So, I have forayed into the world of the stock market. I haven't made much considerable gains yet, my strategy is mostly a "buy-and-hold" technique for the long-term. Right now, I only recommend buying Apple (AAPL) stock as it gave me the biggest gains so far, and it is assumed to even rise even more. (I do regret selling some shares of it now to invest in 3D printing, but hey, that could give returns as well, so I'm not too bad).
My stock portfolio is a mix of North and South American company shares ranging from oil, to steel, to gold, to land, but the largest piece are technology stocks.
So yeah, right now, it's mostly a loss, because of the recession, but my strategy is long-term investing for the most part, as to avoid sentiments of fear and greed, the ever simple "buy low, sell high". I experimented with short-term gains, but the commission is too much of a factor for quick profits.
I also have my sights on options trading, but it's proving either complicated or that I do not have enough money to invest to start in it. I am studying it, to make preparations for the future.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Monday, August 5, 2013
Mindwrap: The Gutenberg Future
This is a thought experiment on the future of 3D printing and its impact. I would have classified it as AltHist, but it concerned more of our immediate and long term future.
This is the world of the Gutenberg Future.
Background:
The method of 3D printing, once the economical and technological hurdles will be overcome, represents the greatest potential of revolution for years to come. From Gutenberg, we have the printing press and the power of words... and thus with the portable, cheap 3D printer, we have the power of creating objects.
Economy:
The most obvious impact will be on the economy. Stores will become increasingly useless as consumers learn to simply print whatever object they want to acquire. Plastic objects are the most prolific, but printing of metals, food material, etc. appear as science advances. The 3D printers become cheaper, more portable, and more complex, along with computational power as with Moore's law, allowing for more complicated 3D objects. Common and mainstream brand names become less important, while specialty brand names do.
Education:
More classes will be devoted to 3D modeling and printing. It may start in existing art classes of schools and integrated in the curriculum of technical schools, then every school will soon have a specialized course or class dedicated to 3D modeling and printing.
Food:
The printing of food will start in gourmet kitchens and specialty chefs. If personal gardening (and even meat creation) is not made easy enough with the genetic and bio tech advancements, farms and markets for fresh produce and meats will still exist.
Culture:
Those who don't have 3D printing technology are at a great disadvantage, however, a sub-culture rises, somewhat reminiscing the hipster movement of the early 21st century that harkens back into antiquated styles.
Arts:
Those who expert modelers in 3D programs will become more commonplace, and their skills are important in the jobs market. Craftsmanship of the hands will still exists. Wood and stone creations will still enjoy popularity as art, symbolizing hard work and toil, especially for the rich. Clothes will still be manufactured by factories unless their is a technological leap in creating soft fibers. Once 3D printing or nanotechnology replicates wood and stone, those are seen as inferior.
Government:
The rise of the corporation and their scholarly offspring, the mathematician numecrats ("those that rule with numbers", also, numerati, as coined by Stephen Baker) create new government paradigms: the corpocracy and numecracy. There are more independent local regions.
Beyond Gutenberg:
Nanotechnology may be utilized and create Star Trek-like replicators. However, resources are still needed; there needs be some raw material and energy for nanobots to work on.
This is the world of the Gutenberg Future.
Background:
The method of 3D printing, once the economical and technological hurdles will be overcome, represents the greatest potential of revolution for years to come. From Gutenberg, we have the printing press and the power of words... and thus with the portable, cheap 3D printer, we have the power of creating objects.
Economy:
The most obvious impact will be on the economy. Stores will become increasingly useless as consumers learn to simply print whatever object they want to acquire. Plastic objects are the most prolific, but printing of metals, food material, etc. appear as science advances. The 3D printers become cheaper, more portable, and more complex, along with computational power as with Moore's law, allowing for more complicated 3D objects. Common and mainstream brand names become less important, while specialty brand names do.
Education:
More classes will be devoted to 3D modeling and printing. It may start in existing art classes of schools and integrated in the curriculum of technical schools, then every school will soon have a specialized course or class dedicated to 3D modeling and printing.
Food:
The printing of food will start in gourmet kitchens and specialty chefs. If personal gardening (and even meat creation) is not made easy enough with the genetic and bio tech advancements, farms and markets for fresh produce and meats will still exist.
Culture:
Those who don't have 3D printing technology are at a great disadvantage, however, a sub-culture rises, somewhat reminiscing the hipster movement of the early 21st century that harkens back into antiquated styles.
Arts:
Those who expert modelers in 3D programs will become more commonplace, and their skills are important in the jobs market. Craftsmanship of the hands will still exists. Wood and stone creations will still enjoy popularity as art, symbolizing hard work and toil, especially for the rich. Clothes will still be manufactured by factories unless their is a technological leap in creating soft fibers. Once 3D printing or nanotechnology replicates wood and stone, those are seen as inferior.
Government:
The rise of the corporation and their scholarly offspring, the mathematician numecrats ("those that rule with numbers", also, numerati, as coined by Stephen Baker) create new government paradigms: the corpocracy and numecracy. There are more independent local regions.
Beyond Gutenberg:
Nanotechnology may be utilized and create Star Trek-like replicators. However, resources are still needed; there needs be some raw material and energy for nanobots to work on.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor Revealed
Today at 7PM GMT(2PM EDT here), Peter Capaldi was announced to be the 12th incarnation of the Doctor.
Peter Capaldi has played Caecillius in Fires of Pompeii, and Frobisher in Torchwood: Children of Earth. He will fill the shoes of eleven actors before him. Glad to be part of the historic livestreaming event, compared to electing a Prime Minister!
Congratulations! The Doctor Who audience are in an uproar of mixed emotion. I for one have no great emotional response. I really liked Matt Smith, but I see the Doctor as one person, not 12-14 different people.
Enjoy this random video that doesn't represent my views, but does provide a perspective:
Peter Capaldi has played Caecillius in Fires of Pompeii, and Frobisher in Torchwood: Children of Earth. He will fill the shoes of eleven actors before him. Glad to be part of the historic livestreaming event, compared to electing a Prime Minister!
Congratulations! The Doctor Who audience are in an uproar of mixed emotion. I for one have no great emotional response. I really liked Matt Smith, but I see the Doctor as one person, not 12-14 different people.
Enjoy this random video that doesn't represent my views, but does provide a perspective:
Sunday, June 23, 2013
What is Module Failsafe?
What is Module Failsafe?
The plan module was conceived in 2012 to deal with the inevitable coming time of disaster and chaos. It contains:
1. One diamond engagement ring.*
2. Hotline to every dads' phone number in the world.
3. Portable time travel machine, a TARDIS will do.
4. Many, many prayers to God. And fasting. Yes.
Note: No courage is included, however, once this is activated, it is assumed there is a time pressure that might translate to courage.
*A 500-1000$ value
Break Only In Case Of Emergency.
The time is coming. >.<
The plan module was conceived in 2012 to deal with the inevitable coming time of disaster and chaos. It contains:
1. One diamond engagement ring.*
2. Hotline to every dads' phone number in the world.
3. Portable time travel machine, a TARDIS will do.
4. Many, many prayers to God. And fasting. Yes.
Note: No courage is included, however, once this is activated, it is assumed there is a time pressure that might translate to courage.
*A 500-1000$ value
Break Only In Case Of Emergency.
The time is coming. >.<
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
iTARDIS: Converting the iPod Touch into a Police Box
Ever dream of creating the ultimate Doctor Who themed iDevice? Well, apart from creating a TARDIS iPod from scratch, this is what you can do.
Steps:
1. Download a TARDIS police box wallpaper and TARDIS console wallpaper into your iDevice. Google Images will suffice. The Dropbox app is particularly helpful for taking images from your computer to your iPod, and that is how I downloaded it.Alternatively, you can search for the images, hold down your finger and "Save Image" will pop up. Check out how to save images from Safari here.
2. Go to the Camera app. Go to the Gallery of Photos. Set the TARDIS police box wallpaper as the Lock Screen of your iPod.
3. Set the TARDIS console wallpaper as the Home Screen of your iPod.
Voila, a smartphone that is bigger on the inside! Well, smartphones are already bigger on the inside, as one of my friends pointed out.
Optional:
1. Get a TARDIS iPod case. The ones they sell at the Doctor Who Experience museum are the best. However, it's only sold on that location, so I settled for a TARDIS Squigglecase.
2. Fill up your iPod with Doctor Who apps. There is a Doctor Who puzzle mobile game thingy, a Dalek synthesizer voice app, a third-party sonic screwdriver app... now if only I could find a proper time travel app, I shall be happy.
UPDATE:
There is now an official Sonic Screwdriver app, Virtual TARDIS app, and the Doctor Who: Legacy game!
Images used:
All rights reserved to their respective owners!
Update: Here are some more TARDIS consoles!
Update: Here are some more TARDIS consoles!
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Fanfiction: Jack And The Magic Bean
Read Jack And The Magic Bean by Karthey M
This fanfiction story about a Doctor Who/Stargate crossover is short but sweet. Composed of six chapters, it details the meeting of Jack O'Neill and the Doctor in what looks like to be a planet with original alien lifeforms, the Arnak.
Apparently, the Doctor is a Tollan ambassador, or rather, Earth's ambassador to the Tollans. I do think the latter is the case, but if the its the former it would be unclear what the relation of the Tollans, a Stargate civilization, is to Gallifrey, the planet where the Doctor hails. If parallels can be made, the Gallifreyan civlization is very similar to the Tollan civilization. One, they are both ancient and possess more advanced technology than the other races. Two, they both are isolationist, enigmatic, and arrogant. I'd imagine though that the Ancients have more in common with the Gallifreyan Time Lords.
The relationship of the Doctor to the American SG-1 is also a bit unclear, knowing that the Doctor also worked for the global UNIT in various circumstances, but enough about the ambiguities.
The author (whom I've known for quite some time and she can be a bit stubborn ;) presents the Doctor's eccentricities rather efficiently and accurately. I would think however that his conversational-style that he uses on the story does not always match up to Matt Smith's acting on the TV show. To be fair, the author manages to capture the fast-paced tone of the conversations.
The Doctor's companions, the Ponds, could've used a bit more character development. They hardly interact with the other characters, and somewhat seems to be there simply to explain what the Doctor is all about to the SG-1 team and to ask questions about Stargatey stuff in return.
I do think Stargate was more presented better than the Doctor Who part. The mannerisms of the Stargate characters were what I expect from the TV show.
The alien lifeforms, Arnak, are described as humanoid giants. Knowing both shows' obsessions of seeding humans around the galaxies with genetic anomaly, it shouldn't be a surprised. The threat of the Arnak dominating Earth and enslaving is not as compelling as I'd like. My sense of belief was shattered when a giant goose is introduced in the story. I know it was supposed to be like the story, and Doctor Who usually has a ridiculous animal aliens sometimes, but it just didn't fit, I think.
The story is supposed to be the origin of Jack and the Magic Bean legend on Earth. The best I can summarize the story without spoiling it for you ("Spoilers!"). Anyways, it was a fun read, but with a bit of tweaking and research, it would be a bit more enthralling. But excellent job, Karthey! :D
This fanfiction story about a Doctor Who/Stargate crossover is short but sweet. Composed of six chapters, it details the meeting of Jack O'Neill and the Doctor in what looks like to be a planet with original alien lifeforms, the Arnak.
Apparently, the Doctor is a Tollan ambassador, or rather, Earth's ambassador to the Tollans. I do think the latter is the case, but if the its the former it would be unclear what the relation of the Tollans, a Stargate civilization, is to Gallifrey, the planet where the Doctor hails. If parallels can be made, the Gallifreyan civlization is very similar to the Tollan civilization. One, they are both ancient and possess more advanced technology than the other races. Two, they both are isolationist, enigmatic, and arrogant. I'd imagine though that the Ancients have more in common with the Gallifreyan Time Lords.
The relationship of the Doctor to the American SG-1 is also a bit unclear, knowing that the Doctor also worked for the global UNIT in various circumstances, but enough about the ambiguities.
The author (whom I've known for quite some time and she can be a bit stubborn ;) presents the Doctor's eccentricities rather efficiently and accurately. I would think however that his conversational-style that he uses on the story does not always match up to Matt Smith's acting on the TV show. To be fair, the author manages to capture the fast-paced tone of the conversations.
The Doctor's companions, the Ponds, could've used a bit more character development. They hardly interact with the other characters, and somewhat seems to be there simply to explain what the Doctor is all about to the SG-1 team and to ask questions about Stargatey stuff in return.
I do think Stargate was more presented better than the Doctor Who part. The mannerisms of the Stargate characters were what I expect from the TV show.
The alien lifeforms, Arnak, are described as humanoid giants. Knowing both shows' obsessions of seeding humans around the galaxies with genetic anomaly, it shouldn't be a surprised. The threat of the Arnak dominating Earth and enslaving is not as compelling as I'd like. My sense of belief was shattered when a giant goose is introduced in the story. I know it was supposed to be like the story, and Doctor Who usually has a ridiculous animal aliens sometimes, but it just didn't fit, I think.
The story is supposed to be the origin of Jack and the Magic Bean legend on Earth. The best I can summarize the story without spoiling it for you ("Spoilers!"). Anyways, it was a fun read, but with a bit of tweaking and research, it would be a bit more enthralling. But excellent job, Karthey! :D
Saturday, May 4, 2013
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