<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830</id><updated>2012-01-30T09:00:07.239-08:00</updated><category term='student'/><category term='college'/><category term='college life'/><title type='text'>Student Rant</title><subtitle type='html'>Cool's my middle name, tryin to fit in is my game</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>50</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-8975075704072489534</id><published>2007-01-18T16:55:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2007-01-18T18:10:15.723-08:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='student'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college life'/><title type='text'>Summary of 99% of the people you will meet in College</title><content type='html'>A similar article like this was posted on &lt;a href="http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?s=24a1c9e1ddbf9153d11a2457eb898eb0&amp;threadid=2223594"&gt;somethingaweful forums&lt;/a&gt;. This is a list different from the one mentioned at somethingaweful. Enjoy!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE 1 HIT WONDER&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You will never hear this guy/girl ever say anything, whether it be to other students or the professor. Then one day, after looking extremely intense or constipated for an hour straight, they will say something so gloriously insightful that it will bring tears to the eyes of everyone who bears witness to it.&lt;br /&gt;Then they will never speak again.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE KID THAT FUCKING NO-ONE LIKES&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This kid is a douche bag! And for arguments sake let’s call him “DANNY” You desperately want to punch him in his ear, but he’s disabled. And because he disabled he makes sure to piss EVERYONE OFF with extra annoyance on the side. This kid will sometime attempt to befriend you then manage to say or do something so unspeakably rude or offer some sort of backwards compliment. Parties disassemble whenever this Ass hat manages to find his way to one. Everyone avoids him but secretly watches him to see if he will lose a crutch while walking or roll down the stairs just to get in a good chuckle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SUBURBAN RAPPER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Suburban Rapper can be found in any common area, listening to his own music on his IPOD at an unreasonable volume. Generally (but not always) white, he awkwardly uses the words Dog, Crib, Homie, Phat, G, or Ill. If he spots you, he'll ask you to "peep this new track yo," or attempt to sell you tickets to his half-assed concert. His music is generally unbearable, and if you're lucky, you can get away with only hearing a few verses. He always seems surprised that his poser antics never land him a girl, or a record deal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ACTIVIST ANNIE&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Somewhat related to the man-hating feminist but has plenty more to piss her off than just men. Needs to get involved in every civil rights or ultra liberal campaign that has ever been mentioned on campus. Tries to make a cause out of every problem anybody has with authority, no matter how absurd or completely unfounded the complaint.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;YOU’RE A LITTLE TOO OLD TO BE HERE GUY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Usually in the 28-32 year range, this species refuses to let go of the joys of college. Can be found on campus seven days a week, and is always present at EVERY SINGLE FRAT PARTY. Will give you some lame, shady excuse why he’s still in college, and will then befriend you so he can abuse the T1 connection in your dorm room to download porn. Most often has no friends his own age, is unemployed and still lives with his parents. Because he is older than everyone else, he will constantly criticize everyone for acting like children, but will then throw a tantrum when you won’t let him play a game of HALO. He loves crappy beer, joints and the cheapest cigarettes available. You can recognize him by his weird and outdated taste in clothing and his fondness for 80’s rock music. Usually very loud, obnoxious and opinionated in the classroom, with traits similar to that of THE EXAM BEGGER and THE INTELLECTUAL SUPERHERO.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE EXAM BEGGER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This person cannot take a test without first begging for as much review or information as possible. They cannot prepare for a test without first knowing seemingly unimportant details like "How many questions are on this test?" They will beg for extra review sessions, extra credit, and to know the exact breakdown of how the test is scored. They will waste the whole class when a test is announced if the professor doesn't shut them up. They will also spend the entire first session of a class, when the syllabus is presented trying to make homework a much higher percentage of the total grade.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BIBLE SLUT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Generally starts out being the CONVERTER, straight-laced and conservative; they go to church every week and brag about that fact often. This person even has the ability to recite any and every bible verse from memory. Then THE LUCKY BASTARD or JOHNNY THREE LEGS introduces them to the marvels of SEX,and it's all down hill from there, as they descend into the foul pits of whoredom. They of course will still go to Church every week in order to keep up a facade of piety, singing the glories of baby Jesus.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE BABYFACE&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This kid graduated high school early, but doesn't really make a big deal about it. Because of this, his social skills are somewhat undeveloped, and he is quick to attach himself to social groups in order to gain acceptance. Said social groups are quick to make him the subject of their corruption projects, and take great pleasure in getting him drunk/laid/stoned for the first time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE AMICABLE ATHLETE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Sort of the polar opposite of the Hillbilly Gangster, the Amicable Athlete is usually about 6 foot three, weighing in at 225 pounds, and looks like Sam Jackson on steroids. Attending college on a sports scholarship, the Amicable Athlete probably works a cushy job at a car dealership, gets more tail than you can possibly imagine, is more or less constantly high on primo weed all of the time, and is smart enough to know that he's in for an easy ride and to enjoy it and throws great parties! While he might never turn pro, there's a good chance he'll get a good gig on the local AM sports radio station&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE STAREDOWN-ER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;If this kid is corrected by another student on anything, no matter how wrong they were, and how right the corrector was, his wrath shall be incurred in the most passive-aggressive manner possible: Silently glowering at their new 'nemesis'. No matter if the incident occurred once, months ago, any time you look in this kid's general direction, he will still be fucking staring at you with the hatred of a thousand warlords. Will probably lead the victim of his piercing gaze to do a number of 'Is he still fucking staring at me?' checks.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE WHITE RASTAFARIAN&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;All of his tie-dyed clothes are made from, like, pure natural hemp, man! He most likely sports an impressive set of dreadlocks and can be easily spotted as he skateboards to his next class. The White Rasta can also be found playing an odd game called 'hackey sack' along with others of his kind in any park-like area, or any place that has a couple of trees nearby, and seem to have an affinity for border collies and other shaggier members of the species canine. They also seem to possess an almost MacGuyver-like ability to create a bong from a combination of nearly any common household objects within a matter of moments. However, most of their time is spent contemplating whether or not trees can think.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE NEWLY-RIPE FRUIT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy's gay! You see, he's only just found out and now he's got to make up for lost time. He may have had a healthy interest in sports, or board games - but no more. He tries, for the sake of decorum, to occasionally talk about things that do not directly involve his gayness, but he is unequal to the struggle and five or six minutes down the line, the increasingly one-sided conversation has shifted to his multiple fuck buddies, or one of his alarmingly variegated fetishes. You see, just liking cocks isn't enough - that's not gay enough for the Newly-Ripe Fruit to truly express himself. He must round his sexuality out with public discussion of whips or chains or piss drinking, but more often than not he decides he is a furry as well, and won't let it escape anyone's notice. Possibly does more to set back the cause of tolerance than Fred Phelps ever did.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE NURSING STUDENT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;OMG BUSY! These girls (invariably) are incredibly busy with their nursing school workload. Despite this, they get shit faced constantly with their fellow nursing school students, only to wake up at 5am for their OB rotation. Often incredibly attractive, these girls typically are still attached to the same guy they knew in high school, who they will marry.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE CAVE DWELLER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;His blinds are never open. His light's never on. He lives by the light of his computer. Whenever he goes out, which is very, very rare, he squints and looks frightened, often power walking to class. He uses the internet for his lectures, and never sleeps when you do, so you can't hang out with your friends/girlfriend at your place. He's not nice, but he's not mean. He's clean, but his room's a mess. There's Mountain Dew cans everywhere. He gets average grades, and he's usually a science major, though sometimes a Lit or English major.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MUSCLES MCFLAUNTY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This individual (almost always a guy) has been lifting weights since age 4, and never lets you forget about it. He goes to the gym twice a day, wears nothing more covering than a wife beater, and constantly twitches his pecs just to get you to look at his chest. McFlaunty may or may not be otherwise annoying, but it is a known fact that he eats creatine for breakfast, lunch and dinner to increase muscle mass even further; this will result in four different cancers before he is 30. Occasionally, Muscles McFlaunty will have a lisp, in which case, laugh at him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MRS. DEGREE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Misses degree has no real purpose in college except finding "Mr. Degree" majoring in some lucrative field such as computer programming,premed, law, or engineering. Often packed with great looks, a killer body and half a brain Mrs. Degree has no problem being a mere shadow of their wealthy husband and is always the first to brag and attempt to start "intelligent conversation" on the career of Mr. Degree. Always on the prowl, you may find Mrs. Degree befriending such characters as the Study Nazi, FUCKING DISGUSTING C.S. MAJOR, and the CEO Junior.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;SOCIAL DISORDER GUY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Avoided by everyone, this person possess a crippling social tic that goes completely unnoticed to him. If you're unlucky enough to be identified by social disorder guy in public, you will be followed regardless of how much of a hurry you pretend to be in. You will be forced, due to social etiquette, to engage in a meaningless and awkward conversation that will be filled with characterizations of your self image. Social Disorder Guy is completely comfortable stopping on his way to work for fifteen minutes or half an hour to fill you in on one of two things: either his roommate is moving out again or he has a new job. You have no classes with him, and you never see him except for random times during the day around your campus, yet he considers you one of his best friends. You probably are.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ANSWER MACHINE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This person gets it! They understand the material. They can answer the hard questions that require logical induction and they can form arguments using the material.Unfortunately, everyone else in the class is either the Quiet, Smart Slacker or The Frat Mattress or I'm Too Important to Be Here. The professor lectures and asks a question and no one will answer. Grated by the awkward silence, The Answer Machine finally answers.&lt;br /&gt;The floodgates open. From the rest of the semester onwards, the class is a dialogs between The Answer Machine and the professor interspersed with infrequent, sometimes mind-numbing comments from The Frat Mattress when she's called on and the slacker when they care. But for the most part, it's The Answer Machine. Even when they don't answer, the professor will call on them regardless of whether or not their hand is raised.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE MEGAPHONE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy seems pretty intelligent and contributes with a vast amount of knowledge. Unfortunately he has got no grasp of volume at all. Will scream across the room with a content smile on his face while embarrassing the people around him. When conversing with The Megaphone you can't decide if he is constantly pulling your leg or just doesn't realize what the hell he is telling you. Does never know when to shut up but magically manages to never piss anyone seriously off.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE GEEK PROVIDER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The provider tends to be everyone's best friend when they need something from him. Of his various requests, he spends the majority of his time lofting and unlofting bunks, or fixing people's computers. When he is not doing this, the provider is somehow nowhere to be found. For extra fun, combine THE PROVIDER with the FOREIGN SILENT CURVE DESTROYER&lt;br /&gt;MR. ROTC CADET&lt;br /&gt;Often seen traversing campus in fatigues, yet his pack is devoid of water, map, GPS, or other survival gear. Instead, he packs the same Biology 101, Spanish II, and English Rhetoric texts that you do. Known to major in Criminology or Criminal Justice, and may show up to 8 a.m. class in PT gear, not having had time to make it home for a shower and shave after his morning run. Placed by God on Earth to counter the ramblings of Passionate Politico with physical threats (if PP is a male) or ramblings of his own stripping PP of her human/constitutional rights (if PP is a female). Very loyal to his friends and beliefs, Mr. ROTC Cadet is generally a good guy to have as a friend, or at least an amiable acquaintance.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MR. I WORK FULL TIME&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy uses his job as an excuse not to show up and help with group projects. He will claim that he must work all the time and therefore cannot show up for any of the group meetings. Impossible to get hold of outside of class. Generally a 50/50 shot of doing the work.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MUSIC MAJOR&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One of the more rare species outside of Music Classes, Practice Rooms, and University Symphony Concerts. The MM spends 50% of their time practicing, 25% studying hard/semi-useless classes which require an A to get accepted to their low-paying major, 25% at band practices, and 25% with their music Fraternity/Sorority...is that 125%? Doesn't matter; MMs party so much that the high alcohol content in their bloodstream causes them to black out and loose that 25%. Tends to only date other music majors because "Only another MM can understand why they have to practice 3-4 hours a day". Depending on the instrument, music majors are laid back, but complain that they are working SOOO hard to eventually get a salary of &lt;$35K a year but that "I love music SOOO much it doesn't matter". Usually makes fun of the Drama Nerd for not being "Real Musicians" and has enough Classical CD's to fill up Amazon.com.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;FACEBOOK ADDICT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Facebook Addict often makes references to who changed/added what, and who "its complicated" with who. Most of their sentences begin with "omg did u see _______ on his/her wall?" and end with "Tag it!" They check facebook every chance they get, only to get pissed when they dont have a new wall post from when they last checked it 18 seconds ago. They are amazed by those who mini-feed say they have "no recent activity" and how they have such self control. The FACEBOOK ADDICT often joins many groups and is only moments away from becoming the FACEBOOK ZOMBIE.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE STUDIO ART MAJOR:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The S.A.M. totes around a humongous portfolios (often containing works of art only other S.A.M.'s can appreciate) manages to whack near passersby's and destroy other objects in their path. The studio major whine's about spending all their money on ridiculously expensive studio supplies, yet they have enough for a regular smoke...you know, for the stress. Unfortunately, studio courses are inhumanely time-consuming, so the S.A.M. are almost always held up in the studio labs, yet the degree is absolutely worthless, thus resulting in a downward mental spiraling of the said major students. You could spot them easily by their odd sense of "fashion", consisting of articles such as striped socks, ripped jeans and unsightly hairstyles. The best way to test if an individual is a studio arts major is to ask him/her to help you count, as most can't do math to save their lives.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;INTELLECTUAL SUPERHERO&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Intellectual Superhero is neither an intellectual nor a superhero, but don’t tell him that! The Intellectual Superhero is easily identified by his complete inability to allow a class period to pass by without asking at least 654 questions designed to show how "witty" and "clever" he is. He will attempt to prove the professor wrong in every class with his inane bullshit, regardless of the fact that the professor has a doctorate in the field. If it’s a science course, the Intellectual Superhero will attempt to solve every problem using an alternate method, which is always incorrect. But don’t worry; he’ll still manage to waste 20 minutes of your life with his insane method of solving the problem. At least you’ll get to laugh at him when the professor proves him wrong.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE FACE BOOK ZOMBIE&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This person comes to class every single time, yet spends 100% of class time on their laptop. They believe that if one comes to class, one will somehow absorb the material telepathically from the professor. They usually are on Face book, Forums (Many are Goons) Some sort of RPG, Solitaire, you name it. The important thing, though, is that they are not paying attention to class at all, Ever. They tend to hover in the back, and have ultra quick minimizing reflexes if a lone TA should wander back there.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ETHNIC TREASURE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Comes from a multi-ethnic back ground, and will constantly bring this up. They will write articles in the school paper about how delightfully confused they are about not knowing which ethnic stereotypes to conform to.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE "GARY"&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The name is very personal and is why I choose to use it, it became a code word for these type of guys. Not exclusive to university.&lt;br /&gt;Usually an unattractive guy who thinks he is a stud and acts like he is hung like a porn star. Thinks he can charm and seduce any woman by lecherously rubbing her back and give back massages while trying to undo her bra. Always touching up girls even if they give the message they are not interested, even in front of their boyfriend. But thats cool, he has a black belt in Karate so will be ready to fight off any pissed boyfriends. Carries a pair of handcuffs with him and loves to put girls through bondage in the pub even if they don't want it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THEY LIVE AT THE COFFEE SHOP&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It might be an on-campus coffee shop or one right near campus, but either way they're there. Always. The group can get quite large, but there's a core of about four people. Usually this core consists of: a fat, annoying girl; a gay guy; a theater major (male or female); and an older guy, either a grad student/limpet or a townie. This core group will invariably occupy the coffee shop's only couch; if there are more than one, they will occupy the best couch. No matter where you are in the coffee shop, you will hear them laughing, shouting, calling one another hot, singing along with the song playing on the stereo ("omigod i luv this song!!"), and erupting into a chorus of "BYEEEE's" whenever one of the group finally decides to leave.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;45 YEAR OLD COLLEGE STUDENT WITH 2 KIDS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The 45 Year Old College Student with Two Kids is one of the more interesting persona's found in the college classroom. This subject has returned to school in an attempt to better her life, which is a great endeavor. However, there are a few things about this person that will make you want to punch her in the face by the end of the semester. The 45-year-old college student with two kids must write down every word the professor says. This will cause the class to be peppered with calls of "can you repeat that" approximately every 0.23 seconds. Second, she must ask the most obvious questions, preferably ones the professor has already answered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE FLEETING LOVEBIRDS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Comprised mainly of Freshman, these two are fresh out of high school, and are gonna be in love forever. They take all the same classes together, they've got their first apartment together, and they're inseparable. Most of the time, one of the two had the chance to a scholarship at a better school, but turned it down in the name of love. They'll sit together in class, are always the first to volunteer for group work together, and will no doubt be broken up by the end of their first year.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;NIGHT OWL&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Staying up long after you've gone to bed, a Night Owl roommate may periodically awaken you with a laughing fit after reading a Chuck Norris joke on some crappy forum or heating water in the microwave for a 3 AM cup of ramen. May be seen complaining about the lack of places open in town at 1 in the morning on Tuesday night. The Night Owl is also likely to skip morning classes.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE GUY WITH INHUMAN HALO SKILLS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy doesn't have "mad skills"; Instead, there is no word in the English language that properly describes how good this fucker is with a plasma rifle or pistol. He looks rather ordinary, with no unusual physical features, nor obvious personality quirks. But give him an Xbox, and a copy of Halo, and prepare to have many recurring nightmares of what you're about to see. You could swear that the The Guy with inhuman Halo skills has found a way to wire an Xbox to his brain, because there is no other explanation to how impossibly good he is. He quite literally can chuck a grenade at a difficult-to-reach weapon, and the explosion will launch the said weapon straight at him, as if he was pulling it telekineticaly. He knows the location of every item on every map, and knows exactly when that item is gonna respawn.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;STUPID UGLY FAT GIRL&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Stupid Ugly Fat Girl feels the need to enter into every single class discussion, completely disregarding the fact that she has nothing of substance to add to the conversation. Stupid Ugly Fat Girl cannot construct a sentence without using the words "like" and "um" at least 12 times for every 2 other words. She always wears clothes that are too tight, and seems partial to gaudy rhinestone shirts with incredibly original phrases such as "Princess" strewn across the front of her sagging cow tits. The only way to actually learn something in a class with the Stupid Ugly Fat Girl is to distract her attention with a shiny object.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ONE UPPER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This student will make it a point to one-up anything that comes out of anyones mouth. You study for a test for 6 hours? He studied for 10. You drank 12 beers? He drank 20. You've broken your arm twice? He's broken his 3 times. The interesting thing to note about the One-Upper is the fact that everything he says is a lie, but he has convinced himself its true.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;SMALL TOWN GODDESS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Hails from some microscopic town where she maybe had 5 or 6 classmates in her graduating class, the Small Town Goddess is what is known as HOT. SMOKING HOT, in fact. Like, all-natural, blonde haired and blue-eyed 1973-ish Playboy bunny-like hotness. However, for some reason unknown to science, she somehow did not develop what is commonly known as 'Hot Chick Syndrome' and is, instead, incredibly sweet, good natured and friendly to a fault. This, naturally, causes most members of the opposite sex to be baffled by this seemingly incongruous behavior. Many a man have approached her, yet few can stand to be around her for very long. Why, you ask? The fault lies not with her, oh dear reader! Nay, the fault comes from realizing that she is honestly squeaky clean and you, by comparison, are like some filthy hobo in your soul.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JOHNNY FRAT BOY - or - SALLY SORORITY CHICK&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;While there’s certainly nothing wrong with being in a Greek organization, some people take their involvement in these groups a little too seriously. These are the people who can’t go 2 consecutive days without wearing their shirts from some drinking party they went to last weekend. Johnny Frat Boy likes to brag about how many beers he slammed down on Tuesday night, while Sally Sorority Chick acts as though she is too immaculate to be tarnished by your presence. In either case you shouldn’t worry about these two personality types too much because they only associate with each other. This brings me to another point: when you see these people outside of class, it is perfectly acceptable to run them over with your motor vehicle of choice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;STUDY NAZI&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Study Nazi is in school for one reason: to get good grades. Unfortunately for Study Nazi, he’s not that bright and he struggles with his classes. That doesn’t stop him from letting everyone know how long he studied for that 5 question quiz though. Study Nazi, much like the Intellectual Superhero, will ask questions constantly during class. However, the Intellectual Superhero has some grasp of the material. Study Nazi, while he can quote his books and his notes verbatim, has no idea what any of it means. Under no circumstances should you approach Study Nazi outside of class. Doing so will only remind him that he’s losing valuable time that he could be using in the library and you might get hurt in his frenzied dash to get there as quickly as possible.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE KARAOKE SUPERSTAR:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Possessing the incredible ability of knowing the lyrics to every song ever written, but unfortunately lacking the talent to flaunt it properly, the Karaoke Superstar molds every moment of their life into that of an American Idol reject. Whether it be wailing along to their favorite Nickelback song at the bar, or belting out Phil Collins in the dorm shower at 8 in the morning, the Karaoke Superstar fails to hit the right notes every time. Those in earshot will reel in horror at the audio assault, exclaiming "Oh my God, a cat fell into the blender!" or "It sounds like someone is scraping a cheese grater across 200 feet of blackboard!" The Karaoke Superstar falls under the category of "completely ignorant," believing their vocal stylings to be those of a professional. Frequently an actual Music major, mentioning their shortcomings will result in a major blow to their ego.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE LUCKY BASTARD&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;An amorphous presence, he is in your class just to make you feel crappy. He doesn't try, isn't smart, and may even be a mean SOB to people, yet gets lucky breaks in grades/finding a job/getting a girl. For instance he bombs a test but the professor loses it and acknowledges he took the test and gets the class average, or finds an emotionally unstable girl who clings to him and does anything he wants regardless of how he treats her. He also will get a job because of a crappy reason like him and the recruiter like the same baseball player.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE BALANCED GUY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;They're a fairly sociable bunch with lots of common sense, and they have fairly diversified skills. These guys seldom try to draw attention to themselves but also have a healthy amount of self-esteem (Balanced Guys generally don't attack/insult people in any way unless they feel it's warranted). They're willing to learn a little about everything and can be found in places such as the gym lifting weights, or even in a kitchen working on their cooking skills... or....sometimes in their room masturbating to a wide variety of downloaded porn clips. Who knows what Balanced Guy will do next. They aren't spendthrifts, but they aren't penny pinchers, either. They play both sports and video games. When it comes to discussions of any sort, balanced guy keeps an open mind and generally takes a politically "moderate" stance.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;SILENT FOREIGN CURVE DESTROYER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Silent Foreign Curve Destroyer has nothing better to do than study. While the average of the rest of the class is a respectable 45%, Silent Foreign Curve Destroyer has approximately a 1351% in the course, thereby totally destroying any chance you had of passing the class. Silent Foreign Curve Destroyer can be identified by the fact that he will be in the library before you get there and stay far after you've left. He will almost certainly wear the same clothing throughout the entire course, and, while he may be human, it's more likely that he's some kind of magic robot.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE CELLPHONE TERRORIST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Cellphone Terrorist has the capability to disrupt classes without even being present. They will leave their belongings in class as they go for a bathroom break when, suddenly, the sound of "My Humps" fills the room. Yes, that's The Cellphone Terrorists new ring tone for this week and it isn't going to stop until they return. Those unfortunate enough to be sitting beside The Cellphone Terrorist will hang their head in shame as piercing gazes are shot directly their way.&lt;br /&gt;Upon return, The Cellphone Terrorist will usually check their missed calls and proceed to call said person back by means of a covert coat-over-the-head technique that they have perfected.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;FUCKING DISGUSTING C.S. MAJOR&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Fucking Disgusting Computer Science Major is the reason that you don’t want to go to class. He bathes roughly once every leap year and wears the same "totally awesome" Japanese video game (the import version was so much better) shirt for half a semester at a time. No matter how far away you get from him, the stench seems to travel across the room and assault your nostrils. Fucking Disgusting Computer Science Major has no time for the English language, and he will often ask questions that make little to no sense and lack any sort of "grammatical structure." He’s the only character that can actually give Silent Foreign Curve Destroyer a run for his money on the intellectual scale, but that’s only because he was probably born with knowledge of linear algebra and differential equations.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;AGENDA ASSAILER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Agenda Assailer has (surprise!) an agenda to push on everyone else. If you’re in, say, a science class you’ll get to hear about how the scientist who discovered some principle was a racist or misogynist and therefore his scholarly work is somehow meaningless. Even though the rest of the class is just there to learn, the Agenda Assailer will attempt to turn every class into a political debate. Here’s an example from a history class:quote:Professor: Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.AA: How can you even SAY that?!?!?!?! He owned slaves!!!Professor: Well, yes. But he still wrote it.AA: Well then he’s a hypocrite and we should THROW OUT the Declaration of Independence!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE VISIBLE MINORITY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;He's the only one in your class, sometimes he makes sure that everyone knows it. Most of the time he's pretty cool tough, you just need to get to know them better. Excels at making you feel bad about random comment you make on his people.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ANIME FREAK&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Anime Freak is somewhat of a rarity outside of computer science and/or Japanese courses. However, you still might encounter one in some humanities cores. The Anime Freak will always be wearing button down shirts with a dragon or some kind of Dragonball Z character on it. Also, anything with Japanese writing on it is always cool in the eyes of Anime Freak, even if it makes absolutely no sense. Do not approach the Anime Freak outside of class, unless you want to run into a situation like this:quote:You: Hey, what’s up?AF: I think episode 185 of [insert horribly obscure anime show here] is the best because they use the Power of the Light to slay the dragon beast and save the world from total destruction!!!You: Um… I have to go.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ENGINEER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;One who is rarely seen without a TI-83 Plus or higher model calculator, and actually knows how to, and does, use all the functions of said calculator. Often makes jokes that one outside of the Engineering spectrum will not understand, or makes really horrible ones, or both. Example: "I'm pretty sure it was a zero-force member..." "that's what she said." Takes many science/math courses that are said to "strongly relate to core Engineering" and "provide a base for higher level courses" but in reality 99% of skills in said classes are rarely used.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MAJOR ELITIST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;No, he’s not in the military! Ha ha! All blatantly bad jokes aside, the Major Elitist is generally some type of science or engineering major who looks down on anyone who might even think about getting a humanities or business degree. After all, we all know that the only thing that’s important is science. All that other mamby-pansy bullshit like "History" or "English" or "the world economy" is just a bunch of feel-good rhetorical nonsense anyway. Besides, any jackass can get a liberal arts degree!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;NON-CONFORMIST CONFORMIST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Non-Conformist Conformist is an interesting species. While he tries to "fight the man," he is unable to do so without conforming to another group. The Non-Conformist Conformist can be easily identified by his Rage Against the Machine or Che Guevara t-shirt and dark green corduroy pants. During the winter he will be wearing a military field coat from Germany with a patch on the side, and he often carries a wallet on a chain. You can identify him in the classroom because he’ll feel the need to share with the class his opinions of pop culture. He’ll use a condescending tone of voice because he’s better than little sheep like you. That’s all right though because whether it be the punk, goth, or any other subculture, the Non-Conformist Conformist declares boldly, "I choose to not fit in by fitting in with a DIFFERENT group!"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;FASHION MONGER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Fashion Monger is on the bleeding edge of fashion! While having some nice clothes is something everyone should invest in, Fashion Monger’s entire wardrobe has been purchased from stores so hip that you've never even heard of them. Apparently, it’s "hip" and "with it" to pay 500 dollars for jeans that were hand stitched by the hardworking people of Taiwan. And, as we all know, 50 dollars for a silk-screened t-shirt is a completely reasonable price, as long as it was designed by an gay Italian man. Yes, nothing says, "I have too much money and not enough common sense" quite like buying clothes with fancy designer labels that are marked up 1000%&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SOCIABLE SLACKER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This is the guy who went out of his way to talk to you on the first day. Was really personable, seems like a normal, social person. He even suggested trading phone numbers just in case you needed help. Fast forward to the second week of class - he's not there. Same goes for all the classes until right before the midterm when you get a call. "Hey man, what's up? How's it going? Oh yeah, I missed the last class can I borrow all your notes and photocopy them? Yeah, we should go grab a beer one day." No show again until the final where he calls you up again asking for notes. And that beer? A complete fabrication.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PARADISE LOST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Smart, sheltered kid with a childhood full of religious superstition and intimacy issues. Finally gets into a relationship (aka LAID) and gets suicidal when the breakup comes a few months later. Will either hang himself in the woods or emerge as an improved species. Flip a coin.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CEO JUNIOR III&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Born to wealth and privilege and toting an ego the size of Australia, CEO Jr. III will rarely be encountered outside of econ, business and business-related courses (like the lower level computer sciences). Much like the Fashion Monger, CJ3 is fascinated by brand names and drops them wherever possible. However, instead of dropping "real" designer names, he'll brag about the cheap shit he bought from Abercrombie last week. Success is what he's aiming for, and he'll probably get there, but only through his dad’s business connections. Like the Study Nazi, he is not particularly bright, though his particular mode of achieving good grades consists of stroking the professor's ego with appropriate questions and office hours schmoozing. Like the Sociable Slacker he is unfailingly cheerful, but his cheeriness, much like everything else about him, is completely insincere. He is astoundingly successful at getting laid for reasons which are at present unknown to science. It's probably best to avoid crossing him in social circumstances since he can wield his people skills like a weapon.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SKIMMER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The skimmer is easy to identify. He always sits in the back of lecture halls and is usually asleep 10 minutes into class. It is not uncommon to hear The Skimmer brag about how much studying he didn't do for that quiz coming up. The Skimmer is not usually found in higher level courses.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SCOUT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The Scout is always in lecture before you. Even if you show up five minutes early. The Scout will use his backpack, notebook, textbook, or anything larger than a piece of paper to cordon off the entire front row for his or her friends, who show up five minutes after the class has already started.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE PHANTOM&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;A completely unremarkable student in every way, THE PHANTOM shows up for classes, does the work, and... that's it. You will never see THE PHANTOM outside of class - Existing on his sheepishness and fueled by his silence, even if you live next door to THE PHANTOM you'll never hear a word of him, sometimes can be combined with Fucking Disgusting Computer Science Major for a truly wholesome experience.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;FORMER MILITARY SERVICEMAN&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;"Well, when I was in Iraq ..."And basically media misrepresentation is the cause of virtually everything bad in society these days.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;VALLEY GIRL&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Women who appear to be made entirely from bronzed plastic, with lips glossy enough to successfully buff the floor of a shopping mall. Don't bother remembering any of their names, as one valley girl is completely indiscernible from the next. Often seen courting Ugly Assholes.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JOHNNY THREE LEGS&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Usually an average-looking, somewhat lanky guy, Johnny Three Legs is extraordinary on one respect: his ten inch penis. Flaccid. How do you know? Well, he's the guy that faces towards everyone else in communal showers. In dorms with individual showers, he dries himself off in public areas, and spends just a bit more time naked than other residents, who usually whip on a towel before they even draw the curtains open. Pity his poor roommate, usually a lonely computer science major that is still a virgin, who is kept up awake at nights from the cries of Johnny Three leg's dates - "Ouch! That hurts! Ungggnmph! Oh yeah ... yes ... God ... OUCH! Let's try it another way .... yes ... oh God ... oh Jesus ... OUCH!"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MADDEN JR.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This student's life revolves around sports. He can quote sports scores, character stats, and just about anything from some obscure game last week. Not only did he watch it, he studied it while his classmates were studying for that quiz he failed. He usually arrives in class approximately 10 minutes late wearing his favorite sports team hat and jacket, only to talk about sports for the entire class. Interestingly, the Madden Jr. rarely, if ever, has any athletic ability of his own, and is often obese due to a diet consisting entirely of nachos.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE PREMED&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The pre-med has a 4.0 cumulative GPA and has junior standing even though he's a first semester sophomore. He's got a &gt;90 average in every class this semester, but is absolutely terrified that he's going to fail them all. Can often be heard making wild assumptions about grading schemes and arguing with the TA over 0.25 point deductions on exams.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BRING ME UP, KNOCK ME DOWN&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;He/She is a mystery wrapped in an enigma. One day he will roll out of bed, take an exam without studying, and beat you by two full letter grades after you spent the night studying. However, the next day, you show him your 0.96 GPA only to find out that he is maintaining a 0.86 (largely from the fact that he stopped attending a class because it conflicted with his favorite television program.)&lt;br /&gt;He is always there to help. Whatever jam you have yourself in, he will, with ease, find a way to pull you out. However, he will do so with so much reluctance, he makes it sound as though Sisyphus (look it up) had an easy go of things. He will passive aggressively start conversations about what a drag it is being the designated driver, only days after he drove your drunk ass home.&lt;br /&gt;He is the infinite conundrum of friendship. He is always there for you. Unfortunately he is always there.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BABBLING IDIOT&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This kid is sort of like intellectual superhero except that he's not really out to prove a point through questions, but rather through his personal experiences. He is in class to spill as many anecdotes as he can possibly think of, which, for the most part, only relate to the subject at hand tangentially. His diatribes are voiced in an overly sincere tone, which I'm sure he believes makes his stories sound more real, true to life, and hard hitting. Amazingly, his stories always tend to agree with the professor's point of view.&lt;br /&gt;You can tell that he thinks he's truly oozing schmooze, and that he's also in love with his own voice. It is unknown to me whether his stories are rambling and incoherent because he's trying to hear his own voice for an extended period of time, or whether he's just a babbling idiot. Evidence suggests: Babbling idiot.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE WANNA BE COMPUTER GEEK&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;They can be found in groups often discussing old internet fads while downloading songs and files from P2P networks. Often annoying to the people around them. Will shout out "LOL INTERNETS" at random times and you can hear some old techno songs in the background.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE COMMENTER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Tends to occupy the center of the room for maximum visibility. Always nods along with the professor. Provides his/her own commentary, largely to herself, during lecture while jotting down notes. Most commonly uttered phrases are variations of: "Oh yeah", "Exactly", "Well, that's interesting".&lt;br /&gt;Example:Prof.: DNA is blueprint for life.Comm.: [Nod] [Nod] Uh-huh. Well, ain't that something&lt;br /&gt;Tip:Avoid eye contact with the commentator as she/he will attempt to direct future insightful remarks in your direction.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;VACATION GUY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy didn't want to go to college in the first place, but did because he didn't want to disappoint his parents and teachers by not trying. So he picked a party school, never went to class, and treated the whole thing as a $40,000, year long, spring break away from shitty middle class suburbia. Then disappeared to a distant part of the country never to be heard from again.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE BLONDE ASIAN TAMER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Female in a science degree who probably shouldn't be. However, due to chemicals she emits from her hair, holds sway over Silent Foreign Curve Destroyer or other male Asian students who do her beck and call. Part hive mind, part parasite. Identify by remarks like "This stuff is so hard, Haji, you're so smart" or "What did you get for number 1?". Usually a sub-species of Sally Sorority Chick&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;The PASSIONATE POLITICO&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Whatever wing of the political bird he resides within he'll be damned sure to inject his angry rhetoric and sound bites into any classroom conversation regardless of topic. Often twitchy you can spot an outburst before it happens by looking for a grimaced mouth, spasming eye, tapping foot or softly pounding fist (because he thinks no one will notice), then out comes the insanity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MR. UNCERTAINTY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Mr. Uncertainty isn't really that bad a guy to have class with, as he's virtually guaranteed never to disrupt the class proceedings. Even when the teacher asks him a question directly, he'll attempt to deflect it through a magical combination of stuttering, fumbling, and vague sentences that trail off in the middle. He probably doesn't take very good notes, but he's there every day in hopes of making up for the fact. He probably has at least two majors and a third concentration that he's considering, but it's all perpetually up in the air since he doesn't really know what he wants to do. Because of this, you'll almost never see him in an advanced-level class, since he's always going back and satisfying the core requirements for a different major.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PROFESSOR CORRECTOR&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This student loves to volunteer class time to correct the professors' menial mistakes. Did he say 90% instead of 85%? Was he off an important date by a year? The Corrector will grab this opportunity immediately. Does the textbook back up the professor? Well that's wrong too! The whole world is filled with misinformation, and only this noble lad can spend 20 minutes setting the professor straight as everyone silently whispers "I HATE YOU." They may be a student, but they already years ahead of the class.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;OBNOXIOUS CAR DRIVER&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Pulling out of the parking deck at the speed limit while letting pedestrians cross will not fly while the OCD is around. Loud tire screeching, reeving, horn honking, and blasted music must be accompanied at even the slowest street. They will outrace and outmaneuver vans in 20 mph zones. They will rev their engine to make sure they reach the stop sign 20 feet away fast enough. Their car is modified to maximize every scrape, screech and scratch to it's highest volumes. If it's not unnecessarily loud, they are not driving.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;DRAMA NERD&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Often found roaming (or more often loafing) in packs of 4 to 7, the drama nerd is best known for not shutting the fuck up ever and oh god i mean ever regarding new musicals, old musicals, how non-theater majors are intellectually devoid of any redeeming quality, who got cast where, etc. The drama nerd is mostly self-delusional, and if one is to ask it about it's past, the response often involves "well you know I just had the WORST time in high school i mean nobody understood me there but when I got to college I just felt like a BUTTERFLY, able to finally open my creative WINGS" and other such inane metaphors. The Drama nerd does, somehow, get laid all the goddamn time, but only by other Drama nerds, resulting in chain-reaction mega-drama-bombs that will certainly resonate throughout the school because these losers will not shut up about how Johnny Actor face "TOTALLY USED ME" at high volumes in the library during finals week. Somehow possessing both the largest and smallest reserve of self-confidence of any college student simultaneously, ladies and gentlemen: the Drama Nerd.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE CONVERSATIONALIST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;You'll find this one at the back of the class, and they tend to travel in herds. She spends all semester having conversations with the people around her, that have absolutely nothing to do with the class, usually pertaining to her boyfriend, a movie she just saw, or a party she was at/plans to attend. Completely ignorant of the people around her who are actually trying to pay attention to the lecture in a typically difficult subject. Another common trait of The Conversationalist is her apparent lack of any sort of school supplies (including pens, pencils, paper, and the freaking textbook) Sociologists have theorized that this is a subconscious ploy designed to draw more people into The Conversationalist's tangled web of distraction.&lt;br /&gt;The Conversationalist is more prevalent in community colleges or lower level classes and tends to drop classes the day before the drop date, just in time to add all of her soon to be ex-classmates to her cell phone.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE FACULTY MEMBER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This is a student who has become very involved and uses his major as a replacement for a social life. He may, or may not work in the department office, but you'll see him wandering around the office anyway, chatting up the actual faculty. Maybe having lunch in the waiting area. He's only annoying when you actually have a class with him and he takes on the role of a teaching assistant.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE JACKASS OF ALL TRADES&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This man is seemingly adept in all subjects, and will boast about it too. Hear him complain about how easy his last Abstract Algebra exam was, how he wrote his African paper two hours before its due and how little he prepared for his sociology presentation. His weakness is poor social skills. Ask about his girlfriend for massive emotional baggage!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;PHILOSOPHER STONER&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Easily identifiable by his red eyes, incoherent speech, and the lingering stench of marijuana, the philosopher stoner may or may not be a member of NORML, and probably won't go to class very often. On the off chance that he actually attends a class, god forbid the professor mention anything related to drugs, because suddenly the philosopher stoner will turn into a walking, talking version of erowid.com.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;I'M TO IMPORTANT TO BE HERE GIRL&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This girl is much too busy to do something as menial as class. She's in a sorority, she's in the student senate and she's got a boyfriend on the lacrosse team. She treats class like it's a bother- much like a PTA meeting. During the entire class period, her blistered thumbs are hammering at the tiny keys on her super expensive new cell phone that Daddy's bought her three times because she keeps wearing it out. Whenever the professor asks her to stop her hammering, her face curls up worse than Reese Witherspoon's after eating out an asshole.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;DEER IN HEADLIGHT CHICK&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Normally, she's quiet. She's so quiet she'll duck down when the professor looks to ask questions. The second she's called on to give a speech, her entire body tenses up. Very rarely will a word escape her mouth that's not "Uhhh" or "Like". She's known for freezing up for periods of greater than one minute during in-class presentations, much to everyone else's amusement.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SNIPER&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is the kid, usually a male, who sits in the back of the class and will constantly spout out smart ass remarks at the professor in an attempt to act like he really doesn't really care for the class and thinks he is super cool cause he can be so disrespectful in class. But this guy is important cause when the class starts dragging and getting boring, he can usually lighten the mood. Annoying and funny at the same time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE REDNECK&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This poor troglodyte managed to get into the college because he went to a backwoods school composed entirely of trailers in a swamp, where 4.0 gpas are a dime a dozen, and anyone can pass the classes practically by attending. Unfortunately, he is probably going to fail multiple classes in a semester and drop out soon. Unattractive, disgusting hygiene, has a taste for inferior websites, loves to hunt, sometimes wears camouflage to class, attends every athletic event, and likes to "Git-R-Dun" occasionally. Nothing more than a friendly nuisance on his own, he is a very dangerous animal in the company of others exactly the same.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;I STUDIED ABROAD AND IT CHANGED MY LIFE&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This person has spent anywhere from 3-12 months in a country that isn't too different from our own, but it's sooo much better. It's so cultured and you can drink without having the draconian American laws over your back. Most of this student's stories involve getting drunk and hooking up with a creepy older gentleman or passing out on the couch interspersed with some sightseeing. But it changed her life, like OMG i totally know how people in other countries live and I'll keep talking and talking and talking about it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;QUIET SMART SLACKER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Normally found in one of the back rows but not the very back as he is trying to blend in. Doesn't say much in class, only being social when he has to or with people he knows outside of class. Won't disrupt class but if called on will answer correctly. Pays attention, but doesn't always do work, or work hard. Shows up to class 80% of the time, but does 40% of the outside work/study time. Graduates in 5-6 years with a 3.0 but only because of intelligence and test scores, not effort (as shown in number of years taken to graduate).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE ANNOYING CLONE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This is a person you meet in the class that you share the same interests and hobbies. At first you enjoy talking and hanging out with them, but then all they do is constantly talk about the same interests and never want to talk about anything else, and every day they want to hang out after class and do something related to the point it drives you insane. In the end you end up hating both the person, and what you enjoyed.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE CONVERTER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This guy or gal is a shining beacon of their Religion, and will attempt to bring it to light every chance they get, and attempt to get you to believe in whatever it is they believe. Anytime your classes mention faith, she is the first to preach to the entire class, and say that her deity is what everyone needs to follow&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE HERETIC&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Exact opposite of The Converter, this person hates all forms of Religion and despises God. Used to be devoted to a faith, but lost his or her faith through some event in the past, such as a major physical/psychological trauma. This person loves to quote John Milton, and argue with others who believe in God.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE COMPUTER DUMMY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Cannot use a computer or any technology to save their life. This person will rely on you to help them type up reports, assignments, or use excel/power point/access for projects. Will also become dazzled if they see you playing any kind of video game or watching a DVD in your dorm, and will want to learn more about it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE LOVE-HATER:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The guy/girl who's too cool for romance, and has to insult every couple that passes their way. Whether staring, snickering, or outright making an idiotic comment, the love-hater somehow tries to be "different" by not looking for an opportunity to pass on their genes. Needless to say, these types are usually at home practicing their five-knuckle shuffle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE "WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH THAT" NINJA:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;These people are ninjas in disguise, often lurking amongst the normal people. They seem nice at first, but when they come to the part of the discussion of majors, the inevitable question of "What are you going to do with that?" comes up. Usually in a patronizing tone, they also carry shiruken... too bad that the weapons are so far up their a$$es that they can't utilize them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE WANNA-BE JOCK:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The chubby idiot in the back of the classes, busy bragging about the amazing three pointer he pulled in a game with the boys. However, if studied in its natural habitat, the Wanna-be Jock can be seen getting the only sports exposure from a video game console. NOTE: If encountering one of these during its ritualistic video gaming, beware of celebrations. They often involve screaming and waving when they get an extra point on Madden NFL.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE YING-YANGER:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Found in most of the female population in college settings, the Ying-Yangers are those who, if approached by someone athletic, will swoon and bend to their every whim. However, if approached by someone of the least bit imperfection, the Ying-Yanger will sneer in disgust... if providing a reaction at all.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE NON-STREET GANGSTA:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Often seen wearing designer clothes, the NSG is often male. They talk street, smoke pot, and pretend that they are the toughest thing around. Often found hiding from real fights or blasting rap music from a dorm window in hopes to attract a mate.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE THREAT:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Black trench coat. Few words. Odd knowledge about weapons. And somehow, he always seems to sit next to you in class.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE APATHETIC GENIUS&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The apathetic genius is the pinnacle of wasted potential. He shows up to most of his classes, and is minorly sociable. He is involved in class discussions but will never write a single page of notes, never does any extra credit or optional assignments, and never even reads the textbook or studies. Despite this he will consistently get A's and B's in every class he takes, all while exerting no apparent effort. This person probably has the ability to cure cancer some day, but years of being unchallenged and socially shunned will lead him to drop out after his first or second year.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE DUDE WHO KNOWS FUCKING EVERYONE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Everywhere you go, this guy knows somebody he has to high five and chat with for a little bit. He probably grew up in the area, has an outgoing personality, and is involved in a wide variety of activities that breach many social circles. Generally liked, although he may be too outgoing for some people. Generally doesn't have a lot of close friends, but makes up for it in sheer volume. This is the guy to talk to if you're interested in a new hobby, want to join a club, or just want to meet new people. May do incredibly outrageous things to get even more attention.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE R.A.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The R.A. lives to fuck up your social life. Lurking behind every dark shadow; The R.A. springs to action and stomps out any signs of fun, ranging from a friendly game of Bingo to a raging smörgåsbord orgy. This guy, often hated by many feels because he is getting free housing owes it to his said college to annoy all with his passive –aggressive confrontational vendetta against all on campus students. All that is missing is a whistle, and a safety badge. Often useless, The R.A. does come in handy when the PHILOSOPHER STONER, JOHNNY FRAT BOY - or - SALLY SORORITY CHICK locks themselves out at 4am.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MAN-HATING FEMINIST&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Usually found in Women's Studies or English classes. They find enjoyment in discussing how the standard of beauty is too high and how the opposite sex has taken over the world. They also tend to wear clothing that shows off cleavage in order to show that they are comfortable with their bodies. They tend to be loud in class discussions and easily annoyed by male classmates. Almost every conversation turns into a discussion of how men are degrading women.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;I-PLACED-INTO-HIGHER-LEVEL-CLASSES-YOU-SHOULD-THINK-I'M-THE-SHIT-CAUSE-I-DO!&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This individual is a Freshman, who managed to get placed into upper level courses. Because of this, he will establish a heightened feeling of self-worth, and will consider himself to be a worthy equal to the majors in said department. Will bring up the fact that they are a FRESHMAN at every opportunity, and will become confounded when the upperclassmen in the same major aren't fawning over him or trying to suck his cock out of amazement at how awesome he must be, because he's taking upper level classes, but he's merely a FRESHMAN. Will most likely be despised by all other majors of the department, but will remain oblivious to this fact and try to strike up pointless conversation, mostly focusing on how they are a FRESHMAN TAKING THE SAME CLASS AS YOU. If it is a language course, they will try to chat in that language, regardless of the fact that you won't understand what-the-fuck. Not because they're better than you, but in their pretentious righteousness, they don't realize they completely suck at it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SILENT, STRAIGHT-LACED GEM&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This girl is rather shy, quite studious, probably pretty conservative, and usually somewhat attractive in a sort of clean, traditional, classic way. Sometimes, her quietness or straight face may be misinterpreted as indifference or the "get away from me" look, but once you get to know her, she is actually quite nice and makes a decent friend. She doesn't drink or smoke - not because she's a "goody two-shoes", but because she genuinely has no desire to. This girl may end up a loner if she's not careful - spending countless hours locked away in her dorm room, reading, or (if she pushes herself a little) can be found actually socializing. Gets along with most people, has a decent social circle, but holds just a few close friends. May need a little push to get involved in activities. Makes a reliable friend. Is a hard worker, but can enjoy having fun too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE SKATER&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Usually listens to "emo" music and wears nothing but skate brands, sagging jeans with a belt and t-shirt (sometimes a hoodie and a beanie). The skater is rarely seen without skateboard in hand. He is not particularly bright, nor does he say much. These types when not skateboarding through campus by themselves travel in pacts.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE WANNABE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;This type pretends to know everything about a few subjects and will attempt to impress you with their extensive knowledge on said subject. Often times someone who actually knows what they are talking about will correct the wannabe, however the wannabe will argue his or her side until someone presents them with hard evidence that they were actually wrong. The wannabe will change their personality according to who they are with. No one knows what the wannabe is actually like because he/she is always changing.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE INDIE KID&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;The indie kid is the guy/girl who wear nothing but vintage cloths purchase from thrift stores and listens to music by bands that nobody has ever heard of. Indie kids stick together, always involved in some sort of "intellectual" conversation about a worldly event (past or present) that everybody is not talking about. Often times the indie kid will go out of his or her way to mention something obscure to give themselves "indie cred".&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;THE EDUCATION MAJOR&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As a freshman, the education major parties excessively, because he or she knows in subsequent years, they won't be able to have any more late nights out due to having to go to field experience at a local school. The education major finds themselves wishing they could sign up for an 8 AM class because it feels like sleeping in when he or she compares it to waking up for field or student teaching at 5:30 in the morning.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-8975075704072489534?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/8975075704072489534/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=8975075704072489534&amp;isPopup=true' title='388 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/8975075704072489534'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/8975075704072489534'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2007/01/summary-of-99-of-people-you-will-meet.html' title='Summary of 99% of the people you will meet in College'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>388</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-4279335198144425814</id><published>2007-01-18T16:53:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2007-01-18T16:55:20.165-08:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='student'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college life'/><title type='text'>You know College is kicking your ass when...</title><content type='html'>- You realize you haven't slept for a few days.&lt;br /&gt;- You find yourself stressing out about life more than actually having one.&lt;br /&gt;- You've found a comfortable niche in a library that feels more homey than your actual home.&lt;br /&gt;- You have taken a class with your boyfriend/girlfriend to insure that you get to see them at least two hours a week.&lt;br /&gt;- You have coffee running through your veins instead of blood.&lt;br /&gt;- Sometime over the past few days you have thought to yourself "i hate my life"&lt;br /&gt;- You count down the days until the weekend... and then when it finally gets there... you think, even if just for a brief moment "wow I'm almost too exhausted to go out" (and then of course you do anyways, since you've learned to live on caffeine, alcohol, and almost no sleep)&lt;br /&gt;- A night when you get to bed before 2am has become a fond memory of the past.&lt;br /&gt;- You have fallen asleep during a lecture (or maybe even a discussion)&lt;br /&gt;- As soon as you get finished with one mid-term or huge assignment, you get to take about 3 deep breaths before starting the next one.&lt;br /&gt;- You procrastinate doing homework by sitting at your computer and refreshing one of the following:~your email (hoping someone loves you enough to send you something)~your facebook homepage (hoping someone is leading a more exciting life than you)~the yahoo sports page (yes EVEN if none of your fantasy players are playing)&lt;br /&gt;- You could go pro in an event called the "write, print, and run to class"&lt;br /&gt;- You never get a good amount of sleep... and on nights when you can, you lay in bed, unable to sleep, because your mind is racing with thoughts of how little sleep you get (vicious cycle)&lt;br /&gt;- You really wouldn't be ALL THAT surprised to find a gray hair somewhere on your head&lt;br /&gt;- If you tried to squeeze ONE more activity into your day... you might have to cut out the time you spend breathing... or blinking...&lt;br /&gt;- Wearing something other than sweatpants or pajama bottoms feels odd&lt;br /&gt;- The quality time that you spend with your close friends or significant other is time you spend at the library together studying&lt;br /&gt;- At some point in your college experience you have honestly considered dropping out and thought that maybe working at mcdonalds for the rest of your life wouldn't be THAT bad...&lt;br /&gt;- You have spent time when you should have been writing a paper... creating a pointless facebook group instead.&lt;br /&gt;----------------------------------------&lt;br /&gt;SOME MORE&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- "you feel like you need to quit your job, just so you dont fail!"&lt;br /&gt;- "You know college is kicking your ass when you're in the library until they kick you out, but you're still not done with your work."&lt;br /&gt;- "u spend ur weekends studying all day in the library and drinking all night"&lt;br /&gt;- "you know the real term for coke and rum"&lt;br /&gt;- "when you can squeeze 2.75 pages into 3.5"&lt;br /&gt;- "work seems like the least stressful part of your day... despite the fact that you're trying to do homework while at work"&lt;br /&gt;- "12 hours a day, 5-7 days a week with the same people and the most common response to any question is a grunt or a groan."&lt;br /&gt;- "you know college is kicking your ass when the only time you really relax is when you get to your slacker class. ;-)"&lt;br /&gt;AND MORE ADDITIONS!!!!&lt;br /&gt;- you have a 10 am class and you skip it every day because it's cutting into what little "sleeping" time you have.&lt;br /&gt;- your being bitched at by the dean for drinking to much, the community service never seems to end, and despite all your efforts you can't get your grades over 2.0!&lt;br /&gt;- when you feel smart till you get in class and the little fucker beside you got to same you out and shit&lt;br /&gt;- when you have'nt eaten anything but ramen and bottled water for more than five days.&lt;br /&gt;- your nap the next day is longer than how long you sleep at night.&lt;br /&gt;- You're incredibly stressed out and can't even remember why.&lt;br /&gt;- the only conversation you have all day that is not about school work is about this group. :( ouch.&lt;br /&gt;- You say Fuck it! And sleep aaaaalll week.&lt;br /&gt;- You can't find anyone free when you are and if you do you are too tired to go out.&lt;br /&gt;- "You know college is kicking your ass when you cherish eating a meal with out having to do homework or group projects."&lt;br /&gt;- you kno college is kickin' yar ass when lack of sleep is affectin' ya &amp;amp; ya get off the bus confused to which class ya have to go to next.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when your adderall won't even work and you can't remember to add a reason as to why college is kicking your ass the FIRST time you write something on the wall of a facebook group.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you give up studying because you know your going to make a C anyway.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when the most exciting thing you've gotten lately is a daily planner 2007-2008. Not to mention the 97 cent air freshener from walmart...&lt;br /&gt;- when you start rotating what class your not gonna do homework in so you can do home work for other classes&lt;br /&gt;- When you get home at 3:00 in the morning and throw a potato in a microwave because all you had to eat that day was way over sugared coffee and whatever you managed to snatch from the candy jar at your work.&lt;br /&gt;- you know college is kicking your ass when you think about your assignments in your SLEEP&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you drink coffee so often to pull an all nighter, that you can't concentrate on your homework without a cup.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when... even your designated slacker class just hit you up with a term paper&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you spend time while doing homework stressing about the other homework you should be doing.&lt;br /&gt;- ...when you're taking 18hrs a semester... haha =) and have back to back tests at 0630 every morning three days in a row, after staying up til 3 to study for them...and you have to get up for reveille at 0600... daaaaaang...&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you tell people not to call you because you have to get stuff done, but spend more time talking about what you have to get done instead of actually getting it done.&lt;br /&gt;- you know college is kicking your ass when food is no longer a biological need because your body runs on caffine&lt;br /&gt;- You know when college is kicking your ass when you can drink a red bull and go to sleep since they have no affect on you anymore.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you live on a steady diet of Juston Stix and Mountain Dew.&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you have 4 essays and a midterm all due within 3 days of each other and you are out drinking instead :)&lt;br /&gt;- You know college is kicking your ass when you skip class to do homework for the class you skipped...Or when all of your teachers have turned you over to the support center for failing grades&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span id="fullpost"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span id="fullpost"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-4279335198144425814?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/4279335198144425814/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=4279335198144425814&amp;isPopup=true' title='7 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/4279335198144425814'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/4279335198144425814'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2007/01/you-know-college-is-kicking-your-ass.html' title='You know College is kicking your ass when...'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>7</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-2398875015298312345</id><published>2007-01-18T16:29:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2007-01-18T16:34:38.877-08:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='student'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='college life'/><title type='text'>You know you are in college when ...</title><content type='html'>&lt;span id="fullpost"&gt;You know you are in college when ....&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1. High school started before 8am, but now anything before noon is considered “early.”&lt;br /&gt;2. You have more beer than food in your fridge.&lt;br /&gt;3. Weekends start on Thursday.&lt;br /&gt;4. 6am is when you go to sleep, not when you wake up.&lt;br /&gt;5. You know many different ways to cook ramen noodles or macaroni and cheese.&lt;br /&gt;6. The health center gives out free condoms, and people take them… just in case.&lt;br /&gt;7. Instead of falling asleep in class, you stay in bed.&lt;br /&gt;8. You know how late McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Qdoba, etc. are open.&lt;br /&gt;9. You think it’s the weekend on a Wednesday and you don’t know what month it is.&lt;br /&gt;10. You can't remember the last time you washed your car.&lt;br /&gt;11. Your underwear/sock supply dictates your laundry schedule.&lt;br /&gt;12. You check Facebook/Myspace more than once a day.&lt;br /&gt;13. You get drunk dialed on any night of the week.&lt;br /&gt;14. You wash dishes in the bathroom sink.&lt;br /&gt;15. You’ve fallen off a loft bed.&lt;br /&gt;16. You talk about beer pong like it’s a sport.&lt;br /&gt;17. Finding random people in your house is perfectly normal, and you even sympathize with them... sometimes when you wake up you have no idea where you are.&lt;br /&gt;18. Your primary news sources are the Daily Show and the Colbert Report.&lt;br /&gt;19. You open a beer at 10 am and your roommate asks you if there’s more.&lt;br /&gt;20. The standard of meals per day falls to two, sometimes just one.&lt;br /&gt;21. Your trash is overflowing and your bank account isn’t.&lt;br /&gt;22. You go to Target or WalMart more than 3 times a week.&lt;br /&gt;23. You wear the same jeans for 13 days without washing them.&lt;br /&gt;24. Your breakfast consists of a coke or cereal bar on the way to class... anything with caffeine will do.&lt;br /&gt;25. Quarters are like gold.&lt;br /&gt;26. Your idea of feeding the poor is buying yourself some ramen noodles.&lt;br /&gt;27. You live in a house with three couches, none of which match.&lt;br /&gt;28. You try to study but seem to procrastinate by eating, going to study breaks, talking to people, etc...&lt;br /&gt;29. You talk to your roommate on instant messenger when you’re both home.&lt;br /&gt;30. You ask people what YOU did last night.&lt;br /&gt;31. Facebook becomes a part of your daily life – when friends say something funny, oh “that’s going on facebook.” When friends take pictures of you, you wonder how long it will take them to post them.&lt;br /&gt;32. You’ve seen a hit and run involving a bicyclist/pedestrian.&lt;br /&gt;33. You see people you know you’ve met but can never remember their names or how you know them.&lt;br /&gt;34. You sleep more in class than in your room&lt;br /&gt;35. Your idea of a square meal is a box of Pop-Tarts.&lt;br /&gt;36. You've traveled with bags of dirty clothes.&lt;br /&gt;37. You go home to do your laundry because you're too poor to pay the $2... or too lazy to go to a change machine.&lt;br /&gt;38. You pay $100 for a book you don't read once, return it four months later, and get $7.&lt;br /&gt;39. More than 20% of your household furnishings are made from milk crates.&lt;br /&gt;40. You recognize the meat in the dorm soup as yesterday's meatloaf, and thus decide to eat a nice bowl of cereal - a safe bet for any meal.&lt;br /&gt;41. You use words like "thus" (see #40).&lt;br /&gt;42. You throw out bowls and plates because you don't feel like washing them.&lt;br /&gt;43. Your beer pong table is nicer than all your other tables.&lt;br /&gt;44. It takes preparation... and 3 people... to take out your garbage.&lt;br /&gt;45. Going to the library is a social event.&lt;br /&gt;46. You wear flip flops in the shower your freshman year... you know why.&lt;br /&gt;47. You start joining clubs because of the free food.&lt;br /&gt;48. Visits home depend on how much money you have for gas.&lt;br /&gt;49. You skip one class to write a paper for another.&lt;br /&gt;50. You have no idea where your tuition money is going... technology fees? I think not.&lt;br /&gt;51. Bicycles don't seem as lame as they did in high school.&lt;br /&gt;52. You stay up late to finish homework then sleep through the class it was due in.&lt;br /&gt;53. Girls: You've balanced your foot on a shampoo bottle to shave.&lt;br /&gt;54. Your backpack is giving you scoliosis.&lt;br /&gt;55. You've written a check for 45 cents or stopped to get $2.00 of gas.&lt;br /&gt;56. Your bill in the bookstore will be comparable to tuition.&lt;br /&gt;57. Going to the mailbox becomes an ego booster/breaker.&lt;br /&gt;58. Most of your T.A.s are foreign...what's the deal?&lt;br /&gt;59. You never realized so many people are smarter than you.&lt;br /&gt;60. You never realized so many people are dumber than you.&lt;br /&gt;61. Western Europe could be wiped out by a terrible plague and you'd never know, but you can recite the last episode of your favorite show verbatim.&lt;br /&gt;62. Care packages rank right up there with birthdays.&lt;br /&gt;63. You craft ways to make any game into a drinking/stripping game.&lt;br /&gt;64. You meet the type of people you thought only existed in the movies.&lt;br /&gt;65. Printers break down only when you desperately need them.&lt;br /&gt;66. Anything can be cooked in a microwave.&lt;br /&gt;67. Two words: bike cops.&lt;br /&gt;68. You have Safe Ride programmed into your phone.&lt;br /&gt;69. Old school Nintendo... and guitar hero... are pretty much the best things ever.&lt;br /&gt;70. Going to the grocery at midnight is completely normal.&lt;br /&gt;71. You call restaurants that deliver more than you call your own family.&lt;br /&gt;72. You finish reading this and wonder how you can procrastinate next.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-2398875015298312345?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/2398875015298312345/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=2398875015298312345&amp;isPopup=true' title='9 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/2398875015298312345'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/2398875015298312345'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2007/01/you-know-you-are-in-college-when.html' title='You know you are in college when ...'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>9</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-116708905902582141</id><published>2006-12-25T15:13:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2006-12-25T16:45:59.830-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Software Wars: Free software, software sharing and software freedom</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/4838/2722/1600/984970/software%20wars.png"&gt;&lt;img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/4838/2722/400/875325/software%20wars.png" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The current state of the free software movement by comparing it with &lt;em&gt;Hackers' Ethic&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1. Always yield the Hands-On Imperative! Access to computers - and anything else which might teach you about the way the world works - should be unlimited and total.&lt;br /&gt;2. All information should be free.&lt;br /&gt;3. Mistrust Authority - Promote Decentralization.&lt;br /&gt;4. Hackers should be judged by their hacking, not bogus criteria such as degrees, age, race, or position.&lt;br /&gt;5. You can create art and beauty on a computer.&lt;br /&gt;6. Computers can change your life for the better.&lt;br /&gt;(Levy, 1984)&lt;em&gt; &lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Free Software Foundation was founded by &lt;a href="http://www.fsf.org/people/rms.html"&gt;Richard Stallman&lt;/a&gt; of the MIT AI labs. He was also responsible for the GNU project. The GNU tools liberate people from dependence on proprietary software/development tools.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The picture above, shows the original vision before software went proprietary, a world where Software is by the people, Of the People and For the People. (click for a larger copy of the picture)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-116708905902582141?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/116708905902582141/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=116708905902582141&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116708905902582141'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116708905902582141'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/12/software-wars-free-software-software.html' title='Software Wars: Free software, software sharing and software freedom'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-116223321782225409</id><published>2006-10-30T10:29:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2006-10-30T10:33:37.850-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Microsoft Firefox 2007 Professional</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://static.flickr.com/105/283275712_82bb8d9796.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://static.flickr.com/105/283275712_82bb8d9796.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Article reproduced with permission from &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com"&gt;AskStudent&lt;/a&gt;. Check out the original article &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com/2006/10/30/microsoft-firefox-2007-professional/"&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here comes the hottest new product …. Microsoft Firefox 2007 Professional, the new award winning browser from Microsoft which is now a lot faster, secure and quicker than anything else on the market.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Some of the advantages&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Enjoy a better Web Experience&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;MS Firefox 2007 delivers a dramatic boost in the download speeds of online pornography. By utilising a proprietary dynamic algorithm - anything that remotely resembles a tit or a boob will download up to 10 times faster. Fun at the speed of light!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Stay Secure on the Web&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Firefox 2007’s new TakeOver(TM) technology protects the Windows Kernel by automatically recognizing all McAfee and Symantec programs as viruses. Downloading has never been safer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Interactive Multimedia&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Microsoft’s AKobe Phlash(TM) Plugin delivers awesome online interactive content; anything from music, videos to games. (Lawsuit from Adobe pending)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Personalize Your Browser&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Choose from three excellent browsing styles! Minimized, Maximized and Fullscreen!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The best part, check out the System Requirements&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;System Requirements&lt;/strong&gt;: Credit card, Microsoft OS, Microsoft mouse and Keyboard(hyperlinks will NOT work without these), Quad core processor(for loading Hotmail.com), 1024 MB of RAM(compensation for frequent memory leaks) among others.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Warning&lt;/strong&gt;: Also, if you visit the following websites, MS Firefox 2007 will shut down your computer unexpectedly. The sites include google.com, gmail.com, apple.com, itunes.com and yahoo.com and any sites with the phrase microsoft/windows/explorer/vista/bill sucks.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Also, you can download the various versions of the browser for different windows OS. The file is a 14 Megs something file. I did not get a chance to check it out on my Virtual PC yet. If anyone has a chance, post it in the comments and if possible a link to some screenshots.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Warning&lt;/strong&gt;: This is obviously a major spoof mocking Microsoft and its latest browser IE7. Check out the the full link including downloading MS Firefox 2007 for different versions of Windows at &lt;a href="http://www.msfirefox.com"&gt;msfirefox.com&lt;/a&gt;. AskStudent is not affiliated with MS firefox 2007 or Microsoft or Firefox/Mozilla foundation&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-116223321782225409?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/116223321782225409/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=116223321782225409&amp;isPopup=true' title='10 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116223321782225409'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116223321782225409'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/10/microsoft-firefox-2007-professional.html' title='Microsoft Firefox 2007 Professional'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>10</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-116199514365837259</id><published>2006-10-27T17:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-10-27T17:56:42.500-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The latest scoop on Halo3 : New pictures, map information, levels, weapons</title><content type='html'>This article is being posted from AskStudent. &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com/2006/10/27/the-latest-scoop-on-halo3-new-pictures-map-information-levels-weapons/"&gt;Check out the original article here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bungie announced the release of Halo3, the third and final game in the Halo Trilogy that it will be released for Microsoft's XBOX 360 sometime in 2007. The game was revealed to the world at the Microsoft press conference at Grauman's Chinese Theater, in Hollywood,CA on May 9th 2006. Since then, besides the trailer, Bungie has not been forthcoming with a whole lot of information about the most anticipated game ever. Gears of War and Halo Wars trailer are doing their best to prepare us for next year's release for Halo3. Read on for all you have been waiting for since summer, information about new levels, maps, weapons, vehicles... and more&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Fortunately for the rest of us who can't wait to lap up more information about Halo 3, a Swedish games magazine released some pictures and more details. Watch the slideshow at the end of this article.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;New Levels&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are three different multi player levels and none of them will be limited by walls. If the player goes too far from the center of the map he will be attacked by some kind of automatic defense. The text doesn't specify what the real point of this freedom is supposed to be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;strong&gt;One of the levels is "snowbound".&lt;/strong&gt; It's a battlefield in a winterlandscape with large covenantbases. On the map there are bunkers protected by energy shields. They can't be penetrated by bullets or grenades, but players will be able to go through them.&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;strong&gt;Another one is called "highground",&lt;/strong&gt; which is made for teamwork and reminds of Halo 2:s "zanzibar". One team defends a base on the top of a slope. The other team begins on a beach below the base and their objective is to attack the base. Inside the base you can open a big door that will allow a warthog from the beach to drive inside the base.&lt;br /&gt;-&lt;strong&gt;The third is called "valhalla"&lt;/strong&gt; and has a forest and mountains on the horizon. It's a large map made for vehicles, and has two bases.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;New Vehicles&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;- &lt;em&gt;One new vehicle will be the "moongoose&lt;/em&gt;". It's smaller than a warthog and only has place for two persons. It's used mostly for transport. Also, it does not have any weapons but players can fire while in it.&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;em&gt;The other vehicle is "man cannon&lt;/em&gt;" which as the name explains is a human cannon launching you in the air. Remember jump pads from Quake. It also means you are a potential weapon if you collide with someone physically.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;New weapons&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When it comes to weapons there has happened quite a lot. Bungie has listened on the critique from Halo 2, that mostly concerned that it was so important to use two weapons at the same time, aka dual wield. Now they have made the standard assault rifle a bit more powerful, but it is still inferior to a lot of the other weapons in the game.All the weapong the players carry aroung will be vizualised in game. Ie you will see if an enemy carries around a shotgun on his back.&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;strong&gt;One new weapon will be the “Spartan Laser”.&lt;/strong&gt; It's made for destroying vehicles, and even if it takes a long time to use and isn't hard to evade it deals out massive damage. You don't want to let your vehicle be hit by it's glowing red beam.&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;strong&gt;Another new weapon is brutes “spiker”.&lt;/strong&gt; It's a one hand shotgun that shoots sharp nails.&lt;br /&gt;- &lt;strong&gt;Bungie has also thrown in a new "nail grenade".&lt;/strong&gt; It detonates it's payload of nails in one direction and can be placed on walls or the ground&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;New control&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The controls are somewhat new: RB and LB will be used to reload weapons. RT and LT fires them. So if our have two weapons you will reload them using the corresponding buttons.The x-button will be used to do something that will supposedly “change the entire game” but Bungie isn't ready to say more about that at this time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Legendary edition&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bungie will release Halo 3 in a “ Legendary edition” that looks like the Master chiefs head. It will contain four dvds. One with the game, one with a documentary and a comments-track, one contains spin-off materials like “Red vs Blue” and “Spark of Life”, and the last one with movie sequences from the game series in a chronological order.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Credits&lt;br /&gt;1. Thanks to Bungie and Microsoft for Halo3. You guys rock!! All images and videos shown in this article are copyright Bungie and Electronic Gaming Monthly. For EGM, head over here to &lt;a href="https://www.zdmcirc.com/zdmcirc/default.asp?LK=MAGLOBBY&amp;I=egam" target="_blank" mce_href="https://www.zdmcirc.com/zdmcirc/default.asp?LK=MAGLOBBY&amp;amp;I=egam"&gt;check out their magazine to subscribe and view the original content&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2. Translated from &lt;a class="user" href="http://www.level7.nu/texter/read.php?id=115814" mce_href="http://www.level7.nu/texter/read.php?id=115814"&gt;http://www.level7.nu/texter/read.php?id=115814&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;3. Thanks to &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com"&gt;AskStudent&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-116199514365837259?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/116199514365837259/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=116199514365837259&amp;isPopup=true' title='81 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116199514365837259'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116199514365837259'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/10/latest-scoop-on-halo3-new-pictures-map.html' title='The latest scoop on Halo3 : New pictures, map information, levels, weapons'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>81</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-116199445982894535</id><published>2006-10-27T17:09:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-10-27T17:14:19.886-07:00</updated><title type='text'>AskStudent wants me as a guest editor... hell ya</title><content type='html'>Hey all, in my last post, I kinda reviewed AskStudent. Looks like they are definitely kicking some ass in the blogging community, churning out good articles one after the other. I emailed their mail editor Xer0 if I could contribute in any way. Guess what, he wants me in... yup that's right. I will be contributing as a guest author/editor for AskStudent starting today. What do I get in return....?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Well, its like that open FTP box full of music and movies on campus... only in this case, I can repost/republish their most popular articles here at Student-rant, no questions asked.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By the way, if you still did not check out AskStudent, &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com"&gt;check them out here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-116199445982894535?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/116199445982894535/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=116199445982894535&amp;isPopup=true' title='28 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116199445982894535'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/116199445982894535'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/10/askstudent-wants-me-as-guest-editor.html' title='AskStudent wants me as a guest editor... hell ya'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>28</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-115688486862825390</id><published>2006-08-29T13:45:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-08-29T13:54:28.656-07:00</updated><title type='text'>New player on the block : Ask Student</title><content type='html'>Welcome Student Rant readers. There is a new player on the block ... Ask Student. I believe these guys launched sometime over the summer and have worked up a pretty impressive list of articles.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As the name of their site says, this site is mainly catered towards students in general with an impressive array of topics. They have topics on &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com/security.html"&gt;Computer security&lt;/a&gt;, Hacking including video and picture tutorials, Coding, General topics ( &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com/general/2006/08/escapeticket.html"&gt;there is a howto get out of a speeding ticket &lt;/a&gt;in there .. i needed those tips ) , relationships, money, career , jobs ( &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com/career/2006/08/interviewtips.html"&gt;interview tips article&lt;/a&gt; was good) among others. The site is laid out pretty good and all in all ... good job to you guys over at AskS.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Check them out : &lt;a href="http://www.askstudent.com"&gt;AskStudent&lt;/a&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-115688486862825390?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/115688486862825390/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=115688486862825390&amp;isPopup=true' title='4 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/115688486862825390'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/115688486862825390'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/08/new-player-on-block-ask-student.html' title='New player on the block : Ask Student'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>4</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-115688427502227014</id><published>2006-08-29T13:42:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-08-29T13:44:35.046-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Welcome back ...</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone... I know its been a while since I updated Student Rant. The last summer was quite hectic for me. I was interning for a major Silicon Valley company in California and unfortunately did not get a chance to post as much as I wanted to .&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, school's back in session and so will the posts.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Welcome back loyal readers&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-115688427502227014?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/115688427502227014/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=115688427502227014&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/115688427502227014'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/115688427502227014'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/08/welcome-back.html' title='Welcome back ...'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114850911933082990</id><published>2006-05-24T15:17:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-24T15:18:39.343-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Pretty interesting quest/puzzle from one riddle guys</title><content type='html'>Hey Folks, check out this new quest from one riddle guys. Pretty innovative&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;http://riddle.nirajsanghvi.com/one/&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-Student&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114850911933082990?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114850911933082990/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114850911933082990&amp;isPopup=true' title='99 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114850911933082990'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114850911933082990'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/pretty-interesting-questpuzzle-from.html' title='Pretty interesting quest/puzzle from one riddle guys'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>99</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114823180671527610</id><published>2006-05-21T10:16:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-21T10:16:46.723-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code Quest on Google: Final Challenge</title><content type='html'>Final Challenge on Google&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114823180671527610?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114823180671527610/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114823180671527610&amp;isPopup=true' title='26 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114823180671527610'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114823180671527610'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-da-vinci-code-quest-on.html' title='Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code Quest on Google: Final Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>26</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114809518129957308</id><published>2006-05-19T20:09:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-20T06:22:51.406-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Review of The Da Vinci Code: the movie... the verdict is in</title><content type='html'>Well, if I can sum up the movie in one word, it can be "disappointment". I watched the movie with a couple of buddies, one of whom has read the book and two others did not read the book. In the end the review seems divided, people who read the book including me were definitely disappointed whereas those who did not read the book were thoroughly impressed. Seems to be the general trend in the reviews so far.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For those who read the book and watched the movie, you would definitely agree that the character developement left a lot to be desired. Tom Hanks seemed to go through the motions for the most part. Sophie had a good actress playing her character... very pretty too. Sir Teabing's and Silas characters were the best in the whole movie. Overall, pretty slow although in fairness to the director, he did manage to capture important chunks of the book into the movie.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, those who read the book can/should definitely pass on the movie. For those who did not read the book, go out and watch the movie,  it's pretty good.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114809518129957308?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114809518129957308/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114809518129957308&amp;isPopup=true' title='43 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114809518129957308'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114809518129957308'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/review-of-da-vinci-code-movie-verdict.html' title='Review of The Da Vinci Code: the movie... the verdict is in'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>43</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114807545411459965</id><published>2006-05-19T14:48:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-19T14:50:54.123-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Final Challenge: Google Da Vinci Code quest</title><content type='html'>Hello all... I hope everything is well. I have been away moving and doing end of semester stuff. Sorry about that.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Congratualations to all the finalists. I am one of the lucky ones too. Okay so this place is for all of you guys to discuss , post and rant about the final journey.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;May the worthy prevail.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Also, don't forget the movie comes out today. I will post a review of the movie sometime later today once I watch it and also post my observations once I am done with the final quest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114807545411459965?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114807545411459965/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114807545411459965&amp;isPopup=true' title='49 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114807545411459965'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114807545411459965'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/final-challenge-google-da-vinci-code.html' title='Final Challenge: Google Da Vinci Code quest'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>49</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114743937343312233</id><published>2006-05-12T06:03:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-12T06:09:33.436-07:00</updated><title type='text'>A new Da Vinci Code quest from Eurostar</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone. An anonymous post from the comments in the quest # 24 section informed me of another Da Vinci Code quest going on and the prizes are pretty good there too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here is the link for the Eurostar Da Vinci Code webquests&lt;br /&gt;http://quest.eurostar.com/&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The best part is  it lets Americans to participate in the challenge too even though it's a European based company. I just finished the first part of the challenge and they are definitely harder than the Google webquests. Also, for all those complaining that I give out too many hints on this blog, the puzzles are more structured in a way to prevent explaining , cheating/helping by others.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I am going to go step by step on this blog in the next couple of days on the Eurostar Da Vinci Code quest. If any of you guys find any instructions on the deadline for the competition, let me know.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Watch out on this space for more instructions and the Eurostar Da Vinci Code webquest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-Student&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114743937343312233?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114743937343312233/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114743937343312233&amp;isPopup=true' title='254 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114743937343312233'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114743937343312233'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/new-da-vinci-code-quest-from-eurostar.html' title='A new Da Vinci Code quest from Eurostar'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>254</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114743887457884851</id><published>2006-05-12T05:54:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-12T06:01:14.590-07:00</updated><title type='text'>A Finalist confirmation from Google and Sony?</title><content type='html'>As many of you reported in the previous posts comments, I too have received two emails from Sony(davincicodequest@sonypictures.com) and from (spotlight@news.sonypictures.com).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The content of both the emails is exactly identical other than the source of the email and the subject message. I belive that everyone who got to finish the final quest and fill out the registration form got this email and Google/Sony will begin to contact the finalists starting coming Monday (05/15/06).  So everyone else outside the first 10000 but still got to complete the registration form will receive a surprise gift as a consolation prize.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Following is the content of the email(s)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;" Thank you for participating in "The Da Vinci Code" Quest on Google. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;This email is to confirm that you have completed all 24 puzzles within the quest and successfully registered for a chance to participate in the final challenge.  Well done!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;We will be contacting the 10,000 finalists on Monday 5/15 via email regarding their cryptex shipment. Within that email the 10,000 finalists will also receive instructions on how to participate in the final challenge.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;All remaining players who finished the quest will also receive a surprise message via email.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;Thank you all for participating in "The Da Vinci Code" Quest on Google and making it such a success.  We hope you enjoyed playing.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;The Da Vinci Code In Theaters 5/19&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;http://news.sonypictures.com/rspba/r2.php?b=131&amp;970826/67438430/970828/T/www.SoDarkTheConOfMan.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;------------------------------------------------------------&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;You are receiving this email as part of your participation in THE DA VINCI CODE QUEST ON GOOGLE. "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114743887457884851?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114743887457884851/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114743887457884851&amp;isPopup=true' title='227 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114743887457884851'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114743887457884851'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/finalist-confirmation-from-google-and.html' title='A Finalist confirmation from Google and Sony?'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>227</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114727515911185701</id><published>2006-05-10T08:27:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-10T10:44:09.033-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code quest # 24: Observation Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello folks, welcome to day # 24 of the Google Da Vinci code webquests. It has been a great journey sharing these wonderful quests with all of you guys. For the Aussies and the Brits, the quest ends today, but for us Yanks, we have a while to go. So, let's get started on the final quest for Phase 1.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UPDATE: If you get an error message "&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;... but your query looks similar to automated requests from a computer virus or spyware application. To protect our users, we can't process your request right now. We'll restore your access as quickly as possible, so try again soon. In the meantime, if you suspect that your computer or network has been infected, you might want to run a virus checker or spyware remover to make sure that your systems are free of viruses and other spurious software. We apologize for the inconvenience, and hope we'll see you again on Google.",&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Don't freak out. Google sees a lot of people updating the Google/ig homepage and thinks its a virus or a bot. At the bottom of the page, you will see a verification text. Enter the text into the box and you will be redirected to your homepage. Click on solve the next puzzle link and you should be all set.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci24.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci24.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Observation Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;span style=""&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;" Jean Reno is Bezu Fache, a police Captain known for his unrelenting pursuit of the truth.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Find the clip using the given search terms, watch it, and use your observational skills to seek the truthful answers to the questions.". You can watch the video on &lt;a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1806561175055898918&amp;q=da+vinci+code+sony+pictures"&gt;Google video&lt;/a&gt; or here below&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;object height="350" width="325"&gt;&lt;param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iiQFCIOLsag"&gt;&lt;embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iiQFCIOLsag" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="325" width="380"&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci25a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci25a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;The observation challenge gives us these hints in the form of instructions&lt;br /&gt;"Answering these questions requires &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;interpretation of ciphers&lt;/span&gt; and other cryptic &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;messages&lt;/span&gt;. Who better to help you than &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;cryptographer&lt;/span&gt; Sophie Neveu?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 1&lt;/span&gt;: Knowledge is a source of power, and books are a fountainhead of knowledge that Sophie's grandfather shared with her. How many books are shown in the flashback where they are reading together?&lt;br /&gt;The answer could be found around 5 seconds into the video where young Sophie and her grandfather are reading together. Find the number of open books.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 2&lt;/span&gt;: Langdon asks Sophie if she has heard certain words before. To what words is he referring?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The answer could be found around 12 seconds into the video with text inscribed.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 3&lt;/span&gt;: The answer to the last question is an anagram.Please rearrange the letters to reveal a famous work of art by Leonardo that is housed in the Louvre in Paris and in the national gallery in london?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I have solved this one before but your answer could be found in the &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_of_the_Rocks"&gt;Wikipedia entry here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci25b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci25b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once you are done, you are shown the congratulations message. When it asks for your google account, it is the account you have been using to sign in onto the personalized google home page. Punch it in. You are asked a whole bunch of questions, mostly about yourself. Make sure you do this as soon as possible because this is the timestamp google is taking about. It doesn't matter if you solved the previous quests in 5 seconds or 500 minutes. You are being time stamped here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Winners please post back here...&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114727515911185701?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114727515911185701/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114727515911185701&amp;isPopup=true' title='284 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114727515911185701'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114727515911185701'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/google-da-vinci-code-quest-24.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code quest # 24: Observation Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>284</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114727223159405269</id><published>2006-05-10T06:57:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-10T07:44:57.043-07:00</updated><title type='text'>How to be one of the finalists and win prizes</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci25.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci25.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello everyone. Today we are at day # 24 of the Da Vinci Code webquests. I have received tons of emails regarding this and moreover a lot of people have been chipping in, providing the rules and everything else in the previous post's comments. I want to lay it out for all and how to become one of the elite finalist.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As you can see, today's quest would be an observation challenge.  This might be very tricky or be very easy.&lt;br /&gt;The previous three observation challenges all had three questions each and for the most part, the questions were not random. Google might change this for the final observation challenge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As in the forums, for prizes and eligibility, I am going to break it down into three sections; US, UK and AUS, the countries whose residents are eligible to win the prizes.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UNITED STATES&lt;/span&gt;:&lt;br /&gt;As you are all aware, this Contest begins at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time ("EDT") on April 17, 2006, and ends at 1:00 p.m. EDT on May 21, 2006 ("Contest Period"). To enter Phase 1 of the Contest, access the Contest Welcome Site located at: &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/davincicode" target="_blank"&gt;www.google.com/davincicode&lt;/a&gt; and follow the online instructions to select the United States and download The Da Vinci Code Quest On Google content module ("Module") to your Google Personalized Home Page. &lt;b&gt;The Module requires Internet Explorer 6 or higher, Firefox 1.0 or higher and Macromedia Flash 8.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/b&gt;The Contest is divided into two (2) phases: Phase 1 and a Final Phase. (A third Phase consisting of an essay competition will be employed only in case of a tie in determining the grand prize winner, as described below).&lt;br /&gt;In Phase 1, you will need to solve at 24 daily skill based, time-sensitive puzzles which need not be completed sequentially as outlined below. &lt;b&gt;Only the first 10,000 participants who, having correctly solved all 24 Daily Puzzles during Phase 1, submit a Puzzle Completion Form (and who thereafter submit a Contest Entry Form) in accordance with these Rules before 1:00 p.m. EDT on May 11, 2006 will be deemed "Finalists." Only Finalists are eligible to advance to the Final Phase.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So in other words, you need to solve the puzzles and submit the contest entry form by 1:00PM Eastern Time tomorrow(May 11th). Finalists will be notified by email on or about May 15, 2006 and at time of receipt of their Finalist Prize which will be shipped by postal mail to be received by May 18, 2006.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Second Phase&lt;/span&gt;:The Final Phase of this Contest consists of a skill-based, time-sensitive series of five (5) puzzles which must be completed sequentially (collectively, "Final Puzzle Challenge"). The Final Puzzle Challenge is a skill-based, time-sensitive series of five puzzles which must be completed in sequence. The Final Puzzle Challenge will be made available to Finalists starting on or about 1:00 p.m. EDT on Friday May 19, 2006 and must be completed by 1:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 21, 2006 ("Final Puzzle Time Period").&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For the &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/us/rules/"&gt;full list of rules, check it out here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For the prizes list in the US, &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/us/prizing/index.html"&gt;check it out here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UNITED KINGDOM&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;U&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;n&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;fortunately for our UK visitors, the suspense ends today, where there is no final phase of the competition. All your entries must be submitted by the midnight GMT on May 12th 2006. Another messed up part is that the winners are drawn randomly and under independent supervision, from all entrants who have correctly completed all 24 puzzles, and notified within 28 days of the closing date. Also, the winners may be required to participate in publicity connected with this promotion. However, the upside is that the prizes being given out are awesome.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can check out the &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/uk/rules/index.html"&gt;full list of other rules here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Check out the &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/uk/prizing/index.html"&gt;prizes in UK here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;AUSTRALIA&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;For &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;our Aussie visitors, the promotion commences on Tuesday, April 18th, 2006 and closes 11.59pm, Thursday May 11th, 2006. The rules page doesn't mention whether the 11:59pm time mentioned is Eastern time, or GMT or local Aussie time. So make sure, you fill in as soon as possible.The judging will take place on Monday May 15th, 2006 at Sony Pictures offices, Sydney, 2000 and the winner(s) will be contacted by mail.  There are a total number of 66 winners for Australia.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Check out the &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/au/rules/index.html"&gt;full list of rules here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Check out the &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/au/prizing/index.html"&gt;list of prizes here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Good luck everyone&lt;/span&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114727223159405269?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114727223159405269/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114727223159405269&amp;isPopup=true' title='12 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114727223159405269'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114727223159405269'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/how-to-be-one-of-finalists-and-win.html' title='How to be one of the finalists and win prizes'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>12</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114719543310473393</id><published>2006-05-09T10:22:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-09T11:25:01.893-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 23 : Geography Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello folks... welcome back to another day of the Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci22.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci22.0.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Geography Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Paul Bettany is Silas, a man who in blind faith will do whatever it takes to track down a secret that must be destroyed, no matter where it leads him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Assemble the jigsaw puzzle pieces to reveal and identify a geographical location.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci23a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci23a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step # 1: The first thing you need to do is seperate the puzzle components which have text on them identifying the google copyright.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Usually the copyright text is placed on the bottom right. However, today's section has them on the bottom left.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 3: Finish up the bottom row and work your way up to the top.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you find this tricky, find the puzzle pieces which are flat on the side and the top, flat on bottom and right, flat on bottom and left which is the section with text on it and representing the edges of the puzzle. Put them in place first and work around it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci23b.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci23b.0.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;We are then asked our trivia question&lt;br /&gt;"Surely you recognize this city of light. After all, it's home to the most famous painting in the world. What is the name of the city?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Mona Lisa is definitely the most famous painting in the world. A google search for the &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=city+of+light&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;city of light&lt;/a&gt; would give you the correct answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci23c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci23c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;We are then told that there are nine Cinquefoil icons hidden among the streets. They are easy to locate. Find and click on them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;After we solve this, we are asked to identify a sequence of numbers. An important hint is given in the question itself where the numbers go like&lt;br /&gt;0,1, 4, 9 ... It is easy to identify them.  A hint is the next in this sequence would look like 0,1,4,9, 16, 25,36,49 ... and so on.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114719543310473393?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114719543310473393/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114719543310473393&amp;isPopup=true' title='60 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114719543310473393'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114719543310473393'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_09.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 23 : Geography Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>60</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114710599070558033</id><published>2006-05-08T09:31:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-09T11:26:18.690-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 22 : Chess Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello folks... welcome back to another day of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci22.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci22.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Chess Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Ian McKellen is Sir Leigh Teabing, a man whose every move has been in preparation for a Grail Quest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Determine the only sequence of three moves that will lead to checkmate the given chess scenario. Knowledge of The Da Vinci Code may help you, as may Google Web search.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci22a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci22a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 1&lt;/span&gt;: The leading member of the Priory of Sion is called&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;a. The Duegard&lt;br /&gt;b. Iluminati&lt;br /&gt;c. The Chief&lt;br /&gt;4. The Nautonnier&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A Google search can give you the right answers. A more effective place in on answers.com &lt;a href="http://www.answers.com/topic/priory-of-sion"&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci22b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci22b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 2&lt;/span&gt;: Which of these men was not rumored to be a Priory of Sion member?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;a. Nicolas Poussin&lt;br /&gt;b. Sir Issac Newton&lt;br /&gt;c. Francois Mitterrand&lt;br /&gt;d. Victor Hugo&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For this answer, under the &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priory_of_Sion"&gt;Wikipedia entry for Priory of Sion&lt;/a&gt;, we can find the answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Hint&lt;/span&gt;: Most of the above people were rumored to be the grandmasters of the Priory of Sion.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci22c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci22c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 3&lt;/span&gt;: What is the name of the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;a. Shiva&lt;br /&gt;b. Isis&lt;br /&gt;c. Gaia&lt;br /&gt;d. Nerio&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A simple &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=name+of+the+ancient+Egyptian+goddess+of+fertility&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;google search&lt;/a&gt; would give you the right answer. In some cases, if you scroll down the results on the first page, the answer is in the description for some of the search results.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114710599070558033?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114710599070558033/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114710599070558033&amp;isPopup=true' title='19 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114710599070558033'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114710599070558033'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_08.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 22 : Chess Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>19</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114702044618758931</id><published>2006-05-07T09:46:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-07T10:31:07.433-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 21 : Curator Challenge</title><content type='html'>Welcome back folks.. for the latest Google Da Vinci Code webquest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci21.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci21.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Curator Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Audrey Tautou is Sophie Neveu, a Police Department Cryptographer with a special connection to the murdered curator of the Louvre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your curator's eye to hand the works of art such that the hooks match those on the gallery wall. Not all the hooks on the gallery wall will necessarily be used. Some art may have already been placed and cannot be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci21b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci21b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;With the quests involving pictures, it is always a bit tricky. The key to solving this quest is to make sure you take care of the largest painting first and go down progressively.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Note: The number of paintings on your quest might vary along with the locations some of them might have been placed. However follow the approach and you should be okay.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step #1: Take the largest painting and try to position it on the board. Note: There are only a couple of locations where you might be able to place the paintings. An easy clue is that the paintings stick to like a magnet as soon as it thinks you are placing it in the right location. Also, since there is more than one position you can place these large paintings, make sure that use the space which occupies the least number of hooks.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Go down progressively in terms of size and take care of the next largest painting.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 3: Take care of the horizontal ones with 3 hooks first. Also a tricky issue is one you need to place the vertical painting with just one hook.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci21c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci21c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once we are done assembling the paintings, we are asked our daily trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Petarch sent three presents to the Bishop of Cavaillon. What was the color of the first present?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are recommended to use &lt;a href="http://books.google.com/"&gt;Google Book Search&lt;/a&gt;. Once you go to google book search, type in the section of the question in bold and you should be able to find your answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114702044618758931?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114702044618758931/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114702044618758931&amp;isPopup=true' title='40 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114702044618758931'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114702044618758931'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_07.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 21 : Curator Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>40</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114693298841587000</id><published>2006-05-06T09:28:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-06T16:10:12.196-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 20 : Restoration Challenge</title><content type='html'>Sorry everyone. After a while, I gave up on Blogger to load the pictures for me. Finally got it work. I hope by this time, a lot of you guys have finished this quest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci20.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci20.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Restoration Challenge&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The &lt;/span&gt;instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Alfred Molina is Manuel Aringarosa, a Bishop dedicated to preserving, if not restoring, conservative values.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A question is hidden in plain sight on this class work of art - parts of the question are unclear, obscured by debris. Clear the particles of debris by selecting pairs that are seperated by one space, they will merge into one particle. When there is only one particle left, the question will be revealed. Ignore any text obscured by the last particle and solve the mystery.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci20b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci20b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;The strategy for solving this is simple. We need to make sure that there is no single piece of debris lying in far flung place, left all by itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Select the piece of debris in the extreme corners and try to pair them up.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In the earlier restoration quests, some of you have emailed me that they just click randomly and then the quest is solved. However, this one is ddefinitely harder where you need a strategy. For selecting items, it you click on a piece of debris, to merge them, click on the other piece of debris which is highlighted. Make sure you pair up the far flung pieces of debris first.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci20c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci20c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Finally, the daily trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Decidedly, the Florentine is prepared for what?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, we are recommended to use Google Book search. A simple search query on &lt;a href="http://books.google.com/books?q=Decidedly%2C+the+Florentine+is+prepared+for+what%3F&amp;btnG=Search+Books&amp;amp;as_brr=0"&gt;Google book search&lt;/a&gt; gave me the right answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Note: The trivia question on your screen might be different. Just copy paste the section of the question in the google book search which should help you find your answer faster.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114693298841587000?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114693298841587000/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114693298841587000&amp;isPopup=true' title='84 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114693298841587000'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114693298841587000'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_06.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 20 : Restoration Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>84</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114684707104006875</id><published>2006-05-05T09:35:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-05T10:28:22.806-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 19: Symbol Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone... welcome back. On a personal note, I just got done with the last of my finals. I guess you might have noticed that in the last couple of days, I was trying to be brief at the best with respect to the puzzles. Sometimes I posted the wrong quest number... stuff like that. Well, finals done, let's get rocking on the quests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are approaching the final stretch of the Da Vinci Code webquests starting today. Today's quest is the &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Symbol Challenge&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci19.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci19.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Tom Hanks is professor Robert Langdon, an expert on the interpretation of symbols.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your logic skills and drag the symbols onto the grid such that the symbols in each row are all distinct, the symbols in each column are all distinct, and the symbols in each shaded region are all distinct. Some symbols may have already been placed and cannot be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Okay, let's get started...&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge looks definitely like a good challenge. The number of blocks have increased. We now have a 6 x 6 block with 6 unique symbols... the new addition being a key looking symbol. NOTE: The puzzle and the location of the symbol might vary on your screen. However, follow the approach and you should be all set.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci19a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci19a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 1&lt;/span&gt;: Look for the region with the maximum number of symbols already placed, whether a row or a column or a shaded region. Using my example, I will approach column 1 first with four symbols already placed and fill them up with 2 more unique symbols&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 2&lt;/span&gt;: Next, i approach the region with the max symbols already placed. This would be the dark red shaded region on the top. Fill them up with unique symbols taking care of the row and column requirements too. Also, I finish up the first row which now has 5 symbols already placed and fill it up with the unique symbol for that row.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 3&lt;/span&gt;: Now its a lot more trickier with a max of 3 symbols in any region. A good approach would be finish up the corners and then come towards the middle. So I go for the last column on the right hand side which has 3 symbols already placed in them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 4&lt;/span&gt;: Again, a similar dilema with a max of 3 symbols placed in any region. Now with both our extreme ends filled, don't go for the bottom row. Approach a shaded region with the most symbols in it. I go for the light brown shaded region knowing that once i am done with that, I will have more information for the next rows. Fill the region with 3 more unique symbols taking care of the row and column requirements and the shaded region requirements.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 5&lt;/span&gt;: Next, i finish out row 4 which just needs 1 more symbol and also row 3 which needs 2 more symbols. Once i am done with this, I am also done with the brown shaded region.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;S&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;tep # 6:&lt;/span&gt; Now, i finish out column 5 which has 5 symbols already placed and with that row 2 which has 4 symbols placed.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;S&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;tep # 7&lt;/span&gt;: Now, towards the end, approach towards filling up the columns instead of the shaded regions. Finish up the remainder.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci19b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci19b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Next, we are asked our trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;During his Italian Journeys, William Dean Howells visits the Protestant ragged schools at this city.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are told to search for this information using Google Book Search. A &lt;a href="http://books.google.com/books?q=protestant+ragged+schools+william+dean+howells&amp;btnG=Search+Books&amp;amp;as_brr=0"&gt;quick query&lt;/a&gt; gives me the answer to the name of the city.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;NOTE: The trivia question on yours might be different. Open up &lt;a href="http://books.google.com/"&gt;Google Book Search&lt;/a&gt; and then type in the part of the question given in bold and if you don't get the answer, follow it up with the name of the author.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114684707104006875?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114684707104006875/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114684707104006875&amp;isPopup=true' title='41 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114684707104006875'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114684707104006875'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_05.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 19: Symbol Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>41</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114676458501302138</id><published>2006-05-04T10:00:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-04T11:41:13.236-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 18 :Geography Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone ... welcome back to day #18 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests. I received some very valuable input with respect to the manner in which the puzzles are discussed. Thanks a lot for that... and I will be doing my best to incorporate as many of those suggestions as possible.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci18.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci18.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the" Geography Challenge"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Paul Bettany is Silas, a man who in blind faith will do whatever it takes to track down a secret that must be destroyed, no matter where it leads him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Assemble the jigsaw puzzle pieces to reveal and identify a geographical location."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, lets get started....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci18a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci18a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step # 1: Start of with identifying any pieces with text on them which indicate the copyright of Google images. I had three of them. Find the one with a flat end on its right hand side and with text on it and place in on the bottom right. Attach the remainder of the pieces with text on it on bottom right section&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Since we completed most of the bottom section, finish up the one last component by looking for the right piece and attaching it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Note: you will observe that as soon as a right piece is in place, those sections are locked and you can't move them anymore.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 3: Keep it up this way. First bottom row. Finish up bottom row. Attach the section on the left hand side... finish up the row. Then attach the section on the right hand side... keep going left until you finish the whole puzzle... bottom --&gt; top ; left --&gt;right ; right &lt;-- left.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci18b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci18b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The next question we are asked is&lt;br /&gt;"Leonardo's reverse-handwriting manuscript on perpetual motion wheels can be found in this city. What is its name?&lt;br /&gt;(For another clue, Hyde in the north;)"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The first thing, I did was assume the black flowing spot might be a river or some water body and the hint Hyde is being referred to that.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However the answer of New York does not work. Next, assumed that it might be a park or some nature resource.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This time, I was more successful. A &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;q=%22hyde+park%22&amp;btnG=Search"&gt;Google search for "Hyde park&lt;/a&gt;" would help you find the answer. Warning: There are multiple locations for Hyde park but the location could be found in the first page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci18c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci18c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Next, we are given another trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;"Well done ! There are four Blades hidden around the city. Please find them and click on them"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is pretty easy. A blade is a symbol that looks like a triangle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci18d.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci18d.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;We are asked one more trivia question after that.&lt;br /&gt;"You have found all four blades, and lo! they draw an X over a place just slightly north of the Victoria and Albert Museum, home of Leonardo's Codex Forster. What is its name?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You need to log on to &lt;a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&amp;hl=en&amp;amp;q=Victoria+and+Albert+Museum+london&amp;ll=51.49795,-0.155268&amp;amp;spn=0.018862,0.058537&amp;t=k&amp;amp;om=1"&gt;Google Maps&lt;/a&gt; , and once you check on here, the location of the college is easily found. It is very near to the location of the Victoria and Albert Museum&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good Luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Update: As ScottJG points out, Using google maps, instead of using satellite use.. Map and where the 4 blades point will have a name.. " .... ".&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114676458501302138?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114676458501302138/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114676458501302138&amp;isPopup=true' title='45 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114676458501302138'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114676458501302138'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 18 :Geography Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>45</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114667732614488204</id><published>2006-05-03T09:58:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-03T10:30:25.106-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 17: Observation Challenge</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci17.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci17.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hello everyone.. welcome back to day # 17 of the Google Da Vinci Code quests&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Observation Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;" Jean Reno is Bezu Fache, a police Captain known for his unrelenting pursuit of the truth. Find the clip using the given search terms, watch it, and use your observational skills to seek the truthful answers to the questions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Watch the video first here on &lt;a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4722157750957035746&amp;q=sir+leigh+teabing&amp;amp;pl=true"&gt;Google videos&lt;/a&gt; or below&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;object width="325" height="350"&gt;&lt;param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/F64rN7Tw8EQ"&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/F64rN7Tw8EQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="380" height="325"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci17a.1.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci17a.1.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;We are given three questions. The comment is "You'll have to use wit and wisdom in your quest. Look for Sir Leigh Teabing, yet another facinating character , on Google Video.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The three questions are:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question #1&lt;/span&gt; : Speaking of fascinating characters, there's only one letter in the entire video that is clearly written in lower case. What is that letter.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can find the answer by watching the video and observe carefully when the Mona Lisa comes in the background.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hint: When there is "So dark is the con of man" scribbled in the background. Another hint: it is not o&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 2&lt;/span&gt;: In just one word, the noble Sir Leigh describes the persuit that both he and you are on. What is that word?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can find the answer 16 seconds into the video.&lt;br /&gt;Hint: Also, the answer is given in the instructions along with the questions. Another hint... it is in bold&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 3&lt;/span&gt;: And to bring this back to the topic of movie spectacles, how many times is Sir Leigh Teabing shown wearing his spectacles, that it?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is pretty simple. Simple observation&lt;br /&gt;Hint: The answer rhymes with a movie that came out recently... Lucky number Sleven.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114667732614488204?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114667732614488204/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114667732614488204&amp;isPopup=true' title='60 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114667732614488204'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114667732614488204'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/google-da-vinci-code-quest-17.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 17: Observation Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>60</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114659081095774039</id><published>2006-05-02T10:00:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-02T10:28:01.613-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 16: Chess Challenge</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci16.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci16.0.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hello folks... welcome back to day 16 of the Google Da Vinci Code quests&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called "The Chess Challenge"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Ian McKellen is Sir Leigh Teabing, a man whose every move has been in preparation for a Grail Quest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Determine the only sequence of three moves that will lead to checkmate in the given chess scenario. Knowledge of The Da Vinci Code may help you, as may Google Web Search.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci16a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci16a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question # 1: The Louvre's famous Pyramid was designed by:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The answer for this question can be found by a quick &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=louvre%27s+famous+pyramid+designed+by&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;google search&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The answer is given in the paragraph description under the first search result.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can also search for the answer at &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre"&gt;Wikipedia here&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci16b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci16b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question # 2: What French king built the Louvre?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is a tricky question. If we go to the Wikipedia entry of the &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre"&gt;Louvre here&lt;/a&gt;, we will find the whole history of which kings or emperors patronized the constuction and renovation of the Louvre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The answer is the name of the first king who started the construction and not the one who ended up commissioning it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci16c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci16c.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question # 3: Which of these people in history never set foot in Notre Dame?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Since it is not the university of Notre Dame I was stumped as there is no relevant google query for this. I had to jump to solving chess and got the right answer straight away as it provides one of the two options that will lead to a checkmate.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hint: Since the location of the various chess pieces might vary on your screen, it doesn't matter explaining the chess moves. However the answer for this question: He was once upon a time the Bishop of Rome and head of the Roman Catholic Church&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If anyone has a google query for the last question, please post in the comments or email me&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114659081095774039?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114659081095774039/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114659081095774039&amp;isPopup=true' title='16 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114659081095774039'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114659081095774039'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/google-da-vinci-code-quest-16-chess.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 16: Chess Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>16</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114650435084252056</id><published>2006-05-01T09:57:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-05-01T10:25:51.066-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 15: Curator Challenge</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci15.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci15.0.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello everyone... welcome back to Day # 15 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Curator Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Audrey Tautou is Sophie Neveu, a Police Department Cryptographer with a special connection to the murdered curator of the Louvre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use you curator's eye to hang the works of art such that the hooks match those on the gallery wall. Not all of the hooks on the gallery wall will necessarily be used. Some art may have already been placed and cannot be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci15a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci15a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Note: The number of paintings and the location where they are placed might vary from your puzzle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In my case, I had 7 paintings and one was already placed for me in the bottom left corner.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 1: Place the larger image first on the board making sure that it occupies the least number of hooks. Also, if you place it at the wrong place or if you overlap a different painting, it just drops to the ground.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Take care of the next largest painting and fill up the board. If among the paintings, you have a long vertical one, make sure you have atleast three hooks. In my case, i would place it on the bottom right hand side.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once we are done with assembling all the pictures, we are asked our daily trivia question. It is a translation question again.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In my case, it was " Translate flight to Italian". You can either use Google SMS or use &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/translate_t"&gt;Google Translator&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114650435084252056?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114650435084252056/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114650435084252056&amp;isPopup=true' title='30 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114650435084252056'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114650435084252056'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/05/google-da-vinci-code-quest-15-curator.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 15: Curator Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>30</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114641872962018337</id><published>2006-04-30T10:19:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-30T14:47:37.056-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 14: Restoration Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone... welcome back to Day # 14 of the Da Vinci Code webquests on Google&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci14.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci14.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called " &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Restoration Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Alfred Molina is Manuel Aringarosa, a Bishop dedicated to preserving, if not restoring, conservative values.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A question is hidden in plain sight on this classic work of art - parts of the question are unclear, obscured by debris. Clear the particles of debris by selecting pairs that are seperated by one space - they will merge into one particle. When there is only one particle left, the question will be revealed. Ignore any text obscured by the last particle and solve the mystery.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci14a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci14a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;NOTE: Remember the objective is break this whole debris down into one single block.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 1: Start from down or the place where there is text first. Try to clear them out and bring them to the place where there is more debris to match and select.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: When you select a piece of debris, it is matched up with another piece. If there is text in between, click on the text to merge them or else click on one of the ends for them to merge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step #3: Keep clicking until all of them are cleared and we are just left with one piece.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci14b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci14b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once we are done clearing the debris, we are asked our daily trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Translate fogizerlovg from Atbash."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Atbash is a form of cryptology. In the Bible, a Hebrew ciphering method is used at times.  In this method, the last letter of the alphabet is replaced by the first, and vice versa.  This is called 'atbash'. For example, the following table gives a translation of this sort for English. The word "HELLO" becomes "SVOOL"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you asked a similar question of conversion from Atbash, use the following ATBASH cipher.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;pre&gt;ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ&lt;br /&gt;ZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA&lt;/pre&gt;Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Update&lt;/span&gt;: An easier way for translating from ATBASH is use the following &lt;a href="http://blog.adamjacobmuller.com/atbash.php"&gt;link&lt;/a&gt; -- Thanks anonymous&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114641872962018337?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114641872962018337/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114641872962018337&amp;isPopup=true' title='22 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114641872962018337'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114641872962018337'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code_30.html' title='Student Rant: Google Da Vinci Code quest # 14: Restoration Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>22</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114633166141942562</id><published>2006-04-29T10:03:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-29T17:18:36.266-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant : Google Da Vinci Code quest # 13 : Symbol Challenge</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci13.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci13.0.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello everyone... welcome back to day # 13 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called " &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Symbol Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tom Hanks is professor Robert Langdon, an expert on the interpretation of symbols.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your logic skills and drag the symbols onto the grid such that the symbols in each row are all distinct, the symbols in each column are all distinct, and the symbols in each shaded region are all distinct. Some symbols may have already been placed and cannot be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;NOTE&lt;/span&gt;: The arrangement of symbols might vary in the puzzle shown to you. However the approach is the same... remember, approach the region with the most symbols first. So, let's get solving...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci13a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci13a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;I was expecting a much harder quest with 6 x 6 and with 6 symbols. However, it is similar to one of the quests we solved earlier this week.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 1&lt;/span&gt;: Approach the region with most symbols already present in it. This is the shaded region in dark red. Fill it up with 2 unique symbols&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 2&lt;/span&gt;: Now, approach the second row. The first column and fifth column already have symbols in them. Taking care of that, fill up the row with 2 unique symbols&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 3&lt;/span&gt;: Now approach row 3 where three symbols are already placed. Finish up the row with 2 more unique symbols taking care of the row and column conditions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 4&lt;/span&gt;: Next, approach the region with the most symbols in it which is the light grey shaded region. Fill it up with 2 unique symbols&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 5&lt;/span&gt;: Next, finish up the first column with 4 symbols already placed in it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 6&lt;/span&gt;: Next, finish up the first row with 2 symbols in there. The remainder of the first row matches up with finishing up the shaded light brown region&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 7&lt;/span&gt;: Next, finish up the second column, the dark brown shaded region, the fifth row, the light green shaded region.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci13b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci13b.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once we are done, we are asked our daily Trivia question. NOTE: The question that is asked to you might be different. However, just put the section of the question in bold in google search and you should be okay.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The question that was asked to me was&lt;br /&gt;"Translate sfumato from Italian"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A quick google search gives me the answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Major help&lt;/span&gt;: If you are asked any translation questions, the &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/translate_t"&gt;Google translator&lt;/a&gt; is a much better help.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114633166141942562?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114633166141942562/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114633166141942562&amp;isPopup=true' title='22 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114633166141942562'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114633166141942562'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-google-da-vinci-code.html' title='Student Rant : Google Da Vinci Code quest # 13 : Symbol Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>22</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114624567133057381</id><published>2006-04-28T10:03:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-29T08:58:22.746-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant : Da Vinci Code webquest # 12</title><content type='html'>Hello everyone... welcome back to day 12 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12.png" alt=" da vinci code" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Geography Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;" &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Paul Bettany &lt;/span&gt;is Silas, a man who in blind faith will do whatever it takes to track down a secret that must be destroyed, no matter where it leads him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Assemble the jigsaw puzzle pieces to reveal and identify a geographical location."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are 16 different jigsaw pieces here. Note: The number of jigsaw pieces might vary in your screen.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12a.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12a.0.png" alt="dan brown" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 1&lt;/span&gt;: There are two pieces which contain text at the bottom identifying its google copyright. Assemble those two on the bottom right hand site. Notice that as soon as you lock those components in, the mouse pointer changes from a hand, indicating that you put the piece in the right place.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 2&lt;/span&gt;: We will continue upwards on the right hand side. Through trial and error, fill up the section on the right hand side. Again, notice that if you put the right piece, that section is locked up.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12b.png" alt="da vinci code" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 3&lt;/span&gt;: Now, do the same, coming over to the left. Fill up bottom to the top, merging with the right hand side section.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 4&lt;/span&gt;: Do the same, going from the bottom to the top... right to left side.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once, we are done, unlike yesterday, we are asked a trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12c.png" alt="image of Rome" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;The trivia question we are asked is&lt;br /&gt;" By adding some &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;PIZAZZ&lt;/span&gt; to &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;A NOVEL IDEA&lt;/span&gt; and rearranging the letters, you'll get the location of a museum in this eternal city. What is the name of the city?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Two hints for answering this&lt;br /&gt;#1: The oval shaped structure on the bottom right is the colosseum.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#2: The city is the capital of the country where PIZAZZ or Pizza was supposed to have originated.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#3: If you do a &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=eternal+city&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;Google search for eternal city&lt;/a&gt; either the second or the third link has the answer with the name of the city. - Thanks Tom Lage&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once, we are done with this, we are asked one more trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12d.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12d.png" alt="Palazzeo Di Venezia" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;" Yes, Now find the &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Palazzo Di Venezia&lt;/span&gt; by clicking on a Greek cross hidden in the city"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For this, I had to go on to &lt;a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&amp;hl=en&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;q=palazzo+di+venezia+Rome&amp;ll=41.897134,12.480426&amp;amp;spn=0.006117,0.021629&amp;om=1"&gt;&lt;span style="text-decoration: underline;"&gt;Google Maps&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once you go to the google maps link mentioned above, click on the satellite view and room in until you see the colosseum.  Get your bearings on where the highlighted pointer is which is the museum. Click on the location in your puzzle piece. The cross is uncovered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UPDATE&lt;/span&gt;: A lot of you complained in the comments and through email that you were not able to click on the cross. Hopefully this helps. The section where you need to click is circled. If you see a broad overview, a cross is in the middle in white.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci12e.png"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci12e.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114624567133057381?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114624567133057381/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114624567133057381&amp;isPopup=true' title='32 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114624567133057381'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114624567133057381'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-da-vinci-code-webquest-12.html' title='Student Rant : Da Vinci Code webquest # 12'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>32</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114616846222927331</id><published>2006-04-27T12:46:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-27T13:18:34.586-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Interesting news: Judge creates own Da Vinci Code</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: left;"&gt;The BBC is reporting that the judge who presided over the recent Da Vinci Code plagiarism case used steganography to &lt;a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4949488.stm"&gt;embed his own code in the judgment&lt;/a&gt; using italic text in random places throughout the text.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The full text of the code reads 'smithcodeJaeiextostpsacgreamqwfkadpmqz' if you want to have a go at cracking it." From the article: "Although he would not be drawn on his code and its meaning, Mr Justice Smith said he would probably confirm it if someone cracked it, which was 'not a difficult thing to do'. In March, he presided over a High Court case brought by authors Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, who claimed Dan Brown plagiarized their own historical book for The Da Vinci Code."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Justice Peter Smith italicised key letters in &lt;a href="http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/images/judgment-files/baigent_v_rhg_0406.pdf"&gt;the 71-page judgment&lt;/a&gt;, and has promised to reveal all when someone cracks the code.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, when one searches for the text in the pdf... one comes up empty. More digging and from what i managed to gather so far, according to Mr Justice Smith ,the pattern was "something more than a typo". The judge, who is 53 and lists some of his hobbies as reading military history and the sinking of the Titanic, said that paragraph 52 of his judgment would give readers a clue to the puzzle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;That paragraph reads: "I have set out at some length what in my opinion is an overall analysis of HBHG [The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail]. I have done that and will do the same further in this judgment in respect of DVC [The Da Vinci Code] because that is essential in my view to deciding this case."The paragraph ended: "The key to solving the conundrum posed by this judgment is in reading HBHG and DVC."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Checking the pdf, the actual characters (with their paragraphs) are:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1:s, 2:m, 3:ithy, 4:c, 5:o, 6:d, 7:e, 8:Ja, 9:e, 11:ie, 13:x, 14:t, 16:os, 18:t, 19:g, 20:p, 21:s, 23:a, 25:cgr, 26:e, 27:a, 29:m, 30:w, 31:f, 34:k, 35:a, 37:d, 38:p, 40:m, 42:q, 43:z&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In Mr Justice Smith's coded judgment, the first nine digits obviously spell Smith Code:&lt;br /&gt;s,m,i,t,h,c,o,d,e,J,a,e,i,e,x,t,o,s,t,p,s,a,c,g,r&lt;nobr&gt;,&lt;wbr&gt;&lt;/nobr&gt; e,a,m,q,w,f,k,a,d,p,m,q,z.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Beyond that is anyone's guess.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Some tossups:&lt;br /&gt;#1: Is it just a subsbitution ciper with the letters "smithcode" being the first ones?&lt;br /&gt;#2: Same lenght of the judge's hidden string and the titles of the books&lt;tt&gt;&lt;br /&gt;smithycodeJaeiextostgpsacgreamqwfkadpmqzv&lt;/tt&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tt&gt;TheHolyBloodandtheHolyGrailTheDaVinciCode&lt;/tt&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114616846222927331?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114616846222927331/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114616846222927331&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114616846222927331'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114616846222927331'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/interesting-news-judge-creates-own-da.html' title='Interesting news: Judge creates own Da Vinci Code'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114616098727237913</id><published>2006-04-27T11:01:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-28T09:58:19.790-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 11 : Chess Challenge</title><content type='html'>Hey all.. Welcome back. The quests were up a bit late on this site because of my finals. Anyways, today's challenge is being called The Chess Challenge&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci11.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci11.png" alt="da vinci code" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Ian McKellen is Sir Leigh Teabing, a man whose every move has been in preparation for a Grail Quest.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Determine the only sequence of three moves that will lead to checkmate in the given chess scenario. Knowledge of The Da Vinci Code may hel you, as may Google Web Search"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, let's play chess&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci11a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci11a.png" alt="da vinci code" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question #1: A word that can be read the same backwards or forwards is called&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A quick &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;amp;q=a+word+that+can+be+read+backwards+and+forwards+is+called&amp;btnG=Search"&gt;google search&lt;/a&gt; gives us the answer in the description of the first result&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Question # 2: Jacques Sauniere's body was found in which part of the Louvre?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci11b.0.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci11b.0.png" alt="google webquests" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Again, a quick &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;amp;oi=spell&amp;resnum=0&amp;amp;ct=result&amp;cd=1&amp;amp;q=which+section+of+the+museum+was+sauniere+murdered&amp;spell=1"&gt;Google search&lt;/a&gt; gives us the answer. I understand there might be a better search query, but if you scroll down the results  towards the middle ,under the description for sacred-destinations.com, we find the answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci11c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci11c.png" alt="da vinci code" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question # 3:  The quick brown fox jumps over a lazy dog is an example of&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, a google search and then under the first result in &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_quick_brown_fox_jumps_over_a_lazy_dog"&gt;Wikipedia&lt;/a&gt;, we find our answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Over all, if this was a pure chess quest, it might have been more of a challenge, but in the end turns out to be one of the easiest quests so far.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114616098727237913?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114616098727237913/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114616098727237913&amp;isPopup=true' title='10 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114616098727237913'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114616098727237913'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/google-da-vinci-code-quest-11-chess.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 11 : Chess Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>10</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114607715161994063</id><published>2006-04-26T10:01:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-26T13:27:28.890-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 10 : Observation Challenge</title><content type='html'>Welcome back everyone. We are turning into double digits today in number of quests. If you survived this far, give yourself a pat.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci10.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci10.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called as "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Observation Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;T&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;he instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Jean Reno is Bezu Fache, a police Captain known for his unrelenting persuit of truth.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Find the clip using the given search terms, watch it, and use your observational skills to seek the truthful answers to the questions."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The observation challenge asks you to watch a video on Silas. Locating the source for these facts simply takes persistence and a strong dedication to an ideal. Silas's video is at your service on Google Video. To watch this video, go to &lt;a href="http://video.google.com/"&gt;Google videos&lt;/a&gt; and then search for silas. It is the second video on the first row. If you are too lazy, here is the &lt;a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8937530141955979464&amp;q=silas&amp;amp;pl=true"&gt;direct link&lt;/a&gt; to the video on Google videos.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UPDATE&lt;/span&gt;: Some of you complained that you cannot watch the video at Google Videos. I have uploaded the video here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;object width="325" height="350"&gt;&lt;param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/r3NnUzG50eA"&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/r3NnUzG50eA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="380" height="325"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci10a.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci10a.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once you are done watching the video, we are told to answer three questions. The questions are as follows:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 1&lt;/span&gt;: A seemingly important stone object is extracted from the ground by Silas. What is its shape?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is the easiest question to answer. Look in the video. The shape has 8 edges.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 2&lt;/span&gt;: An interesting viewpoint is the vantage point from which we see Silas. What is the last thing we see him touch?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He touches something towards the end of the video. The first reaction would be to answer water. However, you see a cross in the background. This is what google means by vantage point. So what kind of water is in a church... in a HOLY place.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 3&lt;/span&gt;: During the action in the video, we see many things being shattered and destroyed, but what is it that will ultimately be broken?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Okay, for this I had to watch the video a couple of times. However, the hint comes just before Robert Langdon says "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Dear God&lt;/span&gt;" in the video.  He says that 29 seconds into the video. Watch for the statement and your answer will be found.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114607715161994063?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114607715161994063/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114607715161994063&amp;isPopup=true' title='38 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114607715161994063'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114607715161994063'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/google-da-vinci-code-quest-10.html' title='Google Da Vinci Code Quest # 10 : Observation Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>38</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114598746229659870</id><published>2006-04-25T10:09:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-25T10:56:11.433-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Da Vinci Code Quest # 9: Curator Challenge</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci9.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci9.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello everyone... welcome back to Quest # 9 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Curator Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Audrey Tautou is Sophie Neveu, a Police Department Cryptographer with a special connection to the murdered curator of the Louvre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your curator's eye to hang the works of art such that the hooks match those on the gallery wall. Not all of the hooks on the gallery wall will necessarily be used. Some art may have already been placed and cannot be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So... let's get started.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci9a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci9a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Guidelines: As we can see from here, we are given 8 different paintings of different sizes. Also, observe that some of the hooks might be in the middle of the painting as shown in the picture of the left. Also, you cannot go outside the given space and you cannot overlap one picture over or under another picture.  Important HINT: If the paintings just drop either to the bottom of the floor, or if you place a painting at the bottom of the floor and it bounces of the floor, it is not hooked up.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;How it might differ from yours&lt;/span&gt;: It might vary by having some pictures already hooked on the wall. Also, the number of pictures might vary. The second time i solved it, i had one painting already hooked up and just five more paintings to choose from. The third time, i had none hooked on but 7 paintings. Remember, follow the approach and you should be okay&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 1: Browse through your picture selection and hook the biggest picture first. In this case, it is the painting shown in the above image. Place it so that it occupies the least amount of hooks. Don't try to place it on the far left where it might get hooked, but, will take up more number or cover up more number of hooks.  I place it on the left hand side.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Take the next biggest picture and place it. I place mine on the right side.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 3: It is relatively straight forward from now on. Take care of the paintings that are horizontal and have 2 hinges first.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 4: Clean up the rest of the paintings.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci9c.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci9c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Once we are done, we are asked our daily trivia question of the day. In my case it was&lt;br /&gt;" Where was Victor Hugo born?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Note, your question might be different. Remember to just google the section contained in bold in your trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In this case, a simple &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=where+was+victor+hugo+born&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;google search&lt;/a&gt;, gives me the right answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Overall, this was relatively very easy compared the previous two quests, &lt;a href="http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-8-on-google.html"&gt;quest # 8&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href="http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-7-on-google.html"&gt;quest # 7&lt;/a&gt;.  Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Something on the side&lt;/span&gt;: With today's quest being so simple, I tried to do some digging on the page we are given everyday. I came to the conclusion that Google did a pretty awesome job with making sure that the paintings shown to us are random. I had a theory that if in the URL of the page, I change the number or the random number in the end to the number I had, when I solved the quests, I thought it would replicate with the exact same settings. However, I was wrong. Google has some other way of randomizing it. I will keep digging and see what comes up. If any of you guys have any interesting theories, let me know... we can test them out.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114598746229659870?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114598746229659870/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114598746229659870&amp;isPopup=true' title='21 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114598746229659870'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114598746229659870'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-9-curator.html' title='Da Vinci Code Quest # 9: Curator Challenge'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>21</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114590094068768325</id><published>2006-04-24T09:59:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-24T12:07:13.966-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Da Vinci Code Quest # 8 on Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci8.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Welcome back everyone for one more exciting google.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called ' The Restoration Challenge'&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;" Alfred Molina is Manuel Aringarosa, a Bishop dedicated to preserving, if not restoring, conservative values.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A question is hidden in plain sight on this classic work of art - parts of the question are unclear, obscured by debris. Clear the particles of debris by selecting pairs that are separated by one space - they will merge into one particle. When there is only one particle left, the question will be revealed. Ignore any text obscured by the last particle and solve the mystery"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are pretty similar to what we have seen in Quest # 2.  Again, the images you see below might not be the same on your screen but the approach would be the same. So lets start clearing the rubble...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci8a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci8a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step 1: Remember, the only places that can be selected are those highlighted when you click on a piece of rubble. Also, when you click on a piece of a rubble, usually two and sometimes three pieces of rubble could be selected. Also, remember the objective, we just need one piece of rubble left in the end.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step2: First, start clicking the rubble near the text and bring them down where there are more pieces of rubble which allows us to better match and select and pair them up. Also, unlike quest #2 where most people got away by selecting rubble and then the whole screen cleared up, this is a bit different. You might be seeing messages like this if you incorrectly pair them&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci8c.png"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci8c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once, you are done clearing the rubble, we are asked our daily trivia question. I solved this &lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci8d.0.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci8d.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;puzzle twice and both the times, I was asked a question relating to a book with the ISDN mentioned.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, in this case, I was asked the question,&lt;br /&gt;"Who dealt with the myth of Venice in ISBN 019815254X"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember to just google the section mentioned in the dark which is &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;amp;q=ISBN+019815254X&amp;amp;btnG=Search"&gt;ISBN 019815254x&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once, I am there, I go to the most popular query returned on Amazon. The general tendency of people might be to put the name of the author here which is Craig Kallendorf. However, it is not that simple although the answer to the name of the gentleman could be found in the book description section.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114590094068768325?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114590094068768325/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114590094068768325&amp;isPopup=true' title='21 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114590094068768325'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114590094068768325'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-8-on-google.html' title='The Da Vinci Code Quest # 8 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>21</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114581670417008049</id><published>2006-04-23T10:05:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-26T07:58:38.113-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Da Vinci Code quest # 7 on Google</title><content type='html'>Hello folks! Welcome back to another day of Da Vinci Code webquests!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci7.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci7.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Today's challenge is being called as "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Symbol Challenge&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;T&lt;/span&gt;he instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Tom Hanks is professor Robert Langdon, an expert on the interpreation of symbols.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your logic skills and drag the symbols onto the grid such that the symbols in each row are all distinct, the symbols in each column are all distinct, and the symbols in each shaded region are all distinct. Some symbols may have already been placed and cannot be moved"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So far so good. The instructions are exactly like &lt;a href="http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/googles-da-vinci-code-quest-1.html"&gt;quest # 1&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci7a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci7a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Here is what the symbol challenge looks like.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Note&lt;/span&gt;: The location of the symbols might vary on your screen as Google likes to randomize them. However the approach i will describe remains the same irrespective of the location of the symbols.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step # 1&lt;/span&gt;: &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;U&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;nlike quest #1 where there were four shaded regions, this one has 5.  At the same time, we also have 5 symbols. The initial step would be the find the shaded region with the most symbols in it. This would be the brown shaded region. Fill in the two remaining symbols in that shaded region, making sure that the symbol is unique to that row.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 2: Next, once we do that, we see that the fourth column has been filled with four symbols. Fill in the unique fifth symbol.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 3: Next, approach the first row. Fill in the two unique symbols there.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step #4: Next, fill in the light grey, inverted L shaded region.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 5: Next, fill in the third row, taking care of the concerns of the light green shaded region.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step # 6: Next, take care of the third column. Finish up the red shaded region, then the fourth column. The fifth row, then the fourth row.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Finally, we are done&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci7c.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci7c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;We are next asked the trivia question.&lt;br /&gt;" To the nearest marathon, what is the radius of Pluto in marathons?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For this you need to google search &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=what+is+the+radius+of+pluto&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;Radius of pluto&lt;/a&gt;. Next, check out the &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon_%28sport%29"&gt;length of a marathon in Wikipedia&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Take care that the units of measurement are the same. Take kilometers since the google search gives the radius of pluto in that units.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Whip out you calculator, round of to the nearest number. Hint: The answer is the number of days in february.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This was the hardest challenge so far. This is due to the increased number of symbols. Took me three tries with different approaches to the get the correct answer finally.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If any of you guys have a different picture or different location of symbols please post it here or email me so that i can add it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Until then, good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;UPDATE&lt;/span&gt;: One of the readers informed me that the question asked in the end is random. However, google can solve this for you. All you need to do in the end is copy and paste the part of the question in bold ( in my case: radius of pluto in marathons) and you get your answer.&lt;br /&gt;Thanks Punkdigerati!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114581670417008049?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114581670417008049/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114581670417008049&amp;isPopup=true' title='39 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114581670417008049'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114581670417008049'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-7-on-google.html' title='The Da Vinci Code quest # 7 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>39</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114576358331528761</id><published>2006-04-22T19:32:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-26T07:59:27.073-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The only story which Kevin Rose submitted but not on Digg's front page</title><content type='html'>First, I want to congratulate Kevin Rose and the rest of the gang (Owen Byrne, Ron Gorodetzky and Jay Adelson) for coming up with such a brilliant concept of a social networking tech site which combines social bookmarking and syndication into such a beautiful mash.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In fact, it recently broke into the &lt;a href="http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?q=&amp;url=www.digg.com/"&gt;top hundred most visited sites on the net&lt;/a&gt;. I was a regular visitor at Slashdot until digg really broke through with their version 2.0 in July 2005. Since then, it has been a meteoric growth for digg and recently Digg seems have acquired a similar daily reach to Slashdot as seen from the &lt;a href="http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?&amp;amp;range=6m&amp;size=medium&amp;amp;y=r&amp;url=www.digg.com/#top"&gt;Alexa graph&lt;/a&gt; below.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/dislash.png"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/dislash.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Digg prided itself on being unique. News stories and websites are submitted by users, and then promoted to the front page through a user-based ranking system which differed from the hierarchical editorial system that many other news sites employ such as Slashdot.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, there seem to a spate of recent contoversy with Digg. The seems to be with editorial control and editors promoting stories on the Digg front page. This was first reported by &lt;a href="http://forevergeek.com/geek_articles/digg_army_right_in_line.php"&gt;forevergeek.com&lt;/a&gt; which pointed out two front page stories on Digg with the exact same users digging it initially in the exact same order, one of whom included Kevin Rose, a co-founder of Digg. It was also followed up by Splasho, which also &lt;a href="http://splasho.com/blog/2006/04/20/suspicious-digging/"&gt;reported suspicious digging&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Both forevergeek and Splasho were banned from Digg before their accounts revoked later on. I can comment on this, but a more accurate story could be found on forevergeek's article ' &lt;a href="http://forevergeek.com/news/digg_corrupted_editors_playground_not_userdriven_website.php"&gt;Digg Corrupted: Editor's playground, not user driven site&lt;/a&gt;.'&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Kevin Rose, &lt;a href="http://diggtheblog.blogspot.com/2006/04/digging-fraud.html"&gt;responded&lt;/a&gt; to all this '&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;corruption in Digg&lt;/span&gt;' . However, a lot of questions remain unanswered. According to &lt;a href="http://forevergeek.com/news/responding_to_kevins_nonresponse_post.php"&gt;forevergeek&lt;/a&gt;, "Kevin's response is more of a non-response. One of those PR-driven "say something but don't really say anything. He doesn't explain how he got in the middle of the automated digging (and no one else did). He claims we(forevergeek) were abusing the system, when you can see our accounts were legitimate users of Digg and that other people were submitting FG (and digging it). Lastly, he claimed that stories got legitimately buried - yet somehow every single Digg corruption story got buried almost immediately. About as fast as the user accounts had been getting banned before the story broke out (which also was not explained)."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;While the rest of the tech world waits for Kevin's response, I did some of my own digging...pun intended.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/digg1.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/digg1.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;I looked up into Kevin's profile to see his success rate for posting stories onto digg front page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As you can see, &lt;a href="http://digg.com/users/kevinrose/submitted"&gt;Kevin has submitted&lt;/a&gt; 93 stories in all.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, let us see how many stories made it to the front page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/digg2.png"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer; width: 447px; height: 255px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/digg2.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Whoa!! an astonishing 92 stories on the front page. Wow... there seems to be some sense in all those claims of editors driving up stories to the front page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, which one of those stories did not make it to the front page. Some more digging reveals that Kevin submitted 13 stories in the design section, but only 12 made it to the front page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/digg3.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/digg3.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/digg4.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/digg4.png" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, which poor sucker got left out. It turns out to be a link on Rich AJAX slide shows with DHTML and XML on &lt;a href="http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/xml/library/x-ajaxslideshow/?ca=dgr-lnxw01AjaxSlid"&gt;IBM's site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Interesting points to note:&lt;br /&gt;#1. This story was reported on Slashdot around two hours before Kevin posted it on Digg.&lt;br /&gt;So i guess Kevin is a fan/reader of Slashdot and promotes Slashdot stories on Digg. No harm done... i guess good stories need to be posted.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#2. If one reads the &lt;a href="http://digg.com/design/Rich_Ajax_slide_shows_with_DHTML_and_XML"&gt;Digg link to the IBM Story&lt;/a&gt;, one of the users already comments that he won't digg this story because it just had 2 diggs and it already made the front page queue... wtf.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, does this mean Digg still promotes it's editors stories to the front page.  I don't know. Trust me, i have been a big fan of Digg for a while and some of its success stories like how Digg users &lt;a href="http://thomashawk.com/2006/03/yahoo-shoppers-beware-priceritephoto.html"&gt;punished Price Rite Photo&lt;/a&gt; and how it became the most dugg story shows a wonderful side of Digg. However, i hope this latest editorial control fiasco won't usher the end to one the web's brightest lights.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If Digg wants to have editorial/ semi- editorial control, let them say so. Most of us would be okay with it, like how we learnt to love SlashDot. Also, Digg can have an editor's section or editor's fav's section where they can promote stories they think are interesting and the users can submit/promote stories on the Digg front page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let us see where this leads us. Don't ban me for this story Digg...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/The_only_story_which_Kevin_Rose_submitted_but_not_on_the_front_page" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; The story which Kevin Rose submitted but did not make the front page on Digg. Digg here »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114576358331528761?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114576358331528761/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114576358331528761&amp;isPopup=true' title='56 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114576358331528761'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114576358331528761'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/only-story-which-kevin-rose-submitted.html' title='The only story which Kevin Rose submitted but not on Digg&apos;s front page'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>56</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114573512909773253</id><published>2006-04-22T12:33:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-26T08:00:33.826-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant on Digg!</title><content type='html'>Hello Student Rant readers. Thanks for all the support you have shown the last couple of days and to keep my side of the deal, I will continue to keep this site up and running with high quality content.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For now, as you might have observed, this site has quickly turned into a good discussion site for the Da Vinci Code google webquests. A reader, drosan has sent me a mail that he added this site to Digg. Thanks Drosan!. Also thanks to yuck22 who submitted my earlier posts to Digg.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I wanted to add a single link here. Digg is an excellent social networking site and hopefully through enough promotion, more readers would benefit from the excellent discussion we have going on here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Thanks again Student Rant readers!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-Student&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114573512909773253?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114573512909773253/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114573512909773253&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114573512909773253'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114573512909773253'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-on-digg.html' title='Student Rant on Digg!'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114572749606809455</id><published>2006-04-22T09:56:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-22T14:12:28.116-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Da Vinci Code Quest # 6 on Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci6.1.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci6.1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello folks! it's day 6 of the Google Da Vinci Code webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's challenge is being called &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;'The Geography Challenge'&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;T&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;he instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;"Paul Bettany, is Silas, a man who in blind faith will do whatever it takes to track down a secret that must be destroyed, no matter where it leads him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Assemble the jigsaw puzzle pieces to reveal and identify a geographical location.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Okay... let's go hunting&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci6a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci6a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step 1: Okay, so there are multiple pieces to the puzzle here. Our initial approach should be to find and seperate the ones which are flat with no edges on one side so that they can go on the ends.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci6b.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci6b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step 2: Once you have done that, we are given a good place to start through the google maps copyright. Look for pieces that contain text on them. The copyright is almost always placed on the bottom right. So, we will start by placing our components in there.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step 3: Once you do that, leave that section alone and start moving pieces with flat sides.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Step 4: Trial and error ensues. One important hint is that once the right sections are in place, they are locked and you don't get to move them. This is critical because some parts might fall right in place, but if it doesn't lock, then it is not the right place.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci6c.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci6c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Step 5: Finally, in the end once the whole puzzle is assembled, we are asked one final question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;" This city contains a three dimensional version of Leonardo's &lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;The Last Supper&lt;/span&gt; created by the Venezuelan sculptor Marisol. What is the name of the city? "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can either &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;q=marisol&amp;amp;btnG=Google+Search"&gt;Google search&lt;/a&gt; for the author Marisol and go to works or follow this hint.&lt;br /&gt;This city is called the "&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Big Apple&lt;/span&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;So far, this has been a better challege. Hopefully the trend continues and Google keeps giving us more exciting puzzles to solve.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;See you tomorrow. Until then, Good luck solving !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Update&lt;/span&gt;: One of the readers posted a &lt;a href="http://maps.google.com/?ll=40.717079,-73.999786&amp;spn=0.024168,0.044074&amp;amp;t=k&amp;amp;om=1"&gt;link to the complete map area in google maps&lt;/a&gt;. Check this out, this is how the final map would look like. It also has the hint for the name of the city in the final answer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114572749606809455?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114572749606809455/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114572749606809455&amp;isPopup=true' title='19 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114572749606809455'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114572749606809455'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-6-on-google.html' title='The Da Vinci Code Quest # 6 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>19</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114564148106401433</id><published>2006-04-21T10:03:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-22T14:12:51.076-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code quest # 5 on Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci5.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci5.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hello folks, it's day 5 of the Da Vinci Code Google webquests.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's  challenge is being called " &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Chess Challenge&lt;/span&gt; "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Instructions are&lt;br /&gt;" Ian McKellen is Sir Leigh Teabing, a man whose every move has been in preparation for a Grail Quest. Determine the only sequence of three moves that will lead to checkmate in the given chess scenario. Knowledge of &lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;The Da Vinci Code&lt;/span&gt; may help you, as may Google Web Search. "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Okay ... let's play chess.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci5a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci5a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;This is the original layout given to us. I want to play chess rather than query the questions given to us, but i have a feeling from the previous posts that Google might change the location of the queen or the rook or any other chess items on the board. So i decided to approach the questions itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 1: What is the spiked belt that Silas wears called.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Anyone who read the Da Vinci code should be able to answer this question. However a &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;amp;q=what+is+the+spiked+belt+that+silas+wears+called&amp;btnG=Search"&gt;Google search&lt;/a&gt; for the question brings up a query on Amazon as the top search result. You don't even need to click on the link. The answer is in the summary itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci5b.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci5b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 2: What are the second, third and fourth leading members of the Priory of Sion called?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, anyone who read the Da Vinci code should find this easy pickings. For the rest, a &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=what+are+the+second,+third+and+fourth+leading+members+of+the+priory+of+sion+called%3F&amp;hl=en&amp;amp;lr=&amp;start=10&amp;amp;sa=N"&gt;google search&lt;/a&gt; is very confusing with no answers jumping out of the screen.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For this, go to the &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Da_Vinci_Code"&gt;Wikipedia entry of the Da Vinci Code&lt;/a&gt; and in there, surprisingly, the only mention of the answer is under the profile description of &lt;b&gt;André Vernet&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci5c.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci5c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Question # 3: The engraved tablet that is supposed to reveal the hiding place of the Holy Grail is called the&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, easy pickings for those who read The Da Vinci Code.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A &lt;a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;amp;q=The+engraved+tablet+that+is+supposed+to+reveal+the+hiding+place+of+the+Holy+Grail+is+called+the&amp;btnG=Search"&gt;Google search&lt;/a&gt; for this question again gives out wierd results.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Da_Vinci_Code"&gt;wikipedia&lt;/a&gt; to the rescue. The answer to the question would be under the profile decription of the name of the person in all these above pictures.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci5d.png"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci5d.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Finally we are done. This would have been a fair enough challenge if it was purely chess based. However, the questions give enough hints and the answers are so obvious that they stand out.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I am starting the judge on how hard the questions are, based on the time it takes me to post everyday. So far, I took the longest time on quest # 1 and the times keep coming down.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I hope this trend changes down the line. Also, if we look in our personalized google home page at google.com/ig, tomorrow's quest would be something based on geography. Hopefully this means using google maps and hopefully, we have to decrypt the longitude and latitude of the location based on some anagram. Hopefully!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Until then, Good luck solving!!&lt;b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114564148106401433?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114564148106401433/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114564148106401433&amp;isPopup=true' title='13 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114564148106401433'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114564148106401433'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-da-vinci-code-quest-5-on.html' title='Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code quest # 5 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>13</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114555397732306259</id><published>2006-04-20T09:59:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-22T14:13:33.076-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code quest # 4 at Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci4.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello folks, welcome to day 4 of the Da Vinci webquest at Google.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today's quest is being called the &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Curator Challenge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;instructions are&lt;br /&gt;" Audrey Tautou is Sophie Neveu, a Police Department Cryptogopher with a special connection to the murdered curator of the Louvre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Use your curator's eye to hang the works of art such that the hooks match those on the gallery wall. Not all the hooks on the gallery wall will necessarily be used. Some art may have already been placed and cannot be moved"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Okay... let's dig in&lt;/span&gt;. There are five paintings given to us in addition to one already placed on the wall, which can't be moved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step 1&lt;/span&gt;: The key is think bigger first. Also remember, you can't hide smaller pictures under the bigger ones. All the pictures have to be shown.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step 2&lt;/span&gt;: Click through the list of pictures &lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci4a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 161px; height: 155px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci4a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;until you find the biggest picture.  Take this and hinge it on the right hand side.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step 3&lt;/span&gt;: Next, take the next biggest picture and hinge it beside the biggest picture. The trick for this one is that the hinge is in the middle of the painting.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci4b.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci4b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step 4&lt;/span&gt;: It gets easier from now on. Take the next biggest one and hinge it on extreme left.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci4c.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci4c.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Step 5&lt;/span&gt;: Next biggest painting on the right hand side and finally the last one on the left side of the original painting.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, we are asked a question towards the end.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci4d.0.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci4d.0.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is about Sophie Neveu. What is the symbol shown here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For this answer, go to &lt;a href="http://www.sodarktheconofman.com"&gt;sodarktheconofman.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once the flash movie ends, go to characters, click on Sophie Neveu. There is a description of a symbol at the bottom of the page.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Final answer... you are all set.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Update&lt;/span&gt;: One of the readers informed me that Google changed the location of the hooks later in the day. However, your approach should be the same --- Thanks Michael!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114555397732306259?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114555397732306259/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114555397732306259&amp;isPopup=true' title='25 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114555397732306259'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114555397732306259'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/student-rant-da-vinci-code-quest-4-at.html' title='Student Rant: The Da Vinci Code quest # 4 at Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>25</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114546984661080128</id><published>2006-04-19T10:02:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-24T09:11:33.283-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Da Vinci Code Quest # 3 on Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci3.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci3.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Hello folks! it's Quest time again. On Day 3, the quest is being called as &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Observation Challenge.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are as follows&lt;br /&gt;" &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Jean Reno &lt;/span&gt;is Bezu Fache, a police Captain known for his unrelenting pursuit of truth. Find the clip using the given search terms, watch it, and use your observational skills to seek the truthful answers to the questions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, we are asked three questions based on the &lt;a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LUmRpTDSS8"&gt;video shown&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;Note: The critical elements you need to observe are highlighted by an arrow&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-LUmRpTDSS8" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="325" width="380"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The following are the three questions&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci3a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci3a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Question # 1: For this question, we are asked to name the symbol. For this go to&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.sodarktheconofman.com"&gt;sodarktheconofman.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In there, go to characters, go to Bezu Fache. Below his profile, is the name of the symbol you need to enter.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Question # 2: For this question, we are asked to name the famous drawing of Da Vinci. The hint is here on &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Da_Vinci_Code"&gt;Wikipedia&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The drawing is on the right side under description.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Question # 3: Finally, you are asked to name the number of dials. This is pretty simple. In the video, the cryptex is highlighted by the arrow pointer again. Another simple hint: it is the number of fingers on your hand + 1&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Finally, you are done. Good luck !!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci3b.png"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci3b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114546984661080128?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114546984661080128/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114546984661080128&amp;isPopup=true' title='27 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114546984661080128'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114546984661080128'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-3-on-google.html' title='The Da Vinci Code Quest # 3 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>27</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114538303515022119</id><published>2006-04-18T10:03:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-22T14:14:24.360-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Da Vinci Code Quest # 2 on Google</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style="text-decoration: underline;"&gt;Note:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;If you did not solve quest # 1 , go here to sign up at &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/"&gt;Google&lt;/a&gt; and come back &lt;a href="http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/warning-solution-to-google-da-vinci.html"&gt;here&lt;/a&gt; for instructions on how to solve it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci2.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Quest # 2 is here folks. It is being called as &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Restoration challenge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The instructions are " Alfred Moline is Manuel Aringarosa, a Bishop dedicated to preserving, if not restoring, conservative values.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A question is hidden in plain sight on this classic work of art- parts of the question are unclear, obscured by debris. Clear the  particles of debris by selecting pairs that are separated by one space- they will merge into one particle. When there is only one particle left, the question will be revealed. Ignore any text obscured by the last particle and solve the mystery."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;How to approach this puzzle&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;1. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;The important thing to note here is that the whole picture is not selectable. The selectable items are marked with the change in the mouse pointer. For this puzzle, click on a debri that selects another piece of debri&lt;br /&gt;2. Select the piece of debri on the bottom left. Another piece of debri is selected. Select the blank  space before that and click. The two pieces of debri will merge&lt;br /&gt;3. Continue in this way, until there is just one debri. Click on the blank space adjacent to it. Always remember, only click on parts of the picture which are clickable.&lt;br /&gt;4. Solved!!! &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci2a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci2a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Again, we are asked another question.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The question is " Name the symbol on Manuel Aringarosa, pictured at left".&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I googled for the picture name online and my first entry of "cross" did not work. My second entry was chalice... figured give it a shot since yesterday was the male symbol "blade". Again, google tells us to go to &lt;a href="http://www.sodarktheconofman.com"&gt;sodarktheconofman.com.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Figured there has to be a hidden component in the flash section there.  I think so because in Sony's website, when the original trailers started coming out, there was a section of the movie website which is 'locked off' until you find a number of symbols (six) within the original Flash animation (click on 'Da Vinci Gallery') which showcases many of DaVinci's art pieces. These symbols are quite easily found, as they glow a little - they are: a triangle (the 'blade') in the Mona Lisa, an ankh on the wrist of St John the Baptist, a Greek cross in Madonna of the Rocks, a Christian cross on the necklace in The Anunciation, a Fleur-de-Lys in the hair of the next image, an an upside down triangle (the 'chalice') in front of Jesus in The Last Supper.  &lt;p&gt;Once all these symbols have been found and clicked on, the 'hidden part' of the site is unlocked, and these symbols are presented in a panel and can be clicked upon (more on this soon).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;I tried in viewing the gallery flash again. No luck this time. However, in plain text, was a character bio. Each character again is associated with a symbol and the name of the symbol is given.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci2b.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci2b.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;So, for this quest, click on Manuel Arigarosa, and the name of the symbol is shown at the bottom of the page with a description.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Good luck solving!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114538303515022119?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114538303515022119/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114538303515022119&amp;isPopup=true' title='12 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114538303515022119'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114538303515022119'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/da-vinci-code-quest-2-on-google.html' title='The Da Vinci Code Quest # 2 on Google'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>12</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114529981146430989</id><published>2006-04-17T11:23:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-22T14:14:42.226-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Warning ! Solution to Google Da Vinci code Quest # 1</title><content type='html'>Warning! This post contains the solution image and how to approach quest # 1. To see the original problem , either go to &lt;a href="http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/googles-da-vinci-code-quest-1.html"&gt;Student Rant Quest # 1&lt;/a&gt; or &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/"&gt;Google Da Vinci Code quest&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This game is based on the popular Sudoku puzzle. In this puzzle, the numbers 1-4 are replaced by symbols taken from Da Vinci Code&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Approach&lt;br /&gt;1. The key is to try to meet the third requirement first... which is to make sure that all symbols in the shaded region are distinct.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2. Approach shaded region # 1 on top right.. the reddish looking color. Since two symbols are already placed and can't be moved, place the other two symbols making sure you think of the other two requirements, that symbol on each row and column must be unique.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;3. Next, approach the shaded region on the bottom right, the light brown color. Two symbols are already laced and can't be moved, place the other two symbols making sure you think of the other two requirements, that symbol on each row and column must be unique.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;4.  Next, approach the third row. Three symbols are already placed. Place the unique symbol.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;5. Next, approach the second row. Three symbols are already placed. Place the unique symbol.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;6. Next, approach the shaded region on the top left, the light greenish looking color. This is tricky since all colums have just two symbols filled. However, on the first row, we have a symbol on the right hand side and on the second row, we have a symbol in the first column. Fill in the three other symbols making sure that they are unique.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;7. Once you do that, the last part is easy. Just fill in the the bottom row, taking care that each symbol is unique in each column and you are all set.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once the puzzle is solved, we get a congratulatory message that it has been solved.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are asked an additional question. " Please name the symbol on Robert Langdon( pitured at the left) "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci1a.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci1a.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For the final answer, Google mentions to go &lt;a href="http://www.sodarktheconofman.com"&gt;Sony Pictures site&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, i found the final answer on &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Da_Vinci_Code"&gt;Wikipedia&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You will FIND the answer if you search for the correct keyword SYMBOL.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good luck solving!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://digg.com/links/Ultimate_Da_Vinci_Code_Google_webquests_solutions_and_discussion" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;img src="http://studentrant.com/images/digg.gif" /&gt; Digg Student Rant »&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114529981146430989?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114529981146430989/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114529981146430989&amp;isPopup=true' title='14 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529981146430989'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529981146430989'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/warning-solution-to-google-da-vinci.html' title='Warning ! Solution to Google Da Vinci code Quest # 1'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>14</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114529805817593951</id><published>2006-04-17T11:00:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-17T11:21:58.616-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Google's Da Vinci Code Quest # 1</title><content type='html'>Google &lt;a href="http://flash.sonypictures.com/movies/davincicodequest/"&gt;starts a quest inspired by Da Vinci Code&lt;/a&gt; (the movie) and offers more than ten thousand (!) prizes. The puzzles will be publish daily on Google Personalized Homepage. "Beginning on April 17th you will embark on a quest that requires skill, intellect, and perseverance. For 24 days, you will encounter unique challenges."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here is the first challenge&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;" Tom Hanks is professor Robert Langdon, an expert on the interpretation of symbols.&lt;br /&gt;Use your logic skills and drag the symbols onto the grid such that the symbols in each row are all distinct, the symbols in each column are all distinct, and the symbols in each shaded region are all distinct. Some symbols may have already been placed and cannot be moved. "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/1600/davinci1.jpg"&gt;&lt;img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4838/2722/320/davinci1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I will try to stay up with google and provide Student Rant readers more insight into the another wonderful combo served up by Google&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114529805817593951?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114529805817593951/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114529805817593951&amp;isPopup=true' title='98 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529805817593951'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529805817593951'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/googles-da-vinci-code-quest-1.html' title='Google&apos;s Da Vinci Code Quest # 1'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>98</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114529446330544146</id><published>2006-04-17T10:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-17T10:24:53.120-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The ten commandments of a college student</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;I feel uneasy, but I do not wonder why.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;My spirit is not calm.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I am trying to get some "me time." Mood: melancholy.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;While surfing the web, I come across a funny blog . This CS student &lt;a href="http://toomuchsexy.org/index/weblog/comments/the_ten_commandments_of_college"&gt;describes the ten commandments of a college student&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Here it goes...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Student was searching for divine inspiration. Student walked high on the mountain of knowledge and came across God. Student asked God how to live life as a college kid should. And God said unto him, follow these Ten Commandments and you shall be all a college kid is. And Student thanked God and it was good. And Student spread the Ten Commandments of College to all. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;I- Thou Shalt Nap&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And God gave unto Student a great gift, the gift of napping. God said to him, You shall spend half your day napping. You shall nap in class, in your room and in your friend’s room. And God said, if you don’t nap, you will not be able to stay up all night drinking. And Student said, Nap I shall, and it was good. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;II- Thou Shalt Get Sick All the Time&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now God said to Student, you must be sick all of the time. And student said why. And God said unto him, you shall share drinks, stay up too late, drink too much and make out with people you don’t know. Therefore, God said, you shall be sick all year round. But God said, blessed are the sick for they have partied the hardest. And it was good. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;III- Thou Shalt Write Witty Away Messages&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Student asked, but God, how will I show everyone that I am funny? And God said unto him, thou shall write witty away messages. God said to student, you shall never just say you are in the shower, you shall say you are getting wet and wild…in the shower. You shall never say you are at class, you shall say you are sleeping…in class. God said, if you do not write witty away messages, I shall smite you. Blessed are the funny, for they will get many girls to be their friends but never hook up with them. And it was good. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;IV- Thou Shalt Wear a Hoodie&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And then Student asked God, God how do I look like a college kid. And God said unto student, you must wear a hoodie, for it is a useful garment. And you shall never wash it either. Student asked God what kind of Hoodie should it be and God said, you shall own one with your school’s logo on it and you shall own many others of varying colors and creeds. And Student was pleased and God was pleased. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;V- Thou Shalt Shit a Lot&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And Student asked of his bathroom habit and God told him, Student, you shall eat in the Cafeteria and you shall shit a lot. And it will not be good shit, it will be the shit of the devil for your ass shall burn for hours. Your school shall put laxatives in their food and you shall feel their pain. And Student began to weep, and God said unto him, Student, fear not the shit, for all your fellow students will be experiencing the same. And Student dried his eyes and thanked God and God told him to use wet naps to ease the pain. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;VI- Thou Shalt Eat EasyMac&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Student asked unto God if there was any alternatives to the cafeteria, and God said to him, you shall eat a lot of EasyMac. It is easy to make and you don’t need milk or a stove. And student said microwaves were forbidden by the RA. And God said to him, you shall hide the microwave under your bed with a towel on top. And Student asked, what if it is discovered. And God told him to stop being such a pussy, and it was good. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;VII- Thou Shalt Hook Up&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Student then asked of sex. And God said, Student, you shall hook up and be happy. You shall go home with random people every weekend and forget about them the next day. You shall see them at class and be awkward amongst their company. You shall exchange saliva at bars and parties and it will be good. And Student became gleeful and God told Student to wrap it up because He knows where she has been, but Student does not. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;VIII- Thou Shalt Join a Club and Never Go to Meetings&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Student inquired of his spare time and God reminded him that he should be napping. But Student said he wanted to do other things. So God said unto him, you shall join a club at the beginning of the semester, but then never go to meetings. And Student asked why he should not go to meetings, and God told him, because the glee club is gay. And Student understood His wisdom. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;IX- Thou Shalt Wake Up Confused&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;God said to Student, there will come many a day when you shall wake up in the bed of another and not know where you are. You will not remember what you did last night and you shall be confused. You will see that you have nipple rings and a tattoo now and are covered in Sharpie. And Student was disturbed by this, but God said, you shall tell great stories about it to your friends someday. And Student understood and God took a sip of a beer. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; And God gave Student the final Commandment &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;X- Thou Shalt Gain Weight&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And Student wished to hear the final commandment and God said he would not like it. But Student insisted, so God said unto him, you shall gain weight. However, God said, you will not buy new clothes, so you will wear sweat pants a lot. God said, Student, you will watch a lot of TV and become fat to which Student wept profusely. But God comforted Student saying, you will still get ass even if you cannot tie your shoes anymore. Student felt better and God pointed to Student’s chest saying, those will soon be bitch tits. And it was good. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; This is the word of God, follow the Ten Commandments of College or you will be smote! &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114529446330544146?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114529446330544146/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114529446330544146&amp;isPopup=true' title='43 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529446330544146'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114529446330544146'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/ten-commandments-of-college-student.html' title='The ten commandments of a college student'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>43</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114503986831870942</id><published>2006-04-14T11:20:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-14T11:42:20.070-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Bike ride</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Yesterday was very stressful. It's April and the best time for professors to turn into Emperor Palpatine. I needed a break. The force within me is being stretched to it's limits. I decide to do something and walk towards my flat-mate's room. Now unlike me, a CS Major, he is a mathematician . He is one of those mathematicians whose goal in life is to reduce the essential mechanisms of the universe into a finite set of algorithms. He needed a break too. He is a biker and told me he would rent one more and teach me to ride a bike.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I scoffed at him saying that i don't need any tutoring. While he was away to rent the bike, i googled quicky on the gear mechanisms in a bike. Soon, the bike was there and i learnt my ropes quicky and pretty soon, i was on my way, in and around the parking area.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style="text-align: justify;" class="story-text"&gt;That night, we felt brave and decided to bike to the nearby donut shop. The ride goes smooth and while hot-rodding back to my place with the order of day-old donuts, we raised the                  ire of a campus police officer. He rolled out of his parking lot                  hiding place with siren and lights blazing. We were ahead of him                  at a T intersection, just three blocks from home. A quick conversation                  confirmed that there was no reason for both of us to get caught,                  so my friend turned right , and I turned left                  towards my place.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;               &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style="text-align: justify;" class="story-text"&gt;My heart beating ,since I had no permit to drive a mo-bike, I made a sharp left. Unfortunately, my karma lucked out and the police officer chose to follow me. I jumped                  the curb at a dairy barn, and crossed the back lawn towards my place; the police car was unable to follow. I scurried inside                  with our donuts. Another motorcycle friend of mine was working                  on his machine outside where I had parked. A minute later, the                  officer I had eluded came driving up, looking over the row of                  motorcycles. Pointing to my motorcycle, he asked my friend how                  long the bike had been there. My friend told him “about                  20 minutes.” The officer muttered an obscenity under his                  breath and departed. My friend came inside to collect his free                  donuts.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;             &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114503986831870942?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114503986831870942/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114503986831870942&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114503986831870942'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114503986831870942'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/bike-ride.html' title='The Bike ride'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114499530171424031</id><published>2006-04-13T22:44:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-14T11:09:56.610-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The force within ...</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;I am in the middle of the field. I call split double Z, fade right. From a corner of my eye, i could see my backup Peyton Manning, with an expression wishing he was the one with his hand under the center's ass.  Beside him, my coaches Sergey Brin ,Larry Page  and Bill Belichick, dreaming up the next great play. I call the play, fake to the tight end, the safety bites, I go long,  connect with my receiver... touch down... the crowd is going wild... they are going crazy... "student" &lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt; "student" &lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt; "hey yo!! switch it off"&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Huh! I rub my eyes,  curse my flat mate and pick up my phone.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Hello"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Hey Student... don't you check your cell phone text messages?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Its 12:30 in the morning... don't you ever sleep?" i ask dreamy eyed&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Well... we have a problem... come over immediately"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;Oh by the way, I work in the campus IT dept. I have worked with them since my freshman year and right now, I work as a senior network admin at my school. I show up and see the new software work study in there too. He proceeds to tell me the problem. He is seeing a spike in the network traffic in a sector of 25 Dell computers he worked on recently and showing me the network spike in his monitor.&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;All lights were green in infrastructure land, but performance had slowed to a bit of a crawl in that segment. Some diligent sniffing and log file snooping revealed the culprit.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;Turns out Windows XP’s Automatic Update had defaulted to high noon on a weekday, and all 25 machines attempted to download several hundred megs of Service Pack 2 simultaneously and individually. Instant network clog.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;The rookie used an older image of the OS on the new machines and set auto update on them instead of using &lt;span class="artText"&gt;WSUS (Windows Server Update Services).&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;Now i am pissed... first at my boss for calling me over this. He likes to call me over trivial issues even for not so widespread issues.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;Next, I focus my attention on the rookie. I pointed my hand at him and he began struggling for air. He clawed at his throat, his eyes bulging as he slid of his seat and hit the floor. He convulsed briefly before the final stillness. "You're fired," I said.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;"I am sorry, ... I should have known" the rookie says. I come back to reality, shrug and decide to storm into my boss's office to ask for a raise or give me firing rights. I decide against it and sit down in front of my computer.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;span class="artText"&gt;Moral of the story: Just because your help is technical doesn’t mean they’ll behave with any more attention to detail than the average Joe. If network uptime is your responsibility, then take responsibility and manage what needs managing.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;clap&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/brrrr&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/clap&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114499530171424031?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114499530171424031/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114499530171424031&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114499530171424031'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114499530171424031'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/force-within.html' title='The force within ...'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114499297650479948</id><published>2006-04-13T22:13:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-14T11:09:22.906-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Vending machine</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Well, what has come to be an accepted curse in college life, assignments are now integral to me. I just finished up on my latest project, to build test cases for a vending machine. Now, why on earth would someone want to test a vending machine. I found out a lot more details through my research and the number of variables is pretty interesting. You have to take care of expired food, temperature control, inventory lists... and the list goes on. Feel like &lt;a href="http://www.i-hacked.com/content/view/12/48/"&gt;hacking the dam thing&lt;/a&gt;. All day, I have been thinking of vending machines, I suddenly have a craving for a stiff drink.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I walk outside towards one of the vending machines. I meet a buddy of mine on the way&lt;br /&gt;"Wat's up?" ...&lt;br /&gt;"Wat's up?" ... was the reply&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;I continue towards my destination. I arrive finally. A freshman blond was there checking out the available items. I make sure Amanda is not around and continue to check out behind... ahem with her. I punch in the code and get my fresh input of caffeine into my system. I look at her and smile... she smiles back.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The force gnaws&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, I am torn in chatting with her and meditate with her, help remove her conflict of interests, or getting back to my room and indulge in a different kind of meditation: this journal. Now girls bring in good solace, but i think there is value in inward deep, too. I want to go back and plug away on my computer. I smile back again and walk back. Perhaps thse trivial detailings of my days, have sensitized me to an inner voice I could not perceive before.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Just before i turn the corner, i look back and see another, i guess a freshman dude talking to her. Ah!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Its 5:30 in the morning. I finally finish up my assignment. Looks like my 11AM class is a skip tomorrow. Time to catch a few winks&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114499297650479948?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114499297650479948/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114499297650479948&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114499297650479948'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114499297650479948'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/vending-machine.html' title='The Vending machine'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114494742547511796</id><published>2006-04-13T09:46:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-14T11:08:16.450-07:00</updated><title type='text'>My First song</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;So, what about this first song. Well this is unique because i just bought my &lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;first&lt;/span&gt; song. I had a good collection of songs but mostly from my high school, either ripped or burnt on CD's. Since i bought my ipod mini, my desire to fill it up grew.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, what was this first song. I heard it first on the radio and i just had to have it. I first enquired around my buddy circle to see if i can borrow their CD or ipod for a while. When none of them had it, i logged onto itunes and registered myself and lo and behold i had my first song.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The first song i bought was ironically, savin' me by Nickelback. I had an additional motivation after watching the &lt;a href="http://music.yahoo.com/video/30695877/?cid=1&amp;ps=0&amp;amp;tw=lmv&amp;fs=0&amp;amp;redirectURL=http://search.music.yahoo.com/search/?m=video&amp;p=nickelback&amp;amp;evid=undefined&amp;referer=undefined"&gt;music video on Yahoo Videos&lt;/a&gt;. This is the direct link to the video and you don't have to sign in or any of that crap. Very interesting video. Loved it&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A section in the lyrics goes like this&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;"  Show me what it’s like&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; To be the last one standing&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; And teach me wrong from right&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; And I’ll show you what I can be&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; And say it for me&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; Say it to me&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; And I’ll leave this life behind me&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; Say it if it’s worth savin me&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt; Hurry I’m falling "&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;It is representing my life.. show me what it's like to be the last one standing. Also my first legal song... teach me wrong from right and i'l show you what i can be.. wow. Good stuff&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114494742547511796?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114494742547511796/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114494742547511796&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114494742547511796'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114494742547511796'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/my-first-song.html' title='My First song'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25997830.post-114490285231998960</id><published>2006-04-12T21:19:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2006-04-14T11:07:51.193-07:00</updated><title type='text'>A new beginning</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;WoW, I never thought I would be writing my own blog one day. Well, today, I was watching 'The Truman Show', a Jim Carrey movie... wonderful movie really with my girl friend, lets call her Amanda and at that point she suggested me something. Now, Amanda has been one my closest confidant besides being my girl friend, where our conversations have always helped me clarify matters, though she was no mentor -- rather, could be a good friend and closest thing to being a guy without bringing all the girly stuff, well at least for the most part. She never told me what to think but helped me how to find the answers myself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;She made a suggestion I admit I considered absurd.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You should try keeping a journal," she said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"A journal?" I echoed. "Do you mean I should write a book?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"No, no," smiled Amanda. "I mean like a diary."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Like a teenage girl?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Well, not entirely unlike a teenage girl, I suppose.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"I promise you Student, it helps."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;And so I have decided to make good on Amanda's advice and have begun this journal. I do not know how long the experiment will last, but I admit that I wanted to keep a track of all the stuff I go through and hopefully through my blog, I will be able to show you a glimpse in a college student's life.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Welcome to the Student Rant.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Okay, introductions first. As you might have guessed, I am a student, a college student. I shall remain anonymous but I shall be giving out relevant details pertaining to my blog. I am a male, going to a technical university in the good ol' United States of America.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So what will this blog be? Well, for starters, it will give you a glimpse into my life going through the rigors and grinds of a college life. I have a dream, that some years down the line, when I have a real job, I will still be able to continue my story, well... because the show has to go on. Also, to keep you getting bored by listening or reliving tidbits from my life, I will be posting comments about interesting technical stories, stories from my classes, stuff I learn, acquire, plagiarize... ok not really but you get the idea.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Keep an i out for future posts&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/25997830-114490285231998960?l=student-rant.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/feeds/114490285231998960/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=25997830&amp;postID=114490285231998960&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114490285231998960'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/25997830/posts/default/114490285231998960'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://student-rant.blogspot.com/2006/04/new-beginning.html' title='A new beginning'/><author><name>Student</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/01386808996372993341</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>
