Last month's column on random number generators is a case in point. After I published that column, I noticed an omission. One of the more interesting pages at the Hotbits site is buried where you probably won't find it. This page is titled "Apparent Diurnal Variation in Background Radiation" and you can find it at www.fourmilab.ch/documents/cosmic/. While the article itself is of interest, I'm suggesting it to you because of its links, too. There is a link to another John Walker article called "Potassium-40 and the Evolution of Higher Life" which is thought-provoking. There is also a link to Aware Electronics at www.aw-el.com, a fairly disorganized web site, which sells some affordable radiation detection devices and has some unusual stories from its customers. From the Aware site, there is a link to The SOURCE Incorporated at www.the-source-inc.com, where you can buy radiation sources, for standardizing your radiation detectors ... if you're into that sort of thing. By the way, if you plumbed the Hotbits site thoroughly, you found that their nuclear decay-based generator was isolated from anything that might be affected by its emissions. Computers are sensitive, you know. I also forgot to mention another site that I've known about for awhile that generates real random numbers. You can visit it at random.org. This site samples radio noise to generate random numbers; not as exotic as getting them from lava lamps, but safer than using radioactive sources. Included at this site is a list of what people are doing with the random numbers they get from random.org.
I've mentioned news websites in a few columns. I'm searching for better news sources on the Web. This effort might translate into a future article, but I'll share a few sites that have attracted my attention. One is called AlltheWeb News, at www.alltheweb.com. With a name like that, you might expect that this site covers more than news, and it does, but we're here for news. Click on the news tab and you can search for up-to-the-minute coverage on breaking events. I'm especially seeking sites that present alternate sources of information - not just the output of the major news organizations, and it seems that AlltheWeb News might fit the bill. I've only begun, but it looks promising.
Another news source that I'm reviewing is Google News at news.google.com. I'm a bit embarassed to be such a Google booster of late in my columns, but they just seem to be on the right track at the moment. I've seen the phrase "Google it" used without explanation lately, so it seems that others feel the way I do. Since I'm hawking Google, I'll also mention that they took over Deja News, mentioned in several previous columns, including Brain Candy #3. They now offer Usenet newsgroup searching, back into the mid-80's! The easiest way to search the Usenet is to go to www.google.com and click on the "Groups" tab. Type a topic you're interested in and look around. Be warned though - my original columns mentioned how vulgar the Usenet can be. It doesn't seem to have developed better manners in the last few years.
Just to end on a local, non-Google note, if you've had trouble this summer with Ohio weeds, you might want to visit the Ohio Perennial and Biennial Weed Guide at www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/scripts/weed.dll/index. This site is a service of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. There are many helpful pictures; I've been able to use the site to identify some front yard weeds and an unusual tree that was growing in the back yard. If you like what you see, move up to the main page and explore the other interesting agricultural pages this site offers.
CATBAR - Brain Candy #61 - Deja Brain Candy / Brian Rock / Oct 22 2002