2011: A Look Back

Yes, I know it has been a while since my last post.  Granted, the only major event in my life that has been missed in that time was the trip to San Diego for a conference.  Now, in what has become an annual tradition, I give you a recap of my 2011.

1. At the beginning of the year, I officially advanced to candidacy.  Thus, my time at the university is spent on my research, with no more classes to take.
2. I served as a teaching assistant for what will probably be the last time as a graduate student.  Luckily, I did get a nice letter of recommendation for my file when I covered two sections at a time for four hours at the end of April.
3. The dateless streak fell on the Ides of March.  Granted, it hasn't led to anything lasting, but it is a step in the right direction.  And it absolves me from any forced blind dates as a agreed to at the beginning of the year.
4. The move occurred.  And after three years of living alone, I'm liking having a roommate.
5. I attended my first professional conferences this fall.  One was in Pittsburgh, the other in San Diego, marking the first time I have seen the Pacific Ocean and the farthest west I have been in my life.  It was also in the San Diego where I found out that I am my advisor's first doctoral student.
6. My first mathematical paper, co-written by my advisor, was submitted and accepted this December.  So in a few months, I officially will be published.
7. I was elected to another two-year term on my church council, despite having warned them that I am not sure where I'll be in eighteen months or so.  Oh well, I gave them an out.

Thus, 2011 was a very good year professionally, and not half-bad personally.  Here's hoping the trend continues.

Next post: A non-political look ahead to 2012.  (There will be plenty of opportunities for politics next year, I think.)

Standards (EC-10)

No, this is not a post about definitions for units of measurement.  Instead, it deals with a more personal issue in my life.  As you can probably guess with the lack of updates on the front, my dating life lately has been nonexistent.  OKCupid has been dry lately.  As such, I'm beginning to wonder a couple of things.  First, are my standards too high?  In a nutshell, they are

• Straight, single, non-smoking female
• Not on drugs
• Reasonably well-educated (i.e., college degree)
• Christian (just to clear up any confusion, Catholics count as Christian)
• Be willing to consider waiting until marriage (I'm not sure that this will happen, but I do want the option open to me.)
• Live nearby (within 25 or so miles)

N.B.: I consider dating a means to an end, the end being finding someone I would marry.  Hence some of the standards.

The other thing I've been wondering about lately is if it is in the cards for me to actually marry someone.  I know it is probably premature for me to be thinking such thoughts (I am only 26, after all), but it has been almost five and a half years of being single now.  It is getting very, very old.  It also doesn't help that I know of three couples getting married next year, and another one who just got engaged.  So, yeah, that explains the emo post.  Hey, it has been ten months since the last EC-10 post (yes, I went back and checked).  But I needed to write it down/verbalize it at some point.

In happier news, research is coming along well.  I give a talk next week, and will likely have two papers submitted in the next couple of months.  At least that part of my life is coming along.

Also, since I haven't had to preach a sermon in a while, but have had some good sermon ideas pop into my mind, I am thinking of starting a second blog for that.  I would probably also want others who are interested in writing their own Christian sermons/homilies/musings to join in as well (you know who you are).  I still want to think about this for a bit though, especially about the details, but if you are interested, let me know.

Okay, that's enough for this post (and hopefully this insomnia, as you can tell from the time-stamp).  I think I need to update a bit more frequently so that I'm not writing a mini-dissertation for each post.

Year Number Four

My fourth, and probably second-to-last, year as a graduate student has begun.  Hopefully the earthquake and hurricane from the previous week aren't omens of things to come.  I don't get to teach this year, mainly so that I can focus on my research and go to conferences like the one in Pittsburgh in October and possibly one in San Diego in mid-November.  If I go to the San Diego conference, I may get to visit my aunt and uncle in Albuquerque on the way back.

Anyway, since it apparently has been about a month and a half since I last updated this thing, I guess a status report is in order.

• The move is completed, as many of you have seen.  I also finally got the move-out voucher from Graduate Hills last week, so that lease is ended with no damage charges.  Looks like those pictures I took weren't needed after all.
• On the subject of pictures: during the cleaning for the move, my cell phone fell into a bucket of water.  Fortunately, after a night of drying out, it worked the next day, but since two years had elapsed since I got it, I was able to replace it just in case.  Thus, I now have a cell phone with a camera, QWERTY keyboard (the one without was more expensive for some reason), and Internet capabilities.  This last feature came in handy for
• Hurricane Irene.  We lost power here for about 24 hours, but I still got to check email.  And I still am adjusting to having water without electricity.
• I have had another date since the last post, but nothing is going to come of it.
• I have watched Frederick County politics devolve into corruption that even the DC government would shake its head about.  The county commissioners are now proposing that instead of county inspectors, developers would hire their own inspectors to inspect new buildings.  Yeah, that's not a conflict of interest at all.  Maybe the General Assembly will consider legislation allowing for recalls of county commissions in the next session.
• And time to rant about CNN: CNN.com recently had a poll asking people if they believed the US is in a recession.  By the definition, the country is not.  However, about 80% of people think it is.  Guess what, CNN--it doesn't matter that the majority of people think we are in a recession.  If the economic conditions do not meet the requirements of the definition, we are not in one.  So I guess that means 80% of the respondents to the poll question do not know what they are talking about.  Of course, a better question to ask would be "Do you think the United States will soon be in a recession?"  That to me is a reasonable question to ask as a poll question.  Chalk it up to another case of the "news" media screwing up our political system.  Okay, rant over.

So, that is my life over the past month or so in a nutshell.  Not very exciting, but productive.

FNP for Vendetta?

Either the Frederick News-Post has massively incompetent editors, or it has a vendetta against Frederick County Public Schools (or possibly a combination of the two).

Over the past few years, the paper of record in Frederick has published stories that because they lack all the facts, seem to make FCPS look bad (the story about FCPS saying it wouldn't do immigration checks comes to mind).  However, today's paper (since corrected on the webpage), ran a headline saying the school board approved a decision that was actually voted on by the county commissioners.  The decision essentially gives the developers in the county the right to develop anywhere even if there are not adequate public facilities like roads and schools by paying a mitigation fee.  Unfortunately, paying fees does not guarantee that the infrastructure will be upgraded.  Knowing this board of commissioners, the money will probably go to more short-sighted privatization studies.  Even though a few weeks ago the BOE voted unanimously to oppose this policy, the editor put the wrong board in the headline.  Either this is a subconscious response to the institutional bias against the public schools at the FNP, or is the height of incompetence for the editor.  Either way, I would hope the editor (a term I can only use loosely at this point) suffers at least a suspension with pay.  I'm not too sure this isn't a firing offense.  Imagine, sending out 40,000 newspapers with the wrong headline.  On the bright side, I think I have a nice scenario for a word problem at the Frederick County Academic Tournament next winter.

So, yeah, I can't say that I miss living in Frederick County right now.

Godspeed, Atlantis

Today for the last time, an American space shuttle took off for orbit.  In about twelve days, Atlantis will land, bringing a close to the shuttle program.  Good luck to the astronauts, and all those involved with the program.  Now, for a few thoughts:

• When I went to sleep last night, there was only a 30% chance of the weather cooperating with the launch.  Looks like things turned out well on that front (no pun intended).
• The launch pad almost didn't let the launch happen.  At T minus 31 seconds, control reported a failure.  The "beanie cap" for the liquid fuel tank had not fully retracted.  However, a quick check on the cameras showed it had retracted enough, and the countdown resumed.
• The major networks (ABC, Fox, CBS, NBC) cut it close when breaking in for the launch.  I think ABC cut in about a minute before the scheduled launch at 11:26.  For crying out loud, this was the LAST ONE!  Couldn't they have cut in around 11:15 at the latest?
• President Obama also cut things close with his address on the jobs report.  I'm sure people will complain about not waiting until the shuttle launched.

In more personal news, I have signed the lease at the new place, set up the accounts for electric and gas, set a date for discontinuation of service for my cable account, and given my 30 days notice here.  Next week, I will be moving things over each day.  So if anyone has any free time and wants to help...

Also, I found out I'm getting an extra thousand dollars this summer.  Yay for advisors' research grants.  However, I do have to have a first draft of my paper ready by next Friday.  At least I'm a third of the way there.

And So Begins the Summer

According to any of the calendars in my apartment, we have passed the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere.  And I am beginning to realize just how much I have to do this summer.

1. Finish the calculations for my research project and write the paper.  This will also count as chapter one of ?? of my dissertation.
2. Move.  The paperwork allowing me to move in with Jon should be completed tomorrow.  I will almost immediately begin moving stuff into the new place, with the large stuff hopefully being moved around July 9th.  If it weren't for the bed and dresser, I might have been able to get away without renting a U-Haul.  So, who wants to help me move?  (The official call for volunteers will come later.)  The move will require a lot of change of address notifications, and will allow to (finally) get a passport (no sense in getting one with an old address right now).
3. Plan and help lead the orientation for the incoming first-year math graduate students.
4. Maybe help my sister move on July 23rd.  (I've helped her move before and she has never helped me, so I'll have to see.  My mom isn't exactly pushing hard for me to help.)

So, yeah, a good deal of things to do this summer.  At least it looks like I don't have to preach in the next few months.

Oh, yeah, I need to make sure I'm free on July 8th, the scheduled day for the last ever space shuttle launch.  Definitely want to watch that one.

False Prophets

It looks like Harold Camping did it again.  Just as when he predicted the end of the world in 1994, his prediction/mathematical calculations were wrong in 2011.  (I would love to know what "error" he found in his 1994 calculations, though.)  However, it didn't stop the media from making a huge deal out of the possible doomsday today.  But, Christians who have actually read their Bibles already knew there was a good chance today would not be the day of the rapture.

1. Jesus warns his disciples, and us, about end-times prophets.  In particular, Luke 21:8 (all Bible quotations are from the NRSV): And [Jesus] said, "Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, 'I am he!' and 'The time is near!'  Do not go after them."  
2. On the subject of prophets, the Bible has a very good test for determining false prophets (Deuteronomy 18:22): "If a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord but the thing does not take place or prove true, it is a word that the Lord has not spoken.  The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; do not be frightened by it."  Since we already knew Camping prophesied falsely in 1994, we knew we did not have to worry about what he said.  If God had wanted us to know May 21st was the day of the rapture, I imagine He would have found an honest broker.
3. Camping kind of put himself in the position of God (Mark 13:32): "But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
4. Jesus uses the analogy of coming like a thief in the night (Matthew 24:42-44).  I find it hard to believe a thief would post advertisements in the New York City subway and on the National Mall giving the date and time he is going to rob your house.

Now, if those of us who profess Christ and have read the Scriptures knew this, why was there so little heard from us on this matter?  One, the media don't want to focus on reasoned discourse.  They focus on sensationalism anymore.  Two, we weren't sure May 21, 2011, at 6 p.m. local time, wasn't going to be the second coming.  As stated in point two above, we just don't know.  Camping could have gotten a lucky guess.  And three, this kind of thing has happened so many times in the past, we have been a bit jaded by it.

Unfortunately, Camping and his group have done damage to Christianity.  He has scared people, believers and possibly some unbelievers, without cause (well, except maybe his own fame).  And he has allowed the addition of skeptics who will question if Jesus is even coming again, and perhaps the entire Christian faith.  They will scoff and point out this false prophecy, even though it is hardly in line with true Christian belief.  And of course, there is the whole thing with the people who spent their life's savings or donated it to Camping.  They will have some hard times ahead.

Yet, I am convinced some good has come out of this incident.  First, I imagine many people at least paused and considered what they had done with their lives, and how they would feel if there was not going to be a tomorrow to make things right.  Second, we may have gotten a glimpse into why God won't let us know the date and time of the second coming.  We saw the believers of this false prophecy withdraw into their families and their churches, which is human nature.  When facing the unknown, we tend to withdraw into comfortable surroundings.  However, this is not what God wants of us.  He wants us out there in the world, being examples of His love.  Pleading the case of the widow and the orphan.  Working for justice for the oppressed.  He doesn't want us spending the last week of our lives huddling in churches waiting for Him to come again.  He wants us working for the "least of these," instead.

Third Year = Over

Minus some paperwork and final determination of grades for my students, my third year as a graduate student is almost over.  As a result, I now know that yes, doctoral candidates do get assigned grades for their dissertation research "course" and that our advisors just click the "A" button on the grade submission website.  Even more reason why grades don't matter to doctoral students.

In good news, my students did really well on their final exam.  Twenty-five out of seventy got a score of 90 or higher (out of 100).  As a result, at least 21 of them will get A's for the semester.  I may be able to argue a couple of more cases on Tuesday when we finalize the grades.

However, with the end of the school year comes a laundry list of things that I need to take care of.

1. I have to register for a conference my advisor wants me to attend in October.
2. I have to join SIAM, a professional organization for applied mathematicians (again, because my advisor thinks it's a good idea for networking and such).
3. I have to take the car in for the 108,000 mile service before
4. Reunion Weekend!  Now just to make it to the second weekend in June for my summer vacation.  It remains to be seen if I will bring work with me.
5. See my family's financial advisor.  My mom and aunt sold my late grandmother's condo a couple of weeks ago.  My mom cleared $65K, so she is paying $13K of my sister's student loans off and giving me the same amount.  Some will be used to open a retirement account; I'll talk to the advisor about what to do with the rest.
6. It looks like I need to prepare for a move this summer.  However, I'm not putting in a 30-day notice until paperwork is signed.
7. After the move, I need to (finally) get a passport.
8. Oh, yeah, I have that birthday thing in seventeen days.
9. And a get-together with grad school friends on June 3rd.

In any case, the performance of my students has made me really happy.  So it makes up for the not-so-happy things earlier this month.

Last Call

Monday, I start the spring semester, complete with teaching duties (Wednesday mornings are going to be a pain), but lacking in classes for me to take.  As such, a relatively low-productivity break comes to an end.  But, I did accomplish some things over the past five or six weeks.

• Spent Christmas (and completed the requisite shopping, etc.) with family, finding out some interesting facts in the process.
• Gave a sermon on some of the mistakes in traditional Christmas imagery (if you want an emailed copy, let me know).
• Read a paper my advisor wanted me to read over break.
• Finished half of the regular season academic tournament math questions.
• Proctored a qualifying exam, earning $60 for sitting on my rear end for four hours.
• Started using the online dating account.  Whether or not it shows any utility remains to be seen.
• Created a professional web page.  I just have to add the html files to the public folder on the department's network.
• Spent some time with friends.  Easily one of the more enjoyable parts of break.

So, break was more productive than I anticipated.  May the same be said for the spring semester.

Proverbs 11:29

Today, one of the more heinous crimes that can be committed against a democratic republic occurred in Arizona.  A crowd meeting with their congresswoman was gunned down outside a grocery store.  The congresswoman was shot in the head, but is expected to survive.  Six others, including a federal judge and a nine-year-old girl, were not so lucky.  Almost immediately, the reader comments on CNN's website devolved into accusations of either the liberals or the conservatives being behind the attack.

As of the time of writing this post, the gunman's motives have not been made public.  But what does it say that people are willing to believe the opposite political side would be behind this attack?  It says that the level of political discourse in this country has hit rock bottom.  This is in no small part due to the rhetoric from the likes of Limbaugh, Beck, and others on the extreme right and left.  Using loaded terms such as "communist" and "fascist" only serve to dehumanize the other side.  Such a level of discourse does a great disservice to a republic committed to the civil debate of the issues.  Neither side is committed to the destruction of the country, as neither side has nothing to gain by it. 

Ultimately, it appears that the face of this tragedy will be the Arizona congresswoman, and to a lesser extent, the slain federal judge.  But maybe the face of this shooting should be the face of that nine-year-old girl.  A girl who was with her parents to do some shopping, or perhaps with her parents to see the democratic process in person as a lesson, but was sadly in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Now, it is a bit early to say if this shooting was politically motivated.  But from the reactions today, we all know it could very well be.  If it was not politically motivated, we should consider this a warning to tone down the rhetoric.  Take a few seconds and think of a couple of good things that the other political side has done for the country.  An adversarial system is okay, so long as it is not taken to extremes.  Otherwise, we may see more of these nine-year-old girls in similar situations. 

Abraham Lincoln once compared the United States to a house.  (That whole, "a house divided against itself cannot stand," thing.)  And this brings me to the title of this post.  These political pundits and "leaders" who demonize the opposite side at every turn should heed this verse from Proverbs: "He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind."  And probably lead to the destruction of more innocent people.

In the Beginning (of 2011)

The new year is off to an interesting start, and all indications are that this trend will continue, at least for a while.  So, here is a forecast of sorts for me for 2011.

• Last night, I went to a trivia night at a bar in Baltimore with Oscar, Laura, and some of Oscar's friends from Baltimore.  I definitely see a good probability of me going the next couple of weeks.  I'll have to see when I teach to make a decision about the semester.
• I have officially advanced to candidacy.  With this comes a step increase (read: pay raise).  I also will no longer be taking classes, at least for a grade.  I may sit in on the occasional class but not worry about the assignments.  But 2011 will be the first year since 1990 I take no classes for a grade.
• I may have to get a passport this year.  My advisor mentioned the possibility of sending me to a conference in Italy for a week during the summer.  Hooray for my advisor's grants paying for it.
• If I don't make some progress on the dating front this year, I'm probably in big trouble. If I do make it to 2012 with the streak of no dates still intact, I will hereby give my friends the authority to act on my behalf with no veto from me.  (There, you have it in writing.)  Not that you guys can't try set-ups this year, but in 2011, I will still retain veto power.
• It looks like I may be off the hook for preaching the rest of the year.  The council president thinks the council has found an interim pastor.  There are still some details to work out, so this could be a false stand-down.  But in any case, the sermon seemed to go well.  I've had to email the written copy out to about half a dozen people.
• Here's hoping we don't see the snowfall this winter we saw last winter.
• I now have a couple of weeks of boredom ahead of me since I finished reading that paper yesterday.
• One set of math questions sent out, six more sets to go.

After finishing this, I realize that December will be fun when I revisit this list and look at its accuracy, or lack thereof.

May everyone have an enjoyable 2011.