Category: Fragment

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It Was Either Level 1 or Level 6

Is it bad that limbo doesn’t sound that bad to me?

The Dante’s Inferno Test has sent you to the First Level of Hell – Limbo!
First Level of Hell – Limbo Charon ushers you across the river Acheron, and you find yourself upon the brink of grief’s abysmal valley. You are in Limbo, a place of sorrow without torment. You encounter a seven-walled castle, and within those walls you find rolling fresh meadows illuminated by the light of reason, whereabout many shades dwell. These are the virtuous pagans, the great philosophers and authors, unbaptised children, and others unfit to enter the kingdom of heaven. You share company with Caesar, Homer, Virgil, Socrates, and Aristotle. There is no punishment here, and the atmosphere is peaceful, yet sad.

Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers) Very Low
Level 1 – Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers) Very High
Level 2 (Lustful) Moderate
Level 3 (Gluttonous) Low
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious) Very Low
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy) Low
Level 6 – The City of Dis (Heretics) High
Level 7 (Violent) Low
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers) Moderate
Level 9 – Cocytus (Treacherous) Low

Take the Dante’s Inferno Hell Test

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Quantum Books

Last week I stumbled upon a new quantum computing book, Quantum Computing for Computer Architects by Tzvetan S. Metodi and Frederic T. Chong (don’t even try to say that first name outloud, you might break your mouth! 🙂 ) Did you know that quantum computing papers have appeared in the top computer architecture conferences (see ISCA 2006 for example) But seriously, don’t mention this to physics hiring committees 🙂 Update: Commentor toby points out that the entire book is downloadable on the publisher’s website here (well you may need a university subscription??)
In SFO airport the other day I was browing the science section of a bookstore when I came across Punk Science by Manjir Samanta-Laughton. Cool title, I thought, Punk Science sounds very radical. Indeed:

Punk Science demonstrates that ideas from the cutting-edge of science actually explain phenomena that have previously been thought of as paranormal. Dr. Samanta-Laughton offers a new model of the universe, where consciousness generates life, where black holes exist inside our bodies as well as far out in space, and where the same science explains galaxies and planets as well as human evolution, auras and chakras. Drawing on the very latest in scientific understanding, the Black Hole principle outlined by [sic] in this book, represents the next leap forward in both human understanding and living, and gives a closer approximation to scientific reality than the macho-approach of the old-style physics.

Doh, radical indeed.
Oh, and commentor Perry notes that quantum computers feature in a new mystery novel, Simple Genius by David Baldacci. Sweet, having already appearing in science fiction, quantum computing is now in mysteries, which means that soon quantum computing will appear in some high falutin mainstream literature.

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Due When?

Now that is an interesting homework due date:

22.3.: Homework 2 is available here [ps] [pdf] – due date: second class after strike ends (not 19.4.2007)

Update: (5/27/07) Well the strick is over so Julia has had to get back to work 🙂

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Quantum Green Tea

Quantum tunelling used to explain operation of Green Tea antioxidant catechins. This certainly explains why everytime I drink tea my pinky seems to tunnell into a strange pointing position. That or the British side of my family tree.

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Seen in Hawaii

No Smoking Dogs Golfing
But are smoking dogs which are not golfing okay? What about dogs which are golfing, but not smoking?