Exasperated Calculator

Exasperated Calculator: Star Trek & Economics

  • Election07: Sphenic edition

    *Announcements*: * ALP has policies on [petrol for volunteers ($69m)](http://alp.org.au/media/1007/msloo250.php) and talked about its [broadband package](http://alp.org.au/media/1007/mscoit250.php). * The Democrats (remember them?) [propose abolishing HECS contributions](http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/10/25/2070417.htm). * Coalition just announced some Perth specific stuff (I’m only tracking national announcements here). *Polls*: [Galaxy senate poll](http://www.getup.org.au/files/media/senatepolloctober07.pdf) shows some strange results. *Other*: [Paul Keating escapes from the box he…

  • Shrinking

    [GPS receiver in 1985](http://img.engadget.com/common/images/0131583169424672.GIF?0.8677629570302273) [GPS receiver today](http://www.engadget.com/2007/09/19/proportas-freedom-key-ring-gps-receiver-stays-out-of-sight-kee/)

  • Another item for lazy day

    [A powered crescent wrench](http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2007/10/24/black-decker-auto-wr.html). I can only think of this as another step towards the eventual robot domination of the world. Good-o.

  • The problem with business software

    [The people using it aren’t the ones buying it](http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/669-why-enterprise-software-sucks). I think this is a little bit true, but often you get the same problem even when people who’ll use the software are involved. I think the bigger problem is that people don’t really know what they want in software, and hence end up buying something…

  • Get your skates on

    [Electric powered roller skates](http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2007/10/24/ishoes-electric-roll.html). Feh, 15mph. Give me rocket skates any day.

  • Practicality optional

    [A remote control with a bigger dose of ‘weird’ than ‘usable’](http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2007/10/the_tv_remote_control.html?CMP=OTC-0D6B48984890). What I *really* want is a remote control like the one Superman has in his fortress of solitude.

  • Election07: One Month Out

    *Announcements*: The ALP releases an [OH&S policy](http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/10/24/2069031.htm). The coalition announces [$218m for defence skills](http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/10/24/2068720.htm). That was it. 31 days to go. Longest. Month. Ever.

  • Very fast camera

    [A camera that shoots 300 frames per second](http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/super-slo_mo/casios-exilim-cam-lets-you-shoot-300-frames-per-second-mythbusters+style-295491.php) Unfortunately it only does it in pretty low resolution, but it could be quite fun. But my real question is how long it can take pictures for – 300fps is no good if you can only get 10 frames!

  • Expensive art

    [Burning one million pounds](http://www.boingboing.net/2007/08/30/klf-burn-a-million-q.html). Yes, it’s real. And yes, the K Foundation were very very strange.

  • No more tears

    [If you refrigerate an onion for 30 minutes you won’t end up with stinging eyes when you cut it](http://lifehacker.com/software/macgyver-tip/refrigerate-onions-for-tear+free-chopping-313343.php). Brilliant, but perhaps a little too time consuming.