I continue to prepare for graduate school and mark statistics assignments.

I have been staying up late these past five days. I reason that staying up late gives me quiet time without distractions to do my scholarly work. But often I spend this time wastefully doing on-line shopping. This morning I read more of the book on writing the doctoral dissertation. I got to some help on writing, software tools and formatting tips in this book and then downloaded a LaTeX template from a University of Ottawa web page. I then experimented with this template a little, merely writing my name as author and a supposed title for my thesis. This would be my M.Sc. thesis, which actually won't start until at least 2007, if not more probably in 2008.

I did less expensive on-line gaming this morning. I am still sitting at a social simulations researcher's research centre in the game. This morning I spent about half an hour studying the scripting language for this on-line simulation game. I practiced an example, "Hello Avatar" script, but it did not work when applied to an in-world object. I am still a little awkward with the tools for creating objects, but can walk and chat alright in world. I can also teleport. I have trouble also with views, but am working on this, as I explore more of the drop down menus. I do plan this morning to attend a lecture or other on-line in world event. I should just search for some events now after doing this post.

So I am up all night and have been steadily marking statistics assignments. I set small target completion times and have almost stuck to these times. This setting of mini deadlines keeps me going. I have marked two Q's now out of 9 and started a third Q.

I did some more reading of Kling, Rosenbaum, and Sawyer's Understanding and Communicating Social Informatics this morning.

I was trying to find my place in this book on social informatics. I did not feel comfortable reading the chapter for teachers but have read the beginning of that chapter. I instead tried reading the beginning of the next chapter about communicating social informatics research and this was going fine but it got me really thinking about getting some web mastering work done which I have now almost done.

I also read some more of the book on simulations, in fact, covering a strict mathematical definition of a random number such that the number is between 0 and 1 and all numbers between 0 and 1 are equally likely to occur as the random number. The authors choose the symbol r bar, which cannot be displayed in html on this web page but can be done in latex math mode with the code \bar{r}.

I spent some time and money playing the on-line social game Second Life. I was investigating a social networking researchers space or virtual land inside the game Second Life. I was using the map a lot tonight and then started to explore land for sale. I looked for a place near the social researcher's land and of course for the cheapest place. I made a mistake though after I bought the game money to buy a place, because in the end, that place was not for sale. I then spent some time searching for land for sale with the on-line search tool. I can now buy 512 sq ft of land and it will not cost a monthly maintenance fee. I would like to have a city lot or suburban lot. But the result is I now have a premium membership until October, and am now some 60 real dollars poorer and can afford some virtual land perhaps. I also now know more of the tools and environment of this on-line game/social world. I also downloaded one of the researcher's papers on social networking. So I learned more about this game well but need to read more of that paper to learn about social networks. The paper is on the topic of data collection for social networking research.

I went back to marking work now and have got it started.

Continuing to prepare for graduate school.

I am reading a book called Writing the Doctoral Dissertation: A Systemic Approach by Gordon B. Davis and Clyde A. Parker. They argue for structuring the research to help with writing a dissertation on time. They have an argument about not taking a job until the final draft is done or even later for instance. I will probably stop being a teaching assistant for the next few terms until I get my feet at the new school and new level of study.

I have almost completed marking about 100 undergraduate statistics tests written by engineering students.

I am nearing the end and have been working for four days now trying to get this marking done. I have worked about 3 to 6 hours a day meaning about 12-18 hours so the last two hours is no big deal. After this grading this test I have only one more assignment to grade for this course for the summer term. This course is an introductory statistics and probability course for undergraduate engineering students at Carleton University. It is my third year being a teaching assistant in this course. It is a more challenging course to teach but I am now fairly comfortable with it.

Preparatory study for grad school.

I am reading this book to prepare for grad school.

Kleijnen, Jack P. C. & van Groenendaal, Willem. Simulation: A Statistical Perspective (Toronto: John Wiley & Sons, 1992).

I just completed reading the first chapter. The authors are business management teachers.

I will continue to post my progress with reading this book.

I worked for another 3 hours and am nearing the end of this marking

I worked for another three hours and am nearing the end of marking this test. At the moment I am too tired to continue to mark. I did manage to start a book on simulations and am just now installing a compiler, X code, for the Mac on my Macbook. But I realize I already have a G++ 4.0 compiler installed and can do the practice code from the C++ how to book using G++ I think. I will do some practice code from that book and try some simulations programming from the other book. But right now I am logging off and sleeping.

Marking is coming along fine.

I am doing my marking quite regularly now and should be done marking this statistics test by Monday.

I am just practicing some French with my partner.

She is asking me for the meaning of pomme terre which is apple of the earth. And then Fruit de la mer which is seafood. Then finally jesus le sieginer.

I got some marking done on time this week.

I did get some 25 assignments marked this week and back to the lecturer on time. But I am dragging my heals on marking the test.

I did not succeed in installing the data mining course lectures pdf's on the Palm.

There is something wrong with the Adobe Reader for the Palm and I was not after quite a few attempts able to install the pdf's from my desktop school folders to the Palm.

I have been starting a book on Neural Networks in C++

I borrowed a book on programming neural networks written in 1993. The book is

Masters Timothy Practical Neural Network Recipes in C++ (Toronto: Academic Press, 1993).

I read the first chapter earlier this morning.

Otherwise, I am marking a statistics test written by engineering students.

I updated my school web info page today.

I updated and made current my school hosted web page about myself in a school context. It is at this address:
http://chat.carleton.ca/~ptimusk/

I printed and read the web page describing the systems science department and program.

I printed the web page from the university of Ottawa that describes the systems science program. I have read this page a few times now. I am particularly interested in the reseach of the professors that extend the study into social impact of computers and other technology.

Loading Portable Document Format school files on my Palm.

I am installing all the lectures from the data mining course I took taught by Dr. Shirley Mills in winter 2005. I am also installing a collection of thesis that were found searchng to the term "Victims" at Carleton's thesis collection. I will read these on the move like when I am on the bus.

I have a copy of the school year's schedule for systems science now.

The administrator sent me a copy of the course schedule for the up coming school year at the university of Ottawa. I am thinking of taking two courses per term in this program. But I am also thinking of taking one course at Carleton in media and technology to start the diploma in sonic design. Speaking of which I bought a few computer accessories just this weekend on-line.

I did some marking this morning

I worked on some marking this morning. I marked a question about what type of probability theory various problems needed for solution. Theories the students could choose included Classical, Subjective, and Relative Frequency. I also marked an eight sided dice problem involving conditional probabilities. This marking is due this Wednesday along with the 100 tests.

I studied the role of Information Systems Security Officer

I read a few chapters of a book describing the role of information systems security officer.

I read three or four entries at wikipedia about systems science

I got a little worried about studying for the fall so spent some study time reading at wikipedia.org the background of systems science and systems theory, another word for this science. I found the International Society for the Systems Sciences organization for professionals in systems science and considered joining this coming week. This is their home page http://www.isss.org. I read about famous systems scientists and their writings at both web sites.

I have been marking tests the past few mornings.

I completed marking about 100 tests for one question concerning a histogram and one question concerning a stem and leaf plot. I still have to mark some calculations for this set of data and also a box plot.

I am not going to be studying in an MA program in legal studies.

I got a letter from the law department saying I was not admitted to a legal studies MA at Carleton. I am now back to just being happy to be able to study in graduate school anywhere in my city. But wait there is more. I am now possibily going to join the camp that says the U of O is a better school as evidenced by their admitting little ol' me with my strengths to grad school where Carleton would not. I feel the U of O may have treated me with more fairness and assessed my record in a more balanced fashion whereas at Carleton I believe it may have only been my grades that mattered. Perhaps I should have left Carleton 24 years ago when I first started to have trouble there with my marks affecting the decisions and not my abilities and professional experience.

In another way of looking at this, I have always been a keen computer student and user and programmer. I am only now in my middle life finally entering a program of study of the computer. Perhaps this is in fact a further refinement of my looking within myself to see what I truly enjoy and respect.