Test

Who's the funny one?: Jake
The smart one?: MRob, Caitlin, Lina, Jake, Jeannie, myself...pretty much all of us. Oh, and Shadi
The depressed one?: Don't know
The punk?: Stewart
The goth?: Caitlin (not Turski, my Kendo friend one)
The prep?: Me, apparently.
The jock?: Fortunately, n/a
The outcast?: none
The stupid one?: Jon. Well, he's not stupid, but I'm typically surrounded by a bunch of smart kids.
The one who you think will kill someone one day?: Jake
The annoying one?: He's not even a friend. John Doe
The hyper one?: Carrie or Jeannie
The oblivious one?: Carrie
The romantic?: I don't...think I know any.
The pervert?: Stewart
The content one?: Stewart
The liar?: I don't think this applies. Hopefully
The cheapskate?: Everybody. We're all frickin poor.
The ominous one?: ....this is an odd one...um...me probably.
The disrespectful one?: Definitely Jake
The abusive one?: none
The hot one?: Like Jake, I'll avoid listing people who would read this. So, Emily Hardgrave or Sage Woodruff.
The ugly one?: Nick Ray (j/k), actually, its probably Faheem (no offense to you Faheem).
The one that hates you?: hmm....
The one that hates you, but hangs out with you anyway?: hmm....
The back-up one?: what the crap is a backup friend anyway?
The fighter?: Jeremy (probably)
The lover?: pff, probably everybody in our clique. Either that, or nobody. Probably the latter.
The hippie?: n/a
The druggie?: Michael Tabler(sp?) Not really a close friend
The alcoholic?: None seriously.
The one that's recovering?: n/a
The one that's in jail?: n/a
The one that is most likely to be in jail?: Jake, for being vulgar to his future patients.
The one that's going to be executed?: Jake
The most likely to be murdered?: Probably me, when I send children to suicide as their psychiatrist.
The most likely to be committed to a mental hospital?: not sure
The most likely to stay there forever?: n/a

The normal one?: ...I didn't know I had normal friends. Perhaps Matt Wickman. Well, no...I dunno.
The conformist?: Steven D.
The nonconformist?: None
The masochistic one?: Stewart
The sadistic one?: Not sure
The weird one?: Carrie
The musical one?: sadly, probably me
The artistic one?: Caitlin
The perfect one?: Shadi
The literary genius?: die Caitlin
The fugitive?: n/a
The juvenille delinquint?: Trent. I'm not at all friends with him though, just a disclaimer.
The Jewish one?: Matt Loffman at Bearden
The Christian one?: Most all of my friends
The Buddhist one?: None
The Muslim one?: None
The Hindu one?: None
The Catholic one?: Caitlin, Jake, amd Jerry
The Wiccan one?: Not sure
The atheist?: The other asians

The agnostic?: don't know
The cutter?: I don't get it
The anorexic one?:none
The bulimic one?: none
The skinny one?: Jon
The thin one?: Probably me or steven. All of the girls in our group are phat.
The fat one?: See above
The obese one?: Check above
The Satanic one?: none

New Blog

Gonna try a wordpress blog for awhile.

Visit it here.

Tell me what you think. Not sure if I like it as much.

Btw, I got two B's this term. I suck.

Day 2 of Finals

I'm @ school, not taking a final, and staring at a computer screen for 1.5 hours.

Yay for Senior Project and its totally unproductive nature.
Speaking of productivity, its raining. Not snowing (or snew, as it should be, but nobody asks me); snow is so much more productive then rain.

On another random note, FFXII's demo happen to fall into my hands. Its quite stellar.

Peace out, children of the corn.

Edit:
Just had a really long conversation with Jacob about the evolution theory vs. creationism and the ignorance of alot of creationism believers. Let me just say....before you argue for creationism, try having some actual knowledge about evolution beforehand. Also, as Jake said, creationism is almost no better than spontaneous generation. People who adamantly refuse to even consider evolution and blatantly say that its "a bunch of crap"...well, then I have no pity for the sheer amount of ignorance. Only narrow-minded ultra-conservative christians absolutely refuse to even consider evolution's merit and its possibility. Or, use the logic that "since evolution can't be proven, clearly it's wrong; AKA, creationism is obviously right since it can't be proven wrong.

Oh yea...to you creationism kids. I don't believe in calculus ::haughty head shaking::
/rant off.

Crushed Faith

I've lost faith in humanity. You ask why?

View the EMO:

http://www.xanga.com/Em0_k1Dd

HOLY crap, this kid is crazed. Here's an excerpt from one of his posts.

Why must we all be trampled upon. Why are we here? God has a plan for all of us, but what is his plan for us? We are the ones that show there is always a friend and sumone who cares, but why do we never get the same back? We just sit here everyday hoping to find the other, but it seems hopeless for us. I wonderwhat would happen if we all went into the eternal sleep. A place where dreams are truth. Where we can relax in peace and be relived of worries. This world would be chaos without us. Yet we are treated like dogs. We are walked on and we let it. You people drive us to the breaking point of insanity and you dont even care. Then you wonder why we are the way we are,WE ARE EMOS!!!! SO LEAVE US ALONE! Im SICK AND TIRED OF IT!!!!! Im depressed today.So there are sum words you preps can read and maybe start to leave us alone.


This kid, as Jake put, epitomizes self-delusion. The world would be chaos without him? All of posts begin mostly with "I'm depressed, yay for me!" and "Did you know, me and Johnathan got in a fight!" and "I commented because I wanted her to know she hurt me." Seriously, he has some issues. He seems to have divided all teenagers into two primary subcultures: the preps and the emos. Oh, and apparently, we're at war. ::puts on helmet:: And I'm ready and prepped for war, sergeant!

Once you start reading his post, you'll see why its so hilarious.

Final Friday

Its the last friday of the term. You'd think it would be a pretty fantastic day.

Calculus - omgwtf I fail. I'm going to get a B. That chapter 6 mathematical modeling test just destroyed me completely. Can you say 4/10 on multiple choice?

Latin - omgwtf Latin final is two unseen Vergil passages! I lose @ life.

Senior Project - with over a term of time to work, I've managed to accomplish making two web pages. Approximately 1/50th of what I need to get done by February.

English - Ms. Lynch: Everyone, form a circle.
Kevin: ::starts to sigh::
Ms. Lynch: Mr. Duong! You cynic, don't even start!
Kevin: Its my right to sigh.
Ms. Lynch: Your entire life is a sigh.


I went to go see Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It was actually really, really good. Except, there were a few...really bad scenes. Too many melodramatic scenes, a few anti-climactic ones. However, overall, if you liked the book, you'll like the movie. It has an exceptionally well-created atmosphere with the music and the imagery. I was really surprised : its alot better of an intro and sophisticated then Harry Potter at least.

A Question of Grave Importance

Which do you like better? These are some tsubas that I'm looking at for my sword. Sort of like a Christmas gift to myself. The first one is Spring Plum, and the second one is Winter Bamboo.

Tragedy at Its Best

First, woefully forgotten images from the past.

Ben rapping with 6 year olds at church. We're all practicing for a Christmas Pageant. He's playing the role of a camel along with the Cupps. I'm playing the role of a king/wiseman who has no lines. Yay for slackerness.

Jellygrass juice. Uhm....yea...

Senior Week Quailman

And now for...

The Tragic Tale of Kevin D Wong and his fall from academic grace via the treachery of the archdevil Beckett. (title has nothing to do with actual story)

Keitaro5880: ever since I ascended to the panini plane of existence, they (the panini spirits) speak to me with cowering whispers and blazing shouts simultaneously, creating a dietic duality in their nature
Keitaro5880: it represents both their humble natures and their powerful, influential characteristics
Splurg777: that's it. and now that you're the spirits' official acolyte on saturdays and sundays, their envy possess them to do....monstrous deeds....::covers face with hands and weeps::
Keitaro5880: part 1: chp 1
Keitaro5880: Young acolyte Kevin attends to his secular duties in the morning as dawn breaks.
Splurg777: and sees a moocow
Splurg777: flash forward to part five: kevin forges in the smithy of his soul a panini hybrid that has coherence, unity, and radiance
Keitaro5880: He felt as if he had gained wings! The truth, the reality, all of the light came streaming from the heavens and he was enlightened.
Splurg777: raping the pristine panini with his uncouth mouth, he munched on the perfectly crisped strips of bacon
Keitaro5880: while the dijon mustard bled from every orifice of the perfectly toasted sourdough bread
Splurg777: and the chicken died for the sins of all, even Atlanta Bread Company customers
Splurg777: and the toasted bun said, "Marfa Petrovna is happy to visit me."
Splurg777: and the IC Cappuccino Chip felt Gertrude up, much to Hamlet's dismay
Keitaro5880: I was so easily irritable that I took the French Onion Soup right there on the kitchen table
Splurg777: and she liked it
Keitaro5880: oh how the carnal sins of lust doth fill me with life
Keitaro5880: and basic polymers, vitamins, enzymes, and proteins...
Splurg777: and how the stench of onions now tempers the sweet aroma of my man-juice
Splurg777: and how there's a veritable orgy of wannabe coolkids with laptops waiting to gangbang the pastry display
Keitaro5880: how the lushious texture of the chicken breast did soothe my guilty sin-ridden mind

Isn't it just chop-full of literary references? Such stunning use of stylistic elements really brings this conversation to life. Especially for English 12 AP students.

Pop me a Potion

Today Square Enix unveiled their first major Final Fantasy food tie in simply named "Potion." The drink supposedly makes you relaxed like herb tea and tastes mystical. It contains nutritional supplements so that the company can claim that the drinker might recover real life hit points.

It's set to go on sale in March 2006 to coincide with the release of Final Fantasy XII.

So uh..yea. Potions. I'm no white mage, so I better stock up.

Ginormous english essay due Monday. How invigorating to know that my weekend will not be spend idly.
My Dojo starts Kendo sparring with shinai and bogu january. In march, I'll be the correct rank to start. Wooo~

Long Post

So...Things to do this ridiculously busy week.

1) First and foremost, English Indie Novel essay on Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
2) College Apps : Still have Common App to finish, Harvard supplement, Vandy supplement, MIT second essay.
3) TSA: Uh, how about...not. Stupid prototype crap. Like I care.
4) Crime and Punishment: 90 pages every two nights. Um...once again....wtf.
5) Overall Calculus and English general workload. And Latin. And sadly...yes...Senior Project.

Now for my very first blog survey. Ugh, what a stupid trend.

THREE NAMES YOU GO BY:

1. Kevin
2. Kevy (Turski)
3. Mr. Duong (Cool kid)
   

THREE SCREENAMES YOU'VE HAD:

1. Kenshin5879
2. Kenshin5880
3. Keitaro5880 (I epitomize orginality, I know.)
   

THREE THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:

1. My wicked Calculus skillz.
2. I can piss anybody I'd like off in about 0.012 seconds.
   
3. That I, though not for long, had the glory of being in top 10 of our class.
   

THREE THINGS YOU DON'T LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:

1. That sometimes, I fail at pissing somebody off in .012 seconds. Only rarely though.
2. My fuzzy hair from the metro black girl at the salon.
   
3. That I will no longer be in top 10 after this term in our class.
   

THREE PARTS OF YOUR HERITAGE:

1. Viet-kong
2. Viet Nam
3. ....Vietmanese (yes, its mispelled on purpose.)
   

THREE THINGS THAT SCARE YOU:

1. Spiders
2. Stewart's creepy fixation on my anatomy.
   
3. Really conservative Christians and Christian universities (Jake knows what I'm talking about.)
   

THREE OF YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS:

1. Cell Phone
2. Rice
3. Internet

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE BANDS OR MUSICAL ARTISTS:

1. Red Hot Chilli Peppers
2. Jack Johnson (current)
3. Chrono Cross OST
   

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS:

1. The Other Side - Red Hot Chilli Peppers
2. Californication - Red Hot Chilli Peppers
   
3. Cosmo Canyon - FFVII Piano Collections
   

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO TRY IN THE NEXT TWELVE MONTHS:

1. Get into MIT
2. Go to Japan.
   
3. Smother Mr. Beckett with a pillow and watch him writhe under my hand while he dies painfully. (If only...)
   

THREE THINGS YOU WANT IN A RELATIONSHIP:

1. Humor (which you have none)
2. Wit (which I have too much of)
3. Dependability (which you can't ever be)
   

TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE:

1. Caitlin's sister, Cara (is that how you spell it?) is hot.
   
2. Burt's Beeswax is absolutely climax-inducing.
   
3. You have no friends. Even I hate you. (Uh huh, that's right. Which is the lie? Go ahead, feeble minded Beckett fanboys, choose.)
   

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS ABOUT THE OPPOSITE SEX THAT APPEAL TO YOU:

1. Wit
2. How she holds herself (Like what Jake said, the dress style, air, and personality she effuses.)
   
3. Overall figure (just slightly ambiguous, but most guys know what this refers to anyway.)
   

THREE THINGS YOU JUST CAN'T DO:

1. Cut a telephone pole with a yoko-giri by using my sword. (Clearly, I can do it with any other strike)
   
2. Beat Caitlin on any essays at all (Stupid perfect voice-y writer)
3. Grasp Calculus and/or humiliate the Beckett
   

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES:

1. Website Design
2. Kendo
3. Reading everyone's stupid and crappy xangas that are outright ugly, repugnant, and lacking in proper composition and/or positive and negative aspects.
   

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO REALLY BADLY RIGHT NOW:

1. Make money
   
2. Find a new flippin music group to listen to. ::is old of recycling music::
   
3. Finish all of my college apps that are weighing down on me.
   

THREE CAREERS YOU'RE CONSIDERING:

1. Comp. Sci. Engineering Major
   
2. Psychology ( not pyschiatrist, mind you. Although I could recommend some stellar wrist-cutting techniques that are clean, quick, and effective.)
   
3. Biomedical engineering and create little bacteria-machines that can lots of neat stuff.
   

THREE PLACES YOU WANT TO GO ON VACATION:

1. Japan (specifically Tokyo)
2. London
3. Canada (those french pretentious ba******)
   

THREE KIDS' NAMES:

1. Kid
   
2. #72-104
3. Heart

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE:

1. Fix a few relationships I have. Except maybe a few. Well, meh.
   
2. Learn to flash step.
3. Create my own Panini spirit. Maybe something like the "Turkey Dijon Bacon Melt Panini" or something.
   

THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A BOY:

1. I lack the female-specific organs.
   
2. I really couldn't care less if a single candy bar had over 2000 calories, enough to immediately cause cardiac arrest and other aeortic failures.
   
3. I think poking and saying *mao* is incredibly scary, traumatizing even.
   

THREE WAYS I AM STEREOTYPICALLY A GIRL:

1. *flicks hand airily* That earthy green hue looks so good on you.
   
2. I have an intrinsic fear of seeing squirrels/rabbits/baby seals getting crushed under heavy, blunt objects.
   
3. I like leeching money off of the opposite gender.
   

THREE CRUSHES (PAST AND PRESENT):

1. Me
   
2. Myself
3. I (slightly narcissistic, aren't I? Actually, its really not anyone's concern, except for a few who already know.)
   

THREE PEOPLE WHO HAVE TO TAKE THIS SURVEY NOW:

1. Nick Ray, if he ever gets around to updating his xanga.
   
2. JACK. Since apparently, getting tagged makes him make his annual xanga post.
3. Cedric Diggory ::fans himself rapidly and urgently in a feminine manner:: (or, a Melanie-esque ooooh)
   

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is meh. It was good food and all, but the company could have been better. Oh well, I appreciated the break from school.
Not that it changes the fact that I need to read all of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf and write its 8 page paper by Friday.

Ugh.

__________

Interesting article I found on Google News. I sorta like the idea that they are presenting.

Bacteria can take pictures of themselves

By PAUL ELIAS
AP BIOTECHNOLOGY WRITER

SAN FRANCISCO -- The notorious E. coli bug made its film debut Wednesday. That's when researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and the University of Texas announced in the journal Nature that they had created photographs of themselves by programming the bacteria - best known for outbreaks of food poisoning - to make pictures in much the same way Kodak film produces images.

It's the latest advance in "synthetic biology," a disputed research movement launched largely by engineers and chemists bent on genetically manipulating microscopic bugs into acting like tiny machines, creating new, powerful and inexpensive ways to make drugs, plastics and even alternatives to fossil fuel.

The field seeks to go beyond traditional genetic engineering feats where a single gene is spliced into bacteria and other cells to manufacture drugs. Synthetic biologists are trying to create complex systems that function as logically and reliably as computers.

Mainstream biologists, however, scoff that biology - life itself - is too unpredictable and prone to genetic mutation to understand, let alone tame and turn into miniature factories.

Bioethicists, meanwhile, fret that synthetic biologists are attempting to create new living creatures and are inventing technology that can readily be used by terrorists.

Still, a growing number of engineers are jumping into the nascent field, whose chief goals include breaking down microbes and other living things into smaller components and reassembling those parts into useful machines.

"There is kind of a hacker culture behind all of this," said Chris Voigt, a University of California, San Francisco researcher who, at 29, was the senior author on the bacteria-as-film paper in Nature.

Voigt and colleagues took from algae light-sensitive genes that emit black compounds and spliced them into a batch of E. coli bacteria. The organisms were then spread on a petri dish that resembles a cookie sheet and placed in an incubator. A high-powered projector cast photographic images of the researchers through a hole on top of the incubator, exposing some of the bacteria to light.

The result: Ghostly images like traditional black-and-white photographs of the researchers responsible for the invention, at a resolution Voigt said was about 100 megapixels, or 10 times sharper than high-end printers.

The work, though, isn't intended for commercial markets.

"They aren't going to put Kodak out of business any time soon," said Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher Drew Endy, a leading synthetic biologist.

Instead, the creation will be used as a sensor to start and stop more complex genetic engineering experiments. The idea is to create a genetically engineered cell that lays dormant until a laser is shined on it, prompting it into action.

Such an accomplishment would add to the growing success of a field that is making strides around the world, in such projects as:

-Scientists in Israel made the world's smallest computer by engineering DNA to carry out mathematical functions.

-J. Craig Venter, the entrepreneurial scientist who mapped the human genome and launched the Rockville, Md.-based research institute named after himself, is attempting to create novel organisms that can produce alternative fuels.

-With a $42.6 million grant that originated at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Berkeley researchers are engineering the E. coli bug with genes from the wormwood plant and yeast to create a new malaria drug.

Even as they wrestle with scientific hurdles like controlling genetic mutations, thorny ethical issues are cropping up.

It's cheap and easy to buy individual genes online. They cost about $1 each, down from the $18 apiece charged just a few years ago. Researchers last year created a synthetic polio virus by simply stitching together these mail-order genes.

National security experts and even synthetic biologists themselves are concerned that rogue scientists could create new biological weapons - like deadly viruses that lack natural foes. They also worry about innocent mistakes: organisms that could potentially create havoc if allowed to reproduce outside the lab.

Researchers are casting about for ways to self-police the field before it really takes off. Leaders in the field have organized a second national conference to grapple with these issues this coming May and the Arthur P. Sloan Foundation in June handed out a $570,000 grant to study the social implications of the new field.

"This is powerful work and we live in an age that many tools and technologies can be turned into weaponry," said Laurie Zoloth, a bioethicist at Northwestern University. "You always have the problem of dual-use in every new technology. Steel can be used to make sewing needles or spears."

Dreary day. ::sighs::




I saw Harry Potter. Last weekend.
Wow.




So I have my MIT interview Tuesday @ Borders, 5pm. Not quite sure if I should be apprehensive or not. I suppose I'll be composing a portfolio of work to bring to the interview consisting primarily of :
Past websites created.
This blog.
Some photos of hobbies that aren't posted on Flickr's album.

I don't want it to be too large, but enough to supplement our discussion. I'll probably bring my laptop to help present. I'm not really sure what to expect though.

______________________________________________________________
In Other News:

US rights body and state of Texas file against Sony BMG 10:37AM

The leading US digital rights campaigner has filed a class action lawsuit against Sony BMG, demanding that the company repair the damage done by the DRM software it included on over 24 million music CDs. The record label also faces litigation from the US state of Texas.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation said that although Sony BMG has gone some way to remedy the security risks posed by First4Internet's XCP software and begun to recall and replace discs, its measures 'still fall short'.

Moreover, it added, 'Sony BMG has failed entirely to respond to concerns about MediaMax, which affects more than 20 million CDs - ten times the number of CDs as the XCP software.'

EFF lawyers said that music buyers should not have to install potentially dangerous and intrusive software simply to play their CDs. It also criticised Sony for not widely publicising the recall programme.

'Regular CDs have a proven track record - no one has been exposed to viruses or spyware by playing a regular audio CD on a computer. Why should legitimate customers be guinea pigs for Sony BMG's experiments?'

Staff Attorney Kurt Opsahl agreed: 'Consumers have a right to listen to the music they have purchased in private, without record companies spying on their listening habits with surreptitiously-installed programs. Between the privacy invasions and computer security issues inherent in these technologies, companies should consider whether the damage done to consumer trust and their own public image is worth its scant protection.'

The EFF is also demanding that Sony withdraws its controversial End User License [sic] Agreement, reproduced in full by p2pnet. Under the conditions imposed by the licence, digital copies of a CD must be destroyed if the CD is lost is stolen or if the owner is declared bankrupt.

The EFF has sent an open letter to Sony, which in turn has yet to comment. First4Internet and SunnComm have also kept their own counsel.

--------------------------
Not sure who has kept up with this, but I find this somewhat annoying. I'd have to say quite unexpected too. Sony has always had a pretty reliable spot software-wise in my book. This slew of law suits probably will weaken their public image substantially, especially with alot of their more dependent customers who actually buy their CDs frequently.

Panera Bread

My previous heavenly study abode may now become my worse enemy. Its the tragic tale of a young adolescent high schooler with a big dream to go to Japan. As a result, he must face the obstacle of corrupting his promised place. Filled with fantastical panini spirits and a battle between ex-amt garders and emo kids, the lone hero must face with resolution the tasks before him.

Sounds like an anime.

Too bad its not.

Welcome to Panera, my name is Kevin, how may I help you?

Pfffshaw

I totally poured bbqleet sauce on the calculus test today. I finished early. ::is caught in the ecstacy of learning:: I definitely got a B or an A on that test.
Mmmm, smell that? Its the BBQLEET sauce smoldering on the calculus test on the grill. That's right, f(u) Beckett.