The lighter side of life

They say procrastination is the thief of time. I really don't know who 'they' exactly are but 'they' seem to have infinite amounts of wisdom - so I will take 'their' word for it.

Since the invention of the internet, way back in the late 70s/early 80s, the potential for its use in matters academic or just plain curious study has increased remarkabbly in years past and present due to the fact that the internet has  arguably the most immense catalogue of knowledge on almost anything under the sky. 

However, for all its knowledge, with the advancement of the internet has come with it an almost infinite catalogue of methods of time wasting. It is unbelievable how often we find ourselves pulled into the trap of timewasting parties hosted by the oh so seductive sites the good internet hosts. How many times do you log onto a computer, be it in your house or on campus, with the false promise to yourself that "I'm just going to check my mail" and then log off an hour and a half later having gone through all sort of sites from how best to plant roses in winter to how to lose that gut fat in just 6weeks and then how to make $500 in just three days. How often do we curse ourselves after a solid net surfing session when we realise that learning how best to cut grass or the shortest route on google maps between China and Japan has no bearing at all on our direct study time and every minute we waste could be put to such better use?

Yes indeed, in as much as the internet has all these interesting and usefull things, best believe this when I say it to you, the internet is not your friend!!

Sunny days are here.

To paraphrase 'Ace of Base' here, I saw the sun and it opened up my eyes...ok so bad paraphrasing here but you get my drift.

It's been playing hide and seek games in the past few weeks but I think it has finally began to win that battle with the clouds and other such elements; the only last one to beat is that age old foe 'The Wind' but we all know from even fables of the past that that is a war we shall not get drawn into.

Whatever the case may be, I suggest you make the best of this recent victory in the battle of the elements.

Put on a pair of shorts; bring out the knees to play. It could be sunny enough. 

Dear Diary,

I'm not sure why I ask you this but I figure its part of your job description.

I was walking behind the EWI building the other night when I was shocked by this intense and repetitive cawing sound. Of course in my moment of harsh confusion I decided I was going insane so I just kept walking.

However, as soon as I did a whole flock of crows began to fly around in various formations around the trees cawing at the tops of their voices (crows have voices right?). In a scene taken right out of 'Resident Evil' they kept circling over and over making sure they rehearsed a new formation every time. After about two minutes, they stopped and peace was the order of the day.

Just for the record, it was about 10:30 pm.

My question to you though, is why the dickens are crows flying around at 10:30 pm? Am I part of some horror movie set that I am yet to be informed about? I'm just sharing. Feel free to let me know what you think of it.

Yours,

Severely creeped out chap. 

There are many a myth that do the rounds saying that technical studies are a domain of men. 

Under normal circumtances we would very quickly call in the 'Myth Busters' and have them do an entire episode with loads of noise and explosions and laughter galore. This may take a bit to long to happen and there is no guarantee that there shall be explosions or noise.

What you could do however is attend the 'Ladies Night at the TU Delft' to be held at the Aula on the 6th of March starting at 7pm. A whole bunch of female graduates and students of the TU will share experinces with you and show you that it can be done as well. 

For more information, go to the link: http://lr.home.tudelft.nl/en/current/agenda/event/detail/ladies-night-1/

Tell your friends and get them out to this session; only good things can come of it.

For ages, scientists have grappled with a means of providing energy to match up the deficit of energy that the world is already begininig to experience. 

The solution though, might just be much much simpler than they may have cared to think. A 'myth' is told of a perpetual motion machine that produces energy ad infinitum so to speak (this of course is a super-simplified version of it but I digress).

Stick with me here.

The cat righting reflex is a cat's innate ability to orient itself as it falls in order to land on its feet. In layman's terms, a cat will always land on its feet. Common folflore also states that a slice of bread always lands buttered side down.

Herein lies the solution to all our perpetual energy issues:

Step 1: Get a cat

Step 2: Get a slice of bread and apply butter/margerine to one side.

Step 3: Strap the slice of bread (buttered side up) to the back of the cat.

The cat will always try to land on its feet and the toast will work really hard to get to the ground buttered side first; thus perpetual motion. Connect this new found system to a generator and voilla, a perpetual energy machine has just been created.

Top that!

P.S: Read this article tongue in cheek.

P.S 2:  No cats or buttered toast was harmed in the writing of this article

And now for a spot of poetry:

Grass will grow 

If you should take my child Lord,

Give my hands the strength to dig his grave

Cover him with earth

Lord send some rain

For grass will grow.

If my house should burn down 

So that the ashes sting the nostrils

Making the eyes weep

Then Lord, send a little rain

For grass will grow.

But Lord

do not send me madness

I ask for tears

Do not send me moon hard madness

To lodge in my skulls

I would you send me hordes of horses

Galloping

Crushing

But do not break

The yolk of the moon on me.

Adapted from Jonathan Kariara.

Pretty much my favourite poem of all time; and from a Kenyan poet no less.

The message, no matter what you are going though, rest assured it could always be worse.

So, chill out, live and love this life you have going for you.

A brief history from where this university came from; figuratively speaking of course:

The TU Delft has been providing technical education for 170 years now (though it only adopted the name much later).

Founded on January 8th, 1842 by King Willem II, the university was then known as the ’Royal Academy for the education of civilian engineers'. 

However in 1864, there was passed a Royal decree was issues that disbaded the Royal Academy in Delft and its place was put a Polyteechnic school the purpose of which was to educate architects and engineers of the civil works, shipbuilding, mechanical and mining fields. On May 22nd, 1905, a formal acknowledgement of the academic level of the School’s technical education was made and a s a result the institution then became a ‘Technische Hogeschool’ - an Institute of Technology.

The name change finally occured in September of 1986 from the Institute of Technology into Delft University of Technology, more commonly known as TU Delft.

For the 170th anniversary, the university is celebrating based on the theme of 'Water'. Based on the intricate past that the Netherlands and water have has since time immemorial, no better suited theme could have been adopted. In light of that, keep your eyes peeled for any of the events set forth for the celebration of this anniversary. 

So you are in the faculty now and are aspiring to one day carry the title of Engineer (IR) from the faculty? True? Well I sure hope that is your intention. 

I shall not go into the nitty-gritty of what one requires to do this; that is partly up to you. Should you be interested however to see the process in action, why not join in and participate in a thesis-defence session by some individuals this month (March 2012)?

There are approximately four defences that shall be carried out on:

- Windturbines: the influence of wind conditions on wind turbines and measurement of turbulence;

- The instantenuous determination from particle image volicimetry;

- Flow control and 

- The residual stength failure sequence in fibre metal laminates.

Perhaps going to watch one of these would give you further motivation in your studies.

The choice is yours...

If ever in your life you have got a chance to watch a movie out of hollywood that had anything to do with university students, chances are very high that it had to do with spring break. The origins of this holiday are varied but common (American) folklore has it that students would move down to Fort Lauderdale, Florida to take a break from the chilling winters of the North for a short period at the begining of spring. As the tradition grew, it evolved to a break of drunken debauchery (by high school and college students) at exotic locations across the American continent - at least this is what is typified by Hollywood in all its spleandour. 

As a university student, having grown up watching such movies, the mind tends to get set towards such idealogies. How sad is it to get the reality of the situation smack in the face when you realise that the Spring Break - Delft style - entailsbeing stuck for long hours in a super-chilled (temperature-wise) library surrounded by equally disillusioned young students?

They never quite said it would turn out this way but alas, such is student life. 

Enjoy your break in the library this year; it can be quite fun!