and methods

S207 – The physical world
S282 – Astronomy

S382 – Astrophysics
S383 – The relativistic universe
SM358 – The quantum world
SXP390 – Science project course: radiation and matter

Then again I might just do it self study via books I’ve got and not get the degree. I’ve got one already Could do a Masters in something else to get more paper!

Always been an atheist

Ian Robinson — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 15:22:37 +0000

In response to the blog post by Dad Who Writes, about his journey from Catholicism to atheism I thought I would post here what I said in the comments to his blog post.

I don’t have a similar journey to share. I’ve always been an atheist. My parents were not religious. They did force me to go to Sunday School for a few months (so I would see what it was about) but I didn’t buy into any of the God stuff. This was a Church of Ireland protestant Sunday School. I have a brother 12 years older than me so when I was growing up I was reading his science and engineering books. I think I started to tell people I didn’t believe in God from around the age of 8 or so.

iPad as a blogging tool

Ian Robinson — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 20:39:36 +0000

Testing the WordPress app on my iPad. When I get my new Vodafone MiFi I’ll be using the iPad when out and about a lot more than my MacBook Pro. I also want to do a lot more blogging on a diverse range of subjects. Mainly from airports I expect

Well if you can see this post then the WordPress app works!

First Light…

Ian Robinson — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 17:34:39 +0000

So the fabled Guyton guitar arrived this week. I will do a post soon with detailed pictures and comments on the build quality (it’s stunning!). Here is a short noodle entitled First Light so you can hear the tone. This is just a noodle of some scales and chords (including a missed D Chord near the end!). It was captured in Guitar Rig 4 using the preset 015 (Comp Plex Driven – MC). I’m going to enjoy playing with this. Very rusty after being 15 months without an electric. But plenty of time now to practice and create

My Guitar is ready…

Ian Robinson — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:38:51 +0000

My new guitar is finally ready. Here’s an new picture of it. Should have it soon.

Another orbit of Sol completed…

Ian Robinson — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 23:05:39 +0000

Well that’s another orbit of Sol completed. I’ve now done this 46 times. I’m hoping for another 54. At least!

Mac alternatives to the Adobe CS Apps

Ian Robinson — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 20:05:53 +0000

I recently installed Adobe Creative Suite 4 on my Macintosh. I wanted to use Photoshop for some graphical work, and InDesign for technical document creation. I unselected all the other components that I didn’t want to install. After the installer was finished I had a several, 8 or 9 if I recall correctly, new folders in my Application folder with various Adobe apps in them. I was only installing 2 apps. Why all the other folders? This should have been a sign that Adobe are now pedlars of bloatware. The running apps themselves were slow on my MacBook Pro (2.8Ghz C2D, 4GB Ram and 7200rpm disk machine).

I uninstalled the whole lot. Well I tried. The uninstall option left several bits of Adobe detritus in my Applications folder and in my Preferences Folder. I deleted that manually.

Bye-bye and good riddance Adobe CS. Maybe CS 5 will be different but I doubt it. Given their poor record with the Mac version of Flash I don’t have much hope for their other Adobe produced Macintosh software in the near future. BTW if you haven’t installed ClickToFlash on your Mac, to control Flash loading when browsing, I’d recommend you do so as soon as possible.

Below are some links for alternatives to the Creative Suite Apps. These might fit your needs better than the full Adobe CS offerings. These may not have all the same features of Creative Suite applications, but they are lightweight, easier to use and probably better for most non-professionals. However, some of those listed below are probably better for professionals. Final Cut and Soundtrack, for example.

Alternatives to Photoshop

Pixelmator – http://www.pixelmator.com/
Acorn – http://www.flyingmeat.com/acorn/
GraphicConverter – http://www.lemkesoft.com/content/188/graphicconverter.html
GNU Image Manipulation Program – http://gimp.lisanet.de/Website/News/News.html

Alternatives to inDesign

Pages – http://www.apple.com/uk/iwork/pages/what-is-pages.html
Swift Publisher – http://www.belightsoft.com/products/swiftpublisher/overview.php

Alternatives to Adobe Acrobat

Skim – http://skim-app.sourceforge.net/

Alternatives to Dreamweaver

RapidWeaver – http://www.realmacsoftware.com/rapidweaver/

Alternatives to Illustrator

EasyDraw – http://eazydraw.com/
OmniGraffle – http://www.omnigroup.com/products/omnigraffle/

Alternatives to Premier Pro

iMovie – http://www.apple.com/uk/ilife/imovie/
Final Cut Pro – http://www.apple.com/uk/finalcutstudio/
Final Cut Express – http://www.apple.com/uk/finalcutexpress/

Alternatives to Soundbooth

Soundtrack Pro – http://www.apple.com/uk/finalcutstudio/soundtrackpro/
Fission – http://rogueamoeba.com/fission/

Alternatives to After Effects

Motion – http://www.apple.com/uk/finalcutstudio/motion/

I’ll add to this list if any others come to my attention. I might add some options for Microsoft Windows based users as well. Feel free to give me your suggestions for either Macintosh or Windows apps that do any of the functions shown in the lists.

The Continuing Adventures of Lapat and Lavu: Part 1

Ian Robinson — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 20:49:07 +0000

Before going any further you have to read this short Frank Herbert story Frogs and Scientists.

Okay. A continuation set in the same Universe.

The Continuing Adventures of Lapat and Lavu: Part 1

Lavu sat in a ventilation shaft and looked down onto the central concourse of Green Section. A breeze whispered through the mesh grill that covered the end of the shaft. A babble of voices from the people on the concourse mixed with a hum of machinery from deep in the ship.

“Here you are,” said Lapat, coming up behind him. “I’ve been looking for you.”

“I have been observing the humans.” Lavu responded.

“Ah. You wish to be like the Scientists then?”

“I do. I like what you have told me about the Scientists”.

“And have you discovered anything in your studies?” Lapat asked the younger frog.

“I think so.”

“Tell me.”

“I have watched the human female and male we observed before, near the hydroponics trough. They are always together now. I see them clasping hands and pressing lips together. They also feed together and share food.”

“And what do you make of this?”

“I think it is part of the mating. A later stage after the displaying of the primary skin by the female. I think that the clasping of hands and pressing of lips is done to confirm the mating. The feeding is to bond their pairing.”

Lapat pondered this for a while whilst Lavu watched him and waited.

“Your hypothesis has merit,” Lapat said after a while. “However I have already ascertained that the mating occurs in the Clinic Section of the ship. The human females and males enter a special room with white walls and infant humans are budded from them. I have observed this.”

Lavu sighed and again looked down at the concourse.

“Do not be disheartened!” Lapat said to him. “I know that all Scientists have to be wrong many times before they know how a thing works. Even I have been wrong about many things. You will be a great Scientist one day. Come! Let us go to the central greenhouse and count the insects and maybe find some lunch.”

Tip of the hat to Rebecca Hall for proofing. All errors in the above are however mine.

Political change

Ian Robinson — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:11:08 +0000

I’ve been a supporter, and occasional member, of the Conservative Party since 1979. I started supporting them when I was about 15 during the Winter of Discontent. Labour were then, and are now, a political and actual disaster for the UK. The election of Margaret Thatcher’s conservative administration was the best thing that happened to this country for a long while.

Times change and people change. I’ve certainly changed in the years since 1978. The idealistic 15 year old boy is now a 45 year old man (who still has an idealistic 15 year old lurking within!). Of the 3 main political parties in the UK I think that my current world view and outlook is best matched by the Liberal Democrats.

In Northern Ireland the Liberal Democrats are allied with The Alliance Party. You can’t vote for the Liberal Democrats directly. This is a pity. Hopefully it will change at some point.

In the forthcoming election I will be voting Alliance and will be donating to the Liberal Democrats. My vote will not change the MP that is elected in the East Belfast constituency. It will however make it easier for me to look in the shaving mirror.

I hope that the Liberal Democrats get the chance to lead this country in to the 21st century to a fair, and liberal environment for all.

Album of the year contenders for 2010

Ian Robinson — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 19:43:34 +0000

And off we go again. I kept a list of album of the year contenders last year and picked my favourite in December. I will be doing the same this year. As I buy new albums this year I’ll update this list and pick my favourite after Christmas. Last year was a bumper year for brilliant new music in my opinion. Arguably the best year for new albums that I liked since 1975, which is when I started buying albums with my own (pocket) money. The albums listed here will not be in any order of preference during the year.

First addition to the list is The Family Jewels from Marina & the Diamonds [Listen on Spotify. Buy on Amazon or iTunes. Follow Marina on Twitter]. I first discovered Marina via a tweet on Twitter early in 2009. The songs available then were brilliant. Tracks like I Am Not A Robot, Obsessions and Mowgli’s Road for example. I got to see Marina live at the iTunes Live Festival in July at the Roundhouse in Camden [Buy on iTunes]. She was excellent live. A brilliant voice delivering her very good songs. The new album that has just come out doesn’t disappoint. The new tracks added to the existing tracks are very good. I like Shampain and Girls especially. Definitely a album everyone needs to buy.

More albums will be added to this list as 2010 progresses. Well, hopefully. If good albums are released

What are my #goodiphoneapps

Ian Robinson — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 22:47:18 +0000

Here are the iPhone apps that I use the most. This list doesn’t include any of the built in apps like iPod, Safari, Mail, Voice Recorder, Clock etc. that get used all the time. Everyone has those. The #goodiphoneapps comes from Twitter. It is a hastag that is used to flag tweets about iPhone apps people like. Here are my favourites then. In no particular order. This is just the start of the list. More to add.

Fizz Weather – My favourite weather app on the iPhone. Has lots of options including 2, 5 and 15 day views. Weather warnings. Satellite views.

PCalc – A brilliant replacement calculator. It has all the functions you would expect from a physical scientific calculator. Adheres well to the metaphor that iPhone apps should look, feel and act like the real world devices they replace.

Stanza – a book reader and ebook library management application. Turns your iPhone or iPod touch into an eBook reader. The iPhone is a very nice eBook device indeed when using this app.

Groceries – The Grocery Shopping List – Neat little app that allows you to build a shopping list as you remember things you need. Then when you get to the supermarket you can check them off as you shop.

My album of the year for 2009

Ian Robinson — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:28:29 +0000

I listed my shortlist of 11 albums for my choice of album of the year in a previous Soapbox post. All of these albums are brilliant and are worth multiple listens. But I said I would pick 1 of them as the best of the year. My pick of the year is Blue Roses from Laura Groves.

It was close as they are all great albums.