Google thinks it’s a bee. That’s why they have the new service google buzz. I spent some time looking at it and it makes me think of jaiku, friendfeed and other services all combined into one. It’s threaded conversations and status messages based on geo-tagged conversation triggers.
It has a good interface with google reader and of course the question which I cannot answer yet is what does the full version have to offer that will enhance the user’s experience
For 134 days I have been studying German as well as other languages every single day. In so doing my reading comprehension has gone up and I no longer become a “deer in the headlights” when someone asks me a question in Spanish. I was even able to understand the questions people asked, and able to answer.
As I have been focusing on German and Spanish I find it increasingly easy to understand words so I can go through exercises that translate from German to English easily enough. The challenge comes when I have to remember the words to write phrases from English to German or Spanish. With repetition, I will increase my fluency in the language. The goal is to get to at least a beginner level before I take courses.
I see no reason to learn a language at a beginner level because applications, books, news programs in podcast form and other forms of content can help with this.
I like to choose exercises and learn new words. In so doing I sometimes make no mistakes several exercises in a row and progress smoothly. At other times, for example, when I am tired I make mistakes immediately. When I make mistakes I practise until I have refilled the five “hearts” and then I continue trying to learn new words.
With this application, you can practise anywhere. You can practise in front of the TV, while waiting for food to be ready, in various forms of transport and elsewhere. If the place is not suitable for audio and speaking I turn off those exercises and practise with other exercises. The point is that for 134 days I have practised and earned 50 points every day.
At the end of every week, you get learning stats that show how many words you have learned, how much time you have spent learning and finally how many words you have learned. If you’re new to a language then the learned words will be much higher. I spend time consolidating what I have learned, hence the time spent and lessons completed being so high. These stats are new.
I would still recommend playing with Duolingo every day to learn a new language or to consolidate what is already known. I have German and Spanish lessons downloaded on the phone and practise anywhere I want.
The Worldcommunity grid is a datagrid style project where almost half a million people are offering computer cycles to help advance scientific research in a number of fields such as health, nutrition and more. One of the most recent projects to be added to the collection is the one for Influenza. If you so chose you can help speed up the process of finding a solution to the influenza problem.
Two or three weeks ago they said that it may take up to four months to find a solution to the Swine Flu virus. Now take into account the WHO’s effort to get a number of research labs to work in collaboration against the SARS virus and it’s interesting. Apparently it took four days to learn everything there was to know about the nature of the virus but not how to cure it.
That’s where the World Community grid Influenza project comes in. The more computers are used to run models to see which are the best solutions to research the quicker we may have a way of dealing with this new virus.
The project is free and here are the projects you can currently help with;
Help Fight Childhood Cancer
Influenza Antiviral Drug Search
Help Cure Muscular Dystrophy – Phase 2
FightAIDS@Home
Human Proteome Folding – Phase 2
Discovering Dengue Drugs – Together
Help Conquer Cancer
Nutritious Rice for the World
The Clean Energy Project
After a while of searching I finned to the other side of the bay. New sand has been deposited along this beach. As a result of this new sand visibility has suffered near the beach. By the rocks the visibility is still good.
From the image above you can see that the water is really clear. I thought that with such clear waters I would see a lot. I was hoping to see fish, maybe an eel or two and maybe some crabs. It’s good to dive and snorkel close to marine reserves. In marine reserves fish are allowed to mature and grow and eventually they branch out to other areas. As a result diving and snorkeling are more rewarding.
It’s at the supermarket fish section that I saw the most fish. It’s a shame that they were lying dead, on ice, rather than swimming underwater. In effect I see as many fish in the mediterranean as in the lakes of Switzerland and France so you travel for the climate rather than aquatic life. People need to allow the seas and oceans time to recover. It’s a shame not to see much aquatic life. I should try again in a different location where there are fewer people. I might be luckier.
The iPad is a glorious device and I am in love already. What makes this device particularly attractive is that it has a large keyboard and a large screen. This is important for two reasons. The first of these is typing speed. I am very closes to touch typing speed already.
The second thing I like about it is that I could easily see myself putting it in the stand and using the calendar feature and e-mail client. The display feels like a sheet of paper. They tend to go for that look. The advantage with such a device is evident. I can see the whole email without scrolling. This means I am less likely to skip over something that I should otherwise have notice.
The sound when you type is quite interesting. You hear low taps most of the time but for some keys you do hear the sound of the nail hitting the glass. If you hold it vertical then with my hands you can type although the fingers stretch a little too much.
Nambu is a desktop client for Twitter available only to users of Leopard 10.5. What makes this application great is that it has automatic threading of conversations, making it easier to keep track of conversations.
The multi-column to single column view is also easy to interact with and creating groups and adding friends is a breeze. As a result of it’s intuitive nature it’s a pleasure to use this application
There are two views that make it amazingly easy to see what your twitter friends have hyperlinked to.
Overall it’s a nice product and other people are enjoying it to.
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