I'm still here...and the Physics of Typewriters

Hi typosphere, I am not gone...just very busy with lots of exams coming at me left and right, with requisite studying and sleeping time.

I am on break right now, and in between study sessions am cleaning out files on my computer.
I came across this short paper on the "physics of typewriters" which I wrote for extra credit last year in AP Physics C. Here ya go!

(link to dropbox file) https://www.dropbox.com/s/efqhak0vr2l7x76/The%20Physics%20of%20Typewriters.pdf

The Month of Plenty.

Just a quick observation post: I did not previously realize how many things there are formally celebrated during the month of February.

Here's the four that I've found thus far:

-International Typewriter Appreciation Month (of course)
-African-American History Month
-International Correspondence Writing Month (from http://incowrimo.org/)
-Love Your Library Month

Whoa. That's a lot of stuff crammed into 28 short days!

Vikram

Desk Pals

I forgot to mention the two plush guys on the top. The bear I got along with a Chipotle gift card as a high school graduation gift. The stuffed Android robot was on sale over at ThinkGeek, and being a fan of Android, with a Nexus 7 always at the ready, I ordered it right away.

Thank you for reading! Can't wait for ITAM in just a few days.

Two Years of Blogger!

Thanks for reading! 

Tetris: a game that remains addictive to this day

edit: 25-line mode (end of the third paragraph)

as it appears on the Game Boy pocket, the successor to the Game Boy

as it appears on the Game Boy Color, the first Game Boy I ever owned

 (I bought the pocket in a garage sale)

an awesome desktop wallpaper that I found using Google Images

Back to the Typosphere.

HP 15C Limited Edition RPN Programmable Scientific Calculator.

My dad asked what I wanted for Christmas, and I thought for a while.
What would I use on a daily basis in college, and enjoy doing so?

The HP 15C was my answer.

First made from 1982-1989 and then released as a limited edition in 2011, with only 10,000 made, this scientific calculator was a standard for scientists and engineers everywhere. It's a cousin of the famous HP 12C financial calculator, which my dad happens to use almost daily.

In operation, it uses HP's famed "RPN" input method: Reverse Polish Notation. Rather than inputting the operator, then the operation, then the operand, and then the equals button, you enter the operator, the operand, and then the operation. Example:

Problem: 2*3=?

RPN: 2 [enter] 3 [x]
Algebraic (normal) input: 2 [x] 3 [=] 6

This is advantageous because it affords fewer keystrokes, 4 vs. 5. The advantage is even more apparent when looking at more complex calculations.

Problem: (2+3)(5-1)=?

RPN: 2 [enter] 3 [+] 5 [enter] 1 [-] [x]
Algebraic: [(] 2 [+] 3 [)] [x] [(] 5 [-] 1 [)] [=]

9 vs. 12 keystrokes.

And it's just more fun to use!

This calculator can do numeric integration, complex calculations, matrix algebra, equation solving, and can execute programs. Overall a fun and useful tool.