A favorite diversion of mine (and of many around the Maplesoft office) is xkcd. Its author, Randall Munroe, bills it as “a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.” Since 2005, he’s been entertaining many self-proclaimed geeks with his unique and slightly skewed jokes on technology, computer science, mathematics, and relationships.

I really like the post in which a substitute teacher – hm, Mr. Munroe......

Unless you’ve spent the past five years on an isolated island in the middle of the Pacific, you’ll have heard of Facebook and Twitter and LinkedIn and MySpace and Flickr. Social media sites: whether you love them, hate them, or just don’t get them, they’re going to be here for a while. If you’re like many of us, you may have a few accounts on these sites, whether you’re a power user or occasional dabbler. Social media allow us to re-connect with old friends and colleagues, share our thoughts – and photos, advertise, network... and generally waste time. :)

It’s been nearly ten years since I first walked onto the University of Waterloo campus as a freshly minted undergraduate, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and eager to learn all about electrical engineering. I guess it’s hard to believe the speed with which time passes. It’s actually a bit astonishing how much I can still remember about orientation, or “frosh” week, like 4 a.m. fire drills, a very messy obstacle course, sitting with 800 other young engineering students in a lecture hall, and above all, meeting new friends.

This week I decided to do some research and find out the details of how to make model animations with MapleSim, by adding in CAD drawing files of the component parts. To see what I mean, take a look at this quick animated movie that shows a robot arm with five degrees of freedom:

A few weeks ago I made a short trip down to Lincroft, New Jersey, to deliver a Maple training course to a group of math professors at Brookdale Community College. I’d been to Manhattan before, but never New Jersey, and didn’t really know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to fly in over a lush and verdant landscape, with temperatures hovering in the mid-70s. My host, Barbara, had graciously invited me to her home for dinner, and we had a great conversation about teaching math, the Verrazano Bridge, dealing with deer in the backyard (Barbara was originally a Brooklyn girl, used to the concrete jungle!), and of course, what to expect the next day at the college.