Marvell Semiconductor has announced the SheevaPlug, a low power computer the size of a typical power adapter that includes a 1.2 MHz ARM processor, 512 MB RAM, 512 MB flash, gigabit Ethernet, and USB 2.0. It runs ARM ports of several Linux distributions. The development kit is $100, with volume pricing about half that. A lot of interesting, low cost computing solutions could be based upon this.

There's long been talk about the browser becoming the default user interface for most applications. It looks like Firefox 3.1 will bring this closer to reality. Combine browser side worker threads in the browser with a distributed database like CouchDB and you can create some interesting Web 3.0 applications.

I decided to start my throwing season early (and get a break from winter) by competing in the Arizona Highland Games in Phoenix on February 21st and 22nd. The weather was beautiful so I drove most of the way down there and back with the top down.

My 50+ Men's Masters class competed on Saturday along with the Men's Pro/Am, Men's Light Weight (under 190 pound) and Men's 40 to 49 Masters classes. I didn't see much of the other classes Saturday. RMSA's own Lowell Thompson won the 190s. I ended up 5th, but set several personal records despite not throwing much since September. My focus on rehab, strength, and conditioning with some footwork drills has payed off. Afterward, I had dinner with an old friend and colleague at Mi Patio a nice little Mexican restaurant.

On Sunday I watched the Men's A, B, and C, and the Women's Open and World Championship classes. I tried to watch everyone, but focused the latter. I was rewarded with some outstanding performances, including a world record in the Women's Heavy Hammer and near miss in the Women's Weight for Height.

Nicholas Romanov's Pose Method of Running makes the case that running technique has been neglected by most runners and coaches, who believe that high volume training is all that is needed to become a better runner. Some say that running ability is purely inherit and cannot be taught. Romanov asserts that running can be taught and that proper technique is critical to maximize performance and minimize injury.

Romanov begins by describing how he developed the Pose Method, taking inspiration from ballet, the martial arts, and comparative biomechanics. He then describes the method which is based on the concept of movement as a sequence of poses. The critical pose for running is balanced on the ball of the support foot with the other raised and the body poised to fall forward. Let gravity do most of the work and pull the support foot vertically with the hamstring as the other foot swings forward to land on the ball at a new point of support. It's simple and would be natural if we ran barefoot. However, many environments make foot protection attractive, so we wear shoes, and modern running shoes have evolved to perhaps do too good a job of protecting the feet, allowing heavy heel strikes. The feet are protected, but the force of the heal strike is transmitted to the knees, hips, and back, which Romanov contends leads to most running injuries.

The core of the book is a series of drills to teach the pose method and exercises to improve balance, strength, and flexibility. Dedicated runners may chafe at spending training time in this manner when they could be running, but this is probably time well spent. The book concludes with methods to correct various running flaws. These include some of the drills and exercises covered earlier with some additional variations.

Romanov's ideas make sense, and I think they are worth trying for both recreational and competitive runners. With my knees, I may not do a significant amount of running, but I've applied the method to walking and it definitely helps. If I minimize heal strikes and use the balls of the feet for most support while walking, I'm pain free. If I forget and allow heavy heal strikes, the pain reminds me to pay attention.

Simon Wittber posted this about a large semi-autonomous robot he's working on. Control software is written in Python and C, running on real time Linux.

I upgraded my notebook to Fedora 10 today. Booting is definitely faster.

Carbon nanotubes could be used to replace expensive platinum catalysts in fuel cells. They could reduce cost and weight and increase longevity.

Cyber Renaissance is a new startup dedicated to the creation of an open source Network Management System using Erlang. I've joined the forum to begin kicking around ideas with the founder.

Biotrike looks interesting. I suspect performance will be modest, but it's still very cool. I could be tempted.

Stephen Kellert presents a philosophers view of chaos theory with his In the Wake of Chaos. He follows an introduction to chaos theory and its history with an exploration the philosophical implications. The sensitive dependence on initial conditions of chaotic systems combined with the limits to measure precision from quantum mechanics places limits on the predictability of many physical processes.

Kellert then poses the question: Why did it take so long for chaos theory to become a field of serious scientific inquiry? The commonly presented explanation is that lack of the necessary mathematical and computational tools delayed such explanation, but Kellert doesn't think this sufficient reason. Poincare laid the mathematical foundations in the late 19th century and digital computers were available in the mid-twentieth century, but the dynamic non-linear systems of chaos theory weren't investigated until decades later. Kellert finds this surprising and proposes social factors that kept chaotic phenomena from being considered interesting. I think he's right, though I don't find it surprising. Even pure research tends to be driven by the potential utility of the results.