"F@#$ it! We'll do it live!"

Inspired by O'Reilly's viral rant and the prolific work of YouTuber PatrickJMT, I decided to experiment with a different format: live voice-over with minimal editting. The pros: no post makes cranking out videos a cinch. The cons: the videos are far less polished, and possibly less effective in conveying the information.

 

 

 

How to Row Reduce like Dr. Seuss

Oh, all those numerous and nasty equations!

All the plugging and chugging, it takes too much patience.

I've got just the thing for such an awful occasion:

It's mighty, it's sleighty! It's Gauss-Jordan Elimination!

 

First, our equations enjoy preparation.

Each variable is queued in ascending gradation.

Once aligned and accounted, their nice numeral agents,

Get bumped to a matrix in corresponding locations.

 

Next, we apply a few matrix operations:

Addition and subtraction. Division, multiplication.

Yes, our rows are massaged with arithmetication,

Until they're reduced to the simplest notation.

 

Lo', all of our multiplex math manueveration,

Concludes with a comely, concise configuration.

The name of this sexy and subtle sophistication?

She goes by Row Reduced Echelon Formation.

 

To the left: a delightful diag-one-alation.

To the right: our solutions, in column notation. 

Such a time-saving tool! Such a cool calculation!
It's mighty, it's sleighty! It's Gauss-Jordan Elimation!

 

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." - William Butler Yeats

And edutainment is making that fire dance to music! Given the simplicity of construction and operation of a Rubens' Tube, coupled with the enthusiasm it generates in the classroom, this totally tubular device is near the top of my must-have demo list. The stellar song in this video was written by bassist Andrew Kratzat.

You hear that, Mr. Anderson? That is the sound of Row Reduced Echelon Form.

If I had to pick between bullet-dodging skills and linear algebra skills, I'd probably go with bullet-dodging skills. But since Mythbusters already demonstrated that bullet-dodging is not an aquirable skill for mere mortals, I decided to make a video tutorial on Kirchoff's Rules using linear algebra.

One atom. Two forces. And a physics problem that will change the way you see the world.

The gravitational force governs the motions of solar systems and galaxies. But in the atomic realm, the electric force is king. In this problem, we compare these two fundamental forces using the proton and electron pair in the Bohr Model of the Hydrogen Atom (BMOTHA). The result will shock you! (Bah-dum-pshhhh!)

One fish, Two fish, Red fish, Dinner.

From the air track to the particle collider, the Principle of Conservation of Linear Momentum (POCOLM) is one of the most useful tools we have to predict, explain or analyze the outcomes of an exchange of force. I felt compelled to make this particular collision more interesting than other intro-to-POCOLM classics: bodies-on-ice (ooooh) or particles-in-space (aaaah). So here we have two fish colliding in an inviscid lake (one of the lesser prominent locales of Physicsland). Enjoy!

When the prof's in the crib, ma'...

(... drop it like it's hot.) One of the first topics in an introductory physics course is falling bodies and impact speeds. Analyzing the motion of a dropped object turns out to be relatively simple - negecting air resistance, of course. In this video we determine the impact speed of a dropped body using The Big Three (a.k.a. the Kinematic Equations) and some simple algebra.

Zepplin rules! So does Kirchoff.

I was incredibly flattered that so many folks - from so many different places! - enjoyed my lecture video of Kirchoff's Rules that I posted on YouTube for my students at Henry Ford Community College. I was also a bit perplexed. Why did so many folks skip over the higher quality tutorials to watch fuzzy old me scrawling on a whiteboard? The answer, I found, was because high quality videos explaining physics don't really exist... yet.

This blog, and the embedded videos, are my humble attempt to remedy that situation. And get rich and famous. (What? A guy can have delusions of grandeur, can't he?) I hope that my efforts are helpful to many and enjoyable to most.

Hello, world.

when you give the proper tools

"Give the proper tools to a group of people who like to make a difference, and they will."

when you help a person up a hill

"when you help a person up a hill, you come so much closer to the top yourself." - anonymous

truth is strongest

"Wine is strong,
 the King is stronger,
 women are strongest,
 but TRUTH conquers all."
      
 - translation of an inscription in the Rosslyn Chapel (near
   Edinburgh, Scotland).  The original reads "FORTE EST VINUM, FORTIOR
   EST REX, FORTIORES SUNT MULIERES: SUPER OMNIA VINCIT VERITAS" and
   is taken from Chapter 3 of Esdras in the Apocrypha.

Video blooper on guitarlessons.blogspot.com

I've added a video blooper over at guitarlessons.blogspot.com I'd be so embarrassed if people saw this. Oops.

david snider's photography and multimedia

i really admire the quality of the photographic and multimedia storytelling that david snider does.

announcement from Apple

Apple Computer is going to make an important announcement April 18, 2004 at NAB.

memory effect

i keep forgetting which kinds of batteries have a memory effect. my friend luke tells me:

batteries that have memory effect:

normal alkaline batteries*
rechargeable alkalines
nicads
most older Li-ion (like the kinds laptops have)
wet cell batteries** like car and UPS batteries


* there are chargers that can charge normal batteries
** I'm not sure about that

END

you have to sing your own tune

You have to sing your own tune in order for harmony to work.

declaration of the independence of cyberspace

a declaration of the independence of cyberspace.

distance is no longer relevant

distance is no longer relevant. bandwidth is relevant.

guitar lessons

i'm having fun teaching guitar lessons to youth and adults -- in person and via videoconference. i'm also creating some quicktime files to help people learn guitar at no-cost. (thanks, roger mcguinn, for the idea.) the river flows. it flows to the sea. it flows thru the web into people's minds, too.

all i wanted was to be free. and that's the way, it turned out to be.