The Thoughts and Ponderings of Ryuko

Thoughts on Libya

2011-10-23T03:27:00.000-07:00

As soon as I heard news that Ghaddafi was killed, I heard questions from co-workers, such as, "well, shouldn't he have had due process?" "it would have been. Est to have. Roughy him to the world Court!" and "aren't we more civilized than this?"

Good question. These days, people get so caught up in political correctness they can't see what needs to get done.

What's most important is that we did not kill him: his people did. That is how it should have been.

How quickly we forget our own actions in the past. We assassinated quite a few British officers duri g the revolution. In what would today be termed an "insurgency", we broke all conventions of the era, fighting hit and run tactics, blatantly targeting officers, and tarring, feathering, and often hanging British officials and sympathizers. The men who did this were acclaimed as heroes Nd patriots. How many times did we try to kill Hitler? If he had nt done it for us, we would probably have assassinated him too.

Congratulations to NATO (and by that I mean America and her tomahawks) for a well-carried out assistance to a just cause.

More importantly, congratulations to Libya, for living up to your name and freeing YOURSELF from a harsh dictatorship. May stability and moderate heads ultimately win the day.

Learning Methods and Styles

2011-10-02T22:17:00.000-07:00

Based on some chat I've had with others, I'm posting this to the blog.

Study Tips
Learning a new language is not easy. However, it can be made much more doable by understanding how people learn - especially, how you learn - and finding new ways to make learning efficient and interesting.

The same goes with most forms of learning. However, language is special in many ways because it is not specifically set in stone; rather, it is a fluid and evolving idea that often changes depending on the context, the region, etc.
The following applies mainly to learning Chinese and Japanese.

Rote repetition is not the end-all-be-all way to learn, perhaps, but it is, to some extent, effective in certain *aspects* of the language. For example, writing characters.What I found works wonderfully when memorizing new characters and words is: First, write it down two or three times by copying the actual character. A dry erase board works best so you can quickly erase and go again. Then, after the 2nd or 3rd time, erase and draw from memory without any references. Repeat twice without looking at the original, making sure you don't check yourself until you've finished drawing. This gets the character or drawing stuck in your short-term memory real quick, and helps it to lodge into your long-term memory.

Another important thing is remembering to use multiple approaches. Many "classic" methods are great, but in small, balanced doses, not prolonged agony. So, let's say you're learning a list of vocabulary words. Don't just look at them. Repeat them in your head - and out loud, if you can. Write each one down. Repetition is effective, but you typically don't need to repeat more than 3 or 4 times at once (more than that and you just get tired).
If you have the opportunity, listen to the words spoken - preferably by a native speaker. Many websites let you do this. I've found that, for languages where pronunciation rules are fairly strict and set in stone - such as Japanese or Chinese - Google Translate's new audio option is really effective at letting you hear how words are pronounced.

You always want a variety in your learning approach. To completely grasp new concepts, you really need to hear them, see them, touch them, and make practical usage of them. So, add new vocab words to sentences you already know how to say. i.e., "Hello my name is Jim and I work for Megacorp" is your base sentence. You learn how to say "Macarena" in Japanese, so now you can say "Hello my name is Jim. I work for Megacorp and I can do the Macarena!" This does two things. First, it reinforces what you already know. Second, it helps you grasp exactly how these new words are used by putting them in practical terms in a familiar setting.When learning, split your time between reading, listening, and writing practice.
When practical, speak it frequently. If you can go to the country - or a neighborhood (i.e., Japantown in San Francisco) where the language is spoken, do it. And find a study partner. Study partners let you practice and bounce ideas off one another, and help build confidence.

As you will find out studying any Asian language, balance is key. Zen yourself a bit. In order to achieve success learning a language, you must balance your learning techniques. Increase the workload in areas where you are weak, but don't forget to continue to build all three key areas: reading, listening, and speaking. Writing may not seem particularly important as we have computers and such, but the act of writing -- specifically, drawing kana and kanji -- helps reinforce not only what everything looks like, but also the actual meaning of your words, at a deeper level. This is especially true with Kanji, where you will begin to understand how the different radicals work together to form characters - and how they are similar in other characters.

Mnemonics are fine if they work for you. Associating new vocab words with familiar English phrases/stories does not work for me, but does for some. It all has to do with your learning style -- read on for more.

The Three Learning Styles:
The three main learning styles are Visual, Auditory, and Kinestetic (tactile: touching/grasping things). All three learning styles are important and should be used when you can; however, most people tend to be biased in favor of one style, and will learn more from that than the other two. Do you learn better by looking at the problem or reading the manual? Hearing someone lecture about it? Or do you learn best by just grabbing it and trying to figure it out yourself? For many people it can be very difficult to tell because all three styles are, to some extent, very important for learning, and should be blended in some way.

I've found that I am more of a visual learner. Although the other two styles have their advantages, I tend to figure things out better by reading about them, looking at pictures, etc. I'm actually a really bad Auditory learner, and often need things repeated to me in order to understand. This explains why my reading is so good but my listening scores tend to falter.You'll learn more quickly when you find which method suits you best, and try to stick to it - not exclusively - but more frequently than other styles.I'm not sure how or if genetics plays a role in this, but I think it have more to do with how you're raised or trained.

For example, I spent much of my young life reading. A lot. Also, although I can figure most things out by playing around a bit, I'm more likely to figure out how to fix a car by reading a how-to article than by opening the hood and experimenting. Anyone can work on improving their weak areas of learning. Your style may change over time, depending on your social interaction, level of education, maturity, etc.So there are many different styles of learning. Experiment them and find out what works for you.

Memory Exercise
Mind exercises will help you learn faster and retain longer. The aforementioned style of write, erase, repeat from memory is primarily a memory-enhancing technique, which increases your brain's ability to keep things in short-term memory. The longer and more accurately they stay there, the more likely they will transfer to long-term.

I noticed that after a couple months of using these techniques, I found I would memorize things after fewer repetitions. Where I started with 5 or 6 reps or more, I eventually could memorize a new list or diagram by repeating it twice. Even today, although my mind is not quite as sharp as it was a few months ago (it's a use-it-or-lose-it technique!), I'm finding my memory still tends to be better.

Additionally, to the extent you can, you'll want to stay healthy, ensure you're getting plenty of physical exercise, sleep, and proper nutrition. Mental exercises and variety will only do so much; in order to take advantage of these things, you need to be alert and healthy. Physical activity helps sharpen the mind, so exercise in the morning.

The human body, on average, should get 7-9 hours of sleep a night; more or less over a long period is unhealthy. Regularity in the sleep schedule matters, too - so, if you "make up" for lack of sleep all week by sleeping in on the weekends, it doesn't really help. And your body and brain wont function properly for long without proper nutrition to keep you healthy, fight off disease, and keep you relaxed and focused.

Retirement

2011-09-29T17:25:00.000-07:00

It's interesting how retirement goes.

I was reading on NPR recently how very few people in America actually save for retirement. Less than half of a polled group of a few thousand people do, and only half of those who do actually save anywhere near enough. It went on to mention surprising facts about how much money someone my age actually will end up needing just to live modestly after retirement -- which could be up to 30 years, or even longer. This isn't anything new, of course, but certainly helped remind me of a serious issue.
Considering the average life expectency now, as well as today's current emphasis on healthy lifestyles, corporate attempts at reduction in health care costs, and general higher education, technology, and awareness, there's a good chance most people of my generation will live into their late 80's or early 90's -- in a conservative guess. Knowing my luck, I'll retire at 70 and live to 110. And of course we all know Social Security will not be around when my generation retires.

So... how much do I need to retire?

Well the biggest problem is estimating how inflation, etc. will change costs of living over the next century. My dad used to talk about how, when he was a child in the early 60's, you could spend a quarter for a movie ticket, and still have money left over for drink and popcorn. That price has quite literally increased nearly a hudnred-fold throughout most of the nation in the last 50 years, with average movie ticket prices around $7-8 and drinks and popcorn nearly the same price.

Granted, movie theatres are a bit of an extreme case, but the fact is inflation is a bitch and points out an important fact: that $600k nest egg you need to save up to live modestly in retirement probably wont be enough money when a half century of inflation is factored in. I'm not saying we shouldn't save or that it's not worthwhile -- it's still very improtant, but one shouldn't rely solely on a small savings in your TSP or 401k.

That's where pensions come into play. I'm not trying to butter up the military because it certainly has numerous downfalls. But a retired Chief, although he may only make about $25k a year in today's money, will be happy to know that his pension will rise every time the military increases their basic pay (which tends to keep pace, more or less, with inflation).

Too many jobs are getting rid of pensions, and the above reasons, of course, are exactly why. 401ks are way cheaper in the long run, even including generously matched contributions because they know the bulk of money will come from interest accrued over time, not from a check the company will have to continue to write for the next 20 or 30 years after the employee retires.

Now, I'm in a position where, if I were to get out of the military, I could make a somewhat higher salary than I'm making now. Certainly, over time I'd eventually make more money if I switched to a federal job, where pensions are still guaranteed. The big issue is that the military's 50%-for-life pension sure sounds really tempting.

But do the math. The benefits of a 20-year E-6 with dependents, once you add in the housing and food allowances, sea/hazard/etc pay, medical & commissary benefits, etc. come up to around $68k a year (give or take $5k, depending on location, etc) -- more if you're stationed overseas. Not amazing, but certainly not a bad salary, especially considering our current hard times. However, retirement is based on BASIC PAY, which is only about $42k (closer to 50k for a Chief at 20 years). It is very difficult for an enlisted service member to have a retirement over $30k a year, in fact -- and retired officers will hardly make much more unless they make it to the flag level. It's definitely a very reliable and useful paycheck - a great "thank-you" for a very honorable and patriotic career, but not quite enough to support you on retirement.

The Civilian Side: Now lets say you do some time in the military, get out, and get a swanky fed job. Assuming it's the kind of higher-paying field I'm interested in (starting around GS-10 or GS-12, usually), it's very plausible that after 20 years of civil service you can be making around $115-120k a year -- 100% of which counts toward your ultimate retirement pay. At a very conservative 25% retirement, that pension is around $30k, which is already more than I'd make as a 20-year Chief. In addition to that, I would also have whatever I put into TSP.

TSP is not amazing, but it's very stable and has been handled exceedingly well. I kept a close watch the last few years, and although there were some hiccups when the economy crashed, the average values of most funds they invest in have actually gone up over the last 3 years, compared to some very dismal results in many other investment plans around the country. TSP tends toward conservative results, so although interest isn't always as high as other programs, it's lows aren't near as low either. Additionally, because it has the backing of America's largest eployer (the Federal Government), it is here to stay - a much lower risk of crashing, or being let go because the "company" goes bankrupt (if the government goes bankrupt, we have much bigger problems on our hands, and our major corporations are probably already fucked!). Besides, you get a great deal buying funds that go down in price because they are long-term, which means in a long-term investment, you have more to gain.

Now all that remains is to check out the job market, and see what it's like. Most likely, I'll remain on the safe path of the military (ironic, hu?) and, despite phsyical dangers, keep an assured pension. One possible advantage is that, when I do finish my 20 in the military, I'll be more likely to get a higher starting salary in a managerial position than I am now, due to significantly longer managerial experience.
If I go Federal, they count your active military time toward their own retirement, which is also a big plus, meaning I can forfeit a part (or all) of my military pension and get a higher percentage of civilian pay for retirement.
Of course, if I get out earlier, I'd have several years' head start in the civilian side, AND several extra years of matched TSP contributions, which means a larger nest egg.

I think for now, more reserach is required before I make a decision. This is a topic I'll be returning to in the future.

你好吗

2011-09-29T01:54:00.000-07:00

你好！我是安先生，学生。日语名字竜琥。
这是我的博客。要讲我所学到的题目，为了复习和更好地纪念过去的课程。

2011-09-29T01:30:00.001-07:00

日常の漢字: Kanji of the day 001

電車でんしゃ（电车 dian4che1): train
Specifically an electric train.
電 is electricity, 車 is car (or generic automobile)
Most subways, monorails, and other similar metro rails are considered to be 電車.

Note that the pronunciation for car, しゃ, is the 音 (Chinese) pronunciation. Japanese pronunciation, くるま, tends to be used for personal autos. The 音 pronunciation is sometimes used for taxis too.
乘電車. Ride the train.

A New Hope

2011-09-29T00:48:00.000-07:00

Hey there some people said I should write a book or a blog or something so here I am! Turns out, I already have one. So weird. This blog is from years ago, so I've reclaimed the address and will be revitalizing it.

This blog doesn't have a formal theme but I'll primarily be talking about language. I'm not perfect, so please feel free to comment if you see mistakes. It will also ha e a few other random ravings and links.

There will probably also be various Star Wars references.

Getting a new home

2007-12-09T16:07:00.000-08:00

Man, people are just crazy.

So, we all know about the problems with the housing market now. Getting the most publicity are the thousand upon thousands of foreclosures, as variable rate mortgages become too expensive for the mortgagees to afford. Secondly, with much less publicity, are the crazy high prices of houses. Maybe I just happen to feel it more than most, since I live in a very expensive part of the country. But prices have been steadily growing beyond what the average person can afford for a long time -- now it's just insane.

The foreclosure mess started around 5 years ago. At the height of the housing boom, the 'Flip That House' frenzy was in full swing, banks wanting to make more money through more sales began lowering their mortgage rates to all-time lows. Many greedy banks would make their rates crazy low, but as a variable rate, so it could go higher later. So what happens is thousands of people are suckered into this variable rate mortgage, hoping to fulfill their dream of owning a home. 5 years later, the market can't handle those extremely low rates, and so these "adjustable rates" start adjusting back up to previous years' numbers. Some even higher. The problem with a few percentage points' increase is that, when you're talking about several hundred thousand dollars, even a 1% increase in your annual percentage rate can, depending on how much the house costs, result in $2500, even $5000 annual increase in the price. Go up 2-3% and you're easily talking about an extra $1000 a month. Most people simply can't afford that.
Here's some statistics (from the 2006 Census Bureau estimates).

There are approximately 115 million households in the US.
Median annual household income in the US is about $48k (pre-tax) What this means, is that the majority of Americans actually bring home much less than $50k a year.
Approximately 19% of all households in American make more than 100,000. Chances are, you know someone who makes this much money. More likely, a few. But you probably don't, yourself. (if you do, share the wealth!)
About 6.37% of the people in our nation make 1/3 of our nation's wealth. This is why we use Median instead of Mean-- it would mess up the numbers.)

BTW, the Mean income is just over $60k. According to these stats, about 1/3 of Americans earn more than that.

OK, having said that, the second problem, once again, is the price of housing. As the 'Flip That House' craze came into full-swing, I probably had a dozen people tell me how stupid it was to continue renting, and that I should take the plunge and buy my own home. Why not, I can live in it for 3-4 years, then make 10-20k selling it! I can't lose! Well, a lot of people did just that. And what happens when you sell a house for more than you bought it for? Er... it becomes more expensive! So now you've got many thousands of people who can't afford their mortgage, and they can't afford to move into another home because everything's more expensive than when they bought it! This doesn't help the foreclosure rate at all. And it makes it that much harder for the majority of Americans to afford their own house.

There's one other problem when bankers get greedy. As the housing boom progressed (and the value of the dollar declined vs. the Euro and other major currencies), many foreign investment firms found it a great bargain to invest in American real estate. Now that the bubble has burst, the entire world is suffering. This hurts a lot of peoples' investments, including mine. I'm sure the long-term effect of international investing will correct itself, but short term, it wont be pretty. But this might mean a return (for a while) in government bond investments. They almost never lose money, despite the fact that the gain barely equates with inflation. Better to break even than to lose tho, especially if your investment is short-term.

Well, this is what happens when people try to live beyond their means. I'm not much of one to point the finger, because I've done it too -- but I've learned my lesson. That's what this blog is for :)

Shout out!

2007-12-05T16:07:00.000-08:00

I wanted to go ahead and give a shout out to the many bloggers who've given me some fantastic financial ideas and advice. I've posted their URLs so you can check them out, too.

Lazy Man and Money - a software engineer looking for alternative ways to prosper. He's one of the first financial bloggers I came across, and has an interesting perspective on life.
Millionaire Mommy Next Door - this lady has actually succeeded in her dream, and offers lots of great advice on how to follow in her footsteps.
Get Rich Slowly - Tons of dead-on advice to securing your financial future
The Digerati Life - Another software engineer disillusioned with life who's succeeded in attaining financial freedom.

Every one of these blogs has sound financial advice, and I've gotten a lot of ideas from them. Can't recommend them enough!