Tuesday, August 17, 2004

This program inspired from chapter 3 of Ross, Sheldon. Simulation 2d (San Diego: Academic, 1997) will calculate the average value of X^2 between x=1-10 for a discrete version of x squared.

//
// A C++ program For Integrating a random variable (X^2) and finding its expected value or mean.//
#include
int Kvalue;
int Svalue;
int Seed;
int U;
int countK;
float Expected;



int main()
{


std::cout << "Enter integer for random seed: ";
std::cin >> Seed;
void srand(unsigned int Seed);
std::cout << "Enter integer for length of Integral: ";
std::cin >> Kvalue;
countK=0;
Svalue = 0;
while (Kvalue >= countK)

{

U= 1 + (int) ( 10.0 * rand() / (RAND_MAX + 1.0) );
Svalue= Svalue + U * U;


countK++;
}

Expected= Svalue/Kvalue;
std::cout << "Expected Value = ";
std::cout << Expected;
std::cout << "Svalue = ";
std::cout << Svalue;
std::cout << "Kvalue = ";
std::cout << Kvalue;
return 0;
}


Sunday, August 15, 2004

I read chapter 1 and 2 yesterday and chapter 3 today of this book: Ross, Sheldon. Simulation 2d (San Diego: Academic, 1997). I started to make the programs to simulate random variables using Quincy, a C++ IDE using gcc. So I spent about an hour today trying to write C++ code.
I finished chapter 1 of Roulstone, Alan. Enabling Technology: Disabled People, Work and New Technology (Buckingham: Open University, 1998), this morning. I read chapter 2 this evening.
We need to sell my wife's book at an up coming community picnic. My wife's book is Saint Saens, Jennifer. Jenny's Sky (Ottawa, ON: Sky Rock, 2004). We need to order some more books from the printer before September 11th, the date of the picnic.

Friday, August 13, 2004

I am starting to read two computer books afresh. These two new books I am adding to my knowledge are:
Hutter, Dieter. et al, Eds. Security in Pervasive Computing: First International Conference, Boppard, Germany, March 2003. Revised Papers (Berlin: Springer, 2004).
The first few papers are only one page long or so.
Brock, Gerald, W. The Secondary Information Revolution (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2003)
This is a book from the Network Engineering section of the library. It is a book in English. Like Mueller, M. L. Ruling the Root, Internet Governance and the Taming of Cyberspace (Cambridge, MA: The Mit Press, 2002) it is a history of technology.
One other book I am reading on technology and disability is: Roulstone, Alan. Enabling Technology: Disabled People, Work and New Technology (Buckingham: Open University, 1998).

Thursday, August 12, 2004

I am working a night shift Thursday night. I completed my tutoring work for the summer today. I completed my tutorial hours for the summer in STAT3502. I said goodbye to the students and let them know they were a challenging group to TA. They are all engineering students.

I chose law courses for the fall and winter terms. I am letting the statistics course go now. I still have some books out on statistics from the school library. These books are:

Janacek, Garth. Practical Time Series (London: Arnold, 2001).
This is the first math book in awhile that I am able to read. Also I do not have to read this book for work or any current studies or courses. I have borrowed it for about a month now or more. I got through two chapters and this book allowed me to discover R and also in the end discover xemacs for for the WinXP laptop I have. It covers smoothing as well as time series stuff. I got the next book out on smoothing after reading this first book a little.
Bowman, Adrian W. & Azzalini, Adelchi. Applied Smoothing Techniques for Data Analysis: The Kernal Approach with S-Plus Illustrations (Oxford: Clarendon, 1997).
I have only really gotten half way through the first chapter of this book
Ross, Sheldon. Introduction to Probability Models 6d (San Diego: Academic, 1997)
I scanned this book's first four chapters which introduce probability. I read and understood the introduction of markov chains.
Ross, Sheldon. Simulation 2d (San Diego: Academic, 1997)
I haven't even opened this book beyong making this citation note.
Alexander, Kenneth S. & Watkins, Joseph C. Eds. Spatial Stochastic Processes: A Festschrift in Honor of Ted Harris on his Seventieth Birthday. (Boston: Birkhäuser, 1991).
I have not read this book really either
Hermanns, Holger. Interactive Markov Chains: And the Quest for Quantified Quality (Berlin: Springer, 2002).
This book as well has been opened to a minimum.

Monday, August 09, 2004

I got down to deciding on statistics courses these past two days. I told a number of people today about this decision and they all seemed to listen but one of them approved of this choice. This person is in fact a school counselor. Also a professor in the legal studies department, said he likes my balanced approach which I mentioned as my reason to the couselor as well today. In fact, no one has disagree expect my father who approves of the legal studies courses. Most people I talk with don't care because that is not thier job. But one fellow, a former classmate did active listening to what I was saying. He is applying for law school in New Zealand.

So these statistics courses were today's choice. Even if by the end of the day I was reading crime analysis and wanting to continue with the legal studies because the statistics courses needed to upgrade my B.Math would take a good two years of study. After today when I was tired it seemed that statistics would be more difficult to do well with, but it was statistics as my choice for most of the day. After writing this I am keen on the statistics again too. In fact, I browsed books I will need for these courses at amazon.ca. I then borrowed this book for one course. Ross, Sheldon. Introduction to Probability Models 6d (San Diego, Academic, 1997). I scan read the first four chapters which cover probability and basically the same materials as parts of STAT3502 and STAT3508. But I read the introduction to stochastic processes and also Markov chains.

I worked for 4 hours today at school. Tomorrow the plan is to work for another 4 hours and then 4 hours on Wednesday. I earned 20$ today tutoring a student in PSYC2002 and the F test statistic. I also earned 34$ giving a tutorial session for a few students in STAT3502. Tomorrow I am tutoring the same student again in PSYC2002 and then again on Wednesday and that's it for him this term. Also tomorrow I am tutoring another student in MATH1007 for two hours. Then I tutor him again for one hour on Wednesday. Also on Wednesday I will give one more hour of tutorial. I will also begin 6 to 8 hours of marking assignments for STAT3502 earning about 17 dollars per hour doing this. This will be my last duties in being a TA in STAT3502. Work school, school work.
I just completed reading a simple book with a lot of information thoughtfully presented in crime analysis. I spoke with the Ottawa Police recruiter last year and they have about 12 crime analysts with the Ottawa Police. The book is Vann, Irvin B. & Garson, G David. Crime Mapping: New Tools of Law Enforcement (New york: Peter Lang, 2003). This study continues my learning about GIS from GEOG2007 with little more info about ESRI products. Continuing my GIS education with this book helped me integrate my knowldge of traditional maps and mapping with post-modern GIS mapping in regards crime mapping. It probably also makes me a better city volunteer and victims assistance volunteer. I now know some issues of privacy concerning location of crime victims. This book also extends my studies in GIS and terrorism that I started in summer 2004 with LAWS4701.

Sunday, August 08, 2004

I am having trouble deciding courses. First about math and statistics courses I will write. I have ruled out one course in numercial analysis as it is early morning. Only one course stochastic processes and queueing theory remains a possibility with early morning requirements. In this second course the tutorial is set for Monday mornings at 9 am. I am fairly certain I don't want the first course. I did talk to the professor and he would be good and friendly and helpful but the early morning schedule preculdes studying it this year. That basically leaves only two statistics courses to choose from in mathematics and statistics for the fall term. There is really only one philosophy course on social and political philosophy. There are five possible law courses and I can only take two at most.

Saturday, August 07, 2004

"Read widely" Mike Fox, geography professor at Carleton University on how to study geography and use a library.

I am reading in criminal law, geography, statistics, alcohol studies, telecommunications history, computer security, perl, and crime mapping. I am sort of settling down to studying law and drug abuse this fall term. I will also start to write a fourth year honours paper. This paper I hope is on disablities and the law or computer crime. One of those two topics. This morning my plan for fall 2005 is to start to study for a Ph.D in sociology specializing in statistics, disability studies and criminology.

I am reading these geography books right now:
Duckham, Matt, Goodchild, Michael F. & Worboys Michael F. Eds. Foundations of Geographic Information Science (London: Taylor & Francis, 2003).
I just started this book and have not gotten far with it. I read the basic attempts at defining geographic information sciences.
Rushton, K.R. Groundwater Hydrology: Conceptual and Computational Models (Chichester, West Sussex, England: Wiley, 2003).
With this book I have just read the introductory chapter and then followed the author's suggestions for novices to scan the book. It is very complex math and uses case studies. The math though is not beyond me and it uses only math I can understand with my B.Math degree as far as I can see by the diagrams and cross sections.
That's it for geography books I am reading right now.

Friday, August 06, 2004

Some people I know write user doucmentation as such this might be useful for them in their work. It is a link written by Avi Solomon in a comment from Kevin Kelly's web site on his Help Wanted Blog.

How To Write Usable User Documentation by Edmond H. Weiss
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0897746392/
I started reading Cross, David. Data Munging with PERL (Greenwich, CT: Manning, 2001), yesterday. It too is a book with humour and attempts at being cultural.
I am starting to prepare for the criminal law issues course that covers Drugs, Users and the State. I am reading Brick, John. Ed. Handbook of the Medical Consequences of Alcohol and and Drug Abuse (New York: The Haworth Press, 2004). I read the first chapter this evening.

Thursday, August 05, 2004

The book I just read, after studying terrorism laws in LAWS4701 the criminal justice and social policy summer school, was Archick, Kristin & Gallis, Paul. Europe and Counterterrorism (New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2003).
I have spent 12 hours now in training for victims services. I have 28 hours left to go then an exam and then I am certifed. I won't write too much about this work here as I have signed a confidentiality agreement.

I worked only one hour today, tutoring. Tomorrow I might work three hours tutoring. On Saturday I work 4:30 hours then 7:30 hours Sunday morning. This is the Saturday night shift. I am then working the night shift again on next Thursday and will have to miss three hours of training that night. I will also help with the newspapers on Saturday morning and maybe Friday morning.

I need to prepare for Monday's final tutorial and get ready to mark the classes final assignment. I hope to have this marked by Thursday or Friday next week.

I finished a book on European Counter Terrorism. This extends from my spring course in terrorism laws. I am being so smart these days. I have some good work. I can study one on one with a professor this year. My old private law professor from last summer has agreed to supervise me in writing an honours fourth year paper this year. I got permission to study stochastic proccesses and queuing theory as well today.

Monday, August 02, 2004

I have twenty books out from the university library. I completed reading this book early yesterday morning: Goggin, Gerald & Newell, Christopher, Digital Disability: The Social Construction of Disability in the New Media (Lanham, ML.: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003). I learned a lot from this book but the main message is that academics ignore disability studies which is what our law department is doing in my case.

I am again officially in fouth year law now. Again this is not an LLB but rather a BA in law. Next could be a an MA in law. I am picking a course in sentencing and a course in drugs, users and the state for the fall term.

Today's newspaper and it is a holiday today had a front page article about blawgs or blogs about law. They estimate there are only 12 blawgs in Canada but about 500 in the USA. I have used one US blawg, that is Lawrence lessig's blog about Internet law.