tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60132512056997607972024-03-13T17:17:34.682-04:00Geeks 2.0A place to share ideas how to raise generation Geeks 2.0.
How to introduce the Star Trek universe, and show the Star Wars movies in the right order.
How to keep our children excited about science.
Geeky books and toys to replace Barbie and Justin Bieber.
Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-91055054398257062562015-12-16T10:00:00.000-05:002015-12-16T10:00:03.312-05:00"Thing Explainer" - Big Ideas in Small Words<br />
My children like reading reference books and encyclopedias (knowing lots of random and seemingly useless facts is a bona fide geek skill, after all). So I was thrilled to find a new kind of book just in time for the holidays.<br />
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<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randall_Munroe" target="_blank">Randall Munroe</a>, author of "<a href="http://www.wired.com/2014/12/book-review-serious-scientific-answers-absurd-hypothetical-questions/" target="_blank">What if?</a>" and the <a href="http://xkcd.com/" target="_blank">xkcd</a> comics, took up the challenge to explain complicated concepts by only using the 1,000 most common English words. Sounds easy? Well, you try explaining baseball without the use of the words pitcher, catcher, bat, or strike then.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_IX14-QQPGQ/VmnlHCppYvI/AAAAAAAAAcY/muAjbyWJatM/s1600/151216%2BThing%2BExplainer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_IX14-QQPGQ/VmnlHCppYvI/AAAAAAAAAcY/muAjbyWJatM/s400/151216%2BThing%2BExplainer.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Going along with the fantastically simple explanations, "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thing-Explainer-Complicated-Stuff-Simple/dp/0544668251/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1449712533&sr=1-1&keywords=Thing+Explainer" target="_blank">Thing Explainer</a>" (<a href="http://wired.uk/xAUvMm" target="_blank">a sample here</a>) also contains wonderful blueprint-style drawings and diagrams for items such as the International Space Station, submarines, dishwashers and sports. So besides being a great reference book children can read themselves, it is also great for parents who struggle to explain technology or scientific concepts to smaller children, who still lack most of the vocabulary used in these fields.<br />
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Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-54128072911421898302015-12-09T10:00:00.000-05:002015-12-10T23:28:43.877-05:00Goldieblox goes Zip-Lining<br />
Goldieblox, the toy company that combines my two favorite topics - reading and construction - has released several new toys <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/05/goldieblox-blocks-worth-their-weight-in.html">since I first wrote about them</a>. <br />
<br />
A parade float and a dunk tank were sets 2 and 3 to be released. The dunk tank was a bit hard to put and keep together because the rods kept slipping a bit further into the cubes than they should. But it seems the engineers at Corporate are just as quick as the ones in my living room. Based on customer feedback they have already redesigned the blocks to have stoppers and sent us replacements free of charge. This works great now!<br />
<br />
If you want to see the parade float in action, check out video's from the last two years' <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feX6J1MNSeY">Macy's Thanksgiving Parades</a> - Goldie was there with her own float!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YQwnOOrSk8/Vk-QL10CPsI/AAAAAAAAAcE/DSe1oTqMSQg/s1600/151209%2BGoldieblox%2BZipline.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5YQwnOOrSk8/Vk-QL10CPsI/AAAAAAAAAcE/DSe1oTqMSQg/s400/151209%2BGoldieblox%2BZipline.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Don't you dare call her a Doll. Goldie is a bona fide Action Figure!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
But the biggest hit under last year's Christmas tree was the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1DyalYVGoY">Goldieblox action figure</a>. Just to show you how much Goldie sets herself apart from Barbie: this girl does not come with a change of clothes (what's more practical that overalls anyway?), but with a change of transportation - her very own zip line! At 11 feet long we had plenty of opportunities to build rides for her around the house.<br />
<br />
This year, we are looking forward to the <a href="http://www.goldieblox.com/">The Builder's Survival Kit</a>, which will include over 190 additional parts and ideas to build bigger structures by combining all previous sets (something I had hoped for ever since set 2 came out). <br />
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<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-16736523618405684962015-12-02T10:00:00.000-05:002015-12-02T10:00:16.133-05:00Space Dogs - A mission for Captain Archer's Beagle<br />
If you google "Space Dogs" you will find plenty of Disney books and movies that are mind-numbing rather than valuable contributions to Science Fiction for children. But when I accidentally stumbled across a new book with the same title at the library, it turned into the most hilarious bedtime reading we had in a while.<br />
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Remember Leika, the first dog in space? According to Wikipedia <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laika">Leika died in space</a>. But according to Justin Bell and Evan Croker, a SiFi writer duo from <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Uluru#/media/File:Uluru_Australia%281%29.jpg">Down Under</a> I hope to read more from in the future, Leika ended up flying through a wormhole and landed on the planet of Gersbach, populated by intelligent beings similar to humans, just a lot tinier. When the planet's structural integrity is threatened by a Disturbance of Gravity (D.o.G) originating from Earth, Gersbach Space command sends a space craft to Earth to establish contact and save their civilization.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SK5JN0GbO6w/VkK9vUV7w3I/AAAAAAAAAbw/iPho-4n4ScA/s1600/151202%2BSpace%2BDogs%2B1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SK5JN0GbO6w/VkK9vUV7w3I/AAAAAAAAAbw/iPho-4n4ScA/s320/151202%2BSpace%2BDogs%2B1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
Unfortunately, there are several flaws in the plan. For one, Gersbachians assumed that Leika was a representative of the dominant species on Earth, so they shaped the space craft like a dog. As a result, First Contact with Earth's life forms would have made <a href="http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Porthos">Captain Archer's Beagle</a> proud, but left the Gersbachian crew rather embarrassed. Looking like an adorable pet, they are soon adopted (against their will) by 6th grader Lucy, and are thrown into the struggles of daily family life. And second, a renegade former colonel stole a proto-type dog-craft with the objective to collect the D.o.G. and blackmail Gersbach.<br />
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What made the book such a good read for all of my kids was the alternating view points of the Gersbachian crew versus Lucy and her sister Amy. The crew's story reads like a Star Trek episode with technical commands, 23rd century technology integrated into dog anatomy in hilarious ways, and lots of action sequences with an evil adversary. The story of Lucy and Amy, on the other hand, tells of the anxiety to fit in at a new school, complicated family life after the father can't work anymore due to injury, and Amy's crush on the coolest boy in school.<br />
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The only thing this book left us wishing for was the movie-adaptation. Laser nose. Need I say more?<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Did you
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Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-15596686162713220512015-11-25T10:00:00.000-05:002015-11-25T10:00:05.999-05:00Top 10 Gifts for little GeeksIn case you wonder why there are no books on this list - books are so important, they will get their own list. <br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">1) Kiva Gift Card (ages 6+)</span></span><br />
<br />
Available
in denominations of $25, this is a multipurpose gift for a true
Nerdfighter. Did you ever wish to be able to help a widow with 2
children in Senegal directly by lending her $300 for a sewing machine?
Kiva.org is a microlending site that helps connect lenders that can
spare a few dollars for a few months to borrowers that do not have
access to bank loans due to where they live or being extremely poor.
After the loan is repaid (and 98% of the millions of dollars lent out
through Kiva are paid back), your gift card recipient can withdraw the
money - or loan it out again. If you are interested in learning more and
connecting with others, join John Green's Nerdfighter team in
decreasing world suck, or one of the many other teams dedicated to
specific countries or topics like colorful fabrics or education.<br />
<br />
Use this link to sign up: <a href="http://www.kiva.org/invitedby/geeks2point0" target="_blank">http://www.kiva.org/invitedby/geeks2point0</a><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-keIiu_2wMeA/UlYYcNoZlbI/AAAAAAAAALI/Hp13ryNS6oA/s1600/1310+Top+10+Gifts+1.bmp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-keIiu_2wMeA/UlYYcNoZlbI/AAAAAAAAALI/Hp13ryNS6oA/s400/1310+Top+10+Gifts+1.bmp" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">2) Goldieblox</span></span><br />
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Combining storytelling with construction and engineering projects is making girls more interested in STEM projects. <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/05/goldieblox-blocks-worth-their-weight-in.html" target="_blank">Goldieblox </a>-
winner of a Parents' Choice Gold Award - combines these two elements. A
colorful story book featuring a female engineer tells a story, and the
construction materials are used to build a machine alongside that story.
The first set, available at Amazon, <a href="http://goldieblox.com/">goldieblox.com</a> and select retailers, featured a "spinning machine". In later
sets Goldie and her friend Ruby build a parade float or a movie machine.
But don't fall into the gender trap and think this is only for girls,
little boys enjoy it just as much.<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">3) Calafant</span></span><br />
<br />
The
only thing better than getting a toy castle is building and decorating
your own. Calafant makes cardboard houses, castles, ships and fortresses
that are easy to assemble and can then be decorated and personalized.
The size ranges from small individual toys to a crawl-in play-house and
the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/CALAFANT-624404-Calafant-Calabot/dp/B004C71UNS" target="_blank">3 1/2 feet tall Calabot</a> robot, big enough to be pimped out with some old mp3 players and speakers. Which geek <i>wouldn</i>'t want a 3 feet tall robot!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ov5rlNaibA/UlYbTfW3TII/AAAAAAAAALU/Jp4kCSpbwnk/s1600/1310+Top+10+Gifts+3.bmp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ov5rlNaibA/UlYbTfW3TII/AAAAAAAAALU/Jp4kCSpbwnk/s400/1310+Top+10+Gifts+3.bmp" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">4) The Settlers of Catan</span></span><br />
<br />
A must have board game for every family. Sometime hailed as <a href="http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/magazine/17-04/mf_settlers?currentPage=all" target="_blank">the "next monopoly"</a>,
it actually does not have anything in common with monopoly at all.
Instead of round after round watching the rich get richer and the poor
get poorer, and playing for hours until the obvious end, Catan requires a
lot of communication and trading with the other players. It teaches
basic market principles such as demand and supply setting the price, the
value of cooperation, and the social implications of being too greedy
(watch the family gang up against you if you hurt the most vulnerable
player on purpose). Chance with the dice can level the playing field
very quickly, and there is a lot of room for a surprise winner. The game
board is arranged from scratch for every game, which ensures that the
game dynamics are different each time you play. It never gets boring.
And the absolute best thing? It also comes in a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Catan-Board-Game/dp/B008MWWEJI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1447211999&sr=8-1&keywords=catan+star+trek">Star Trek edition</a>. Got your dilithium drill ready?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.catan.com/images/stories/Star-Trek-Catan/Star-Trek-Catan_Battle-Cruiser-100pc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.catan.com/images/stories/Star-Trek-Catan/Star-Trek-Catan_Battle-Cruiser-100pc.jpg" height="228" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">5) A Magazine or Comic book Subscription</span></span><br />
<br />
A
magazine is a great way to spend reading in depth on a topic, and to
encourage regular reading. Articles are often short enough to bridge the
time of a car ride or before dinner. Magazines my kids enjoyed are
National Geographic Kids, Ask, Dig, and Sports Illustrated Kids.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">6) Snap circuits</span></span><br />
<br />
Similar
appeal as Lego, but with the added thrill of creating something that
lights up, rings or moves. Physics class meets woodshop. Our personal
experience will have to wait until December 26 (don't tell my kids). <br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">7) Try The World</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.trytheworld.com/">This food subscription service</a> delivers a box with traditional foods from a new country
every 2 months. The included culture guide helps plan a dinner and find
a starting point to learn about music, history, and culture. My
children look forward to every new box and carefully plan <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2015/11/try-the-world.html">additional activities for virtual travel</a>. The smallest subscription is for a single box, so this can fit small or large budgets.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RToH302rYyc/VkKpKO1U69I/AAAAAAAAAbM/EDtSAGQfwIo/s1600/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B2.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RToH302rYyc/VkKpKO1U69I/AAAAAAAAAbM/EDtSAGQfwIo/s400/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Contents of our "Try the World" Japan box.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">8) A Science Museum Family Membership</span></span><br />
<br />
I
am not kidding. An trip to a museum with three kids on tow can easily
approach a three digit number in some museums. With a membership, it is
worth to just stop by for an hour before closing, or three times in a
row on a rainy weekend. Think of it as access to the coolest playground
in town. Many museums also belong to lager networks and offer free or
reduced entrance at other museums. For instance a membership to the
Franklin Institute in Philadelphia also gets us free entrance to major
museums in NYC, like the Transit Museum, the Children's Museum and the
Intrepid Sea, Air and Space museum. There is a weekend trip where we
only need to pay for gas.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rdy8Jc_kF78/UivcNHwJJKI/AAAAAAAAAEY/wtT2BMqkhno/s1600/130907+CIA+Declassified+4.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rdy8Jc_kF78/UivcNHwJJKI/AAAAAAAAAEY/wtT2BMqkhno/s320/130907+CIA+Declassified+4.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Franklin Institute Special exhibit</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">9) Ticket to Ride </span></span><br />
<br />
Board
game and geography lesson all in one, there are several different
versions available with local maps and variations. If you want your kids
to know where <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luanda">Luanda </a>and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durban">Durban </a>are, this is the game for you. <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/06/ticket-to-tide.html">For a detailed review read here</a>.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">10) Lego</span></span><br />
<br />
You can't ever have enough Lego. Enough said. But if you really don't want to own any additional ones, rent them from <a href="https://www.pley.com/">Pley.com</a>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-91210978070987234982015-11-18T10:00:00.000-05:002015-11-18T10:00:13.429-05:00How to watch Star Wars (can we skip "The Phantom Menace"?)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FWzPjq-U_n8/VkKtJWsAoFI/AAAAAAAAAbc/z9N2tgRPLQw/s1600/151118%2BHow%2Bto%2Bwatch%2BStar%2BWars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FWzPjq-U_n8/VkKtJWsAoFI/AAAAAAAAAbc/z9N2tgRPLQw/s400/151118%2BHow%2Bto%2Bwatch%2BStar%2BWars.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Best. Parenting Advice. Ever.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Episode VII soon <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">to</span> be released in <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">movie t<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">heaters, <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">it<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> is now urgent <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">to</span> deci<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">de if and how to <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">show </span>the first 6 movies to the young ones.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The best news first: Yes you can (skip "The Phantom Menace"). If for no other <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">reason that your child may decide it is<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> the best movie of them all, <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">givi<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ng</span> you serious concerns that he was switched at birth<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the best order and re<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">asoni<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ng for it I have to refer to <a href="http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/05/ff_starwars/" target="_blank">Geek Dad'</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/05/ff_starwars/" target="_blank">s</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/05/ff_starwars/" target="_blank"> artic<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">le </span>in W</a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/05/ff_starwars/" target="_blank">ired</a>. <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So go read <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">that, while <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I</span> research who the birth<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> mother of this </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jar<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-</span>Jar<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">-</span>Binks-loving ali<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">en in my house is.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span class="userContent"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span></span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-50390817688229143412015-11-11T13:20:00.000-05:002015-11-11T13:20:55.178-05:00Try The World<br />
Before we had children, my husband and me traveled as often as we could. Now with less income, more expenses - and oh yes - 3 more airline tickets to pay for, traveling abroad won't happen for a while.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-76QhUFRdMK8/VkKpJaIVxgI/AAAAAAAAAa4/jBWhRQ3Dt08/s1600/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-76QhUFRdMK8/VkKpJaIVxgI/AAAAAAAAAa4/jBWhRQ3Dt08/s400/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B1.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A box every 2 months gives a glimpse into another culture.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
A German saying goes "love goes through the stomach", and with that in mind we recently signed up for the <a href="http://fbuy.me/cRVQy" target="_blank">Try The World</a> food subscription service. Food seems the perfect setting to encourage our kids to fall in love with a world they will hopefully get to travel one day. Every 2 months we receive a box with 6-7 foods from a new country. But we don't just use the <a href="http://magazine.trytheworld.com/" target="_blank">recipes and tips</a> on the Try The World website to plan a 3-course meal with a couple of new foods. Rather, we invite some friends and their kids, and each person contributes to an evening exploring the culture, stories and customs of the land from our box.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RToH302rYyc/VkKpKO1U69I/AAAAAAAAAbM/EDtSAGQfwIo/s1600/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RToH302rYyc/VkKpKO1U69I/AAAAAAAAAbM/EDtSAGQfwIo/s400/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our Japan box contained ingredients and recipes for a three course dinner.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Here some activities to enhance your virtual traveling:<br />
<br />
<u>Go to the library:</u> To get everyone excited about our new country, we first get a couple of books from the library. Country guides, history books, or local folk tales are a good start. My kids were never interested in such books before, but with a country to focus on they really get into it. We have a few lay out during dinner to look at pictures and read out stories.<br />
<br />
<u><a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2014/06/fun-with-flags-va-brasil.html" target="_blank">Color the flag</a>:</u> <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html" target="_blank">The Queen's</a> favorite activity, since she cannot read on her own yet. But she likes learning what each part of the flag means.<br />
<br />
<u>Color traditional clothing:</u> Another activity for pre-readers. An easy way to learn about gauchos, geishas or toreros. <br />
<br />
<u>Look up endemic animals:</u> Flying squirrels, capybara, snow monkey ... <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html" target="_blank">Mr. Entropy</a> likes animal non-fiction books (his words, not mine), so he looks up unusual (or just lesser known) animals in his encyclopedia or on Wikipedia.<br />
<br />
<u>Make a slide show of landmarks and historic sites:</u> <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Wiki Commons</a> can help you pretend you are showing our own vacation pictures.<br />
<br />
<u>Look up YouTube videos:</u> Carnevale in Rio, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW7n2UP60bk" target="_blank">a Sumo wrestler's diet</a>, Run of the Bulls, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tkhz6f9Gv4w" target="_blank">La Tomatina</a> - mini-documentaries with enough fun factor to keep the kids entertained and excited between courses.<br />
<br />
<u>Write a history timeline:</u> Did you know that 100 years ago Argentina used to be the 7th richest economy in the world? That Southern Spain used to be ruled by Arab tribes? What's the difference between a ninja and a samurai? Time to find out!<br />
<br />
<u>Find weird facts:</u> Weird for <i>us</i> anyway. In the Southern hemisphere it is perfectly normal to start your school year in February and your summer vacation in December.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.trytheworld.com/pages/playlist" target="_blank"><u>Listen to the music:</u></a> Try The World provides a Spotify playlist with traditional and contemporary music. Add the national anthem for extra flair.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2CMiRUiCFE4/VkKpKEI7sWI/AAAAAAAAAbI/mjzsACXMJH0/s1600/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2CMiRUiCFE4/VkKpKEI7sWI/AAAAAAAAAbI/mjzsACXMJH0/s400/151111%2BTry%2BThe%2BWorld%2B3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">No tables for Japanese-style dining.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<u>Rearrange the dining room:</u> Traditional Japanese housing does not include tables. So we ate on a picnic blanket on the floor and hung paper lanterns all around us.<br />
<br />
<u>Watch the movies:</u> The Try The World cultural guide comes with a list of notable local movies. With some luck, Netflix has them in stock as DVD.<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-65992932331711168502014-11-04T10:00:00.000-05:002014-11-04T10:00:08.677-05:00Lego now comes Netflix-style<br />
I will be the first person to tell you that you can't ever have too many Legos. <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Mr. Entropy</a> will second that. However, the unfortunate truth is, unless you have a money tree growing in the backyard, you can't ever have them all. <br />
<br />
But thanks to <a href="https://www.pley.com/">Pley.com</a> you can now have them all for a little while. We have not tried out this company (out of fear I would never see my middle child again outside his room), but the concept sounds intriguing.<br />
<br />
Sing up for a monthly plan (the cheapest subscription starts at $15 per month), get a Lego set shipped, build it, play with it for as long as you like, ship it back and get the next set. Like Netflix for Lego! And if your children fall in love with the structures they have built, you can also buy and keep the set.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6il_s4g_rMI/VECRb-5tO9I/AAAAAAAAAYA/rakgZtUCE98/s1600/141028%2BLego_at_Work.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6il_s4g_rMI/VECRb-5tO9I/AAAAAAAAAYA/rakgZtUCE98/s1600/141028%2BLego_at_Work.jpg" height="292" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Author=[http://www.flickr.com/people/44532984@N00 Daniele Margaroli</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-57523083007921706652014-10-28T10:00:00.001-04:002015-09-28T22:09:36.822-04:0010 geek-approved Series Books for KidsI have spent ages researching good, interesting, funny and geeky
books for children. But with 45 min reading time on the school bus every
day, and another 30 if recess is rained out, I can hardly keep up with
keeping enough reading material for the boys at hand. I treasure the
extra-ordinary books that make the "Must Read" lists for children. But I
also need series books where I can pre-order 5-8 at once at the library
without having to review and think. Here the ones that got the thumbs
up from the boys and/or me, roughly sorted by reading ability and age.<br />
(The best series is listed last, so if you are not interested in books for smaller kids, at least scroll down and read #10!) <br />
<br />
<b><u>1) "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_and_Mudge">Henry and Mudge</a>" / "Annie and Snowball" by Cynthia Rylant</u></b><br />
28 / 12 books<br />
A
series for beginning readers with heart-warming stories describing the
joys of being alive and having a best friend, who happens to be a dog. Problems are solved in a
logical manner, like finding a perfect pet for Annie (not too wet, not
too big ... "Henry and Mudge and Annie's Perfect Pet") or figuring out
how to attract hummingbirds ("Annie and Snowball and the Pink
Surprise"). Some stories are clearly geeky, like making a pineapple
couch or a sweet potato shoe for Mother's Day ("Henry and Mudge and the
Funny Lunch"). A prequel series "Puppy Mudge" is written for entry-level
readers.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v20MovwrJ4A/U3wRZOkRZtI/AAAAAAAAAVE/Xvc30u7o2Hs/s1600/IMG_1129.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v20MovwrJ4A/U3wRZOkRZtI/AAAAAAAAAVE/Xvc30u7o2Hs/s1600/IMG_1129.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top row from
left: "Henry and Mudge", the first "Calendar Mysteries" book; bottom
row: "Choose your own adventure books with outline of possible story
paths on the back</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<b><u>2) " Mr. Putter and Tabby" by Cynthia Rylant</u></b><br />
21 books<br />
I know, another series by Cynthia Rylant, but read them and you will understand why. This one is about the
world seen through the eyes of a senior and his cat. As an adult, he
goes on different adventures than children typically do in those type of
books, and his age-related challenges are also not the usual fare.
Especially when he employs MacGyver-style problem solving skills, like
making a slingshot out of spare underwear ("Mr. Putter and Tabby pick
the Pears"). A great series to increase awareness that some people have
different needs or desires than a typical child, and that you are never
too old to try something new.<br />
<br />
<b><u>3) "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Tree_House_series">The Magic Treehouse</a>" by Mary Pope Osborne</u></b><br />
49 books<br />
The
two protagonists in this series travel across history in the Magic
Treehouse, using the books they bring along and some quick wit to solve
mysteries. I would recommend to read the books in order, since every 4
of them form a set in which a larger mystery is solved. Also, reading
level and complexity increases book by book, and there is a small
storyline overarching an even larger part of the series. At <a href="http://magictreehouse.com/">magictreehouse.com</a>
children can decorate their own tree house and earn passport stamps by
answering reading comprehension questions for each book. Several books
also come with a fact tracker companion book with more detail on the
historic period.<br />
<br />
<b><u>4) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-Z_Mysteries">A-Z Mysteries</a> / The Calendar Mysteries / The Capital Mysteries by Ron Roy</u></b><br />
26 / 10 (3 more releasing in fall 2014) / 14 books<br />
Child
detectives are solving cases by hypothesizing together and verifying
through collecting clues. My son was elated every time he was able to
guess who the criminal was before it was revealed in the book.<br />
<br />
<b><u>5) "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_underpants">Captain Underpants</a>" / "
<span class="patFuncTitleMain">Ricky Ricotta's Mighty Robot" by Dav Pilkey</span></u></b><br />
<span class="patFuncTitleMain">10 (2 more planned) / 11 books</span><br />
<span class="patFuncTitleMain">Comics,
action, potty humor, hypnotized principal as superhero in underpants
... if these books don't get your children to read or laugh, then they
must be Vulcan. <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2014/04/captain-underpants.html">Read here for more</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<b>6) <u>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Weird_School">My Weird School</a>" by Dan Gutman</u></b><br />
53 books<br />
Situated at
Ella Mentry School, these laugh out loud stories (unpractical when you
snuck up your book to your room to read waaaay past bedtime, right <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Evel</a>?), are told
by a second grader. Apparently the only sane people in the school are
the children, and together with his friends A.J. must devise plans to
keep the teachers from going completely over the edge of reasons, or
sometimes the roof of the school building. Each book is a rescue mission for a different teacher.<br />
<br />
<b><u>7) "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Choose_Your_Own_Adventure_books">Choose your own adventure</a>" books, several authors</u></b><br />
over 200 books<br />
These
books, situated in locations like the Himalayan for a Yeti search or in the Deep Sea,
have multiple possible story lines and endings. Every few pages when a
decision has to be made, the reader can choose how the story should
continue. Routed to different pages based on the path that was chosen,
you might find the Yeti, go home unsuccessful, or freeze to death on the
mountain. There are several sub-series for different age groups.<br />
<br />
<b><u>8) "Nathan Abercrombie, accidental Zombie" by David Lubar</u></b><br />
5 books<br />
A
5th grader turns Zombie, which isn't as exhilarating as one might
think. For one there are lots of gross bodily changes when one is sort
of dead. But of course there are also advantages like not needing sleep
or being stronger than before. Only 5 books, but they are longer and
more complex, so hopefully they last longer for reading, too.<br />
<br />
<u><b>9) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/39_clues">The 39 Clues</a>, several authors</b></u><br />
21 books, more releasing fall 2014<br />
Indiana
Jones turns 21st century for fast paced action, requiring deep
knowledge of history and state of the art cryptology skills to follow
the clues to an ancient family riddle - <span class="patFuncTitleMain"><a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2014/01/39-clues.html">read here for more</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<u><b>10) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworld#Novels">The Discworld</a> by Terry Pratchett</b></u><br />
40 books <br />
While
the series started out as adults books, 5 of the later entries are
specifically for young adults and have received several awards (The
Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wee_Free_Men">The Wee Free Men</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Hat_Full_of_Sky">A Hat Full of Sky</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wintersmith">Wintersmith</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Shall_Wear_Midnight">I Shall Wear Midnight</a>).
They provide a gentle introduction to move into the adult fantasy genre
and the rest of the Discworld novels - a world on four elephants on the
back of a turtle resembling medieval society, where string theory
connects all libraries in all universes, DEATH reads books to kill the
time during near-death experiences that prevent him from fulfilling his
purpose, where time can be stretched and bent by time monks, and computers are run by ants
... nothing is impossible here. These books are insanely funny, and you will
never again look at footnotes quite the same way. They also impart
witty analogies to history, current events and trends in society, and
capture the true essence of ethical problems in a few, snarky sentences.
True geek form! I highly recommend to read the young adult as well as
the general
novels in order. Even though each book is self-sufficient, having the
back stories from the previous novels and following the character
development is very enjoyable. <br />
<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-62682366322690315172014-10-20T08:00:00.000-04:002014-10-20T08:00:11.347-04:00DIY "Star Trek: Enterprise" Costume: Lt. Malcolm ReedSuffering the injustice of having the last installment of the Star Trek franchise cut short after 4 seasons is apparently not bad enough, turns out it is also impossible to buy <a href="http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Enterprise_%28NX-01%29">NX-01</a> costumes for children. You'd think blue jumpsuits are easy to come by!<br />
<br />
So rather out of desperation than eager anticipation to open the super glue, we ended up making our own "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_Enterprise">Star Trek: Enterprise</a>" Halloween costume. <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Mr Entropy</a> is fascinated by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Reed">Lt. Malcolm Reed</a>, the man with the power over the Red Alert button. <br />
<br />
This is what Google and Amazon found for us:<br />
<br />
1) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007PYVXVE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1">WorkWear King navy Boilersuit</a> (Ships from the UK. How fitting, seeing that Lt. Reed is British.)<br />
2) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I4GJD82/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1">Plain navy baseball hat</a><br />
3) Red duct tape (and a really sharp new box cutter)<br />
4) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001IIICSK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1">Enterprise iron on mission patch</a><br />
5) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KMQVDJY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1">NX-01 iron on logo</a><br />
6) Two pieces of cardboard (cereal box) and silver paint to make your own rank pins (we could not find anything of the right size and shape in our local craft store)<br />
7) Super glue and plastic wrap<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cCkTtlnVGT8/VERVvGhKB5I/AAAAAAAAAYQ/36TTXopbbE0/s1600/141021%2BDIY%2BST%2BEnterprise.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cCkTtlnVGT8/VERVvGhKB5I/AAAAAAAAAYQ/36TTXopbbE0/s1600/141021%2BDIY%2BST%2BEnterprise.JPG" height="305" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">DIY "Star Trek: Enterprise" Costume: Lt. Malcolm Reed</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Assembly:<br />
<br />
A) Ironing the NX-01 logo onto the baseball hat is hard, since the baseball hat does not flatten out enough. I ended up ironing on the middle part, and super-gluing all the edges. Make sure to cover the inside of the hat with plastic wrap while applying glue, otherwise it will stick to your fingers while pressing through the hat.<br />
<br />
B) Cut long stripes of red duct tape. Have your child wear the jumpsuit and tape the shoulder markings. Be careful to watch for symmetry.<br />
<br />
C) Iron on the mission patch (without the child in it ... just saying, this is the US after all ...) Like with the NX-01 logo, I only ironed until it mostly stuck on its own, then used super glue (plastic wrap inside the sleeve!) to glue all edges. The logo is rather large and stiff compared to the arm of a small child. The iron on started to peel off when my son tried on the costume before I had applied the glue.<br />
<br />
D) Cut two rectangular pieces of cardboard from an empty cereal box or similar. Paint with silver paint (we used acrylic metallic paint). Super glue to uniform (plastic wrap on the inside!).<br />
<br />
Simply vary the number of rank pins or color of duct tape for all the other NX-01 uniforms. <br />
<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-9269710891110210622014-10-16T08:29:00.001-04:002014-10-16T08:29:55.652-04:00Pass on the Torch - Alan Alda's Flame Challenge<br />
When I grew up the dominant philosophy for teaching science to children was "if you can't understand the scientific explanation, then you are still too young for that topic". Explaining inheritable genetic traits or nuclear fusion to a 6-year old - crazy, right? So I thought as well, until my own 6-year old asked why his eyes don't have the same color as mine. I hate leaving questions like this with an "it's too complicated for you". And I discovered that the real challenge of passing down geekdom is not being stumped by a question I might not know the answer to (there is always Google), but how to take that answer, extract the most important mechanisms and fit them into the world of a 6-year old. I ended up waving piles of Lego instruction booklets - one for building, and a similar second one as a safety copy.<br />
<br />
I realized that once your kids are beyond being fascinated by the fact that there are more than 4 colors, it is not that easy to come by content that explains complex scientific facts to children. There are only so many episodes of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Nye_the_Science_Guy">Bill Nye</a> or the <a href="http://www.scholastic.com/magicschoolbus/">Magic School Bus</a>, after all.<br />
<br />
One entity that tries to fill the void is the <a href="http://www.centerforcommunicatingscience.org/">Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science</a>. (Yes, THAT Alan Alda of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068098/">M.A.S.H.</a>
fame!). The center's mission is a real challenge - helping scientists
to communicate with the public (I was not aware we were allowed to do
that ...).<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M57rVyywxOg/VD9HWyrWusI/AAAAAAAAAXw/TIjaS5BFppw/s1600/141015%2BFlame.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M57rVyywxOg/VD9HWyrWusI/AAAAAAAAAXw/TIjaS5BFppw/s1600/141015%2BFlame.JPG" height="320" width="132" /></a></div>
<br />
As part of that mission it sets an annual "<a href="http://www.centerforcommunicatingscience.org/the-flame-challenge-2/history-of-the-flame-challenge/">Flame Challenge</a>", named after the first year's topic. The Flame Challenge picks a challenge question every year and asks scientist from around the world to submit written or graphic explanations that can be understood by an 11-year old. But now here is the best thing: <a href="http://www.centerforcommunicatingscience.org/the-flame-challenge-2/tentative-timeline-for-flame-challenge-2/">children are involved</a> in every part of the process. 10-12 year olds are invited to <a href="http://www.centerforcommunicatingscience.org/the-flame-challenge-2/submit-your-questions-for-next-years-flame-challenge/">submit their own "burning questions"</a>. 5th and 6th graders from around the globe are then invited to vote on their favorite challenge question. And finally, students get to review, grade and vote on the submissions. What better way to get kids involved into science than taking their opinions seriously and letting them vote? 10 schools will even be so lucky to be picked for a world-wide video conference to discuss the entries. So email your kid's science teacher today and ask them to <a href="http://www.centerforcommunicatingscience.org/the-flame-challenge-2/sign-up-your-school-to-participate/">sign up their classroom</a>!<br />
<br />
<br />
And last but not least - the amazing winner of the 2012 Challenge, Ben Ames, explaining what a flame is (I dare you to resists singing along):<br />
<br />
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<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-62085818552838656082014-06-27T15:44:00.001-04:002014-06-27T15:44:39.268-04:00Free geeky summer reading for kids - light in style, solid content<br />
School is finally out, and that means summer vacation and more downtime. There will be car travel and air plane rides or hanging out in the backyard until the friends come over. It would be a good habit to use those "I am bored" moments and fill them with some quick, light summer reading. And with light I mean in weight, not in content.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Evel and Mr Entropy</a> have been reading "Ask" since last fall, a great magazine covering scientific topics for children age 6-9. Each issue follows a theme, "Stuck on you" in the latest. Good photography and cartoons explored the world of microbes, lichens and fungi. The articles are just the right length to keep a child's curiosity alive while imparting a good deal of scientific knowledge. And the best thing - for this summer "Ask" and all its siblings from publisher Cricket (10 different magazines) are <a href="http://www.cricketmag.com/2768-summer-reading#">free for download on iTunes or Google Play</a>. Download them all and you hopefully won't run out of reading material.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JZFqvGNTv2c/U63IcOgW1OI/AAAAAAAAAXA/CGDeB1wgARA/s1600/140627+Summer+Reading+2.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JZFqvGNTv2c/U63IcOgW1OI/AAAAAAAAAXA/CGDeB1wgARA/s1600/140627+Summer+Reading+2.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Comics and infographics help illustrate scientific content</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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If what's keeping your kids from reading more in summer is the worry that they will misplace the library books at the vacation destination, or that water, sand and sun screen will damage the books or your tablet, <a href="http://www.readinga-z.com/books/leveled-books/">readinga-z.com</a> offers a great solution. Over 1,000 leveled reading books for elementary school children (grades K-5) are available as pdf downloads which you print at home. You won't have to worry about pizza sauce or ripped pages, and the books can double-function as coloring books. About half of the books are non-fiction covering science, technology or history, adjusted to the exact reading ability of your child. And with the <a href="https://accounts.learninga-z.com/accountsweb/marketing/trial.do?campaign=razlazsiteTrial">free trial</a> offered right now you can download 20 books per day for 14 days. 280 books - that should cover your summer and the individual interests of all your children!<br />
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Happy Reading!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H0qOBt3n_FM/U63IbaY-lgI/AAAAAAAAAW0/vt6U3qmlRAw/s1600/140627+Summer+Reading+1.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H0qOBt3n_FM/U63IbaY-lgI/AAAAAAAAAW0/vt6U3qmlRAw/s1600/140627+Summer+Reading+1.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-43648514883867277722014-06-21T14:07:00.000-04:002014-06-21T14:07:09.158-04:00Donate yourself to Research - Scientific Method Part 4 - Data CollectionFirst published on <a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2014/06/20/donate-yourself-to-research/">Geekadelphia.com</a>. <br />
<br />
"<a href="http://qz.com/139453/theres-one-key-difference-between-kids-who-excel-at-math-and-those-who-dont/#/h/24468,1/">P</a><span class="anno-span"><span class="emHighlight" data-num="1"><a href="http://qz.com/139453/theres-one-key-difference-between-kids-who-excel-at-math-and-those-who-dont/#/h/24468,1/">eople’s belief that math ability can’t change becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy</a>".</span></span> <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.nurtureshock.com/IQLeaps.pdf">Playing board games can raise a child's IQ</a>.<br />
<br />
At age 2, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/8752535/Girls-prefer-pink-from-age-two.html">girls start to prefer the color pink</a>, while boys start to avoid it.<br />
<br />
<br />
Have you ever wondered where those gems of insight into human learning and behavior come from? Well, or course, from scientific research, but where are these studies conducted and who are these children who's color preference had been tested, or who got to play board games? For a multi-year <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/seed.html">CDC study looking for risk factors for autism spectrum disorder (ASD)</a> and other developmental disabilities the answer is - my child and me. We donated ourselves to research.<br />
<br />
When thinking about being a research test subject, most people
probably think of clinical trials for new drugs, where you wager your
health and maybe even life for a handsome payout. But not all research
requires you to put yourself in harm's way in order to advance science.
There are plenty of opportunities to be part of new research while only
risking a paper cut from all the forms you need to fill out.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yz_k1llpsDI/U31OFk7JAKI/AAAAAAAAAV8/2aZXmlSMEcg/s1600/Science+Lab+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yz_k1llpsDI/U31OFk7JAKI/AAAAAAAAAV8/2aZXmlSMEcg/s1600/Science+Lab+1.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You do not have to part with body parts in order to participate in research.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
We had a few reasons to participate. The first one is rather selfish. The CDC study collected genetic, health and developmental data on 10,000 children and their parents. The anonymized data set will be made available to other researchers as well to check for links or causes for diabetes, heart disease, asthma, allergies or other ailments. To have any hope that someone one day will figure out how to avoid some of the annoying health issues running in the family, we need to make sure our data is in that data set. <br />
<br />
But it was also a great opportunity for my son to see science at work. A few months ago we designed our own experiment to <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/10/an-apple-day-scientific-method-part-3.html">find the best-tasting apple</a>. I explained to him that this time the researchers designed the experiment - and we are the apples about which to collect data. Being a proper Golden Delicious he dressed in yellow, and was very excited to see that real scientists use the same type of clipboard he has at home. Finally some role models who are less controversial than <a href="http://phineasandferb.wikia.com/wiki/Heinz_Doofenshmirtz">Dr. Doofenshmirtz</a>.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sDVMLcc1UWE/U3wUmlw_h-I/AAAAAAAAAVQ/30NUZ-H30FI/s1600/IMG_0975.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sDVMLcc1UWE/U3wUmlw_h-I/AAAAAAAAAVQ/30NUZ-H30FI/s1600/IMG_0975.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Mr Entropy</a> completing a handwriting test for the SEED study.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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If you are interested in supporting the advancement of science with a little bit of your own time, you can sign up with one of the volunteer databases listed below. If you know of other local programs looking for volunteers, please leave a link in the comments section.<br />
<br />
<br />
<u>In Philadelphia:</u><br />
<br />
CDC SEED Study, conducted at CHoP<br />
<a href="http://www.centerforautismresearch.com/research/">http://www.centerforautismresearch.com/research/</a><br />
<br />
<u>Online:</u><br />
YourMorals.org: Joint project of the University of Virginia, the University of California (Irvine), and the University
of Southern California, conducting studies on morals, emotions and believes<br />
<a href="http://www.yourmorals.org/explore.php?PHPSESSID=352f117a2ba0e05a85d2c6b275c65e75">http://www.yourmorals.org/explore.php?PHPSESSID=352f117a2ba0e05a85d2c6b275c65e75</a><br />
<br />
<u>New England</u><br />
Harvard University / Boston Children's Hospital, MA: <a href="http://apps.childrenshospital.org/connect/registrationform.cfm">http://apps.childrenshospital.org/connect/registrationform.cfm</a><br />
<br />
<u>Mid-Atlantic</u><br />
Johns Hopkins University, MD: <a href="http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/psychiatry/research/volunteers.html">http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/psychiatry/research/volunteers.html</a><br />
University of Maryland, MD: <a href="http://ling.umd.edu/labs/infants//">http://ling.umd.edu/labs/infants//</a><br />
Penn State University, PA: <a href="http://www.research.psu.edu/volunteer">http://www.research.psu.edu/volunteer</a><br />
Georgetown University, DC: <a href="http://psychology.georgetown.edu/participate/">http://psychology.georgetown.edu/participate/</a><br />
<br />
<u>South</u><br />
<br />
Emory University, GA: <a href="http://www.psychology.emory.edu/childstudycenter/">http://www.psychology.emory.edu/childstudycenter/</a><br />
Vanderbilt University, TN: <a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/psychological_sciences/research/studies.php">http://www.vanderbilt.edu/psychological_sciences/research/studies.php</a><br />
<br />
<u>Mid-West</u><br />
Northwestern University, IL: <a href="http://www.communication.northwestern.edu/departments/csd/research/sign_up.php">http://www.communication.northwestern.edu/departments/csd/research/sign_up.php</a><br />
<a href="http://psychology.georgetown.edu/participate/"></a><br />
University of Chicago, IL: <a href="https://babylab.uchicago.edu/content/sign">https://babylab.uchicago.edu/content/sign</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/psychological_sciences/research/studies.php"></a>
<a href="http://apps.childrenshospital.org/connect/registrationform.cfm"></a>
<a href="http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/psychiatry/research/volunteers.html"></a>
<br />
<a href="http://www.communication.northwestern.edu/departments/csd/research/sign_up.php"></a>
<br />
<a href="http://www.research.psu.edu/volunteer"></a>
<br />
<a href="https://babylab.uchicago.edu/content/sign"></a>
<br />
<a href="http://ling.umd.edu/labs/infants//"></a>
<br />
<a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/psychological_sciences/research/studies.php"></a>
Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-38774439125531125102014-06-13T10:07:00.000-04:002014-06-13T10:07:00.937-04:00"I love Science!" - The SongRead this also on <a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2014/06/13/geeky-songs-from-hank-green-and-the-perfect-strangers/"><i>Geekadelphia.com</i></a>.<br />
<br />
For almost 4 years I have successfully claimed that the CD with "Wheels on the bus" won't play in my car. But they are on to me, so I am switching to Plan B: diversion. The Beatles, R.E.M and the entire Star Trek Universe soundtrack are so far holding their ground, and are now getting reinforcements from "<a href="http://dftba.com/artist/15/Hank-Green">Hank Green and The Perfect Strangers</a>", in what might be a secret Geek Anthem - "I love Science" from their new album "Incongruent".<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
The album comes in two versions - clean to sing with the kids on the way to school, and uncensored for the way back. It fills a gaping hole of geeky content on our playlist that is becoming more and more apparent now that my oldest (7) has outgrown the toddler hits. There is no shortage of science songs for small children. Through song and rhymes they learn about the colors of the rainbow, the cycle of seasons and changing weather patterns, the letters of the alphabet, which way the wheels on a bus go (just not in <i>my </i>car), and practice <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARfLaNJcpsw">counting with the ants</a>. And then all of a sudden when they turn 8 or 9 they are listening to One Direction and Justin Bieber who sings about ... well, I am not certain. All electronic devices in our house are allergic to his music, so unfortunately (hopefully) we'll never find out what exactly he enriches the universe with. But it is a safe bet that he is not singing about photosynthesis or tectonic plate movements. The children who were excited to have music helping them understand and explore the world around them are suddenly limited to lyrics that (self-)center on human relationships of various sort. The last song I remember that was actually teaching something was "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFTLKWw542g&feature=kp">We didn't start the Fire</a>", and that song is 25 years old now.<br />
<br />
With that in mind you can hopefully understand my excitement about "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0kXkWXSXRA">Strange Charm: A song about Quarks</a>", or a song explaining Fermi's Paradox, some of the earlier work of Hank Green:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div lang="es-MX" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<br />
Think about it, the 5 year old who remembers all 47 verses about the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emv-Yn6g1r4">Fire Truck</a> can easily turn into an 8 year old who sings along to "I love Science", and later into a full-grown geek memorizing the lyrics to "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcwkOFSrLFI">The Universe is weird</a>" (also on the new CD). Because in days when it is becoming fashionable for everyone and their dog to proclaim geek status, the true geek needs to do one better, and an album named "Incongruent" sounds like just the right thing for that. I am no music expert, but the beats surely can compete with other rock music, they are a good company to the rest of my playlist. <br />
<br />
And just imagine about how impressed your roommate/date/spouse will be when you help him/her cleaning up the breakfast table singing "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGa3WXXZGsQ&list=PL30E188D6D5930BF4&index=78">This is how you load a Dishwasher</a>" (also double functions as passive-aggressive reminder).</div>
<div lang="es-MX" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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PS: Don't forget to check out the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers">VlogBrother's YouTube channel</a> for more songs by Hank Green.<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/vlogbrothers"></a><br />
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<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 4 out of 5</div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-58512818464575859832014-06-04T17:28:00.000-04:002014-06-04T17:28:30.936-04:00Fun with Flags - Vá Brasil!I apologize in advance that my writing will not be as fun, energetic and entertaining as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e8PGPrPlwA">the video episodes from the most hilarious PhD on television</a>. There won't be any Star Trek actors stopping by either.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgZyV7nOc6c/U3webPidLfI/AAAAAAAAAVs/5VB8Vo-_b14/s1600/1406xx+Fun+with+Flags+-+all+four.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgZyV7nOc6c/U3webPidLfI/AAAAAAAAAVs/5VB8Vo-_b14/s1600/1406xx+Fun+with+Flags+-+all+four.jpg" height="210" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you name these four flags? Answers are in the bottom of this post.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
For reasons I do not fully comprehend, it is very easy to fascinate little children about flags. I intend to make the best use of it while it lasts, because I have always considered it good manners to at least know the flags of your neighbors and allies. If only so you won't end up as a sound bite at a late night talk show for not recognizing the flag of Canada. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7l8MVenyrDE/U3wXtn1H_kI/AAAAAAAAAVc/ogcifp8gKDQ/s1600/1406xx+Fun+with+Flags+-+USA+infront+of+Rio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7l8MVenyrDE/U3wXtn1H_kI/AAAAAAAAAVc/ogcifp8gKDQ/s1600/1406xx+Fun+with+Flags+-+USA+infront+of+Rio.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a></td></tr>
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Nothing better than the upcoming <a href="http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/">Soccer World Cup</a> to start learning about the big players as well as some exotic countries. A Google image search for "<a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=flags+coloring+pages&client=firefox-a&hs=tBG&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=kn15U5eiKeHisAS0zYCQDw&ved=0CCoQsAQ&biw=1252&bih=559">flags coloring pages</a>" yields (luckily labeled) print out versions. Great for wait time at the restaurant or time to kill while traveling (it takes forever to color an entire 8x11 page with crayons ...). <a href="http://flags.net/">Flags.net</a> has an easy to use alphabetical listing, or click here for a poster of "<a href="http://blog.worldofemotions.com/danilka/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/All_Flags_of_the_World_5024x3757.jpg?9d7bd4">all flags of the world</a>".<br />
<br />
Or if flags on their own are not exciting enough, then <a href="http://www.visualnews.com/2013/08/27/national-flags-created-foods-country-commonly-associated/">cook and eat them</a>.<br />
<br />
Bon Appetit! <br />
<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
Four Flags - from top left clockwise: Belgium, Canada, Estonia, Puerto Rico<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span> <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-65788040952571899682014-05-29T16:31:00.002-04:002014-05-29T16:31:55.961-04:00Phoenixville Blobfest tickets go on sale May 30, 10am<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">If you weren't one of the few lucky ones who were able to score a ticket for last year's showing of "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdUsyXQ8Wrs">The Blob</a>", then this is your chance: the <a href="http://thecolonialtheatre.com/category/events/blobfest/">tickets for the 15th annual Blobfest</a> in Phoenixville, PA go on sale this Friday at 10am. Get your trigger finger into shape because tickets sell out within minutes.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">Wait - you never heard of the Blobfest before and wonder what all the fuss is about? Then read on (also on <a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2014/05/29/on-sale-tomorrow-tickets-for-the-15th-annual-blobfest/">Geekadelphia.com</a>).</span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ebRT_JdtxBw/UaApxwRUnpI/AAAAAAAAAAU/7Aq8Ivx_Zu4/s1600/130520+The+Blob.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ebRT_JdtxBw/UaApxwRUnpI/AAAAAAAAAAU/7Aq8Ivx_Zu4/s1600/130520+The+Blob.bmp" height="237" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Blob - a 1958 version of scary. We have come a long way.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"></span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"></span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"></span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/BlobFest">The Blobfest</a> celebrates the filming of a 1958 horror movie classic with </span></span><span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_McQueen">Steve McQueen</a> in his debut leading role. The outdoor scenes were shot in <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Philadelphia,+PA/Phoenixville,+PA/@40.0420669,-75.4764526,44892m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c6b7d8d4b54beb:0x89f514d88c3e58c1!2m2!1d-75.163789!2d39.952335!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c691e30ecc5169:0x89622abe1935e9fa!2m2!1d-75.5149128!2d40.1303822?hl=en">Phoenixville</a>, featuring Bridge Street and </span></span>Phoenixville’s Colonial Theater. A key scene had town folks run out of the movie theater into the street.<br />
<br />
The Blobfest (July 11-13 this year) kicks off with a viewing of "The Blob" (<a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2013/06/21/a-blob-of-horror-14th-annual-blobfest-in-phoenixville-pa/">read here for a movie review</a>) at that very same Colonial Theater, at the end of which <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzVkxNv5__o">the audience re-enacts the run out</a> scene by, well, running out screaming. <br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"><br /></span></span>
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">On the weekend, instead of a run out, you get a double-feature treat by having "The Blob" paired up with other horror classics. This year the Saturday matinee feature will be the 1961 movie "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBJQ3nNuQ34">Mothra</a>", and in the evening "The Blob" will be followed by the </span>1962 "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xe7r_BTECz4">King Kong vs Godzilla</a></span>". On Sunday the creep-factor will be turned up a notch with "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejDnbWC2ehI">The Giant Spider</a>". <span class="userContent">Christopher R. Mihm, the </span><br />
<span class="userContent">writer and director of "The Giant Spider", will be present for an audience Q&A after the movies.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
As is tradition by now, the Blobfest also features an annual <a href="http://thecolonialtheatre.com/col_wp/images/Blobfest-Shorty-Contest-Rules-2014.pdf">amateur trailer contest</a>. The deadline to enter in Monday, June 23, 9am.<br />
<br />
And even if you don't get tickets (or are just really not that eager to be scared in a family-friendly way) you can still enjoy a nice day out on Saturday, July 12 at the street fair in downtown Phoenixville, admission is free. If you are interested to participate as a vendor (must fit the <span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">spirit and theme of The Blobfest - Sci-Fi, horror, and
50’s-inspired arts & crafts), click here for a <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzQgFkJ0HUCPcXJqYUUtSWRoT1k/edit">vendor application form</a>. </span></span> <br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent"> </span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">Once more, for tickets go to http://thecolonialtheatre.com/category/events/blobfest/ </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-63692653907448134642014-05-28T11:38:00.000-04:002014-05-28T11:38:53.525-04:00There's 104 days of summer vacation ...<br />
<i>[You can also read and share this post on <a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2014/05/28/geeky-parents-guide-to-local-summer-camps/">Geekadelphia.com</a>]</i><br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2nVcuwF_0A">There's 104 days of summer vacation</a> ... and if you have as "many" vacation days as the average American, this means that for 99 of these days you will need child care. But as my 7-year old just informed me, spending the summer in his former preschool with his siblings is no longer sufficient. "Summers are not just for fun, you need to make time to learn something, too!" Before you marvel at the enthusiasm for learning that schools are able to instill nowadays, let me say that his one and only intention was to get signed up for 4 weeks of soccer camp. Out on a field from 9am-2pm in what with 96.7% likelihood will be 130 degree weather. Sorry buddy, but I don't think so. <br />
<br />
However, I realized that there could be more to summer camp than someone supervising my child, so I set out to find some summer programs worthy of geek approval. Here is what I found, roughly sorted by geography. If you know of other hidden gems, please leave a link in the comments section!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ORLlViXz4iE/U2-ndx5f7NI/AAAAAAAAASA/v6_3cGSefjw/s1600/140511+There%27s+104+Days+of+Summer+Vacation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ORLlViXz4iE/U2-ndx5f7NI/AAAAAAAAASA/v6_3cGSefjw/s1600/140511+There's+104+Days+of+Summer+Vacation.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant Heart at The Franklin Institute</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><u><b>Philadelphia</b></u></i></span><br />
<br />
<u>The Franklin Institute</u><br />
website: <a href="https://www.fi.edu/summer-camp">https://www.fi.edu/summer-camp</a><br />
Geek Credentials: It's The Franklin Institute!<br />
<br />
<u>Penn Museum</u><br />
website: <a href="http://www.penn.museum/kids-and-family/anthropologists-in-the-making-summer-camp.html">http://www.penn.museum/kids-and-family/anthropologists-in-the-making-summer-camp.html</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Anthropology, behind-the-scenes museum visits, scavenger hunts<br />
<br />
<u>Geek Squad Summer Academy</u><br />
website: <a href="http://www.summercamplive.com/geek-squad-summer-academy.html">http://www.summercamplive.com/geek-squad-summer-academy.html</a><br />
Geek Credentials: PC Build and programming<br />
<br />
<u>Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University </u><br />
website: <a href="http://www.ansp.org/get-involved/programs/family-programs/summer-camp/">http://www.ansp.org/get-involved/programs/family-programs/summer-camp/</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Dinosaurs, Bigfoot, behind the scenes at the museum, live animals<br />
<a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2013/03/22/summer-camp-at-the-academy-of-natural-sciences-of-drexel-university">Read a short review on Geekadephia.com</a> <br />
<br />
<u>Drexel University:</u><br />
website: <a href="http://www.digitalmediaacademy.org/locations/kids-teens-locations/drexel-university/?gclid=CMH6lYq0oL4CFaZlOgod1yUA9g">http://www.digitalmediaacademy.org/locations/kids-teens-locations/drexel-university/?gclid=CMH6lYq0oL4CFaZlOgod1yUA9g</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Robotics, film-making and special effects, programming, photography and graphic design and more<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><u><b>Western Philly suburbs</b></u></i></span><br />
<br />
<u>Villanova University</u><br />
Location: Villanova<br />
website: <a href="http://www.idtech.com/locations/pennsylvania-summer-camps/villanova/id-tech-villanova-university/">http://www.idtech.com/locations/pennsylvania-summer-camps/villanova/id-tech-villanova-university/</a><br />
Geek Credentials: programming and video game design <br />
<br />
<u>Bricks4Kidz</u><br />
Locations: Devon, Spring City, Phoenixville, Oaks, King of Prussia, Eagleville<br />
website: <a href="http://www.bricks4kidz.com/kop">www.bricks4kidz.com/kop</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Lego camp with topics such as "Angry Birdies/Bad Piglets", "Animated movie-making" and "Robotics"<br />
<br />
<u>Valley Forge National Historic Park and Franklin Institute</u><br />
Location: Valley Forge / King of Prussia<br />
website: <a href="https://www.fi.edu/discovery-camp-valley-forge">https://www.fi.edu/discovery-camp-valley-forge</a><br />
Geek Credentials: the science behind historical battles, ecosystems and natural resources<br />
<br />
<u>Chesterbrook Academy</u><br />
Locations: West Chester and Oaks <br />
website: <a href="http://westchester.chesterbrookacademy.com/page.cfm?p=19646">http://westchester.chesterbrookacademy.com/page.cfm?p=19646</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Half day or full day Technology Camp with activities in mechanical engineering, video game design and animation work-shop<br />
<br />
<u>Great Valley Nature Center</u><br />
Location: Devault, PA 19432<br />
website: <a href="http://gvnc.org/Summer_Camps.html">http://gvnc.org/Summer_Camps.html</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Geocaching, compass reading, paintball and learning about the animals at the Nature Center<br />
<br />
<u>i2Camp</u><br />
Location: Rosemont<br />
website: <a href="http://i2camp.org/schedules/agnes-irwin-jr/">http://i2camp.org/schedules/agnes-irwin-jr/</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Genetics and DNA, Time & Space, Engineering<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><u><b>New Jersey</b></u></i></span><br />
<br />
<u>Katz JCC </u><br />
Location: Cherry Hill, NJ<br />
website: <a href="https://www.fi.edu/discovery-camp-katz-jcc">https://www.fi.edu/discovery-camp-katz-jcc</a><br />
Geek Credentials: Anatomy or the heart and brain, science of movement<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-40530628674377613012014-05-15T16:06:00.000-04:002014-05-15T16:06:26.726-04:00Geeky dads deserve a geeky gift<br />
The good thing about Mother's Day being in May is that it posts a reminder about Father's Day being just around the corner, too. So here are a few ideas that might be just perfect for your geeky Dad.<br />
<br />
1) The undisputed #1 Geek Dad - Darth Vader, superbly penned by Jeffrey Brown. Read my quick summary here: <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/06/darth-vader-unappreciated-geek-dad.html">Darth Vader - the unappreciated Geek Dad</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0N9e_w64aJI/Ubt2LPdqQhI/AAAAAAAAADM/JxHoErDeVzo/s1600/130617+Vader+and+Son.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0N9e_w64aJI/Ubt2LPdqQhI/AAAAAAAAADM/JxHoErDeVzo/s1600/130617+Vader+and+Son.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Darth Vader and son" and "Vader's little princess" By Jeffrey Brown</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
2) Get dad the best chair in the house - one that hovers! You will need plywood, a lawn chair, a shower curtain and a leaf blower, and follow these <a href="http://www.engineering.com/Videos/SomeAssemblyRequiredChannel/VideoId/2689/Build-A-Hovercraft-You-Can-Ride.aspx">assembly instructions for your very own hover chair</a>. This is on my bucket list, and in a few year once I don't have to worry anymore that <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">The Queen</a> might staple her own foot to the floor, we will try this.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
3) If your geeky Dad rather wants to do the constructing himself, but you don't have a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMY1v-pjqYU">Ferb creating blueprints</a> for you, then here a book with plenty of ideas for all ages (of the little helpers). From electronic origami and building a binary calendar to making your own custom-molded ice cube tray there are plenty of ideas, including time and budget estimates.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t3nxjW-lYZU/U3UZ457EtTI/AAAAAAAAATM/3GgSslS4Zow/s1600/140515+Geeky+Dads.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t3nxjW-lYZU/U3UZ457EtTI/AAAAAAAAATM/3GgSslS4Zow/s1600/140515+Geeky+Dads.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Geek Dad" by Chris Anderson</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span> Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-39586004109555009282014-05-11T19:46:00.002-04:002014-05-15T14:07:20.653-04:00The Geeky Athlete - why playing Angry Birds makes you better at BaseballConventional wisdom seems to suggest that geeks and athletes are like water and oil - mutually exclusive and not meant to mix. Just google "geeky athlete" or "athletic geek" (the latter one apparently a geek who plays Wii Fit ...) and you'll know what I mean. However, while natural talent is certainly needed to excel in sports, it seems to me that understanding the science behind it is just as important. Yet the coaching my kids have so far received for various sports is surprisingly (to me) void of diagrams and illustrations.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LGEG0laWJoc/U3AF_MGUfkI/AAAAAAAAASQ/sr-c53h-HYA/s1600/1405xx+The+geeky+Athlete+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LGEG0laWJoc/U3AF_MGUfkI/AAAAAAAAASQ/sr-c53h-HYA/s1600/1405xx+The+geeky+Athlete+2.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<br />
After watching <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Evel</a> countless times outrun the defense but then miss the goal because he shot from a most unfortunate angle - and no coach ever mentioning it! - I took it on myself to explain the <a href="http://www.mathedpage.org/conics/soccer/">geometry of soccer</a> to him. He thought that distance was what matters, but of course had no idea that angles play a role, too. So we started off with some drawings on paper, where I had him measure the width of the goal when shooting at different angles. Then we took this outside for an experiment and he tried 10 shots each from 3 different angles, from directly in front of the goal to from somewhere on the sidelines. We kept track on a score board. His eyes went wide with understanding. In the next games he'd make just a couple more step toward the center of the field before shooting. The results were dramatic. Math had saved the day.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1fEXJZI6RCU/U3AIj76QFvI/AAAAAAAAASc/Y0knRDaqX5M/s1600/1405xx+The+Geeky+Athlete+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1fEXJZI6RCU/U3AIj76QFvI/AAAAAAAAASc/Y0knRDaqX5M/s1600/1405xx+The+Geeky+Athlete+1.jpg" height="237" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baseball is like Angry Birds: the Physics of fielding the Ball</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Then this spring, I watched again in agony, this time baseball. Evel wants to be a catcher, but he could not cover the distance to the pitching mound, let alone first or third base. His balls flew slow and high, and plopped down half-way to the intended target with a pathetic <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62530.Thud_">thud</a>. Despite his coaches practicing all the required body movements with him, there was not much improvement. Until I wondered if the problem is not his arm, but his head. Maybe he did not understand <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/randall_munroe_comics_that_ask_what_if?awesm=on.ted.com_b0BNQ&utm_medium=on.ted.com-facebook-share&utm_campaign=&utm_content=awesm-publisher&utm_source=direct-on.ted.com">the physics of baseball</a>? So another piece of recycling paper and a pencil stickman later, he had another epiphany. "Baseball is like Angry Birds!" Correct, angle and force determine where your ball will fly and how fast. Turns out he thought the higher he threw the ball, the further it would fly. He is only in first grade, so gravity, acceleration and force calculations are still a few years off, but the angry birds analogy made the concept of the 45 degree angle producing maximum distance crystal clear. And then he went out and threw a practice ball over the fence into the neighbors yard, about twice as far as he had ever before. Science is awesome!<br />
<br />
<br />
Bottom line, even if you are a geek that grew up in a watershed world where you could only be a geek or an athlete, or if you have never (successfully) played any sports yourself, you can still coach your kids - with pencil, clipboard and protractor. And help your child to become a geeky athlete.<br />
<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
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like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
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<br />
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<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-20539363502324067702014-04-06T10:15:00.001-04:002014-04-06T10:15:41.111-04:00Captain UnderpantsTo foster a love of reading, kids need to be allowed to choose what to read, they say. Trust your child to choose what's good for them, they say. Let them read about a school principal running around in his underwear and disabling villains by shooting more underwear at them, they say. No, wait - nobody said that, but that is what happened after setting <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Evel Knievel</a> loose in the library encouraging him to pick a book, any book.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xZeEuTHVonE/U0Fb8TibDfI/AAAAAAAAARw/t0XNYfSYv0A/s1600/140406+Captain+Underpants.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xZeEuTHVonE/U0Fb8TibDfI/AAAAAAAAARw/t0XNYfSYv0A/s1600/140406+Captain+Underpants.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<br />
He came back with Dav Pilkin's "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_Underpants">Captain Underpants</a>", a series about an unusual superhero in underpants (and a weird cape made of a red curtain). If the objective is to get boys to read more, these books surely win the prize. They were practically inhaled. Evel started to sneak a flashlight into bed and read under the covers (this apple did not fall far from the tree). The belly laughs at 9:30pm gave him away. <br />
<br />
"Captain Underpants" is an interesting cross of comic book-style diary and semi-animated superhero saga of two elementary school boys with deft potty humor. Fans of smelly armpits, talking toilets and evil scientific genius may rejoice. You are warned, they are not for the faint of heart.<br />
<br />
Besides topping best-seller lists (and being translated into numerous languages), "Captain Underpants" is also one of the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-captain-underpants-is-the-most-banned-book-in-america-2013-9#ixzz2wedWicew">most banned books in the US</a>.
So there you have it, little boys like potty humor and ridiculous robot
fights. What else is new. Looking at the company the book has <a href="http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10">on that list</a>, I am inclined to interpreted this as an endorsement ... both Goodreads and Amazon customers seem to have a sense of humor and give it high ratings.<br />
<br />
I am still undecided if the books intend to humor the adults potentially reading with their kids ("George and Harold were usually responsible kids. Whenever anything bad happened, George and Harold were usually responsible."), or to mock them ("WARNING: The following chapter contains graphic scenes showing two boys
beating the tar out of a couple of robots. If you have high blood
pressure, or if you faint at the sight of motor oil, we strongly urge
you to take better care of yourself and stop being such a baby."). Probably both.<br />
<br />
It seems <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/kevin-hart-ed-helms-nick-kroll-jordan-peele-lead-captain-underpants-voice-cast-exclusive/">a movie version is in the works</a> too, and I am relieved to see that it looks like it will be an animated movie. Watching a flesh and blood human in a Captain Underpants costume is not really something I would be looking forward to. Some things are really better left to books and imagination. The things you do to <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/2013/11/geeks-hatch-from-bookworms.html">raise a bookworm</a> ...<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 4 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 5 out of 5Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-62363547633155993052014-03-20T23:40:00.000-04:002014-03-20T23:48:16.615-04:00The Settlers of CatanToday I want to write about my favorite board game - The Settlers of Catan. Ever since it was released 19 years ago it has been a staple with my family and friends. It was a big hit in Germany, but took a bit longer to catch on in the US. But once it did, it was soon heralded as the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/24/AR2010112404140.html">"Monopoly of the 21st century"</a> by The Washington Post. It even created a controversy between The Atlantic and Wired, with an <a href="http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/magazine/17-04/mf_settlers?currentPage=all">in-depth review</a>, a <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/06/sorry-settlers-of-catan-is-not-the-new-monopoly/240104/">differing opinion</a> and a <a href="http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2011/06/hooray-settlers-of-catan-is-not-the-new-monopoly/">rebuttal</a>.<br />
<br />
So what is that board game that gets established magazines so riled up all about? <br />
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As an easy summary, it is a game depicting a market economy, where resources have to be acquired, your economy has to be grown by building assets, and trades must be made to collect the right combination of materials. Or for a more literal description: the game board is a layout of resource tiles, along which the players build roads, villages and cities. The dice decides which resource tile pays new resources to the players living on it (like a harvest of straw or wool). Since it is often impossible to be represented at all resources at the beginning, players need to trade.<br />
<br />
This is a great family game since all players are eligible to trade in each round, so nobody is ever excluded. There are no rules for trades, so anything goes. I remember trading having to do the dishes with my sister in exchange for that one elusive beam of wood ... you can gang up against the player in the lead, or you can give a preferential trade to the one in dead last place. You can form alliances boys versus girls, or parents versus kids. It is a game that is not played quietly, and engages everyone.<br />
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qe7AmHJROik/UyuyV9kIt-I/AAAAAAAAARQ/tx4MFPaJeB4/s1600/140320+Settlers+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qe7AmHJROik/UyuyV9kIt-I/AAAAAAAAARQ/tx4MFPaJeB4/s1600/140320+Settlers+1.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Junior Board is small with a fixed setting. The game pieces are Pirate ships and Castles.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
My kids are still playing the Junior board, where the resource tiles are fixed and each player has a designated starting position with the same resources. Players are staying close with their progress, and winning is often a very close call between 2 or 3 lead players. These games are quick, about half an hour, but still complex in execution when the kids have to decide what resources to collect for their next move, or weigh if or if not they should trade with someone.<br />
<br />
The adult game board however, is where the true genius of the game becomes apparent. The resource tiles are not fixed and are laid out in a new configuration before each game. In addition, the designation for each resource tile that decides at which dice roll it pays out is also flexible and gets randomly distributed before each game. That means no two games are alike, and strategies that worked in one game won't work in the next. Sometimes games are balanced in resources and are dominated by busy building. In others you will fall over unwanted sheep with every dice roll, and you have to find different ways to score points than building. <a href="http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/IDIC">Infinite diversity and infinite combinations</a> :-).<br />
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<br />
But I must confess, what cemented The Settlers' status as my favorite board game is that it comes in a <a href="http://www.catan.com/game/star-trek-catan">Star Trek edition</a>. Oh yes, little NCC-1701s, star bases, a Klingon battle cruiser as the "robber", and instead of sheep and wool you explore planets for dilithium and tritanium. Who can say no to that? The only thing to make the game more perfect will be fleets of Romulan, Cardassian and Ferengi ships we plan to add as soon as 3D printers become affordable for household use. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rD9ZY-AkPL0/UyuyXPr8SNI/AAAAAAAAARk/uMb5N8cheDg/s1600/140320+Settlers+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rD9ZY-AkPL0/UyuyXPr8SNI/AAAAAAAAARk/uMb5N8cheDg/s1600/140320+Settlers+2.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Star Trek Edition game board</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--IH9qs4Qo8Q/UyuyWOZup1I/AAAAAAAAARY/Oiv9wWZw6s8/s1600/140320+Settlers+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--IH9qs4Qo8Q/UyuyWOZup1I/AAAAAAAAARY/Oiv9wWZw6s8/s1600/140320+Settlers+3.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A Klingon battle cruiser steals resources and interrupts trading.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Geek Factor: 4 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-27828373263657999532014-02-14T17:03:00.001-05:002014-02-14T17:03:54.237-05:00Sudoku and his mean little Brother Ken<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudoku">Sudoku puzzles</a> have been popular for several years now. They are neat little exercises in counting, pattern recognition and logic. The concept is easy - fill in a grid (usually 9x9) with the numbers 1-9, making sure each number appears only once in each row, column, and 3x3 partition. Kids (or beginners) can start with easier versions like a 4x4 grid, or a low difficulty level (more numbers prefilled). A great site with lots of free puzzles is <a href="http://www.dailysudoku.com/sudoku/archive/index.html">Daily Sudoku</a>, and you can find numerous paper and pencil versions in book stores.<br />
<br />
But in case your kid gets bored of counting to 9 over and over (or
just does not have the attention span for those large grids) you might
want to try <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Ken">Ken Ken</a> -
Sudoku's mean little brother. Ken Ken is also played in square grids,
and like with Sudoku, the objective is to fill in numbers, with each
number appearing just once per row and column. The smallest grid is just
3x3.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D4UKr0V9H1k/Uvb1TVFIc0I/AAAAAAAAAQw/RsYTcr75j-4/s1600/140210+Sudoku+and+Ken.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D4UKr0V9H1k/Uvb1TVFIc0I/AAAAAAAAAQw/RsYTcr75j-4/s1600/140210+Sudoku+and+Ken.jpg" height="319" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ken Ken puzzle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Sounds easy, right? Ah, but there is a catch! There are no prefilled numbers. Then, Ken Ken carves out smaller portions of the grid and shows a mathematical operation and the result to be achieved by adding, subtracting and so forth. A 5x5 with all 4 operations can already be very challenging. Try the one above! For paper and pencil versions I like Will Schortz's books, that come in "tame", "wild" and "ferocious". And for electronic versions <a href="http://www.kenken.com/play_now">Kenken.com</a> provides puzzles in all sizes, operations and difficulty levels. Enjoy!<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 3 out of 5<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
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<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-80848030946318904612014-02-11T19:05:00.000-05:002014-02-11T19:08:20.031-05:00The Magic of Science<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #e06666;">Thick fog wafted out
of the cauldron, where a green mixture was being stirred by a hand in a
giant glove. My 5-year old waived to me to lean down and whispered "It's
Magic!"</span><br />
<span style="color: #e06666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #e06666;">"No", I whispered back, "it's way cooler than Magic. It's Science!" </span><br />
<span style="color: #e06666;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #e06666;">We were watching ...</span></blockquote>
<br />
Read the rest on <a href="http://www.geekadelphia.com/2014/02/11/philly-materials-science-engineering-day-at-drexel-university-recap/">Geekadelphia.com</a>!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dJq7zU8_0vE/UvqJ6iFtJmI/AAAAAAAAARA/jFd_w6BwMo8/s1600/140204+MSE+Day+Additional+Photo+4.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dJq7zU8_0vE/UvqJ6iFtJmI/AAAAAAAAARA/jFd_w6BwMo8/s1600/140204+MSE+Day+Additional+Photo+4.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
And mark your calendars, Drexel plans to repeat this every first Saturday in February.<br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span><br />
<br />Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0Market Street & South 31st Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA39.9550895 -75.18534299999998914.433055 -116.49393699999999 65.477124 -33.87674899999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-30354168017120831642014-01-31T15:36:00.000-05:002014-01-31T15:36:00.931-05:00Move over Indiana Jones - The 39 Clues are hereI have to hand it to Amazon.com, their "You might also enjoy" algorithm really hit the bulls eye when suggesting "<a href="http://the39clues.scholastic.com/books">The 39 Clues</a>" series based on my son's reading history.<br />
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In a 21st century "Indiana Jones"-type adventure (it stays good <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_39_Clues">beyond book 3</a> though), 14 and 11 year old Amy and Dan Cahill run away from their guardian and social services in order to join a treasure hunt across the globe, that starts when their beloved grandmother dies. They know as little about it as the reader, and have to piece together little by little what it is they are looking for and why it is so important that their own family tries to kill them for it.<br />
<br />
The books manage to tie together an astonishing set of insights.<br />
First, they teach and explain about actual historic places and personae and the importance of their achievements. When Amy and Dan need to find another clue in the <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/php/famous.php?page=cem&FScemeteryid=1959716">grave of a Pharaoh</a>, the reader is taking a lecture about the structure of these old graves, the meaning of its decorations, and the way of life in old Egypt. All with the adrenaline that comes with a good spy story, instead with a dusty museum feel. It makes you want to go and book a vacation to Egypt right this minute.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kI4f_c0tepc/UuwGvMAXNrI/AAAAAAAAAQg/e49ESJRasEU/s1600/140131+39+Clues.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kI4f_c0tepc/UuwGvMAXNrI/AAAAAAAAAQg/e49ESJRasEU/s1600/140131+39+Clues.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<br />
Further, the books include numerous riddles. Messages hidden in plains sight on the Declaration of Independence, <a href="http://anagram-solver.net/">anagrams</a> that need to be solved to find the next location, math problems hidden in sheet music. In a clever way this teaches the complexity of cryptology. If the reader pays attention, the books also include riddles and clues to be collected and used on the website for additional content and games.<br />
<br />
If that is not complicated enough yet to track, the book also lets readers practice their skills to guess a person's intention with Amy and Dan's family. Who is lying and why? Who is an ally and who is a false friend? What are the dangers of cooperation, and what are the benefits? Whom can you trust? (Go with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fox_Mulder">Fox Mulder</a>. Trust no one.) <br />
And last, the book shows that often problems need to be solved with brains, and sometimes with muscles, charm or trust in someone else. And quite often also a good portion of luck.<br />
Incredibly multilayered for a children's book series. <br />
<br />
Rumor has it, that Steven Spielberg is working on a <a href="http://www.slashfilm.com/universal-could-take-the-39-clues-from-steven-spielberg-and-dreamworks/">"39 Clues" movie</a>, so get started on reading, before your kids drag you into those movies and ruin the books for you. <br />
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Oh, and don't forget to let your kids read them too, after all they were written for young readers. With 19 books published so far, this has the potential to keep them reading the entire winter. <br />
<br />
Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-39743339116348981082014-01-24T17:33:00.000-05:002014-01-28T15:30:25.464-05:00The Code to true Geekiness (code.org)In a world where 4-year olds can navigate iPads better than some adults (including purchasing the newest version of angry birds on each device you own) it seems one of the things you have to worry least about is teaching your kids tech savviness. But think again. Swipe, tap, point, click - modern technology is designed to be intuitive, to be used without having to read instructions. We're the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinite_monkey_theorem">monkeys with the typewriters</a>. Very, very, very well-designed typewriters.<br />
<br />
<i>Using </i>advanced technology does not elevate one to geek status anymore. <i>Designing </i>it does. And for that you need to code.<br />
<br />
Lucky for you, with the right tools, children as young as 6 can learn the basics. Because the basics of coding are not writing words in an actual programming language. The basics are dissecting a problem into sub-components and developing precise step-by-step instructions (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithm">algorithms</a>) to solve them.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lqB3gmM2rrs/UuHuSj9LbwI/AAAAAAAAAQA/nYVqfxt8ZjA/s1600/140124+Code+org+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lqB3gmM2rrs/UuHuSj9LbwI/AAAAAAAAAQA/nYVqfxt8ZjA/s1600/140124+Code+org+1.png" height="212" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the first levels on code.org: instruct the angry bird how to reach the pig.</td></tr>
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I took my first computer class at age 12, learning the Eastern European equivalent of Basic on an old unit that for reasons unknown had a Russian keyboard. In 11th grade I learned Turbo Pascal, which was already considered outdated before I even finished the course. The most commonly used programming language <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025">11.5 years from now</a> when my oldest graduates from high school has maybe not even been invented yet. But what all of these languages have in common is logical problem solving, building algorithms, and figuring out how things work under the hood.<br />
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Sounds too complex for pre-teens? Then check out <a href="http://code.org/">code.org</a>. The last time a catastrophic 1.5 inches of snow brought school life to a complete stand still, <a href="http://www.geeks2point0.com/p/geeks-21-23.html">Evel Knievel</a> spent 2 snow days programming angry birds and zombies. A clever combination of instructional videos and programming challenges with increasing level of difficulty, it introduces the main building blocks of computer science: actions, functions, loops, conditions, variables - as visual building blocks, not as programming language. What made it so easy to use that iPad, now makes it just as easy to learn computer science.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8AHgnwEt5Xo/UuHuS0rhOwI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/nnM0-CuUF6Q/s1600/140124+Code+org+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8AHgnwEt5Xo/UuHuS0rhOwI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/nnM0-CuUF6Q/s1600/140124+Code+org+3.jpg" height="206" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A more complex problem requiring conditions and loops on code.org</td></tr>
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The premise of code.org is that <i>everybody </i>can learn how to code. In fact, everybody <i>should </i>learn at least one hour of code. Because those coding skills are needed for much more than just computer programming. Making the <a href="http://statigr.am/tag/sufflee">perfect souffle</a> and becoming the <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/players/david_ortiz/index.jsp">best designated hitter</a> in the league have in common that you need to decipher the process of cooking or hitting (or waiting out a ball), and you need to build rules of how to react under all possible conditions. You need to build algorithms for your life - you need to code.<br />
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So the next rainy weekend, create an account on code.org, and let your kids learn an hour of coding. I bet you'll be amazed how far they will get.<br />
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Geek Factor: 5 out of 5<br />
Fun Factor: 4 out of 5<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span> Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6013251205699760797.post-38272815014667008572014-01-17T16:40:00.001-05:002014-01-28T15:29:55.258-05:00MySims Agents<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">My 7-year old loves mysteries, riddles and clue hunts, so the Wii version of "MySims Agents" looked like a good option to avoid the being-bored syndrome during snow days. According to him, the game gets 6 stars out of 5. If your child can read, this is a great non-violent game to make them think a little.</span><br />
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<a href="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/DrCoolJamz/dumwaiter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Officially a one-player game, it plays with the nun-chuck plugged into the remote on the Wii, which allows two kids to share. While one navigates the agent on screen with the nun-chuck, the other presses the selection buttons on the remote. The objective of the game is to solve 18 cases of increasing complexity. Players have to explore larger and larger locations to collect forensic evidence, assemble clues and decide which person to interrogate next. A notebook works as an unofficial help function suggesting the next task that is required to move on in the case. That way parents can catch up on the case and provide suggestions, without knowing all the details of the case. But in case you really get stuck, someone has already compiled a <a href="http://www.gamefaqs.com/wii/959661-mysims-agents/faqs/58851">complete walk-through</a>, including hints and suggested strategies.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/DrCoolJamz/dumwaiter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/DrCoolJamz/dumwaiter.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cogs and gear puzzle</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The game requires logical thinking, some planning, and keeping track of clues, leads and dead ends. Players also have to solve puzzles, assemble molecules and figure out engineering problems. The game also provides some cute little activities not relevant to the cases. My son occasionally spends half an hour sending his agent into the hot tub in a snow suit, practicing somersaults dressed as a ninja or repainting the walls of his agent head quarters (it is a MySims game after all). The only negative remarks I found for this game online were that a serious gamer can complete all cases in 15 hours. So yes, this is a quick and not incredibly challenging game for an adult. But for kids it is just perfect. My son has spend 30 hours there right now and is barely half way through. He is in no rush and enjoys climbing up the crane every time he passes by. For anyone still able to stop and watch the roses, this is just right.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/DrCoolJamz/toolchest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b250/DrCoolJamz/toolchest.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Molecule puzzle</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Geek factor: 4 out of 5</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Fun factor: 4 out of 5</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Did you
like what you read? Sign up for email feeds on the top right hand of this page,
like me on Facebook ("Geeks 2.0"), or share this post with your
friends. Thank you!</i></span> </span>Fiona Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04233120929289344647noreply@blogger.com0