Most of us only got a first look at multi-touch computing through Apple's recent iPhone release. But there are already quite a few different applications using it. This Popular Mechanics video shows just how far its come in some (almost) ready-to-sell products. Kinda fancy.

And for more information, How Stuff Works explains the multi-touch system in the iPhone.

Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary has added the following words and more into its Eleventh Edition. I've marked up the ones I've used before.

  1. agnolotti
  2. Bollywood*
  3. chaebol
  4. crunk*
  5. DVR
  6. flex-cuff
  7. ginormous*
  8. gray literature
  9. hardscape
10. IED
11. microgreen
12. nocebo
13. perfect storm
14. RPG*
15. smackdown*
16. snowboardcross
17. speed dating*
18. sudoku
19. telenovela
20. viewshed

Green roofs. Heard of? Not a new concept, but new to me.

I know, I know, I'm way behind the rest of the game. But keep in mind that I'm not in North America. Green roofing involves putting soil and vegetation onto a building's roof. While significantly more costly than regular shingles or roofing methods, green roofs can help reduce running costs of electricity, keep air both milder and cleaner, and possibly provide a roof-top garden as well. Being at the age where plenty of people are buying new homes, this is definitely something I would consider with my housing purchase (or at least with future renovations)... if it can be covered by insurance.

Here are some resources:
Green Roofs For Healthy Cities
greenroofs.com
wikipedia's page on green roofs
treehugger.com: Green Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre
Hydrotech: Green Vancouver Main Library
Canada.com story: B.C. insurers refuse to cover green roofs
Canada.com story: Insurers put the brakes on green roofs

"Liang Qichao (梁啟超) was a Chinese scholar, journalist, philosopher and reformist during the Qing Dynasty, who inspired Chinese scholars with his writings and reform movements." Here's his profile on Wikipedia.

AC says this particular photo of Liang looks like a larger-eyed version of my brother, BK. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being "exactly like him", what do you think?

It was a busy weekend. I did my annual health exam on Saturday, and played in a Taiwan Foosball Association singles tournament on the bulk of Sunday. I'll get to the health exam part later, and blog about the foosball tournament now.

21 people registered, but a couple of people were no-shows. I finished tied for 5th, winning 4 matches and losing 2 in a double-elimination format. Each match was best of 3 games, with each game going to 5 points. The two matches I lost both went to the very last point (5-4) on the 3rd game. Unfortunately, I also blew a 4-2 game 3 lead in each case. Just wasn't able to close out. Anyway, I'm still pretty happy with the result, especially since I had never competed in any serious singles competition. So, I can say that I could have beaten two of the Top 4 finishers (who got plaques for their efforts). I, on the other hand, got an injured wrist and thumb.

Side story: One of the competitors had an unlucky week. He got into a car accident last weekend, so while his car was getting fixed he was scootering during the past week. This weekend, he got into a scooter accident, leaving possible scars on his elbow and knee - which meant he wasn't able to play in the tournament either. Poor guy. Two accidents in 1.5 weeks. That blows.

You can see my Taiwanese foosball history and profile here Taiwan Foosball Association, but you might need to read Chinese to understand any of it.

When I have kids, I'll encourage them to try new things and explore different cultures. But if any of them head down Gothic Avenue, that's it... they're going to boarding school.

This weekend I spent a considerable amount of money (not enough to break the bank, but enough that I would complain and say I spent a lot of money). But it was money well-spent, and mostly staying with the theme of cleanliness.

After an allergy blood test showed that I was allergic to dust-mites and not a whole lot else, I took some action to improve my living space along those lines. Here's what I got:

1) Jean Perry (supposedly from France) anti-mite mattress and pillow protectors
2) Louie Casa (supposedly from Italy) anti-mite queen sized quilt cover
3) Honeywell filters roll for my various air-filtering appliances (air purifier, air conditioner, and dehumidifier)
4) Mouthwash
5) 3M deodorizer, and
6) Toilet pucks

Also bought a shirt from G2000 at 70% off. But that has nothing to do with clean... other than it's a clean shirt.

The iPod has been the reason for many innovative accessories, such as those made by Kensington. Now... how about this for the ladies? OhMiBod

Just thought of something that humoured me.

Let's say you had someone tied to a chair, for whatever reason. Maybe he broke into your house, and you knocked him with a shovel from behind. And then you tied him up to a chair for questioning before the police came.

Like in the movies where a villain forces the tied-up hero an evil capsule, you pry his mouth open and toss a white capsule in and tell him to swallow it - maybe taping his mouth shut so he can't spit it out. But like any person would do in that situation, he'd avoid swallowing it at any cost. So, as you continuously yell at him telling him to eat it, he holds it in his mouth for as long as he can.

So, the kicker is that I'd use Vitamin C. Something harmless (even healthy!), but he wouldn't know better, thus agonizing at the sourness of the mystery pill as it slowly dissolves in his mouth.

As part of my daily feed of information, I usually read about 3 or 4 articles from HowStuffWorks.com. There's usually something interesting to learn about.

I just read their article on vertical farming. Not to admit to being easily swayed, but it does sound like a pretty fancy idea with plenty of benefits that could potentially improve the way we live today. Although it's somewhat frightening to think that one day most, if not all, of our produce might come out of buildings instead of outdoor fields. On the other hand, people may not really care too much. In the future, we might just think back to traditional farming as a "remember when?" topic. Besides, do you think humans are capable of making agricultural foods as good, if not better, than mother nature? I guess we already do with even today's agricultural know-how.