Monday, January 31, 2005
Pictures are worth 1,000 words - so let's get efficient
Why write stuff here, when I can put it in captions on my pictures? Look at all my Webshot photos. Maybe you can tell me why 2,600 people a WEEK look at these pictures?!?!? Insanity!
Friday, January 21, 2005
When all else fails, just lower your standards
We have just been notified that the U.S. Department of Education has approved our Department's request to modify Missouri's targets for Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for 2005. These targets were originally established in 2003 and are a part of the official "Accountability Workbook" that Missouri is required to submit to the U.S. Department of Education under No Child Left Behind.
Missouri's state-level AYP targets were scheduled to take a big jump in 2005. As a result, we would expect that a large number of schools in the state probably would not meet the AYP goals next year. It is also understood that we will be introducing revised and additional MAP exams in the spring of 2006, and it will be necessary at that time to revise the progression of annual AYP targets leading up to the year 2014, when all students are expected to achieve proficiency. Because our new statewide testing program is still fluid, we requested the opportunity to amend our existing AYP targets for 2005 in order to limit the negative consequences for schools across the state.
I am grateful that federal officials granted us this flexibility to amend our accountability plan. As a result of this revision, the 2005 AYP target in communication arts will be 26.6%, instead of the previous target of 38.8%. The 2005 AYP target in mathematics will be 17.5%, instead of the previous target of 31.1%.
While this revision in our timetable does not change the ultimate goal of 100 percent of the students being proficient in 2014, these amended targets are still demanding for many schools and far more realistic than the original targets.
Missouri's state-level AYP targets were scheduled to take a big jump in 2005. As a result, we would expect that a large number of schools in the state probably would not meet the AYP goals next year. It is also understood that we will be introducing revised and additional MAP exams in the spring of 2006, and it will be necessary at that time to revise the progression of annual AYP targets leading up to the year 2014, when all students are expected to achieve proficiency. Because our new statewide testing program is still fluid, we requested the opportunity to amend our existing AYP targets for 2005 in order to limit the negative consequences for schools across the state.
I am grateful that federal officials granted us this flexibility to amend our accountability plan. As a result of this revision, the 2005 AYP target in communication arts will be 26.6%, instead of the previous target of 38.8%. The 2005 AYP target in mathematics will be 17.5%, instead of the previous target of 31.1%.
While this revision in our timetable does not change the ultimate goal of 100 percent of the students being proficient in 2014, these amended targets are still demanding for many schools and far more realistic than the original targets.
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
WD-40 is there anything you can't do?
iWon News: "The makers of the handy spray lubricant WD-40 proudly list 2,000 uses for their product, from unsticking rusty screws or squeaky bicycle chains to polishing frying pans.
But British police have found another -- keeping the public from snorting cocaine off toilet lids in bars.
Police in the English city of Bristol said Tuesday they have been advising pub and nightclub owners to spray the colorless lubricant on toilet seats and other flat surfaces in the lavatory that customers often use to snort drugs."
Response Type 1: Now if we can just wrap duct tape around every syringe on the planet we'll have the heroin problem solved too!
Response Type 2: What happened to the good old days of snorting it off a hooker's ass? Should we WD-40 that too?
Response Type 3: So THAT'S why Shakespeare's Pizza sells WD-40!
But British police have found another -- keeping the public from snorting cocaine off toilet lids in bars.
Police in the English city of Bristol said Tuesday they have been advising pub and nightclub owners to spray the colorless lubricant on toilet seats and other flat surfaces in the lavatory that customers often use to snort drugs."
Response Type 1: Now if we can just wrap duct tape around every syringe on the planet we'll have the heroin problem solved too!
Response Type 2: What happened to the good old days of snorting it off a hooker's ass? Should we WD-40 that too?
Response Type 3: So THAT'S why Shakespeare's Pizza sells WD-40!
Big Bang is a myth
Isn't it imaginable that everything in the universe is just orbiting around everything else? The Big Bang seems like an idea that they came up with when other stuff just didnt work out - everything exploding out of one single point? Sounds pretty precise - plus, how long did it stay in this form before deciding to split apart? Too many questions. I've got plenty to do - why must I continue to type about this pointless subject? Damn you Blogger.com - my latest nemesis.
Mars dust
iWon News: "If sand is continually blowing in and being deposited on the surface, burying things and building up terrain over time, meteorites will be covered and few will be seen, rover mission scientist Steve Squyres said Tuesday.
But if fine surface material is being continuously stripped away by the wind, coarse things such as meteorites will be left behind and their accumulation will show."
-If the dirt is stripped away, where does it actually go? The Amazing Steve predicts the findings will be that 'winds both periodically deposit and strip away surface sediments'. Look at the Earth - the Sahara has moved great distances over time - areas once dry are now forests. I dont think that little rover can figure out Mars by sniffing one rock.
But if fine surface material is being continuously stripped away by the wind, coarse things such as meteorites will be left behind and their accumulation will show."
-If the dirt is stripped away, where does it actually go? The Amazing Steve predicts the findings will be that 'winds both periodically deposit and strip away surface sediments'. Look at the Earth - the Sahara has moved great distances over time - areas once dry are now forests. I dont think that little rover can figure out Mars by sniffing one rock.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
An open letter to clippy
Clippy, I hate you. You are not helpful. You are a moron. You also don't listen; I told you to go away forever, yet today you pop up and tell me that I can add signature blocks to my emails. Hey bozo, I already have 5 blocks setup. And the email you were making a suggestion on already had the block in it.
Way to go Clippy. You are a waste of CPU ticks.
Way to go Clippy. You are a waste of CPU ticks.
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Radiation Proof RVs?
People are paranoid to the point of stupidity. Why in the world would you need an RV that can withstand a dirty bomb?
What's to stop a terrorist from buying or stealing one and then using it as a delivery device? Good job boys - just make better tools for them. Oi.
What's to stop a terrorist from buying or stealing one and then using it as a delivery device? Good job boys - just make better tools for them. Oi.
Need songs about Summer for the winter sucks party
Here is the latest list . . .
Winter Sucks CD
Island in the Sun - Weezer
(Love Is Like A) Heat Wave -- Martha Reeves & The Vandellas
Summer Wind - Frank Sinatra
Summertime - Will Smith
Surfin USA - Beach Boys
Hot Fun In The Summertime - Sly and the Family Stone
Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) - Harry Belafonte
Tequila - Champs
Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini - Bryan Hyland
Cruel Summer - Bananarama
Walkin' on Sunshine - Katrina and the Waves
Vacation - Go Go's
Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes - Jimmy Buffett
Boys of Summer - Don Henley
Boys of Summer - Ataris
40 miles from the Sun - Bush
Soak up the Sun - Sheryl Crow
Schools Out for Summer - Alice Cooper
Summer In The City - The Lovin Spoonful
Hot - Missy Elliott
Summer Lovin' - Grease
La Isla Bonita - Madonna
Summer Rain - U2
Long Hot Summer Night - Jimi Hendrix / The Ultimate Experience
Summer of '69 - Bryan Adams
Put the Lime in the Coconut - Harry Nilsson
Doin' Time - Sublime
Summertime, Summertime - Jamies
Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days Of Summer - Nat King Cole
Surfin' Safari - Beach Boys
The Warmth Of The Sun - Beach Boys
Hawaii Five-O - The Ventures
Coconut Grove - Lovin' Spoonful
Under The Boardwalk - The Drifters
Heaven Right Here - Jeb Loy Nichols (Come on Over to My Yard...)
Cocomo - Beach Boys
Good Vibrations - Beach Boys
Paradise City - Guns n Roses
California Dreamin' - Mommas and the Papas
Margaritaville - Jimmy Buffett
Watermelon Crawl -- Tracy Byrd
Beach Party Vietnam - The Dead Milkmen
When the Sun Goes Down - Kenney Chesney and Uncle Cracker
The Beach - New Order
Theme from a Summer Place
Winter Sucks CD
Island in the Sun - Weezer
(Love Is Like A) Heat Wave -- Martha Reeves & The Vandellas
Summer Wind - Frank Sinatra
Summertime - Will Smith
Surfin USA - Beach Boys
Hot Fun In The Summertime - Sly and the Family Stone
Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) - Harry Belafonte
Tequila - Champs
Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini - Bryan Hyland
Cruel Summer - Bananarama
Walkin' on Sunshine - Katrina and the Waves
Vacation - Go Go's
Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes - Jimmy Buffett
Boys of Summer - Don Henley
Boys of Summer - Ataris
40 miles from the Sun - Bush
Soak up the Sun - Sheryl Crow
Schools Out for Summer - Alice Cooper
Summer In The City - The Lovin Spoonful
Hot - Missy Elliott
Summer Lovin' - Grease
La Isla Bonita - Madonna
Summer Rain - U2
Long Hot Summer Night - Jimi Hendrix / The Ultimate Experience
Summer of '69 - Bryan Adams
Put the Lime in the Coconut - Harry Nilsson
Doin' Time - Sublime
Summertime, Summertime - Jamies
Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days Of Summer - Nat King Cole
Surfin' Safari - Beach Boys
The Warmth Of The Sun - Beach Boys
Hawaii Five-O - The Ventures
Coconut Grove - Lovin' Spoonful
Under The Boardwalk - The Drifters
Heaven Right Here - Jeb Loy Nichols (Come on Over to My Yard...)
Cocomo - Beach Boys
Good Vibrations - Beach Boys
Paradise City - Guns n Roses
California Dreamin' - Mommas and the Papas
Margaritaville - Jimmy Buffett
Watermelon Crawl -- Tracy Byrd
Beach Party Vietnam - The Dead Milkmen
When the Sun Goes Down - Kenney Chesney and Uncle Cracker
The Beach - New Order
Theme from a Summer Place
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Solar Cells from Plastic
30% efficient solar panels that produce energy from infrared - sweet! Now if only we can keep the researchers from having single car accidents, at night, on isolated roads.
Geek.com Geek News - Power from new plastic and the sun
Geek.com Geek News - Power from new plastic and the sun
Monday, January 10, 2005
My Blogger neighbor
So I clicked the "Next Blog" link and I got this sap. Single In Dallas
Can someone tell me how you can be "a hopeless romantic who loves 80s metal and wrestling"
Sigh. Humans are weird.
Can someone tell me how you can be "a hopeless romantic who loves 80s metal and wrestling"
Sigh. Humans are weird.
Here's something I'll never want to for Christmas
Friday, January 07, 2005
Anti-gravity lifter - I hope this is real
IndiaDaily - A secret project in India's Defense Research Organization that can change the world as we know it... anti-gravity lifters tested in Himalayas?
Giving it a shot
Ok so "everybody" is doing this now. Sure. ok. Why would I want to share my brain for free? Ah, I get it now - share only the useless knowledge and random distractions that pepper my life. Well its time to get out my giant pepper grinder (just like Olive Garden's) and sprinkle my presence all over your salad of life. I know, some of you don't like pepper. Well, I'm on there now - so either eat it, request another salad, or leave the restaurant.
