Month: January 2009
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my ears! my ears!
I caught this article in the NYTimes this morning talking about a new software product by Microsoft – Songsmith. Basically, the software allows you to sing in vocals. It then generates the music to accompany your vocals based on preferences you set (e.g., lighter or darker mood, rhythm, beat, etc.). The original advertisement video by…
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baby names (part 2)
First, thank you to everyone who submitted a possible name. We ended up with a list of about 50 names. After an exhaustive debate (I’m nursing a seriously bruised ego), we have narrowed the list down to 13 names we like. We’re now hoping people will vote for their favorite name and let us know…
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20 week ultrasound
Debi had her 20 week ultrasound today, which is traditionally the ultrasound when the sex is determined. The baby didn’t really want to participate when it came to determining the sex. It waved: Sat back and relaxed: And generally tried to make it difficult for us to determine its sex. The baby had its legs…
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baby/life updates
Debi is pretty sure she can feel the baby moving as of today. It’s a much better feeling than the baby insisting she expel her leftover ravioli from dinner the other night. 🙁 Here’s how the conversation went when she told me she felt movement: Debi: The baby is moving. Ryan: Where to? Do you…
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insurance discounts
Not sure if anyone will be interested in this, but I occasionally talk about this issue in my classes and finally found a document to illustrate my point. Our health care system in the US makes little to no sense, in large part due to health insurance companies. From what I understand, health insurance companies…
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I’m all the rage in South Dakota!
Okay, so I’m prone to hyperbole. Anyway, Debi found a blog by a Ken Blanchard, a commentator on politics in South Dakota, who mentioned Sociology’s distaste for all things genetic and biological. As a sociologist who embraces biological explanations for behaviors where appropriate and supports sociobiology, I had to comment. He liked my comment enough…
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everglades, Miami Beach, and someone famous!
Last year we snuck away during our winter break for a quick getaway to Myakka River State Park. This year we opted for a quick weekend getaway to the Everglades. We were waiting to arrange the trip based on the schedule of the contractors who are working on our house. As seems to often be…
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holiday activities
I’ve been busy reading and reviewing books, but I thought I should do a quick recap of a few holiday activities. On December 20th we went to a play with some friends who recently moved in across the street. The play was “A Dickens’ Christmas Carol: A Traveling Travesty in Two Tumultuous Acts” by the…