Ryan - ProfilesArchive

About Me

I'm a computer geek with strong bookish tendencies, or is it the other way around? Anyway, I say one thing at job interviews, the other at parties. I live in Cambridge and write software for my day job. Definitely an "outdoorsy" person -- I'm very attached to my bike, know how to pack a backpack and set up a tent, and can run 10 miles. I'm also a big fan of the word "definitely" and tend to overuse it in my writing (along with "tend"). Yep, I love to write, mostly self-indulgently (as you can see from my blog here). Someday I'd like to generate some quality works of fiction or non-fiction, but it's a slow-simmering pot. Love to read, too, of course -- the ipod and audiobooks have been a godsend for workouts and commuting. what else? Straight, single, left-of-center, manage to seem shy sometimes, outgoing other times, get along well with anyone willing to be gotten along with. Myers-Briggs personality type: INTP. And I know how to Lindy Hop. Kinda.

My Interests

Writing, books, artificial intelligence/life, game development, general computer geekery, running, hiking, bicycling, music exchanges, getting out there and making friends

I'd like to meet:

People who are into hiking, cycling, and/or playing geeky board games. People are are smart and literate. People who are quirky and stylin'. People I knew at some point in the past, but haven't seen in a while. People I might know better at some point in the future.

Music:

*** Rockin' (or at least strummin'): The Clash, Bad Religion, Rush, Joe Strummer, Tenacious D, Sleater-Kinney, U2, Green Day, The Police, Soundtrack of Our Lives, Dropkick Murphys, Talking Heads, Dar Williams, Michael Franti, Maximum Indifference, Deathcab for Cutie, Peter Gabriel*** Chillin': Coldplay, Ozric Tentacles, Djam Karet, Global Communication, Tangerine Dream, Steve Roach, Pete Namlook, Future Sound of London, The Orb, Orbital*** I like just about any music that's got complexity, texture, energy, hooks, a heart, and a brain.

Movies:

Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Big Lebowski, A Waking Life, Akira, others I can't think of at the moment

Television:

I don't watch TV, partly because I have too many other interests, and partly because I've been not watching TV for so long that I'd be lost with any of the current hot shows anyway.

Books:

I read a great deal and often have an audiobook going in my ipod. Some favorites: A Soldier of the Great War, by Mark Helprin; Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson; Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; The Song of Fire and Ice series, by George R.R. Martin; Middlesex; For Whom the Bell Tolls; Ender's Game; A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson; Life of Pi; The March, by E.L. Doctorow; Surely You're Joking, Mr Feynmann; Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse; The Satanic Verses, by Salman Rushdie; Slaughterhouse Five; Catch 22; Microserfs

Heroes:

I'm not really the hero-worshipping type, but I admire the writers Mark Helprin, Neal Stephenson, Kurt Vonnegut, E.L. Doctorow, and Steven Levy (Hackers). I also feel a basic obligational sense of admiration towards Einstein (a fellow INTP), Stephen Hawking, and the philosopher Bertrand Russell.

My Blog

A Departure

A friend of mine is moving away, for good. We weren't really close friends, but we had been part of the same church group for several years and had become familiar with each other's lives and ways. I ...
Posted by Ryan on Wed, 02 Jul 2008 05:15:00 PST

Yeeeeah!

I finally outlasted my friend Ben on a bike ride. Last year, he kicked my ass, but this time, I wore that 24 year-old boy out. We did about a 20 mph pace, which was challenging, but my legs were now s...
Posted by Ryan on Sun, 29 Jun 2008 10:09:00 PST

The Hungry Marines

For lunch, I go to this place that serves supposedly healthy food. It's not the best, but I'm unambitious about lunch and it's right by my office.Aside from their main food counter, they also have a s...
Posted by Ryan on Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:02:00 PST

Bad naked man

Day 1: I'm in the locker room at my gym. A man is standing around talking on his cell phone. While completely naked. A minute later, he's peeing at the urinal. Still naked, still on the phone.Day 2: T...
Posted by Ryan on Thu, 19 Jun 2008 06:49:00 PST

Happy 40th Anniversary, Mom and Dad

They celebrated with a big family brunch the other weekend. This is the toast I read for them: The other night, my parents were doing what parents usually do with offspring in their 30...
Posted by Ryan on Tue, 10 Jun 2008 04:26:00 PST

More thoughts on The Singularity

While driving through Vermont yesterday, I found myself thinking more about The Singularity, and how I might explain it to a layperson. Here's what I came up with:By 2050, possibly sooner, we will und...
Posted by Ryan on Sat, 31 May 2008 09:41:00 PST

Intelligence versus knowledge

Someone on a message board posed the question of what the difference is between the two. Since I've been thinking about the two a lot, partly out of philosophical interest, and partly out of a de...
Posted by Ryan on Sat, 31 May 2008 08:23:00 PST

On the ferry, 5/30

Writing this on the lake ferry from NY state to VT. The day is graying; it looks like it's going to rain in a few hours. The mountains look oddly ephemeral in the haze, just solid blue silhouettes, mo...
Posted by Ryan on Sat, 31 May 2008 07:08:00 PST

Biking Zen

Still at my folks'. I went for another bike ride yesterday -- an easy 45 miles! This time, I kept my ipod in my saddlebag. I found, somehow, that I enjoyed the experience more without it. I just felt ...
Posted by Ryan on Fri, 30 May 2008 07:14:00 PST

Tired

I biked a 63 mile loop through hilly Adirondack country today. I was toast by the end of it. I stopped at an ice cream stand around mile 45 and inhaled a plate of onion rings and an ice cream. I'm sur...
Posted by Ryan on Wed, 28 May 2008 08:12:00 PST