Daily Stuff--9/21/2012

Languages--Chinese:

I watched episode 63 of Travel in Chinese. This episode was about visiting Shanghai and what makes it such a popular tourist destination.

Articles:

There were several interesting articles in the Wall Street Journal today. One was about LTE wireless networks, which are apparently the fastest at this moment in time. The problem is that very few of these networks are actually complete even though several cell phone companies are using them. Since LTE is still relatively new and most people don't seem to find it necessary, companies think they can get away with having an incomplete network.

The other articles were about the debt crisis in Europe. Greece is doing everything it can to avoid leaving the euro even though it will be very difficult. Germany and other Euro zone countries are now debating about who will be responsible for making sure Greece doesn't go completely bankrupt. Furthermore, Germany and other northern European countries are determined to not give any more loans to Greece.

Italy, contrary to popular belief, has actually made improvements with it's manufacturing sector. That sector has held up well, but it only accounts for 1/6 of it's economy. It's services sector is where improvements need to be made but Italy is also taking more action than Greece seems to be. Despite protests, they've increased taxes, whereas Greece seems determined to avoid that at all costs.

Philosophy:

I read about Descartes' idea of consciousness. He argued that it is axiomatic because you can't deny your mind exists while using your mind to deny this statement. He also wrongly assumed you can be aware but not have something to be aware of. Our consciousness is based on our observations and awareness of the external world.

Internships:

I read about Dragon Drive! on nuance.com. This product allows users to dictate messages and emails while driving. This seems like an especially difficult accomplishment because of all the noise that occurs when one is driving. This would have to be canceled out somehow.

To-Do (9/21/2012):

• Do laundry
• Done
• Read paper (45 minutes)
• Pack clothes for school (3 hours)
• Done
• Go to the garage and find stuff I need (1/2 hour)
• Done
• Wash bedding
• Done
• Talk to dad (1 hour)
• Done
• Web app (1 hour) 
• Bug: thinks the web app is already being deployed when it's not
• I've looked at several websites about the bug and found several solutions
• None of them have  worked