Friday, February 20, 2009

25 things

[There's a Facebook meme going around at the moment. J--- G----- (J---'s wife, not J----) "tagged" me in a sufficiently nondemanding way that I felt like answering. I thought you might enjoy a copy. Transcript follows. -M.]

Request: Twenty-five hitherto-unknown facts


I would like to know twenty-five new things about you. If you're Julie, you have already sent me a list and are done. If you're not Julie, I really wish you would follow in her footsteps. As proof of my earnestness, I have written a list for you (on the theory that the Golden Rule isn't always wrong) but you don't necessarily need to read it as long as you write one of your own. I wouldn't be tagging you on this note if I didn't think you were more interesting than I am.

(To do this, go to "notes" under tabs (or the + sign) on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag some people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

-Max

List:

1.) I like to do crazy dares, like challenging my cousin Sophie to beat me to the end of the Book of Mormon and the loser has to eat a cockroach. It turns out I won, but we couldn't find a cockroach so we found some crazy beetle-thing instead and she ate it. Then I got curious and ate one too.
2.) As alluded to in #1, curiosity is my fatal flaw. I sometimes ignore the potential downside to a thing like, say, squirting alcohol in your eye (downside: could go blind) out of curiosity over some other aspect (hypothesis: it will cure a missionary's red-eye just like an antibiotic would, only faster).
3.) I'm impatient and I hate changing my mind. I do my best to figure out what opinions I'm going to converge on eventually (whether a year from now or a hundred) and converge on it NOW, even before I have the data that will eventually lead me to hold that opinion.
4.) I like straight brown hair best, followed by straight blond hair. I don't generally go for red hair, unless it belongs to Megan Follows.
5.) I hate shaving. Well, that's not quite true, I just hate the necessity of shaving, i.e. the fact that my head and face grow scratchy little hairs constantly.
6.) However, I like everything else about being a guy. I sometimes wonder what it's like to be six inches shorter than everyone else--the closest I can come is to imagine being in a world where everybody is seven feet tall and you have to look up at their chins, which must hurt your neck--but of course I don't actually have that problem, do I? [smug look] PLUS, as a guy, my spouse will be a girl. Girls get stuck getting married to guys. It's good to be male.
7.) I run experiments on myself. For example, I've been known to spend an entire Sunday blindfolded to see what it's like to be blind (scary, and everything takes much longer, and rooms feel bigger).
8.) In connection with #2, #3, and #7, I also have contingency plans for things that will never happen. For example, I pretty much know how I would react to the trauma of prison rape, and I've tried to incorporate the lessons learned into my real life. It never hurts to be prepared.
9.) My closest friend is a notional entity who also doesn't quite exist. I try, though, to guess what she would say if she did. Sometimes she's wrong, but other times she's absolutely brilliant. Or would be, if... you know, English doesn't handle the concept of notional entities very well.
10.) Moving on to lighter stuff, I was born in California and mostly grew up in Washington.
11.) I hate mushrooms, tomatoes, and olives.
12.) I love dairy products! On my mission in the Philippines, where they don't really drink milk or eat most kinds of cheese, my aunt Annie once sent me a present of American cash and I decadently chose to splurge on "expensive" cream cheese from the big American-style supermarket. Mmmmm, delicious.
13.) Did I mention I have a terrific family? They are wonderful and spoil me way too much.
14.) The summer before last I was in a stake production of /Pirates of Penzance/ as the Pirate King. I've also played Motel the Tailor in /Fiddler On the Roof/ and minor roles in /Tom Jones/ and /Tartuffe/. I'm not much of an actor but I'm an okay singer as long as it's not too complex.
15.) Colors: my favorite color is blue, but my favorite colors for clothing are black, grey, and white. At least if I picture the clothing hanging on a rack somewhere--my mental picture of clothing often forgets to take the person who will be wearing it into account. If I do remember to picture myself wearing the clothing, I tend more towards primary colors, especially red, since I have a reddish complexion. I have no idea if this aesthetically correct or not, I just like the way it looks on me.
16.) I have eleven fingers. Look, 10-9-8-7-6 on my right hand, plus five more on my left hand makes eleven.
17.) I wore a plain gold band on my left hand for some years as a reminder of certain commitments I have made. My roommate Justin referred to it as the "One Ring of Power" and would always try to snatch it from me. Eventually it was cut from my hand in battle and lost in the depths of a lake, which I thought a fitting end for it so I didn't look too hard.
18.) I have never kissed a girl on the lips. A fact which exasperates certain of my family members to no end. That exasperation might be sufficient payoff in itself even if I didn't have other reasons. ;)
19.) I took piano lessons for something like nine years as a kid. I never got any good--I learned a bunch of pieces but none of them really stuck after I moved on to different pieces, and I always sounded mechanical and clunky. Also, none of my teachers ever gave me a satisfactory explanation for why 6-8 time was different from 3-4 time, let alone why the key of C-major is different from the key of A-minor or how it's possible for the vibration ratios between different keys to be in simple fractions. (Years later, my roommate Justin did explain it--it turns out that the keys on a piano are NOT in simple ratios, they're a sort of exponential average that's pretty close to the proper simple fractions, for any two keys on the piano. Google "tempered scale." On a non-tempered scale, like an orchestra, A-minor is different from C-major because the notes have a different base--middle C in A-minor is actually a different NOTE than in C-major. That's why orchestras are always re-tuning their instruments for different keys. A tempered-scale instrument like a piano is sort of a compromise that sounds reasonably good in any key.)
20.) I hate slugs and snails and frogs and squishy little gross creatures like that.
21.) I have eaten alligator meat. As I recall, it was pretty good. For some reason, calamari doesn't gross me out even though maybe squid *ought* to remind me of slugs and gross little creatures. Maybe it's because it's fried.
22.) My third-favorite book is probably /Lucifer's Hammer/ by Niven and Pournelle. I don't know what my favorite and second-favorite books are yet. (See point #3.)
23.) I have never owned a pet. My sister Carly did occasionally have gerbils, which would always eventually eat each other. At the time I thought that was pretty horrifying but now I think it's funny.
24.) I have never broken a bone. One of my own bones, that is. I have broken the bones of other creatures.
25.) Cannibalistic chickens give me the creeps. They don't seem to care that what they're eating is a piece of fried chicken.

--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F. Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."




--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F. Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Learn hexadecimal

Barmy,

You may enjoy this: http://www.intuitor.com/hex/learn.html. We should have another contest some time. Knowing hexadecimal is useful because 1.) it helps you get a better handle on the foundations of arithmetic, and simultaneously teaches you octal and binary, and 2.) it helps when you use computers.

-Max

--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F. Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Monday, February 16, 2009

Lamarckian mice

Heh. http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/22061/

May also constitute a partial refutation of Judith Harris's critiques
on certain parenting studies. Of course you could never do experiments
like this on a human.

-Max

--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a
man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and
desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although
he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F.
Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my
brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Thursday, February 12, 2009

What Things Cost in Ancient Rome

For some perspective on the widow who lost a coin:

http://www.constantinethegreatcoins.com/edict/

-Max

--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a
man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and
desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although
he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F.
Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my
brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Sea level rise

Bermuda: sea level used to be 21 feet higher.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090209205314.htm

This makes me want to go back and re-read Morner's comments on
historical sea levels.

-Max

--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a
man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and
desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although
he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F.
Smith (manual, p. 69)

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my
brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Heber J. Grant

I've been meaning to dig this up for a while. Heber J. Grant is legally Joseph Smith's son. From October 1942 General Conference. I'm quoting the whole thing because it's interesting but I've bolded the relevant section.
 
-Max
 
My Call to the Apostleship
President Heber J. Grant

Heber J. Grant, Conference Report, October 1942, pp. 24-26

I am grateful beyond my power of expression for the faith and prayers of the people and for the blessings of the Lord in my behalf. For two and one-half years I have been gaining a little since I became ill. I have been home since that illness overtook me a little longer than two years, and when people have asked me how I am, I have said, "Better than I was yesterday," and this is really true—I have been gaining a little all the time. To begin with I could not move my left leg or my left arm. The doctors said it was not a paralytic stroke, but it must have been at least a second cousin to it. I could walk upstairs only one step at a time and drag my left leg up. Now, I can walk up and down stairs. I can walk across the floor without scraping my foot on the carpet; I can throw my left leg over my right one with perfect ease, and back again; my improvement is very remarkable considering the condition I was in, and I attribute it to the prayers of the Saints in my behalf. I am grateful to them beyond expression, and I am grateful to the doctors who have so very kindly taken care of me in California and here at home. I am truly appreciative of the interest they have taken in my behalf. I feel almost normal.

I have decided to tell in detail one or two very remarkable things that have happened in my life.

I was made one of the apostles in October, 1882. On the 6th of October, 1882, I met Brother George Teasdale at the south gate of the temple. His face lit up, and he said: "Brother Grant, you and I"—very enthusiastically—and then he commenced coughing and choking, and went on into meeting and did not finish his sentence. It came to me as plainly as though he had said the words: "Are going to be chosen this afternoon to fill the vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles."

I went to the meeting and my head swelled, and I thought to myself, "Well, I am going to be one of the apostles," and I was willing to vote for myself, but the conference adjourned without anyone being chosen.

Ten days later I received a telegram saying, "You must be in Salt Lake tomorrow without fail." I was then president of Tooele Stake. The telegram came from my partner, Nephi W. Clayton. When I got to the depot, I said: "Nephi, why on earth are you calling me back here? I had an appointment out in Tooele Stake."

"Never mind," he said; "it was not I who sent for you; it was Brother Lyman. He told me to send the telegram and sign my name to it. He told me to come and meet you and take you to the Prestdent's office. That is all I know."

So I went to the President's office, and there sat Brother Teasdale, and all of the ten Apostles, and the Presidency of the Church, and also Seymour B. Young and the members of the Seven Presidents of the Seventies. And the revelation was read calling Brother Teasedale and myself to the apostleship, and Brother Seymour B. Young to be one of the Seven Presidents of the Seventies.

Brother Teasdale was blessed by President John Taylor, and George Q. Cannon blessed me.

After the meeting I said to Brother Teasdale, "I know what you were going to say to me on the sixth of October when you happened to choke half to death and then went into the meeting."

He said, "Oh, no, you don't."

"Yes, I do," and I repeated it: "You and I are going to be called to the apostleship."

He said, "Well, that is what I was going to say, and then it occurred to me that I had no right to tell it, that I had received a manifestation from the Lord." He said, "Heber, I have suffered the tortures of the damned for ten days, thinking I could not tell the difference between a manifestation from the Lord and one from the devil, that the devil had deceived me."

I said, "I have not suffered like that, but I never prayed so hard in my life for anything as I did that the Lord would forgive me for the egotism of thinking that I was fit to be an apostle, and that I was ready to go into that meeting ten days ago and vote for myself to be an apostle."

I was a very unhappy man from October until February. For the next four months whenever I would bear my testimony of the divinity of the Savior, there seemed to be a voice that would say: "You lie, because you have never seen Him." One of the brethren had made the remark that unless a man had seen the Lamb of God—that was his expression—he was not fit to be an apostle. This feeling that I have mentioned would follow me. I would wake up in the night with the impression: "You do not know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, because you have never seen Him," and the same feeling would come to me when I would preach and bear testimony. It worried me from October until the following February.

I was in Arizona in February, traveling with Brigham Young, Jr., and a number of other brethren, visiting the Navajo Indians and the Moki Indians. Several of our party were riding in "White Tops" and several on horseback. I was in the rear of the party with Brother Lot Smith. He was on a big fine iron-grey horse, and I was on a small mule that I had discovered was the easiest and best riding animal I had ever straddled.

We were going due east when the road changed and went almost north, but there was a trail ahead of us, and I said, "Hold on, Lot; stop."

I said, "Brother Smith, where does this trail lead?"

He said, "It leads to a great gully just a short distance away, and no team can possibly travel over it. We have to make a regular mule shoe of a ride to get to the other side of the gully'"

I said, "Is there any danger from Indians if a man were alone over there?" "None at all."

I said: "I visited the spot yesterday where George A. Smith, Jr., was killed by a Navajo Indian, who asked him for his pistol and then shot him with it, and I feel a little nervous, but if there is no danger I want to be all alone, so you go on with the party and I will take that trail."

I had this feeling that I ought not to testify any more about the Savior and that, really, I was not fit to be an apostle. It seemed overwhelming to me that I should be one. There was a spirit that said: "If you have not seen the Savior, why don't you resign your position?"

As I rode along alone, I seemed to see a council in heaven. The Savior was there; the Prophet Joseph was there; my father and others that I knew were there. In this council it seemed that they decided that a mistake had been made in not filling the vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve, and conference had adjourned. The chances were the Brethren would wait another six months, and the way to remedy the situation was to send a revelation naming the men who should fill the vacancies. In this council the Prophet said, "I want to be represented by one of my own in that Council."

A little while before this I had attended the funeral of Brother Snedeker, a counselor in the bishopric of Mill Creek Ward, and Brother Joseph E. Taylor spoke at the services. In his remarks he became very pathetic to think that the Prophet had given his life for the Cause and that he had no representative in the quorums of the Priesthood of the Church. He was followed by Brother Joseph F. Smith, and Brother Smith said: "'We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly' (A of F 1:8), and I believe it is translated correctly when it says that if a man die his brother shall marry his widow and raise up seed to the dead man (Matt. 22:24), and I need to take only two steps from where I am standing now to place my hand on the shoulder of a man who is one of the Twelve Apostles of the Church, who is a son of the Prophet Joseph," and he pointed directly at me.

It made a very profound impression upon me, and I wondered if I should tell the people about it. I had always understood and known that my mother was sealed to the Prophet, and that Brigham Young had told my father that he would not marry my mother to him for eternity, because he had instructions from the Prophet that if anything happened to him before he was married to Rachel Ivins she must be sealed to him for eternity, that she belonged to him.

That is the reason that Father spoke up in this council to which I have referred, and said: "Why not choose the boy who bears my name, who belongs to you, to be one of the apostles?" That inspiration was given to me.

I can truthfully say that from February, 1883, until today I have never had any of that trouble, and I can bear my testimony that I know that God lives, that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of the living God; and the evil one does not try to persuade me that I do not know what I am talking about. I have never had one slight impression to the contrary. I have just had real, genuine joy and satisfaction in proclaiming the gospel and bearing my testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ, and the divine calling of Joseph Smith, the prophet.

Now, brethren, I could go on dictating by the hour, there are so many things that have happened in my life that I would like to tell you.

I once more thank the Saints for their faith and for their prayers, and for the strength that I have today in comparison with two and one-half years ago.

May God's blessings be and abide with you, one and all, and all the Saints and all the honest people the world over, is the prayer of my heart, even so. Amen.

 
--
"The presentation or 'gift' of the Holy Ghost simply confers upon a man the right to receive at any time, when he is worthy of it and desires it, the power and light of truth of the Holy Ghost, although he may often be left to his own spirit and judgment." --Joseph F. Smith (manual, p. 69)
 
"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."