The Thrill of the Run...the Agony of Defeat

On the eve of the Midterm Elections Monday evening, in the tutoring center I help manage at the college where I am employed, I declared my candidacy for Governor of South Carolina. It was really a spur of the moment decision. Thinking of the choices I would make in one of the most important elections held in my adult lifetime, I decided I am just as deserving of the post as the two main front-runners for various reasons: one, a politician who comes from a long line of politicians and the other a person whose questionable ethics and tax-paying abilities made holding the top spot in our state government a suspect choice.

I have never held elective office; I can't even get elected to one of the offices in my bowling league. And I have ALWAYS filed my taxes on time. It was time for little Stevie to break out.

So, at the voting booth early Tuesday morning, I did something I have never done before: used the write-in option and typed STEPHEN A. BURRUS as my choice for governor. Driving to work yesterday morning, a little cartoon image played out in my mind: what if noone else in the state voted and I rose to the top of the leaderboard in the governor's race? Immediately upon arriving to work, I told people what I had done and urged them to write my name in. A few said they would; whether they actually did or not, I'll never know because thousands of voters chose either Nicki Haley or Vincent Sheheen. But I am almost fairly certain that I finished in the top 10 in the Standing Springs district. And it is thrilling to think about!

Not having campaigned and with no name recognition outside Greenville County, the Midlands and Coastal plain vote no doubt hurt my candidacy. In my 10-second concession speech at Golden Lanes in Simpsonville Tuesday evening, I thanked all who supported my campaign and vowed to make a stronger run in 2014.

My brief 24-hour gubernatorial campaign did get me seriously thinking about entering the political arena. There's just something about an election that is exciting. This year was extra-exhilerating and there was a lot more at stake; the electorate is frustrated, angry, frightened, scared. Too many career politicians were doing whatever they could to protect themselves...and thumbing their nose at the constituency that put them there.

I really do believe that if our Founding Fathers came back from the dead to see what has happened to America since they breathed their last, they would not be happy. Congressional jobs were NEVER meant to be a life-long career. The idea was to represent the people...with a modest stipend...then return to their districts after the work was done. Second homes, mansions and extended stays at the Watergate or the Waldorf Astoria were never, ever imagined. Neither were six digit salaries and arrogant representatives who voted themselves pay raises while their constituents suffered with high unemployment

I planned to run on a platform of much smaller government...across the board pay cuts for all government workers...and more emphasis on education. Too bad, the people never got my message but that was my fault for waiting too late to declare my candidacy. We need a candidate who is willing to make hard, unpopular choices to do what is best for the state, and the nation...and that person needs to be someone unafraid of losing re-election. I would be willing to be that lamb to the slaughter because we HAVE to have some people like that to get our nation heeled and turned around.

So watch out in 2014, South Carolina. I'm bubbling with energy and exhileration after my brief sojourn into the politcal fray this week...and with a little more focus, I could be coming to a ballot box near you.

WOOHOO!! Release date announced for Season 12 of "Murder, She Wrote"

Anyone who knows me well will verify that Murder, She Wrote is my all-time favorite TV series. Universal started releasing the series by seasons in 2005...and thus far, the first 11 seasons have been released and occupy a place on my book-shelf (or floor now, since I am out of space for DVDs). I have really been surprised that sales have stayed strong enough for 11 sets of the series to be released...and feared that we would never get to see Season 12, the series' lowest-rated and final one, available for purchase.

My fears were put to rest last week when www.tvshowsondvd.com announced that Season 12 WILL be released -- November 23, two days before Thanksgiving! With that, the collection will be complete. They have even gotten a sneak preview of the proposed cover art for the set...although there will be some slight changes when the actual set is released.

There will NEVER be another Murder, She Wrote. Today's fascination with forensics and the youth movement make shows like Murder, She Wrote impossible or too simple to reproduce -- but for pure puzzle-solving pleasure, you can't beat the 263 episode legacy Angela Lansbury was gracious enough to leave us with.

I have an autographed picture of Angela Lansbury (the only celebrity I have ever written to) and for years, it sat proudly on my TV set but eventually was removed because I got tired of having to explain why "I had a picture of that old lady from Murder, She Wrote" on my TV on the rare occasions when someone would come by to visit. Having the series on DVD allows me to enjoy her and her smooth acting in the privacy of my own home and indulge a need to solve a mystery when my mind is unsettled or anxious or re-kindle memories from a time, pre-computer age, when life was simpler.

One week to go...

The Tuesday/Thursday classes are down to their last class meeting on Thursday before the Final Exam! The Monday/Wednesday group will join them after today.

Homework assignments (the last one!):

MTH0100 Section M2: p. 376-378: #21-53 (odd)
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MTH1010 Section A2: Complete measurement conversion worksheet

Two by two...

Updated math course assignments...

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 457: #1-12; 17-24; 33-34...and p. 464: #11-16
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 324-325: #27-35
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 411: #39-43; p. 438: #25-36; p. 447: #6-10
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 342-343: #13-31; 45-52
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 458: #17-24; p 464: #11-20

REMINDER: NO CLASS NEXT MONDAY FOR LABOR DAY. I WILL SEE ALL OF
YOU NEXT WEDNESDAY! HAVE A NICE HOLIDAY!!

2 weeks and counting...

Just two weeks now before the Final Exams. Classes are down to their last three class meetings!

Below are the latest assignments:

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 447-451: #6-10; 45-52.
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 310-311: #5-12; 21-26; 37-42.
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 410: #31-37.
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 325-326: #53-56; p. 332: #55-56.
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 457: #1-12

Updated Math Course Assignments

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 438: #25-36. EXAM #4 is Monday -- 34 Questions, ranging from solving algebraic equations containing fractions through decimals and operations on decimals, including Grade Point Average, Mean, Median and Mode, ratios, proportions, solving proportion word problems.
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 472: #70-82.
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 381: #27-35; p. 386-387: #5-8; 15-18; p. 409: #1-8.
EXAM #4 is Monday -- 30 Questions on mixed numbers, solving algebraic equations containing fractions, comparing decimals, rounding decimals, adding/subtracting/multiplying decimals, circumference of a circle.
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 310-312: #5-12; 21-26; 37-42. p. 324-325: #27-35; 45-46; 51-52. KUDOS TO SECTION M2 -- we covered two days of material in one class session!!! Way to go, guys!! All of you did well today...and you were mastering the material!
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 438: #25-36; p. 447-448: #6-10. EXAM #4 is next Tuesday -- 31 Questions from all of Chapter 5 and the first section of Chapter 6, up through ratios and proportions, including solving proportion problems.
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The Final Countdown...

We are rapidly winding down the quarter. Only 5 class meetings left for the various math courses at VC. I have listed the various assignments for my math classes:

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 409-411: #1-8; 23-34; 39-43.
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 459: #55-63; p. 470: #17-28.
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 367: #1-20 (omit #7, 8, 15, 16)
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 297-298: #45-52; 65-72
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 411: #39-43.

Updated course assignments as of 8/18/10

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 381: #27-35; p. 386-387: #5-8; 15-18.
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 458: #7-26. Test #3 is next Wednesday. We will review for the test at the end of the class period next week.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
MTH1010 Section E1: p. 305: #43-62.
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 472: #70-82; p. 297: #5-12; 25-32.
TEST #3 is Tuesday, August 24. 31 Questions on Ratios, Proportions, Measurement Conversions within the English and Metric Systems and
Adding and Subtracting Units in the English System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MTH1010 Section A2: p. 409-410: #1-8; 31-37
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For MTH1010 students:

I was extremely impressed with how the research papers are coming along for those that
did what I asked and brought their materials to class. A number of you are well on your way to producing an interesting read and meeting the project requirements as listed in the project description and the scoring rubric.

About the presentations: some students are a bit unclear about the presentations. Regardless
of whether you are asked to stand up and present, you are STILL expected to produce
at least a Power Point presentation or some kind of visual (trifold; posterboard) that can be handed in to accompany your paper. ONE POWER POINT SLIDE WILL SUFFICE!!! It does not have to be anything flashy or elegant; just something that highlights the main points of your paper.

I do not know how much actual presenting will take place since our courses are so far behind. If you ARE asked to present, limit it to a minute or two. You won't be expected to give a 20-minute soliloquy! We just don't have time for that and none of your classmates want to hear you talk for 20 minutes.

Just six class sessions left now before the Final Exam for my Monday/Wednesday classes; 7 for the Tuesday/Thursday group. HANG IN THERE, DIG DEEP AND GIVE IT YOUR ALL THESE LAST THREE WEEKS!

A Lady Named Camille -- 41 years later

Latest homework assignments for my math classes:

MTH1010 Section M1: NO HOMEWORK. BRING WHATEVER WORK YOU HAVE DONE ON RESEARCH PAPERS TO CLASS AS A DAILY GRADED TASK.
---------------------------------------------------------------
MTH0100 Section A1: p. 279: #68-73; 76. (We worked #70 in class).
---------------------------------------------------------------
MTH1010 Section E1: p. 293: #43-62. BRING WHATEVER WORK YOU HAVE DONE ON RESEARCH PAPERS TO CLASS AS A DAILY GRADED TASK.
---------------------------------------------------------------
MTH0100 Section M2: p. 470: #17-28
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 377: #27-30; p. 387: #15-18.
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I also want to take a moment to make mention of Hurricane Camille, one of the most severe and devastating hurricanes to ever make landfall on the U.S. Coast. On the night of August 17, 1969, Camille slammed ashore at Pass Christian, Mississippi as a Category 5 storm.

My life-long love of weather was given a boost by a NOAA film, A Lady Named Camille, which our third-grade science class was treated to back in 1974. It was the first time I saw a satellite film loop of a hurricane and I was hooked! At the time, my family lived in Virginia and the remnants of Camille produced widespread flooding that I was too young to remember at the time. Nearly 400 people died in the U.S. due to Camille. The Richelieu apartment building in Pass Christian became the poster child as to why one should NEVER throw a hurricane party during a landfalling storm -- only one person, Mary Ann Gerbach, survived when she floated out of the collapsing building on a matress. Some dispute this claim, however, but Ms. Gerbach continues to tell her story.

I have never been to Mississippi OR Louisiana but from reports, damage leftover from Camille's landfall remains to this day. I remember seeing pictures of tugboats and tankers pushed far inland on Camille's 22-foot storm surge. One of the more bizarre images was that of the boat below, that sat off Highway 90 for nearly 30 years after the storm made landfall. Other marine vessels resided in yards and across homes for months afterwards.


The name "Camille" almost didn't happen for the hallmark storm of the 1969 season. Back in those days, the names were determined by staff at the National Hurricane Center in Coral Gables. For the 1969 year, John Hope, who did tropical weather duties for many, many years at The Weather Channel before his death, mentioned that his daughter was named Camille and that is how the name made it on to the tropical cyclone list for that year.

Still...the storm came perilously close to being named "Debbie", the next name on the list. In the post-analysis for the 1969 season, it was determined that there was an un-named tropical system that was not detected at the time...but it COULD have been given the Camille designation if it HAD been detected, which meant that the hurricane we all know as Camille could have been named Debbie.

A Lady Named Camille documented the landfall and after-effects of this great hurricane. With a central pressure of 905 mb and winds estimated to be spinning around the center at nearly 200 mph, Camille was, at one time, the second most-intense hurricane on record in the Atlantic basin (it now ranks 7th on the list) and still ranks as the second-most intense tropical cyclone to ever make landfall on the U.S. coast. Only the 1935 Labor Day hurricane was stronger at time of landfall. It sure made an impression on me.

If your curiosity is piqued, an internet web search will link you to several articles memorializing this great hurricane. If you have the time, you might find them educational -- and interesting.

The picture above of Camille spinning off the coast of Cuba and Florida is one of my favorite hurricane photos of all time. My former boss at the Weather Service, who was Deputy MIC of the Hurricane Center at one time, had a the original picture in his files and I used to love looking at it. To me, Camille looks like a buzzsaw. Hurricanes are beautiful, but deadly, phenomena.

Uodated course assignments

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 305: #43-62.
EXAM #3 is Monday, August 16 -- 40 questions on fractions, up through operations on Mixed Numbers. NO CALCULATORS ALLOWED!!
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 266-268: #7-13; 31-35; 53-56.
p. 277: #17-28.
Quiz on this material Monday, August 16.
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MTH1010 Section E1: EXAM #3 is Monday, August 16 -- 36 Questions on Problem Solving and fractions, up through adding and subtracting fractions. NO CALCULATORS ALLOWED.
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 458-460: #7-26; 55-63; 74-80.
QUIZ on solving proportions, proportion problems, conversions between English System Units and adding/subtracting units on Tuesday, August 17.
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 367: #1-20.
EXAM #3 is Tuesday, August 17 -- 38 Questions on fractions. NO CALCULATORS ALLOWED.

A great day for math...

Every once in a while, we have a day where the entire class is in a math groove. We had such a day in the math classes on Monday and were able to make up some ground toward where we should be on the syllabus. We are slowing down a bit in the Tuesday/Thursday classes, since they will have an extra class meeting. New homework assignments are given below:

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 266-267: #1-12; 55-64
p. 299: #49-62.
NEXT EXAM IS MONDAY, AUGUST 16. OVERVIEW OF
EXAM ON WEDNESDAY.
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 237-240: #25-36
p. 247-250: #27-38; 44-53; 94.
ALGEBRA QUIZ ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 11
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 242-244: #37-48
p. 255-256: #28-36
p. 266-267: #1-12; 55-64
FRACTION QUIZ ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 11. NEXT
EXAM WILL BE MONDAY, AUGUST 16. OVERVIEW OF
THE EXAM AT END OF CLASS WEDNESDAY
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 277: #17-28 (re-assigned).
p. 279: #68-73; 76 (we worked #71 in class today).
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MTH1010 Section A2: p. 305: #43-62
SOLVING EQUATIONS WITH FRACTION QUIZ ON
THURSDAY...PER CLASS REQUEST!

NEXT EXAM IS NEXT TUESDAY. OVERVIEW OF THE
EXAM WILL BE GIVEN AT THE END OF CLASS ON THURSDAY.
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It's getting exciting. Only 8 class meetings left (9 for the Tuesday/Thursday classes)
before the Final Exam! Can ya feel it??

In other math news...

Did ya have an exciting day on Monday? Monday was a special day on the calendar; August 9, 2010 (otherwise known as 8/9/10) is the eighth in the series of 12 "sequence days" that occur on the Julian calendar. A "sequence day" is one in which the numerical codes for month, day and year are all consecutive. There will be only four more this century, following approximately every 13 months:

9/10/11
10/11/12
11/12/13
12/13/14.

After December 13, 2014, we will have to wait 89 years for such an occurrence to repeat...on January 2, 2103 (a/k/a 1/2/03).

But don't fret; there's still ample opportunity to have math fun with the current year. We will ALL be in class on October 10, 2010, when the date will be 10/10/10.

Almost makes ya feel like fertilizing your lawn, doesn't it?

Closing the gap...

Tuesday/Thursday classes continue to be ahead of the Monday/Wednesday classes (as it should be with one extra class meeting) but we have picked up the pace somewhat in the Monday/Wednesday classes. Listed below are the homework assignments, due next week:

MTH1010 Section M1: p. 242-244: #37-48; 88; 90; 94
p. 255-256: #28-36
FRACTION QUIZ ON MONDAY, AUGUST 9
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MTH0100 Section A1: p. 226-228: #7-8; 10; 19; 22-24; 33-38; 86
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MTH1010 Section E1: p. 215-219: #7-15; 60; 69; 72; 81; 88; 92
p. 230-232: #21; 26; 28; 30; 41; 49; 51-57; 68; 70; 72
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MTH0100 Section M2: p. 277: 17-28
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MTH1010: Section A2: p. 293: #49-62

Summer Quarter 2010 Course Update

The following are the latest homework assignments for my math classes:

MTH1010 Section M1 -- p. 215-219: #7-15; 60; 69; 72; 81; 88; 92
p. 230-232: #21; 26; 28; 30; 41; 49; 51-57; 68; 70; 72
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MTH0100 Section A1 -- p. 144-146: #5-20; 37-44; 57-60; 73-82; 102-109
MIDTERM EXAM IS WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 4
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MTH1010 Section E1 -- p. 191-194: Rework #27-35
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MTH0100 Section M2 -- p. 266-269: # 7-13; 31-35; 53-56; 88; 94
MIDTERM EXAM IS THURSDAY, AUGUST 5
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MTH1010 Section A2 -- p. 242-244: #37-48
p. 255-256: # 28-36
p. 266-267: # 1-12; 55-64
FRACTION QUIZ ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 5


NOTE TO STUDENTS IN MTH1010:

Research papers are due September 9. All students have been asked to turn in preliminary topics for the paper and are reminded that this is a MATHEMATICS class, so the grading emphasis will be on content rather than format. See the project description rubric for what I will be looking for regarding your paper.

Do not stress out a lot over this paper. Perhaps the following will set some of your minds at ease:

-- There should be an introductory paragraph, giving an overview of what will be
discussed in the paper. This introduction should mention at least two or three
different points of emphasis.
-- Include a paragraph devoted to each of the points of emphasis mentioned in
your introduction.
-- A concluding paragraph, summarizing what was in your paper.

Follow these basic guidelines and you should be good to go, easily able to fill at least three pages. DO NOT MAKE THIS PAPER A MAGNUM OPUS!! Remember, there is a 5-page limit.

I will be more than happy to look over any of your research or even read a preliminary rough draft, if you would like. Students should be actively researching and writing now; as the project description states, August 18 (for Sections M1 and E1) and August 19 (for Section A2) is the deadline for having your first version of the proposed research paper finished. Plan on bringing it with you to class on those dates, no matter how far you have gotten toward a completed document.

And smile!!! We are at the halfway point of the quarter already! It's all downhill from here!

Oh Mother!!! No..I mean Mothers-In-Law!

As many of you may know, I am a classic TV junkie; I have thousands of episodes of TV series on DVD. I have the complete series of The Golden Girls, all 11 seasons of Murder, She Wrote that have been released so far...the three season releases thus far of Designing Women, the six season releases thus far of The Jeffersons and numerous others. A few of these releases would fall into the "Cherished" category; extremely rare series that are rarely shown today (the entire H.R. Puffnstuff and The Snoop Sisters series, Season 1 of Hazel and McMillan and Wife, just to name a few). Brand new to DVD this week is another one of these "cherished" series: the rarely-seen but fondly-remembered 1967-1969 sitcom, The Mothers-in-Law. The final television series produced by Desi Arnaz, the NBC sitcom was created and mostly-written by the former writers of I Love Lucy, Bob Carroll, Jr. and Madelyn Davis. If you like I Love Lucy, you'll like The Mothers-in-Law.

A big kudos to MPI Home Video for a superb DVD release of this long-lost sitcom, that has been largely removed from syndication since the mid 1980s. I remember watching reruns of The Mothers-in-Law as a child when I would go visit my grandmother in the early and late 1970s; one of the local TV channels in her area used to air it after dinner...and I can still see her rocking in her rocking chair and shelling butter beans as the episodes unfolded.

Starring Eve Arden (Mildred Pierce, Our Miss Brooks, Grease) and Kaye Ballard (Cinderella, Freaky Friday), The Mothers-in-Law centered around two disparate families: the well-to-do, sophisticated Hubbards and their next-door neighbors. the eccentric and loud-mouthed Buells, who become related by marriage when the Hubbard's daughter, Suzie, (Deborah Walley, the original Gidget) marries the Buell's son, Jerry (Jerry Fogel). The children lived in the Hubbard's garage apartment...too close for comfort from the meddling mothers-in-law. Jerry and Suzy were largely secondary in this series but were a stimulus for the comedy; most of the episode plots featured Eve and Kaye (the character names were the same as the actresses' names) meddling in their children's lives. Since almost all of the episodes were written by former writers of I Love Lucy, watching the Mothers-in-Law today seems as if we are watching a colorized version of Lucy and Ethel.

The series also featured Herbert Rudley as Herb Hubbard, an attorney. The role of Roger Buell was split; the first season featured Roger C. Carmel as Mr. Buell...while Richard Deacon, fresh off six years of The Dick Van Dyke Show, came aboard for the series' second and final season. Roger was a television writer.

The DVD release of this classic series contains all 56 episodes, digitally re-mastered, on 7 disks. There is a plethora of special features on the eighth disk: a "Remembering The Mothers-In-Law featurette, with Kaye Ballard (one of only two surviving cast members; Jerry Fogel is still alive, too); the original show pilot, featuring Kay Cole in the role of Suzie Hubbard; cast commercials; rarely-seen performances by Eve Arden and Kaye Ballard, a long radio interview between Lucille Ball and Eve Arden, an unproduced episode script, and various network promos for the series. All in all, over 9 hours of special features for this series. MPI Video sure does things right. Some of these episodes are perfectly restored; others feature a little bit of noise but the series probably has not looked this good since it originally aired in Prime Time.


It is very exciting to have this long-lost series in my DVD collection. Watching it is like going back in a time machine; psychadelic sets, numerous references during a time when culture and acceptable behavior was much different than things today. It is certainly family friendly; not one naughty word was spoken in the entire series run. Watching it now, as a middle-aged adult, one just gets the feeling that this show would have been a HUGE success had it aired in the 1950s; it really has that 1950s sitcom-feel.


Unfortunately, the show aired in the late 1960s, when television was becoming more sophisticated and the youth movement was in full swing. Shows like The Mod Squad, The Man from U.N.C.L.E, Hawaii Five-O, and the #1 show on TV at the time, Laugh-In, were more appealing...while The Mothers-In-Law was more of an innocent sitcom in the I Love Lucy/Donna Reed mold that attracted older audiences. Still, the potential was there for a huge TV smash...but tremendous success eluded the series.

Perhaps the biggest obstacle was its time slot. Airing at 8:30 pm Sunday nights, it was the "bridge" show between The Wonderful World of Disney and Bonanza...and aired opposite the dominant Ed Sullivan on CBS and The F.B.I. on ABC. With nothing in common with either Disney or Bonanza, The Mothers-in-Law struggled to hold onto viewers. Back in those still early days of television, sponsors would often buy time slots, and that was the case here. Proctor and Gamble owned the 8:30 pm slot on NBC...and had owned it since 1961. No series had prospered in this awkward time slot; only Car 54, Where Are You, The Mothers-In-Law and The Bill Cosby Show survived beyond a year and no series between 1961 and 1972, when the time slot was finally eliminated, lasted more than two seasons.

Ratings were anemic in the first year and NBC was slated to cancel The Mothers-in-Law after the first season. Proctor and Gamble liked the show, however, and threatened to take the series to ABC. NBC, in response, agreed to renewal on the condition that there were to be no raise in licensing fees; the cast had to agree to earn the same salary for Season Two as they had for Season One. All cast members agreed to this stipulation except for Roger C. Carmel, who insisted on a raise per his contract. Desi Arnaz was forced to replace Carmel and the actor chosen was Richard Deacon, who played the role in a completely different manner than his predecessor and thus really altered the chemistry with Kaye Ballard. Even the addition of a baby in Season Two could not draw more viewers...ratings fell and The Mothers-In-Law was cancelled after two seasons and 56 episodes. Who knows what could have been had it just aired on a different day; but this could be asked of a lot of cancelled series.


I also wondered why Desi Arnaz didn't try going in a different direction regarding those with writing duties for the series. Viewing these old episodes reminds people a lot of I Love Lucy; it's got that Lucy feel, perhaps because of the main writers and the fact that Arnaz, himself, produced the show and even appeared in four episodes of the series. I also wonder why this series hasn't been a candidate for a remake; it would be EASY to remake The Mothers-in-Law with updated scripts and topics.

MPI Video has released a gem and I, for one, am thrilled to have the entire series. Some of the episodes truly are funny. Young people today might find the show a little bland but fans of classic TV will enjoy this show. Real classic TV fans will get a kick out of the pilot, which opens with the classic NBC stinger, proudly announcing that "the following program is brought to you in living color by NBC," the NBC chimes after the closing credits, and several of the episodes have their original sponsor logos on the background during the closing credits. Because this was a Proctor and Gamble sponsored program, frequently featured products were Camay, Scope and Crest, which had just unveiled its mint flavored toothpaste. I give this set 5 stars with an exclamation point!

Summer Quarter course update

The following are the latest homework assignments for students in my math classes:

MTH1010 Section M1 -- pp. 191-193: #11-22, 27-35. EXAM #2 is Monday of next week. We will review for the exam toward the end of the next class session.

MTH0100 Section A1 -- TEST #2 is Wednesday morning!! We will check the homework assignment after the test: p. 128-129: #13-20, 45-52, 77-84, 87-94

MTH1010 Section E1 -- p. 185: #31-41; 65-70. EXAM #2 is Monday of next week. We wil lreview for the exam toawrd the end of the next class session.

MTH0100 Section M2 -- pp. 226-228: #7-8; 10; 19; 22-24; 33-38; 86.

MTH1010 Section A2 -- STUDY FOR EXAM #2, which is Thursday morning.

Several students have remarked that updating the homework on here helps them when they forget what has been assigned. I will try to be more timely about updating this blog.

CHAOS!!!

The concept of fractals, a fascinating topic within geometry, is based in large part on chaos theory. Anyone who knows anything about chaos theory knows that despite its moniker, there is actually a beautiful pattern and symmetry to the chaotic behavior of any system. In theory, that should hold true for any math instructor teaching numerous classes.

In PRACTICE, however, there doesn't appear to be any symmetry or order: EVERY ONE OF MY CLASSES IS AT A DIFFERENT POINT, heading into the fifth week of class. Below are the latest homework assignments for each of my classes, due the next class meeting:

MTH1010 Section M1 -- p. 185: #31-41; 65-70.

MTH0100 Section A1 -- p. 109: #87-90
p. 128-129: #5-12, 33-40.

MTH1010 Section E1 -- p. 165-167: #1-27 (odd); 84; 86; 88.

MTH0100 Section M2 -- p. 129-131: #87-94
p. 144-145: #37-44; 57-60; 73-82; 102-109.
TEST #2 IS TUESDAY MORNING!!! 33 Questions from all of
Chapter 3 (decimals) and Chapter 2 (fractions), up through multiplying
fractions. We will check homework after the test.

MTH1010 Section A2 -- p. 191-194: #11-22; 27-34.
The next exam in MTH1010 Section A2 is next Thursday. We will
review for the exam toward the end of the next class period.


Confused??? Try being the TEACHER!!!

Back and forth...

Through two weeks of classes, a mixed bag as far as progress goes:

MTH0100 has managed to keep up with the syllabus so far. Any absent students can look on the course syllabus for assignments.

MTH1010, however, is another story. Monday/Wednesday students know we have managed to keep up with the syllabus. Tuesday/Thursday class, however, is now nearly a full day behind after just our third meeting. There is no homework for Tuesday in section A2. The first examination is still planned for next Thursday, and will cover all of Chapter 1 and the first two sections of Chapter 2, up through adding integers with same signs.

And we're off! (In more ways than one)

Well, the summer quarter is underway and I want to welcome to any students who may decide to log on to see what Mr. B is up to. So far so good...we've managed to keep up with the syllabus after our first class meeting.

Monday/Wednesday students are reminded that there will be NO CLASSES on Monday. Have a nice and relaxing holiday weekend!

In other world news...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100701/ap_on_sc/eu_sci_russia_math_genius

Russian mathematician Grigory Perelman has made his decision...and has opted to turn DOWN the $1 million dollar prize he won for solving the long-elusive Poincare conjecture. According to the news article, Perelman turned down his prize in protest of the current organization structure of the mathematics community.

If it were me...I'd just take the money!

Wow! It's Yow! Happy Days to follow for NCState

http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/06/27/553501/expect-a-direct-approach-from.html

Stunning news this week from my alma mater, NCState, which announced that Debbie Yow will take over as Athletic Director on July 1 after 16 years in the same position at Maryland. This hire has my full support -- Yow is known for her fiscally responsible means of running an athletic program and perhaps more importantly, FOR HOLDING HER COACHES ACCOUNTABLE AND EXPECTING THEM TO WIN!

The atmosphere among NCState coaches is going to get a bit more pressure-packed now since expectations will be raised for all programs. No more status-quo and medicority. Teams will be expected to compete for conference championships and if the current coaches can't get the job done, Yow has shown at Maryland that she is not afraid to cut ties and move in another direction. This can only be a positive for the future amongst the athletic programs:

FOOTBALL -- Tom O'Brien has yet to have a winning season since taking over for Chuck Amato. He has the most to lose with yet another losing or break-even season in 2010.

MEN'S BASKETBALL -- Sidney Lowe is much beloved amongst NCState alumni but has yet to take the team to the NCAA Tournament. With a healthy recruiting pipeline now well-established, the pressure is going to be on Sid to produce or be forced to leave.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL -- Kellie Harper is perhaps one of the safer coaches in the NCState family, taking over for Yow's sister last season and taking the team to the NCAA Tournament in her first season at the helm. Yow has experience coaching women's basketball and hired Brenda Frese, who led Maryland to a national championship in 2006.

BASEBALL -- Time may be running out for Eliot Avent, who seems to have NCState competitive year after year but has yet to prove he can win the Big Games. Yow may leave Avent alone initially, tho; Maryland's un-funded baseball team has never done much in this sport and Yow may take a wait-and-see approach in her first couple of years. Many alumni, tho, would like NCState to become a national power in baseball and return to Omaha for the first time since 1968.

MEN'S SOCCER -- George Tarantini is the most likely candidate to be replaced. NCState soccer, once a national powerhouse, is mediocre at best most years...although every few years, they make national headlines. Tarantini has been at NCState since 1988 but we have done very little on the national scene during his time with the Wolfpack.

I am very excited to hear that Debbie Yow is coming to NCState...completing the family circle started with her sisters Kay and Susan, NCState's first All-American in women's basketball.

Little Lord Fauntleroy and more brown oooze..

All right...I'm now TOTALLY convinced...although I have been nearly there for a while. Our president is a petulant child who demands perfection and throws temper tantrums when he doesn't get his way. And don't dare speak the truth if it makes him look bad.

The removal of Gen. Stanley McCrystal as head of U.S. forces in Afghanistan today provided the definitive confirmation. This president will NOT tolerate anyone publicly making comments that are less than flattering. All of this because of an article in "Rolling Stone" magazine that hasn't even hit the press yet.

I can understand protocol that says those in command do not show disrespect to the Commander-In-Chief...but the comments made by McCrystal were not insulting; he simply stated that the President seemed not to be "engaged" during their initial meeting to discuss strategy for Afghanistan. Any negatively blatant comments about POTUS were made by aides to McCrystal; any blatantly negative comments by McCrystal were about the civilian commander Eikenberry, who is to help manage the war with McCrystal. And can anyone really blame making a little bit of fun at VP Joe Biden? Or should we say VP Potty Mouth?

In the end, McCrystal was a victim of an outspoken nature not normally associated with the stringent requirements of the military establishment. I like the man; he speaks his mind, even if his views are unpopular or against the Program. It is not always good to walk with your head in the clouds or in the sand. We need more people out there like Stanley McCrystal. Sadly, we have lost a good soldier. Meanwhile, the Obama machine rolls on. I imagine one reason McCrystal had to go was that the meeting held today prevented the Anointed One from playing yet another round of golf...or attending another baseball game...or hosting a rock star or another group of college athletes.

I'm not the only one with opinion that Obama acts, more times than is comfortable for the POTUS, like a child. Jeb Bush has even gotten into the fray, expressing what many of the political pundits have been saying for a while that he needs to grow up and "stop blaming George W. Bush for everything." At some point, Obama has got to accept responsibility for things; not EVERY crisis is someone else's problem.

Obama has NEVER met a TV camera he didn't like. This man hits me as one who enjoys the perks of being President but can't ACT like a POTUS should. The USA is heading down an ominous road toward defeat, from which recovery will be difficult if not impossible...and sadly, we do not have a leader right now who can pull us out of there. And the more things look bleak and the pressure increases...we can probably expect more childish outbursts like "looking for someone's ass to kick" "I can't go down there and plug the hole" or "I can't suck the oil up with a straw." I certainly hope that sometime before he leaves office (which should be in 36 months if all cards fall correctly) he will show us what he CAN do well (besides spending money, swatting flies or shooting hoops).

The meeting in Washington today was yet another roadblock to this Administration's ability to focus totally on the Gulf oil spill. That disaster took another nasty turn today when an underwater robot accidently nudged the cap that had been placed over the leaking well, resulting in the cap having to be brought back to the surface for repair. Now, there is NOTHING preventing the full plume of oil from spewing into the Gulf until the cap is replaced. And the relief wells are still a month or more from being finished. Not good.

Leaders from the states affected directly by the oil spill are angry and frustrated. Louisiana is probably wishing now that the big Purchase of 1803 had never occurred. What is wrong with allowing the state to take whatever measures are necessary to protect their wetlands if the Federal Government is too lazy or slow to make decisions...none of which seem to favor the states themselves.

All Louisiana wants to do is build some sand berms to protect its wetlands and provide a barrier for the oil before affecting the beaches. What is wrong with that? Obviously, the locals are more on top of the situation and willing to be proactive than our own national government. Goodness...let them do what they need to do. In the meantime, oil is also starting to affect Mississippi, Alabama and Florida beaches. This story is not going to have a happy ending.

There comes a time when the Environmentalists need to cease and desist for the greater good. And I think that time has arrived.

Well, I'm heading out of town for a few days to spend some time with my Dad as he celebrates his 80th birthday. It will be a good visit...and we'll both be keeping tabs on the news. I may even update with a new post or two while I'm away. But you can be assured I'll be really wound up when I return home. There's no telling WHAT will happen to our country in the next few days.

Gulf Oil Spill...By The Numbers

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100621/ap_on_bi_ge/us_gulf_oil_spill_how_big

Interesting little article about the mathematics of the Gulf Oil Spill. Some highlights:

-- The size of the Gulf Oil Spill would fill 9200 average living rooms
-- The Mississippi River dumps as much water into the Gulf Of Mexico in 38 seconds as the
oil leak has released into the Gulf since April 20.
-- If all of the oil released so far were collected, each American could have four soft-drink
cans of crude oil.

7 down...77 to go...

Today marks the end of the Spring Quarter 2010 at VC...and the 7th quarter I have taught at the school. Should I stay through retirement age, that means I only have 77 quarters left until I hang up the whiteboard markers and erasers and head into my twilight years.

Wow...that's kind of depressing. 77 more quarters teaching fractions!

I was talking with Kari Sunday (she who believes fractions are "holy torture") and some interesting stats came up while I was trying to describe how big my lot is...since I seem to spend a lot of time mowing the grass. It really just SEEMS I spend a lot of time mowing the grass; I have an electric mower, featuring a battery that doesn't always let me finish the yard in one mowing:

-- My lot is 70 feet by 130 feet. That's 9100 square feet.
-- An acre is defined as any region with a perimeter of 43, 560 square feet.
-- 9100 square feet is 20.6% of an acre, or just a little larger than 1/5. The actual
FRACTION is 103/500 of an acre.
-- An acre is 40% of a hectare. So by that measure, my lot is a little more than 8% of a
hectare.

Now aren't you glad you read the blog today?? Have a good one!

Well, he has his life back...

While residents along the Gulf coast watch in horror as their livelihoods get destroyed by encroaching oil, BP CEO Tony Heyward took time off to attend a yacht race off the coast of England.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100619/D9GEI7UG0.html

In early May, Heyward, who is still in charge of cleanup operations for BP despite being demoted earlier this week, stated with frustration that "he wanted his life back." I guess his wish was granted. Meanwhile, I'm sure the career fishermen in Louisiana and Mississippi would like things to return to normal, too...but they will not be that fortunate in the foreseeable future.

I dunno about you, but I believe it is safe to say that Tony Heyward does NOT have a future as head of a PR firm once his days at BP have ended. Have you ever seen ANYONE more out of touch, emotionless and just downright arrogant during such a serious situation? I wonder if his demeanor would be different if this oil spill was fouling British waters...and preventing him from attending any yacht races off the Isle of Wight.

$*(%#*($*#(*$(#*%(#*%(&#%&#$*%&q(##$(*#($*#(*!!!!!!

MY FIRST POST!

Yes! After months of THINKING about it, I finally bit the bullet and decided to create my own blog. I hope this little piece of the web will be useful for not only my math students as I post updates on assignments, etc...but will also serve as a voice for me on some other important issues, like WORLD EVENTS. I've read hundreds of blogs over time and always thought it would be interesting to express my own views on things for others to see...and due to USERID/PASSWORD overload, it's just not possible to create accounts at all the different venues so I can comment at all the different sites. So this blog will serve multiple purposes.



I hope anyone who has found my blog will find it interesting, useful and intriguing enough to be a repeat viewer. Maybe I'll even garner a comment or two, eventually. I guess we'll just have to see!



While I'm editing my first post...let me just take a moment to comment on the Gulf Oil Spill. What is transpiring is, in a simple word, heartbreaking. Ya really have to feel bad for the helpless people of the Gulf region directly impacted by the landfalling oil; their livelihoods have been disrupted, possibly for years...decades, even. And it could be 20 years or more before nature re-establishes equilibrium in that part of the world. The pictures of oil-drenched birds, dead marine life and tar-stained beaches are difficult to view without getting emotional. And now whales are being found dead, 70 miles south of the expolosion site.



I have followed this story with deep interest ever since the explosion occurred. The congressional hearings held yesterday were interesting; certainly, the tone set by the questioners was tough and hurtful...but in the end, it was just a grand show of theatre. NOTHING was really accomplished; BP CEO Tony Heyward seemed to pretty much plead the Fifth Amendment on the toughest questions and looked as close to being an amnesia victim as the CEO of a huge corporation could get. He seemed ignorant of a lot of details about the Deepwater Horizon. For a man who has claimed that he "wants his life back," he had very few arrows in his quiver to accomplish his ultimate goal. And I'm not even going to comment on the bizarre and downright stupid comments by Joe Barton. WHAT WAS HE THINKING? Sometimes, it is best to pull head out of rear end before speaking. I guess that's what being one of the largest recipients of monetary contributions from the oil industry will do to ya when one has to question the head of the world's largest oil company.



Geez...hadn't intended to write a book my first time out. This is long enough for now, methinks. I'll post more a bit later. For now...it's time to get into work mode. Hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back again soon.