Discover Magazine
Scientific American Mind
Science et la Vie
A Beautiful Mind is an inspirational film that glamorises intellectual life and competition at Princeton. Russel Crowe (born in Wellington, New Zealand) plays John Nash, the American mathematician who developed "Nash equilibria" in the Theory of Games. When Nash applied to graduate school in Princeton, he had a one-line letter of recommendation from his Carnegie Tech professor: "The man is a genius".
Sunday, 29 March 2009
Don Quixote (de la Mancha)
Don Quixote is a Spanish novel written by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. To give it it's full title: "El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha" (hidalgo being a synonym for nobleman or lower-ranking gentry). It is written in picaresco style (also known as picaresque), in other words, an episodic series of exploits of a roguish hero or anti-hero.
It emerged from El Siglo de Oro ("Century of Gold") aka SPANISH GOLDEN AGE.
The phrase "tilting at windmills" describes an act of attacking imaginary enemies derives from a scene in the book. The word "quixotic" derives from the novel Don Quixote, and refers to being "impractical idealistic".
Finally, a quote from Don Quixote: "There is no book so bad..that it does not have something good in it".
It emerged from El Siglo de Oro ("Century of Gold") aka SPANISH GOLDEN AGE.
The phrase "tilting at windmills" describes an act of attacking imaginary enemies derives from a scene in the book. The word "quixotic" derives from the novel Don Quixote, and refers to being "impractical idealistic".
Finally, a quote from Don Quixote: "There is no book so bad..that it does not have something good in it".
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Norwegian Universities & other Trivia
University of Oslo has a department specialising in mathematical applications, including computational mathematics. University of Bergen do research into petroleum development. The University of Tromso is the world's most northerly university.
Northern Norway is surrounded by some of the richest seas in the world. It is a place for "solitude, reflection and overwhelming nature". Norway also has a maritime heritage and has the third largest shipping fleet in the world.
Norway is GMT+1. The local name of name of Norway is Norge. From 800-1066 Norway was in the Viking age. Norway uses the Europlug designed for voltages up to 250V and currents up to 2.5A. Norway voltage is around 220V (same as UK). US is 110V. Coastline is around 25K km. Russia and Norway have disputed fishing rights in the Barents sea, and Norway also has a claim over Queen Maud land in Antarctica. Sweden is to the East of Norway.
Northern Norway is surrounded by some of the richest seas in the world. It is a place for "solitude, reflection and overwhelming nature". Norway also has a maritime heritage and has the third largest shipping fleet in the world.
Norway is GMT+1. The local name of name of Norway is Norge. From 800-1066 Norway was in the Viking age. Norway uses the Europlug designed for voltages up to 250V and currents up to 2.5A. Norway voltage is around 220V (same as UK). US is 110V. Coastline is around 25K km. Russia and Norway have disputed fishing rights in the Barents sea, and Norway also has a claim over Queen Maud land in Antarctica. Sweden is to the East of Norway.
What is the Arctic Circle?
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude marking maps of the Earth. The other major circles of latitude are:
1. The Equator.
2. The Tropic of Cancer - crosses Baja California, Sahara desert, Gujurat and Madhya Pradesh in India, Yunnan Province in China.
3. The Tropic of Capricorn.
4. The Antarctic Circle. A recent British expedition has gone to Lake Ellswsorth to find prehistoric life in Antarctica (see Observer article).
North of the Arctic circle the sun is above the horizon for 24 hours at least once per year (June solstice).
The Artic is informally the region around the North Pole, consisting of the Arctic ocean, thousands of islands and the northermost parts of Europe, Asia and the Americas. Northern Alaska (purchased by America from the Russians) is also in the Arctic Circle. Also, anything above 66 degrees north is the Arctic.
A portion of North Norway (Nord-Noreg), consisting of the counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, is North of the Arctic Circle. Finnmark is the northernmost part of Continental Europe, where Norway swings to the East. The city of Alta lies in the Aurora Borealis zone, and is also known as the City of the Northern Lights. The lights originate from the interaction of the solar wind and the Earth's magnetic field. North Norwat shares a border with Russia.
1. The Equator.
2. The Tropic of Cancer - crosses Baja California, Sahara desert, Gujurat and Madhya Pradesh in India, Yunnan Province in China.
3. The Tropic of Capricorn.
4. The Antarctic Circle. A recent British expedition has gone to Lake Ellswsorth to find prehistoric life in Antarctica (see Observer article).
North of the Arctic circle the sun is above the horizon for 24 hours at least once per year (June solstice).
The Artic is informally the region around the North Pole, consisting of the Arctic ocean, thousands of islands and the northermost parts of Europe, Asia and the Americas. Northern Alaska (purchased by America from the Russians) is also in the Arctic Circle. Also, anything above 66 degrees north is the Arctic.
A portion of North Norway (Nord-Noreg), consisting of the counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, is North of the Arctic Circle. Finnmark is the northernmost part of Continental Europe, where Norway swings to the East. The city of Alta lies in the Aurora Borealis zone, and is also known as the City of the Northern Lights. The lights originate from the interaction of the solar wind and the Earth's magnetic field. North Norwat shares a border with Russia.
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