Basic Computing Class #11 [Tuesday, Period 3, 3/25]

[mike-cannon.livejournal.com]

Class was in the computer lab again, but today Mike was furiously typing at one of the computers. Without saying a word, he waved at the students to indicate that they should take their seats at their workstations. After a few moments, they would see an instant message pop up on their screens.

"70d4y we'Re 90in' 70 Le4rN H0w 70 sPEeK iN leE7 SPEEk."

Mike waited a moment to watch the students react before he started tapping at his keyboard.

"'Leet Speak' is used by some advanced computer users. There's several different theories as to how it originated. Some parts come from common misspellings, other pieces come from attempts to beat text-based filters. Leet speak also gives users a sense of community. It lets them differentiate themselves from n00bs, or newbies. And in turn, those n00bs feel like they're part of this community when they finally learn to understand and use all those weird words. Phr13ND2, 70d4Y \/\/3'r3 g01N' 70 L34Rn H0\/\/ n07 70 74LK L1k3 N00b2. Or, friends, today we're going to learn how not to talk like n00bs."

Mike sent the students a link to a website on l33t speak made easy and waited for the students to talk to him.

Library [3.25]

[death-of-hope.livejournal.com]

Since it was a Tuesday, Anemone and Gulliver were there, throwing open the doors to the library.

Sneaky Spycraft: Period 4, Week 10

[tricksy-spy.livejournal.com]

Class today was in a normal classroom, but the desks were all pushed together to allow for a mound of different gadgets to be piled on the resulting table.

Aly  grinned at the students, gesturing them to file around the table.  "Okay, guys, today we're talking about gadgets.  Spy gadgets obviously.  These are the ones that I've collected over the past few years, and they're the ones you get to work with today."

"The catch though is that I'm not going to tell you what you're working with," she said.  "All the lethal capabilities of these have been disabled so don't worry about putting a poison dart through your neighbour's hand."

"Go ahead and work together if you like.  Choose one or a few of the gadgets at hand and figure out what they are and how they'd be useful for.  Then I want you to take one or two home over the week, and put it to use."  Aly grinned though she was evidently serious.  "No spying on girls in the shower though."

"Next week I want you to report back to me with how you used it, if it were useful, and what changes you'd make to the style or functionality to make it more useful to a spy."  

[OOC: Please wait for the OCD is up]

How to Survive Your Own Cooking, Tuesday [Mar 25]

[mistressofblack.livejournal.com]

The classroom was already strongly scented as the students entered, the fragrant aroma of Indian spices filling the air. "Come in, come in," Lulu said, smiling widely, as she stirred a pot at the front of the room. "We're making curry today, and I thought I'd get a bit of a head start."

She gestured to the stations, where there were already an array of ingredients set out. "Start with heating about a tablespoon of olive oil in a pot," she said, "and then saute a couple of cloves of garlic and about half a cup of chopped onion until the onion is translucent. Then add between one and three tablespoons of hot curry paste. When the paste has coated the onions and garlic, and is sizzling, add about half a pound of the meat of your choice." She gestured to the bowls at the front of the room, which held already diced chicken, beef, and lamb. "When the meat has sealed -- it doesn't take long, only a few minutes -- add two tins of diced tomatoes, three diced potatoes, two or three sliced mushrooms, and one each green and red peppers, diced. Stir it up, cover, and then let it simmer until the meat is the desired tenderness. You might want to stir it occasionally, too." She gestured to her pot. "If it boils down a bit too much, you can simply add a bit of water to bring it up -- I'd recommend thinning it a little bit more than you'd actually like, and then boiling down a bit more to get it where you want it.

"Serve it on rice -- I use Basmati," she continued. "Two parts water to one part rice, and just a dab of butter. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered for twelve minutes and it should be just about perfectly done. On the side, you might want pappadums -- crispy, fried flat-breads -- or naan bread, which is a little doughier and cooked, traditionally, in a Tandoor oven. Today, I'll have some of each prepared for you to have with your curry."

She gestured again to the stations. "Pair up, with anyone you like, even if you've worked with them before, then start cooking! I'm available if you have any questions.

[Mmm, curry. I am definitely making curry for supper tonight. ... Maybe I should pick up some lamb. I haven't had lamb in ages. Please to be waiting for OCD is up!]

Ye Shall Be As Gods? – Class 11, Period 3

[last-mizrahi.livejournal.com]

“Alternate realities,” she said, once her class had assembled for the period. “Simply by virtue of being here, at this school, every single one of you has at least some small experience with the concept and what, exactly, an alternate reality entails.”

Juli leaned back, hands crossed over her stomach. “In some cases it’s as ‘simple’ as winding up in a world profoundly changed by the alteration of a single event--whether large or small. A war won in one world was lost in another version of the same world, for instance. Or, on a smaller scale, a person gets into an accident and winds up falling in love with someone they’d never have met if not for that. In another version the accident never happens, and they meet someone else.” She smiled faintly. “I have heard even of people who have awoken as a different version of themselves. Older perhaps, or a different past, or a different gender even.” Listening to old radio broadcasts did pay off sometimes.

“Following that concept, today all of you will be considering two scenarios wherein you are but are not yourselves, and do your best--with the information provided—to hypothesize just how extreme any differences from your present self might be. This is an exercise in creativity; feel free to run with it as you will--whether alone or in a group.”

[Wait for the OCD is up! Have at it!]