Right before the COVID-19 pandemic completely changed the world, I was training for my first marathon. During that process, I started to upload my data to a training platform called Training Peaks. This tool, popular amongst both amateur and professional triathletes is designed to ingest workout data and provide an estimate of overall training load. [...]
For those new around here, my day job is at a University working on genetic sequencing projects. Part of my daily TODO at work is to keep up on scientific literature, which is a tall task considering how many journals, subjects and specialities, and just sheer volume of data is being published right now. In [...]
Every once in a while I get a request from various researchers to host data for visualization in the UCSC Genome Browser. After having generated hundreds of links, I've decide to move toward their trackhub system. The downside to this, is the need for a trackDB.txt file, which contains all of the meta information. First, [...]
One of my most recent app installs on my Android is a beer tracking app called Untapped. Its slogan, Drink Socially, is a pretty good indication of what this app is about. When you drink a beer, snap a photo, give it a rating, and post to your friends. Pretty simple concept that relies solely [...]
Shortly after Christmas I wrote a brag post about getting a Garmin Forerunner 10. So far, I've used it a few times for running and cross-country skiing, and I am overall pretty pleased with it.It's pretty easy intuitive, though I did set it up in French originally. Overview Garmin is a leader in GPS based [...]
I've been big on learning as much german as possible recently. The idea of picking up a foreign language, if for nothing else but to poke fun at my siblings with Ellie in a language they can't understand, has always been high on my to-do list. A while back I reviewed Anki, a spaced repetition [...]
In my constant search for more productivity at work, I stumbled upon a brilliant Google Chrome plugin called StayFocusd. I realized through my previous work with RescueTime that I spent far too much time on certain websites, mainly Facebook and NPR.com. I needed some way of blocking these from my browser that would not be [...]
Today's installment of Tech Tuesday has been a long time coming. Ellie has demanded I take a look at one of the best inventions ever created. The Centrifugal Force Generator, a.k.a., the Bathing Suit Dryer. Neighborhood Bathing Suit Spinner. If you've ever been in a kitchen full of unitaskers, you have probably seen [...]
Flashcards are a powerful tool when trying to commit things to memory. Recently I've had a renewed interest in building my German vocabulary base. After reviewing my daily productivity, I decided that I had some time where I could fit in quick, two-minute sessions of flash-card review. Most of the tools and commands used when working [...]
Being a member of the Buffalo JCC has its benefits. The first and foremost, is the gym equipment is absolutely phenomenal. Today I want to take the time and review one of the more interactive pieces of equipment that I have been using recently, The Expresso Stationary Bike. I've used these bikes many times over [...]
