This came up a bit ago (10/31) on the Colbert show. Colbert showed a clip of Mitt Romney, who's running for the Republican presidential nomination:
Romney: "I hear from time to time people say, 'Hey, wait a second. We have civil liberties we have to worry about.' But don't forget, the most important civil liberty I expect from my government is my right to be kept alive."
Colbert's response: "That speech will play great in New Hampshire, what with their state motto, 'Live Free or Do Whatever It Takes So I Don't Die,'"
Estimated spending, estimated spending in 2007 in the US on cancer research, in millions:
Breast: $551.1
Colorectal: $249.1
Lung: $261.9
Prostate: $305.6
Total budget: $4,750
I have a close family member going through breast cancer chemo now, but since SETI's $3 million/year budget is 0.54% of breast cancer's research total or 0.06% of total US cancer research, I can't see it making a meaningful difference in cancer research. Note too that this is just the US cancer budget, other countries also spend lots on cancer research, which can't be said of SETI or similar programs.
To speculate wildly, I'd guess the transportation costs for oil/gas/coal far exceed nuclear, given their respective energy densities.
Additionally, there have been dozens of significant accidents in the transportation of oil (Valdez, the recent San Francisco spill, etc.), the costs (cleanup + environmental + economic impact) of which are non-trivial.
NY Times had an article "In India, Poverty Inspires Technology Workers to Altruism" that discussed how social networking sites had huge economic potential for the impoverished in India.
I don't have much use for myspace, but social networking via the internet could have profound impact.
Star Control II
Definitely deserves a remake, as long as it doesn't go through any of the hands that worked on Star Control III.
If you agree, check out the petition
Your sig: "Creationists are a lot like zombies. Slow, but powerful and numerous. And they all want to eat our brains." Damn it, you almost made me spew my drink all over my keyboard from laughing, and it's one of those green Spirulina drinks that'd be a major pain to clean up.
Perhaps that's karma for me being a Creationist.:)
Check out the Wiki's article on Caging Lists.
The first place I heard about them was from this Slate article, which has lots of links to supporting evidence.
Schooling typically starts at age 5 (kindergarten) and then have 5 years of primary/elementary school, 3 years in middle school, and 4 of high school (= 13 yrs). This varies a bit by state, my experience is mostly in New Mexico (the state, not to be confused with Mexico... not that that ever happens.)
Attendance in school is mandatory until you're 16, at which point you can legally drop out. Most high schools aren't too specialized and putting students into "trade" or "college-prep" tracks is seen as unfairly restricting them, though there are "magnet" or "charter" (and I'm sure other terms) schools which specialize more. Students can take courses which will better prepare them for different post-high school routes, but they're free to switch, as long as they can handle the coursework changes.
For example, NM graduation requirements include 3 years of science classes. This is for everyone, regardless of whether they're college-bound or not, as high school is seen as primarily providing a broad-based education, not career prep. Since everyone can't handle the same depth of material, a science class has 2 forms, analytical for the college prep kids, and conceptual. A student who's taken his first year of science at the conceptual level is free to switch to analytical the next (or vice-versa), though moving up can take significant motivation.
This is different from European education systems (according to my understanding, please correct me if I'm wrong) where once you're on a track, switching is quite hard.
I can see merits and problems with both systems, though I'm relieved I wasn't forced to pick a major when I went through high school.
Perhaps the difference in perceived belief between Europe and the US, or other countries, is more a function of who owns the media companies than reality? That's strictly conjecture, but clearly it's not as delineated as your post indicates.
As a high school programming teacher, I'd highly recommend you first work on a trial program. For someone new to programming, a 3-4 month project is complex. Write a smaller, non-trivial program first, allowing yourself to get a feel for the language, structures, techniques, etc. (note: this post presupposes "somewhat new to programming" + "high school" = "start from the beginning." If you're more experienced, good job with the modesty and no offense intended.)
Some of my kids want to jump right in with a GTA clone or Zelda or something... take a look that the closing credits for those games, it's not something you're going to be doing by June 2006, let alone 2005.
Yaztromo, in a helpful comment somewhere above, mentioned starting with Blackjack, with some suggestions for going about that. An ASCII single-player version is relatively simple. Other possible intro projects would include some other card games, Mastermind, Simple Simon, Yahtzee, etc. Keep it simple to start-- graphics, sound, languages, even the computer are secondary here. Test as you go: in the blackjack example, get a card deck implemented first, then add draw/hold, then double, then split. Get something down on paper that a mindless automaton can follow and successfully complete it's task. Then substituting a computer for the dummy is simple, and programming is just translating your instructions efficiently. Once you have a project like this completed, you'll better understand game complexity, allowing yourself realistic goals.
Your final project could be something entirely different, or you could extend your intro project to include multi-player (hotseat and/or online), graphics (very extendable), or AI, which is also very extendable. And there's always optimization, which is infinitely extendable. The nice thing about this path is you know you'll have something to be proud of come June... if you finish ahead of schedule, add features! (practical note: keep version backups!) If you head in a different direction, classic arcade games can provide a wealth of inspiration, ie., Tetris (my pick in this category,) Galaga, Asteroids, Breakout, etc. Note that these are real-time games, which are typically significantly harder, and use more math/physics.
On the language issue, I teach with Python. It's clean, powerful, and easy to learn, and my kids seem to like it. Use Pygame as well if you go this route. I introduce some of my more advanced students to Java later in the year (last quarter) if they're interested, which some like, some don't. I hesitate to recommend it if you don't have any previous programming experience, especially given your timeframe. However, if you are really interested in Java, consider trying this: the first Java assignment I give is the re-implementation of a previous Python project, typically something like one of the games mentioned above. This would give you a feel for both languages, though as a caveat it would take more time from your final project.
For resources, the Learning Python and Programming Python (O'reilly) books are pretty good... check your library or ebay if your school can't get them for you. On the free side, there's many great Python tutorials and examples online (python.org, pygame.org), though some code examples are non-optimal. Check out pygame.org's link page, and www.lupinegames.com. Since you mentioned "independent study," I'm guessing there's no programming teacher, so I'd recommend joining a mailing list or web community that can fill some of that role.
Make something you can be proud of. Good luck, and keep it fun.
Slashdot Mirror
This came up a bit ago (10/31) on the Colbert show. Colbert showed a clip of Mitt Romney, who's running for the Republican presidential nomination:
Romney: "I hear from time to time people say, 'Hey, wait a second. We have civil liberties we have to worry about.' But don't forget, the most important civil liberty I expect from my government is my right to be kept alive."
Colbert's response: "That speech will play great in New Hampshire, what with their state motto, 'Live Free or Do Whatever It Takes So I Don't Die,'"
I have a close family member going through breast cancer chemo now, but since SETI's $3 million/year budget is 0.54% of breast cancer's research total or 0.06% of total US cancer research, I can't see it making a meaningful difference in cancer research. Note too that this is just the US cancer budget, other countries also spend lots on cancer research, which can't be said of SETI or similar programs.
To speculate wildly, I'd guess the transportation costs for oil/gas/coal far exceed nuclear, given their respective energy densities. Additionally, there have been dozens of significant accidents in the transportation of oil (Valdez, the recent San Francisco spill, etc.), the costs (cleanup + environmental + economic impact) of which are non-trivial.
Yes, but it's so much easier, never mind more comfortable, to lambast the flaws in others than recognize and correct your own failings.
NY Times had an article "In India, Poverty Inspires Technology Workers to Altruism" that discussed how social networking sites had huge economic potential for the impoverished in India. I don't have much use for myspace, but social networking via the internet could have profound impact.
Star Control II Definitely deserves a remake, as long as it doesn't go through any of the hands that worked on Star Control III.
If you agree, check out the petition
Check out the Wiki's article on Caging Lists.
The first place I heard about them was from this Slate article, which has lots of links to supporting evidence.
For those not from the US-
... not that that ever happens.)
Schooling typically starts at age 5 (kindergarten) and then have 5 years of primary/elementary school, 3 years in middle school, and 4 of high school (= 13 yrs). This varies a bit by state, my experience is mostly in New Mexico (the state, not to be confused with Mexico
Attendance in school is mandatory until you're 16, at which point you can legally drop out. Most high schools aren't too specialized and putting students into "trade" or "college-prep" tracks is seen as unfairly restricting them, though there are "magnet" or "charter" (and I'm sure other terms) schools which specialize more. Students can take courses which will better prepare them for different post-high school routes, but they're free to switch, as long as they can handle the coursework changes.
For example, NM graduation requirements include 3 years of science classes. This is for everyone, regardless of whether they're college-bound or not, as high school is seen as primarily providing a broad-based education, not career prep. Since everyone can't handle the same depth of material, a science class has 2 forms, analytical for the college prep kids, and conceptual. A student who's taken his first year of science at the conceptual level is free to switch to analytical the next (or vice-versa), though moving up can take significant motivation.
This is different from European education systems (according to my understanding, please correct me if I'm wrong) where once you're on a track, switching is quite hard.
I can see merits and problems with both systems, though I'm relieved I wasn't forced to pick a major when I went through high school.
Students start kindergarten at age 5, 1st grade at 6, so a 9th grader is 14 or 15.
"Just under half of Britons accept the theory of evolution as the best description for the development of life, according to an opinion poll."
2 6/1346255
The above quote is from the http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4648598.stm
The slashdot discussion on this story:
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/01/
Perhaps the difference in perceived belief between Europe and the US, or other countries, is more a function of who owns the media companies than reality? That's strictly conjecture, but clearly it's not as delineated as your post indicates.
As a high school programming teacher, I'd highly recommend you first work on a trial program. For someone new to programming, a 3-4 month project is complex. Write a smaller, non-trivial program first, allowing yourself to get a feel for the language, structures, techniques, etc. (note: this post presupposes "somewhat new to programming" + "high school" = "start from the beginning." If you're more experienced, good job with the modesty and no offense intended.)
... take a look that the closing credits for those games, it's not something you're going to be doing by June 2006, let alone 2005.
... if you finish ahead of schedule, add features! (practical note: keep version backups!) If you head in a different direction, classic arcade games can provide a wealth of inspiration, ie., Tetris (my pick in this category,) Galaga, Asteroids, Breakout, etc. Note that these are real-time games, which are typically significantly harder, and use more math/physics.
... check your library or ebay if your school can't get them for you. On the free side, there's many great Python tutorials and examples online (python.org, pygame.org), though some code examples are non-optimal. Check out pygame.org's link page, and www.lupinegames.com. Since you mentioned "independent study," I'm guessing there's no programming teacher, so I'd recommend joining a mailing list or web community that can fill some of that role.
Some of my kids want to jump right in with a GTA clone or Zelda or something
Yaztromo, in a helpful comment somewhere above, mentioned starting with Blackjack, with some suggestions for going about that. An ASCII single-player version is relatively simple. Other possible intro projects would include some other card games, Mastermind, Simple Simon, Yahtzee, etc. Keep it simple to start-- graphics, sound, languages, even the computer are secondary here. Test as you go: in the blackjack example, get a card deck implemented first, then add draw/hold, then double, then split. Get something down on paper that a mindless automaton can follow and successfully complete it's task. Then substituting a computer for the dummy is simple, and programming is just translating your instructions efficiently. Once you have a project like this completed, you'll better understand game complexity, allowing yourself realistic goals.
Your final project could be something entirely different, or you could extend your intro project to include multi-player (hotseat and/or online), graphics (very extendable), or AI, which is also very extendable. And there's always optimization, which is infinitely extendable. The nice thing about this path is you know you'll have something to be proud of come June
On the language issue, I teach with Python. It's clean, powerful, and easy to learn, and my kids seem to like it. Use Pygame as well if you go this route. I introduce some of my more advanced students to Java later in the year (last quarter) if they're interested, which some like, some don't. I hesitate to recommend it if you don't have any previous programming experience, especially given your timeframe. However, if you are really interested in Java, consider trying this: the first Java assignment I give is the re-implementation of a previous Python project, typically something like one of the games mentioned above. This would give you a feel for both languages, though as a caveat it would take more time from your final project.
For resources, the Learning Python and Programming Python (O'reilly) books are pretty good
Make something you can be proud of. Good luck, and keep it fun.
Michael