The Charity Engine is a recent development on the long running services provided by BOINC (The Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing). BOINC uses the CPU processing capability of internet connected computers to process data for a variety of scientific causes that cannot afford to rent time on supercomputers. It was originally developed for use by SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence). It has since been used for research on a variety of causes as diverse as mathematics, medicine, molecular biology, climatology, and astrophysics.

The Charity Engine takes things a step further, using the same software base. Rather than simply choosing a variety of causes you wish to support, the Charity Engine rents out your CPU power to anyone who will pay, and then divides those profits to donate them to charity and to encourage users to join by giving it away as a prize via a lottery of users based on your production. As you run the Charity Engine, you rack up credits for the amount of CPU usage your computer provides the network, which are then used in the lottery. In addition to those who will pay for the CPU power, the Charity Engine also devotes a small portion of the CPU power to those aforementioned projects on BOINC.

For more information, go to The Charity Engine – How it Works.

Sign up for the Charity Engine and put your computer to work for charity. Use the invite code FRIEND.

In addition to finally posting a new post, I have also gotten around to updating my WordPress Plugin, WP SimpleWeather. That is the primary purpose of this post.

WP SimpleWeather Version 0.2.2

For anyone who might feel the need to update to the latest version, I would like to apologize. Version 0.2.1 of the plugin saw me add in some functionality to allow for a clean uninstall of the plugin. My intentions were good. Unfortunately, I made a mistake, and set it to perform this clean uninstall upon deactivation, rather than explicitly on uninstall. So, when you update the plugin, you will lose all related settings. I’m sorry. But this won’t happen again. I’ve fixed it in version 0.2.2, and it will not remove the settings on deactivation, but only on uninstall.

At the request of Thomas Nielsen, I have added the capability to change the metric units for windspeed from km/h to m/s. This isn’t a big update at all. Unfortunately, it took a fair amount of time due to my recent lack of time. I had to relearn my own plugin. It felt a bit strange. Any way, I hope you enjoy it. If there are any issues at all, please let me know.

This story is tragic and moving. If you don’t enjoy nature, or deeper thoughts concerning the human condition, then perhaps this story isn’t for you. ‘Into the Wild’ is the story of the life and death of Christopher McCandless. And no, that wasn’t a spoiler. Both the book and the film make it immediately apparent that the main character dies at the end. Perhaps character isn’t the right word for it, as this is a true story. The lead role?

After graduating from college, McCandless gives all of his savings away to a charity and hits the road, hitching rides from strangers, sneaking aboard moving trains, or simply walking alongside the road. He goes west in search of something that cannot be found easily in the business of daily life. He is in search of things that are often found in the solitude of nature. He is in search of himself.

McCandless goes through some truly amazing adventures, experiencing fantastic locations that many people never see. And despite his relative solitude throughout his trek about America as ‘Alexander Supertramp’, McCandless makes some extraordinary friendships and truly has a strong effect on the people he interacted with.

This book made me yearn for the adventure found in travel, but it also made me appreciate the friends and family that I have. Do yourself a favor and check it out.

Matt’s Rating:

Now, I generally don’t post anything at all personal here on my blog, but I felt that I should put a little something on here to a) excuse my recent absence, and b) let you know about some of the fine folks who made my wedding day great.

The wedding was held at Parkview Christian Church, here in Findlay, Ohio. It’s the church that my family and I have been attending since I was a wee lad. Great place. The great room, where normal Sunday services are held, is just way too big for the amount of people we had attending my wedding, so we had it in the foyer. It worked out quite well… not too big, not too small. Pretty much the perfect size for the crowd we had. Neil Norheim, the Senior Minister at Parkview, married us. Good man.

After the wedding, we made our way over to The Elks Lodge, here in Findlay as well. It wasn’t my first choice for the reception, but it worked out quite well. The ball room there is a good looking joint, and there was a stage in the room where the DJ could set up to get things rocking at the party.

Speaking of the DJ, the music at the reception was provided by MY Mobile DJ Service. Matthew Young, the DJ, did a fantastic job, and I highly recommend anyone looking for a DJ in or around Findlay look him up.

And last, but certainly not least, check out the initial pictures taken by our photographer, Randa, from RJK Photography. We don’t have all of the photos yet, but what I’ve seen so far looks great. I can’t wait to see them all.

This was the United States’ second friendly since the close of the World Cup in South Africa (the first being a 2-0 loss to Brazil), but only the first friendly since coach Bob Bradley was re-signed through the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Therefore it was the first somewhat meaningful match in the training period before the next World Cup. Going in, I had expected to see Coach Bradley experiment with different formations and available players. Also, Landon Donovan was not going to be available for the game, as he is with the LA Galaxy for the MLS playoffs.

As I took Chicago’s Red Line Train to the Roosevelt Station near Soldier Field, I was shocked at the number of Polish fans. As it turns out, there is quite a large Polish population in Chicago, and according to Wikipedia, “Chicago bills itself as the largest Polish city outside of Poland with approximately 1,100,000 people of Polish ethnicity in the Chicago metropolitan area.” It was almost an away game for the US team, as there was a very strong showing for Polska.

Before the game, retiring US striker Brian McBride was honored for his career contributions to the sport. He was the first overall pick in the initial MLS draft, going to the Columbus Crew. He later played for Fulham and the Chicago Fire. I remember him best from the bloody face he received in the game against Italy in the 2006 World Cup. He was my favorite player for a number of years, and he has truly done some great things for American soccer. I had hoped he would be on the roster for this game, and brought on as a late substitute to give him one final international appearance. Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be. At least he was recognized.

The game was exciting from start to finish. You can read recaps of the game on ESPN or Fox Sports, or whatever you prefer. That isn’t the intent of this post. But the game was really fantastic. I’m glad I went. The US team has a lot of work to do, though. Some random thoughts and then some pictures below.

• I was very surprised to not see Eric Lichaj come on as a substitute in his home town for his first cap.
• Cherundolo and Bocanegra are great. But they’re not getting any younger. Who will be there to replace them?
• Oguchi Onyewu had some great moments, but also so horrible ones (like the failed clearance that led to Poland’s first goal).
• Maurice Edu might end up being a decent defender.
• Jermaine Jones looked good, and may be the answer in the middle.
• I don’t understand why Benny Feilhaber was subbed out. He wasn’t fantastic, but he seemed better than Alejandro Bedoya, who I didn’t even really notice on the field.
• Stuart Holden looked really good. I think he has a bright future for the USMNT.
• Jozy Altidore finally scored, but he should have had more than just the one goal.
• Is moving Clint Dempsey to striker the way to get Altidore a reliable partner up front? I don’t know. It might be. He had a great game, despite the ugly black eye he picked up playing for Fulham.

The pictures were taken from Section 131, Row 1, Seat 10, in case anyone is curious. And it was actually the front row (I always wonder when I buy tickets what the view might look like).

Unfortunately, due to funding issues, that might not happen. I, and several hundred (thousand?) other fans of the books don’t think that’s a good idea. We’d all really like to see this movie made. And right now it’s looking like the only way that will happen is if we break out our wallets and help to fund the movie ourselves.

Some enterprising fans created the webpage SaveBlueLikeJazz.com, and are working with Director Steve Taylor and Don Miller to try to secure the funding through the fans before the deadline of October 25th. So, if you enjoyed the books and want to see the movie as much as I do, head on over and donate! Oh. And if you donate at certain levels you will be given incentives. So, it isn’t entirely like donating. For $50, you get a t-shirt, a signed movie poster, a digital download package (I’m honestly not sure what this digital download is… but does it matter? I’m sure it’ll be cool), as well as a personal thank you phone call from the director, Steve Taylor. There are all sorts of other incentive levels as well.

If you’re interested in more information, go to SaveBlueLikeJazz.com, or their donation page on Kickstarter.com. If there isn’t enough money raised to fund the film, you will not be charged, so there’s no risk involved. Check it out, and donate. I want to see this movie.

I’m not going to claim to be anything close to a doctor, but let me briefly explain what Cystic Fibrosis is. Basically, Cystic Fibrosis is a disease which affects the entire body, caused by a mutated gene. From what I understand, the gene controls the work of bodily fluids like mucus and sweat. With the gene working incorrectly, it’s basically like the body isn’t oiled correctly, and parts start to work wrong. One of the most commons issues with Cystic Fibrosis is frequent lung infections. Cystic Fibrosis is a seriously debilitating disease, and leads to an early death for those diagnosed with it. Based on data from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (and which I swiped from Wikipedia), in 1959, the median age of survival of children with Cystic Fibrosis was six months. In the United States, the life expectancy for infants born in 2008 with Cystic Fibrosis is 37.4 years.

Research and treatment for the disease has gotten better over the years. I remember when I was in elementary school with Gabe, it was a possibility that he wouldn’t even live long enough to graduate from high school. He has done that and more. He has worked with his disease and gone on to some real academic success, graduating from college and law school. He passed the bar for the state of Ohio, and will hopefully become a practicing lawyer. But first, he needs to take care of some issues with his disease. His lungs have basically given out. He needs a double lung transplant to survive.

On Saturday, October 16th, from 5-8pm at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (directions) in Findlay, Ohio, there will be a fundraiser in association with the National Transplant Assistance Fund (NTAF) to raise money to help cover the costs for Gabe’s transplant. There will be a Spaghetti Dinner, with tickets costing $7. There will also be some sort of Chinese Auction. For more information, check out the Facebook Event Page – Spaghetti Dinner & Auction in honor of Gabriel Poland. If you’d like to contribute, but won’t be able to make it to the event, you can do so online at the NTAF website.

Gabe is also keeping a blog about his progress and thoughts through the transplant journey. It is some truly inspired writing. It is entitled Breathe Easy. I encourage everyone to check it out, and keep Gabe in your prayers.

But I was really excited by the Ansari X Prize a few years back, and I’m also super excited about a new one which is just getting started called the Google Lunar X Prize. Let’s begin my explanation of this competition by simply pasting in the description of it on the official website:

The Google Lunar X PRIZE is a $30 million international competition to safely land a robot on the surface of the Moon, travel 500 meters over the lunar surface, and send images and data back to the Earth. Teams must be at least 90% privately funded and must be registered to compete by December 31, 2010. The first team to land on the Moon and complete the mission objectives will be awarded $20 million; the full first prize is available until December 31, 2012. After that date, the first prize will drop to $15 million. The second team to do so will be awarded $5 million. Another $5 million will awarded in bonus prizes. The final deadline for winning the prize is December 31, 2014.

Simply reading that makes it look like the X Prize foundation has gone nuts. A few years ago, they were holding a competition just to get into space, and now they’re trying to get to the moon?!? But wait! This competition isn’t so much about getting there. The Ansari X Prize has already accomplished that feat for them. SpaceX, founded by Paypal millionaire Elon Musk, grew from the Ansari X Prize competition, and has a rocket capable of getting payloads to a lunar orbit, the Falcon 9. The Google Lunar X Prize actually recommends use of SpaceX launch capabilities for the competition, although competitors could choose to go a different route (NASA, Arianespace, among others) if they chose to do so.

This competition is about creating a privately funded lunar lander, as well as a rover of some sort. The competition also requires that the lander send over one gigabyte of data from the surface of the moon to the earth in the form of a “mooncast”. The mooncast includes high resolution 360º panoramic photographs taken on the surface of the moon, self portraits of the rover taken on the surface of the Moon, near-real time videos showing the craft’s journey along the lunar surface, and High Definition (HD) video. “Teams will be required to send a Mooncast detailing their arrival on the lunar surface, and a second Mooncast that provides imagery and video of their journey roaming the lunar surface.”

The Google Lunar X Prize excites me because of it’s ability to excite the public about space again. With Congressional infighting about NASA’s future budget, we can no longer look to the government for space exploration. The X Prize Foundation has managed to create a true privately owned space industry, and the Google Lunar X Prize aims to take it beyond low earth orbit. Success here could lead to great advancements in space, and I find that truly exciting.

In the first half, I saw a lot of things to like as Cleveland took an early 14-3 lead in one of their most winnable games on the schedule this year. And then Jake Delhomme hurt his foot.

I’m not sure what he did to his foot, exactly, but it was obviously hurting him. He was limping around. He wasn’t stepping into his throws at all, leading to him trying to whip the ball on arm-strength alone, which of course led to poor throws.

Fine, let him keep trying. He throws a bad pick, and the Bucs come back to bring the score to 14-10 at the half. I’m thinking to myself that the Browns will obviously take a closer look at Delhomme during the half and notice his foot problem. Clearly they’ll bring in Seneca Wallace and feature more of a Flash/Cyclone package power running game much like the end of last season when the Browns managed to win several to close out the year.

Unfortunately, I was wrong. Eric Mangini kept a gimpy Jake Delhomme in the game, and proceeded to have one decent drive followed by five 3 and outs. Five! And it was obvious that Delhomme was hurting. Sure, Peyton Hillis was having some issues holding onto the football. I can understand being concerned about feeding him the ball. But what about Jerome Harrison? He had only 9 carries. What about Josh Cribbs? He ended the game with 3 whole carries out of the Flash package, and I didn’t even see him lining up at wide receiver until the fourth quarter. Where was Seneca Wallace? Lining up at wide receiver a couple times on the four or five Flash plays that were called?

I realize I’m sounding a bit like an armchair quarterback here, but there is absolutely no reason the Browns should have lost this game. Mike Holmgren needs to admit he made a mistake in retaining Eric Mangini and start his search for a new coach.

Since the World Cup this year in South Africa, soccer has been a bit more on the general radar of Americans than usual. Of course, it still lags horribly behind other more popular American sports. ESPN is really letting me down here. They have a soccer section on their website, but they don’t regularly follow the MLS, reporting only on bigger games (such as yesterday’s game between the LA Galaxy and the Crew), and games which feature America’s soccer sweetheart — Landon Donovan.

Any way, back to the game I mean to talk about. FC Dallas came to Crew Stadium in Columbus, and I managed to pick up some pretty good tickets. The game itself was a bit lackluster, though. Neither team really seemed to be playing for the win, with both teams resting some starters. I can’t say I blame them, as the game fell in between a CONCACAF game and a MLS Open Cup game for the Crew. Nonetheless, I enjoyed myself watching the Crew draw with FC Dallas 0-0. I look forward to getting back down to Columbus for a more meaningful game some time.

If you care to read through a recap of the game, there is one here at MLSSoccer.com.

Check out a few of the better pictures we got down in Columbus below. If anyone is curious, these were taken from Section 127, Row 5.

Make sure you get out to a game! It’s a really family friendly experience, so bring the kids along.