Tuesday Tech

Found on  imgur through Daily Infographic

Enjoy!

(I'm really tired, in part because of the weather, in part because I stayed up late to watch the Sony press conference for the first time. It was interesting.)

Thursday Travels

I know a lot of these Thursday articles end up being about uncovered graves of the ancients, and today is no different. (I really need to find something a little more uplifting for Thursdays. I mean, it is almost the weekend).

The article, 2,000-Year-Old Roman Artifacts Unearthed in Ethiopia, contains an interesting mummy, one I would like to know the story of.

The woman in the grave has been dubbed "Sleeping Beauty," and maybe because of my lack of knowledge of mummies, but the way she was laid was interesting.

They said she was on her side, her hand under her chin, facing a bronze mirror.

This could mean so many different things, though I guess the root of all of it is that she was considered very beautiful in life.

The poses people are buried in usually signify what the culture believed of death (I guess the case is still true), but why was she posed in a leisurely pose, looking into a mirror?

Anyway, happy Thursday!

Tuesday Theories

Tuesday is Pretty Little Liars (PLL) day, a day devoted to driving fans mad with theories on who A is.

I've come up with numerous theories, adapting some I've read by other fans.

But this isn't (solely) a PLL post, it's about an article I found on Business Insider:

The 'Ferris Bueller Fight Club' theory and other fan conspiracies sending people on Reddit into a tailspin

I love hearing fan theories as they show just how in depth, or detail oriented, people are when it comes to their favorite shows.

My favorite one, a crossover theory, is that "George Weasley from "Harry Potter" becomes Willy Wonka."

My first thought was "oh, cause of his crazy candy, right?"

Well, the little except of the discourse goes further to say "The scene where Willy has half of everything in his office kinda hints that he lost his better half, that is his brother who died." (from PM_Me_Your_Asian_Self on Reddit).

That's kind of deep. Yes, Roald Dahl wrote Willy Wonka years before Harry Potter, but I have a theory that could dismiss that time conundrum (something I am using in my book series).

What I enjoy about this is it calls some details to attention that I never would have noticed. "He lost his better half," was Willy Wonka ever married? What if he was in love. I don't remember much of the book series, as I read it in grade school, but it does make the mind wonder.

Anyway, enjoy the link (which links out to the Reddit discussions). Feel free to post any of your theories, ones you have thought long and hard about, or ones you even think about as a joke. Who knows? Maybe it's true.

Thursday Travels

Goodness I'm behind today!

I mentioned I would talk about my trip.

Let me just say, I can see where people get inspiration from.

We were supposed to land in our destination around 2 in the afternoon, plus a 2 hour drive, we would be at our inn at 4 PM.

First, our flights got delayed.

That wouldn't be such a big deal if our connecting flight wasn't leaving before the first flight landed. We spoke to the airline and they insisted it was ok. So, we left for the airport several hours early because clearly everything wasn't ok.

Then, while driving to the airport, we got a notification our flight had been delayed again. We shook our heads and kept on until we got to the check-in desk. The woman was already not too thrilled to be working, so our frustration mixed with hers wasn't a good combination.

Eventually, we got a new route to our destination. We'd arrive at the inn two hours later than planned, but that's life.

The plane we were taking to Chicago was late. The airline, being a business, was determined to make up the time, they threw the people off the plane and shoved us on the plane. That's fine, we all want to make up lost time.

We made our way to Chicago, and had to circle the area due to "weather." It was sprinkling on the ground in Chicago, though someone said because of a funnel cloud we weren't allowed to land. Well, because we were in such a hurry to leave for Chicago, the plane wasn't re-fueled and we had no fuel to circle, so we landed in another state.

Sitting on the plane for about an hour, we finally made our trip to Chicago, of course missing our connecting flight.

The next flight, in which was over booked by one person, wasn't for a while, so I finally had lunch at about 5 in the afternoon.

We finally made it to our destination, and were ready to face a two hour drive to the inn. Unfortunately, someone had other plans for us, and we encountered an accident on the highway. It took two hours to go two miles, and it wasn't until midnight that we were speeding away, hungry, thirsty and done with the trip.

Because of the late hour drive, a location people normally call beautiful will always be plastered in my mind as something straight out of a horror movie. There was fog everywhere, and there was this marsh that was illuminated by the moon. The marsh had dead trees poking out and I was just waiting to hear the moaning of the dead.

Needless to say, the three or four hours of sleep we got that night were not enough, and we failed to enjoy our time.

I'm just thankful the return trip wasn't a repeat of the trip out and we made it home safely.

Thursday Travels

Dementor wasps sound like fun, don't they?

They are part of the 139 new species that were discovered in the Greater Mekong Region in 2014. That's a lot of new species, especially when a mammal is among them.

Another species is a Crocodile newt, which sounds adorable.

Here's an article about the new species:

'Dementor' wasp, giant stick insect among new Mekong finds.

The bat picture they use as the main image is cute as well. It smiles with it's pointy teeth and says "I'm ready for my close up."

I love hearing about new animals being discovered. Some are extremely cute, others are so poisonous you get sick reading about it.

What's even better is that these aren't from someone's imagination, they're real, and they're here.

I've been trying to create some creatures for my fantasy adventure novels, and there are some, in the heat of a scene, that come out as the most ridiculous things I've ever thought of. I need to plan better sometimes. Or maybe I should take a trip to Mekong and discover a new species for myself. (Only joking. Though it would be fun to discover a new species).

Tuesday Tech

Goodness! I almost titled today "Monday Musings." As you can see, the weekend swallowed me alive, only to spit me out at work, wondering what day it is.

Here are two articles for today:

Something fun: "Iron Man" Phone by Samsung

Something professional: 15 Body Language Secrets of Successful People


I just got a new phone, but it's no where near as snazzy as the Iron Man phone (the one in the movies or the one Samsung is releasing). I did try to find some cool cases that cover part of the front, making the shell and the empty space on the front look seamless, but alas, I'm just not that cool.

The second article is pretty interesting. I know I have a slouching problem (something that is considered disrespectful), a lot of people my age do. For me, I don't mind when people slouch because I do and it never means I'm not interested or engaged, that's just how I sit. It's when people lean back in their chair and put their feet on the table do I cringe (in a meeting that is).

The second article would be good for writers, and artists, since body language is a good way to tell the characters attitude or interest in a situation without having to spell it out for people.

Thursday Travel

Genetic Study Identifies Young Paternal Lineages in Europe.

It says that 2 out of 3 modern European men came from 1 of 3 paternal lineages.

Let's see if I can recall high school genetics: It's hard to trace female DNA like this because the X chromosomes split and connect with another half, mixing together the parent's DNA. However, the Y chromosome is just passed from father to son.

There is mitochondrial DNA in hair that can determine maternal lineage, but we never got into too much detail about that. Besides, hair from centuries old skeletons is probably hard to find.

Anyway, I just thought this sounded inspiring for a story or a plot.

I'm still posting tomorrow, but wanted to say: Have a good weekend! And if you are celebrating a holiday, have a safe and fun holiday weekend!

Here's a map from the article:



Map from archaeology.org

Tuesday Tech

Today is actually a techie day because I found an interesting article about 3D printing: 3D-Printed Exoskeleton Hands Could Augment Human Bodies (Link goes out to PSFK).

3D printing has really taken off in the past few years. On Etsy, there are many customs, creatures, and add-ons that were printed using someone's 3D printing. It's really fascinating to see what people are using the technology for.

This article shows yet another facet of the printer's capabilities, helping humans do more, better. The main image, a hand with an exoskeleton that looks like claws or talons, is a pretty cool sight. While it's awesome we may be able to do work differently, I think it looks like a pretty awesome addition to a costume.

But I wonder what else people will be making with 3D printers. With everyone who does good, or really cool things, there tends to be people who create more nefarious things (right now all I can picture is all those Scooby-Doo badies having an easier time with their costumes).

Yes, I'm leading to a theme/idea/inspiration for writing. It may be cheesy, it may be brilliant, but imagine an antagonist who utilized 3D printing for, well, whatever they do. Of course, you can flip this. Imagine a Batman-esque superhero, minus the wealth. Instead they use their skills to create something to increase their normal, human abilities.

Just an interesting thought.

Anyway, I don't actually own a 3D printer, but one day, I know I'll be getting one.

Thursday Travels

To continue with last Thursday's post about  China, here's another article that will hopefully spark some inspiration for a character or scene: Epitaphs From Ming Dynasty Translated.

The title of the article is a little on the misleading side, as they only discussed an epitaph of a woman called Lady Mei.

She lived more recently compared to the late doctor from last Thursday's post, but what bits of the epitaph they quoted made Lady Mei out to be an impressive person, or at least beloved.

A writing prompt idea with this story in mind: use your character's voice (or a voice you want to practice) to describe this woman, like they knew her. What was Lady Mei like? What hobbies did she enjoy? Or even, what were the days of mourning after her passing like?

Tuesday Tech

One of the big stories of the day, according to the numerous articles I saw about it, is that Verizon is acquiring AOL.

But, that's not what I'm talking about. Yesterday, I kind of switched things up, posting about younger people working on their dreams and how they inspire others.

I should re-label today as "Muesday" and yesterday as "Tonday" so I can keep my alliterations.

Anyway, today it's all about being productive. Writers, like anyone else who is working on anything, have moments (you know days, weeks, years) where it's hard to be productive. It could be a marvelous Spring day outside, but you're wired to your desk, or you could be excited about an upcoming trip and all you can think about is what to pack. It could even just be a "I don't feel like doing this" kind of day. Thing is, you've gotta do the work. It's needed if you want to succeed.

In comes the article: Naturally successful people do these 5 things at work every day.

The one I want to bring to your attention is item three, "They focus for 45, then break for 15."

I've never tried taking breaks this frequently as I've always been the kind of person who "takes a break when I need it." And I know when I need it. Otherwise, frequent breaks cause me to lose focus because my mind thinks we were done with task A.

However, this is worth a shot. As the article talks about, a teacher moved to Finland to teach and discovered the 45 minutes of instruction followed by 15 minutes of freedom kept the students energized. Energy is definitely something I could use.

Yesterday I was successful in moving towards a second completed MS, so, I'm going to try the frequent breaks today. Perhaps I'll be able to figure out some of the issues with the MS as I move forward.

Who knows, maybe this will help a lot of people succeed in their work.

Thursday Travels

Tomb Raiders is the topic of the day. More specifically, tomb raiders in China.

This isn't about the video game or the book series, though the latter was mentioned in one of the following articles.

700-Year-Old Doctor's Tomb Excavated in China - is short and interesting, led to a longer topic about tomb raiders, Tomb Raider Chronicles.

I tend to use Thursday's blog post as hopes to inspire writers and others with articles about real life things I find interesting. Today is no exception. There is so many different scenarios these articles spur: the life of a tomb raider (which has been done, but who says it can't be done again?), the ancients who put things in the tomb, this 700-Year-Old Doctor Wu Jing and his life, among others.

On another note, tomb raiders do break my heart. I've said this multiple times before, but I am fascinated by ancient cultures all around the world. So when I hear chances to learn more about the past have been foiled, I can't help but be upset. There are other sides to the issue that I don't want to get into, because that's not what this is about. This is about new ideas, learning new things, and hopefully a spark to create something amazing.

(Side note: I really need to put more pictures in these blog posts. Text is good, but if only broken up by images, videos, gifs, etc.)

Tuesday Tech

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Because yesterday was Star Wars day, a lot of information about the future of the Star Wars franchise was released and rumors spread.

I grew up watching the Star Wars movies, never really sure which movie came first, but non-the-less enjoying them.

Now three more movies are coming out - and that's only in relation to the main story line. Spin-offs have been announced, like "Rogue One."

And now, another is rumored, and it's one people have been speculating about since the character first made an appearance - Boba Fett's origins.

Some information was detailed in the prequel trilogy about this bounty hunter, but not much is known about him.

Of course, this is "rumored," but the story I found on it is here: Fan favorite Boba Fett is reportedly about to get his own 'Star Wars' movie.

This brings up an important topic: Fanservice.

The first time I heard a TV show incorporating a fan-named background character into their regular programming, I thought that was awesome, "people are actually listening to the fans." Well, this was probably not the first time I heard or have seen this happen, but it was the first time I truly recognized what was going on.

This didn't end well for the TV series and they quickly renamed the character as the fan name wasn't entirely PC (politically correct) or sensitive.

I know other series, both TV and otherwise, do fanservice to appease die-hard fans, but at what cost?

Don't get me wrong, when I "ship" two characters, I live for the 30 second moment they share on screen together, be it just a look or standing next to each other - and I know a lot of people feel the same way. What bothers me is when creators, writers, directors, whoever, incorporates largely accepted fan ideas into their original work.

I'm glad they are listening to the fans, but so often when people do this, they sacrifice what they originally had going for them. Stories take bizarre turns, characters become less like themselves, situations become forced, none of it is really healthy for a story.

Personally, I believe listening to fans, maybe arranging positioning and team-ups so that fan favorite characters are seen together more often works. It feeds the fans, the artists, the fan-fiction writers, without compromising the original story. And fans seem to be ok with this. As a business person, I fully believe in listening to your customers. However, sometimes they don't know what they are asking or wanting.

As a fan of shows and series, I trust what the creators have envisioned for their series and I don't want anything to steer them away from the natural growth of their story. As a writer, I appreciate that stories grow on their own and changing them too much - just to incorporate fan ideas - can become detrimental to the story.

Just some thoughts. Remember, trust your vision and ideas, interact with your fans. If a fan idea seems organic to your story, then incorporate it. If it's not, well, maybe a side, "non-canon" story may be in the works, just to show your appreciation. :)

Thursday Travels

I wandered beyond the river of death, forgetting the pain it was to be me and looking forward to the excitement it was to become "me" again.

Going back to Latin America (not physically, but article-wise), I found this short article: Liquid Mercury Discovered Beneath Teotihuacan Pyramid.

My first thought was "how many people got sick putting the mercury there?" That wasn't the point of the article, but knowing what we know about mercury now, I can't imagine how many people became sick interacting with the mercury.

Anyway, one of the cool theories behind why mercury may have been there is because "it may have symbolized the river of death." (That's an image/prompt for sure).

Also, my favorite take-away from this article is that they also found "metallic spheres dubbed "disco balls"." I guess they wanted to make sure the person had everything they needed to party in the afterlife. :)

Tuesday Tech

Despite there being loads of things happening in the world - which is usually the case - I actually struggled with finding an article for today.

So, in honor of the people who will be graduating college this weekend and next I thought I would share Business Insider's story: 13 Qualities Google looks for in job candidates.

The best one of the attributes, based on the name given, is "Google wants Googleyness." The article goes into what exactly "Googleyness" is, a summation of a bunch of different qualities, and I love that they made up their own word.

One of the qualities I appreciate, as I believe not many companies do (from my experience), is "role-related knowledge." Role-related knowledge is that you have the background and the aptitude to do your job, even if it means you need to teach yourself a few things. A lot of the jobs I have interviewed for seem to expect you to come in knowing everything. But studies show, people don't stay in those jobs long. People like challenge, be it small or overwhelming. Yet, it almost seems companies expect you not only to have the qualifications, but be able to come in knowing how to do most, if not everything, listed in the job duties.

One key thing from this article is that Google wants people to have the willingness to learn. They want you to be smart enough to know that you don't know everything, you could be wrong, and have the willingness to learn (because it's ok to make mistakes!)

That's the short and sweet of it. Hope you all have a wonderful day.

Thursday Travels

Through my usual reads, Business Insider, Entrepreneur, Archaeology, I came across this: Iron Age Owl Clasp Unearthed in Denmark.

It's a short article (with a picture!), but in the writing  mindset I was in when reading about this iron owl, I thought it would make an interesting prompt.

A while ago I mentioned I was doing writersedit.com "weekly" prompts to get into the practice of writing in my MC's voice. The prompt I was working on (#3 I think) mentioned your protagonist finding something strange in their pocket. So, reading this I thought "what if my MC received this as a gift?"

So, here is a writing prompt for people looking for something to write based on the article:

What if your character (a MC, the protagonist of your latest work, even favorite characters from TV shows, movies, books or video games) received this owl (or even found it)? Why did they receive it? Is it a reward for a long journey? Or is it a gift before the hero goes into battle? Explore your character's reaction to the gift, physical and emotional. Does it stir painful memories or excite them to action?

I'll be working on this as well. Maybe Wednesday I'll post it (seeing if I can finish everything else before then).

Tuesday Tech

I found this article yesterday: Step 1 to Selling Your Book? Don't Pretend It's 'Free.'

I had mixed feelings about it. At first it read like "How to Cheat the System," with some good advice on how to promote your book.

Then, well, it still felt wrong to me. I had to read the article several times to find what was missing: the writing itself.

One thing this article didn't express, which I feel is essential in any business, it the quality of the work you are producing. Yes, you can produce garbage, and people may by garbage, but like so many of my business professors have said "garbage in, garbage out." Basically, you don't put forth your best effort going into the process, you can expect less than stellar results.

This article focuses on promoting your book, something absolutely essential in this day and age, but it fails to highlight that one key detail of actually having something to sell. It almost read like "you want to make some money, write a book, promote it, and then you can go on to your next idea."

I agree, building your audience is crucial, but passion is a MUST if you are going to do anything the "hard way." Writing a book, and having it published, is like starting your own business. I wrote my first MS as a way to challenge myself while I was looking for work. I found that I love writing and I'm willing to work at it to improve my craft.

This article does focus on entrepreneurial people who are writing books (by the sound of it), but again, write something good. Just like in business and query letters, you need to have what makes your book special compared to all the others out there.

Anyway, take my thoughts, and the article, for what they're worth. I do recommend reading the article - or at least skimming through it - for ideas on how to promote your work (writing or not) that are outside the usual Twitter and Facebook.

Thursday Travels

It's been about a month since I started this blog and I haven't ever discussed any of the books I've read.

However, today I came across an article about an ancient civilization that was introduced to me in Amy Raby's Fire Seer. It was an interesting read, and if you like historical fictions that lean more toward the fiction, you should check it out. I believe the age group is Adult (for the people who want to know). (Edit: She notes that the evidence of the Harapans was a jumping off point for her book and not to regard it as historical. Still interesting though.)

I love learning about ancient civilizations, the older the better, so I was thrilled when I read the Fire Seer and learned of the Harapan. Now, I want to note here that I am in no way considered an expert on history or the Harapan, or any civilizations in the Indus Valley (or anywhere really), so some of what I'm about to say may be a little off the mark since I'm piecing together the little I've read about them (two articles and Raby's notes). I'm also not sure on the spelling since I've seen "Harapan", "Harrapan", and "Harappa", so I'm just going to pick one and stick with it.

The Harapan were contemporaries of the Ancient Egyptians, but less is known of them. The civilizations in the Indus Valley served as a trade route and gateway between the east and the west. They probably thrived from their resources of stones and metals, and from trade. Often civilizations that host traders tend to thrive becoming the most advanced and diverse of civilizations as they have the opportunity to be exposed to cultures and items from across the land.

At the end of the Fire Seer, Raby writes about the Harapan and what she knows of them. She notes that "The Harapans had the world's first flush toilets!", showing how advanced the civilization was in the second/third century B.C.

Because of the harsh climate of the desert, it's difficult for people to do excavations, but it sounds like progress is made every month or so. In addition, Raby notes that we haven't been able to translate the language the Harapan's used, so we are missing out on a lot about them. It's also unknown as to why many of the civilizations in the Indus Valley fell and were left uninhabited for almost 1,500 years.

Here's an Archaeology article about the Indus Valley Civilizations if you want to read more.

And here's a blog post about the fall of another ancienct civilization: Thursday Travels 3/19/15.

Tuesday Tech

Rejoice authors, writers, and readers!

HarperCollins and Amazon have finally reached a deal. (Link goes out to Business Insider).

That means HarperCollins books will still be available on Amazon. Great news for readers who love their Kindle (or Kindle App in my case), and for writers/authors because any additional channel to reach readers is a good one, especially when they are big like Amazon.

I guess this could be good news for investors, but the financial people can talk about that.

Besides Barnes & Noble, and the occasional book from my local grocery store, I buy most of my books from Amazon. It is also one of the top places I learn about new books, besides the lovely agents and authors I follow over on Twitter.

I can't imagine how many amazing books might not reach people if this deal didn't go through. One of my good friends reads only on her Kindle (and books from the library), so imagine all the others who would miss out.

Yes, if I knew of a book I really wanted to read, I would go to other stores/libraries to get it, but I also wonder how many books I would pass on because I just don't have the time for other stores (so sad, but true).

Anyway, cheers! Anything that benefits writers and readers, the better.

Thursday Travels

I scheduled yesterday's post for yesterday, and it didn't post. Strange.

It's there now, but I'll have to figure out why it didn't post. (Late thought: maybe I didn't hit publish).

This isn't too much adventure and exploring, but it's historical. Anyway, here is something I found for the book/history lovers: Technology Recovers Marginalia from Medieval Manuscript (link goes out to Archaeology).

I had never heard the term "marginalia" before, so for those who haven't either it's writing in the margins.

They said there were doodles and notes taken in the margins of the oldest surviving medieval manuscript. The writings a doodles were later erased by a later owner of the book.

It's great to hear that they can read them as, like the article mentions, we can get an insight into what our ancestors thought of the text - or if they, like so many students in class, wrote other notes in the margins.

Pawn Stars had a book come into their shop that was from the library of Isaac Newton (I believe). There were notes in those margins as well (though they were said to not be in his handwriting).

I can tell you I have books from English classes full of class notes, my thoughts, and notes from friends sitting next to me. I was also fortunate to buy a used book for a History class and find the pages full of notes from a previous owner. The notes were so great that I looked like a genius during in-class discussions, despite not actually reading the book.

Even J.K.Rowling had two paperback books, about Quidditch and Mythical Beasts, where Ron and Harry wrote notes to each other. Those were a great read, even if it was just for the notes.

Normally, I cringe at writing in books - that's what notebooks are for - but in the case of the Marginalia in the Medieval Manuscript (sounds like a title for a crime novel or TV crime show episode), I am thrilled.

Tuesday Tech

It's an Amazon kind of day. Yes, the website, though with these April showers, it could be the jungle area as well.

A while ago someone brought up covers of self-published ebooks on Amazon and how some aren't quite what people would expect.

Well, now Business Insider interviewed the blogger who posts some of the more interesting ones: Amazon Kindle eBook covers.

Before clicking the link, I do warn that some images may be disturbing and may not best be displayed on a full screen window at work or school. Business Insider put up ones that are PG-ish, but it's still a precautionary warning. (Just a heads up because I like to keep things relatively family friendly - depending on your family, I guess).


I did chuckle at the ones Business Insider chose to feature, but the people deserve kudos. They got their book out there. Sure, the ability to self-publish has spawned some less than stellar books (at least in the world of grammar), but there are some real gems out there. There are also some nightmares. (So Amazon does have a dark side).

Another type of written gem found on Amazon hides in the comments for some products. Now, a lot of wrtiers/authors recommend to NOT read the comments on their books. People, in general, tend to focus on the negative comments over taking everything as a whole. Especially when the negative comments are childish and unconstructive.

But, then there are those other comments, like the ones found here: Most hilarious Amazon reviews (2014).

Again, another warning that some of the comments may be inappropriate. However, I did really enjoy the Horse Mask comments. I worked at a costume store where we sold that Horse Mask and I can say, it sold out, fast.

Anyway, these are just some of the fun finds on Amazon. The company seems to be doing a lot lately, from these "press-to-order-product" buttons to making same day delivery available in some locations.

These are crazy times. If we aren't careful, it may just be Amazon that takes over the world. An, unfortunately for the adventurous spirit in me, it's not the rain forest.